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TINUED "),  or  the  symbol  y  (meaning  "END"), 
whichever  applies. 


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1 

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I 


fe' 


/ 


V 


I 


THE 


TREASURY  OF  HISTORY; 


BEiira  A 


HISTORY  OF  THE  WORLD : 


OOXFEISINO 


A  GENEEAL  IIISTOKY,  BOTH.  AXCIENT  AND  MODEKN, 


ALL  THE  PRINCIPAL  NATIONS  OF  THE  GLOBE, 

THEIB   RISE,    PROGRKSH,    I'RESENI    CONDITION,    ETC. 

BY   SAMUEL    MAUNDER, 

AUTHOR  OF  "the  TREASDRY  OF  KNOWLKDOK,"   "  BIOQRATHICAL  TRBASDRY,"  ETC. 
TO  WRICn   IS   ADDED, 

A  COMPLETE  HISTORY  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES  TO  THE 
PRESENT  TIME, 

INCLUDINO 

€^  rntc  Wm  luitl;  ^Inm,  Cnlifnniin,  rtr. 

EDITED  BY  JOHN  INMAN,  ESQ. 

THK  WHOLE  EMBELLISHED  WITH  NtlMEKOlS  ENOIiAVIXliS,   (lioME  OF  WHICH   ARE 
BEAUTIFULLV  Cnl.oltKI))   IIEI'IIESENTINO  BATTLE  SrENES,  VIEWS  OF  CITIES 
THE  CnySTAI,    PALACE,    FI.A09   OF  THE   DIFFEIiENT    NATIONB,  ' 

CORONATIONS,   PROCESSIONS,  COSTUMES,   ETC.   ETC. 

IN     TWO      VOLUMES. 
VOL.    I. 


NEW  YORK: 
PUBLISHED    BY    HENRY    BILL. 

1852. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  CongresB,  in  the  year  1861, 

Bt  Henat  Bni., 

In  Uio  Clerk's  ^ce  of  the  District  Court  for  the  Southern  District  of  New  Tork. 


INTRODUCTION  TO  THE  AMERICM  EDITION. 


.  r 


ear  18B1. 

District  of  New  York. 


The  republication  of  this  valuable  work  has  been  undertaken  partly 
on  account  of  the  high  favour  with  which  it  has  been  received  in  Eng- 
land, but  chiefly  in  consideration  of  its  intrinsic  value,  arising  from  the 
felicitous  adaptation  of  the  plan  to  a  want  that  has  been  long  and  gen- 
erally felt,  and  from  the  judgment  and  fidelity  manifested  in  its  execution. 
The  idea  of  giving  in  a  single  work,  of  no  very  formidable  dimensions, 
and  at  a  price  which  brings  it  within  the  reach  of  very  moderate  circum- 
stances, a  sufficient  outline  of  the  world's  whole  history,  and  similar  out- 
lines of  the  history  of  every  nation,  is  so  obviously  judicious  and  appro- 
priate as  to  require  no  eulogium.  Every  person  who  cares  at  all  for  the 
acquisition  of  useful  knowledge,  must  desire  to  possess  such  a  general 
knowledge  of  past  events,  not  only  in  his  own  country  but  in  all  coun- 
tries, as  shall  enable  him  to  understand  the  perpetually  recurring  allu- 
sions that  are  found  in  almost  any  course  of  general  reading;  because 
for  want  of  such  understanding  there  is  always  a  serious  diminution  both 
of  pleasure  and  profit,  even  in  the  perusal  of  such  works  as  are  designed 
chiefly  for  amusement.  For  instance,  most  of  Sir  Walter  Scott's  novels 
are  founded  upon  history,  and  abound  with  references  to  historical  events 
and  personages,  a  want  of  some  acquaintance  with  which  detracts  se- 
riously from  the  interest  and  delight  they  s'f  ho  wel?  quc.'.ified  to  awaken 
and  so  of  most  other  works  belonging  tie  better  class  of  what  is 
called  light  literature.  But  the  difficulty  has  -een  to  obtain  this  genera, 
knowledge  without  going  through  many  books,  requiring  a  greater  ex- 
penditure of  time  and  money  than  most  persons  are  able  or  willing  to 
afford ;  and  to  obviate  such  difficulty  has  been  the  purpose  of  Mr.  Maun- 
der. 

His  plan  has  the  merit  of  completeness,  and  is  undoubtedly  the  best 
that  could  have  been  desired.  He  gives  first  a  general  sketch  of  ancient 
and  modern  history — a  rapid  and  comprehensive  bird's-eye  view,  as  it 
were,  of  the  rise  and  progress  of  nations,  the  most  important  incidents 
of  tlieir  career,  and  their  relations  to  each  other;  and  after  this  he  takes 
up  I  lie  nations  separately,  furnisliing  a  concise  digest  of  all  that  it  is  im- 
portiiiit  or  desirable  to  know  concerning  each,  and  thus  affording  a  sort 
of  key  to  the  changes  and  events  that  were  more  briefly  indicated,  rather 
t>y  their  results  than  by  their  incidents,  in  the  general  sketch  or  outline. 


A  s^t^p 


%  /■ 


*,■ 


<  .^.' /  ■  v. 


T» 


INTRODUCTION. 


'I'tius  the  salient  points  of  history  are  broufl;ht  within  a  manageable  com- 
pass, and  an  excellent  foundation  is  laid  for  more  thorough  and  extensive 
reading  in  reference  to  any  portion  of  the  world  or  any  epoch  of  which 
a  complete  knowledge  may  be  desired. 

In  the  execution  of  this  plan  the  author  has  been  very  successful.  His 
notices  of  historical  events,  though  brief,  are  lucid  and  satisfactory ;  and 
he  traces  the  connection  of  effect  and  cause  with  singular  acuintii  and 
generally  with  most  commendable  freedom  from  partiality  or  bias ;  thus 
supplying  a  very  good  idea  of  the  philosophy  of  history  as  well  as  of 
the  facts  which  history  records. 

Upon  the  portion  devoted  to  American  History  particular  attention  has 
been  bestowed  in  this  edition,  in  order  to  supply  a  deficiency  which  has 
long  been  felt  regarding  the  events  which  have  transpired  since  the  war 
of  the  Revolution. 

While  most  historians  have  deemed  that  the  reader  and  student  need 
to  be  particularly  well  informed  with  respect  to  every  engagement  which 
has  occurred  in  our  struggle  for  liberty,  they  have  almost  entirely  over- 
looked the  equally  important  measures  and  events  which  have  transpired 
in  cabinet  and  in  council.  To  remedy  this  neglect  has  been  aimed  at  in 
this  history,  and  consequently  the  editor  has  contented  himself  with  a 
recapitulation  of  the  battles  of  the  Revolution,  which  wHl  be  found  suffi- 
ciently minute  for  the  general  reader,  and  devoted  himself  more  fully  to 
an  account  of  the  political  history  of  the  nation  since  the  close  of  the 
war,  thus  supplying  a  narrative,  which,  though  long  wanted,  has  never 
yet  been  given  in  a  connected  an'I  distinct  form.  In  a  word,  the  work 
will  be  found  invaluable  to  the  general  reader,  and  a  very  useful  help  to 
the  studep* 


i 


f 


i 
4' 


> 
.1 


'  i9^M^ 


CONTENTS    OF   VOL.   I. 


^9 


PRELIMINARY  OBSERVATIONS, 

Historical,  Cbbonolooical,  and  Okoobaphical 
Tbb  OiTiaioNS  or  Histobt    .... 

General  Histobt  of  Modern  Eurofc 
CimoNOLoaT    ....... 

Geoqrafrical  Sketch  or  the  World  ■        . 
Divisions  or  the  Earth        .... 


19 
21 
31 
38 
39 
80 


INTRODUCTORY  OUTLINE  SKETCH  OP  GENERAL 

HISTORY. 

CHAPTER  I.— Of  the  Origin  of  the  Worid,  and  the  FrimitiTe  Condition  of 

Mankind 83 

CHAFTEB  II.— From  the  Delage  to  the  Settlement  of  the  Jews  in  Canaan    .    35 

CHAPTER  in. — The  Fabulous  and  Heroic  Ages,  x^,  the  institation  of  the 

Olympic  Games 37 

CHAPTER  IV.— From  the  institution  of  the  Olympic  Games,  to  the  death  of 

Cyrus 3S 

CHAPTER  V. — From  the  erection  of  the  Persian  Empire,  to  the  divinon  of 

the  Grecian  Empire  after  the  Death  of  Alexander         .        .        .        .40 

CH  .irr*  ,R  VI.— From  the  Wars  of  Rome  and  Carthage,  to  the  Birth  of  Christ    41 

CHAPTER  VII. — From  the  beginning  of  the  Christian  era,  to  the  appearance 

of  Mahomet 49 

CHAPTER  VIII. — From  the  rise  of  Mahomet,  to  the  commencement  of  the 

Crusades 45 

CHAPTER  IX.— From  the  first  Crusade,  to  the  Death  of  Saladin  .        .  .  48 

CHAPTER  X.— From  the  Death  of  Saladin,  to  the  end  of  the  Crusades .  .  82 

CHAPTER  XI.— From  the  time  of  Genghis  Khan,  to  that  of  Tamerlane  .  54 

CHAPTER  XII.— From  the  time  of  Tamerlane,  to  the  Sixteenth  Century  .  65 

CHAPTER  XIII.— The  Reformation,  and  progress  of  events  during  the  Siz> 

teecth  Century 55 


Vi  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XIV. — From  tno  commencement  of  the  S:  venteenth  Centniy,  to 

the  Peace  of  Westphalia ...    59 

CHAPTEB  XV.— From  the  Civil  War  in  England,  to  the  Peace  of  Ryswick  .    61 

CHAPTEB  XVI.— Commencement  of  the  Eighteenth  Century,  to  the  Peace 

of  Utraoht .64 

CHAPTEB  XVIL— The  Age  of  Charles  XII.  of  Sweden,  and  Peter  the  Great 

of  BoMia 68 

CHAPTEB  XVIII.— The  Affairs  of  Europe,  from  the  establishment  of  the 

Hanoverian  Succession  in  England,  to  the  year  1740     ....    7 

CHAPTEB  XIX.— From  the  accession  of  the  Empress  Theresa,  of  Austria,  to 

the  Peace  of  Aiz-la-Chapelle 72 

CHAPTEB  XX. — Progress  of  events  during  the  Seven  Years'  War  in  Europe, 

America,  and  the  East  Indies 75 

CHAPTEB  XXL— From  the  conclusion  of  the  Seven  Years'  War,  to  the  final 

partition  of  Poland 79 

CHAPTEB  XXII. — From  the  commencement  of  the  American  War,  to  the 

recognition  of  the  Independence  of  the  United  States  .        .        .81 

CHAPTER  XXIII.— From  the  commencement  of  the  French  Berolntin!!,  to 

the  death  of  Bobespierre 83 

CHAPTEB  XXLV.— From  the  establishment  of  the  French  Directorv  to  the 

Peace  of  Amiens 85 

CHAPTEB  XXV.— From  the  recommencement  of  Hostilities,  to  the  treaty  of 

Tilsit 88 

i- 
CHAPTEB  XXVI. — The  French  Invasion  of  Spain,  and  subsequent  Peninsu- 
lar War         89 

CHAPTEB  XXVII.— From,  the  Invasion  of  Bussia  by  the  French,  to  the  res- 
toration of  the  Bourbon^ 90 

CHAPTEB  XXVIII.— From  the  return  of  Bonaparte  from  Elba,  to  the  Gen- 
eral Peace , 93 

EUBOPE— ASIA— AFBICA— AMEBICA       ...  95 


A  SERIES  OF  SEPARATE  HISTORIES. 


THE  HISTOEY  OF  ENGLAND. 

BRITISH     AND     ROMAX      PERIOD. 

CHAPTEB  1. — The  British  and  Boman  Period,  to  the  Subjugation  of  the  Is- 
land by  the  Saxons ... 

THB     HEPTARCRT. 

CHAPTEB  n.— The  Heptarchy,  or  the  seven  Kingdoms  of  the  Saxons  in 


97 


Britain  . 


itr 


» 


.q^ 


64 


72 


79 


.    82 

a 
.    85 

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.    88 

a- 
.    89 

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CONTBNT& 
CHAPTER  III.— The  Heptarchy  (continued) 
CHAPTER  IV.— The  Heptarchy  (concluded) 


m 


1.N0LQ-S  AXOil    iciiia*. 

CHAPTER  v.— The  Anglo-Saxons  after  the  Diaiolution  of  the  Heptarchy.— 
Reigns  of  Egbert,  Ethel  wolf,  and  Ethelbald 

CHAPTER  VI.— The  reigns  of  Ethelbert  and  Etheked         .... 

CHAPTER  VII.— The  reign  of  Alfred  the  Great  ...... 

CHAPTER  VIII.— History  of  the  Anglo-Saxons,  from  the  Death  of  Alfred 
the  Great  to  the  reign  of  Edward  the  Martyr 

CHAPTER  IX.— From  the  accession  of  Edward  the  Martyr  to  the  death  of 
Canute •••••.» 

CHAPTER  X  — The  reigns  of  Harold  and  Hardicanute        .... 

CHAPTER  XI.— The  reign  of  Edward  the  Confessor    .       .  .        . 

CHAPTER  XII.— The  reign  of  Harold  the  Second 

NORMAN     LINK. 

CHAPTER  XIII.— The  reign  of  William  I.,  usually  styled  "Willlun  the  Con- 
queror"        k 

CHAPTER  XIV.— The  reign  of  William  I.  (continued)        .... 

CHAPTER  XT.- The  reign  of  WiJliam  II 

CHAPTER  XVI.— The  reign  of  Henry  I 

CHAPTER  XVII.— The  reign  of  Stephen 


ons  in 


iir 


FLANTAOSNSTS. 

CHAPTER  XVITI.— The  reign  nf  Henry  II. ;  preceded  by  Observations  on 

the  right  a\  the  English  to  territory  in  Franca 

CHAPTER  XIX.— The  reign  of  Henry  II.  (continued) 
CHAPTER  XX.— The  reign  of  Henry  U.  (concluded) 
CHAPTER  XXL— The  reign  of  Richard  I.   .        . 
CHAPTER  XXII.— The  reign  of  John  . 
CHAPTER  XXIII.— The  reign  of  Henry  IIL 
CHAPTER  XXIV.— The  reign  of  Edward  I. 
CHAPTER  XXV.— Tlie  reign  of  Edward  II. 
CHAPTER  XXVI.— The  reign  of  Edward  IIL     . 
CHAPTER  XXVn.— The  reign  of  Richard  IL      . 

HOUSE     07     LANOASTIE. 

CHAPTER  XXVIIL— The  reign  of  Henry  IV.     . 
CHAPTER  XXIX.— The  reign  of  Henry  V. 
CHAPTER  XXX.— The  reign  of  Henry  VL 


iss 

129 

134 

14« 
195 
197 
163 


167 
175 
185 
192 
202 


209 
219 
229 
234 
241 
265 
278 
896 
307 
326 

342 
349 
359 


f^  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XXXI.— The  reign  of  Henry  VI.  (continued) 
CHAPTEB  XXXU.— The  reign  of  Henry  VI.  (concluded) 

BOVSI    or     TORK. 

CHAPTER  XXXra.— The  reign  of  Edward  IV.  . 
CHAPTER  XXXIV.— The  reign  of  Edward  V.  . 
CHAPTER  XXXV.— The  reign  of  Richaid  HI.    . 


H0V8K     or     TUDOB. 

CHAPTER  XXXVI.— The  reign  of  Henry  VII.    . 
CHAPTER  XXXVII.— The  reign  of  Henry  VII.  (continued) 
CHAPTER  XXXVm.— The  reign  of  Henry  VII.  (concluded) 
CHAPTER  XXXIX.— The  reign  of  Henry  VIII.  . 
CHAPTER  XL.— The  reign  of  Henry  VIII.  (continued) 
CHAPTER  XLI.— The  reign  of  Henry  VIII.  (concluded) 
CHAPTER  XLII.— The  reign  of  Edward  VI. 
CHAPTER  XLIII.— The  reign  of  Edward  VI.  (concluded) 
CHAPTER  XLIV.— The  reign  of  Mary 
CHAPTER  XL  v.— The  reign  of  Mary  (concluded) 
CHAPTER  XLVL-Tho  reign  of  Elizabeth  , 
CHAPTER  XLVII.— The  reign  of  Elizabeth  (concluded) 

H0D8I     or    STDART. 

CHAPTEB  XLVni.— The  reign  of  James  I. 
CHAPTER  XLIX.— The  reign  of  James  I.  (concluded) 
CHAPTER  L.— The  reign  of  Charles  I. 
CHAPTER  LI.— The  reign  of  Charles  I.  (continned) 
CHAPTER  LII.— The  reign  of  Charles  I.  (concluded) 


TRK     COMMOHWIALTH. 

CHAPTER  LIIL— The  Commonwoalth 

HOOSB    or    ITVART. 

CHAPTER  LIV.— The  rnign  of  Charles  IL 
CHAPTER  LV.— The  reign  of  Jamos  II. 
CHAPTER  LVI.— The  reign  of  Willinm  IIL 
CHAPTER  LVII.— The  reign  of  Anne 


HOUSE     or    aRDNIWIOIt 

CHAPTER  .    'III.— The  Reign  of  George  \. 
CHAPTER  LI X.  -The  reign  of  Oeorgw  H. 


870 
S81 

39* 
405 
419 


.  4M 

.  434 

,  431 

.  431 

.  443 

.  453 

.  470 

.  479 

.  485 

.  498 

.  609 

.  538 


847 
558 
567 
573 
586 


.    598 


605 
616 
633 
638 

684 
640 


m 

S81 

an 

405 
,    419 

.  4W 
.  424 
,  43S 
.    431 

.    443 
.    453 

.    470 
.    4T9 

.  485 
.  498 
.  509 
.    538 

.  547 

.  558 

.  567 

.  572 

.  586 

,        .    598 

.  605 

.        .  616 

,        .  623 

.  698 


coNTEirrs.  u 

CHAPTER  LX.— The  reign  of  George  III C52 

CHAPTER  LXI.— The  Reign  of  George  HI.  (continued)      ....  669 

CHAPTER  LXII.— The  reign  of  George  HI.  (continued)     .       .       .       .086 

CHAPTER  LXni.— The  reign  of  George  m.  (the  Regency)                .        .  702 

CHAPTER  LXIV.— The  reign  of  George  IV. U 

CHAPTER  LXV.— The  reign  of  William  IV. 738 

CHAPTER  LXVI— The  reign  of  Victoria 7i» 

2 


4 


634 
640 


) 


)) 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 

V  O  L  U  M  K    I. 

To  faca  pag« 

Landing  of  Julius  C^sar 100 

iioADICEA    IIAKANGUI.VG    THK    BlUTISII    TrIBES 105 

York,  from  the  Ancient   Ramparts 174 

Death  of  Prince  William  and  his  Sister 201 

Hubert  and  Prince  Arthur 251 

Earl  Varenne  defending}  the  Title  to  his   Estates..    .  280 

Queen  Phii.ipi'a  inierceuino  for  the  Burgesses  of  Calais  320 

Death  of  Wat  Tyler 329 

Murder  of  the  Princes  in  the  Tower 411 

Trial  op  Quee.n   Catherine 452 

Trial    of    Lambert   before   Henry  VIH.,  in   Westminster 

Hall 466 

Queen  Elizabeth 509 

Surrender  of  Mary  Queen  of  Scots  at  Carherry  Hill.,  524 

Loch  Levin  Castle '. 525 

Charles  L  and  Armor  Bearer 567 

Trial  of  Charles  I 586 

Cromwell  dissolvino  the  Lono  Parliament 59S 

Defeat  of  the  Dutch  Fleet  by  Blake ...  600 

Dea  I'll   OF  Ueneiial  Wolfe .  651 


I 


PRELIMINARY   OBSERVATIONS. 


HrSTORICAL,  CHRONOLOGICAL,    AND   GEOGRAPHICAL. 


To  faca  page 
100 

105 

174 

201 

251 

»..    .     280 
Calais  320 

329 

..   411 
..   452 

INSTCR 

. .  .   4f)6 

...    509 

iiLL..   524 

...   525 

...  667 

.    .   686 

. .     59S 

...   600 

.   651 


"It  is  not  without  reason,"  says  llollin,  "that  History  has  always 
been  considered  as  the  light  of  ages,  the  depository  of  events,  the  raitlifui 
evidence  of  trnth,  the  source  of  prudence  and  good  counsel,  and  the  rule 
or  conduct  and  manners.  Confined  witiiout  it  to  the  boinids  of  the  age 
and  country  wherein  we  live,  and  shut  up  witiiin  the  narrow  circle  of 
such  brantfhes  of  knowledge  as  are  peculiar  to  us,  and  the  limits  of  our 
own  private  reflections,  we  continue  in  a  kind  of  infancy,  which  leaves  us 
strangers  to  the  rest  of  the  world,  and  profoundly  ignunint  of  all  that  has 
preceded,  or  even  now  surrounds  us.  What  is  the  small  number  of  years 
that  make  up  the  lonjfest  lile,  or  what  the  extent  of  country  which  we  are 
able  to  progress  or  travel  over,  but  an  imperceptible  point  in  comparison 
to  the  vast  regions  of  the  universe,  and  the  long  series  of  ages  which  have 
succeeded  one  another  since  the  creation  of  the  world  1  And  yet  all  we 
are  capable  of  knowing  must  be  limited  to  this  imperceptible  point,  unless 
we  call  in  the  study  of  History  to  our  assistance,  which  opens  to  us  every 
age  and  every  country,  keeps  up  a  correspondence  between  us  and  the 
great  men  of  antiquity,  sets  all  their  actions,  all  their  achievements,  vir- 
tues and  faults  before  our  eyes ;  and,  by  t'le  prudent  reflections  it  either 
presents,  or  gives  us  an  opportunity  of  making,  soon  teaches  us  to  be 
wise  before  our  time,  and  is  in  a  maimer  far  superior  to  all  the  lessons  of 
the  gre!itest  masters.  •  •  •  It  is  History  which  Axes  the  seal  of  im 
mortality  upon  actions  truly  great,  and  sets  a  mark  of  infamy  on  vices 
which  no  after  age  can  ever  obliterate.  It  is  by  History  that  mistaken 
merit  and  oppressed  virtue,  appeal  to  the  incorruptible  tribunal  of  pos- 
terity, whit-li  renders  them  the  justice  their  own  age  has  sometimes  refused 
them,  and  without  respect  of  persons,  and  the  fear  of  a  power  which  sub- 
sists no  more,  condemns  the  unjust  abuse  of  authority  with  inexorable 
rigour.  •  •  •  •  Thus  History,  when  it  is  well  taught,  becomes  a 
ttchool  of  morality  for  all  mankind.  It  condemns  vice,  throws  off  the 
mask  from  fulse  virtues,  lays  open  popular  •  rrors  and  prejudices,  dispels 
the  delusive  clinrms  of  riches,  and  all  the  vain  pomp  which  dazzles  the 
imagination,  and  shews,  by  a  thousand  examples,  that  are  more  availing 
than  all  reiisiinint;s  whatsoever,  that  nothing  is  great  and  commendable 
but  honour  and  probity."  The  foregoing  exordium  is  as  just  as  it  is  elo- 
quent— as  apposite  as  it  is  roniplcie. 

It  has  been  very  truly  remarked,  that  the  love  of  fame,  and  a  desire 
to  communicate  inforniation,  have  influenced  men  in  almost  every  iige  and 
every  nation,  to  leave  behiinl  them  simic  memorials  u(  their  existence, 
actions  and  di8cov<'ries.  In  the  earliest  ages  of  the  world,  the  mode  oi 
conveying  to  i  ■<tcrity  an  account  of  important  facts  was  very  vague  and 
iiniertain:  the  most  obvicnm  and  easy  was  first  resorted  to.  ^riius,  wheti 
JoHliua  led  llie  twelve  tribes  of  Isriiel  ovei  the  river  .Ionian,  in  a  niirac 
uliiiis  manner,  he  set  up  twelve  stones  for  a  memorial ;  but  it  was  necea- 
BMiy  for  iradiliun  to  explain  the  uiruuiustanvet  which  gave  rise  lu  it ;  and 


so 


PRELIMIMARY  OBSERVATIONS, 


he  said  accordingly,  "When  your  children  shall  ask  their  fathers,  in 
time  to  come,  what  mean  these  stones  1  Then  ye  shall  let  vour  child- 
ren know,  saying,  Israel  came  over  this  Jordan  on  dry  land  '  (Joshua, 
c.  iv.,  V.  SI.)  Poets  who  sung  to  the  harp  the  praises  ot  deceased 
warriors  at  the  tables  of  kings,  are  mentioned  by  Homer :  the  Scandi- 
navians, Gauls,  and  Germans,  had  their  bards;  and  the  savages  of  Amer- 
ica preserved  similar  memorials  in  the  wild  strains  of  their  country.  To 
supply  the  defects  of  such  oral  tradition  as  this,  founders  of  states  and 
leaders  of  colonies  gave  their  own  names  to  cities  and  kingdoms ;  and 
national  festivals  and  games  were  exhibited  to  commemorate  extraordi- 
nary events. 

From  such  imperfect  attempts  to  rescue  the  past  from  the  ravages  of 
time  and  oblivion,  the  progress  to  inscriptions  of  various  kinds  was 
made  soon  after  the  invention  of  letters.  The  Babylonians  recorded  their 
first  astronomical  observations  upon  ori.k  - ;  and  the  mosi  ancient  monu- 
ments of  Cliinese  literature  were  inscribed  upon  tables  of  stone.  In 
Greece  and  Rome  very  similar  methods  were  sometimes  idopted ;  two 
very  curious  monuments  of  which  are  till  extant — the  Arindelian  mar- 
bles, upon  which  arc  inscribed,  in  J  reek  capital  letters,  soine  records  of 
the  early  history  of  Greece ;  and  tlie  names  of  the  consuls  registered 
upon  the  Capitohne  marbles  at  Rome.  Such  was  the  rude  commencement 
of  annals  and  historical  records.  But  when,  in  succeeding  times,  nations 
became  more  civilized,  and  the  various  branches  of  literature  were  cul- 
tivated, persons  employed  themselves  in  recording  the  actions  of  their 
contemporaries,  or  their  ancestors;  and  history  by  degrees  assumed  its 
proper  form  and  character.  At  length  "  the  great  masters  of  the  art  arose, 
and  after  repeated  essays,  produced  the  harmonious  light  and  shade,  the 
glowing  colours  and  animated  groups  of  a  perfect  picture." 

"  All  history,"  says  Dryden,  "  is  only  the  precepts  of  moral  philoso- 
phy, reduced  into  examples."  He  also  observes,  "the  laws  of  history  in 
general  are  truth  of  matter,  method,  and  clearness  of  expression.  The 
first  property  is  necessary,  to  keep  our  understanding  from  the  imposi- 
tions of  falsehood,  for  history  is  an  argument  framed  from  many  partic- 
ular examples  or  inductions:  if  these  examples  arc  not  true,  then  those 
measures  of  life  which  we  take  from  them,  will  be  false,  and  deceive  ua 
in  their  consequences.  The  seccmd  is  grounded  on  the  former;  for  if  the 
method  be  confused,  if  the  words  or  expressions  of  thought  be  obscure, 
then  the  ideas  which  we  receive  must  be  imperfect,  and  if  such,  we  are 
not  tauffht  by  them  what  to  elect,  or  what  to  shun.  Truth,  therefore,  ia 
required  as  the  foundation  of  history,  to  inform  us;  disposition  and  per- 
spicuity, as  the  manner  to  inform  us  plainly." 

The  maimer  in  whi(rh  History  ought  to  be  studied  is  the  next  impor- 
tant consideration.  To  draw  the  line  of  proper  distinction,  says  a  judi- 
cious writer  on  this  subject,  is  the  first  object  of  the  discerning  reader. 
Let  him  not  burden  his  memory  with  events  that  ougtit  perhaps  to  pass 
for  fables;  let  him  not  fatigue  his  attention  with  the  progress  of  empires, 
or  the  succession  of  kings,  which  are  thrown  back  into  the  most  remote 
ages.  He  will  find  that  little  dependence  is  to  be  placed  upon  the  rela- 
tions of  those  aflfairs  in  the  Pagan  world,  which  preceded  the  invention 
of  letters,  and  were  built  upon  mere  oral  traililion.  Let  him  leave  the 
dynasties  of  the  Kgyptian  kinss,  the  expeditions  of  Sesoatris,  B.icchus, 
and  Jason,  and  the  exploits  "f  Hercules  and  Theseus,  for  poets  to  em- 
bellish, or  chronologists  to  arrange.  The  fabulous  Hccuiiiits  of  these 
heroes  of  antiquity  may  icinind  him  of  the  sandy  deserts,  lofty  mount- 
ains, and  frozen  oceans,  which  are  laid  down  in  the  maps  of  the  ancieiil 
flpographers,  to  conceal  their  ignorance  of  remote  countries.  Let  him 
hasten  to  firm  ground,  where  he  may  safely  stand,  and  behold  the  strik- 
ing events  and  memoiable  actions  which  the  light  of  authentic  record 


HISTORICAL.  CHRONOLOGICAL  AND  GEOGRAPHICAL. 


21 


displays  to  his  view.  They  alone  are  amply  sufficient  to  enrich  his  mem- 
ory, and  to  point  oui  to  him  well-attested  examples  of  all  that  is  magnan- 
imous, -IS  well  as  all  that  is  vile ; — of  all  that  has  debased,  and  all  that 
has  ennobled  mankind. 


THE  DIVISIONS  OF  HISTORY. 

Considered  with  respect  to  the  nature  of  its  subjects,  History  may  be 
divided  into  General  and  Particttlar;  and  with  respect  to  time,  into  Ancient 
and  Modern. 

Ancient  FIistory  commences  with  the  creation,  and  ends  in  the  year 
of  Ciirist  476,  with  the  destruction  of  the  Roman  empire  in  the  West 
Modern  History  commences  from  the  fall  of  that  empire,  and  extends  to 
the  present  time.  Ancient  History  is  divided  into  two  parts,  or  ages ; 
the  fabulous  and  the  historic.  The  Fabulous  Age  begins  with  the  first 
empires,  about  2000  years  before  the  birth  of  Christ,  and  closes  with  the 
foundation  of  Rome :  a  period  which  comprehends  1240  years. 

The  Historic  Age  had  its  beginning  at  the  foundation  of  Rome,  753 
years  before  Christ,  and  terminated  with  ancient  history.  The  foundation 
of  Rome  is  chosen  for  the  commencement  of  this  important  division,  be- 
cause at  that  time  the  clouds  which  were  spread  over  the  historic  page 
began  to  dissipate  daily ;  and  because  this  period,  in  the  end,  has  served 
as  an  era  for  all  the  West,  and  also  a  part  of  the  East.  This  age  pre 
sents  us  with  the  grandest  revolutions  in  Europe  and  Asia.  In  the  latter, 
the  entire  destruction  of  the  Assyrian  empire,  and  the  foundation  of  three 
celebrated  monarchies  upon  its  ruins.  In  Europe,  the  establishment  of 
the  principal  republics  of  Greece,  the  astonishing  progress  of  legislation, 
and  the  successful  cultivation  of  the  fine  arts.  This  division  embraces 
1230  years. 


GENERAL  HISTORY  OF  MODERN  EUROPE. 

The  history  of  Modern  Europe  commences  with  the  fall  of  the  Ro- 
man empire  in  the  West,  and  continues  to  the  present  time:  it  embraces 
nine  remarkable  periods,  the  epochs  of  which  are ; —  a.d.        a.d. 

1.  The  fall  of  the  Western  Empire 476  to    800 

2.  The  re-establishment  of  that  empire  by  Charlemagne    .  800"    963 

3.  Tiie  translation  of  the  Empire  to  Germany,  by  Otho 

the  Great 962  "  1074 

4.  The  accession  of  Henry  IV.  to  the  imperial  crown,  and 

the  Crusades 1074  '•  1273 

5.  The  elevation  of  Rodolph  of  Hapsburg  to  the  imperial 

throne .  1273  "  1453 

6.  The  fall  of  the  Empire  of  the  East 1453  "  1648 

7.  The  peace  of  Westphalia 1648"  1713 

8.  The  peace  of  Utrecht 1713  "  1789 

9.  The  French  Revolution  to  the  present  time    ....  1780  "  — 

FIRST  period. — (476 — 800.) 
In  the  fifth  century  many  of  the  modern  monarchiei;  of  Europe  had 
(heir  coinmciiceinciit :  the  empire  of  llie  East  having  been,  about  that 
piM'iod,  brought  to  the  very  vergt;  of  ruin  by  the  innumerable  hosts  of  bar- 
barians from  the  north,  wliich  poured  in  upon  it,  and,  at  length,  subdued 
il  ill  the  year  476.  The  V.inihils,  the  Suevi,  and  the  Alans,  were  the  first 
adventurers.  These  were  soon  followed  by  the  Visigoth?,  the  Hurpfun- 
diana,  the  Germans,  the  Franks,  the  Lombards,  the  Angles,  the  Saxonk, ' 


23 


PRELIMINARY  OBSERVATIONS, 


f 


'•f 


and  the  Huns.  These  depredators  taking  different  routes,  armed  with 
fire  and  nword,  soon  subjected  to  their  yoke  the  terrified  victims  of  theii 
ferocity,  and  erected  their  conquests  into  kingdoms. 

The  Visijfoths,  after  having  driven  out  the  Vandals,  destroyed  thr 
Alans,  subdued  the  Suevi,  and  founded  a  new  kingdom  in  iSpain. 

Tlie  Angels  and  the  Saxons  made  a  conquest  of  Britain  from  the  Ro- 
mans and  natives,  and  formed  the  Heptarchy,  or  seven  kingdoms. 

The  Huiis  established  themselves  in  Pannonia,  and  the  Germans  or 
the  banks  of  the  Danube.  The  Heruli,  after  having  destroyed  the  West- 
ern empire,  founded  a  state  in  Italy,  which  continued  but  a  short  time, 
being  driven  out  by  the  Ostrogotlis.  Justinian  retook  Italy  from  the  Ostro- 
goths. The  greater  part  of  Italy  soon  after  fell  under  the  power  of  the 
Lombards,  who  formed  it  into  a  kingdom.  The  exarchate  of  llaveinia, 
raised,  by  them,  to  the  empire  of  the  Kast,  enjoyed  it  but  a  short  time. 
The  exarchate  being  conquered  by  Charlemagne,  was  settled,  by  him,  on 
the  Pope,  which  may  be  properly  styled  the  epoch  of  the  temporal  gran- 
deur of  the  Roman  pontiffs,  and  of  the  real  commencement  of  the  com- 
bination of  church  and  state. 

Numerous  bodies  of  people,  from  various  countries,  having  taken  posses- 
sion of  Gaul,  founded  therein  several  kingdoms,  which  were,  at  length, 
united  by  the  Franks,  under  the  name  of  France.  Pharamond  was  its 
first  monarch ;  and  under  Clovis  it  arrived  at  considerable  eminence. 
Pepin  le  Href  (the  Short)  expelled,  in  the  person  of  Childeric  III.,  the 
race  of  Pharamond  (called  the  Merovingian)  from  the  tlirone,  and  as- 
sumed the  government.  His  son,  Charlemagne,  the  greatest  prince  of 
his  time,  retrieved  the  honour  of  France,  destroyed  the  Lonibardian  mon- 
arcjhy,  and  renewed  the  empire  of  the  West,  being  himself  crowned  em- 
peror at  Rome. 

About  the  middle  of  this  period,  Mohammed,  styling  himself  a  prophet, 
by  successful  imposture  and  the  force  of  arms,  hiid  the  foundation  of  a 
consideiable  empire,  the  East,  out  of  the  ruins  of  which  are  formed  the 
greater  part  of  the  present  existing  monarchies  iu  western  Asia. 

SECOND  PKKIOD — (ROO — 963.) 

Under  Charlemagne,  France  was  the  most  powerful  kingdom  of  Eu- 
rope ;  and  the  title  of  Roman  emperor  was  renewed  by  one  of  the  descend- 
ants of  the  destroyers  of  ihdt  empire;  the  other  monarchies,  hardly 
formed,  were  eclipsed  by  the  lustre  of  this  new  kingdom. 

Spain  WHS  subciued  by  the  Saracens,  who  formed  a  new  kingdom  In 
the  mouutaius  of  Astnrias.  The  Moors  and  Christians  arming  aganisl 
each  other,  laid  waste  this  beautiful  country. 

The  seven  Saxon  kingdoms,  wliicli  formed  the  Heptarchy,  were  united 
by  Kghert,  who  became  tlii^  first  kiug  of  Kiigliuid:  but  the  incursions 
of  the  Danes  (irevented  that  power  from  making  iuiy  consi(ier;ibl(!  figure 
among  the  slates  of  Kurope.  The  North  was  yet  plunged  in  barbarism, 
without  laws,  knowing  even  but  very  little  of  the  arts  of  tiic  first  neces- 
sity. 

The  Frcni'h  monarchy,  which  had  risen  to  such  a  high  pitch  of  gran 
deur  tnider  Charlemagne,  became  weak  under  his  successors.  The  em- 
pire was  Iriinsfcrred  to  the  kings  of  Italy;  which  event  was  followed 
by  civil  and  foreign  wars  in  France,  in  (iermany,  in  Italy;  whili-  the 
Hungarians,  from  Tarlary,  augmented  the  troubles.  Olho  the  Great 
subiliicil  Italy,  which  he  iinilcd  lo  (Jermimy  with  the  dignity  of  emperor, 
and  shewed  to  a  barbarous  ;ige,  the  talents  of  a  hero  and  the  wisdom  of  a 
great  legislator. 

TUinn  rEBion.— (9fi2 — 1071.) 

^      The  Gertnan  empire  during  this  period  reached  the  summit  of  its  cmu- 
deur  miller  Othu  tho  Great.      Conrad  H.  joined  the  kingdom  of  liur 


•I 

i 

f 


0 


HISTORICAL,  CHRONOLOGICAL  AND  GEOGRAPHICAL 


23 


gundy  to  his  possessions ;  and  his  son,  Henry  III.,  added  a  part  of  Hun 
gary.    This  empire  arrived  at  a  high  degree  of  power;  but  was  soon  aftei 
brought  into  a  state  of  decay  by  the  influence  of  its  nobles,  and  by  the 
feudal  government. 

Spain,  allhoiigli  desolated  by  the  continual  wars  between  the  Visigoths 
and  the  Saracens,  was  again  divided  by  the  differences  of  worship  of 
those  two  rival  nations.  In  France  the  Carlovingian  kings  were  de- 
posed by  ihe  usurpation  of  Hugh  Capet,  chief  of  the  tiiird  or  Capetian  race 
of  kings. 

The  Danes  ravaged  England,  and  now  became  masters  of  it  under  Ca- 
nute the  Great,  who  conciliated  the  love  of  his  new  subjects.  Edward 
the  Confessor  succeeded  the  Danish  princes.  He  was  succeeded  by 
Harold  II.,  a  virtuous  prince  slain  in  battle  by  William  duke  of  Nor- 
mandy, who  made  a  conquest  of  England.  At  the  same  lime  the  Normans 
established  themselves  in  Sicily,  and  laid  the  foundation  of  a  new  king- 
dom. 

Italy,  oppressed  by  little  tyrants,  or  devoted  to  anarchy,  offered  nothing 
of  interest,  if  we  except  Venice,  which  was  every  day  extending  its  com- 
merce. The  other  slates  of  Europe  did  not  furnish  any  important  event, 
being  at  this  period  plunged  in  obscurity  and  barbarity. 

FOURTH    PERIOD. — (1074—1273.) 

The  quarrels  between  the  emperors  and  the  popes  diminished  the  gran- 
deur and  power  of  the  empire :  the  discords  which  betjan  under  the 
emperor,  Henry  IV.,  agitated  Germany  and  Italy  during  several  centuries; 
the  factions  of  the  Guelphs  and  liie  Ghibelines  (the  one  partisans  of  the 
popes,  and  the  other  of  the  emperors)  were  alternately  destroying  each 
otlier.  Frederic  I.  and  Frederic  II.  endeavored  to  upliold  the  majesty 
of  the  empire;  but  the  house  of  Hohenstanffen  at  length  yielded:  they 
were  despoiled  of  their  possessions,  and  driven  from  the  throne.  The 
empire  was  much  weakened  by  the  incapacity  of  its  chiefs,  the  disunion 
of  it.s  members,  and  the  authority  of  the  popes,  ever  aiming  at  their  fur- 
ther aggrandizement.  The  Crusades  commenced:  a  part  of  Asia  Minor, 
Syria  and  Palestine,  were  presently  wrested  from  the  infidels;  and  the 
banner  of  tlie  cross  was  planted  on  Mount  Sion.  In  the  meantime  the 
crusaders  established  a  kingdom  in  Jerusalem,  which  was  of  short  dura- 
tion. It  was  (luring  the  time  of  tlie  crusades,  that  the  Greek  empire,  sap- 
ped to  it.s  fmniilaiion,  passed  to  the  Latins.  Michael  Paleologus,  emperor 
of  Nice,  retook  Constantinople.  The  Crusades  finsihed  in  1231.  It  is 
said,  that  to  them  was  owing  the  origin  of  armorial  bearings,  military 
orders,  and  tournaments. 

Spain  contmued  to  be  the  theatre  of  wars  between  the  Christian  kings 
and  the  Moors.  The  kings  of  Castile,  Arragon,  and  Navarre  signalized 
tlu-niselves  by  their  conquests  over  the  Saracens. 

In  France,  the  number  of  great  vassals  was  somewhat  diminished;  but 
•  the  continental  wars  with  the  English  exhausted  it  both  of  men  and  nmney. 

The  power  of  England  increased  considerably  ;  the  navy  became  puis- 
sant; and,  in  consequence  of  the  civil  wars  helween  the  king  and  the 
people,  tiie  royal  autlmrity  became  more  weakened,  and  a  preponderance 
was  given  to  democratical  institutions. 

The  provinces  of  Naples  anil  Sicily  .vere  erected  into  a  kingdom. 
Roger,  prince  of  Normandy,  was  the  fust  king;  and  his  family  possessed 
the  crown  till  llt)4.  It  them  passed  into  tln^  house  of  Holienstauffen, 
which  house  was  dispossessed  by  that  of  ,\njon. 

Denmark  iiii-reast'd  in  power  luuler  Walnlemar  II.,  but  the  iniluonco 
of  Sweilt'ii  seemed  to  \w  of  tittle  weight  in  the  European  system. 

Iiu"sia  gro.iiieil  under  the  yoke  of  the  Tartars,  who  also  made  incur- 
•lonii  in'o  Poland.     Dohecnia,  and  the  island  of  Sardinia,  were  erected 


U4 


PHELIMINARY  OBSERVATIONS, 


Into  Vlngdoifli.  Genoa  and  Venice  were  increasing  in  power :  by  the 
•trcnglli  of  their  nHvies,  they  siipporied  an  extensive  cominerce.  Ven- 
i(!P  bncnmo  pusBessed  or  Dahnatia,  and  a  part  of  the  Islands  in  the  Ar- 
ohipehigo. 

FIFTH  PERIOD.— (1273— 1453.) 

Tlio  Itates  of  Europe  enjoyed  an  equality  or  equilibrium  during  this 
poriod.  Home  alone  seemed  to  possess  superior  power  at  first,  but  this 
power  very  goon  diminished  considerably :  it  laboured  without  effect  to 
drive  the  (ihibelines  out  of  Italy,  and  to  reunite  the  Greeks  to  the  church. 

The  empire  of  Germany,  confined  to  its  own  limits,  underwent  some 
ohnngei.  Its  chaotic  government  was  rendered  somewhat  more  clear; 
and  emnernrg  of  difTerent  houses  successively  occupied  the  throne.  At 
the  doiith  of  Siifismund,  Albert  II.,  of  the  house  of  Hapsburg,  or  Austria, 
was  elected  ;  (rum  which  time  to  the  present  day,  this  family,  with  little 
exception)  have  possessed  the  imperial  crown. 

Friinco  whs  considerably  agitated  by  intestine  feuds,  but  became  more 
powerful  by  the  expulsion  of  the  English.  Legislation  and  police  wero 
iM'^innin;  to  bo  understood,  which  served  to  soften  the  manners  of  the 
people,  nnd  promote  the  tranquillity  of  the  nation. 

Kdwnrd  ill.  rendered  England  the  terror  of  its  neighbours:  he  held  at 
the  mime  time  three  kings  prisoners;  and  France  was  reduced,  by  his 
prowcHK,  to  tho  condition  of  an  humble  supplicant.  The  factions  of  the 
ri-d  nnd  whitt  rnse$,  (the  first  as  vhe  supporters  of  the  title  of  the  house 
of  I.Hiicnsler,  nnd  the  latter  that  of  York,)  were  deluging  their  uative 
Innd  with  the  blood  of  each  other  at  the  close  of  this  period. 

Npnin  continued  to  enrich  itself  with  the  spoils  of  the  Saracens;  who, 
nolwilhstiinding  the  efforts  of  the  Spaniards,  were  yet  masters  of  all  the 
BOMtlinrn  purls,  In  Portugal,  the  iRgitimate  descendants  of  Henry  became 
extinct,  iind  an  illegitimate  prince  of  the  same  house  ascended  the 
throne.  Sicily  was  taken  by  Peter  of  Arragon,  of  the  house  of  Anjou, 
who  nUo  held  the  kingdom  of  Naples.  Margaret,  queen  of  Denmark, 
the  Nemirnmis  of  the  north,  united  in  her  person  the  three  crowns  of 
Dennmrk,  Sweden  nnd  Norway.  This  union,  made  at  Calmar,  continued 
lilt  H  short  time.  The  Swedes  broke  the  treaty,  and  choose  for  them- 
Hdlvei  n  kintr. 

RiiMiii,  (hitherto  under  the  yoke  of  the  Tartars)  was  delivered  from 
dlitvery  nnd  obscurity.  In  Poland,  the  royal  dignity  began  to  have  per- 
mniiency.  In  Hungary,  the  house  of  Anjou  mounted  the  throne ;  the 
crown  of  which,  as  well  as  that  of  Bohemia,  soon  after  passed  to  the 
luume  of  Austria. 

Olhinnn,  sultan  of  the  Turks,  erected  a  monarchy,  which  arrived  to 
griMil  power  under  Mohammed  II.  This  prince  took  Constantinople,  and 
put  nil  end  to  tho  empire  of  the  East.  The  consequence  resulting  from 
the  cnpliirn  of  this  fine  city,  was  a  reflux  of  letters  from  the  East  to  tho 
West,  which  contributed  to  the  establishment  of  the  arts.  Printing,  en 
irriiviMK  of  prints,  pnpermaking,  paintinflf  in  oil,  gunpowder,  and  the  mar 
iiiitr'a  compass,  wore  the  principal,  among  many  other  useful  inventions. 

SIXTH  PERIOD.— (1453— 1648.) 

The  history  of  Europe  during  this  period  becomes  very  interesting. 
Tim  discovery  of  the  East  Indies  and  America,  and  the  great  changes 
hrniiitht  nboiil  in  religions  opinions  by  the  succf  ssOd  endeavours  of  Luther, 
<!alviii,  nnd  othrrei,  gave  a  new  appearance  to  many  states  in  this  quarter 
of  the  world. 

The  Innn^i'  of  Austria  increased  in  territorial  possessions.  Europe 
npptmred  like  u  vast  republic,  the  balance  of  power  therein  being  at  thit 
tiiiiu  un  a  bolter  footing  than  it  was  in  Ancient  Greece. 


I 


i 


HISTORICAL,  CHttONOLOGICAL  AND  QEOGRAPHICAL. 


8A 


1 

■ 


Almost  every  stale  in  Europe  underwent  important  revolutions.  Ger- 
many was  considerably  improved  in  its  legislation  under  Maximilian  I.( 
the  Imperiiil  Chamber  and  Aulio  Council  were  established.  The  reli- 
gious disputes  brought  on  a  succession  of  cruel  and  destructive  wars ; 
they  were,  however,  terminated  by  the  treaty  of  Passau,  the  peace  of 
1555,  and  that  of  Westphalia. 

In  France,  the  feudal  government  was  at  length  destroyed  by  Charles 
VII.  and  Louis  II.  The  wars  against  England  succeeded  those  of  Italy; 
and  those  were  followed  by  intestine  wars  against  the  Huguenots, or  Pro- 
lestants,  which  were  terminated  by  the  reduction  of  Kochelle,  and  the 
expulsion  of  the  Protestants.  In  Spain,  the  three  Christian  kingdoms 
were  united.  This  monarchy,  founded  by  Ferdinand  V.,  surnamed  the 
Catholic,  arrived  at  its  zenith  of  power  under  his  grandson,  Charles  V.  It 
lost  a  part  of  its  splendour  under  Philip  III.  and  Philip  IV.,  princes  without 
genius,  valour  or  resources. 

Portugal  became  formidable  under  Emanuel ;  but  grew  weak  after  the 
death  of  Sebastian.  The  kingdom  submitted  to  the  Spanish  yoke :  which 
it  shook  oflf  in  1640,  when  the  house  of  Braganza,  by  aa  unexpected 
revolution,  ascended  the  throne. 

England  gaii>ed  strength  under  Henry  VII.,  and  became,  from  time  to 
time,  mor(3  powerful  under  his  successors,  the  Tudors,  by  its  policy  and 
its  commerce,  and  particularly  so  during  the  reign  of  queen  Elizabeth. 
After  the  death  of  Elizabeth,  James  VI.,  king  of  Scotland,  ascended  the 
English  throne,  and  took  the  title  of  James  I.,  king  of  Great  Britain;  but 
neither  himself,  nor  his  successors,  possessed  the  genius  or  the  activity 
of  that  celebrated  princess. 

Italy  was  divided  into  many  small  states.  Tuscany,  Parma  and  Pla- 
centia,  heretofore  cities  of  the  kingdom  of  Italy,  were  raised  to  the  dig- 
nity of  dukedoms.  The  princes  of  Florence  encouraged  tiie  progress  of 
the  arts  and  sciences  by  honours  and  rewards.  Venice  was  less  consid- 
erable for  its  commerce  than  formerly ;  the  discovery  of  the  compass  en- 
abling other  nations  to  partake  with  the  Venetians  in  the  profits  arising 
from  navigation.  G(  noa  also  experienced  a  considerable  diminution  of 
commerce  from  the  same  cause. 

The  seven  United  Provinces,  viz.  Holland,  &c.  threw  off  the  Spanish 
yoke,  and  became  free ;  while  the  Swiss,  in  the  centre  of  their  rocky 
fastnesses,  formed  governments  for  the  protection  of  their  liberty. 

Denmark,  under  the  kings  of  the  house  of  Oldenburg,  now  began  to 
make  a  figure  among  the  powers  of  Europe.  The  Swedes  threw  off 
the  Danish  yoke,  and  elected  Guslavus  Vasa  for  their  king,  who  redeem- 
ed the  lustre  of  the  nation.  Gustavus  Adolpiius  added  considerably  to 
its  power  by  his  valour  and  his  victories.  Russia  also  ns-sumed  a  new 
face.  I  wan  Basilowitz  delivered  his  country  from  tiie  Tartarian  yoke. 
Iwan  Basilowitz  II.  extended  the  empire.  The  house  of  Romanof  as- 
cended the  throne,  and  commenced  those  grand  sciiemes  which  the 
genius  and  perseverance  of  Peter  the  Great  afterwards  executed. 

Poland  flourished  under  the  Jagellon  race  of  princes ;  but  these  becom- 
mg  extinct,  foreigners  were  introduced  to  tiie  throne.  Hungary  and  Bo- 
hemia, after  having  had  kings  of  different  nations  fell  to  the  house  of 
Austria. 

The  Ottoman  empire  augmented  its  grandeur  and  power  under  Soly- 
man  11.  After  his  death,  tlie  goverinnunt  falling  into  the  hands  of  indo- 
lent and  cfTeininate  princes,  became  considerably  v.'eakened,  and  the  un- 
bridled power  of  the  Janissaries  now  arrived  at  its  highest  pitch. 

SEVENTH   PERIOD. — (1618 — 17]  4,) 

The  political  system  of  Europe  experienced  a  change  at  the  com- 
uicncement  of  this  period.     France  extended  its  territory,  and  becain*. 


w 


PRELIMINARY  OBSERVATIONS, 


»ery  powerrti  under  Louis  XIV. ;  but  tlie  wars  carried  on  by  this  pnnce 
agHiiist  Spain,  Holland,  and  the  empire,  exhausted  the  resources  of  tlie 
kingdom. 

Germany  presented  some  interesting  clianges.  Leopold  established  a 
nintii  electorate  in  favour  of  the  house  of  Hanover.  Augustus,  elector  of 
Saxony,  was  elected  king  of  Poland;  an-!  George,  elector  of  Hanover, 
ascended  the  throne  of  Great  Britain.  Prussia  was  erected  into  a  king- 
dom under  Frederic,  the  third  elector  of  Brandenburg,  who  took  the  title  of 
Frederic  \. 

Spain  lost  power  under  the  latter  princes  of  Austria,  and  was  dismem- 
bered by  the  "  succession"  war,  which  terminated  in  favour  of  the  house 
of  Bourhon. 

Alphonsus  VI.,  king  of  Portugal,  was  deposed  and  the  kingdom  de- 
clared independent  of  Spain  by  the  peace  of  Lisbon. 

In  England,  Charles  I.  was  beheaded,  and  the  monarchy  abolished. 
Oliver  Cromwell  was  declared  protector  of  the  Conintonwealih,  which 
lasted  but  a  short  time  after  his  death.  The  Stuart  family  were  estab- 
lished again  on  the  throne.  James  II.  abdicated.  V\  illlam,  sladlholder 
of  the  United  Provinces,  was  elected  king,  and  secured  the  succession  of 
the  house  of  Hanover  at  the  death  of  Anne. 

Italy  underwent  an  almost  entire  change  by  the  peace  of  Utrecht; 
the  house  of  Austria  was  put  in  possession  of  its  most  fertile  countries. 
At  the  same  time  the  house  of  Savoy,  profiting  both  by  tlie  war  and  the 
peace,  increased  its  possessions  in  Italy,  and  thereby  raised  its  influence 
in  Europe. 

The  United  Provinces  increased  in  riches  and  power:  their  indepen- 
dence was  secured  by  the  peace  of  Westphalia;  but  they  engiiged  in  wars 
whii'h  drained  them  of  their  treasures,  without  augmeniing  their  power. 

The  republics  of  Switzerland  and  of  Venice  ai)peared  to  he  of  less  con- 
sequence among  the  European  slates  than  heretofore ;  but  the  former  eon- 
timiod  to  be  liappy  in  its  mountains;  the  latter  tranquil  among  its  lakes. 

Sweden,  whose  power  was  prodigious  under  Charles  X.  and  Charles 
XII.,  lost  much  of  its  grandeur  after  the  defeat  of  the  latter  prince  at 
Fultowa.  Russia  became  almost  on  a  sudden  enlightened  and  powerful, 
under  the  auspices  of  Peter  the  Great.  Poland,  uufortiuiate  under  .lolui 
Ca.siuiir,  was  made  respectable  under  John  Sobieski.  Hungary  was 
desolated  by  continual  intestine  war,  and  deluged  with  the  blood  of  its 
own  inhabitants. 

The  Ottoman  eiripire  continued  weak  under  princes  incapable  of  gov- 
erning, who  placed  the  sceptre  in  the  hands  of  ministers  altogether  as 
weak  and  incapable  as  themselves. 

EIGHTH  PERion. — (1714—178!).) 

This  period  was  replete  in  negotiation,  in  treaties,  and  in  wars.  The 
balance  of  power,  intended  systematically  to  produce  pi'rpctual  peace, 
had,  on  the  contrary,  been  the  means  of  exciting  coiitlnn;il  war.  The 
peace  of  Utrecht,  siyned  by  almost  all  the  powers  of  Europe,  failed  to 
re(;oncile  the  emperor  and  the  king  of  Spain.  Philip  V.  counnenced  war. 
The  English  and  Dutch  procured  the  treaty  of  Vienna,  in  1731.  which  i)Ul 
an  end  to  that  calamity  ;  but  a  lu^w  war  commenced  on  the  e  'ection  of  a 
king  (if  Poland.  France  declared  war  aj^ainst  the  empenir,  which  termi- 
nated by  the  peace  of  Vienna.  The  dcatii  of  Charles  VI.,  l?-!!*,  produced 
a  new  war,  more  important  than  the  former  was,  and  of  longer  duration. 
Fr;ince  look  the  part  of  the  electorof  Bavaria,  as  a  ccmipeiilor  for  imperial 
dignity  against  the  house  of  Austria.  Tlie  success  of  the  arms  of  the 
Frt'iicli  and  Bavarians,  induced  the  (]ueeii  of  Hungary  to  dciacli  tiie  kiny 
of  Prussia  fniin  the  alliance.  The  defcclioii  of  Ibis  jiriin'c  clian^ed  llie 
♦ace  of  alTairs;  and  llie  subsequent  victories  of  niitrshal  Saxe  obliged  the 


M13T011ICAL,  CHIIONOLOGICAL  AND  OEOGHAPHICAL. 


SW 


beH'iBereiit  powers  to  conclude  the  peace  of  Aix-lc-Chapelle,  which  al- 
furdod  bill  a  short  Crilin  to  ciisuiiguiiied  Europe.  Tlie  houses  of  Bourbon 
and  Austria,  so  long  enemies  and  rivals,  now  united  their  eflforls  to  main- 
tain the  balance  of  power.  But  the  English  and  French  soon  found  pre- 
text for  new  disagreements,  and  war  was  again  declared.  The  king  of 
Prussia  took  pari  with  the  Eiii,'li8h,  and  the  kingof  Spain  with  the  French. 
This  war  terminated  much  in  I'avour  of  the  English,  and  peace  was  con- 
cluded ill  1763.  In  Italy  the  houses  of  Austria  and  Bourbon  had  the  prin- 
cipal sway.  Savoy,  assisted  by  England,  augmented  its  power:  the 
island  of  Sardinia  was  given  in  exchange  for  Sicily.     Cliarles  Emanuel 

III.  joined  a  small  part  of  the  Milanese  to  this  territory,  and  Corsica  be- 
came a  province  to  France.  In  Holland,  William  IV.,  prince  of  Orange, 
was  declared  sladtlioldcr  of  the  Seven  United  Provinces. 

Sweden,  after  the  death  of  Charles  XII.,  underwent  an  entire  change  : 

the  house  of  Holslein-Eulin  asceivled  the  throne.      Gusiavus  III.,  the 

second  kingof  tliis  family,  seized  upon  the  liberties  of  his  people,  and  be- 

•;:inie  a  despot.     In  Kuissia  the  four  princesses  who  had  held  the  sceptre 

since  tiie  death  of  Peter  tlie  Great,  rendered  the  empire  worthy  of  the 

fireat  genius  who  may   be  sly' id  its  founder.    Poland  was  dismembered 

't  by  its  three  powerful  neighbours,  Russia,  Austria  and  Prussia. 

■P.^  Prussia,  which  had  not  ceased  to  aggrandize  itself  since  the  elector  of 

%i  Brandenburg  received  the  title  of  king,  was  raised  to  the  height  of  grandeur 

V  »nd  power  under  the  wise  government  of  that  celebrated  hero  and  philo- 

I  sopher,  Frederic  II. 

••'y  In  Turkey,  Aclimet  III.  was  obliged  to  surrender  his  crown  to  his 

-i  nephew,  Moliammed  V.     Mustapha  III.  espoused  the  cause  of  the  Poles 

^i  against  the  Russians,  and  sustained  great  losses.     His  successor,  Acliinet 

IV.  |)iit  an  end  to  this  unfortunate  war  by  a  peace,  to  gain  which  he  made 
great  sacrifices. 

Tilt)  English  colonies  in  America  revolted  from  the  mother  country, 
threw  off  its  yoke,  and  declared  themselves  independent.  France,  Spain 
and  Holland,  declared  in  their  fav«)iir ;  when  after  a  war  of  eight  years,  it 
was  terminated  by  in  1783  by  a  peace,  whereby  they  were  acknowledged 
as  an  independent  nation. 

NINTH  PERIOD. — (1789 — 1815.) 

This  period  was  ushered  in  by  one  of  the  greatest  revolutions  that  evei 
happened  in  Eiiro[)e,  or  the  world.  The  French,  so  long  habituated  to 
despotism,  threw  off,as  it  were  in  a  moment,  the  yoke  imposed  upon  them 
and  their  forefathers  for  many  ages.  Their  king,  Louis  XVI., apparently 
joined  in  the  effort,  but  at  length,  wanting  firmness  for  so  trying  an  occa- 
sion, prevaricated,  and  attempted  to  fly  ;  he  was  seized,  tried,  iniqiiitously 
condemned  and  executed.  His  queen,  Antoinette  of  Austria,  suffered 
also  under  the  giiillDtine.  The  powers  of  Europe,  headed  by  the  emperor 
and  the  king  of  P^n^^.siil,  coalesced  together  to  crush  the  revolutionary 
spirit  of  France.  Great  Britain,  Spain,  Russia,  H(dland,  Sardinia,  Naples, 
the  Pope,  and  a  variety  of  inferior  powers,  joined  the  confederacy :  to 
this  was  added  a  powerful  parly  in  the  interior,  and  the  flames  of  civil 
war  spread  far  and  wide.  Massacre,  rapine  and  horror,  stalked  through 
the  land  :  iiolwitlistHiKling  which,  the  Convention  formed  a  ironstitutioii, 
levied  numerous  armies,  and  conquered  Holland,  the  Netherlands,  and  all 
the  country  west  of  the  |{liine.  Italy  submitted  also  to  the  Gallic  republi- 
cans ;  and  Germany  was  penetrated  to  its  centre. 

Several  changes  look  [)lacH  in  the  government  Buonaparte  conquered 
Egypt:  and,  in  his  absence,  France  lost  great  |:rtvt  of  his  conquests  in 
Italy.  He  returned,  and  assuming  the  government  under  the  title  of  first 
consul,  reconquered  Italy.  Soon  after,  he  established  the  Italian  repub- 
lic ;  was  liinuelf  constituted  president;  aud  made  peace  with  England. 


M!. 


^    :  I 


«t 


PUKLIMlNAliy  OBSEUVAIIONS, 


which  lasted  but  a  short  time.    A  new  war  cori<n\e:iced.    Buonaparte  was 
elected  emperor  of  the  French. 

Great  Britain,  notwithstanding  the  part  it  took  in  the  confederate  war, 
pushed  its  commerce  and  manuiactures  to  an  extent  heretofore  unknown. 
It  made  several  conquests,  nearly  annihilated  the  French  navy,  and 
obliged  their  army  to  evacuate  Egypt.  Peace  was  restored,  but  was  of 
short  duration.  War  again  commenced:  a  military  spirit  showed  itself 
throughout  the  nation,  and  tremendous  efforts  were  made.  French  im- 
petuosity and  British  valour  were  for  years  witnessed  in  the  Spaniuh 
peninsula.  Russia  was  invaded  by  a  powerful  host  under  Napoleon  H  to- 
naparte  but  the  invaders  were  utterly  annihilated.  The  crownvig  ;;!  if 
the  war  was  the  ever-memorable  battle  of  VVaierloo,  whersLy  'he  cvcT- 
throw  of  Napoleon  was  effected,  and  the  peace  of  the  world  resmred,  afier 
gigantic  efforts  and  sacrifices,  on  all  sides,  which  have  no )  jralltl  :.n  1  ;  u  ry. 


CHRONOLOGY. 

CoMP.^RATivELT  Speaking,  the  science  of  Chronology  is  but  of  recent 
origin ;  for  many  ages  elapsed  before  the  mode  of  computing  time,  or  even 
of  giving  dates  to  important  events,  was  at  all  regarded:  nny,  after  the 
value  of  historical  writings  was  felt  and  acknowledged,  Chronology  long 
remained  imperfect;  the  most  ancient  historians  leaving  the  precise 
periods  they  record  undetermined.  When  Homer  and  Herodotus  wrote, 
and  for  centuries  afterwards,  there  was  no  regular  distribution  of  time 
into  such  parts  as  months,  weeks,  and  hours;  nor  any  reference  to 
clocks,  dials,  or  other  instruments,  by  which  the  perpetual  current  of  time 
\t'.i-.  subdivided.  Tiie  divisions  of  time  which  are  considered  in  Chrono- 
logy, relate  either  to  the  different  methods  of  computing  days,  montlis, 
and  years,  or  the  remarkable  eras  or  epochs  from  which  any  year  receives 
its  name,  and  by  means  of  which  the  date  of  any  event  is  fixed.  The 
ciioice  of  these  epochs  is  for  the  most  part  arbitrary,  each  nation  preferring 
its  most  remarkable  revolution  as  the  standard  by  which  to  regulate  its 
measurement  of  time.  Thus,  the  Greeks  have  their  Argonautiu  expedi- 
tion, their  siege  of  Troy,  their  arrival  of  Cecrops  in  Attica,  and  their 
Olympic  Games.  The  Romans  reckoned  from  the  foundation  of  their  city, 
but  in  their  annals  they  also  frequently  advert  to  their  various  civil  ap- 
pointments and  external  conquests.  The  modern  Jews  reckon  from  the 
Creation;  and  the  Christians  from  the  Birth  of  our  Saviour.  From  this 
we  count  our  years  backward  towards  the  beginning  of  time,  and  forward 
to  the  present  day.  But  it  was  not  till  the  year  532  that  this  plan  was  in- 
troduced; and  even  then  the  abb6  Dionysius,  who  invented  it,  erred  in 
his  calculations:  nor  was  his  error  discovered  for  upwards  of  six  centuries 
afterwards,  when  it  was  ;  i  iid  '■■;  bedcficient  four  years  of  the  true  period, 
liut  as  an  alteration  of  a  s'sihai  .vliich  had  been  adopted  by  nearly  all 
Europe,  would  have  O'  'i' iui.  •"  '■ ''p'.'ulable  in'  vi^nienciis  ui  civil  and 
ecclesiastical  affairs,  •  «.•     ,  ny  general  *  .j.isent,  suffered  to  re- 

main, and  we  continue  lo  reckon  from  what  is  called  the  "vulgar era," 
which  wants  four  years  and  six  days  of  the  real  Christian  epoch. 

It  cannot  be  denied  that  there  are  many  difficulties  in  the  way  of  fixmg 
a  correct  Chronology ;  but  still  there  are  four  data  from  which  satisfac- 
tory coiicliisioiis  relative  to  certain  events  may  be  drawn;  and,  by  ascer- 
taining whether  others  occurred  before  or  after  them,  we  may  in  general 
arrange  the  most  remote  transactions  with  a  degree  of  regularity  that  at 
the  first  view  might  have  appeared  hopeless.  These  are,  1.  Astronomical 
observations,  particularly  of  tlie  eclipses  of  the  sun  and  moon,  conibiiied 
with  the  calculations  of  the  years  and  eras  of  particular  nations.    2.  The 


I  ■•'5 


w 


el 

d 


HISTOlllCAL,  CmiONOlOOiOAL  AND  GEOQRArHiCAL. 


i9 


■te  was 

le  war, 
uiown. 
y,  and 
was  of 
d  itself 
iieh  ini- 
Spiiniiih 

g  •.  ;t    if 
le  r-v.T- 

ed.  after 

Vri-iA-ry. 


)f  recent 
3,  or  even 
after  the 
logy  long 
e  precise 
us  wrote, 


.,  of  time 
erence  to 
nt 
n 


.  of  time 
,.  Clirono- 
s,  months, 
ar  receives 
ixed.    Tlie 
I  preferring 
regulate  its 
itie  expedi- 
j,  and  their 
f  ttieircity, 
Lis  civil  ap- 
oil  from  tlic 

From  tliis 
and  forward 
)lan  was  in- 

it,  erred  in 
lix  centuries 

true  period. 
bv  nearly  all 
,  [a  civil  and 
ffered  to  re- 
•  vulgar  era, 
och. 

vay  of  fixing 
lich  satisfac- 
ind,  by  ascer- 
ay  in  general 
ilarily  that  at 
Astronomical 
,on,  combined 
ions.    2.  The 


P 
1% 


t 


■estimonics  of  credible  I'hors.  3.  Those  epochs  in  history  which  an* 
■o  well  altc:  led  and  dcterinnicd  as  never  to  have  been  controverted.  4 
Ancient  medals,  coins,  inonuniciits  und  inscriptions.  We  have  also  some 
artificial  distinctions  of  time,  which  iicverttielcss  depend  on  astronomical 
calculations;  such  arc  ;lie  Solar  and  Lunar  Cyci<'N,  ihe  Roman  Indictiuii, 
the  Feast  of  Easter,  the  Bissextile  or  l-pap-Year,  the  Jubilees  and  Sab- 
batic Years  of  the  Israelites,  the  Olympiads  of  the  Greeks,  the  Hngira  of 
the  Mohammedans,  &c.  But  it  must  be  borne  in  mind,  that  the  study  of 
Chromdogy,  though  so  useful  to  the  clear  understantUng  of  historical 
records,  is  a  distinct  science,  and  requires  to  be  studies  methodically. — 
Our  purpose  in  this  place  is  merely  to  point  to  it  as  on«  of  **  the  eyes  of 
history." 


GEOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH  OF  THE  WORLD  AND  ITS 
INHABITANTS. 

Br  Geography  is  understood  a  description  of  the  Earth.  It  is  divided 
mto  Physical  or  Natural  Geography,  and  Civil  and  Political  Geography. 
The  first,  or  Physical  Geography,  refers  to  the  surface  of  the  earth,  its 
divisions,  and  their  relative  situations;  the  climate  and  soil;  the  face  of 
the  country;  and  its  productions,  animal,  vegetab'>'  and  mineral.  The 
second,  or  Civil  Geography,  includes  the  various  n  aions  of  the  earth,  as 
divided  into  empires,  kingdoms,  republics,  provinces,  &c.,  and  the  origin, 
language,  religion,  government,  political  power,  commerce,  education  and 
manners  and  customs  of  those  nations. 

The  form  of  the  earth  is  very  nearly  spherical ;  the  polar  axis  being 
only  about  38  miles  shorter  than  the  equatorial ;  and  as  the  diameter  is 
nearly  8000  miles,  so  slight  a  difference  in  a  globular  body  would  be  im 
perceptible. 

In  the  study  of  Geography,  maps  and  globes  are  indispensable ;  but, 
owing  to  their  form,  globes  give  a  better  idea  of  the  relative  sizes  and  sit- 
uations of  countries  than  can  be  learned  from  maps. 

The  earth  has  an  annual  and  a  diurnal  motion ;  it  moves  completely 
round  the  sun  in  about  365  days,  6  hours;  and  turns  comfletely  round,  as 
if  on  an  axis  or  spindle,  from  west  to  east,  in  about  34  hours:  an  imag- 
inary line,  therefore,  passing  through  its  centre,  is  called  ts  Axit.  The 
extremities  of  the  axis  are  called  Pules — North  and  South — the  one  near 
est  to  the  country  we  inhabit  being  the  North  Pole. 

A  line  drawn  round  a  globe  is  obviously  a  circle;  and  as  various  circles 
are  described  on  artificial  globes,  for  reasons  hereafter  mentioned,  we 
speak  of  them  as  though  they  were  really  so  delineated  on  the  earth'* 
surface. 

The  principal  circles  on  the  globe  are  the  Equator,  the  i^cliptic,  the 
Tropic  of  Cancer,  the  Tropic  of  Capricorn,  and  the  Arctic  ar.vl  Antarctic 
circles.  All  circles  are  considered  as  divisible  into  3G0  equal  narts,  called 
degrees;  each  degree  into  60  minutes,  and  each  minute  into  fO  seconds: 
H  degree  is  thus  marked  ",  a  minute  thus',  and  a  second  'hus  ":  so 
that  28^  52'  36"  means  28  degrees,  52  minutes,  36  seconds.  And  as  a 
whole  circle  contains  3G0  degrees,  a  semi-circle  (or  half  a  circle)  will  con 
tain  180°,  and  a  quadrant  (or  quarter  of  a  circle)  90°. 

That  circle  on  the  surface  of  the  globe  which  is  everywhere  equally  di8> 
iant  from  each  pole,  is  called  the  Equator;  and  it  divides  the  elobe  into 
two  equal  parts  or  Hemispheres,  the  Northern  and  Southern.  The  appel- 
lation Equator,  or  Equinoctiid  {noctes  (cquantur),  is  given  to  it,  because, 
when  the  sun,  through  the  annual  motion  of  the  earth,  is  seen  in  this  cir- 
cle, the  days  and  nignts  are  equal  in  every  part  of  the  world. 

The  Ecliptic  is  so  called,  because,  all  eclipses  rf  the  sun  or  moon  can 


so 


Paia.lMINARY  OBSKRVATION* 


only  take  place  when  the  moon  is  in  or  near  thai  circle.  This  circle  ik 
described  on  the  terrestrial  globe  solely  for  the  purpose  of  performing  a 
greater  number  of  problems. 

The  Tropics  are  two  parallels  to  the  equator,  drawn  through  the  eclip- 
tic, at  those  points  where  the  ecliptic  is  at  the  greatest  distance  from  the 
equator;  which  is  about  33°  30'  from  the  equator,  on  either  side.  When 
the  sun  is  opposite  to  one  of  the  tropics,  those  people  who  are  as  far  from 
the  corresponding  pole  as  the  tropic  is  from  the  equator,  see  the  sun  for 
more  than  twenty-four  hours.  This  is  the  case  with  every  part  nearer 
to  the  poles,  but  never  with  any  part  farther  from  them.  To  point  out 
this  peculiarity,  a  circle  is  described  on  the  globe,  234°  from  each  pole 
One  of  these  Pu!ar  Circlet  is  called  the  Arctic,  the  other  the  Antarctic ;  sig- 
nifying the  north,  and  that  which  is  opposite  to  the  north. 

The  Zones  (so  called  from  a  Greek  word  signifying  belts  or  girdles)  de- 
note those  spaces  between  the  several  principal  circles  before  described. 
Thus  between  the  poles  and  polar  circles  are  the  two  frigid  zones,  be- 
tween the  two  frigid  zones  and  the  tropics  are  the  two  temperate  zones, 
and  between  the  two  tropics  the  torrid  zone ;  deriving  these  appellations 
from  the  temperature  of  the  atmosphere. 

The  Latitude  of  a  place  is  its  distance  froin  the  equator.  It  is  measureti 
by  the  number  of  degrees,  &c.,  in  the  arc  of  the  meridian,  between  the 
place  and  the  equator;  and  is  called  North  or  SuufA,  according  as  the 
place  is  north  or  south  of  the  equator. 

Limptude  is  the  distance  of  any  place  from  a  given  spot,  generally  the 
capilalof  the  country,  measured  in  a  direction  east  or  west,  either  along 
the  equator  or  any  circle  parallel  t'j  it.  The  Kiiglish  measure  their  Ion- 
giiudeeast  and  W(>st  of  Greenwich,  the  French  east  and  west  of  Paris,  &c 

Mcrtdians,  or  circles  of  longili'iles,  are  so  called  from  meridtcs,  or  mid- 
day; bcciiiise,  as  the  earth  makes  one  coinplele  revolution  n)und  its  own 
axis  in  tweiuy-fonr  hours,  every  part  of  its  surface  must  Ln  the  course 
of  that  time  he  directly  opposi'.t!  to  the  sun.  The  sun,  therefore,  st  that 
point,  will  appear  at  its  greacest  altitude,  or,  in  other  words,  it  will  be 
mid'day  or  noon. 

Divisions  or  thk  KiiRTii. 

It  was  usual  until  the  present  century  to  speak  of  the  great  divisions  of 
the  Karth  as  the  Four  Quarlrrs  of  the  World,  viz;  Kurope,  Asia,  .M'rica, 
and  America.  Hnt  a  more  scientific  distribution  has  since  been  oenerally 
adopted;  and  the  chief  terrestrial  divisions  of  the  earth's  surface  are  now 
thus  enumerated  :  Europe,  Asia,  Africa,  North  atid  South  Amcrtca,  Australia, 
and  Poli/nesia.  Of  these,  Kurojie,  Asia,  and  Africa,  form  the  lOartern 
Hemisphere,  (or  the  Old  World);  and  America  the  Western  Hemisphere, 
which,  frotn  its  not  being  known  to  Kur()i)eaiis  till  iIk;  close  of  the  15tb 
oentury,  is  called  the  Ni^w  World.  Australia  includes  that  extensive  re- 
gion called  New-Holland,  together  with  New-Zealand  and  adjacent  isles; 
and  Polynesia  comprehends  tht?  ninnerous  groups  of  volcanic  and  corallne 
islands  m  the  Pacinc  Ocean,  exteniliiig  eastward  to  the  Philippine  Islands 
and  from  New-Guuiea  to  the  coast  of  America. 

The  Orean  occupies  about  two  thirds  of  thc!  earth's  surface;  and  its 
waters  are  conslanlly  encroaching  upon  the  land  in  some  places,  and  re- 
ceding from  it  in  others.  To  this  cause  may  he  atliiltiiled  the  formation 
of  many  islands  in  diffrrent  parts  of  the  worid.  The  greatest  depth  of  the 
oceai'  which  has  been  ascertained,  i-*  aliont  000  fathoms;  its  mean  depth 
is  estimated  at  about  800  fathoms.  Near  the  tropics  it.  is  extremely  suit, 
but  the  Silliness  considerahlv  diminishes  towards  the  jioles. 

This  immense  expanse  of  water  is  divided  into  siualler  oceans  or  seas, 
giilfs,  buys,  Ac.,  Innilcd  partly  by  real,  partly  l)y  ima^iniary  boniidari(^s 
The  l'ii<]lic  Oceuii,  which  covers  nearly  one  third  of  the  eiirth's  surface 


•1 


HISTORICAL,  CHRONOLOGICAL,  AND  GEOGRAPHICAL. 


31 


inns  of 
A '.Vic  11. 
iiprally 
now 
alralin, 
•liirtcrn 

plHTO, 

15lli 

ivo  rn- 

islcs ; 

iraline 

Isismds 

md  !t» 

ml  ro- 

n-'ition 

»r  (lift 

(l('|)ih 

Halt, 


aricm 
rfac» 


and  is  about  10,000  miles  in  breadth,  lies  between  the  eastern  coast  of  Asia 
and  Australia,  and  the  western  coast  of  America.  The  AUaiUic  Ocean  lies 
between  Europe  and  Africa  on  tlie  east,  and  America  on  the  west.  The 
Pacific  and  Atlantic  Oceans  are  each  distinguished  into  North  and  South. 
The  Indian  Ocean  is  bounded  by  Asia,  Africa,  and  Auslraha.  'I'he  Arctic 
or  Frozen  Ocean,  lies  to  the  north  of  Europe,  Asia,  and  part  of  America. 
The  Southern  Ocean  lies  south  of  all  the  continents. 


In  this  condensed  Work  which  we  now  submit  to  the  public,  it  will  not 
be  expccied  that  the  manifold  uses  and  advantages  of  a  knowledge  of  His- 
tory could  be  discussed,  or  that  many  facts  and  reasonings  which  might 
elucidate  obscure  or  controverted  passages  could  be  brought  forward;  but 
we  trust  it  will  generally  be  found  that  the  materials  we  have  made  use 
of  have  been  derived  from  the  must  accurate  sources  of  historical  infor- 
mation ;  that  while  a  great  mass  of  matter  has  been  brought  together,  it 
may,  at  the  same  time,  appear,  that  judgment  and  circumspection  have 
been  used  in  proportion  to  the  importance  and  difficulty  of  the  task;  and, 
moreover,  that  truth  and  impartiality  have  been  regarded  beyond  all  other 
considerations.  Upon  events  which  have  recently  occurred,  or  are  in 
progress  at  the  present  moment,  we  know  that  different  opinions  will  pre- 
vail and  therefore,  in  relating  such  transactions,  an  honest  and  fearless 
regard  for  truth  and  the  good  of  society  is  the  bounden  duty  of  every  one 
who  presumes  to  narrate  them.  Hy  this  golden  rule  we  have  endeavoured 
to  abide,  and  humbly  hope  we  have  suci^icded. 

Tiie  idea  of  iiiakliig  the  Tkeasuhv  uk  Historv  extend  toanother  volume 
was  at  first  entertained;  and,  in  truth,  no  small  portion  of  it  was  prepared 
under  an  iinprcssion  that  such  was  inevitable.  If,  therefore,  it  should  appeal 
that  some  of  the  Histories  have  not  due  space  allotted  to  them,  tins  fact  is 
offered  as  our  most  valid  reason  for  sucli  apparent  inequality  :  but  it  is  by 
no  means  inteiiiied  as  an  excuse  for  the  luiigtii  of  the  History  of  England; 
for  it  is  almost  impossible  to  speak  of  any  great  events  which  have  occur- 
red among  civilized  nations — especially  within  the  last  century — that  do 
not,  directly  or  indirectly,  bear  on  Uritish  interests,  and  which  consequent- 
ly, come  within  our  province  to  notice. 

It  seems,  however,  that  a  few  words  of  an  explanatory  or  apologetio 
nature  are  still  necccssary.  To  be  brief,  then: — A  uniform  method  ol 
spelling  foreign  proper  names  has  not  always  been  rigidly  adhered  to;  or, 
it  may  be,  sucii  names  are  spelt  difTfieiitly  in  other  works.  For  instance, 
we  have  written  Genghis-Khan,  as  the  most  usual  orthography  ;  but  we 
have  found  it  elsewhere  written  Zmgis  Khan,  Cinfris  Khan,  and  Jenghis 
Khan.  The  name  of  Mahomel,  or  Mohammed,  is  wrilien  both  ways,  and 
each  has  its  advocates,  though  modern  custom,  we  tiiiiik,  is  in  favour  of 
the  latter  method.  Many  others  niiglil,  of  course,  be  mentioned;  but  in 
none  arc  so  many  variations  to  be  found  as  in  the  Chinese  names.  It  may 
also  happen  that  the  transactions  of  one  ronntry  may  appear  to  he  given 
more  fully  than  necessary  in  the  history  of  another;  and  iice  i..isa.  The 
necessity  of  avnidiiig  needless  repetitions,  in  a  work  so  condcnsiid,  and 
the  desire  at  the  same  tiini:  to  omit  noiliing  of  iin[,ortance,  must  plc.idour 
excuse  for  such  faults,  while  the  too  frequiMil  absence  of  a  vigorous  or 
elegant  stylo  of  ciMiiposition,  may  be  llioii<;lit  to  require  a  siiniiar  apology. 
We  are,  indeed,  fully  sensible  that,  wiiii  all  our  cans  many  iinperl'cctiona 
will  be  founil,  and  ilial  we  must  rely  rhn'lly  iipmi  llie  camloiir  and  lilieraiity 
)f  that  public,  wiiosc  kind  8ii|)pi>r'.  ami  encoiiragement  on  former  occasions 
)ve  !iave  felt  and  gratefully  acknowledged. 


I 


J 


%-#^ 


'■.7; 


THK 


TREASURY  OF  HISTORY 


INTRODUCTORY   OUTLINE    SKETCH 


or 


G  E  i^  E  U  A 1.    ins  T  0 11 Y. 


I 


t 


1 


I 


('HAl'TEU  I. 

THE    ANTEDIIXVIAN    WORLD. 

Histonv,  beyoiii]  all  other  siiulifis.  is  calculalnd  to  enliitlitf-n  the  jiidj^- 
mciiit  itiid  cnhiiBi!  th(;  uiulei-stiiiidint;.  Every  pnge  eonveys  some  usei'iil 
lesson,  every  sentence  has  its  moral;  and  its  range  is  as  boundless  as  its 
nmtter  is  various.  It  is  accordingly  adinitied,  as  an  indispulahh!  iixioin, 
that  there  is  no  species  of  lilcrary  composition  to  which  liie  lacnliies  of 
the  mind  can  he  more  laiidalily  directed,  or  from  which  more  useful  infor- 
mation  may  lie  deriviMJ.  While  it  imparts  to  us  a  knowlcdjfe  of  man  m 
his  social  relations,  and  thereby  enaliius  lis  to  divest  ourselves  of  many 
errors  and  prejudices,  it  lends  to  strengihen  our  abhorrence  of  vice,  and 
creates  an  honourable  ambition  for  the  attaiimient  of  true  greatnes^  iiiid 
solid  glory.  Nay,  if  considered  as  a  mere  sourct?  of  rational  aiiiusctneiit, 
History  will  still  be  found  inliiiitely  superior  to  the  exlravajirant  fictions 
af  romance,  or  ihi!  distorted  pictures  of  living  manners;  for  by  the  /lahit- 
ual  perusal  of  these,  however  polished  their  style  or  i|uaint  their  humour, 
the  midlect  is  IVeqiteiitly  debilitated,  and  the  luMri  too  often  c(irrii()ted. 

In  all  the  re(  prds  (d'  ancient  history  there  is  a  mixture  of  p()eij<-ai  fable  ; 
nor  is  it  wholly  to  thi!  historian's  immaturity  of  reason,  or  to  the  general 
supersliljoii  that  prevailed  in  remote  ages,  that  wv  are  to  ascribe  this  pre- 
dilection for  niiU'vellous  and  wild  narralion.  It  has  with  great  truth  been 
8;iid  that  the  lirsl  transactions  of  men,  were  bidd  and  exiravagant— tiieir 
nmbitlon  being  morii  to  astonish  their  fellow-creatiircs  by  the  v.islness  of 
their  designs,  and  the  difnciilties  Ihey  <'ould  overcome,  llniii  by  any  ra 
tioiial  and  extensive  jilaii  of  public  utiiily. 

Moilern  history,  liow(!ver,  claiiiiN  our  more  |)arlicul;ir  reg:ird.  In  that  is 
described  tliosi-  actions  iiiid  events  which  have  a  necessary  connection 
Willi  the  limes  in  which  \\v.  live,  and  winch  liave  a  direct'  influence  upon 
the  goveriinieiit  and  cotii'tjtulioii  of  our  c<iinitry.  It  unfolds  the  secret 
wheels  of  political  intrigue,  tiie  artilices  of  diplomacy,  and  all  those!  com- 
plications of  iiitcri'sl  which  arise  from  national  rivalship;  while  at  the 
same  time  it  lays  before  lis  the  causes  and  coiiscipirnces  of  great  events, 
anil  edifies  its  by  examples  which  coiiie  hoiiie  to  our  understandings,  and 
art!  congenial  with  mir  Inibiis  niid  feelinirs.  Hut  wc  will  not  take  np  more 
of  the  reader's  tmie  in  expatiating  on  llie  ri  lative  merits  u\'  ancient  and 
modern  history ;  trusting  that  sufilcieut  li.is  been  said  to  induce  liim  to 
ni'coin[iiiiiy  us  while  we  attempt  to  ilcscnbt!  the  rise,  pnigress  and  siibvcr. 
Aion  ol  empires,  ami  the  causes  of  llieir  prosperity  or  decay. 

As  specni.ilioiis  iipuii  the  origin  and  formaliiMi  of  the  world  belong  rutliiii 
tu  philosopliv  than  history,  we  utiuuUI  deem  it  superi;rog,itury  to  iiutiuo 
I.— 3 


*■ 


34 


OUTLINK  SKETCH  Of   GKNKUAL  IIISTOHV 


It 


the  subject,  however  shglitly,  were  it  not  prohahio  thai  its  eiilire  omission 
mijrhl  be  uoiii^iiiered  an  uiiiiecessiiiy  deviation  fioiu  an  ahuusi  universal 
practice,  inii!<nuicii  as  it  has  lieen  sanclioned  by  the  example  of  the  most 
tininent  writers  of  ancient  and  modern  limes.  On  these  and  oilier  ques 
tions,  ahkc  uncertain,  the  most  ojiposite  o|)inions  have  been  pronuilgated, 
and  the  most  irreconcilable  hypotheses  advanced  in  their  support ;  we 
shail,  however,  not  stop  to  inquire  into  the  relative  merits  of  the  various 
and  discordant  theories  which  have  so  long  and  so  uselessly  occupied  the 
•tttcntinn  of  philosophers,  naturalists,  and  theologians. 

That  the  earth  has  undergone  many  violent  revolutions,  no  possible 
doubt  can  exist  in  the  mind  of  any  one  who  has  paid  even  the  most  su- 
perficial attention  to  the  discoveries  in  geological  science  during  the  last 
and  present  centuries;  but  the  mighty  process  by  which  our  globe  was 
originally  formed  is  a  niystery  quite  as  unfathomable  now  as  it  was  iu  the 
darkest  periods  of  human  exisience.  Lei  us,  then,  be  content  with  the 
sublime  exordium  of  the  great  .lewish  lawgiver ;  and  we  shall  find  that 
the  account  he  gives  of  the  creation,  though  eloquently  brief,  is  iieilherHl 
legorical  nor  mystical,  but  corresponds,  in  its  bold  outline,  with  the  phe 
nomena  wliich  is  exhibited  to  us  in  the  great  book  of  nature.  It  is  true 
that  there  is  nothing  in  the  writings  of  Nioses  either  calculated  or  intended 
to  satisfy  curiosity  ;  his  object  was  simply  to  declare  that  ilie  whole  was 
the  work  of  an  Almighty  architect,  who  as  the  Creator  and  Sovereign  of 
the  Universe,  was  alone  to  be  worshipped. 

With  regard  to  the  primitive  condition  of  mankind,  two  very  opposite 
opinions  prevail.  Some  represent  a  golden  age  of  innocence  and  bliss ; 
others  a  state  of  wild  and  savage  barbarism.  'I"he  former  of  these  is  found 
not  only  in  the  inspired  writings  of  the  Jews,  but  in  the  books  esteemed 
sacred  by  various  oriental  nations,  as  the  Chinese,  Indians,  Persians,  Ha- 
bylonians,  and  Egyptians,  'i'lie  latter  began  their  history  with  dynasties 
of  gods  and  heroes,  who  were  said  to  have  assumed  human  form,  and  to 
iiave  dwelt  amont;  men.  Tlu^  golden  age  of  the  Hindoos,  and  their  nu- 
merous avatars  of  the  gods,  are  fictions  of  a  similar  character,  as  well  as 
their  two  royal  dynasties  descended  from  the  sun  and  moon,  vith  which 
we  find  a  remarkable  coim-idence  in  the  traditions  of  Peru,  vccording  to 
the  other  doctrine,  the  human  race  was  originally  in  the  lowest  state  of 
culture;  and  gradually,  but  slowly,  attained  perfection.  It  s  in  vain,  how- 
ever, for  us  to  look  to  the  traditionary  lah^s  of  antiquity  ;  fir  with  the  ex- 
ception of  the  Mosaic  history,  as  contained  in  the  first  six  chapters  of 
Genesis,  we  can  find  nmie  which  does  not  either  abound  withlhegrossest 
absurdities,  or  lead  us  inio  absolute!  darkness. 

"Commentators,"  says  Anquelil,  '-have  amplified  by  their  reveries  the 
simple,  naiiiral,  and  afil'ciing  narrative  of  IMost.'s.  That  historian  has  in- 
formed us,  in  a  few  words,  wli;it  was  the  origin  "''  '  arious  customs  and 
arts,  and  recorijcd  tlu-  names  of  llieir  inveiiiors.  Lnmech,  the  son  of  (,'ain, 
gave  the  fii-st  examiile  of  polygamy,  ('ain  himself,  built  the  first  city,  and 
introd'.iced  weights  and  ineasnies.  One  of  his  grandsons  '  was  the  father 
of  such  as  dwell  in  tents,  and  of  such  as  have  cattle.'  Jubal  jiveiited 
music,  Taliul-C^'alii  llxsirlsof  forging  iron, and  cast iiig  brass;  and  a  female 
named  Naainah,  iliose  <if  spinning  and  weaving." 

'I'liat  the  anledilnviaiis  led  a  paxioral  and  agncullural  life,  forming  one 
vast  comniiinity,  without  any  of  those  divisions  into  diMVrent  nations 
which  have  sii,ce  tak<'n  place,  seems  fully  evident,  lint  tin;  most  mate- 
rial part  of  their  history  is,  Ihal  having  once  began  to  transgress  the  divine 
conmiaiids,  llicy  followed  the  alliiiemi  ills  of  |)assion  and  sensuality,  and 
proceeded  in  iheir  career  of  wickedness,  till  at  lenglli  the  universal  cor- 
ruption and  impieiy  of  llie  w<n'ld  had  reached  its  /inilli,  and  Ihc  Almighty 
Ctcator  revealed  to  Noah  Ins  purpose  of  {jeslroying  the  whole  himinii  race 
except  himself  and  Ins  family,  by  a  general  deluge;   commanding  him  lu 


I 


OUTLINB  SlCKTCll  OF  GICNKIIAL  HISTORY. 


34 


prepare  an  ark,  or  sm.ablo  vessel,  for  the  preservation  of  the  just  from  the 
iinpeiuliiig  judgineiil,  as  well  as  for  the  reception  of  animals  destined  tw 
reproduce  their  several  species. 


CHAPTER  II. 

FROM  THE  neLUGG,  TO  THE  SETTLEMENT  OP  THE  JEWS  IN  CANAAN. 

After  the  Flood  had  prevailed  upon  the  earth  a  hundred  ami  (ifiy  days, 
and  had  decreased  for  an  ecpial  time,  Noah  became  convinced,  by  the  re- 
turn of  a  dove  with  an  olive  branch,  that  the  land  had  again  emerged.  The 
time  when  this  great  event  took  place  was,  according  to  the  common  com- 
putation, in  the  lfi56th  year  of  the  world  ;  though  other  dates  have  been 
assigned  by  different  ehronolugists.  Many  other  nations,  in  the  inytho- 
loy  jcal  part  of  their  history,  narrate  circumstances  attending  a  vast  inun- 
(laiion,  or  universal  deluge,  which  in  their  eitsential  particulars,  corres- 
pond with  the  scriptural  at;count,  and  are  supposed  to  owe  their  origin  to 
■^  it.     The  Chaldeans  describe  a  universal  deluge,  in  which  all  mankind  was 

■^  destroyed,  except  Xisuthrus  and  his  family.     According  to  the  tradition- 

ary history  of  the  Greeks,  the  inhabitants  of  the  earth  all  perislntd  by  a 
vr  flood  except  Deucalion,  and  his  wife  Fyrrha.     By  the  Hindoos  it  is  be- 

J|  licved  that  a  similar  catastrophe  ocfcurred,  and  that  their  king,  Salyavrata, 

I  with  seven  jiatriarchs,  was  preserved  in  a  ship  from  the  universal  destrne- 

f  lion.     Kven  the  American  Indians  have  a  tradition  of  a  similar  deluge, 

■.)  and  a  renewal  of  the  human  race  from  ihe  family  of  one  individnnl.     Uut 

.;j  these  ac(;ounts  being  unsupported  by  historic  evidence,  it  would  be  an  un- 

profitable occupation  of  ihe  reader'stime  to  ccntiment  on  them.     We  shall 
* :,  therefore  merely  observe,  that  many  ingenious  theories  have  occupied  the 

attention  of  distinguished  men  in  their  endeavours  to  account  for  this  uni- 
versal catastrophe.     The  Mosaic  account  simply  tells  us,  that  the  windows 
of  heaven  were  opened  and  the  foimtains  of  Ihe  deep  were  broken  up,  and 
s^  that  as  the  Hood  decreased  the  waters  returned  from  off  the  face  of  the 

k  earth.     That  there  is  nothing  uimatnral  in  this,  geological  seiem^c  fur- 

J  nishes  ample  evidence;  in  short,  distinct  proofs  of  the  deluge  are  to  be 

found  in  the  dislocations  of  the  regular  strata,  and  in  the  phenomena  con- 
nected with  alluvial  depositions — which  can  only  be  attributed  to  the 
agency  of  vast  torrents  everywhere  flowing  over  and  disorganizing  the 
surface  of  the  earth. 

According  lo  Ihe  narration  of  the  inspired  writer,  the  individuals  prc- 
!<erved  from  the  deluje  were  Noah  and  his  wife,  and  his  tlireesons,  Sheni, 
Ham,  and  .laphet,  with  their  wives;  in  all,  eight  persons.  We  are  in- 
formed  that  the  ark  rested  on  mount  Ararat  (in  Armenia);  but  whether 
Noah  and  his  sons  remained  long  in  that  neighbourliood  mii^t  be  left  to 
mere  coiijcciuie.  We  merely  learn  that  the  greatest  portion  of  Ihe  hu- 
man race  were  some  time  afterwards  assembled  on  th<  plains  of  Sliinar, 
where  they  eiigaurcd  in  hiiilding  a  tower,  with  the  foolish  and  impious  in- 
tention of  reaching  the  skies,  or,  in  the  languagi;  of  .Scripture,  "  w  hose  lop 
may  reach  unto  heaven."  Uut  this  attempt,  we  are  informed,  was  IVus- 
irated  by  the  Almiifhty.  who  confounded  their  languaire,  so  that  they  no 
lunger  understood  each  other's  speeith.  The  scene  of  ihi.i  abortive  iinder- 
lakiiiir  is  supposed  1  have  been  upon  Ihe  Kiiphrati  s,  where  ll.ibvlon  was 
built,  not  far  from  which  are  extensive  masses  of  ruins ;  and  llie  remains 
of  a  largi-  mound,  called  by  Ihe  Arabs  the  Mursi  Ninirod,  or  Nimiod's  tow- 
i.r,  is  gener.illy  believed  to"  be  the  fiMindalioii  of  the  lower  of  Mabel. 

In  endeavouring  to  account   in  a  natural  way.  and  no.  as  tl (feci  of  a 

niiraele,  lor  Ihe  confusion  of  laimruaires  ami  Ihedispersjoii  of  iiiaiikiMd  Dr. 
Shiickford  comes  to  the  follo\,  iug  rational  conclusion    "  1  imagine  that 


iv. 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OF  GKNEllAL  HISTORY. 


I 


the  common  opinion  abont  tlie  dispersion  of  mankind,  is  a  very  wrong  one 
The  confusion  of  tongnes  arose  at  first  from  small  beginnings,  increasinu 
gradually,  and  m  time  grew  to  such  a  height,  as  to  scalier  mankind  over 
tiie  fa(;e  of  liie  earlh.  When  these  men  came  first  lo  Babel,  iliey  were 
but  few;  and  very  probably  lived  together  in  three  families,  sous  of  Sliem, 
sons  of  Ham,  and  sons  of  Japhet;  and  the  confusion  arisnig  from  some 
leading  men  in  each  fannly  inventing  new  words  and  endeavouring  lo 
teach  them  to  those  under  their  direction  ;  this  in  a  little  time  divided  the 
three  famdies  from  one  anoiher.  For  the  sons  of  Japhei  affeciiug  tiie 
novel  inventions  of  a  son  of  Japhet;  the  sons  of  Ham  affecting  those  of  a 
son  of  Ham  ;  and  the  sons  of  Shem  speaking  the  new  words  of  a  son  of 
Shem;  a  confusion  would  necessarily  arise,  and  the  three  families  would 
part;  the  instructtors  leading  oflT  all  such  as  were  iniliated  in  their  peculi- 
arities of  speech.  This  niigltt  be  the  first  step  taken  in  the  dispersion  of 
mankind  :  tliey  might  at  first  break  into  three  companies  only  ;  and  when 
this  was  done,  new  differences  t)f  speech  still  arising,  each  of  ilie  families 
conlii  ned  to  divide  and  subdivide  among  themselves,  lime  after  time, 
as  their  numbers  increased,  and  new  and  different  occasions  arose,  and 
opportunities  offered;  until  at  length  theie  were  p'.anied  in  the  world, 
from  each  family,  several  nations  called  after  the  names  of  the  persons  of 
whom  Moses  has  given  us  a  catalogue.  This  I  think  is  the  oniy  notion 
we  can  form  of  the  confusion  and  division  of  mankind,  which  can  give  a 
probable  account  of  their  being  so  dispersed  into  the  world,  as  lo  he  ffcn- 
erally  seiilcd  according  to  their  families;  and  the  tenth  chapter  of  Oen- 
esis,  if  rightly  congidercd,  implies  no  more." 

From  tlie  families  of  the  three  sons  of  Noah,  then,  are  all  the  nations  of 
the  earth  descended.  The  children  of  Shem  were  Khim,  Asshur,  Arph- 
nxad,  Lud,  and  Aram.  Flam  settled  in  Persia,  where  he  became  the 
father  of  tliat  mighty  nation;  the  descendants  of  Asshar  peopled  Assyria; 
and  Arphaxad  stilled  in  Chaldea.  To  the  family  of  Luii  is  generally  as- 
signed Lydia;  and  Aram  is  believed  to  have  settled  in  Mesopotamia  and 
Syria.  The  children  of  Ham  were  Onsh,  Mizraim,  Phut,  and  Canaan. 
The  desceiidaiits  of  Cush  are  snp[iosc(l  to  have  removed  from  the  south- 
east of  H;ihj  Ionia,  afterwards  called  Khusestan,  to  the  eastern  parts  of 
Arabia;  from  whence  they  by  degri'es  migrated  into  .Africa.  Mizraim 
peo[)led  Fgypt,  Kthiopia,  I-ybia.  and  the  rest  of  the  northern  parts  of  the 
same  coiitiiKMit.  No  pariiciilar  country  has  been  assigned  to  Phut,  who 
is  believed  lo  have  settled  soinew  iiere  in  Arabia,  near  to  Cush.  Uut  Ca- 
naan is  generally  allowed  to  have  settled  in  PliaMiicia ;  and  to  liave 
founded  those  nations  who  inliabited  Jiulea,  and  were  for  the  most  par> 
siilisequently  exterminated  by  the  Jews. 

As  Sloses  givi's  no  account  of  the  life  and  death  of  Japliet,  Noah's  eldest 
son,  he  is  presumed  not  to  have  been  present  at  tlie  coiifnsioii  of  ISabcl , 
but  that  Ins  sex  en  sons  were  afterwards  heads  of  nations  tliert!  is  good 
reason  to  believe.  Their  names  were  Cionier,  Magog,  Madai,  Javan.  Ju- 
lial,  Meslii  ill,  and  Tiras.  (Jonier,  a<'cordiiig  to  Josephus,  was  the  father 
of  the  (lonierilts  or  Celies,  viz.,  of  all  tiie  nations  who  inlialiiled  the 
northern  purls  of  Fnrope,  under  the  names  of  (Jaiils,  (^inibrians,  Ctolhs, 
tiv.,  and  will)  also  migrated  into  S|)aiii,  where  they  were  called  (\'llibe- 
riaiis.  I'riiin  Magog,  Meshecli,  ami  Jubal,  proceeded  the  Scythians,  Sar- 
niatians,  and  Tariiirs;  from  Madai,  Javan,  and  Tiras,  the  Medes,  lonians 
(treeks,  and  Thracians. 

It  is  evident  lli.it  the  monarchicid  forms  of  government  begun  early, 
Minrod,  one  of  the  soii-t  of  Ciisli,  having  been  made  king  of  nabylon, 
while  the  rest  are  supposed  to  have  |j|aiited  difleri'iit  p:iils  of  Araliia 
The  sacred  liiHiorian  says  "  Nimrod  hi'gan  to  be  a  miglity  one  in  the 
earlh — a  mii.'hiy  liniiier  before  the  I,ord."  He  is  said  to  ha\e  Iniili  sevi'ra. 
.-.iiies,  but  wlnii  he  began  his  reign,  bow  long  he  reigned,  and  who  were 


m 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OP  GENERAL  HISTORY. 


37 


Ins  successors,  \v»!  arc  not  informed.  The  Jews  suppose  him  to  be  the 
SMino  with  Ainraphei,  the  ivingof  Shiuar,  who,  with  his  three  confederates, 
were  defeated  by  Abram.  Some  have  imagined  iiini  to  be  the  same  with 
Di'his,  and  the  founder  of  the  Babylonish  empire;  others  with  Ninus,  the 
foiiiuier  of  llie  Assyrian.  Nineveh,  afterwards  the  capital  of  the  Assyrian 
PMipire,  was  built  by  Assluir,  who  also  founded  two  other  cities,  called 
|{is(!ii  and  Iiehobot\  of  the  situation  of  which  we  are  now  ignorant. 
AljoMt  tiic  same  time  various  other  kingdoms  sprung  up  in  different  parts 
of  the  world  Thus  we  read,  in  the  sacred  vonime,  of  the  kings  of  Egypt, 
(j(!rar,  Sodom  and  Gomorrah,  &c.,  in  the  time  of  Abraham;  and  it  is  but 
reasonable  to  suppose  that  the  nations  over  which  they  reigned  had  for 
some  time  e.xisleii :  for,  as  the  learned  and  pious  Bossuet  remarks,  "  we 
see  laws  establishing,  manners  polishing,  and  empires  forming.  Mankind, 
by  degrees,  gets  out  of  ignorance:  experience  instructs  it :  and  arts  are 
invented  or  improved.  As  men  multiply,  the  earth  is  moi-e  closely  peo- 
pled ;  mountains  and  precipices  are  passed;  first  rivers,  then  seas,  are 
crossed  ;  and  new  habitations  established.  The  earth,  which  at  the  begin- 
ning was  one  immense  forest,  takes  anotlier  form:  the  woods  cut  (tr)wn 
make  room  for  fields,  pastures,  hamlets,  towns  and  cities.  They  had  at 
(ir.st  to  encounter  wild  beasts;  and  in  this  way  the  first  heroes  signalized 
tluMnselves.  Thus  originated  the  invention  of  arms,  which  men  turned 
al'K'rwards  against  their  fellow  creatures." 

The  first  considerable  national  revolution  on  record  is  the  migration  of 
the  Israelites  out  of  I'-gypt,  and  their  establishment  in  the  land  of  Canaan. 
This  event  was  attended  with  a  terrible  catastrophe  to  the  Egyptians. 
The  settlement  of  the  Jews  in  the  land  of  Canaan  is  supposed  to  have 
happened  about  1491  b.c.  For  nearly  'JOO  years  after  this  period  we  find  no 
■luthentic  account  of  any  other  nations  than  those  menlioned  in  Scripture. 


i 


CHAPTER  III. 

TIIK   FAIIULOUS    AND    IIKKOIC    AUtS,    TO    THE    INSTITUTION    OK    THE 
OLVMl'IC   GAMES. 

\Vk  now  perceive,  in  profane  history,  the  dawn  of  what  is  called  the 
heroji'  age;  in  ■.vhieli  historical  facts,  though  still  tinetm-ed  with  the  mar- 
vellous, begin  to  assume  something  like  the  appearance  of  truth.  Egypt 
is  seen  grailually  recovering  from  tlie  weakness  induced  by  the  visitation 
of  the  d(!slroying  angel,  and  the  memorable  disaster  of  the  Red  Sea,  by 
which  her  nobility  and  the  flower  of  her  army  had  been  euL'ulfed.  (Jreece 
rapidly  emerges  from  obscurity,  and  makes  oilier  nations  feel  the  effects 
oftliat  enterprising  and  martial  spu'it  for  which  her  sons  were  afterwards 
80  renowned.  Various  migrations  take  place  in  Egypt  and  Asia,  and  make 
settlements  in  ilifferent  [larls  of  Europe.  Thus  was  civilization  greatly 
extended;  for  by  the  concurrent  testimony  of  all  writers  it  appears,  that 
while  the  deseeiidaiits  of  Shem  and  Hani,  who  peopled  the  east  and  south, 
were  estaiiliKJiing  (lowerfid  kingdoms,  and  innkiii!;  great  advanei's  in  the 
Useful  arts,  the  posterity  of  Jiiphel,  wiio  settled  in  the  west  ami  north,  by 
degri'CF  h;id  sunk  into  a  stale  of  barbarism.  To  the  Egyptiin  colonists, 
therefore,  were  they  indebted  for  their  laws  and  religious  mysteries;  and 
tliey  also  excited  among  them  a  lasle  for  science  and  llic  arts,  while  the 
Phmniciaiis  tauiiht  them  writing,  iiavio.iiion  mul  cummeree. 

The  Creeks  were  now  growing  great  and  formnlahle.  ami  their  actions 
liiiil  an  imiiii'iise  iiitliii  nee  on  the  destinies  of  other  nations.  About  llSt 
yenrs  ii.c.  Iliey  disliiiLMiislied  themselves  by  their  expeditiims  auiiinst  Trov, 

city  of  Phryiria  .Minor;  wliiili,  alter  a  siige  often  years  they  (iluudered 
mil'  iiiinit.     tineas,  ;i  Trojan  prince,  esca[ied  with  a  '  nail  liiiiid  of  lii« 


m 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OF  QENEllAL  HISTORY. 


1! 


\ 


foiintrymt  n  liilo  Italy  ;  and  from  ihem  the  origin  of  the  Roman  empire  may 
li<^  iriK'i'il.  Al  llu!  jM'riod  »e  are  now  speaking  of  we  find  liie  Lydians, 
MyHiiinK,  iiml  >*m\w  oilirr  nations  of  Asia  Minor,  first  mentioned  in  history. 

Thoni{h  we  necessarily  omit,  in  this  brief  outline,  a  nuilliiude  of  icnpor- 
tniil  InMisiiclidiis  whieh  are  reeorded  in  the  Bible,  the  reader  must  not 
ioHit  Ri){ht  of  llie  fact  that  the  sacred  volume  is  full  of  historical  interest . 
mid  we  Kimll  have  frequent  occasion  to  refer  to  the  actions  of  "God's 
clioBi'ii  piMiple"  as  we  describe  events  mentioned  by  profane  writers.  For 
the  pt'CNcnl  it  In  sulReient  to  state,  liiat  about  1050  years  before  the  birth 
of  (fliriNl,  tlie  kiu>rdom  of  Judea,  inider  king  David,  approached  its  utmost 
extent  of  power ;  that  in  the  glorious  reign  of  his  sou,  the  wise  and  peace- 
ful SotonKiii,  which  followed,  that  stupendous  and  costly  edifice,  "  the 
tcniple  of  (iod,"  was  completed,  and  its  dedication  soleintuzed  with  extra- 
ordiniiry  piety  niui  miignificence;  that  the  revolt  of  the  ten  tribes  took 
pliu'c  in  the  rclfin  of  Rehoboani,  the  son  and  successor  of  Solomon,  by 
which  ,l('rti!<)d<'m  wtis  rendered  a  more  easy  prey  to  the  Kgyptian  king, 
culled  in  Sciiplure,  iShishak,  atid  supposed  to  be  the  great  Sesostiis,  whose 
itceiJN  make  rii  c(Mis|iicuons  a  figure  in  lh«!  history  of  his  country.  After 
llie  liipfte  of  inmlher  century,  we  learn  that  Zera,  an  Ethiopian,  invaded 
Jiiilea  with  an  army  com|iosed  of  a  million  of  infantry  and  tiirce  hundred 
ehariotK,  but  was  defeated  with  great  slaughter  by  Asa,  whose  troops 
aiiiounli'il  to  about  half  that  uninber.  By  tliis  time  the  Syrians  had  be- 
eiMiic  II  iiowerful  people;  and,  taking  advantage  of  the  rivalry  which  ex- 
JHlcd  lii'twern  the  kingdoms  of  Isr.iel  and.lu(lah,  aimed  at  the  subjugation 
of  bolli.  'Phi'  Syri.in  empire  was.  however,  eventually  destroyed  by  the 
\HMyrmiiN.  taidi'r  Tiulath  I'ilesar,  in  710  a  c. ;  as  was  also  the  kuigdcnn  of 
Sinniiria  by  Siialinancser  his  snecehsor,  in  721 ;  and  such  of  the  people  as 
CHCiiped  ilealli,  were  carried  captives  into  Media,  Persia,  &c. 

Wlnb'  tlie  ri'soiirces  of  the  mighty  nations  of  the  Ivisl  were  expended 
in  elVcctiiig  their  nuilual  dcsliuriion,  the  fouiidalions  of  some  powerful 
empires  were  laid  in  the  West,  which  were  destined,  in  prm-ess  of  time,  to 
(»iibjni,nite  Mild  give  laws  to  the  eastern  world.  About  eight  centuries  be- 
lore  the  ('liiisliiin  era  the  city  of  Carlhiigc,  in  Africa,  was  founded  by  a 
Tyriiin  coloi;y.  and  became  the  capital  of  a  powerful  republic,  which  eon- 
tiniii'd  7'M  years,  iliiringthc  greater  part  of  which  tnne  il.ssiii|is  traversed 
the  Meditcrr.niean  and  even  tin;  Atlantic,  whereby  it  was  enabled  to  mo- 
iin|ioli/,e,n'<  it  were,  the  commerce  of  the  whole  world.  In  Kurope  a  very 
inipiMlant  ri'Vii|iiii(Mi  took  (iljice  abdiit  000  n.c,  namely  the  invasion  and 
cniii|iiei<t  ol'  llie  IN'lopiinnesiis  by  the  Ilcraclida;,  or  descendaiils  of  ller- 
ciilcf*.  Of  this  event,  and  its  conseqiiiiices.  we  shall  have  to  speak  al 
greiitir  hiiglli,  in  its  proper  place,  in  the  body  of  the  work;  we  shall, 
tlicret'ore,  nicfcly  reniiirk  here,  lh.it  the  PelopoimcMis  is  a  large  peninsula 
Hiiniiteil  lit  (lie  Ninilhern  e.\lrcinity  of  Circici',  to  wliic'h  it  is  joined  by  the 
iMihinim  of  ('(uiiiih.  It  is  of  an  irreyiilar  figure,  iiboiit  5(13  miles  in  cir- 
r'liinfereiice.  and  is  now  called  "The  Morea."  On  the  isihmns  stood  the 
Oily  of  ('oiinili;  while  the  l»elo|ioiinesus  contained  the  kingdoms  and  re- 

SiiblicH  of  Nicyon,  Argos,  Laeednjinon  or  Sparta,  Messenia,  Arcadia  and 
IV't'iiic, 


^ 


CIIAPTKR  IV. 

»-BOM    TIIK    INgTITUTION    OK   TIIK    OLYMPIC    GAMKS,  TO    TIIK 
DKATII    OF    eVKIJS. 

In  ?7('i  n  (•..  (he  Olympic  games,  instituted  by  ITi  rcule.s,  and  hnig  dis- 
roiiliiiiicd,  vM're  revived,  and  wiib  their  revival  we  riiid  '.lit  liist(n'y  of  the 
(Jrei'iaii  '■lilies,  mid  the  alTiirsof  the  world  gcneially,  are  more  lo  he  di;- 
(Viided  on     ill  short,  the  period  which  Vano  calls  labulous  ends,  and  the 


■tfS 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OF  GENERAL  HISTORY. 


39 


I  long  (118- 
Uiry  (if  tiie 

V.    lO  l)(^  (Ic- 

ids,  and  tlic 


liistorical  times  begin.  This  is  m.iinly  attributable  to  the  continuance  cf 
the  Olympic  games,  which  grcHtly  facilitnted  not  only  the  writing  of  their 
history,  but  iliiit  of  other  nations  ;  for,  us  each  olympiad  coiisisit-d  of  four 
years,  the  chronology  of  every  important  event  be(;ame  indubitably  fixed 
by  referring  it  to  its  "olympiad.  They  also  greatly  contributed  to  the  civi- 
lization of  ilic  Grei'ian  states,  and  to  the  general  advancement  of  the  polite 
arts.  At  this  period  Itonie,  which  was  one  day  to  be  the  mistress  of  the 
world,  arose  :  its  foundation  being  laid  by  Romulus  about  750  years  be- 
fore the  (ronunencemnnt  of  the  Christian  (?r.i.  Forty-three  years  after,  the 
Spartan  state  was  remndelled,  and  received  from  Lycurgus  those  laws 
which  alike  contributed  to  the  renown  of  him  who  made  and  they  who 
observed  them. 

If  we  take  a  glance  at  the  general  state  of  the  world  in  the  following 
century,  we  shall  find  that  the  northern  parts  of  Kuropc  were  thinly  peo- 
pled, or  inhabited  by  unknown  and  barbarous  nations.  The  Oomeriaus, 
or  Celtic  tribes,  had  possession  of  France  and  S[)ain.  Italy  was  divided 
into  a  number  of  petty  states,  among  which  the  Romans  had  already  be- 
come formidable,  having  enlarged  their  dominions  by  the  addition  of  sev- 
eral cities  taken  from  their  neiglibours.  Foreiuost  among  the  slates  of 
"if  Greece  were  those  of  Athens  and  Sparta  :  the  martial  charu-ter  of  the  in- 

•^  stitufions  of  Lycurgus  had  rend(!red  the  latter  fammis  in  war;  while  the 

'■'<  foriuer  were  enriching  themselves  by  navigation  and  cotnmerce.    Corinth, 

'  Thebes,  Argos,  atid  Arcadia,  were  the  other  states  of  most  consideration. 

The  sceptre  of  Uabylon  was  at  this  lime  swayed  by  Ncbui-hadnezzar,  by 
whom  the  kingdmn  of  .liidea  was  totally  overthrovvn,  5S7  n.c.,  and  its 
temple  burned  to  the  ground  in  the  following  year.     He  also  took  and  de- 
inolishiMJ  the  city  of  Tyre,  despoiled  Kgypi.  and  made  such  prodigious 
■•?  conquests  both  in  the  east  and  west,  that  the  fam(!  of  his  victories  filled 

:j  the  world  with  awe;  till  at  length  his  empire  comprehended   Phrenicia, 

f  Palestine,  Syria,  Uabylonia,  Media,  Persia,  and  part  of  India.     One  great 

c!:'ject  of  his  pride  and  ambition  was  to  render  his  capital  beyond  all  ex- 
^  ample  gorgeous  ;  nor  can  we  consider  the  wonders  of  that  city,  as  related 

S  by  Heroilotus,  at  all  incredible,  when  we  remember  that  the  strength  and 

■i  resour(!es  of  his  mighty  en)pire  were  made  subservient  to  the  purpose. 

The  next  imporiaut  eveiu  that  occurred  was  tin;  revolution  occasioned 
by  the  niiscoiKlnct  of  Fvil-merodacli,  Nebuchadnezzar's  son,  who,  without 
provocation,  wantonly  attacked  and  Iiegaii  to  idiuider  and  lay  waste  the 
country  of  the  Medes.  This  proilucedtm  immediate  r('V(dl,  w'jiich  quickly 
extended  over  all  Media  and  Persia.  The  Medes,  headed  by  Astyages 
and  his  son  Cyaxeres  drove  bai-k  theinlrniler  and  his  followers"  with  great 
slaughter;  nor  does  it  appear  that  the  Uabylonish  monarch  was  after- 
wards able  to  r(Mlu 'c  them  to  subjection.  We  now  come  to  the  period 
when  the  brilliant  career  of  (^yrns  demands  our  notice.  Me  had  signal- 
ized himself  in  various  wars  under  Astyages,  his  grandfather,  when,  hav- 
ing been  appointed  g('uer;dissimo  of  the  Median  and  Pcrsiim  forces,  he 
attacked  the  Uabylonish  empire,  and  the  city  of  Hahylon  itM'lf  f(dl  before 
his  victorious  arms,  (\vrus  now  issued  a  decree  for  the  restoration  of  the 
Jews,  a. id  the  rebuilding  of  their 'I'ctnple.  By  a  succession  of  victories 
\u:  had  become  master  of  ;dl  the  I'last,  ;md  for  sonu;  time  the  Asiatic  af- 
fairs conliuucd  in  a  state  of  Iranquillity.  it  is  necessary  to  observe'  in  this 
[dace,  that  the  'Medes.  before  the  lime  of  Cyrus,  though  a  great  and  -ow- 
erfiil  people,  were  eclipsed  by  the  superior"  prowess  of  ilie  IJ  ibyloniiuis. 
Rut  ('yrus  having  cotupiered  ilieir  kiuudom,  by  the  united  fon"e  of  tho 
Medes  and  Persians,  il  appears  that  the  great  enipire  of  which  he  was  the 
founder  must  have  taken  its  name  from  both  nations;  so  that  the  eiupire 
of  till!  Medes  and  that  of  the  Persians  were  one  and  the  same,  llMUigh  in 
conseqiM'iii-e  of  Ihe  ulory  of  its  wise  and  victorious  leader  it  snhsiMpienllv 
retained  only  the  latter  name.     Meanwhile,  it  continued  to  extend  itscl"/ 


10 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OF  GENERAL  HISTORY. 


on  every  side;  and  at  Inngth  Caiiibyses,  the  son  and  successor  of  Cyrua 
coiKiueied  Egypt,  and  added  that  country  to  his  already  overgrown  do 
minions. 


CHAPTER  V. 

TROM    THE    ERF.CTIOIV    OF    THE    PKUSIAN    ESlPlnE,  TO    THE    DIVISION  OF    THE 
CBECIAN    EMPIRE    AFTER    THE    DEATH    OF    ALEXANDER 

The  Babylonians,  groaning  under  the  oppressive  yoke  of  tlieir  Persiai. 
masters,  in"517  n.c.  made  a  desp(^rat(;  efTorl  to  shiike  itolT;  but  they  were 
signally  defeated  by  Darius  Hyslaspis,  «ho  besieged  the  city  of  Babylon, 
demolished  its  fortifications,  and  caused  its  walls  to  be  lowered  from  200 
to  50  cubits.  Darius  then  turned  his  arms  against  the  Scythians  ;  after 
which  he  directed  his  course  eastward,  and  reduced  lh(!  country  as  far  as 
tlie  Indus.  In  the  meantime  the  lonians,  who  had  submitted  to  (-yrus, 
revolted,  which  led  to  the  invasion  of  the  Grecian  slates,  and  tiiose  dis- 
asters to  the  Persians  by  land  and  sea,  which  we  have  elsewhere  related. 
In  459  BC.  the  Eifypiians  made  an  incfTectu-.J  iltunipt  to  regam  tiieir  inde- 
penden(;e.  They  also  again  revolted  in  4 !  "j  n.c,  and,  being  assisted  by 
the  Sidonians,  drew  upon  the  latter  that  terrible  destruction  foretold  by  the 
prophets,  while  they  more  firmly  rivelted  the  chains  which  bound  them- 
selves to  the  Persian  rule. 

The  Persian  history  exhibits  every  characteristic  of  oriental  cruelty, 
treachery,  and  despotism;  and,  wiih  a  few  splendid  exceptions,  presents 
us  with  a  series  of  monarchs  whose  lust  of  power  was  equalleil  only  by 
their  licentiousness.  But  the  greatness  of  the  Persian  empire  was  soon 
about  to  he  hmnbled.  Ten  thousand  Greek  mercenaries  had  served  under 
the  youn^iT  Cyrus  in  his  rebellious  attempt  to  seize  tiic  throne  of  tiis 
elder  brother,  Artaxerxes  Miiemon  ;  but  he  was  defeated  and  killed  at  the 
battle  of  Cunaxa,  near  Babvlon  ;  and  his  Grecian  allies,  though  in  a  strange 
country,  atid  surroniided  oi.  all  sides  by  enemies,  effected  iheirsafe  retreat 
under  Xeiioplion,  wliosi;  conduct  on  this  occasion  has  been  extolled  both 
by  ancient  and  modern  writers,  iis  cxiiibiting  a  matchless  union  of  prudent 
caution  and  military  skill. 

In  this  rapid  sketch  we  shall  not  stop  to  notice  the  various  contests 
wliieh  took  place  between  the  firccian  states,  thougli  liicy  make  a  coii- 
sidciahle  fi;riire  in  their  respective  histories;  but  pass  on  to  the  time  of 
Philip  of  Macedcii,  who,  taking  advaulate  of  the  wars  and  dissensions 
which  were  gradually  weakening  tiie  neigliboiiriiig  stales  of  Greece,  began 
to  meditate  their  cciinpiest ;  and  by  souietiincs  preteiiriiiig  to  assist  one 
state  and  sometimes  another,  he  finally  eirected  his  object.  Having  be- 
come masier  of  all  firct-ce,  he  projected  the  eoiupiesl  of  Asia  :  his  death, 
however,  by  assassinalion,  left  that  great  acliievenieut  to  be  attempted  by 
his  ambitious  and  warlike;  son,  Alexuiidcr,  surnained  lli<:  (ircat. 

No  man  who  ever  lived,  perhaps,  possessed  the  necessary  (pialities  foi 
the  execution  of  this  mighty  project  in  ji  more  emiiienl  degree  than  the 
youthful  .Mexaiider.  Drave,  skilful,  and  impctimus,  Ik;  niarciied  1^  un 
victory  to  victory;  till  at  lenglli  the  power  of  the  l'i;rsiaiis  was  totally 
ovenhrown  at  ilie  battle  of  Arbela,  331  ii.c,  and  an  end  put  to  the  empire 
by  the  niunU'r  of  Darius  by  Bessiis  in  the  following  year.  Alexaud(;r  hav 
ing  sui)Jui'd  I'(r>ia,  his  victorious  arms  were  now  direcied  against  the 
eoutitrics  which  houndid  Persia;  and  having  reduced  Hyreaiua,  Uactria, 
and  several  oilier  independent  kingdoms,  he  entered  India  and  subdued 
all  the  ualioiis  1(1  the  river  Ilypliasis,  oiu;  of  tin;  braiiciics  of  the  Indus, 
At  length  the  p.iiience  of  bis  troops  became  exhausted  ;  they  saw  that  the 
ambition  i\<  llieir  leader  was  honiulless,  and  icfnsed  to  gratii'y  liis  |)assion 
for  ui!i\eisal  ciuujucst  by  proceeding  farther,     lie  died  at  Babylon  in  tlio 


1 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OF  GENKUAL  IlISTOilY. 


41 


year  323  bc,  li'iiviii>>:  llie  affairs  of  his  vast  empire  in  a  most  unseltJei) 
state,  and  not  even  naming  liis  successor. 

In  tliti  western  world,  at  this  period,  great  kingdoms  were  evolvint; 
from  obscurity,  and  events  of  tlie  iiigliest  importance  succeeding  eacli 
other  wiili  unexampled  rapidity.  The  first  object  that  hcie  claims  our 
ailenlion  is  the  establishment  and  rapid  growth  of  tlie  Roman  repubJic. 
In  509  B.C.  Tarquin,  the  last  king  of  Rome,  was  expelled,  and  the  govern- 
ment entrusted  to  two  magistrates,  annually  ehicted,  called  consuls.  Thus 
the  republic  proceeded,  thougli  amid  perpetual  jealousies  and  contentions, 
till  it  reached  its  higliest  pitch  of  power  and  grandeur,  by  the  successive 
conquest  of  Italy  aiid  her  isles,  Spain,  Macedonia,  Cartilage,  Asia  Minor, 
Syria,  Palestine,  Gaul,  Britain  ami  Kgypt.  It  was,  neveriheless.  exposed 
to  the  greatest  danger  from  tiie  ambiiion  of  individuals  :  the  civil  wars  of 
Marius  and  Sylla,  and  the  conspiracy  of  Uatiline,  shook,  it.s  very  centre; 
and  by  the  contention  arising  out  of  the  rivalry  of  Julius  Ciesar  and  Poin- 
pey,  it  was  ultimately  overt lirown. 

On  the  death  of  Alexander  the  Great,  four  new  empires  immediately, 
as  it  were,  sprung  up.  He  had  left  behind  him  a  large  and  victorious 
army,  commanded  by  generals  who,  bred  in  tlie  same  school,  were  not 
ess  ambitious  of  sovereign  rule  than  their  master.  Cassander,  the  son 
of  Antipaler,  seized  Macedonia  and  Greece;  Aiitigomis,  Asia  Minor;  Se- 
leucus  marked' out  for  his  share  Uabylon  and  the  eastern  provinces;  and 
Fioleniy,  Kgypl  and  the  western  ones.  Furious  wars  soon  succeeded  this 
division  of  Alexander's  wide-spread  empire  ;  and  several  provinces,  taking 
advantage  of  the  general  confusion,  shook  off  the  .Macedonian  yoke  alto- 
gether. Thus  were  formed  the  kingd(jms  of  Pontus,  Uitiiyiiia,  Pergamus, 
Armenia,  and  Cappadocia.  Antigonus  was  defeated  and  killed  by  Se- 
leucus  at  the  battle  of  Jpsus,  301  b.c,  and  the  greater  part  of  his  domi- 
nions fell  to  the  lot  of  the  conqueror.  The  two  most  powerful  and  per- 
manent empires  were,  in  fact,  Syria,  founded  by  Selcucus,  and  I'Jgypl  by 
Ptolemy  Sotcr.  But  there  was  also  another  empire  at  that  time  existing 
which  demands  our  notice.  The  Parthians,  originally  a  iribe  nf  Scythians 
wlio  had  wandered  from  their  own  country,  at  length  set  I  led  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood of  Hyrcania,  and  were  successively  tributary  to  the  Assyrians, 
Babylonians,  Medes  and  Persians.  The  country  in  which  lliey  settled 
obtained  from  them  the  name  of  Parthia;  and  when  Alexander  invaded 
Asia,  they  submitted,  with  the  other  dependencies  of  the  Persian  empire. 
After  the  death  of  the  .Macedonian  coiupicror,  Parthia  was  siibjcet,  first  to 
Eumcnes,  then  to  Antigonus,  and  finally  to  the  kings  of  Syria  and  B.ibylon. 
In  the  reign  of  Antioclius  Tlieos,  the  rapacity  and  crimes  of  A^ithocles, 
the  Syrian  governor,  roused  the  spirit  of  the  Parlliians;  and.  under  Ar- 
saces,  a  man  of  great  military  talents,  they  ex|)elled  their  oppressors,  and 
laid  the  foundation  of  an  eiii|)ire  whicii  ultimately  e.\l(!Miii'd  over  Asia,  b.c 
2.50.  The  Syrians  atlempleil  in  vain  to  recover  this  province.  A  race  of 
able  and  vigilant  princes,  who  assumed  the  surnaiiK!  of  ArruciJici'rinn  thu 
founder  of  tht^ir  kingdom,  not  only  ballled  their  ell'orts,  but  so  inereased 
in  power,  that  while  they  lielil  eighteen  tributary  liingdnnis.  between  the 
Caspian  and  Arabian  seas,  they  even  for  a  time  disputed  wiih  the  itomaiis 
the  empire  ol  the  world. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

FROM    niK   WARS    OK    IIOMK    .\M)    rVRTMACK,    TO    TO 


eir.'rii   of  christ. 


Tnr  Romans,  who  for  more  than  five  hundred  years  h.id  bei'ii  consiiintly 
victorious,  met  with  an  oppoiuMit  in  Hanriibal,  conm  mili'r  of  tin'  Caiilia- 
ii;inian  forces,  whose  consummate  generalship  fur  .>  iinie  turned  (he  tide 


(2 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OF  GENERAL  HISTORY. 


I    < 


i    I 


nf  fort  inc,  nnd,  niiiking  Italy  the  battle-field,  he  <,'HlliMitIy  opposed  on  their 
native  soil  the  liiirdy  veterans  of  Rome.  I.oiiir  and  doiilitfiil  were  llie.:e 
eaiiyniiiiary  contests ;  but  in  the  end  the  Cnrthajfinian  armies  were  recalled 
into  Africa,  which  the  Romans  had  invaded,  and  he  who,  at  ihebaiiUMif 
rniniiv,  had  struck  the  Roman  legions  wilh  terror,  was  totally  defeated  at 
Zama;  by  which  the  second  Pnnic  war  was  concluded,  in  the  year  183  b.c. 
In  fortv  years  from  that  date  the  fate  of  Carthage  was  iilliniaiely  decided. 
The  llonians  having;  declared  war  against  it  a  third  lime,  used  all  their 
energies  for  accomplishing  its  final  destrnction.  The  city  was  long  and 
fiercely  assailed:  tlie  genius  of  the  yoimgcT  Scipio  at  length  triumphed 
over  !he  desperate  valnur  of  thebesieged  ;  and  Carthage,  once  mistressof 
the  sea  and  ilie  most  formidable  rival  of  Rome,  was  reduced  to  ashes,  and 
for  ever  biottcd  from  the  list  of  independent  nations. 

During  tlie  contentions  between  Rome  and  (Carthage,  a  confederacy  was 
formed  by  tluf  stales  of  (ireece,  under  tlie  name  of  the  Achnean  League, 
which  soon  eclipsed,  in  splendid  achievcmenis  and  power,  both  Athens 
ind  Sparta.  Weary  of  the  tyranny  of  the  Macedonians,  the  Oreciau 
gtaies  had  entered  into  this  compact  for  recovering  their  liberties ;  but 
having  imprudently  given  the  Romans  an  opportuniiy  of  intermedding  in 
tlieir  affairs,  they  were  eventually  reduced  lo  a  Roman  province,  under 
the  name  of  Acliaia.  This  celebrated  league  was  begun  about  ihe  year 
♦jei  DC.  and  continued  formidabl.!  for  mor*^  than  l.^O  years,  under  officers 
called  Prietors,  of  whom  Aratus  and  Pliiiopfpnieii  were  the  most  lenowned. 

About  this  period  we  read  of  the  direful  oppression  of  the  Jews  by  An- 
tiochus  i;piphaiies.  After  their  return  from  the  Babyhmish  (;apiivily,they 
coniiiiued  in  subjection  to  the  Persians  till  the  time  of  Alexander;  and 
subsequently,  as  the  fortune  of  either  Kgypt  or  Syria  happened  to  prevail, 
they  were  under  its  dominion.  On  the  subjugation  o(  l''gypt  by  Antiochus 
•■^piphiiiies,  the  .lews  being  treated  wilh  great  severity  by  him,  they  natu- 
rally, but  imprudently,  expressed  their  joy  on  hearing  a  re[)ort  of  his 
death;  and  it  was  not  long  bef(M-e  the  enraged  monarch  took  the  fiercest 
vengeance  on  them.  He  marched  at  the  head  of  a  powerful  army,  took 
Jerusalem  by  slorin  in  170  b.c,  and  committed  the  most  bonid  cruelties 
on  the  inhaliitants.  Their  religion  was  for  a  while  abolished,  their  altars 
defih'd,  and  every  iiu'iu'uity  oflercd  to  the  people  that  tyranny  and  hate 
could  suggest.  An  imagi'  of  Jupiter  Olympius  was  erected  in  Ihe  hcdy 
place,  and  unclean  beasts  were  sacrificed  on  the  altar  of  burnt  ofi^'rings. 
Rut  the  Jews  s()o;i  rallied  ;  and  uu'ler  Maltatbias  the  true  woisliip  was 
reslctred  in  most  of  the  cities  of  Judea  :  the  temple  was  piirificij  by  Judas 
Maccalnens,  lf)'5  n.c. ;  and  a  long  series  of  wars  ensued  between  the 
Syriiiis  am!  the  Jews,  in  which  the  latter  gained  many  signal  advanlapfcs. 

About  l.'iO  years  hcfore  the  birth  of  Christ  the  principal  einpiies  and 
stales  of  l!ie  world  may  be  thus  enumerated.  In  Asia  were  Ihe  empires 
of  Syria,  India  and  Parthia — iMch  of  them  powerful  and  extensive — with 
.\rabii,  Poiitiis,  Armenia,  and  some  oilier  countries  of  less  importance. 
In  Africa  wen;  the;  kingiioms  of  KgypI,  Ktliiopia,  N'uinidia,  M.iiiritania, 
ind  Octiilia;  the  last  named  three,  now  that  (7arlhiige  was  destroyed,  ap- 
pearing to  the  eyes  of  the  ambitious  Romans  as  llieir  easy  prey.  In  Eu- 
rope ibcrc  were  none  able  to  oppose  the  Roman  legions,  save  tlie  fjauls 
anil  snine  of  tlie  nations  inhabiting  Spain  It  was  not  long,  thiTefore, 
lifter  the  conquest  of  (~"artliage  and  Corinth  that  the  finnl  siilijiig  .lion  of 
•Spain  was  rcsidvcd  (Ml ;  for  all  the  posscssi(>iis  which  the,  (^arlba.^inians 
held  in  that  country  had  already  fiUen  into  tlu^  hands  of  llie  victorious 
rtomaiis.  They  accordinsly  began  by  attacking  the  laisiianians ;  but 
this  brave  peiple,  under  the  coiidiict  of  V'irialiis,  a  leader  whose  skill, 
valour,  and  prudence  eininenily  f|ualifii'd  him  for  his  post.  Imig  bid  defi- 
ance lo  the  Kninau  arms:  in  the  field  he  was  not  lo  he  subdued  :  and  ho 
at  last  mot  his  death  from  the  hands  of  assassins  hired  by  his  treacherous 


■M 


'H- 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OF  GENERAL  IIISTOaY. 


43 


4i 


enemy.  The  Romans  now,  in  tlie  wantonness  of  their  power,  scrupled 
nol  to  use  Ihe  biisesl  unil  most  corrupt  means  for  reducing  the  wiiulo 
country;  and  tliougli  many  tribes  bravely  maintained  their  iuilcpendence 
for  years,  Spain  ullnnutely  became  a  Uomau  province.  But  all-povverlul 
ns  Rome  bad  now  become,  her  cavil  and  pulaicat  condition  was  far  from 
enviable.  Hi,-r  conquests  in  (ireece  and  Asia  broujjht  luxury,  cruelty,  and 
creneral  corruption  in  their  train;  and  those  heroic  virtues  for  which  in 
ihe  early  days  of  the  republic  she  was  renowned,  iiad  totally  disappeared. 
We  nmst,  however,  reserve  for  its  proper  place  an  account  of  the  civil 
cumuiolions,  proscriptions,  and  assassinations  which  followed ;  and  pass 
onward  in  our  brief  recital  uf  sucli  events  us  peculiarly  appertain  to  gen- 
eral history. 

Attains,  king  of  Pergamus,  had  left  all  his  goods  and  treasures,  by  will 
to  the  Roman  people ;  upon  which  his  kingdom  was  speedily  converted 
into  a  Roman  province,  under  the  name  of  Asia  Proper.  iNext  followed 
the  conquest  of  the  Ualearic  Isles  (now  called  Majorca,  Minorca  and  I  visa); 
Numidia  was  soon  ufierwards  reduced ;  but  the  subjugation  of  Maurituiua 
and  (jululia  was  for  a  time  delayed. 

While  Rome  was  approachnig  her  zenith,  the  decline  of  the  Syrian 
empire  was  apparent.  'I'he  civil  dissensions  between  the  two  brothers, 
Auliochus  Ciry|)hus  and  Antiochus  Cyzicenus,  gave  an  opportunity  for 
the  cities  of  Tyre,  Sidon,  Ptolemais  and  Gaza,  to  declare  their  indepen- 
dence ;  while  the  .lews  not  only  rccovorcd  their  liberty,  but  e.vt(;nued 
their  dominions  as  far  as  in  the  days  of  Solomon.  About  the  year  83  b.c., 
Tigranes,  king  of  Armenia,  became  master  of  Syria,  but  the  Romans  soon 
wrested  It  from  him,  and  added  it  to  the  immensely  extensive  possessions 
of  the  republic. 

Kgypt,  wliicli  h'ld  hitherto  maintained  its  proper  station,  tell  after  the 
battle  of  Actlum,  and,  like  its  predecessors,  was  reduced  to  a  Roman  pro- 
vince about  the  year  30  b.c.  Rome  mnsi  no  longer  be  regarded  as  a  re- 
fiublic ;  and  its  change  from  that  form  of  government  to  an  empire  may 
)e  looked  upon  as  advantageous  to  those  nations  who  were  still  free,  for 
the  inordinate  desire  of  conquest  which  had  hitherto  marked  the  Roman 
character,  for  a  time  seemed  to  be  lulled,  and  during  the  reign  of  .\ugustus 
the  tempi''  of  Janus  was  thrice  closed — a  ceremony  coeval  with  the  origin 
of  the  siaie,  to  denote  that  it  was  at  peace  with  the  whole  worlil.  This 
pacilii;  prince  died  in  the  /fith  year  of  his  age,  and  in  the  4otli  year  of  his 
rciffi),  A.u.  14;  his  empire  exteiidiiiif,  in  Kurope,  to  the  ocean,  the  Rhine 
and  the  Danube;  in  Asia,  to  ihe  Euphrates;  and  in  Africa,  to  Ethiopia 
ami  the  sandy  deserts.  It  was  in  this  memorable  reign,  in  the  year  of 
Rome  7ii  that  Jesus  Christ  was  born,  and  ilie  holy  religion  of  which  he 
was  the  I'ouiuler.  persecuted  and  despised  thougii  it  was  at  first,* gradualLv 
spread  over  the  Roman  world. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

FROM   THE  BEOINMNO    OF   THK   CUBISTIAN    ERA,   TO   THE   APPEARANCE 
OP    MOHAMMED. 

In  the  year  07  a.  d.  the  memoralile  war  with  the  Jews  commenced, 
which,  though  ii  lasted  but  three  ye.irs,  ended  in  the  total  destruction  of 
their  city  and  nation,  after  eiiduiing  all  the  horrors  of  war  carried  <in  by 
each  party  with  sanguinary  fury.  About  ten  years  after  this  event  the 
real  conquest  of  Uritain  was  edccted  by  Agricola.  The  empire  had  now 
reached  lis  utmost  liiiiiis,  and  under  the  just  and  upright  Trajan,  Rome 
h,id  reason  to  rejoice,  not  merely  in  her  extent  of  territory,  but  in  the 
equitable  administration  of  her  laws,  and  iu  the  virtue  and  wisdom  of  liei 


u 


OHTLINK  SKKTCIl  OF  UKNKKAL   HISTORY. 


sciintors.     Adrian  succ-t'eiiml  Tr; 


11,111,  aiii 


>ll()W(>ll    111 


his  footstpps.    Tlie 


(Icc'liiie  of  impcri;il  Rome  was,  however,  f;isl  approueliiiig,  for  ulthmigli 
Aiiloniiiiis,  suriianied  the  Pious,  obiiiiiied  the  reyard  of  his  siilijei-ts  and 
the  respect  of  fortMgners,  living  in  peaee  during  the  whole  of  his  reign, 
yet  sciirceiy  had  Mureus  Aiirelius  Aiitouiiuis  succeeded  to  the  tli rone,  be- 
fore the  ijiermanic  tribes  united,  as  in  the  time  of  Mririus,  and  poured  in 
their  warlike  hordes  upon  Italy;  and,  while  they  grew  more  and  more 
formidable,  famine  and  pestilence  ravaged  many  of  the  Roman  provinces 
A.D.  180. 

From  this  time  repeated  incursions  of  hardy  adventurers  from  the  north 
of  Europe,  under  various  names,  I0(d<  place,  but  thouLrh  often  beaten,  they 
renewed  their  attempts  with  a  degree  of  courage  and  perseverance  that 
required  all  the  energy  and  superior  discipline  of  the  Roman  legions  to 
overcome.  From  the  death  of  Aurelius  to  the  reign  of  Dicxdesian,  many 
of  the  Roman  emperors  were  mere  sensualists ;  there  were,  however, 
some  splendid  exceptions,  and  by  the  warlike  genius  of  such  the  incur- 
sions of  the  barbarians  were  from  time  to  time  arrested.  The  Romans 
had  also  for  a  long  period  met  with  a  most  powerful  adversary  in  the 
Persians,  and  when,  in  2fi0,  the  emperor  Valerian  was  defeated  and  taken 
prisoner  by  them,  the  empire  seemed  to  be  hastening  to  utter  and  irreme- 
diable destruction.  Wliih;  Gallienns,  the  son  of  V^ilerian,  and  his  associate 
in  power  was  revelling  in  luxury  at  Rome,  numerous  claimants  of  the  im- 
perial dignity  arose  in  the  dllTerent  provinces.  These  were  designated 
the  "thirty  tyrants,"  (though  tlK'ir  numbers  did  not  exceed  twenty,  and 
there  was  no  good  reason  for  designating  them  tyrants).  Their  dominion 
was,  however,  not  of  long  duration,  and  on  the  death  of  (lallienus  he  was 
succeeded  by  Claudius,  wlio  had  tlu;  merit  of  deliverins  Italy  from  the 
(lOths.  After  him  came  Aurellan,  who  introduced  order  into  the  state, 
restored  internal  tranquillity,  and  defeated  his  enemies  both  in  Kurope  and 
Asia.  Under  'I'acitns,  Prolnis  aiul  Cams,  the  empire  was  in  a  measure 
restored  to  its  former  lustre;  but  the  barbarians  still  pressed  onward;  iuid 
when  the  government  fell  into  the  hands  of  Dioelesian,  he  changed  its 
form,  sharing  the  imperial  dignity  with  Maximinian,  to  whom  lu^  com- 
mitted the  VVest,  while  he  ruled  in  the  Knst.  In  this  manner  was  the  gov- 
ernnii  nt  administered  till  the  (l;iys  of  t^onstantine,  who  in  A.n.  .130  re- 
inoveil  the  imperial  seat  to  Hyziuilnini,  wliicli  he  named  (Miiistanlliiople, 
became  :i  convirl  to  Cliristiaiiiiy,  and  p\u  ;in  end  to  one  of  tin-  most  vim 
lent  persecutions  against  its  professors  Uiat  ever  dlsirraced  the  world. 
'I'lie  iiniiu'dlate  successors  of  ("!onst;intiiii'  did  little  'o  uphold  the  l?oiiian 
power,  and  Julian,  who  asceinled  the  throne  in  .1(il,  renounced  Christianity 
;iud  opi'iily  professed  the  ancient  religion,  but  he  was  both  too  pidilic  and 
too  hinnane  to  |)ersecute  his  Christian  siilijects.  We  find,  however,  that 
the  decline  of  the  empire  was  everywhere  visible.  After  his  death  its  iii- 
leriKil  corruption  lunl  weakness  coniinned  to  increase  ;  Unit  strict  discipline 
which  had  formerly  n'Uilered  the  Koman  legions  invincible,  v(daxeil,  and 
while  corruption  and  Injusiice  renilereil  the  government  odious  at  hoHie,  jtR 
fnmlier  towns  were  attacked  and  its  distant  provinces  o  •errui>  by  Ik'ree 
and  nueivilized  hordes  issuing  from  tin'  north,  e;ist  and  wesi.  It  is  ;it  this 
piriod  that  we  read  of  Alaric,  lln?  Visigoth,  who  [ilnndereil  Rome,  A.n. 
lOli;  of  (Jeiiseric,  tile  powerful  king  of  the  \  inidals  ;  and  of  \tidi,  the 
lluii,  emphatically  teinied  "  tie-  scourge  of  (lod."  In  fact,  the  Scytliians, 
Siiruiallans,  fiotlis,  Huns,  Vandals,  and  otln  r  barlianuis  natiinis,  watched 
all  occasions  to  break  into  il,  and  though  sonii'  of  the  emperors  In-avely 

withst 1  their  attacks,  no  efforts  could  finally  stem  the  ruthless  torrent 

which  kept  pouring  in  on  all  sides.  .\t  length  the  lleruli,  a  people  wlu; 
niigralr'il  from  the  shores  of  Ihi-  H.iltic,  and  had  grown  formiilable  as  they 
priK'cedi'd  sonlhwirds,  app(  ared  in  Italy.  They  were  headed  by  llic 
Valiant  Odoace-,  and  being  joined  by  other  tribes,  (|uickly  became  innslerA 


1 


fl 


OUTLINI';  .-KliTCll  Ob'  QliNKttAL  HISTORY 


45 


A.  II. 

Illl  I,  llic 

I'lhiiiiis, 

iilclmd 

llinivcly 

I  tcirri'nt 

|l<"  wIk; 

li\s  llii-y 

Ihy  llu' 

Inaalork 


of  It  ilv,  and  the  city  uf  Uome  itself  surrendered  to  their  victorious  uruis, 
A.D.   176. 

'I'he  fall  of  the  western  empire  was  thus  ('onsummiited,  but  the  Romans 
still  niainiained  tlieir  sway  at  C'onstantinoiJie.  The  eastern  empirt",  ill 
fact,  at  tiiis  time  comprehended  all  Asia  Minor  and  Syria,  Etiypt  and 
Greece  ;  but  neither  its  domestic  nianagement  nor  its  military  prowess 
gHve  hopes  of  a  leiiglhened  doi'iiuion.  Luxury,  elTeminacy,  and  supersti- 
tion sapped  its  vitals;  continued  wars  wiih  tlie  Persians,  Uuljrarians,  and 
other  barbarous  nations,  exhausted  its  strength  ;  and  a  similar  fate  to  that 
of  th(!  western  empire  appeared  to  await  it  at  no  very  distant  period. 
Still,  as  we  follow  tl.e  stream  of  history,  we  shall  find  that  it  not  only 
survived  the  wreck  forseveral  centuries,  but  at  times  displayed  an  enerijy 
and  pciwer  worthy  of  the  Koman  name. 

Revolutions  succeeded  one  another  among  the  savage  conquerors  of  the 
West  with  fearful  rapidity.  The  Henili  under  Odoacer  were  driven  out 
by  the  Goths  under  Theodoric.  The  Goths  were  expelled  by  the  Romans 
under  their  able  general  Helisarius,  but  while  he  was  absent  quelling  an 
insurrection  in  Africa,  they  regained  their  footing,  and  again  took  posses- 
sion of  Rome.  'I'lie  Franks  next  invaded  Italy,  and  made  themselves 
masters  of  ih.!  province  of  Venetia,  but  at  lasi  the  superior  fortune  of  the 
emperor  Justinian  (ircvailcd,  and  iht;  (idllis.were  finally  subdued  by  his 
pro-consul  Narses,  A.  D  .55'J.  From  that  time  till  the  year  5(i8,  Narses 
governed  Italy  with  great  prudence  and  success,  as  a  province  of  the 
eastern  empire,  but  having  incurred  tiie  emperor's  displeasure,  Longinus 
was  appointed  to  succeed  him,  and  was  invested  with  abscdute  power. 
He  assumed  the  lille  of  exarch,  and  resided  at  Riiveima,  whence  his  gov- 
ernment was  called  the  exarchate  of  Raveiina,  and  having  placed  in  each 
city  of  Italy  a  governor,  whom  lui  disliiiguished  with  the  title  of  duke,  he 
abolished  the  name  of  senate  and  coiisnls  at  Rome.  But  while  he  was 
estabiisliing  liiis  new  !-overeigiiiy,  a  great  portiim  of  Italy  was  overrun  by 
the  Iiombards.  In  sliort,  we  lind  that  they  steadily  marched  on  from  I'an- 
iioiiia,  accom|ianied  by  an  army  of  Saxon  allies,  and  w  ,re  not  long  before 
they  became  masters  of  all  Italy,  with  the  exception  of  Rome,  Ravenna, 
and  some  of  the  eastern  seaeoast. 

A  warlike  nation  called  l''ranks,  who  were  divided  into  severnl  tribes, 
Mad  been  gradually  rising  into  importance,  and  quitting  the  banks  of  tlu! 
Lower  Rhine,  they  li'id  made  lliemsi'lvcs  masters  of  no  iiiconsideralile  part 
of  (iranl.  A  wailike  ami  ambitious  chief  among  Ihcm,  namc(i  Clovis,  un- 
dertook the  coiKjiiest  of  llie  wh(d(!  country,  and  having  defeated  and  killed 
his  powcifnl  rival,  Marie,  king  of  t\w  Gotli«,  he  possessed  himself  of  all 
the  c<Mintries  lying  between  the  Rhine  and  the  Loire,  and  thus  became  the 
founder  of  till!  French  monarchy,  a.d.  4S7. 

A  few  years  bcfoitt  the  coiiqiiesi  of  Rome  by  thi!  Ilernli,  the  V'isigothi 
erected  a  kingdom  in  Spain,  and  as  tliey  advanced  eastward,  about  the 
same  time  that  t'lovis  was  extending  liis  coiKiuesis  to  the  West,  the;  river 
Loire  was  tlic  natural  bound  iry  of  the  two  kingdoms;  but  a  w  ir  soon 
broke  mit  bet  wfcn  ihem,  wliicli  ended  in  favour  of  (Movis.  AiiotliiT  king- 
dom had  previously  liicii  foimded  in  liie  wesiern  pirts  of  .'^paiii  by  ilio 
Suevi,  who  wi're  subdued  by  tiie  (uillis  imdcr  Tlieodorii-,  in  lO!) ;  and 
eventually,  a.d.  .084,  these  restless  warriors  subjugated  nearly  the  wliolo 
uf  Spain. 

CIIAITKR  VIII. 
paoM  TiiK  nisK.  or  moiiammkh,  to  tiik.  commknckmk.nt  of  tiik 

CIII'SAUKS. 

LfT  im  now  turn  our  alienlion  for  a  moment  to  a  general  virw  of  iho 
Morld  nn  it  uxiBted  in  the  sixth  century  of  the  (.'liristiaii  era.     The  Roman 


46 


Ol'TLlNK  SKICTCH  OF  (iKNKHAI,   IIISTOIIY 


empire  111  thn  west  x\;is  niiniliihilcd.  iiiid  various  iiatiims  of  iiortliPrn  nx- 
triKMioii  were  eillicr  licrccly  coiileiidiii^  with  each  ollur,  or  incdilii'iiig 
new  (conquests:  the  rasteni  empire  whs  coiitlMiiiilly  at  war,  conteiuling 
wi;li  the  PersiHiis  on  one  side,  or  linrrrtsscd  by  llie  Httiicks  of  the  Minis 
iiiid  I)  I  her  tribes  on  its  iiorlherii  frontiers,  while  it  was  agitated  and  weak- 
ened by  religious  and  pohtical  uiiiinosiiies.  The  Indians  and  other  ori 
enlal  nations.  iinac(!nslonied  to  war,  were  ready  to  fall  a  prey  to  the  first 
powerful  invader,  while  the  fiery  inhabilaiits  of  Arabia,  from  their  earliest 
orijfiii  H(;(;iistoined  to  hold  and  predatory  warfare,  were  as  ready  to  under- 
take any  enterprise  which  seemed  to  promise  an  adequate  reward. 

'J'his.  then,  was  the  very  nick  of  lime  most  favourable  for  such  a  revo- 
lution ill  the  world  as  was  undertaken  by  the  «ily  and  daring  Mohammed 
(or  Mahomet),  wh ),  foreseeing  the  power  and  glory  that  awaited  him  if 
success  should  crown  his  efforts,  assumed  (he  tiile  of  "prophet,"  and 
professed  lo  have  received  a  direct  eoniniission  from  <>od  to  become  the 
founder  of  a  new  religion.  A.n-  (>3'J.  This  forms  a  marked  epoch  in  ehro 
nology,  and  is  designated  the  Hegira,  or  Klighl  of  Mohamined.  He  at  (iist 
eiuleavoiired  by  the  force  of  his  persuasive  eloquence  alone  to  make  pro- 
selytes, but  finding  himself  ere  long  at  the  head  of  many  thousand  war- 
like followers  who  acknowledged  that  "there  was  but  (Uie  (Jod,  and  that 
Mohammed  was  his  prophet,"  he  took  advantage  of  Iheir  eiitliiisiasm,  and 
proceeded  in  the  work  of  conquest.  With  a  celerity  truly  siiiprising,  the 
'iriiiies  of  the  prophet  and  his  successors  overran  Syria,  I'alcsline,  Persia. 
Miikharia  and  India.  On  the  west  their  empire  soon  e.Mi'iidcd  over  l''gypt, 
Harbary,  Spain,  Sicily,  Ac.  Hut  Mohammed  who  died  in  the  fi.3d  year 
of  Ills  age, did  not  secure  the  succession, or  give  any  directions  concerning 
It,  and  the  eonseqiienee  was  that  the  ndipliale  was  seized  by  many 
usurpers,  dissensions  broke  out  among  the  "  true  believers,"  and  in  the 
course  of  time  this  great  empire,  like  the  others  whirh  we  have  noticed, 
declined  in  importance.  The  relijiion,  however,  still  exisl.«,  and  the  tem- 
poral power  of  those  who  profess  it  is  by  no  mciuis  IrilliiiL''. 

While  this  extraordinary  revoliiiioii  was  gciiig  on  in  the  East,  and  the 
Arabian  nrniR  were  con(]ucring  *•  in  the  name  of  (iod  and  the  prophet," 
the  western  nations  as  zealously  upheld  the  doctrines  promulgated  by  the 
pope.  From  the  days  of  (.'onstantiiie  llie  Uoinaii  poiitifTs  had  been  gradii- 
iiily  extending  their  power,  temporal  as  well  as  spiritual,  and  at  ihe  period 
(d  which  we  are  now  speaking,  not  only  was  their  sacerdotal  dominion 
liruily  esiablished,  but  liieir  political  inihience  was  often  excited  for  or 
against  those  princes  of  surriuinding  stales  as  best  suited  the  interests  o( 
ilii' cliiircli.  \Vlien,  ill  7'JI),  l.iiiiprand,  king  of  the  Lombards,  bad  taken 
l<a\eniia,  and  ex|)<>lled  the  exarch,  Ihe  pope  undertook  to  restore  him.  and 
Ins  rcsloralion  was  accordingly  speedily  efTccied,  The  aulhoriiy  of  the 
Hvzaniine  emperors  in  Kome,  was,  tndeed.  little  more  than  nominal,  and 
the  interference  of  the  popes  in  the  temporal  cimcerns  of  the  diffe-enl 
Kiii'o|)ean  monarcliie.4  was  of  the  most  obnoxious  and  intolerable  kind. 

We  have  seen  that  the  reduction  of  (Jaiil  was  effected  by  (Movis,  (he 
Frank,  who  is  styled  the  founder  of  the  French  monarchy.  That  kiiiij- 
doin,  It  may  be  observed  was  subsequriitly  divided  inio  several  pelly  sove. 
rcigiilies,  and  while  the  princes  weakened  each  other  by  then  eontcsls, 
the  nobles  increased  in  power,  leavinij  their  kings  little  mon*  than  the 
hliadow  of  royalty.  .At  length  they  gave  themselves  up  to  a  life  of  indo- 
lence and  ease,  and  iiliaiidoned  ibi  reins  of  government  to  officers  called 
inii\ors  of  tlie  palace,  nf  whom  the  most  eelelir.iled  were  Cli.irlcs  Martel, 
and  Ills  son  I'epiu  the  I. title,  who  deposed  ('hilderic,  and  became  the 
founder  of  the  ('arlovingian  or  second  royal  race  of  Fr.ince.  Of  the 
princes  of  tins  race  we  shall  here  only  spe  ik  of  Carolns  Magnus,  after 
wards  called  ('iLirlcmagne,  on  account  of  the  extent  of  Ins  eoiii|uests,  liiit 
reitoraliuii  of  the  wciileru  otnpirL',  uiid  thu  8|i|eiuiuur  uf  hia  rcisn.     Vor) 


:» 
'^ 


i 


m 


I 


OUTLINE  SKUTCH  01'"  GENERAL  HISTORY. 


47 


I 


sonn  after  liis  accMssidii  to  tlie  tlironi!,  the  Saxons,  who  liad  long  been 
tiilmlnri('»  to  I'rmici-,  revoltud,  aucl  biiivdy  anil  ohstni.iti'ly  coniendud  for 
llicii-  I'rffdoin.  hill  ihfy  were  at  list  ()hh(j;(:(l  to  submit.  In  774,  aflir  the 
reduction  of  P.ivi^,  and  the  capiur'  of  Uiilicr,  thi;  last  king  of  the  FiOin- 
bards,  Chirleinagiit!  repaired  lo  Milan  and  was  thine  crowned  king  of 
Italy.  From  this  liiiie  he  was  eng.iged  in  an  almost  ui)cea«ing  warfare 
ii<>'aiiist  the  Moors  in  Spain,  the  Saxons  ami  Huns  in  Uermaiiy,  the  party 
of  the  easti'rn  eiU|)i'ror  in  Italy,  and  the  Normans,  who  infested  liis  niari- 
tiiiie  provinces.  Having  sub<hied  his  enemies,  he  repaired  to  Koine,  in 
the  year  800,  for  the  fourth  and  last  time,  and  on  Ohristmas-tlay,  while 
assisting  at  the  eclelnatioii  of  mass,  the  pope,  [,eo  III.,  suddenly  and  uii- 
expi'ctedly  crowned  him  cniperorof  the  Romans,  friini  which  time  he  was 
lunioured  wiili  the  lille  of  Cli.irlem  igne,  or  Charles  tiie  (Jreat.  At  the 
time  of  his  deaili,  whicii  occurred  in  814,  he  had  reduced  all  that  part  of 
Spain  which  lies  hciween  the  Pyrenees  and  the  Kbro,  seized  ll.ily  from 
the  Alps  to  the  borders  of  (Jalabria,  and  liso  added  to  Ins  dominions  all 
Germany  soiilli  of  the  Kyder,  and  Faiinonia.  The  world  was  llierefore 
uiice  more  shared  among  tliree  t;nMi  powers.  The  empire  of  tlie  Ar<ibs 
or  Saracens  extended  fnmi  the  (iaages  to  .Spain,  conipreheiiilin>>  almost 
ill  of  Asia  and  Africa  which  has  ever  been  known  lo  I'airopi'a.is,  China 
and  Japan  excejited.  The  eastern  lioman  empire  was  niduced  lo  Greece, 
Asia  Minor,  ami  the  provinces  adjoining  Italy.  And  the  empire  of  the 
west,  under  Chai'lema>riie,  conipreheiided  France,  Germany,  and  the 
grealcr  part  of  lt;ily.  'I'he  son  and  successor  of  Charlemagne  was  Louis 
1.,  at  wliosi^  deaili  the  resloied  eiipire  of  the  west  was  divided,  in  ri40, 
among  ins  four  sons :  Ijolharius  was  emperor  ;  I'epin  king  ol'  Aipiilain; 
Iiouis  II.  king  of  (iermaiiy;  and  ('harlcs  II.  surname  I  the  Ij.iid,  king  of 
France:  a  division  that  proved  the  sonri'eof  (lerpelual  coiiltMitioiis.  'I'lia 
French  retained  the  imperial  title  under  ei<>'ht  sovereigns,  till  !)I.>,  when 
liOliis  III.  the  lasl  king  of  (lennany  of  the  race  of  (/hailemagne,  dying 
without  III  lie  issue,  liis  coa  in-law,  Coiiiad,  count  of  Frannnnia,  wag 
eleiMed  cniperorof  (Jerniiny.  Tims  the  empire  passed  lo  the  (ieinians, 
and  became  elective,  Ity  the  siifTiages  of  the  princes,  lords,  and  deputies 
of  cities,  who  assumed  till!  title  of  electors. 

During  the  period  we  have  been  describing,  the  union  of  the  Aiiglo- 
•Saxoii  kingdoms  was  effceti^d  by  lOgherl,  the  king  of  Wessi'X,  a.o.  8'J7. 
The  pirates  of  Scandinavia,  too,  about  this  lime  heiran  to  make  tlii'ir  up< 
pearance  in  large  fleets,  and  spread  devastation  on  the  shores  of  I'ranco 
anil  other  kingilonis  of  continental  Kniope.  In  Kngland,  where  they  were 
called  Danes,  lliese  Northmen  harrassi'd  the  coast  in  a  similar  manner. 
Mild,  though  frequently  repulseil,  in  the  course  of  time  they  had  the  satis- 
faction of  seeing  monarchs  of  their  own  nation  sealed  on  the  throne  of 
Kimland.  The  Saxon  race  was.  however,  restored  in  lOll,  in  the  person 
of  lalward  siirnamed  ihe  Confessor,  who,  dying  willioiil  issue,  llominateil 
VVi|liai;»  duke  of  Normandy,  lo  be  his  smccSMir.  Here  we  may  just  re- 
mark, that  the  predatory  iribfs  of  Norihmen,  of  wlioiii  we  have  heforo 
spoken,  at  utrerenl  limes  overran  and  ravaircil  most  countries  of  lOnrope, 
.mil  a  party  .aving  I'lilered  France,  under  their  leader  Hollo,  Cli  iries  the 
Simple  ceded  lo  lliem,  in  !>I-',  the  province  of  Neiisina.  On  this  occasion 
Kolhi  emiiraced  Cliristiaiiily,  chaiiued  Ins  name  to  Kiibinl,  and  that  of  his 
duchy  lo  Normandy.     From  linn  was  William  Ihe  Compii'ror  ilescended. 

At  no  period  of  the  hir  lory  of  the  winid  do  ue  find  it  in  a  more  coiil'iiseii 
and  disiracti'd  Mate,  tli;iii  at  the  epiidi  lo  wliii  h  we  lii.ve  now  .irriveil.  It 
appears,  imb  rd,  liki^  oiii>  vast  battle  lii  Id  Our  attention,  however,  is 
prii.cipally  aiiracteil  by  (he  pi'epomler.iling  inllnence  of  (term  iiiv,  in  the 
west,  the  ileclme  of  ihe  lt\/.aiiliiie  empire,  and  the  increase  of  that  of 
the  Turks,  III  Ihe  e.ist ;  lb,- divisions  amoim  llie  Sariciiis  of  Spam,  anil 
lltuir  Hubjugatiuii  by  those  of  Africa.     Civiluaiioii  was  takiny  u  rctro|(adu 


la 


OUTLIWn  SKETCH  OF  GENERAL  HISTORY. 


course;  and  while  the  feudal  system  and  the  spiritof  chivalry, assisted  by 
tvie  papal  superstiilons,  were  rivetting  the  chains  of  liarbirisiii  in  (nie  pari 
of  the  world,  the  conqnesis  and  spoliations  of  (he  Tnrks,  like  lliose  of  the 
Goths  and  Huns  before  noticed,  were  fast  ohliteralin^r  the  faint  traces  of 
human  science  and  learning  that  remained  in  the  other.  At  last  the  Cm 
sades  (thouy;h  they  must  ever  be  deplored  as  the  wretched  olVsprinsf  of  en 
thusiasm  and  niissfinded  zeal),  by  din'Cting  the  attention  of  Kuropeans  to 
one  particular  ohjcci,  tnad(!  them  in  some  measure  suspend  ihe  slaufjhter 
of  one  another,  and  were  the  means  of  extricating  Christendom  from  J 
stale  of  political  bondage. 


lit 


CHAPTER  IX 

FROM  TUE  FIRST  CRUSADE,  TO    Tin!  DEATH    OF   8ALADIN. 

The  world,  as  we  have  seen,  was  at  this  lime  diviilcd  into  two  prnnd 
reliffimis  parties,  namely,  the  Christians  and  M.ihaiumedans,  each  of  whom 
affected  to  ref^ard  the  small  lerritctry  of  Palestine,  which  tliey  called  the 
Moly  Land,  as  an  invaluable  acquisition.  'I'he  origin  of  the  crusades  may 
therefore  be  atlriliuicd  to  a  superstitions  veneration  for  the  places  where 
our  Saviour  had  lived  and  performed  his  miracles,  which  annually  l)roii|;lit 
»ast  inimbnrs  of  pilijrims  from  all  parts  of  (Jhrislendom  to  visit  the  city 
of  Jerusalem,  and  those  particular  spots  in  its  vicinity  which  had  been 
rendereil  cs|)eci.illy  meniorablc  by  his  iireacbiiig-,  siifierings,  and  death. 
Altliou>ih  the  Saracens,  under  Omar,  their  second  caliph,  had  taken  .(eru- 
<;ilcm,  and  e(Mii|ncre(i  I'alestine,  in  the  7th  century,  they  allowed  llie  pil 
U'rims  to  continue  to  visit  their  favourite  haunts  on  payment  of  a  small  Iri 
hiile.  In  inn.'),  however,  l\u'.  Turks  wrested  the  holy  city,  as  it  was  styled 
from  the  Saracens;  and,  bein<r  much  more  fierce  and  barbarous,  the  jiil 
U'rims  cnulil  no  loiifjcr  with  safety  perform  their  devotions;  and  Kuro|>«' 
nsonndeil  with  cfMiiplaints  against  the  inlidcl  possessors  of  I'alesliiie,  who 
profaned  tin"  holy  places,  and  so  crmdly  treated  Ihe  devotees,  Kuropc 
was  at  the  time  full  of  enthusiastic  warriors,  who  wanted  but  little  stimu- 
lus to  lead  tlieiii  to  the  field  of  glory ;  and  pop<!  (tregory  VII.  had  already 
meditated  and  iKiv'd  the  niiioii  of  Christendom  against  the  religion  of  Mo- 
hammed. Hesi.les  the  reliL'ions  motive  of  freemg  Jerusalem  from  tlu'  do- 
minion of  the  Turks,  some  views  of  ambition  iniiiht  have  indu'cd  the  court 
iif  Itome  to  cnij-age  in  this  project,  lint  whatever  might  have  been  the 
chief  motives,  aii  ofvportuuity  somi  presented  itself,  winch  was  seized  with 
ividity.  A  bold  enitniM.i'^t,  named  Peter,  who  fnnn  his  useetic  life  was 
railed  Ihe  llermil,  having  been  on  a  pilgninage  to  Jerusalem,  represented 
die  oppression  of  the  holy  city,  and  the  erind  treatment  which  Ihe  Chris- 
tians sntVered,  in  terms  so  appalling  to  lirhan  II.  (who  tilled  the  papal  .vee 
4i  the  time),  that  the  pimtitf  listened  to  Ins  scheme  for  nulling  all  the 
f'liristian  slates  against  Ihe  Tnrks,  ;ind  leaning  armies  into  Asia,  sndicienl 
I'l  iinmber  and  prowess  to  eon(|uer  these  warlike  people  by  whom  tin- 
llcdy  Land  was  held  m  siibjectKni.  In  eoitse(|nence  of  tins  a  conned  was 
suinniinied,  and  a  meeting  of  (deriry  and  laily  look  place  in  .1  Held  in  the 
iieigllbourhooil  of  I'liceiiiia,  at  «  liudi  l(llin(i'(drsiasli(<ancl  llUOdO  seciilnrs 
«eri'  present.  Itolh  I'eter  tin-  Hermit  ami  Ihe  I'ope,  represented  in  Ihe 
'Host  vivid  rolonr.'*  the  direful  situation  of  their  bri  tliren  in  the  l')asl,  and 
tlie  indiL'iiity  od'eri'd  to  th,'  religion  of  ^  'hrist.  Their  speeches  were  snilrrf 
lo  the  passions  of  their  hearers,  and  so  will  seconded  by  the  advenlnroie 
<;>irit  of  the  tniies,  that  a  violent  ,'iiid  tiiiniilluiMis  declaration  of  w.ir  \.ur%- 
I'orlh  fnunall  siiles  ;  and  the  assembled  iniiltitnde  de  vol  eel  thelMselves  el  eei 
fully  to  a  service  tli.it  they  believed  to  he  iiieritorions  in  the  si  :ht  of  Heavei 
Tlio  7.e»|iins  l»eter  next  visileil  thu  eliief  eilicn  mid  sioveroigm*  of  Clu-i 


i 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OP  GENERAL  HISTOUY. 


HUdil'H'Ill 
aIkIIII     till' 

iiiiril  \V!is 
ill  t)i(? 

0  :<l'Cllllir8 

i  III  lilt- 

I')m.sI,   illlif 
III'  SllllCli 

K  iitiirou: 
u  ,ir  Li.i'H' 
vi'scl  ( el 
I  Hciivi  I 
111   ritt'i 


eendom,  calling  upon  them  to  rescue  the  sepulchre  of  their  Saviour  from 
the  tyraniioiis  grasp  of  the  Turks.  Another  council  was  speedily  held  at 
Clcrinoiil,  in  Auvergne,  which  was  attended  by  many  princes,  and  the 
prealcst  prelates  and  nobles;  and  when  Urban  and  the  Hermit  renewed 
their  pathetic  declamations,  the  whole  assembly  burst  forth  in  a  freneral 
exchimalioii.  "It  is  the  will  of  Go  J!"  words  which  were  immediately  at- 
tributed to  divine  inspiration,  and  adopted  as  tlie  signal  of  rendezvous  and 
battle.  Men  of  all  ranks  now  flew  to  arms  with  the  utmost  ardour;  and  a 
cross  of  red  cloth  was  affixed  to  their  right  shoulder;  hence  the  names  of 
erusade  (or  croisade)  and  crusaders  were  derived  to  express  this  new  expe- 
dition professedly  undertaken  on  religious  grounds.  However  imprudent 
the  project,  the  prevailing  taste  and  prejudices  of  ihe  age  occasioned  its 
being  adopted  without  cxainination.  Independent  of  this,  their  passions 
were  absorbed  in  their  love  of  war ;  they  were  delighted  with  the  thoughts 
of  adventures,  and  the  brave  were  attracted  by  the  hopes  of  gain  as  well 
as  with  the  love  of  glory.  What  was  not  lo  be  expected  from  the  valour 
of  an  infinite  iiiimber  of  warriors  fighting  under  the  banners  of  Ihe  cross  1 
No  means  were  left  unemployed  to  swell  tlieir  ranks.  The  rich  and  poor, 
the  saintly  and  tlie  criminal,  were  alike  eager  to  show  their  devotion  in 
the  cause.  Sovereigns  shared  in  and  ajiplauded  it ;  the  nobility  with  their 
vassals  engaged  in  it;  and  the  clergy  not  only  loudly  extolled  it  from  the 
pulpit,  but  tuight  the  people  to  consider  it  as  an  atoneineni  for  their  sins. 
No  wonder  then  that  the  number  of  adventurers  at  last  became  so  immer-  \ 
ous,  that  their  leaders  gniw  apprehensive,  lest  the  greatness  of  the  arma-,' 
ment  should  disappoint  its  purpose.  Some  were  elated  ai  the  prospects 
of  worldly  advantage  which  opened  to  tlieir  view  as  iliey  bclield  in  per- 
spective the  rich  conquests  in  Asia  ;  others  llioiiglit  of  liie  expiiition  of 
their  offences  in  the  tumult  of  war,  and  rejoiced  that  they  could  gratify 
their  inclinations  while  performing  a  sacred  duty.  If  they  succeeded,  their 
fortune  seemed  to  be  secured  in  tiiis  world;  if  they  died,  a  crown  of  nuir- 
tyrdom  was  promised  in  the  next.  So  many  causes  uiiiiiiig  had  almost 
an  insurmountable  power  ;  and  their  concurrence  is  one  of  tiie  most  curi- 
ous phenoiniMia  to  he  met  with  in  history. 

An  undisciplined  multitude,  toinpiited  at  three  hundred  thousand  men, 
led  the  way,  under  the  command  of  I'eter  the  Hermit,  and  a  soldier  of  for- 
tune, called  Walter  the  Moneyless.  They  passed  tliroiijrii  Hungary  and 
Ihilgaria.  towards  Constantinople  ;  and  trusting  lii  supernatural  aid  for  the 
supply  of  their  wants,  Ihey  inaih-  no  provisimi  for  subsistence  on  their 
march.  They  were,  in  fact,  c(Mnpo8ed  partly  of  fanatics  and  jiartly  of 
wretches  bent  on  plunder;  and  the  result  was,  ;is  might  have  Uvvw  expect- 
ed, that  the  enraged  inhabitants  of  the  conutrics  which  they  pillaged  fell 
upon  and  nearly  annihilated  them  before  tlicy  could  r<  acli  (Constantinople, 
the  place  appointed  for  their  general  rendczvmis.  'I'lie  iiioii'  disciplined 
armies  followed  mm\  after.  Among  their  leaders  were  the  celebrated 
Godfrey  of  Bmiillon,  with  his  brothers,  Haldwin  and  Miistace  ;  Robert, 
duke  of  Nminanly  ;  Hugh,  brother  of  Philip  I.,  kiiiLr  of  I'lancc;  Robert, 
earl  of  Flanders;  KaynuHid,  count  of  Toulouse,  am!  other  experienced 
commanders.  Thus  led,  this  host  of  warriors  tiaverscd  (Jennany  and 
llui.gary,  passed  over  the  straits  of  (Jalllpidi,  coiMnicicd  Ne'e  in  1007,  An- 
tioch  and  Ktlessa  in  10!)H,  ;ind  lastly,  Jerusalem,  111  lO!)!);  of  which  city 
GodiVev  of  lloinllon  was  chosen  king  ;  liiii  lie  icfiise'l  lo  lienr  that  title  in 
the  Holy  Land;  and  died  in  1100.  In  IIO-J.  an  ariiiv  of  -JtiO.OOO  men  left 
Klirone  on  llie  same  desliiiation  ;  they  pensjied,  however,  pi.itly  iHl  the 
inarcli,  and  partly  by  the  sword  of  the  sultan  of  li'oniiiin.  Such'  was  the 
insue  of  the  lirst  cru'sadc  ;  but  the  spirit  which  had  been  thus  excited  was 
not  to  be  so  readily  exliiiguislicd  ;  a  sec  ond.  a  third,  and  several  other  cru- 
ludes  were  iiiidertaken  <l>iriiig  a  siiciessioii  of  alino.st  two  hiiiidrcd  years, 
uid  ended  in  ver»  sir  lults.     In  1-JOl,  the  town  of  Acre,  or  I'loli* 

I. — 4 


50 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OF  GENERAL  HISTORY. 


m 


mais,  in  wliieli  the  descendants  of  Godfrey  still  maintained  tlie  regal  title, 
was  plundered  by  the  sultan  of  I'^Kypti  and  the  Ciiristians  were  driven  out 
of  Syria. 

Tiiree  monastic  and  military  orders,  theHospitallers,  the  Templars,  and 
Teuionic  knights,  were  iMstituted  at  Jerusalem,  to  prolc'ci  the  pilgrims 
from  the  attacks  of  the  Turks.  In  this  age  the  sacred  was  so  confounded 
with  the  profane,  that  it  was  thought  the  virtues  and  austerities  of  the 
monk  iiiight  be  united  with  tite  warlike  qualities  and  passions  of  the  sol- 
dier. The  new  orders,  loaded  with  wealth  and  particular  privileges,  in  a 
short  time  became  greedy,  licentious,  and  insolent  warriors,  eneuiies  of 
one  another,  and  by  tiieir  mutual  hatred  weakened  the  cause  of  IHirisiian- 
iiy.  What  liappened  before  in  Kurope  was  likewise  seen  in  Asia:  every 
lord  wanted  to  erect  a  sovereign  power;  principalities  were  subdivided 
intofeifs;  discord  prevailed,  and  the  Turks  would  soon  have  destroyed 
them,  if  iliey  had  not  likewise  been  divided  among  themselves. 

The  Christian  empire  in  the  Kast  extended  at  this  period  from  the  bor- 
ders of  Kgypt  to  Armenia  ;  but  it  was  encotnpassed  by  powerful  enemies, 
and  its  population,  though  brave,  was  by  no  means  considerable.  The 
Turks  had  already  taken  I'Messa,  and  there  was  great  reason  to  be  appre- 
hensive for  the  fate  of  Jerusalem,  when  I'lugenms  III.,  fifty  years  after  the 
beginning  of  tlie  crusades,  was  solicited  by  deputies  from  the  lOast  to  re- 
new lliem.  This  time  the  monk  St.  liernard  took  upon  himself  iheoflico 
of  its  (rhief  advocate;.  He  is  represented  as  running  from  town  to  town,  and 
though  ignorant  of  the  language  of  the  country,  yet  making  the  people  fol- 
low iiim,  and  performing  iiu  nberless  minn'his.  He  accordingly  every- 
where g  liiK^d  an  iulluence,  o:  whic'h  there  had  been  no  parallel ;  yet  his 
success  could  scarcely  keep  pace  with  his  zealous  wishes.  Under  the 
humble  habit  of  a  monk,  Uernard  enjoyed  a  greater  respect  than  was  paid 
to  the  most  powerful  princes  :  he  was  as  (doquenl  as  he  was  enthusiastic, 
and  obtained  an  unbounded  influpiKfc  over  the  minds  of  the  people.  The 
emperor  Conrad,  who  first  listened  to  him  with  a  resolution  to  oppose 
those  dangerous  emigrations,  concluded  with  enrolling  himself.  Neither 
conlil  Louis  VII.,  king  of  !•" ranee,  resist  the  appeal  of  the  orator.  The 
people  abandoned  their  habitations  in  crowds;  the  nobles  solil  their  lands 
and  laid  tlu;  price  at  his  feet;  and  nearly  a  million  of  men  solicited  to  be 
enrolled  among  the  champions  of  (Mirisiianity. '  It  is  said  that  each  of  the 
armies  had  70,000  "nun  at  arms  :"  these  consisted  of  the  nobility,  who 
were  heavy  armed,  and  followed  by  a  much  more  uuineroiis  body  of  light 
cavalry.  The  number  of  infantry  was  inimcnse.  'J'lie  emperor  CJonrad 
was  the  first  that  set  out :  lu;  was  the  brother-in-law  of  IManucl  Comenim, 
at  that  lime  reigning  in  (Joiistantinoph! ;  but  the  (Jreeks,  it  is  said,  appre- 
hensive that  similar  excesses  W(uild  be  committed  by  the  eriisKiers  as  in 
the  former  <'.\pediiioii,  furnished  them  with  treacherous  guides,  which  led 
to  their  destruction  ;  his  army  was  almost  annihilaled  ;  upon  which  he 
fled  to  Antioch,  made  a  pilgrimage!  to  Jerusalem,  and  returned  to  ICurope 
with  a  mere  handful  of  men.  Louis  met  with  similar  disasters,  and  fol- 
lowed tin;  exainpit!  of  Conrad;  .so  that  when  they  were,  eompelled  to 
withilraw,  they  left  the  Holy  l.and  in  a  much  weaker  cimdition  lliaii  they 
had  fiiunil  it. 

ICxpediiions  so  ill  |)laiiiied  and  ill  eoiidueted,  served  only  to  animato 
the  Turks  to  the  destruction  of  tin;  Christians  of  Jerusalem,  and  to  show 
them  the  little  (Mdiciilty  there  would  be  in  expelling  them.  Noradin, 
whom  tlicy  ehosc!  for  their  leader,  proinotcd  this  desifin,  and  Saladin,  his 
Buecessor,  completed  iIk;  work.  The  latter,  aficr  having  nsyrped  Syriii, 
trminphed  over  the  Persians,  conquered  Kgypt,  and  made  himself  master 
of  iloiiiiiiioiis  that  j'Xlended  to  itu'  (Jxiis,  returned  by  sea,  in  order  to 
*trip  the  lairopeans  of  the  places  they  still  retained.  Damascus,  Aleppo, 
mid  Acre,  opened  their  gules  to  the  conqueror,  who,  after  having  artfully 


f 
I 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OF  GENERAL  HISTORY. 


51 


?al  title, 

fw 

iveii  out 

M 

^m, 

lars,  and 

m 

pilgrims 

m 

foundrd 

■^ 

s  of  the 

^ 

the  sol- 

M 

;cs,  ill  a 

M 

billies  o( 

•w 

iirisliiiii- 

''^ 

,i;  every 

M 

ibdividcd 

M 

(istroycd 

'M 

'M 

the  bor- 

0. 

eneniies, 

1 

le.     The 
be  appre- 
i  after  the 
ist  to  ra- 
the office 
town,  and 
ii'ople  fol- 
ly every- 
;   yet  his 
Under  the 
1  was  paid 
thiisiaslic, 
.pie.     Tlie 
to  oppose 
.     Neither 
lor.      Tlie 
licir  lands 
itfd  to  be 
aciiof  the 
)ilily,  who 
)(ly  of  light 
ror  Conrad 
t'oineinii', 
iaid,  appre- 
iders  as  in 
,  whitdi  led 
which  he 
to  Kurope 
rs,  and  fol- 
inipc  lied  to 
n  than  they 

to  animato 
mil  to  show 
Noradin, 
Siihulin,  his 
ipcd  Syrii, 
isidf  master 
in  order  to 
iiH,  Aleppo, 
'ing  urlfully 


Jrawn  the  Christian  army  into  narrow  defiles,  where  he  eomnianded  the 
passes,  obliged  them  to  surrender,  with  Lusiirnaii.  tlieir  king  ;  a.  n.  1187. 
He  then  niareiied  towards  .lerusaleni,  whieh,  being  in  a  manner  defence, 
less,  was  easily  taken  ;  and  thus  he  destroyed  for  ever  the  little  kmudom 
wiiieh  had  not  subsisted  a  eeiituiy,  and  for  the  aeqnisilioii  of  whieh  by 
the  Christians  so  much  interest  had  been  excited,  and  so  much  blood  had 
been  shed. 

Tlie  news  of  the  loss  of  the  Holy  Land  spread  consternation  in  Europe. 
Urban  HI.,  wlio  had  exerted  all  his  inlhicncc,  spiritnal  and  temporal,  to 
prevent  th.tt  misfortune,  died  of  grief  soon  after  the  fatal  news  reached 
his  ear.  The  Christian  princes  suspended  their  quarrels,  and  the  desire 
of  recovering  .lerusaleni  produced  a  third  crusade;  a.  d.  118'J.  This  was 
infinitely  better  planned  llian  the  lornier  ones,  and  gave  the  most  splen- 
did hopes.  Three  princes  of  distinguished  merit,  who  would  have  ex- 
cited the  admiration  of  aii^'  age,  were  the  leaders  of  this  expedition. 
Frederic  I.,  surnamed  IJarbarossa,  om;  of  tiie  most  distinguished  em- 
perors that  ever  governed  Germany,  advanced  by  land,  at  the  head  of 
150,000  men.  Philip-Augustns,  king  of  France,  also  conducted  iliither  a 
large  and  well-appointed  army;  while  Iticiiard  Coeur-de-Lion,  king  of 
England,  the  hero  of  this  crusade,  set  out  with  his  nobles  and  the  H.)vver 
of  his  troops.  Isaac  Angelus,  the  emperor  of  (^onstaniinople,  looking 
upon  the  crusaders  as  intrii.h'rs,  had  formed  an  alliance  with  Saladin  and 
the  sultan  of  leoninm;  but  Frederic  trininphed  over  the  obsta(!les  which 
were  opposed  to  him,  and  though  he  found  hostile  .irmies  everywhere  on 
his  mar<di,  he  ol)tained  many  signal  vit'tories.  In  this  manner  he  was 
proceeding  towanis  Palestine,  when,  after  crossing  Cilicia,  he  met  his 
death  from  having  incautiously  halhiMl  in  the  ("ydiius,  the  extreme  cold- 
ness of  which  had  lificen  hundred  years  before  nearly  proved  fatal  to 
Alexander. 

Philip  of  France,  and  Richard  the  "lion-hearted"  king  of  England, 
though  ambitious  rivals,  were  apparently  united  in  their  design  of  carry- 
ing on  the  holy  war;  and,  in  order  to  avoid  the  Greeks,  they  prudently 
preferred  going  by  sea.  Philip,  who  arrived  first,  distinguished  himself 
in  several  eiigageinents  with  the  Saracens,  took  many  places,  and  having 
made  himself  master  of  the  open  country,  laid  siege  to  Acre.  In  the 
meantime.  Richard  was  advancing  to  second  the  elTorls  of  the  French 
monarch;  and  on  liis  arrival  tlu^y  found  that  tiieir  united  forces  amounted 
to  about  300,000  men.  There  wiis,  how(!ver,  no  real  union  among  the 
leaders.  Philip,  jealous  of  the  heroic  character  of  his  rival,  ■•nd  tired  of 
the  finitless  expedition,  embarked  with  the  gre;itest  part  of  Uk  iirmy  for 
Fnince,  h;iving  (list  sworn  not  to  attack  the  possessions  of  Ricliard  until 
liie  return  of  both  to  their  dominions.  Cffiur-de-Lion  now  heeiiue  sole 
iiiiisier  of  the  operaii.ins.  and  ri'siimed  the  siege  of  Acre,  which  ai  length 
ca|jiliil;ili'd;  lie  def(ntted  the  sultan  in  several  desperate  encounters,  and 
by  prodigies  of  vidoiir  and  military  skill,  forced  victory  from  the  standards 
of  the  hr;ive  Sidadin,  who  till  then  hiid  been  deemed  inviiii-ible.  While 
Richard  was  |iiirsiiing  his  successes,  jind  on  the  eve  of  reaping  ;t||  the 
friiils  of  his  toil,  he  learned  that  Philip,  on  his  relnrn  to  France,  luid  in- 
cited his  (Richard's)  brother  to  take  u|i  arms  ;igaiust  him,  and  was  sitlaek- 
ing  the  I'.nglish  provinces  in  that  kingdom.  Thus  forced  to  saerifii'e  his 
pxpcci.itions  in  the  ICast  to  the  interest  and  defem-o  of  his  native  domin- 
ions, he  rcununeed,  with  rage  and  vexation,  the  laur(ds  he  hsid  won,  and 
his  hopes  of  future  con(|Ui'st.  He  then  agreed  to  a  truce  with  Saladin, 
^y  which  the  t^liristians  were  to  be  securely  protected  in  Palestine;  but 
llioiigli  Acri^  was  in  their  possession,  :m(l  served  as  a  bulwark  for  tliem 
until  the  entire  leriniiiation  of  tlie  crusades,  tin;  design  of  this  expedition 
was  frustrated  bv  leaving  the  sultan  master  of  Jerusalem.  Suladiii  died 
Ml  n»3. 


V 

it* 


ilni' 


69  OUTLINE  8KKTCH  OF  GKNFRAL  HISTDRY 


CHAPTER  X. 

rHOM    THB    DKATH    OI    SALADIN    TO   THE    END   OF   THB   CRUSADES. 

DuniNo  the  third  crusade  a  revolution  happened  at  Constantinople, 
which  divided  the  eastern  empire  for  fifty-eight  years.  Alexius  Aiigeius, 
Burimnied  the  Tyrant,  having  dethroned  Isaac  II.,  usurped  his  seal  in 
llOft;  iind  Ah'xiim,  son  of  Isaac,  applied  to  the  French  and  Venetians, 
who  pimncd  liial  way  to  the  holy  wars,  to  assist  him  in  the  recovery  of 
hill  fiither'H  cinnire.  They  a-cordingiy,  in  1203,  renouncing  their  designs 
aifitinxt  the  lluly  Land,  laid  siege  to  Constantinople,  took  it  by  storm,  and 
fepliiced  loaiic  on  the  throne;  the  next  year,  Alexius  Ducas,  surnamed 
Mnrtziilphim  or  Murziifle,  assassinated  'he  emperor,  whom  the  crusaders 
had  re.i'KliihJiNlu'd,  and  seized  the  crown.  On  hearing  this,  the  F'reiieh 
roliinicd,  Mllncked  the  city,  deposed  Murtzniphus,  and  elected  Baldwin, 
coiitil  (if  Khitiders.  in  his  room;  he  had  four  successors,  the  last  of  whom, 
Diildwiii  II,,  was  deposed  in  1262,  by  Michael  Paleologus. 

Thin  WMN  the  period  iti  which  the  sovereign  pontifTs  carried  their  at 
tPlliplH  iij(aiiist  crowtied  heads  to  the  greatest  excess;  and  we  shall  con- 
i('(|ii('tilly  fltid  that  a  general  history  of  the  Kuropean  states  becomes 
more  iiml  more  connected  with  the  court  of  Rome.  Hut  before  we  etiter 
into  thi^  condition  of  Christian  Knrope,  it  will  be  better  that  we  resume 
llin  Ihi'i'itd  of  history  by  which  the  crusades  are  continued,  and  then 
rpliirii, 

It  iippciirs  thnt  notwithstanding  the  blood  whicli  had  been  fruitlessly 
ilied  III  tlic  "holy"  cause,  the  zeal  of  the  popes  was  not  lessened.  But 
Iimoceiit  III.,  who  foresaw  much  greater  advantages  to  the  tiara  in  the 
tnkiiiK  of  Contitiinlinopio  than  in  the  deliverance  of  Jerusalem,  readily 
pnrdoiH'd  the  lenders  of  the  crusade  for  having  broken  through  their  en- 
({iiKi'm''iiln,  and  was  resolved  to  reap  all  the  advantages  he  could  from  an 
event  ho  iinexpeclcd.  Up  to  a  recent  period  the  armies  of  the  cross  had 
no  other  view  hut  to  attack  the  Infidels.  That  confederacy  was  now 
nhotil  to  be  directed  against  their  fellow-christians.  In  the  south  ol 
Friince  and  elsewhere,  the  ostentatious  pomp  and  ambition  of  the  clergy 
had  Klveii  great  oU'eiice  to  many  of  the  laity,  who  publicly  proelaliiK^d 
that  ill  the  inemhers  of  the  sacred  profession  they  could  not  discover  the 
miniKiers  of  ii  religion  founded  on  humility  and  peace,  and  had  formed  a 
reNolniion  not  to  consider  them  as  their  pastors.  Under  the  name  ol 
IhilarliiH,  Cathiires,  and  Vaudois,  tney  had  spread  themselves  in  the 
loiitherii  provinces,  ami  particularly  in  Langiiedoi!,  contiguous  to  Alby, 
which  they  seemed  to  have  made  their  head-qimrters.  Iiniocenl,  who 
wiiM  too  nagacious  not  to  see  the  future  ill  consequences  to  the  papal 
power  if  the  darins  principles  of  these  sectaries  were  p(!rmilteil  to  ex 
tend,  rcHolved  on  their  extermination.  By  the  assistance  oi  the  clergy, 
who  were  ei|niilly  interested  in  their  desir  iciion,  he  pre:'ched  up  a  crn- 
Nnile,  and  formed  a  powerful  army,  the  command  of  whicli  he  cwit rusted 
lo  Niinoii  de  Montfort.  At  the  same  lime  he  erected  a  bioiKty  tribunal, 
hy  which  unhappy  victims  were  dragged  to  the  slake,  on  IIk!  tesiimoiiy  ol 
the  vilesi  informer.  It  was  in  every  respect  as  inupiilous  as  the  Inqui- 
Hitioii,  of  which  it  was  in  fact  the  origin.  Two  ri'ligions  orders,  lately 
pttliihliNlicd  mider  the  auspices  of  Innocent,  and  entirely  devoted  to  his 
iliiere)!!,  were  coinnilssioned  to  preside  at  tliese  exccuiions.  Thousands 
of  llie  inlinliitanlN  of  Alby  (whom  we  know  by  the  name  of  Albigenses) 
pcrHcculcd  by  the  soldiers  of  the  cross  and  the  members  of  tlu'  Inquisi 
(Ion,  penidicd  by  the  swords  of  the  former,  or  expired  in  the  llaincs  kin 
(lied  by  the  hitler. 

After  this  inhuman  persecution,  carried  on  under  the  banners  o(  thf 


■f 


>t 


,.c)i 


>4 

ii 


■uUTLINR  SKETCH  OF  GENKRAt,  HtSTOHV. 


a3 


Uod  of  mercy,  Innocent  resumed  his  project  of  conquering  the  Holy 
Land ;  but  he  could  not  persuade  the  emperor  to  join  iu  the  design,  be- 
cause his  throne  was  too  much  disturbed ;  nor  the  kings  of  France  and 
Kuglaiid,  as  ihey  were  too  deeply  engaged  in  their  mutual  quarrels.  An- 
drew, king  of  Hungary,  and  John  de  Brienne,  titular  sovereign  of  Jeru- 
salem, commanded  this  crusade,  and  Cardinal  Julien,  legate  of^the  pope, 
accompanied  them.  As  the  Christian  leaders  perceived  that  Egypt  was 
the  support  of  the  Turks  of  Palestine,  they  formed  a  new  plan  of  attack 
and  directed  their  first  operations  against  that  kingdom.  In  this  thej 
were  successful.  The  enemy,  after  having  sustained  several  severe  de- 
feats, ainindoned  tiif  flat  couritry  to  the  Christians,  and  took  refuge  in  the 
mountains.  The  generals,  sensible  of  the  great  danger  of  marching  in  a 
country  to  which  they  were  strangers,  thought  it  necessary  to  secure  the 
heights,  and  reconnoitre  the  places  through  which  they  were  to  pass,  be- 
fore they  proceeded  any  farther.  The  cardinal,  consulting  only  the  dic- 
tates of  impetuous  ardour,  treated  their  prudence  as  timidity,  and  declared 
for  pursuing  the  barbarians  immediately.  Finding  the  two  kings  opposed 
his  opinion,  he  assumed  the  style  of  a  superior,  showed  them  the  pope's 
order,  and,  being  supported  by  the  knights  of  St.  John  and  the  Templars 
obliged  them  to  pay  a  blind  obedience  to  his  will.  The  army,  thus  gov- 
erned by  this  ecclesiastic,  daily  committed  new  blunders,  and  at  length 
was  hemmed  in  between  two  branches  of  the  Nile.  The  Saracens  then 
opened  their  sluices,  and  were  preparing  to  drown  the  Christians,  whc 
tliouglit  themselves  happy  to  preserve  their  lives,  by  supplicating  the 
mercy  of  the  enemy,  and  being  allowed  to  return  to  Europe,  though  cov- 
ered with  disgrace. 

The  crusades  seemed  now  to  be  at  an  end ;  for  the  dire  misfortunes 
which  attended  these  distant  expeditions  had  quite  extinguished  the  zeal 
of  Christian  warriors,  and  the  ferment  which  pervaded  all  Europe  would 
not  allow  sovereigns,  however  martial  or  ambitious,  to  leave  their  re- 
spective countries-  But  there  was  yet  another  struggle  to  be  made  for 
the  possession  of  the  Holy  Land,  the  relation  of  whi(;h,  although  it  car- 
ries us  too  far  forward  in  our  attempt  at  chronological  order  in  this  outline  of 
general  history,  must  be  given  here.  Louis  IX.,  of  France,  better  known 
by  the  name  of  St.  Louis,  having  recovered  from  a  dangerous  illness 
made  a  vow  to  take  the  cross,  and,  with  all  the  zeal  of  one  who  was  de- 
sirous to  signalise  iiimself  in  the  places  that  had  been  sprinkled  with  the 
blood  of  his  Redeemer,  he  invited  his  people  to  follow  his  example,  and 
effect  the  deliverance  of  Palestine  from  the  power  of  the  infidels.  His  con- 
sort, Margaret  of  Provence,  marched  at  his  side,  in  order  to  share  his 
dangers  ;  his  brothers  and  the  principal  nobility  of  the  kingdom,  accom- 
panied by  him.  Nor  was  the  French  monarch  left  to  contend  with  the 
enemy  singh^-lmnded.  Piince  Edward,  the  valiant  son  of  the  king  of 
England,  followed  with  a  large  train  of  English  noblemen.  Having  ar- 
rived on  the  coast  of  Egypt,  the  army  made  good  their  landing,  and 
marched  for  DamieUa,  \.  o.  1216.  Margaret  led  the  troops  in  person,  and 
the  city  was  carried  by  storm.  The  intrepid  conduct  of  the  leaders,  and 
the  success  which  had  hitherto  crowned  their  arms,  seemed  to  shov  that 
the  decisive  monnMit  was  now  at  hand  when  the  subjection  of  Egypt  was 
to  secure  the  conquest  of  Jiidea.  But  a  sudden  and  dreadful  pestilence 
which  raged  in  the  ('hristian  camp,  a  dearth  of  provisions,  and  the  im- 
prudent ardour  of  the  count  of  Artois,  who  was  surrounded  by  the  enemy, 
and  perished  with  the  flower  of  the  nobility,  gave  a  most  unhappy  turn  to 
its  prosper(uis  commpncement.  Louis  was  attac^ked  near  Massoura,  and, 
notwithstatiding  his  horric  behaviour,  his  army  sustained  a  signal  dis- 
comfiture, and  he  himseif  w:is  made  prisoner:  a.  n.  1350.  Such  was  the 
fate  of  (he  last  crusade  for  the  recovery  of  Palestine. 


54 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OF  GENERAL  HISTORY. 


St 


CHAPTER  XI. 

fROM   THE   TIME    OF  GENGHIS    KHAN,  TO   THAT   OF   TAMERLANU. 

While  the  crusaders  were  figlitinw  in  the  western  piut  of  Asia,  the  na- 
tions of  the  more  easterly  part  were  threatened  with  extermination  by 
Genghis  Khan,  the  greatest  as  well  as  the  most  sanguinary  conqueror  that 
ever  existed.  The  rapidity  of  his  conquests  seemed  to  einulate  those  of 
Alexander;  but  the  cruellies  he  committed  were  altogether  unparalleled 
The  Moguls,  or  Mongols,  over  whom  this  tyrant  assumed  the  sovereign 
ty,  were  a  people  of  Eastern  Tartary,  divided,  as  at  the  present  day,  into 
various  petty  governments,  but  acknowledging  a  subjection  to  one  sover- 
eign, whom  they  called  Vang-Khan,  or  the  Great  Khan.  Temujin,  after- 
wards Genghis  Khan,  one  of  the  minor  princes,  had  been  unjustly  deprived 
of  his  inheritance  at  the  age  of  thirteen,  and  could  not  recover  it  till  twenty- 
seven  years  after,  a.  d.  1201,  when  he  totally  reduced  the  rebels,  and  caused 
seventy  of  their  chiefs  to  be  thrown  into  as  many  cauldrons  of  boiling  wa- 
ter. Ill  1202  he  defeated  and  killed  Vang-Klian  himself  (known  to  Ku- 
ropeans  by  the  name  of  Prester  John  of  Asia) ;  and  possessing  himself  of 
his  vast  dominions,  became  thenceforward  irresistible.  In  1206  he  was 
(icclared  king  of  the  Moguls  and  Tartars,  and  took  upon  liim  the  title  ol 
(ienghis  Khan,  or  the  great  Khan  of  Khans.  This  was  followed  by  the  re- 
duction of  the  kingdoms  of  Haya  in  China,  Tangut,  Kilay,  'I'lnkestan,  Ka- 
razim,  or  the  kingdom  of  Gazna,  Great  Bukharia,  Persia,  and  part  of  In- 
dia: all  ofwiiich  vast  regions  he  conquered  in  twenty-six  years.  It  is 
computed  that  upwards  of  fourteen  millions  of  human  beings  were  butcher- 
ed by  him  during  the  last  twenty-two  years  of  his  reign,  and  that  his  con- 
quests extended  eighteen  hundred  leagues  from  east  to  west,  and  a  thous- 
and from  south  to  north.  He  died  in  1227.  One  of  his  sons  subdued  In- 
dia ;another, after  crossing  the  Wolga.  devastated  Russia,  Huncsary,  Poland, 
and  Bohemia;  while  a  third  advanced  into  Syria,  and  conquered  all  the 
niartime  provinces  of  the  Turkish  empire.  The  caliphate  of  Bagdad,  and 
the  power  of  the  Turks  in  that  quarter,  were  finally  destroyed  by  this  sud- 
den revolution.  In  the  meantime  the  Mamelukes,  a  body  of  militia  form- 
ed by  the  sultan  of  Cairo,  expelled  the  Turkish  conquerors,  and  seized  tlit 
throne  of  Kgypt. 

The  vast  empire  of  Genghis  Khan,  however,  had  the  fate  of  all  others  . 
being  too  extensive  to  bo  governed  by  any  one  of  ordinary  capacity,  it 
split  into  a  multitude  of  small  kingdoms  as  before;  but  they  allowniid  al- 
legiance to  the  house  of  Genghis  Khan  till  the  timeof  Timur  Bck,  or  Ta- 
merlane. The  Turks  at  this  time,  urged  forward  by  the  inundation  of  Tar 
tars  who  poured  in  from  the  Kast,  were  forced  upon  the  remains  of  tht 
Greek  empire ;  and  at  the  time  of  Tamerlane  they  liad  almost  confiued 
this  once  mighty  empire  within  the  w.ills  of  Constantinophs 

We  must  now  again  cast  our  (!yes  upon  the  transactions  of  Kurope.  After 
the  death  of  Frederic  II.  the  empire  of  Germany  fell  a  prey  to  anarchy.  An 
interregnum  took  place  on  the  death  of  the  emperor  Richard,  in  1271,  which 
continued  two  years,  and  comph^ted  the  destru(;tion  of  the  impi'rial  do- 
main. The  trilKitary  nations,  Denmark,  Poland  am  Hungary,  absolutely 
shook  off  the  yoke  ;  each  of  them  taking  possessioii  of  what  lay  most  con- 
venient for  them  ;  freeing  themselves  from  quitrents  and  every  obligation 
by  which  they  thouelit  themselves  under  restraint;  and  leaving  nothing  to 
the  emperors  but  their  paternal  ir.herilance.  Formerly  taxes  were  paid  to 
the  emperor  by  the  imperial  cilii-s  ;  from  which  they  endeavoured  to  free 
themselves,  by  taking  advantage  of  the  anari^hy  that  prevailed  at  this  time, 
and  assumed  the  title  of/rfeci'ip.*,  to  dislinguish  them  from  a  gr>  at  number 
uf  imperial  cities  which  tlicy  ailmitled  into  their  body  ;  aud  thus  the  Han 


m 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OF  GENERAL  HISTORY. 


55 


■natic  leajriie  was  formed.  At  length  they  grew  tired  of  aiianthy:  and 
Gregory  9.  having  threatened  to  mime  an  emperor  if  they  did  not,  they 
elcirtcd  l{o(l()lph,  count  of  Ilapsbiirg,  the  descendant  of  an  old  count  of  Al- 
s;ir;(! ;  from  which  election,  humble  as  it  was,  the  lustre  of  the  House  of 
Aiisiriii  is  derived.  The  new  emperor  was  seated  on  the  throne  with  noth- 
iMjr  hut  an  empty  title  to  support  the  dignity;  he  had  neither  troops  nor 
money:  he  was  in  suhjeetion  to  the  clergy  ;  surrounded  by  vassals  more 
pow('rful  that)  himself,  and  in  the  inid.st  of  an  enthusiastic  people  who  were 
ripe  for  sedition  and  anarchy.  His  fir.st  care  th(;refore  was  to  conciliate 
the  affi'ctions  of  the  people,  and  by  that  means  he  happily  appeased  the 
spirit  of  faction.  He  also  studied  how  to  increase  his  (ioininions,  so  as  to 
make  them  respectable  ;  with  this  view,  he  artfully  blended  the  idea  of 
glory  and  the  right  of  the  empire  v  ith  his  own  interest;  and  having  united 
the  forces  of  the  Gi.'rmanic  body  against  Oitocar,  king  of  Bohemia,  that 
prince  was  compelled  to  yield  Austria  to  the  conqueror,  who  also  obtained 
Suahia:  so  that  he  was  enabled  to  leave  his  son  Albert  in  possession  of  a 
rich  and  powerful  state. 

From  the  time  of  llodolphof  Hapsburgthe  timazing  power  of  the  popes 
began  to  decline.  The  form  of  government  remained  the  s.ime  in  Ger- 
many; but  it  was  materially  altered  in  England  and  France,  where  the 
middling  classes  (»f  soiMCty  had  obtained  a  voice  in  the  assemblies  of  each 
nation.  The  manners  of  the  lower  classes  of  sociiity  were  still  rii  le  and 
barbarous  in  the  extreme;  but  those  of  the  nobility  exhibited  a  singular  mix- 
ture of  devotion,  gallantry,  and  valour,  in  whicdioriginatiMl  the  several  or- 
ders of  kiiigliiliDol,  such  as  the  order  of  the  garter  in  Kngland,  and  the 
golden  fleeci!  in  Spain,  of  St.  Michael  in  France,  of  Christ  in  Piu'tugal.  &c. 
To  this  siriinge  eoinbinaliim  of  religimi  with  war  and  with  love,  may  be 
traced  the  origin  of  judicnal  combats,  jousts  and  tournaments,  and  that 
spirit  of  chivalry  which  pervaded  all  the  upper  classes  of  society.  Paint- 
ini>',  sciil[)lure,  and  archif'cture,  arose  in  Italy  through  the  exertions  of  the 
fugitive  Greeks.  The  arts  of  piinting  and  engraving  wc^re  also  enlightening 
the  world  ;  and  the  science  of  navigation,  and  coiiseqiiently  geography, 
were  much  advanced  by  the  discovery  of  the  mariner's  compass. 


CHAPTFRXII. 

FROM  THE  TIME  OF    TAMERLANE,   TO  THE    SIXTEENTH    CENTURY. 

We  now  revert  to  the  East.  In  (."Joa  Tamerlane  invaded  Buldiaria, 
which  he  reduced  in  five  years.  Proceeding  from  coMi|iiest  to  ('onquest, 
he  successively  subdued  Persia,  Armenia,  Georgia,  Kar.izim,  and  a  great 
part  of  Tartary.  He  then  turned  his  course  westward,  and  having  subju- 
gated all  the  countries  to  the  Euphrates,  next  poured  his  hordes  over  the 
fertile  plains  of  liulia,  plundering  Delhi,  and  pursuing  the  living  Indians  to 
the  banks  of  the  Ganges.  The  cities  of  \sia  Minor  then  felt  his  power; 
and  among  his  crueltie.nnay  be  numbered  a  general  massacre  of  the  in- 
habitants of  Bagdad.  In  1.393  he  invaded  and  r<iliieed  Svria.  In  HO-2  he 
brought  an  army  of  700,001)  men  against  the  Turks,  under  the  sul'an  Ba- 
jazet,  who  with  a  force  of  1-20,000  engaged  him  ;  but  it  ended  in  the  total 
rout  of  the  Turkish  host,  and  the  captivity  of  its  leadei-.  At  length,  while 
on  his  way  to  China,  in  1405,  the  coni|uest  of  which  empire  lie  medi- 
tated, his  progress  was  arrested  by  a  suildi^n  death,  and  most  of  the  nations 
he  had  vanipiished  were  able  ere  long  to  regain  their  independence,  or  had 
to  submit  to  new  masters. 

The  civil  contentions  that  arose  among  the  sons  of  Bajazet  revived  the 
hopes  of  the  (Jreek  emperor  Manuel  Paleoiogiis;  but  they  were  speedily 
aimihilated.    Amurath  II.  after  overcoming  his  competitors,  took  The* 


56 


OUTLINK  3KKTCII  Ol'  QKNKRAL  HISTORY 


8alonif!a,  and  threatened  Constantinople,  v/h'\ch  owed  its  salvation  to  the 
Hungiii"-ins  niider  John  Hunniades.  Ainiiraih  having  obtained  a  truce;,  iin- 
niediately  resigned  the  crown  to  his  son  Mohammed  II.,  but  an  umcx|)(h;I 
edattack  from  Uladi^hlns,  king  of  HuMgary,  induced  him  again  to  lake  the 
field.  Afier  the  l)altleof  Varna,  in  which  the  Chrstians  were  completely 
defeated,  he  finally  abandoned  Ihe  throne,  a.d.  1414.  in  .Mohammed  II.  were 
combined  the  scholar,  the  warrior,  and  the  politician  ;  and  he  proved  the 
most  determined  as  well  as  formidable  enemy  of  Christendom.  He,  how- 
ever,  met  with  some  signal  revcrsc^s,  parti<'ularly  when  engaged  against 
the  celebrated  Scanderlieg,  prince  of  Albania.  After  making  immense  pre- 
parations, Mohammed,  in  the  full  confidence  of  success,  undertook  the-  siege 
of  Constantinople.  The  defence  was  obstinate;  but  having  obtained  pos- 
session of  the  harbour,  by  having,  with  the  most  indefatigable  perseverance, 
drawn  his  fleet  overland  the  distance  of  two  leagues,  the  city  surrendered; 
and  thus  an  end  was  put  to  the  eastern  empire. 

Russia  had  long  languished  under  the  heavy  yoke  of  the  Tartars,  when 
Demetrius  Iwanowitz  made  a  desperate  eflTort  to  effect  the  deliverance  of 
his  coimlry ;  and  having  defeated  iis  oppressors,  he  assumed  the  title  of 
grand  duke  of  Russia.  But  the  ferocious  Tartars  relumed  with  an  immense 
force,  his  troops  were  routed,  and  their  gallant  leader  fell  in  the  conflict. 
His  death  was,  however,  shortly  after  revenged  by  his  son,  Basilius  De- 
metriwjtz,  who  expelled  the  ferocious  enemy,  and  compiered  tiulgaria, 
A.  D.  1150.  Much  confusion  arose  after  his  death;  but  Russia  was  saved 
from  anarchy  by  John  Basilowiiz,  whose  sound  policy,  firmness,  and  sin- 
gular boldness  rendered  him  at  once  the  con(|neror  and  the  deliverer  of  his 
country.  Freed  from  every  yoke,  and  considered  as  one  of  the  most  pow- 
erful princes  in  those  regions,  he  disdained  the  title  of  duke,  and  assumed 
that  of  czar,  which  has  since  remained  with  his  successors. 


;} 


CHAPTKR  XHI. 

THE  REFORMATION,  AND   PKOORESS  OF  KVE.NTS  DURING  THE  SIXTEENTH  CENrORT. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  lOlh  century  the  popes  enjoyed  the  utmost  tran- 
quijliiy:  the  commoiions  excited  by  the  Alhigi>nses,  Hussites  fee,  were  sup 
presscil .  aiui.  according  to  all  appearance,  they  had  no  reason  to  fear  an 
opposii  11)11  to  their  auihority.  Yet.  in  a  short  time  after,  a  totally  unfore- 
seen event  produced  a  singular  change  in  the  religious  and  political  state 
of  F'liropc;  this  was  the  opposition  of  [iUtherto  thedoctrkiies  ofilie  church 
of  Rome,  iir  the  bngisiaing  of  what  is  commonly  called  t/ie  Reformation, 
The  puhlinty  with  w»iii-h  the  sale  of  indulgences  was  carried  oii  underthe 
sanction  of  Lcfi  \'..  excited  Ihe  indignation  of  Martin  Luther,  an  Augus- 
tine monk  and  professor  of  theology  at  Witlemberg,  in  Saxony.  Kmbold- 
encd  by  the  attention  which  he  g.iined,  not  only  from  the  people  but  from 
some  of  their  rulers,  he  pushed  his  inquiries  .;:!''  attacks  from  one  doc- 
trine to  another,  till  he  at  length  shook  the  firmest  fotiiKiaiionn .::;:  which 
the  wealth  and  power  of  the  church  were  established.  Leo,  therefore, 
finding  ilicre  was  no  hopes  of  recdaiming  so  incorrigible  a  heretic,  issued 
a  seiiteiK-e  of  excomniiinication,  a.  d.  15'-'(»:  hut  he  was  screened  from  its 
effects  by  the  friendship  of  the  elector  of  S.ixony.  On  the  election  of 
Charles  V.  to  the  imperial  throne  of  Germany,  bis  first  act  was  the  assem- 
bling a  diet  at  Worms,  to  check  the  progress  of  Lutherinisin.  In  the  pro- 
gress of  Ins  arduous  work,  laither  had  the  assistance  of  several  learned 
men,  anionu'  whom  were  Zninijlius,  Melancthcm,  CJarlostadius,  &c,  ;  iiiid 
there  was  the  greatest  probability  that  the  papal  Iheran'liy  would  have 
been  overtnrned,  at  least  in  the  north  of  lOurope,  had  it  not  been  for  the 
ODpusilion  of  the  emperor  Charles  V.,  who  was  also  king  of  S{iaiD.    Uu 


OtJTLINK  SKETCH  OF  GENEKAL  HISTOIIY. 


57 


•v- 


m 

m 


Aw  Heath  of  Frederic,  his  brother  John  siiecectlcd  to  the  elcotorale  ol 
Saxony,  by  whose  order  Luther  and  Melanclhoii  drew  up  u  body  of  lawa 
relating  to  the  form  of  ecclesiastical  governincnl,  the  mode  of  public  wor- 
ship, &c.,  wiiich  was  proclaimed  by  heralds  throughout  the  Saxon  doniin 
ions;  this  example  was  inunediately  followed  by  all  the  princes  and  states 
of  Germany  who  had  renounced  the  papal  supremacy.  In  a  diet  held  at 
Spires,  in  15-J!J,  the  edict  of  Worms  was  confirmed  ;  upon  wliii:h  a  soliiiiii 
vroUsl  was  entered  against  tliis  decree  by  the  elector  of  Saxony  and  ollu^r 
reformers ;  from  which  circumstance  they  obtained  the  name  of  Pbo- 
rESTANTs,— an  appelation  subsequently  applied  to  all  who  dissented 
from  the  doctrines  of  the  Romish  church.  In  the  same  year  the  elector 
of  Saxony  ordered  Luther  and  other  eminent  divines  to  coniinit  the  chief 
article  of  their  religion  to  writing,  which  they  did  ;  and,  farther  to  eluci- 
date them,  Melanctlioii  drew  up  the  celebrated  "  Confession  of  Augsburg," 
which,  being  subscribed  by  the  princes  who  protested,  was  delivered  to  the 
emperor  in  the  diet  assembled  in  that  city,  in  1530.  From  this  time  to  the 
death  of  Luther,  in  1510,  various  negotiations  were  employed  and  schemes 
proposed,  under  pretence  of  settling  religious  disputes. 

While  these  transactions  occupied  the  public  attention  in  Germany,  the 
principles  of  the  reformers  were  making  a  rapid  progress  in  most  other 
countries  of  Kuropc:  in  some  they  were  encouraged  by  the  governing 
powers,  while  in  others  they  were  discountenanced,  and  their  advocates 
subjected  to  cruel  persecutions. 

The  Turks  were  now  nuMiaciiig  Hungary,  and  Charles  V.  thought  it 
prudent  to  forget  his  differences  with  the  proteslant  princes  and  their  sub- 
jects, for  the  sake  of  engaging  them  to  assist  him  against  the  general  en- 
emy ;  but  on  the  approach  of  ilie  emperor  at  the  head  of  100,000  men.  al- 
though the  army  of  Solyman  was  at  least  double  that  number,  the  latter 
retired  ;  and  Charles  returned  to  Spain,  and  engaged  in  an  expedition  to 
Tunis,  against  the  famous  corsair  Uarbarossa,  whom  he  deposed  from  his 
assumed  sovrrc  iirnty. 

A  loiitr  ■Mill  o-stinate  war  had  been  carried  on  between  the  rival  sove- 
reign .H  Germany  and  France  ;  and  the  former,  at  the  head  of  50,000  men, 
invatied  the  southern  provinces,  while  two  other  armies  were  ordered  to 
ent«T  Picardy  and  Champaigne.  Francis  laid  waste  the  country,  and  for- 
tifi«"(l  (lis  towns;  so  that  after  the  lapse  of  a  few  months,  disease  and  fa- 
miiii  so  reduced  the  army  of  the  emperor,  that  he  was  glad  to  retreat,  and 
a  tiMce  was  effected  at  Nice,  uiidi*  the  mediation  of  the  po|)p,  ad.  1538. 
Charles  had  also  to  quell  a  serious  insurrc(!tioii  in  Ghent,  and  endeavoured 
ill  vain  to  arrange  the  religious  affairs  ol  Germany  ai  the  diet  of  Ratisbon. 
The  progress  of  the  Turks,  who  had  become  masters  of  nearly  the  whole 
of  Hungary,  and  his  desire  to  embark  in  an  expedition  against  Algiers,  in- 
duced hitn  to  make  concessions  to  the  protestants,  from  whom  he  expect- 
ed assistance.  The  conquest  of  Altrier.s  was  a  favourite  object  of  Charles; 
and  in  spite  of  the  remonstrances  of  Dov  liie  famous  (Jenoese  admiral, 
he  set  sail  in  the  most  unfavourable  sea^'ii  of  the  year,  and  landed  in  Af- 
rica; the  result  of  which  w;is,  that  the  greatest  part  of  the  armament  was 
destroyed  by  tempests:  a.d.  1511. 

'i'wc  ;'''sirc  of  Ciiarles  V.  to  humble  tl  ■  protestant  princes,  and  to  ex- 
tend his  own  p((«i  r,  f.M^'.iiv.'."'.!  '■>  mmiif.^i  itself  in  every  act.  At  length, 
being  wholly  free  from  domestic  wars,  he  entered  ^'raiiuc  ,  hi:t  '.\:?.  g:'!!""* 
defence  of  the  duke  of  Guise  compelled  him  to  raise  the  seige  of  Metz, 
with  the  loss  of  30,000  men.  In  the  following  year  he  had  some  success 
in  the  Low  Countries ;  but  the  Austrians  were  unfortunate  in  Hungary, 
(n  Germany  tlw;  religiou>i  peace  was  finally  concluded,  by  what  is  called 
the  "recess  of  Augsburg."  It  wvs  during  the  progress  of  this  treaty  that 
Charles  V.,  to  the  great  astonishment  of  all  Europe,  resigned  the  imperiiil 
and  Spanisti  crowns,  and  retired  to  spend  the  remainder  of  his  life  at  the 


58 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OF  GENERAL  HISTORY. 


monastery  of  St.  Just,  in  Spain,  where  he  died,  three  years  al'tor,  aged 
68.  A.  D.  loGtj. 

Charles  was  succeeded  by  his  son  Philip,  and  no  monarcli  ever  ascended 
a  throne  under  {rreater  advantages.  The  Spanish  arms  were  everywhere 
8ni;cessfnl,  and  the  rival  nations  appearing  unanimous  in  their  desire  for 
repose  after  a  series  of  devastating  wars,  peace  was  re-established  be- 
tween France  and  Spain,  which  included  in  it,  as  allies  on  the  one  side  or 
the  other,  nearly  all  the  other  states  of  Europe. 

At  this  time  Klizabeth  filled  the  throne  of  England,  and  Protestantism 
had  there  nut  merely  gained  the  ascendency,  but  it  was  established  as  the 
religi(m  of  ilic  state.  In  France  aL(j  the  reformed  religion  was  making 
considerable  progress;  but  its  membci-s,  who  in  that  country  were  called 
Huguenots,  met  with  the  fiercest  opposition,  from  the  courts  of  France  and 
Spain,  who  joined  in  a  "holy  league,"  and  a  rancorous  civil  war  raged  for 
several  years  in  many  of  the  Frencli  provinces.  'I'he  duUeof  Anjou  com- 
manded the  Catholics  ;  the  Protestants  were  led  by  Coligni  and  the  prince 
of  CcMide.  At  length  u  hollow  truce  was  made  the  prelude  to  one  of  the 
most  atrocious  acts  that  st'iin  the  page  of  history — the  savage  and  indis- 
criminate ina-siicrc  of  the  Huguenots  throughout  France,  on  llie  eve  of 
St.  Banliolomew  (Aug.  '-M,  157'J).  The  aci'ouut  of  this  diabolical  deed, 
by  winch  (iO.OOO  persons  met  with  a  treacherous  death,  was  ri'ceived  in 
Rome  a-id  Spain  with  testacy  ;  and  public  thanksgivings  were  ofTered  up 
in  their  chiu'ches  for  an  event,  which,  it  was  erroneously  supposed,  would 
go  far  towards  the  extirpation  of  a  most  extensive  and  fornudable  heresy. 

About  this  period  a  serious  insurrection  of  the  Moors  in  Spain  broke  out 
and  a  most  sanguinary  war  ensued,  which  raged  with  great  violern-e  in  the 
soutliern  provinces;  but  tin;  insurgents  were  at  length  (|uelle(l.  ami  public 
traiuiuillity  restored.  It  was  init  long,  liowever,  befor(^  tin;  revolt  of  the 
Dutch  took  place,  which  ended  in  their  final  emancipation  from  thi;  Span- 
ish yoke,  in  157i>. 

But  of  all  the  preparations  that  were  made  for  war  and  conquest,  none 
equalled  that  of  Philip's  "  invincible  armada,''  which  he  fondly  hoped  would 
c<inquer  llnglaud,  and  thus  destroy  the  great  stay  of  Proti'sianlism.  Ihit 
this  iniini'iise  armament,  coiiststing  of  one  hundred  and  thirty  slii|is,  and 
nearly  .IO.ihio  men,  after  being  partly  dispersed,  and  losing  several  vessels 
during  a  vudent  storm,  was  most  signally  defeated  by  the  Kutilish;  and 
Philip  hail  the  mortification  to  hear  that  his  naval  force  'vas  nearly  antnhi- 
lated.  The  |iarlicnlars  of  this  event,  ito  ghnious  to  Kngland  an<l  so  dis- 
astrous to  Spain,  will  he  found  in  another  part  of  this  work;  and  we  shall 
hen!  merely  observe,  that  it  greatly  tended  to  advance  the  Protestant  cause 
througlidiit  Europe,  anil  elTeitually  dislroyed  tiic  decisive  intliieiice  that 
8pani  had  acipiired  over  her  neigliboiirs:  indeed,  from  the  I'.ital  day  whieli 
saw  the  proud  armada  shipwrecked,  (Llf^n),  the  energies  of  that  once  p.iw- 
cri'nl  cinnitry  have  been  gradually  declining,  and  its  inhabitants  seem  to 
have  sunk  into  a  state  of  lelliargii?  indolence. 

It  is  worthy  of  remark  that,  in  all  the  stales  of  Europe,  towards  tlic  lat- 
ter end  of  tins  century,  a  decideil  lendeiiey  towards  the  concentralion  ol 
flower  in  the  hands  of  few  iudiviiluals  was  fully  perceptible.  The  n  jHib- 
ics  became  more  aristocratieal,  the  immarcliies  mori-  unlimited,  and  the 
despotic  govirnments  less  cautious.  The  system  pursued  liy  the  domi- 
neering court  of  Philip  served  more  or  less  as  an  example  to  Ins  e(uiteni- 
porary  sdvereiL'iis  ;  while  the  recent  and  rapid  increase  in  the  (jiianlity  of 
the  preciiiiis  iiielals,  and  the  |inigress  of  the  Industrious  arts,  by  prodnemg 
n  innllitnde  rf  new  desires,  rendered  the  court  more  avaricious  iiiiil  thu 
nobles  more  dependent. 


M 


OUTLlMi  SKKTCH  OF  GENEllAL  HISTORY 


60 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

rnOM  THB  COMMENCEMENT  OF  THE  SEVENTEENTH   CENTURY,  TO   THE    PEACE    01 

WESTPHALIA. 

The  seventeenth  century,  at  its  commencement,  found  Spain  drained 
01  its  ireiisure,  and  destitute  of  eminent  men.  The  eoh)niz!iii()u  nf  Amer- 
ica, the  war  in  the  Low  Countries,  and  the  incessant  enterprizesof  Phihp 
II.  hail  produced  u  pernicious  effect  on  the  p'  pidation;  and  his  successor, 
Piiiiip  111.,  banished  two  hundred  thousand  Moors,  who  constituted  the 
mos'  industrious  portion  of  the  remainingf  inhabitants. 

Povtu;,'al  was  now  under  the  power  of  Spain  ;  and  saw,  as  the  conse- 
quence of  iier  subjection,  the  greater  part  of  the  discoveries  and  conquests 
of  her  better  days  fall  into  tin;  hands  of  strangers.  The  Dutch,  who  were 
forbid(icn,  as  rebels  against  the  authority  of  Philip,  to  purchase  in  Lisbon 
the  conunodities  of  the  Kast  Indies,  went  to  the  lalter  couiury  in  seach  of 
them,  where  they  found  an  administration  which  had  been  rendered  feeble 
by  tlie  inrtuence  of  the  climate,  by  luxurious  and  effi^uinatc  habits,  and 
by  spiritual  and  temporal  tyranny,  and  while  Philip  IIL,  after  a  seisje  of 
three  years,  which  cost  him  (vom  eighty  to  a  hundred  thousand  men,  got 
possession  of  Osleiul,  the  Dutch  took  the  isles  of  MoUkmui  from  his  Por- 
tuguese subjects.  In  fai't,  of  all  the  foreign  possessions  of  the  Portu  fuese, 
Goa,  ii\  the  Ivist  Indies,  and  Brazil,  in  America,  alone  remaineil,  a:<  I  had 
our  countryman.  Sir  Walter  R:il{!i<)h,  been  adequately  supported,  the  Span- 
ish power  in  America  would  probably  have  been  overth.-own.  Italy  en- 
dured tlie  yoke  with  impatience,  and  even  Rome  wished  to  see  them  hum- 
bled. Venice  both  feared  and  hated  them ,  and  to  the  (hd<e8  of  Mantau 
aiul  S.ivoy,  tlie  overbearing  power,  and  the  lofty  tone  of  the  cabinet  ol 
Madrid  were  insnpportal)le. 

The  gooil  and  great  llenry  IV,,  king  of  France,  whose  excellent  quali- 
ties were  not  thoroughly  appreciated  in  his  own  age,  was  assassinated,  and 
liis  kingiloin  again  becaini!  the  prey  of  factions :  A.n.  KilO,  His  widow, 
Marie  ch;  Medicis,  sacrificed  the  welfare  of  the  static  to  her  pers(»nal  incli- 
nations ;  and  li(-r  son,  Louis  XIII., '.vho  was  a  child  at  the  tiiiu;  of  his 
father's  death,  never  bee;, me  fi  man  of  independent  character.  It  has  been 
well  leniarked,  that  "the  power  of  a  state  depends  not  so  much  on  the  nu 
merical  amount  of  its  for<'es,  as  on  the  intelligeiu;e  which  animates  their 
movements;"'  and  c;'rtai  i  it  is,  that  France,  which  in  the  latter  pari  of  the 
reign  of  llenry  IV.  seemed  likely  to  produce  an  universal  reV(diition  in 
the  condition  of  Furope,  li.id  lost  much  of  its  political  importance. 

Free  nations  are  ncv<;r  luore  powerful  than  when  liicy  arv  obliged  to 
depend  exclusively  upon  their  own  resources  for  defence,  and  when  the 
magnitude  of  the  dangers  which  menai-e  lh"m  compels  the  devclopenient 
of  their  moral  energy.  TIuh  was  iiistauccil  in  the  case  of  Holland.  In 
the  niiilst  of  its  contests  for  freedom,  tni'  republic  erected  a  mighty  em- 
pire in  l\u]  lOist  ;  and  its  navy  rode  triinnphant  on  the  seas.  Its  reeonni- 
tion  as  an  indepeudent  slate  was  soon  after  the  necessary  coiisi  (pieiice. 

The  death  of  Henry  IV.,  of  Fraiwe,  was  not  merely  a  disastrous  event 
IS  reg.irded  the  |)iosperity  of  that  kingdom,  but  oiu'  which  hail  a  power- 
ful  inlhieiiee  cm  the  hopes  or  fears  of  the  other  princip  il  monarchies  of 
Furope,  Mild  by  nnne  mure  than  by  llie  house  of  Austria.  Uodolpli  II. 
was  Kiii'ceeiled  in  the  empire  by  his  brmlier,  the  arelidiiki'  Muthias,  a  man 
of  great  activity  and  an  insatiable  iliir^t  for  dominion,  Thoiiuli  oriirinally 
favourable  to  the  I'roteslaiits,  he  now  evinced  a  disposition  to  oppose 
lliem,  and  beinpt  supported  by  Ferdinand,  ihike  of  Styria,  and  the  court  of 
Hpain,  the  Protestants  look  the  ahirm,  and  had  recourse  to  arms,  which 
•lav  lie  considered  as  the  oiigiii  of  the  c(debraled  "thirty  years'  wflr  " 


du 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OF  GENEKAl.  HISTORV 


Oh  ,he  deatli  of  Mnlliias,  Ferdinantl,  who  had  succeeded  him  as  kiiij^ 
of  Bohemia  and  Hiiii<rnry,  was  raised  to  the  imperial  throne.  'IV;  Uo- 
hemian  Protestants,  dreadnig  his  higDiry,  chose  Frederic  V.,  the  clcctoi 
palatine,  for  their  sovereign.  He  was  supported  by  alt  tlie  Piotesiant 
princes  of  the  (rermanic  body,  while  Ferdinand  was  aided  by  the  king  ol 
Spain  and  the  Catholic  princes  of  the  empire.  Their  forces  proved  ove.'-- 
whelining;  Frederic,  defeated  and  helpless,  abandoned  the  contest  in 
despair,  and  forfeited  b()t!\  the  crown  and  his  electorate.  The  emperor 
Ferdinand,  slrengthenec  by  victory,  and  by  the  acquisition  of  treasure, 
now  tunuul  the  arms  of  his  experienced  generals,  Wallenstein,  Tilly,  and 
Spinola,  against  the  Protestants,  who  had  fori.ied  a  ieixi/ne  with  Chris- 
tian IV.,  king  of  Denmark,  at  its  hfad,  for  the  restoration  of  the  palat- 
inate (a.  d.  1035),  but  the  Imperialists  were  victorious,  and  the  Protest- 
ants wen!  compelled  to  sue  for  peace.  They  subsequently  formed  a 
secret  alliance  with  Gustavus  Adolphus,  king  of  Sweden;  a.  d.  1631). 

The  father  of  Gustavus  had  left  him  a  well-confirmed  authority,  though 
without  treasure;  the  nobles  who  might  have  endangered  his  power  had 
been  humbled  in  the  preceding  revolutions,  and  there  was  nothing  to  fear 
from  Russia,  Poland,  or  Denmark.  He  was  zealously  anxious  for  the 
success  of  the  Protestant  cause ;  ho  wished  also  to  check  the  ambitious 
designs  of  tiie  emperor;  and  Germany  appeared,  in  fact,  to  be  the  coun- 
try in  which  he  might  seek  for  power  with  the  greatest  prospect  of  suc- 
cess. His  talents,  both  military  and  civil,  were  of  the  highi^st  order. 
Together  with  the  lofty  character  of  his  genius,  which  manifested  itself 
in  the  greatness  of  his  plans,  he  combined  the  power  of  attention  to 
minute  details  in  the  organization  of  his  army,  and  a  calm  and  penetrating 
insight  into  circumstances  of  the  greatest  intricacy.  His  habits  were  of 
the  most  simple  kind  ;  and  tliDUBh  the  boldness  of  his  enterprises  aston- 
ished ihv.  world,  he  was  person:illy  mild,  beiii^ficent,  susceptible  of  tho 
warmest  friendship,  eloquent,  popul  ir,  and  full  of  reliance!  on  Providence. 
Richelieu,  the  minister  of  Franc-e,  desirous  of  curbing  the  power  of  the 
house  of  Austria,  subsidized  (iustaviis;  and  Fngland  furnished  liim  with 
0,000  troops,  beaded  by  the  marqicis  of  llaniiltim.  The  magnanimous 
king  of  Sweden,  by  his  sudden  and  unexpected  appearance  in  the  empire, 
by  his  irresistible  progress,  and  finally  by  the  victory  of  Ijcips'c,  where 
he  was  ojiposi'd  to  th(!  Imperialist  army  under  Tilly,  revived  the  confi- 
dence of  thi!  Protestant  princes  in  tlicir  own  power.  He  (luickly  made 
hims(!|f  master  of  the  whole  country  from  the  Kibe  (o  the  Klinie;  but 
having  been  repnlse<l  with  considerable  l.>ss,  in  a  furious  attack  on  the 
intrenchinents  of  the  Imperialists  at  Niireinbcrg,  and  hearing  that  tlK^ir 
gi'iieral,  Wallenstein,  had  soon  after  removed  his  camp  to  Liiizen,  he  i)ro- 
cccded  thither  to  give  him  battle.  The  Imperial  army  greatly  outniiin- 
licrcd  the  Swedes  and  their  allies,  ami  from  daybreak  till  night  the  con- 
flict was  sustiined  with  uinbited  viijonr;  but  though  the  victory  was 
nobly  gar.ed  by  the  Swedes,  their  gallant  kiiiiX  had  fallen  in  tlie  middle 
of  the  fight,  covi  red  with  renown,  and  siiicendy  dcploicd  by  his  brave 
and  faiilifnl  soldiers:  a.  d  Itil'J.  Hmh  the  king  of  Sweden  anil  ilie  court 
of  France  hail  been  alirmeil  at  the  union  of  ihe  wlndc  powi  r  of  th:r- 
many,  lu  the  hands  of  a  ruler  who  assumed  the  t(me  of  a  universal  sov- 
ereign ;  and  the  etlleacy  of  ii  good  military  system,  directed  bv  the  ener- 
getic genius  of  a  single  leader,  was  never  more  ciniuuntly  displ.iycd  than 
uii  this  occasion. 

Th(!  war  was  still  continncil  with  various  sui'ccns;  but  the  weight  of 
it  fell  on  till-  Swedes,  the  German  princes  liavinu,  after  Ihe  iatal  Imtlla 
of  Norilliiigen,  III  Ki.ll,  deserted  them.  In  the  fiillowing  year,  however 
the  troupe  of  France  simiillaiieiMisly  attacked  the  Austrian  monaThy 
nt  every  acce«»sili|c  point,  in  order  to  prevent  the  for- es  of  the  latter  f'oii 
autinn  wiili  deemve  effect  in  nny  quarter.     In  10^7  the  emperor  Ferut 


OUTLINK  SKETCH  OF  GENERAL  HISToaY. 


61 


iiand  died,  and  was  succeeded  by  his  son,  Ferdinand  III.,  who  pursued 
the  poliry  of  his  father;  but  though  lliere  was  coiisideruble  disunion 
among  the  confederates,  the  great  events  of  the  war  were  generally  in 
their  favour.  It  would  be  iuconsislent,  however,  with  the  sketchy  out- 
line we  are  penning,  to  enter  into  further  details  of  this  memorable  war, 
and,  perh  ips,  limited  as  our  space  is,  we  may  have  been  already  too  dif- 
fuse.  We  will,  therefore,  pass  at  once  to  the  celebrated  Pcare  of  West- 
phalia, which  was  signed  at  Munster  on  the  24th  Oct..  1G4H.  It  was  con- 
cluded under  the  mediation  of  the  pope  and  the  Venetians,  between  the 
emperor  Ferdinand  111.,  Philip  III.,  kmg  of  Spain,  and  the  princes  of  the 
empire  who  belonged  to  their  party,  on  one  side,  and  Louis  XIV.,  Chris- 
tina, queen  of  Sweden,  the  states-general  of  the  United  Provinces,  and 
those  princes  of  the  empire,  mosily  Protestants,  who  were  in  alliance 
with  this  French  and  Swedes,  on  the  other.  By  this  celebrated  treaty  all 
differences  were  arrnuired  between  the  belligerents,  except  France  and 
Spain,  who  continued  in  hostilities  for  eleven  years  afterwards;  but  it  re- 
slon^d  tranquillity  to  northern  Kurope  and  Gurntany,  and  became  a  fun- 
damental law  of  the  empire,  while  Holland  and  Switzerland  acquired  a 
simultaneous  recognition  and  guarantee. 


I 


CHAPTER   XV. 

FROM    THE    CIVIL   WAn    IN    ENOI.AN'D,    TO    TIIK    PKACE   OF    RTSWICK. 

At  this  period  England  was  convulsed  by  civil  war.  During  the  pros- 
perous age  of  Klizah(.'th,  the  commons  had  greatly  increased  in  opulence, 
and,  without  regard  to  the  resources  of  her  successors,  she  had  alienated 
many  of  the  crown  estates;  .lames  was  prodigal  towards  his  favourites, 
and  Charles  fell  into  difTicultics  in  consequence  of  the  disordered  state  ol 
his  financial  affairs.  Ho  was  magnanimous,  amiable,  and  learned,  but  de- 
ficient in  steadfast  exertion,  and  in  the  dignity  and  vigour  necessary  to 
the  situation  in  which  he  stood.  His  ideas  of  the  royal  prerogative 
were  extravntrant;  hut  he  often  showed  a  timidity  and  irresolution  on  the 
appearance  of  op|)iislllon  from  liis  Parliament,  which  emboldened  them 
to  carry  tliclr  opposllion  to  the  must  unwarrantable  lengths.  In  order  to 
raise  supplies  without  the  authority  of  Parliament,  the  king  exacted  the 
customs  iiiid  levied  an  arbitrary  tax  on  ships;  many  ft.'i|dal  privileges  and 
ancient  abuses  were  exercised  with  iiu'reascd  severity;  contril)ulion8  and 
loans,  called  voluntary,  were  ex.acteil  by  force;  the  forms  of  law  were 
disregarded  by  the  court  of  stiir-clianiber  ;  l''ny;lislimen  were  s\il)jected  to 
loiin  imprisonments  and  exorbitan;  fines,  and  their  rights  treated  with  con- 
tcmiit.  Froin  the  <llscussions  to  which  these  grievances  gave  rise,  arose 
others  relating  to  the  nature  and  origin  of  political  constitutions.  The 
violeiKM!  of  parties  d.iily  increased;  but  as  the  king  conceded,  the  Parlia- 
ment (irew  more  arroyant  in  their  demands,  and  the  hour  was  rapidly  up- 
proachinif  when  it  was  evidenl  anarchy  would  trample  upon  the  ruins  of 
monarchy.  At  length  a  ficrci!  civil  war  arose  ;  rcliglmi  was  made  a  polit- 
ical stalkinii-horse,  and  gross  hypocrisy  overspread  the  land.  Fnlhu- 
niasts,  ripiiilly  iiiacccssil)|e  to  reason  or  revelation,  to  a  sense  of  propriety 
or  any  moral  restraint,  exercised  the  nost  irresistible  inlliience  on  the 
course  of  e\cnt><.  The  high  church  '  i  k  into  misery  ;  Ihi-  ancient  nobil- 
ity  wen:  basely  degraded  ;  the  whidc  (  iiiHiliulion  fell  into  riiiiis;  n  "  sol- 
I'liin  mockerv,"  misrullcil  tlie  king's  i  nl,  took  place,  and  Charles  finally 
perishiMJ  hy  ilic  nxe  of  the  executioner,  a.  n.  l(il!t.  His  death  was  soon 
followed  by  tlie  usurpation  of  Croiuwt  II,  an  ineorriL'ible  tyrant,  iletested 
Mt  hoinu  and  feared  ubruad,  but  who  had  nut  long  left  Iliu  Bcciie  of  his 


C2 


outline;  sketch  op  general  ptstory. 


restles?  amhilion,  before  the  nation,  weary  of  tynmiiy  and  hypocrisy,  re- 
stored the  son  of  their  mnrdnred  sovereign  to  the  throne;  a.  d.  KJGO. 

From  the  pi^ace  of  VVe.stph:iiiii  until  the  death  of  Ferdinand  III  ,  in 
1()57,  Gi'rniany  remained  nudislurbed,  when  considerable  ferment  pre- 
vailed in  llie  Dirt,  rcspeuting  the  elt^ction  of  his  snccessor.  The  choice 
,"f  the  electors,  iiowever,  liavii:nr  fallen  on  his  son  Leopold,  he  immediate- 
ly contracted  an  alliance  with  Poland  and  Denmark,  against  Sweden,  and 
a  numerous  army  of  Aiistriaiis  entered  Pomerania,  but  failing  in  their 
ohjei;t,  peace  was  quickly  restored.  Ho  next  turned  his  arms  against  the 
Turks,  who  had  invaded  Transylvania,  and  gave  them  a  signal  overthrow. 
In  this  situ  iiion  of  aflTairs  the  youthful  an  I  aml)itious  Louis  XIV,,  king 
of  France,  disturbed  the  peace  of  the  empire  by  an  attack  upon  tiie  Nelh- 
erla-ids,  wliii'li  In;  claimed  in  right  of  his  qu(!en,  sister  of  Philip  IV.,  the 
latL  Aing  of  Spain.  In  a  secn^l  treaty,  Louis  and  Leopold  had  divided 
the  Spainsli  mitnarchy;  to  the  former  was  givrn  the  Netherlands,  and  to 
the  latter  Spain,  aft(!r  the  demise  of  Charles  II.,  the  reigning  monarch. 
Having  prcpan-d  ample  means,  the  king  and  Turenne  (Mitcred  Flanders, 
and  iinnii'iliately  reiluced  Cliarlcroi,  Toiirnay,  Donay,  and  Lille.  Such 
rapid  success  alarmed  the  other  F.iiropcan  powers,  who  feai'('d  that  an- 
other camp  lign  would  make  him  master  of  the  Low  tvoinitrics,  and  a 
triple  alliance  was  formed  between  Kiiglanc!,  Hi. Hand,  autl  Swudcii,  witli 
a  view  of  setting  bminds  to  his  ainl)ilion,  am!  of  ('ompidlinj!:  ^^pain  to  ac- 
cedt;  to  certain  prescribed  con  iitiims.  A  treaty  was,  accDnliiigly,  iiego- 
tiated  at  .\i.v-la-Cliapelle,  by  which  L(»uis  was  allowed  to  retain  tlie  tnwiis 
lie  had  taken;  and  these  he  secured  by  entrusting  their  fortifications  to 
the  celebrated  Vaubaii,  and  by  garrisoning  them  with  his  best  troops; 

A.  D.    IC,M. 

Louis  now  saw  that  his  desirriis  on  the  Netherlands  could  not  be  carrif^l 
into  (dTect  without  the  co-operation  of  Fiiiuland;  but  believing  that  tlio 
profligate  court  of  (^iiarh  s  II.  w  is  open  ti)  corriiplioii,  h'-  easily  siicceeil- 
ed,  through  the  medium  of  ('liarles's  sifter,  llenrietla,  the  diicliess  of  Or- 
leans,  in  prevailing  on  I'.e  prodigal  king  of  Kngland  to  coii'diule  a  secrei 
tre.ity  with  him,  in  wliich  it  was  acrreed  that  ('liarles  should  receive  i 
largi;  pension  from  Louis,  and  aid  liiin  in  snbdniiig  the  United  Provinces 
'riu,  caliiiiel  (d"  Versailles  hiving  also  succeeded  in  detaching  SwediiP 
from  the  tripli'  alliance,  both  monarchs,  uiider  tiio  most  frivohnis  pro 
tences,  ilecl.ired  wai  airainst  the  States,  a.  n.  lii7J.  Witlioiit  tin"  shadow 
of  a  pretext,  Louis  scizeil  the  diii'hy  of  Lorr.iiiie,  an(|  ('liarles  maile  i 
base  and  iinsnecessfnl  attempt  to  capture  tin'  Diitcii  Smyrna  llect,  cvel^ 
wiiih^  tlie  tre  itv  lietweeii  the  two  countries  evisted.  The  power  that  was 
thus  coiifederaKMl  against  Holland,  it  was  inipossihlc,  to  witiisiand.  The 
combined  lliets  of  France  aiiil  lOnjI  ind  amoniited  to  more  than  I'O  siil, 
and  tlie  French  army  on  the  frontiers  consisleil  of  I'JO.onn  men.  The 
latter,  in  the  lirst  instance,  hore  down  all  opp  isilion,  liiit  on  tin;  i.'oininanil 
of  the  Dutch  army  being  given  to  the  yoiiiiy  prince  of  Orange,  William 
HI.,  the  spirits  and  energy  of  the  nation  revived,  and  botli  the  govern- 
ment and  the  peopli"  were!  united  in  their  deteriiiinalKm,  rattier  than  siib- 
inil  to  disL'r.ieefiil  terms,  to  abandon  their  country,  and  eniiL'ralc  in  a  body 
to  their  colonies  in  till?  Fast  Indies.  Meanwhile  Ilieir  llei'ts  under  Van 
Troinp  and  De  Ituyter  enifaged  the  eoinl(inc(l  l''reiicli  ami  Kiiglish  fleets 
under  Prince  Rupert,  in  three  hard-foiialit  but  iiidei'isive  ariimis  ;  the  em- 
peror and  the  elector  of  llrandenbnrir  joined  the  Dutch  cause  ;  and 
Charles  II.,  distressed  for  want  of  money,  and  alarmed  by  the  (liseoiilent 
of  his  own  siibjeets,  lirst  coindiided  a  separate  peaci-  with  llidland,  and 
then  oll'ercil  his  mediation  towards  bringing  about  a  reconciliation  of  the 
other  I'oiiieiidinu  p  irties, 

Louis  at  the  head  of  one  of  his  armies  cmiipiered  Framdie-rompK^  in 
(he  iikxt  (.anipaiyii;  while  Turuiinu  was  successful  oil   the  side  of  (ier- 


lil 


I 

'I 

4 


OUThl.N'K  SKETCH  OF  GENERAL  HiSTOllY 


63 


many;  but  disafracnd  his  trophies  by  the  devasirition  itrul  ruin  (if  the  Pi- 
latiiiatc.  Ill  l(i75,  iio  was  killed  by  a  raiinon-ball;  and  the  Kreiich  army 
was  fonred  to  rccniss  the  Rhine.  They  were  sncressfiii,  however,  in  the 
ensuing  campaign;  and  tlieir  fleet  defeated  De  Iluyter,  ;ifier  a  series  of 
obslinale  t'lijrauemonls  ofT  Sicily,  in  one  of  which  he  was  slain.  In  1677, 
another  cainpaiiji'  was  opened,  which  proved  still  more  favourable  to  the 
Frencdi.  Val<'iicieiines,  Cambray,  and  St.  Omcr  wer  '■  taken ;  inars^hal  De- 
Luxeinboiiro  defeated  the  princ^e  of  Oraii'jje,  and  st  'cral  important  ad- 
vantages were  (rained  by  the  rreiKih.  At  leiitrth  the  Dutch  became  anx- 
ious for  |)i'acc,  and  signed  the  treaty  of  Mineguen,  in  1()78. 

Louis  ciiipioycd  tins  interval  of  peace  in  strens'thening  his  frontiers, 
and  in  makinir  preparations  for  fresh  conquests.  He  then  treacherously 
made  hiinself  master  of  Strashurg,  and  some  other  places  in  Flanders. 
By  th(!S(!  aggressions  the  flames  of  war  were  nearlv  rekindled  ;  but  the 
treaty  of  Itatisbon  prevented  the  continuance  of  hostilities,  and  left  tho 
Freiieb  in  possessimi  of  Luxembourg,  Sirasbnrg,  and  the  fort  of  Khel. 

At  this  time  (11)83)  the  imperial  arms  were  occiifiied  in  opposing  the 
Turks,  who,  having  invaded  Hniiu;ary,  and  marched  towards  Vienna, 
that  city  was  on  the  point  of  being  carried  by  assault,  when  the  cele- 
brated .liiiin  Sobieski,  king  of  Poland,  came  to  its  relief  at  the  head  of  a 
numerous  army.  This  revived  the  contidence  of  the  besieged,  and  their 
assailants  wen?  repulsed ;  while  the  main  body,  which  iia<l  been  led  by 
the  graiiil  vizier  to  meet  the  Poles,  were  thrown  into  disorder  at  the 
first  chiirgi;  of  tlii!  Polish  cavalry,  and  fleil  in  the  utmost  confusion; 
leavinii-  in  possession  of  the  victms  lln'ir  artillery,  hairgige,  treasures, 
and  even  the  cousjcrated  bantier  of  the  propliet.  Diiii/g  the  s^  ,  ;  of 
Vienna,  Louis  had  suspended  his  operations,  declaring  that  be  wo  1  not 
attack  a  ('hrislian  power  wliiie  Kiirope  was  mciiaceil  by  infidels.  He 
was  MOW  ai  tlie  height  of  his  power;  and  no  sooner  had  the  valour  of 
Sobieski  iiverwhelmed  the  Ottoman  force,  then  he  reeonnnenced  his  waf 
of  aggraiidizcineiit.  He  liad  just  before  Imiuhled  the  piral(!  states  of 
Africa,  traiii|)led  on  the  independence  of  Genoa,  concluded  an  advantag(!. 
oils  peaci!  with  Spain,  and  rendered  himself  obnoxious  to  the  papal  coiirt 
by  insiiliiiig  i!ie  diaiiity  of  the  pope,  lint  while  Ins  ambition  was  alarm- 
ing tli('  fears  anil  rousing  the  ind:giialioii  of  llnrope,  he  committed  an 
error  wlii  h,  in  a  politj(;al  point  of  view,  the  most  iiitoleraiu  Inuotry  could 
scan'cdy  be  blind  enough  to  excuse.  Henry  IV,  hail  wisely  granted 
religions  freediim  to  the  Freneb  protestants,  ami  iIk;  edict  of  Nantes 
which  secured  it  to  them  was  designed  to  be  perpetual.  Hut  after  vainly 
piidcavotiriiut  to  control  their  consciences  or  reward  their  apostacy,  Loms 
formally  revoked  tln^  I'dict  of  Nantes,  and  treated  his  protcstant  subjects 
with  all  the  injustice  and  cruelty  th;'t  blind  faualicisin  roitld  dict.ite.  or 
brutal ily  execiile.  IJy  this  insensate  act  he  deprived  his  country  'if  lialf 
a  inillnm  of  inhabitant'*,  who  traiisferred  to  other  lands  their  wealth,  their 
industry,  and  their  commercial  iiilelljgence. 

The  'I'urkish  >var  having  been  teriniiiated,  a  league  was  formed  at 
Augshurjr,  between  the  princes  of  (Jermaiiy,  to  resist  the  further  en- 
(Toaehmenis  of  tln^  French  king.  To  tliis  league  Spain,  Holland, 
Sweden,  and  Denmark,  acceded ;  and  Louis  liavieg  underiaken  to  restore 
,1  lines  II.  who  had  lately  been  dethroned  by  Will  am,  prince  of  Orange, 
England  joiiKMi  the  alliance. 

We  mast  hrw  brieily  allude  to  the  revolution  whi"!i  had  placed  the 
prince  of  Oranije  on  the  throne  of  Fiiuland.  Jaini's  H.  brother  of  liie 
facetious  bill  nniiriiii'ipled  Charles  H.  was  a  /eidoiis  pros(d\ti^  of  tho 
Uoniaii  Citliolie  faith,  and  coiinccied  with  tin.' order  (d  the  .lesuits.  One 
part  of  the  nation  was  enthusiastic. illy  attached  to  freedinn,  and  another 
was  cliiellv  inspired  by  the  hatred  of  the  papal  cciemoiiics ;  but  all 
•greed  that  tho  king  had  no  just  or  (roiislitulional  power  to  djctuto  to  .h« 


04 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OP  GENKaAL  HISTORY. 


I.'  i 

■  ! 


nation  in  matters  of  religion.  James  had  offended  many  of  tJic  nobles , 
and  they,  instead  of  snccnmbing  to  the  man  they  despised,  addressed 
themselves  lo  the  stadlholder,  who  was  his  nephew  and  successor,  and 
the  presuinpiive  heir  to  the  tlirone.  At  this  juncture  tlio  queen  of 
England  bore  a  son;  an  evt  it  vvhich  produced  different  effects  on  the 
hopes  of  the  catholics  and  proiestaiUs.  The  stadtholdrr,  in;movable  in 
all  conliiigences,  was  confirmed  in  his  resolution  of  rescuing  England 
from  the  tyranny  by  which  it  was  now  oppressed;  but  he  kept  his  own 
secret,  and  preserved  his  usual  character  of  tranquillity,  reserve,  and  im- 
penetrability. Many  of  the  English  nobility  repaired  to  the  Flasfue, 
where  William  lamented  their  situation ;  and,  with  great  secrecy,  fitted 
out  an  arm  unent  that  was  to  effect  the  deliverance  of  th(!  English  nation 
from  popery  and  despotism.  Tliough  the  king  of  France  had  sent  James 
infor.natiou  of  the  proceedings  of  the  prince  of  Orange,  the  infatuated 
king  could  not  be  persuaded  of  his  danger  until  the  expedition  was  on 
(he  point  of  sailing.  At  length  the  slailtholder  landed  in  Torbay;  and 
the  unfortunate  monarch,  finding  the  situation  of  his  aff.iirs  desperate; 
hastily  quitted  the  English  shores,  and  sougiit  an  asylum  in  France.  A 
convention  was  tlien  sunmioui'd,  llie  throne  declared  vacant,  and  the 
prince  and  princess  of  Orange,  as  "  King  William  III.  and  Queen  Mary," 
were  proclaimed  king  and  queen  of  England.  This  was  followed  by  the 
passing  of  the  "  Uill  of  Rights"  and  the  "  Act  of  Settle  meat,"  by  which 
the  future  liberties  of  the  people  were  secured. 

At  the  head  of  liie  league  of  Aug.sburg  was  the  Emperor  Leopold ;  but 
Louis,  not  daunted  by  the  number  of  the  confederates,  assembled  two 
large  armies  ni  Flanders;  seat  another  to  oppose  the  Spaniards  in  Catalo- 
nia; while  a  fourth  was  employed  as  a  barrier  on  the  German  frontier, 
and  ravaged  the  palatinate  uiih  fire  and  sword ;  driving  the  wretched 
victims  of  his  barbarous  policy  from  their  burning  houses  by  thousands, 
to  perish  with  cold  and  hunger  on  the  frozen  ground.  In  the  next  cam- 
paign his  troops  archieved  several  important  victories,  and  tlie  French 
fleet  defeated  the  combined  fleets  of  l''ngland  and  llollanii  off  Beachy- 
head,  a.d.  U)90.  Thus  the  war  continued  for  the  three  following  years, 
exhausting  the  resources  of  every  party  engaged  in  it,  without  any  im- 
portant change  taking  place,  or  any  decisive  advantage  being  gained  by 
either  that  was  likely  lo  produce  a  cessation  of  hostilities.  With  all  the 
military  glory  that  France  had  acquired,  her  conquests  were  unproductive 
of  any  solid  advantage;  her  finances  were  in  a  sinking  state ;  her  agri- 
culture and  coininerce  were  laugiiishiiio  ;  iind  the  country  was  threatened 
\vitl-  •'"»  horrors  of  famine,  arising  from  a  failure  of  the  crops  and  the 
scarcity  of  haiids  '.o  cultivate  the  soil.  All  parties,  indeed,  were  now 
grown  weary  oi"  a  war  in  which  nothing  permanent  was  effected,  and  in 
which  the  l^lood  ai'.d  treasure  of  t  he  combatants  continued  to  lie  profusely 
and  useless  i^xpeiided.  .Vccordiiigly,  in  1007,  negotiations  were  commen- 
ced, under  the  mediation  of  the  youthful  Charles  XII.,  king  of  Sweden, 
and  a  treaty  concluded  at  liyswick,  by  which  Louis  made  great  conces- 
sions, restoring  to  Spain  the  principal  places  he  had  wrested  from  her; 
but  the  reiiiiiiciation  of  the  Spanish  suec(!ssi<in,  whicli  it  had  been  the  main 
object  of  the  war  to  enforce,  was  not  even  alluded  to  in  the  treaty. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

COMMENCKMKNT  OK  TUB  ElOHTKENTli  CKNTURV,  TO  TIIK  PKACK  OK  UTRKCHT. 

Tint  declining  health  of  Charles  11.,  king  of  Spain,  who  hud  no  chil 
dri'ii,  ('iiaa^r(>(|  iiio  iitteniioii  of  the  European  powers,  and  ke|)t  on  llu 
alert  thoHe  princes  who  were  claimants  of  the  crown.    The  cundidutoi 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OF  GENERAL  HISTORY. 


66 


M 


on  tli( 
.aiididalof 


were  Lonis  XIV.,  the  Emperor  Leopold,  and  the  elector  of  Uavaria;  !•" 
it  was  iiiiiiiifestly  to  tlie  interest  of  those  who  wished  to  pn^serve  the 
balance  of  power  ia  Europe  that  the  choice  should  fall  on  the  latter ;  but 
he  was  unable  to  contend  with  his  rivals.  A  secret  treaty  of  partition 
was  therefore  signed  by  France,  England,  and  Holland,  by  which  it  was 
agreed  that  Spain,  America,  and  the  Netherlands,  should  be  given  to  the 
electoral  prince  of  Bavaria;  Naples,  Sicily,  and  the  Italian  states,  to  th« 
dauphin,  and  the  duchy  of  Milan  to  the  emperor's  second  son,  the  arch- 
duke Charles.  This  treaty  coming  to  the  knowledge  of  the  king  of 
Spain,  he  was  naturally  indignant  that  his  possessions  should  thus  be  dis- 
posed of  during  his  life  ;  and  he  immediately  made  a  will  in  favour  of  the 
electoral  prince.  This  well  suited  the  views  of  England  and  Holland; 
but  the  iniention  was  scarcely  made  known,  when  the  favoured  prince 
died  suddenly,  not  without  suspicion  of  having  been  poisoned.  The 
prince's  death  revived  the  apprehensions  of  England  and  Holland,  and 
they  entered  into  a  new  treaty  of  partition.  But  the  king  of  Spain  be- 
queathed the  whole  of  his  dominions  to  the  duke  of  Anjou,  second  son  of 
the  dauphin,  who  was  universally  acknowledged  by  the  nation  after  the 
death  of  Charles,  who  died  in  1701 ;  and  the  young  king  was  crowned 
under  the  title  of  Philip  V, 

The  emperor  Leopold  being  determined  to  support  the  claims  of  his 
son,  war  innnediately  commenced,  and  an  army  was  sent  into  Italy, 
where  he  met  with  great  success.  Prince  Eugene  having-  expelled  the 
French  from  the  Mil;inese,  a  grand  alliance  was  formed  between  Ger- 
many, F  'and,  and  ilolland.  The  avowed  objecis  of  this  alliance  were 
"to  pr  re  satisfaction  to  his  imperial  majesty  in  the  cas^e  of  the 
Spanis,.  succession ;  obtain  secin'ity  to  the  English  and  Dutch  for  their 
dominions  and  commerce ;  prevent  the  union  of  the  monarchies  of 
France  and  Spain ;  and  hinder  the  French  from  possessing  the  Spanish 
dominions  in  Anierica." 

James  II.,  the  exiled  king  of  England,  died  at  St.  Germain's  in  France, 
on  the  7th  of  September,  1701;  and  was  succeeded  in  his  ncnninal  titles 
by  his  son,  James  HI.,  better  known  by  the  appellation  of  the  Pretender, 
VVith  more  magnanimity  than  prudence,  Louis  XIV.  recognised  his  right 
to  the  throne  his  fathcT  had  abdicated,  which  could  not  be  considered 
in  any  other  light  than  that  of  an  insult  to  VVJlliiim  and  ilie  English 
nation;  and  the  parliament  strained  every  nerve  to  avenge  the  indignity 
offered  to  the  monarch  of  their  choice;  but  before  the  actual  coinnien(;e- 
ment  of  hostilities,  William  met  with  his  death,  occasioned  by  a  fall  from 
his  horse,  a.u.  170v,>. 

Anne,  scetnid  daughter  of  James  II.,  and  wife  of  George,  prince  of 
Denmark,  immediately  ascended  the  vacant  throne  ;  and,  (ic'clarnig  her 
resolulidii  to  adhere  to  the  grand  alliaiK'c,  war  was  declared  by  the  three 
powers  against  France,  on  the  same  day,  at  L(nidon,  the  Hague,  and 
Vienna.  Her  reign  proved  a  series  of  hanlcs  and  of  triumphs.  Being 
resolved  to  (uirHUC  tlu!  plans  of  her  jiredecessor,  she  entrusted  the  com- 
mand  of  ihe  artny  to  the  earl  of  IMarllioroiigli,  who  obtainei!  considerable 
success'is  in  Flanders;  while  the  combiniHl  English  and  Diiieh  lleeta 
captured  the  galleons,  laden  with  liie  treasures  of  .Spanish  Ameriira, 
which  were  lying  in  Vigo  bay,  under  the  protection  of  a  French  lleet. 
Meanwhile,  the  French  had  the  advantage  in  Italy  and  yMsac;  but  in 
Flanders  the  genius  of  Marlborough  (now  raised  to  a  dukedom)  contin- 
ued to  be  an  overmatch  for  the  generals  opposed  to  him.  Having  secured 
nis  ciniquests  in  that  country,  he  resolved  to  march  into  (M'rniany,  to  the 
aid  of  the  emperor,  who  had  to  conlend  with  the  Hungarian  insurgents 
as  well  as  the  French  and  Ilavarians.  He  accordingly  crossed  the  Hhine, 
and  meeting  prnice  Eugene  at  Mondlesheim,  a  juneliini  was  agreed  on 
and  ell'eeted  with  the  Imperialists  under  the  duke  of  Baden;  and,  thus 
L — 5 


s« 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OP  GENERAL  HI8T0RY. 


uiiilfld,  tlipy  ndvniiped  to  the  Danube.  The  rival  armies  each  amounted 
t(i  iiltoill  ((((,000  men.  The  French  and  Bavarians  were  posted  on  a  hill 
tiflftr  tho  viilnnc  of  Blenheim,  on  the  Danube;  but  tliough  their  position 
WiiH  W{?ll  chddRn,  their  line  was  weakened  by  detachments,  which  Marl- 
borouifh  pfrcciviiifr,  he  charged  through,  and  a  signal  victory  was  the 
rddiill.  The  French  commander,  Tallard,  was  made  prisoner,  and  30,000 
of  thn  French  and  Bavarian  troops  were  killed,  wounded,  and  taken ; 
wliilfi  tlifl  \i>»n  of  tlie  allies  amounted  to  5,000  killed,  and  7,000  wounded : 
A.D,  1704.  Hv  this  brilliant  victory  the  emperor  was  liberaied  from  all 
diiligor;  llic!  Hungarian  insurgents  were  dispersed;  and  the  discomfited 
Brmy  of  Friince  hastily  sought  shelter  within  their  own  frontiers.  In 
SlXiiil  Hiiil  !t;.ly  the  advantage  was  on  the  side  of  the  French ;  but  the 
Victory  of   Hlcnhrim  not   only  compensated  for  other   failures,   but   it 

Srently  raised  the  Kiiglish  character  for  military  prowess,  and  animated 
1(1  (MMirii^ic  of  th(!  allies. 

A  111011(1  other  great  exploits  of  the  war  was  the  capture  of  Gibraltar  by  Ad- 
mlriil  Nir  (Icorj^c  Rooke  and  the  prince  of  Hesse.  This  fortress,  which  had 
hittwrlo  Itren  deemed  impregnable,  has  ever  since  continued  in  possession  of 
tlin  l'lii|j|iHh,  who  have  defeated  every  attempt  ujade  by  the  Spaniards  for 
itM  recovery. 

In  the  following  vear  (1705),  the  emperor  Leopold  died,  and  was  sno- 
Cf^i'ded  by  his  son  .loseph.  In  Italy  the  French  obt:iined  some  consider- 
able (\dviu)laBe»  ;  while  m  Spain  nearly  all  Valencia  and  the  province  of 
('iititlonia  oiminitted  to  Charles  III.  The  hopes  and  fears  of  the  belliger- 
iints  were  thus  kept  alive  by  the  various  successes  and  defeats  they 
oxperienced.  I.ouis  appeared  to  act  with  even  more  than  his  usual  ardour : 
he  Nciil  an  army  into  (icrmany,  who  drove  the  Imperinlists before  them; 
while  his  Italian  army  besieged  Turin,  and  Marshal  Villeroy  was  ordered 
to  act  on  the  o(Tei\sive  in  Flanders.  This  general,  with  a  superior  force, 
^iive  Itallle  III  MarU)orough  at  Ramillies,  and  was  defeated,  with  a  loss  of 
7000  killed,  (ionn  prisoners,  and  a  vast  quantity  of  artillery  and  ammunition. 
All  Hrabaiit,  and  nearly  ill  Spanish  Flanders,  submitteil  to  the  cotujuerors. 
The  allicM,  under  Prince  Kiigene,  were  also  successful  in  Italy;  while,  in 
Npftin,  Philip  was  forced  for  a  time  to  abandon  his  capital  to  the  united 
forces  of  the  Mnglish  and  Portuguese.  Louis  was  so  disheartened  by 
these  reverses  that  he  proposed  peace  on  very  advantagcdus  terms;  but 
the  (lilies.  Instigated  by  the  duke  of  Marlborough  and  Prince  F.ugene,  reject- 
ed It,  alllidiigh  the  objects  of  the  grand  alliance  might  at  that  time  have 
been  giiined  without  the  further  (effusion  nfblood.^  Thus  refused,  I.ouis 
oiiee  more  exerted  all  his  energies.  His  troops  having  been  compelled  to 
evacunte  Italy,  he  sent  an  additional  force  into  Spain,  where  the  dnkeof  Ber- 
wick (a  natural  sonof  James  11.)  gained  a  brilliant  and  decisive  victory  at  AI- 
lliiin//!  over  the  confederates,  who  were  commanded  by  the  earl  of  Oalway 
mid  till'  murtpiis  de  las  Mlnas  ;  while  the  duke  of  Orleans  reduced  Valencia, 
nnd  the  cities  of  F.erida  and  Saragossa.  The  victory  of  Almanza  restored 
the  llonrlion  cause  in  Spain  ;  and  Marshal  Villars,  at  the  In^ad  of  the  French 
•rmy  in  Cermany,  laid  the  duchy  of  VVirtemberg  under  contriinition 

Tlie  general  result  of  the  war  hitherto  had  miserably  (lisa[)pointcd  the 
F.nglisli ;  Miirlliorough  felt  that  a  mon?  hiilliant  campaign  was  necessary 
to  render  liim  and  his  party  popular,  lie  therefore  c-,)ssed  the  Scheldt, 
•lid  came  up  with  the  French  army,  under  Vendome,  at  dudenarde.  They 
were  ^lrnle;iv  posted  ;  but  the  British  cavalry  broke  throngli  the  enemy's 
lines  nl  the  ((rst  charge;  and  though  the  approach  of  night  favouri'd  the  re- 
tri'iil  of  the  French,  they  were  p'.;t  to  a  total  rout,  and  !)0(I0  prisoners  fell 
into  the  IhiikN  of  the  Fniilish.  Shortly  after,  I. isle  was  forced  to  surren- 
der ,  mill  Hlient  and  Bruges,  which  had  been  taken  by  Vendome,  were  re- 
taken. AliiMit  the  same  time  the  islands  of  Sardinia  and  Minorca  surren 
ilered  to  the  KngliHh  fleet,  and  the  pope  was  compelled  to  acknowledge  the 
•relidukn  L'harlus  as  the  lawful  king  of  Spain :  a.  d.  1708 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OP  GENERAL  HISTORY. 


0T 


1 


The  treasury  of  Louis  being  greatly  exhausted,  and  his  councils  dis- 
traded,  he  again  expressed  his  willingness  to  make  every  reasonable  con- 
cession for  the  alt;iininent  of  peace,  offering  even  to  abandon  the  whole  of 
the  Spanish  monarchy  to  the  archduke ;  but  his  proffers  being  rejected, 
except  on  terms  incompatible  with  national  safety  or  personal  honour,  the 
French  king,  trusting  to  the  affection  and  patriotism  of  his  people,  called 
upon  them  to  rise  in  defence  of  the  monarchy,  and  in  support  of  their  hum- 
ble and  aged  king.  His  appeal  was  patriotically  responded  to.  Kvery 
nerve  was  strained  to  raise  a  large  army,  and  the  salvation  of  France  was 
confided  to  Marshal  Villars.  The  allied  army  was  formed  on  the  plains 
of  Lisle;  the  French  covered  Douay  and  Arras.  Eugene  and  Marlbo- 
rough invested  Mons.  Villars  encamped  wiihin  a  league  of  it,  at  Mal- 
plaquet.  Klated  with  past  success,  the  confederates  attacked  him  in  his 
mlrenohments:  the  contest  was  obstinate  and  bloody:  and  though  tiie  al- 
lies remained  masters  of  the  field,  their  loss  amounted  to  about  15,000 
men ;  while  that  of  the  French,  who  retreated,  was  not  less  than  10,000, 
(Sept.  11.  1709).  Louis  again  sued  for  peace  ;  and  conferences  were 
opened  at  (iiMtrnydenburg  early  in  the  following  spring  :  but  the  alliesstill 
insisting  upon  the  same  conditions,  the  French  monarch  again  rejected 
them  with  firmness.  The  war  continued,  and  with  it  the  successes  of 
tike  allies  in  Flanders  and  in  Spain,  where  the  archduke  again  obtained 
possession  of  Madrid.  But  the  nobility  remaining  faithful  to  Philip,  and 
fresh  succours  arriving  from  France,  the  duke  of  Vendome  compelled  the 
alli(!s  to  retire  towards  Catalonia,  whither  they  marched  in  two  bodies. 
The  English  gemiral.  Stanhope,  who  commanded  the  rear  division,  was 
surrounded  at  Drigluiegi.,  and  forced  to  surrender,  with  5000  men;  and 
though  the  jjrincipal  division,  led  by  Staremberg,  compelled  Vendome  to 
retieat,  and  continued  their  march  in  safety,  they  were  unable  to  check 
the  victorious  progress  of  Philip's  arms. 

The  expenses  of  a  war  so  wholly  unproductive  to  England  had  by  thii 
time  exhausted  tlie  patience  of  the  nation  ;  and  a  change  had  taken  plac« 
in  the  Uritish  cabinet  that  was  nnfavouruhle  to  Marlborough  and  his  designs 
Through  the  death  of  the  emperor  Joseph,  which  had  just  occvirred,  the 
archduke  Charles  succeeded  to  the  imperial  dignity,  thus  giving  a  new 
turn  to  the  politics  of  the  sovereigns  of  Europe,  who  were  in  alliance  to 
prevent  the  union  of  the  Spanish  and  German  crowns :  a  great  obstacle  to 
the  restoration  of  peace  was  therefore  removed.  Hostilities  however  con- 
tinued, but  with  80  little  energy,  that  no  event  of  importance  occurred  du- 
ring the  whole  campaign.  At  length  the  English  and  French  plenipoten- 
tiaries concurring  in  the  same  desire  for  peace,  preliminaries  were  signed 
between  England  and  France,  at  London,  Dec.  1712.  The  following  year 
a  congress  was  held  at  Utrecht  for  the  general  pacification  of  Europe  ;  and 
a  ji^finite  treaty  of  peace  was  signed  on  the  31st  of  March,  171.3,  by  the 
plenipotentiaries  of  all  the  belligerant  powers,  except  those  of  the  empe- 
ror and  the  king  of  Spain.  It  was  stipulated  that  Philip  should  renounce 
all  title  to  the  crown  of  France,  and  the  duke  of  Berri  and  Orleans  to  tl-at 
of  Spain;  that  if  Philip  should  die  without  male  issue,  the  duke  of  Savoy 
should  succeed  to  the  throne  of  Spain  ;  that  the  Spanish  Netherlands, 
Naples,  Milan,  and  the  Spanish  territories  on  the  Tuscan  coast  should  be 
Becurecl  to  Austria  ;  that  the  Khiiie  should  be  tin;  boundary  between  France 
and  Germany ;  and  that  England  was  to  retain  Gibraltar  and  Minorca. 
In  the  following  year  the  emperor  signed  the  treaty  of  Rastadl,  the  condi- 
tions of  which  were  less  favourable  to  him  than  those  offered  at  Utrecht; 
and  jMjilip  V.  acceding  to  it  sinne  time  after,  Enro|)e  once  more  enjoyed 
tranquillity.  Shortly  after  liaviim  thus  extrie;ited  himself  frcnn  all  his  diffi- 
culties, the  long  and  eventful  reign  of  Louis  XIV.  was  terminated  by  hi« 
death,  and  his  great  trrandson,  Louis  XV.  ^ing  a  minor, the  duke  of  Orleaii. 
was  made  regent  of  France. 


«8 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OF  GENERAL  HISTORY. 


CHAPTER   XVII. 

THE    AGf.  or  CHARLES  XII.  OK    SWEDKN,    AND  PETER  TH3  GREAT  OF    RUSSIA. 

TuofGH  we  have  confined  our  attention  to  the  wars  wliich  occupied  tlio 
noulh  and  west  of  Kiiroi)e  at  the  latter  end  of  t!ie  17th  century,  we  must 
not  overlook  the  events  that  took  place  in  the  north  and  east,  through  the 
nvalry  ;ind  ambition  of  two  of  the  most  extraordinary  characters  that  ever 
wielded  the  weapons  of  war,  or  controlled  the  fate  oi' empires:  these  men 
were  Charles  XIL.of  Sweden,  and  Peter  the  Great,  of  Russia. 

It  is  here  necessary  to  retrace  onr  steps  for  a  few  years.  In  ICfil  the 
people  of  Denmark,  disgusted  with  the  tyranny  of  their  nobles,  solemnly 
surrendcreil  their  liberties  to  the  king;  and  f'rederic,  almost  without  any 
effort  of  his  own,  became  an  absolute  monarch.  His  successor,  Christian 
v.,  made  war  on  Charles  XI., of  Sweden,  who  defended  himself  with  great 
ability,  and,  dying  in  1697,  left  his  erown  to  his  son,  the  valiant  and  enter- 
prising Charles  XII. 

During  the  reign  of  Alexis,  Russia  began  to  emerge  from  the  barbarism 
into  wliich  it  had  been  plungsd  by  the  Mongolian  invasion  and  the  civil 
wars  occasioned  by  a  long  course  of  tyranny  on  the  pari  of  its  ruhjrs.  His 
son  Theodore  pursued  an  enlightened  policy,  reforming  the  laws  encour 
aging  the  arts,  and  introducing  the  manners  and  customs  of  more  civilized 
nations.  At  his  death  he  bequeathed  the  crown  to  his  younger  brother, 
Peter,  in  preference  to  his  imbecile  brother  Ivan,  who  was  several  years 
his  senior.  Through  the  intrigues  of  their  ambitions  sister  Sophia,  a  re- 
bellion broke  out ;  and  owing  to  the  incapacity  of  ono  brother  and  the 
youth  of  the  other,  she  continued  to  exercise  the  whole  sovereign  power. 
BcMiig  accused,  however,  of  plotting  the  destruction  of  her  youngest  bro- 
ther, she  was  immediately  arrested  and  imprisoned;  and  Ivan  having  re- 
tired into  private  life,  Peter  became  sole  and  undisputed  master  of  the 
Russian  empire,  which  was  destined  through  his  efforts,  to  acquire  event 
ually  an  eminent  rank  among  the  leading  powers  of  Europe. 

Endowed  with  an  ardent  thirst  for  knowledge,  gifted  wiih  the  most  per- 
severing courage,  and  animated  by  (ho  hope  of  civilizing  his  nation,  Peter 
I.,  deservedly  surnamed  the  Great,  exhibited  to  the  world  the  unusual  spec- 
tacle of  a  sovereign  descending  awhile  from  the  throne  for  the  purpose  ol 
rendering  himself  more  worthy  of  the  crown.  Having  regulated  the  internal 
affairs  of  Russia,  Peter  left  Moscow,  and  visiKid  Erance,  Holland,  and 
England  incngmlo;  investigating  their  laws,  studying  their  arts,  sciences,  and 
manufactures,  and  everywhere  engaging  the  most  skilful  artists  and  me- 
chanics to  follow  him  into  Russia.  Hut  his  desires  did  not  end  there,  ho  wish 
ed  also  to  become  a  conqueror.  He  accordingly,  in  1700,  entered  into  an 
alliance  with  Poland  and  Denmark,  for  the  purpose  of  stripping  \\w.  youth- 
ful Charles  XH.  of  the  whole,  or  of  a  part  of  his  dominions.  Nothing  dis- 
mayed,  the  heroic  Swede  entered  into  an  alliance  with  Holland  and  Eng- 
land, laiil  siege  to  (/Openhagen  and  compelled  the  Danish  governmiMit  to 
sue  for  peace.  'I'he  Russians  had  in  the  meanlimi!  besieged  Narva  with 
80.0(10  men.  Put  (Jharle.s  having  thus  ('rushed  one  of  his  enemies,  in  the 
short  spatre  of  three  wei.'ks,  immediately  mandied  to  the  relief  of  Narva, 
where,  with  oniy  10.000  men  he  forced  the  Russian  entrenchments,  killed 
18,000  and  took  30,000  prisoners,  with  all  their  artillery,  baggage,  and 
I'limunition.  Peter  being  prepared  for  n-verses,  coolly  observed,  "  I 
Riiew  that  the  Swedes  would  beat  us,  but  they  will  teach  us  to  become 
con(|U(!rors  in  our  turn." 

Having  wintered  at  Narva,  in  the  following  year  Charles  defeated  the 
Poles  arid  Saxons  on  the  Diina,  and  overrun  Iiivonia,  (^ourlaud,  and  Li- 
thuania.     Elated  with  his  successes,  he  formed  the  project  of  dcthroninK 


S 


OUTLINE  SKKTCH  OV  GKNERAL  HISTORY. 


69 


Augustus,  king  of  Poland.  Oombiniiig  policy  with  the  terror  of  his  arms, 
he  eiitcred  VV;irsa\v,  aiihl,  through  tiie  iutrigues  of  the  primate  of  Poland, 
he  obtained  tlie  deposition  of  AiigHstus,  and  the  election  of  his  irienil,  the 
young  palatine  Sianislmis  Leczinski,  a.d.  1704.  Though  Peter  had  lieen 
unable  to  afford  his  ally  Augustus  mueh  assistance,  he  had  not  been  inac- 
tive. Narva,  so  recently  ihn  scene  of  his  discomfiture,  he  took  by  storm, 
and  sent  iui  army  of  Cd.OOO  men  into  Polanrl.  The  Swedish  king,  how- 
.  ever,  drove  them  out  of  the  country,  and,  at  the  head  of  a  noble  and  vic- 
torious army,  he  marched  onward  with  the  avowed  intention  of  dethroning 
his  most  formidable  enemy,  the  czar  of  Russia.  Peter  endeavoured  to 
avert  the  storm  by  sending  proposals  of  peace,  which  being  haughtily  re- 
jected, he  retreated  beyond  the  Dnieper,  and  sought  to  impede  the  progress 
of  the  Swedes  towards  Moscow,  by  breaking  up  the  roads,  and  laying 
waste  the  surrounding  country,  (.'harles,  after  having  endured  great  pri- 
vations, and  being  urged  by  Muzeppa,  hetman  or  chief  of  the  Cossacks, 
who  offered  to  join  him  with  30,000  men  and  supply  him  with  provisions, 
penetrated  into  the  Ukraine.  He  reached  the  place  of  rendezvous,  but 
the  vigilance  of  Pi-ler  had  rendered  the  designs  of  the  heiman  abortive, 
and  he  now  appeared  rather  as  a  fugitive,  attended  with  a  few  liundred 
followers  than  as  a  potent  ally. 

The  Swedish  army  had  still  greater  disappointments  to  meet  with.  No 
supplies  were  provided,  and  General  Lcweiihanpt,  who  had  been  ordered 
to  join  th(!  king  with  15,000  men  from  Livonia,  had  been  forced  into  three 
engagements  with  the  Russians,  and  his  ariny  was  reduced  to  4000. 
Uraving  these  misfortunes,  Charles  continued  the  campaign,  though  in  the 
depth  of  winter.  In  the  midst  of  a  wild  and  barren  country,  with  an  army 
almost  destitute  of  food  and  clothing,  and  perishing  with  cold,  he  madly 
resolved  to  proceed.  At  length  he  laid  siege  to  Pultowa,  a  fortified  city 
on  the  frontiers  of  the  Ukraine,  which  was  vigorously  defended.  His 
army  vvas  now  reduced  to  30,000  men,  and  he  waii  snfl^(M-ing  from  a  wound 
which  lie  had  received  while  viewing  the  works.  The  czar,  at  the  head 
of  70,000  men,  advanced  to  the  relief  of  Pultowa,  and  Charles,  cirried  in 
a  litter,  set  out  with  the  main  body  of  his  army  to  give  him  battle.  At 
first  the  impetuosity  of  the  Swedes  made  the  Russians  give  way,  but 
Charles  had  no  cannon  and  the  czar's  artillery  made  dreadful  havoi!  in  the 
Swedish  lines.  Notwithstanding  the  desperate  valour  of  the  troops,  the 
irretrievable  ruin  of  the  Swedes  was  soon  effected;  8000  were  killed, 
6000  taken  prisoners,  and  12,000  fugitives  were  forced  to  surrender  on  the 
banks  of  the  Dneiper  from  want  of  boats  to  cross  the  river.  The  Swedish 
army  was  thus  wholly  destroyed  Charles,  and  about  three  luiiidred 
men,  escaped  witli  much  difficulty  lo  Bender,  a  Turkish  town  in  Bessa- 
rabia. wli(!re  he  was  hospitably  received,  and  where  he  remained  inact.ve 
during  several  years,  buoyed  up  with  the  hope  that  the  Ottoman  Porte 
would  espcnise  his  cause,  and  declare  against  the  czar  of  Russia.  In  one 
fatal  day  (Charles  had  lost  the  fruits  of  nine  years'  victories,  and  the  shat- 
tered remnant  of  that  army  of  veterans,  before  whom  the  bravest  troops 
of  other  countries  quailed,  were  transported  by  the  victorious  czar  to 
colonize  the  wild  and  inhospitable  deserts  of  Siberia. 

Hut  th(!  inflexible  king  of  Sweden  had  not  even  yet  abandoned  all  hope 
of  humbling  the  power  of  his  hated  rival.  At  length,  in  1711,  war  was 
declared  against  Russia  by  the  Porte,  and  the  vizier  Baltagi  Mehemet  nil- 
vaiiced  towards  the  Dannbe  at  the  head  of  200,000  nun.  By  this  immense 
force  the  Ihi.ssian  army  on  the  banks  of  the  Prnih  was  closely  surrounded 
and  reduced  to  a  state  of  starvation.  At  this  critical  juncture,  the  czarina 
Catharine,  who  a<'companied  Iier  husband,  sent  a  private  message  lo  the 
vizier  and  procured  a  cessati  ui  of  hostilities  preparatory  to  o[)eihng  nego- 
tiations, which  were  s[)ced'ly  followed  by  a  treaty  of  peace.  (Miarlefl, 
wlio  had  calculated  oa  the  total  destruction  of  the  czar,  felt  liiglilv  in< 


TO 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OP  GENERAL  HISTORY. 


censed  at  this  disappointment  of  riis  mnst  ardent  hopes,  and  eventually 
procured  the  dismissal  of  the  vizier.  His  successor,  however,  still  less 
favourable  to  the  views  of  the  royal  warrior,  persuaded  the  sultan,  Achmet 
III.,  to  signify  his  wish  that  Charles  should  leave  the  Ottoman  empire.  But 
he  resolved  to  remain,  and  the  Porte  had  recourse  to  compulsory  mea- 
sures. His  house  was  invested  by  Turkish  troops,  and  after  a  fierce  de- 
fence on  the  part  of  himself  and  his  few  attendants,  he  was  taken  and  con- 
veyed as  a  prisoner  to  Adrianople. 

The  enemies  of  Sweden  were,  in  the  mean  time,  prosecuting  their  suc- 
cessful career.  Stanislaus,  whom  Charles  had  placed  on  the  throne  of 
Poland,  had  been  compelled  to  yield  it  to  Augustus,  and  the  Swedish 
frontiers  were  threatened  on  every  side.  General  Steinbock,  after  having 
gained  a  brilliant  victory  over  the  Danes  and  Saxons  at  Gadebusch,  and 
burnt  Altona,  was  besieged  iiiTonningen,  and  forced  to  surrender  with  the 
whole  of  his  army.  Housed  at  this  intelligence,  the  king  of  Sweden 
left  Turkey,  and  after  traversing  Germany  without  any  attendant,  arrived 
safely  at  Stralsun.l,  the  capital  of  Swedish  Pomerania. 

At  the  opening  of  the  next  campaign,  [a.d.  1715]  Stralsund  was  besieged 
by  the  Prussians,  Danes  and  Saxons,  and  though  obstinately  defended  by 
the  king,  was  forced  to  capitulate,  while  he  narrowly  escaped  in  a  small 
vessel  to  his  native  shores.  All  Europe  now  considered  that  his  last  effort 
had  been  made,  when  it  was  suddenly  announced  that  he  had  invaded 
Norway.  He  had  found  in  his  new  minister.  Baron  de  Goertz,  a  man  who 
encouraged  his  most,  extravagant  projects,  and  who  was  as  bold  in  the 
cabinet  as  his  master  was  undaunted  in  the  field.  Taking  advantage  of  a 
coolness  that  existed  between  Russia  and  the  other  enemies  of  Sweden, 
Goertz  proposed  that  Peter  and  Charles  should  unite  in  strict  amity,  and 
dictate  the  law  to  Europe.  A  part  of  this  daring  plnn  was  the  restoration 
of  the  Stuarts  to  the  throne  of  England.  But  while  tlie  negotiations  were 
in  progress,  Charles  invaded  Norway  a  second  time,  and  laid  siege  to 
Frederickshall,  but  while  there  a  cannon-ball  terminated  his  eventful  life, 
and  his  sister  Ulrica  ascended  the  throne,  a.d.  1718. 

By  tlie  peace  which  Peter  signed  with  Sweden,  he  obtained  the  valua- 
ble provinces  of  Carelia,  Ingrain,  Esthovia,  and  Livonia.  On  this  glorious 
occasion  he  exchanged  the  title  of  czar  for  that  of  emperor  and  autocrat 
of  all  the  Russias,  which  was  recognized  by  every  European  power.  One 
year  after  (a.d.  1735)  this  truly  extraordinary  man  died,  in  the  53(1  year 
of  his  age.  and  the  43d  of  a  glorious  and  useful  reign.  Peter  the  Great 
must  be  considered  as  the  real  founder  of  the  power  of  the  Russian  em- 
pire, but  while  history  records  of  him  many  noble,  humane,  and  generous 
actions,  he  is  not  exempt  from  the  charge  of  gross  barbarity,  particularly 
in  his  early  years.  He  must  not,  however,  be  jndged  according  to  the 
standard  of  civilized  society,  but  as  an  absolute  monarch,  bent  on  the 
exaltation  of  a  people  whose  manners  were  rude  and  barbarous. 

Catharine  I.  who  had  been  crowned  empress  the  preceding  year,  took 
quiet  possession  of  the  throne,  and  faithfully  pursued  the  plairs  of  her  illus- 
trious husband  for  the  improvement  of  Russia  ;  obtaining  the  love  of  her 
subjects  by  the  mildness  of  her  rule  and  the  truly  patriotic  zeal  she  evinced 
for  their  welfare.  She  died  in  the  second  year  of  her  reign,  and  left  the 
crown  to  Peter  H.,  son  of  the  unfortunate  Alexis,  and  the  regen(;y  to 
prince  MenzicwfT,  who  was  afterwards  disgraced  and  banished  to  Siberia. 
After  a  short  and  peaceable  reign  Peter  IF.  died,  and  with  him  ended  the 
male  line  of  the  family  of  Komanof  a  d.  1730. 


1 


I 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OF  GENEHAL  HISTOUY. 


n 


I 
1 


I 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

THE  AFPAIIU    or  EDROPK,  FROM  TIIK   ESTABLISHMENT  OF   THE    HANOIERIAR 
SUCCESSION   m    ENGLAND,    TO   THE    YEAR   1740. 

Arrived  at  a  period  of  coniparaiive  repose,  we  may  now  take  a  retro- 
spective  glance  at  the  affairs  of  Great  Britain.  In  1707,  Scolh.\id  and 
England  hnd  been  luiited  under  this  appellation,  and  the  act  of  union  in- 
troduced equal  rights,  liberties,  commercial  ,  rrangements,  and  a  parlia- 
ment common  to  both  nations.  During  the  hie  of  William  III.  theprotes' 
lant  succession  had  been  decided  by  act  of  parliament,  in  fpvour  of  the 
countess  palatine  Sophia,  duchess  of  Hanover,  wife  of  the  first  electoral 
sovereign  of  that  territory  and  mother  of  George  I.  This  pis'icess  died  a 
short  time  before  queen  Aime,  and  George  I.,  upon  that  event,  took  the 
oath  of  succession,  by  which  he  engaged  to  obse.  ve  and  mi^i.itain  the  i  ..vs 
and  liberties  of  Britain,  not  to  engage  that  kingdom  even  in  defei  i^e 
wars  on  account  of  his  electorate,  and  to  employ  no  other  than  !h  :\jh 
ministers  and  privy  counsellors  in  the  administration  of  governmeu,. 

As  George  I.  in  a  great  measure  owed  his  succession  to  the  crown  to 
the  Whig  party,  he  openly  avowed  himself  their  frieu"  u-  ■■]  patron,  and 
they  were  no  sooner  in  office  than  they  used  their  pov,  er  ti  crush  their 
political  adversaries  the  Tories.  One  of  the  first  acts  af  hia  reigti  was 
the  iQ^peachtnent  of  theduke  ofOrmond,  and  the  lords  Oxford  and  Uoling- 
brokS.  Oxford  was  committed  to  the  Tower,  but  Boliiigbroke  and  Or- 
mond  made  their  escape  to  the  continent.  The  evident  partiality  of  the 
monarch  for  the  Whigs,  and  their  vindictive  proceedings,  ^ave  great  um- 
brage to  many  persons,  and  roused  the  anger  of  all  who  were  favourable 
to  the  Stuart  dynasty.  These  feelings  more  especially  prevailed  in  the 
Highlands  of  Scotland,  and  a  plan  was  formed  for  a  ge.;eral  insurrection 
in  favour  of  the  Pretender,  whom  they  proclaimed  under  the  title  of  James 
III.  By  the  authority  of  the  prince  the  earl  of  Mar  had  raised  his  standard, 
and  the  clans  quickly  crowded  to  it,  so  that  he  was  soon  at  the  head  of 
9,000  men,  including  several  noblemen  and  other  persons  of  distinction. 
But  their  plans  were  prematurely  formed,  and  their  want  of  unanimity  in 
conducting  the  necessary  operations  proved  fatal  to  the  cause  in  which 
they  were  embarked.  They  were  attacked  and  completely  routed  by  the 
royal  forces  at  Preston  Pans,  a.d.  1716.  The  Pretender  and  the  earl  of 
Mar  effected  their  est^ape,  but  most  of  ;  c  insurgent  chiefs  and  officers 
were  doomed  to  suffer  death  as  traitc-r.  '■  iie  rebellion  beingr  thus  sup. 
pressed,  an  act  was  passed  for  making  p<>;:ianicnts  sepienniali  instead  of 
triennial. 

We  now  return  to  the  affairs  of  Spain  and  other  continental  states.  We 
have  seen  that  the  death  of  the  emperor  and  the  accession  of  the  arch- 
duke Charles  to  the  imperial  throuu,  left  Philip  V.  undisputed  master  of 
Spain  and  of  its  colonies.  His  fivs!  queen  being  dead,  he  married  Elizabeth 
Farnese.  heiress  of  Parma,  Tuscany,  and  Placeiitia,  a  woman  of  mascu- 
line spirit,  who,  having  a  powerful  influence  over  the  mind  of  her  husband, 
and  being  herself  directed  by  the  daring  cardinal  Alberoni,  his  prime  min- 
ister, indulged  in  the  prospect  of  recovering  those  possessions  which  had 
been  wrested  from  Spain,  and  confirmed  by  the  peace  of  Utrecht.  The 
Bchemes  of  Alberoni,  in  fact,  went  much  farther;  by  the  aid  of  Charles 
XII.  of  Sweden,  and  Peter  I.  of  Russia,  he  designed  to  change  the  poll- 
tical  condition  of  Europe  ;  he  desired  to  restore  the  Stuarts  to  the  throne 
of  England,  to  deprive  the  duke  of  Orleans  of  the  regency  of  France,  and 
to  prevent  the  interference  of  the  emperor  by  engaging  the  Turks  to 
assail  his  dominions.  These  ambitious  projects  were  defeated  by  whai 
was  termed  the  "  quadruple  alliance"  (a.d.  1716)  between  Austria,  France, 


72 


oijTlink  skktcii  of  (jkneral  history. 


England  and  HoUmid.  The  court  of  Spain  for  a  time  resisted  this  yiow- 
erful  confoderacy,  but  its  disasters  both  by  laud  and  S(!a,  couipelled  Philip 
to  accede  to  the  lernis  which  were  ofTered  him,  and  Alheroui  was  dis- 
missed, A.D.  17:20.  A  private  treaty  was  afterwards  concluded  between 
the  kinjf  of  Spain  and  the  oniperor,  and  another,  foi  the  express  purpose 
of  coiuiteracting  it,  was  concluded  between  England,  France,  Holland, 
Prussia,  Denmark  and  Sweden.  This  led  to  a  short  war  between  F.ng- 
land  and  Spam  :  the  English  sent  a  fleet  to  tlie  West  Indies  to  block  up 
the  galleons  in  Pnno-Uelio,  and  the  Spaniards  made  an  unsuccessful  at- 
tack upon  Gibraltar.  Neither  party  having  gained  by  the  rupture,  the 
mediation  of  France  was  accepted,  and  a  treaty  was  concluded  at  Seville, 
by  which  all  the  conditions  of  the  quadruple  alliance  were  ratified  and 
confirmed.  One  of  its  articles  provuling  that  Don  Carlos,  sou  of  the 
queen  of  Spain,  should  succeed  to  Parma  and  Placentia,  the  Spanish 
troops  now  took  formal  possession  of  those  territories.  It  was  also 
agreed  that  the  "pragmatic  sanction,"  or  law  by  which  the  emperor 
secured  the  succes.sion  of  the  Austrian  dominions  to  his  female  heirs,  in 
failure  of  mal(>  issue,  should  be  guaranteed  by  the  contracting  powers. 

George  I.,  king  of  England,  died  in  17'J7,  hut  his  death  made  no  chango 
in  the  pidilics  of  the  cabinet,  Sir  Robert  Walpole  continunig  at  the  head 
of  affairs  afler  the  accession  of  George  !I.  Some  few  years  previous  to 
the  deatii  of  his  father,  the  nalioii  had  experienced  much  loss  and  con- 
fusion by  the  failure  of  the  "South-Sia  scheme,"  a  commercial  specula- 
tion on  so  extensive  a  scale  that  il  bad  well-nigh  produced  a  national 
bankriiplcy.  it  was  a  close  imitation  of  the  celebrated  "  Mississippi 
scheme,"  which  had  a  short  time  before  involved  in  ruin  thousands  of 
our  (Jallic  neisjli'iours. 

The  pacific  disposition  of  Cardinal  Flenry,  prime  minister  of  Fiance, 
and  the  no  less  pacific  views  of  \Val|)ule,  for  nearly  twenty  years  secured 
the  happiness  and  peace  of  both  coiiniries.  But  the  puynacious  spirit  of 
the  people,  and  the  rememliraiicc  of  old  griev'>nccs  on  liolh  sides,  led  to 
new  altercations  witii  the  Spaniards,  which  were  greatly  aggravat(!d  by 
their  altackiiig  the  English  ein|il()yed  in  culling  ingwood  in  the  bay  ol 
Campeai'liy.  .\  war  was  the  consefpience,  and  FrMuei'  became  the  ally 
of  Spain,  AD.  17.1l>.  .\  small  force  being  sent  to  t!ie  West  Inilies,  under 
Adnural  X'ernoii,  the  iin|)ortant  city  of  Porto-Uello  was  caiilurcd,  which 
success  induced  lh(!  Enj>lis!i  to  send  out  oilier  arinameiiis  npoii  a  larger 
scale.  One  of  these,  under  Coniinodore  .Anson,  sailed  i<'.  the  South  Seas, 
and  after  eneomilering  severe  st(uins,  by  wliiidi  Ins  force  was  much  diml- 
nisheil.  lie  ravaircd  the  coasts  of  Ciuli  and  Peru,  and  eveuluatly  captured 
the  ricli  galleon  annuidly  iKumd  IViiin  .\ca|Milco  to  Manilla.  The  olhor 
ex'iediiion  Masdireeied  ayaiiist  Cartliancna  liiit  it  jiroveil  most  disastrous, 
owing  to  the  misininagcment  and  disjui'  's  o(  llie  coininandeis,  and  to 
the  unlie.iMhiness  of  the  climate,  not  less  than  l.'),0()0  troops  having  fallen 
victims  to  disease. 


■-'fit 


M 


M 


CHAl'TER  \IX. 

r«OM     TIIK    A(rKSSiON    OF     TIIK.     KMI'HK.ss     TIIK.IIKHA,     OK    AUSTRIA,    TO    THr. 
l-rACK   OK   AIX-].A-<ilAl>KLLK. 

\Vk  now  return  to  the  stair  of  atfiirsin  northern  Eiiro|ie.  On  thedeatli 
of  the  einpeiiir,  ("liarlis  VI.,  his  daiinhler,  Maria  Theresi,  by  virtue  of  the 
pra;.nii:i|ii'  sanction,  took  possesxion  of  Ins  hereditary  doinininns,  Init  shft 
finiiid  sill  was  not  likely  to  reliiin  |ieaceable  possessiim  of  them.  Tho 
kin(«  of  Poland.  Prince  and  Spiin,  exiiibded  llnir  nspcclive  (laiins  to 
the  \.  liole  Austrian  succession,  and  Frederic  the  (Ireat,  km;;  of  Pnisaiu 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OF  GENEHAL  HISTORY. 


73 


if  tint 

hill  sh(» 
TIk! 

IIMIH    tU 


who  nad  just  KsceiKled  his  throne,  looking  only  to  the  aggranclizemfi'it  of 
his  dominiiiiis,  joined  her  enemies  in  tlie  hope  of  obtiiininy:  ;i  share  ol  the 
spoil.  At  the  head  of  a  well-appointed  army  he  entered  Silesia,  .ook 
Bresiaii,  its  capital,  and  soon  conquered  the  province,  and  ni  onier  ••  re- 
tain his  a('(iui:<iton  he  offered  to  snjiport  .Maria  Theresa  against  :'il  liT 
enemies,  a.d.  1741.  This  proposal  was  steadily  and  indignantly  rejected 
by  the  princess,  though  she  was  well  aware  that  the  French  and  Bava- 
rians were  on  tlie  point  of  iiivadiiiif  her  territories,  for  the  expre>s  purpose 
of  elevalinij  Charles  Alljcrt,  elector  of  Havaria,  to  the  imperial  dignity. 
Under  the  command  of  the  prince,  assisted  by  the  marshals  Belleisle  and 
Broglio,  the  united  armies  einered  Upper  .\nslria,  took  Lintz  and  menaced 
Vieima.  Maria  Theresa  being  compelled  to  abandon  her  capital,  fled  to 
Hungary,  and  having  convened  llie  slates,  she  appeared  before  the  assem- 
bly with  her  infant  son  in  her  arms,  and  made  such  an  eloquent  appeal 
that  the  nobles  with  one  accord  swore  to  defend  her  cause  till  death. 
"Moriamnr  pro  HKOE  nostro  Maria  Theresa."  Nor  were  these  nn^re  idle 
words;  her  [)atrioiic  subjiM  ^  rushed  to  arms,  and,  to  th('  asttmishment  of 
her  enemies  a  large  Hungarian  army,  under  the  command  of  Prince 
CI  tries  of  Lorraine,  marciied  to  the  relief  of  Vienna,  and  the  elector  was 
obliged  to  raise  the  siege.  A  suDsidy  was  at  tlie  same  time  voted  to  her 
by  the  British  parliament,  and  the  war  assumed  a  more  favourabh;  aspect. 
The  .Austrians  took  Munich,  afier  di'feating  the  B^ivarians  at  Meniberg, 
and  the  prince  of  Lorraine  expclli'd  the  Prussians  and  Saxons  from  Mo- 
ravia. The  elector,  however,  had  the  gratification,  on  retiring  into  Bo- 
hemia, to  take  the  city  of  Prague,  and  having  been  crowned  king  of  Bo- 
hemia, he  proce(?(!ed  to  Frankfort  where  he  was  chosen  emperor  under 
the  name  of  Clinrles  VI L,  ad.  17Ii. 

'I'he  king  of  Prussia  having  obtained  a  brilliant  victory  over  the  Aus- 
trians at  C/.arslau,  took  iniinedialc  advantage  of  his  position,  and  signed 
a  separate  treaty  w'ith  the  queen  of  Mungary,  who  ceded  to  him  Lower 
Silesia  and  (il.itz,  on  condition  of  his  remaining  neutral  during  li>'r  contest 
with  the  other  powers.  'I'he  conduct  of  Frederic  gave  just  cause  of  of. 
fence  to  the  court  of  France,  f<u%  thus  deprived  of  its  most  powerful  ally, 
the  French  army  must  have  been  inevitablv  iuIikmI  but   for  the  superior 


ilies  of  Marslial  Bell 


pel 
eisie,  « iio  effc'cled  one  of  the  most  masterly  re- 
treats through  an  «'neniy's  ccnintry  that  has  been  recordeil  in  tlu'  annals 
of  modern  warfare.  Louis  XV'.  now  made  oilers  of  pt-aee  on  the  most 
equitable  terms,  but  the  queen,  elated  with  success,  haughtily  rejected 
tlKMU.  In  conseipience  of  a  victory  L'^ained  by  Prince  Charles  of  Lorraine, 
she  had  also  soon  tlie  gratification  of  rccovi  riiiif  the  inij.erial  dominions 
from  her  rival  Charles  VII.,  who  took  refuge  in  Fiaiikfori,  nu.l  there  lived 
HI  conifiarativc  iudigi'iice  and  obscurity. 

Kiigbind  had  now  become  a  i,riiicipal  in  the  war,  and  the  united  British, 
Hanoverian  and  Austrian   forces  marched   from  I'Mamlcrs  towards  (Icr- 


nianv. 


The  king  ^>{  Fngland   had  ariivid  in  the  allied 


camp,  and  the 


French  commander.  Marshal  de  Noaillcs,  having  cut  off  llicir  nupplie 
the  (lestriictioii  of  the  British  and  Austrian  army  was  aniicipated,  eiilior 
by  being  cut  to  (licces  if  iliey  attempted  a  retreat,  or  by  their  surrender. 
They  coiiimciiceil  their  retreat,  and,  foriunately  for  llicm,  the  ufood  gener- 
alship of  Noailb's  who  had  taken  posscssnui  (if  Delliiciien  m  their  Iront, 
was  counterai'ted  by  the  rashness  of  liis  in  phew, the  coniil  de  (irauiinont, 
who  advanced  into  a  small  plain  to  giv(!  the  allies  battle;  but  the  inipelu- 
■l»ily  of  Ihe  l''rench  tnaips  was  met  by  the  resolute  and  steady  courago 
of  the  allies,  which  obtained  for  iheiii  the  victory  of  Dcitingeii.  Tim 
marshal  retreated,  but  the  allies,  owing  to  the  irrei  olutiim  of  (ieorgo  II., 
•ibtamed  no  farther  advantHge. 

The  iMiiuhiy  and  amliiiions  conduct  of  (lie  omprr^s,  wlio  avowed  hrr 
inlenlion  of  keeping  Bavaria,  gave  ureal  offfcnce  to  several  of  the  (ieriimu 


74 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OF  UKNERAL  HISTORY. 


:i 


princes,  and  France,  Prussia,  and  Die  elector  palatine,  united  to  cheek  tne 
(rro  wing  power  of  Austria.  The  French  arms  were  victorious  ui  Flanders; 
the  king  of  Prussia,  who  had  invaded  Bohemia,  was  defeated  with  great 
loss,  and  forced  to  make  a  precipitate  retreat  into  Silesia,  a.d.  1744.  Not 
long  after  this  the  death  of  the  elector  of  Bavaria  removed  all  reasonable 
grounds  for  the  continuance  of  hostilities,  his  son  having  renounced  all 
claims  to  the  imperial  throne,  while  Maria  Theresa  agreed  to  put  him  in 
possession  of  his  hereditary  dominions. 

During  the  campaign  of  1745  the  Imperialists  lost  Parma,  Placentia  and 
Milan.  In  Flanders  a  large  French  army,  under  Marshal  Saxe,  invested 
Tournay,  while  the  allies,  under  the  duke  of  Cumberland,  though  greatly 
inferior  in  numbers,  marched  to  its  relief.  The  king  of  France  and  the 
dauphin  were  i>'  the  French  camp,  and  their  troops  were  strongly  posted 
behind  the  village  of  Fontenoy.  The  British  infantry  displayed  the  most 
undaunted  valour,  carrying  everything  before  them ;  but  they  were  ill 
supported  by  their  German  and  Dutch  allies,  whose  indecision  or  want  of 
courage  lost  the  day.  The  capture  of  Tournay,  Ghent,  Ostend,  and  Ou- 
denarde  by  the  French,  was  the  immediate  consequence  of  this  important 
victory. 

la  England  the  fatal  battle  of  Fontenoy  disappointed  the  expectations 
of  the  pi'ople,  and  produced  great  irritation  in  the  public  mind,  while  it  at 
the  same  time  revived  the  hopes  of  the  Jacobites,  who  thought  it  a  fortu- 
nate time  to  attempt  the  restoration  of  the  Stuart  family.  Charles  Kd- 
waril,  the  young  Pretender,  accordingly  landed  in  Scotland,  where  his 
manly  person  and  engaging  manners  won  the  hearts  of  the  Highlanders, 
who  were  everywhere  ready  to  give  him  a  hearty  welcome  and  join  his 
standard.  Tl-.us  supported  by  the  F4ighland  chiefs  and  their  clans,  he 
took  possession  of  Dunkeld,  Perth,  Dundee,  and  Hdinburgh.  Having  pro- 
claimed his  father,  he  marched  against  Sir  John  Cope,  the  royal  coui- 
mander,over  whom  he  obtaiuci'  a  victory  at  Preston  Pans.  After  receiv- 
ing some  reinforcements  he  cr<  -  'd  the  Hnglish  border,  took  Carlisle  and 
Laiicaster,  and  marched  boldly  i^^i  to  Derby.  But  being  disappointed  in 
his  hopes  of  powerful  assistanc;  from  the  Fhiglish  Jacobites,  he  took  the 
advice  of  the  majority  of  his  oflicers  and  retraced  his  ((tejjs.  On  his  re- 
turn to  Sioiland  his  forces  were  considerably  augmented,  and,  receiving 
a  supply  of  money  from  Spain,  he  prepared  to  renew  the  contest  with 
spirit.  But  though  he  was  at  first  successful,  by  taking  the  town  of  Stir- 
ling, and  (i('f(Mtiiig  the  troops  sent  against  him  at  Falkirk,  the  approach  of 
a  larger  army,  commanded  by  the  duke  of  Cumberland,  shod  comjielled 
the  prince  to  retreat  to  the  north.  On  reaching  ('ulloden  Moor,  near  In- 
verness, lie  re.iolvt'd  lo  make  a  stand.  As  usual,  the  Highlanders  made  u 
furious  onset,  but  their  desperate  charge  was  received  by  a  close  and  gall- 
ing (ire  of  musketry  and  artillery,  winch  in  a  very  short  time  proveil  de- 
cisive, (living  up  all  for  lost,  (Jharles  Kdw.ird  desired  his  partizans  to 
jisfierse,  and  became  himself  a  wretched  and  proscribed  fugilivt*,  in  the 
hourly  dread  of  falling  into  the  hands  of  his  merciless  pursuers,  who,  after 
their  victory,  with  liiMullike  barbarity,  laid  waste  theeonntry  wiih  tire  and 
sword.  Alter  wamleriiig  in  the  Higlilaiuls  for  several  months,  and  reeeiv- 
iiig  numerous  proofs  of  tin-  fidelity  of  his  unfortunate  adherents,  whom 
the  reward  of  X'''l<l  0(10  fur  his  caiHure  did  not  teiii|)t  to  betray  him,  he 
escaped  lo  Fiance,  a.u.  171(5. 

Ill  the  mean  time  tlie  French  troop.s  under  Marshal  Saxe  were  .iverun 
ning  ihe  Nelherlands;  Brussils,  Aiilwer|>,  and  Nanuir  were  captured  ;  and 
the  Kaiigniiiiiry  battle  of  Koucoux  ended  th(^  campaign.  In  Italy,  tin-  arms 
(if  France  ami  her  allies  were  not  eijually  successful ;  and  after  a  series  ol 
battles  in  (lennany  and  the  Low  CounlneN,  in  which  the  lortune  of  war  was 
pretty  e(|uidly  lialaneed,  eonferi'iices  wereopeiieil  at  Ai\-la-('liapelle,  and 
(«relimiiianes  of  peace  signed;  a.  i>.  174H.     The  basis  of  ilns  treaty  was  tint 


^Tn 


J 


OUTLINE  3KKTCH  OF  GENERAL  HISTORY 


76 


restitution  oPhU  places  taken  duriiitt  tlx'  war,  and  a  mutual  release  of  pris- 
oners. Frederic  of  Prussia  was  guranteed  in  ilie  possession  of  Silesia  and 
Glatz;  the  Hanoverian  succession  to  the  English  throne  was  recognised 
and  the  cause  of  the  Pretender  abandoned. 

We  brought  our  notice  of  Russia  down  to  the  death  of  Peter  II., ::'  1730. 
When  that  occurred,  a  council  of  the  nobles  placed  on  the  throne  Anne 
Iwannowa,  daughter  of  Ivan,  Peter's  eldest  brother,  who  soon  broke 
through  the  restrictions  imposed  upon  her  at  her  accession.  She  restored 
to  Persia  the  provinces  that  had  been  conquered  by  Peter  the  Great;  and 
terminated  a  glorious  war  againstTurkey,  in  conjuctiun  with  Austria,  by  sur- 
rendering every  place  taken  during  the  contest .  a.d.  1735.  She  is  accused 
of  being  attached  to  male  favourites,  the  principal  of  whom  was  a  man  of 
obHcure  birth,  named  John  Biren,  who  was  elected  duke  of  Courland, 
and  who  governed  the  empire  with  all  the  despotism  of  an  autocrat.  Pre 
viously  to  her  death,  Anne  had  bequeathed  the  throne  to  the  infant  Ivan, 
and  appointed  IJiren  regent;  but  the  latter  enjoyed  his  high  dignity  only 
twenty-two  days,  wlien  he  was  arrested  and  sent  into  exile  in  Siberia, 
Russia  has  ever  been  noted  for  cabals,  intrigues,  and  revolutions.  Thesol- 
diery  had  been  induced  to  espouse  the  cause  of  Klizabeth,  daughter  of 
Peter  the  great.  Anne  was  arrested  and  imprisoned;  the  infant  emperor 
was  „onfined  in  the  fortress  of  Schusselburg ;  and  Elizabeth  was  iinmedi- 
ately  proclaimed  empress  of  ail  the  Kussias.  This  princess  concluded  an 
advantajfcous  peace  with  Sweden ;  and  lent  her  [xiwerful  assistance  to 
Maria  '1  lieresa,  in  her  war  with  the  king  of  Prussia,  for  whom  Elizabeth 
felt  a  violent  personal  enmity. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

PROORKSS  or  EVKNT9    DURING  TIIK  SKVEf*  YKARS'  WAR    IN    EUROPK,     AMEH- 
ICA,  AND  THK    FAST  INDIKS. 

DiiRiNo  the  period  we  have  been  d:'scribing,  in  which  the  west  and  the 
north  of  Kurope  resounded  with  the  crifs  of  distress  or  tin?  shouts  of  vic- 
tory, the  throne  of  Hiiulosian  was  filled  by  Mahmoud  Sh.ili,  a  voluptuous 
prince:  who,  in  order  to  avoid  becoming  the  object  of  personal  halrtd, 
coiilidcd  all  public  business  to  the  iiobirs  and  his  ministers  :  these  officers 
offended  or  neglected  the  subahdar  of  iheDeccan,  who  invited  Nadir  Shah 
to  invade  the  East  Indies.  In  173^1  the  Persian  warrior  uuirihcd  uito  that 
coimtry  at  the  head  of  an  army  inured  to  war  and  g-eedy  of  plunder,  and 
defeated  with  ease  the  innumerable  but  disorderly  troops  of  the  mogul. 
The  crown  and  sceptre  of  Mahmoud  lay  at  the  feet  of  his  conijueror. 
Delhi,  his  capital,  was  taken;  every  individual  whosrappearance  rendered 
it  proliaulcthat  he  was  acquainted  with  concealed  treasures,  was  subjected 
to  the  mo>t  horrid  tortures  ;  and  it  is  asserted  that  100,000  jicrsons  were 
massacred  in  one  day!  He  plundered  the  country  of  upwards  of  thirty 
millions  sterling,  and  extended  the  bounds  of  his  empire  to  the  banks 
of  the  Indus.  After  commiliing  the  must  revolting  acts  ofcrueliv,  ho 
was  apsassinated  by  his  own  officers,  who  placed  his  nephew,  Adil  Shah, 
on  the  vaeaiii  throne  ;  a.  d.  1T47.  We  will  now  take  a  view  of  European 
interrsis  in  that  distant  region. 

Ainoiigother  stipulations  in  the  treaty  of  Ai.v-la-Chapelle,  it  was  agrted 
that  the  English  settlcuM'iil  of  Madras,  which  during  the  war  of  the  sue- 
cession  hail  been  taken  from  the  English  by  the  French,  should  he  restor- 
ed, Dnpleix,  the  French  governor  of  Pondicherry,  had  long  fiought  an 
opportiimiy  for  adding  to  the  dominions  of  his  countrymen  in  India;  and 
the  contniual  disputes  of  the  native  nrinees  favoured  his  schemes,  inas- 
much  as  the  interference  of  tlie  French  was  generally  solicited  by  one  of 
the  parlits,  who  remunerated  their  European  allies  by  fresh  conccBsinnn 


# 


76 
of 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OE  GENERAL  HISTORY. 


rally 


ed'ihe  jealc 


territory  on  every  such  occasion.  This  natura 
of  their  Knglish  rivals,  who  adopted  a  similar  line  of  policy;  so  that 
whenever  there  was  a  rupture  between  the  native  princes,  they  each  found 
al'ies  in  the  Kuropeim  settlers.  A  fierce  contention  arose  for  the  nabob- 
jiiipofthe  Carnatic.  The  French  supported  the  claims  of  Chunda  Sahib; 
the  English  being  applied  to  by  Mohammed  Ali,  son  of  the  1-ite  nabob  of 
Arcot,  espoused  his  cause  :  a.  d.  1751.  It  was  at  this  time  that  Mr.  Clive 
(afterwards  lord  Clive)  appeared  in  the  capacity  of  a  military  leader. 
He  had  bi;en  originally  in  the  civil  service  of  the  East  India  Company; 
but  he  now  exchanged  the  pen  for  the  sword,  and  soon  proved  himself 
more  than  a  match  for  all  the  talents  which  were  brought  into  play  against 
him.  With  a  small  force  he  took  Arcot ;  and  he  afterwards  successfully 
defended  it  against  Chundah  Sahib,  who  besieged  it  with  a  numerous  army. 
Many  brilliant  victories  followed  on  the  side  of  the  English  and  their  allies. 
The  Rajah  of  Tanjore,  and  other  independent  chiefs  joined  them.  The 
French  lost  most  of  their  ac(|iiisitioiis :  Mohammed  All's  claim  was  ac- 
knowledged ;  and  a  treaty  was  entered  into  between  the  French  and  En- 
glish, thai  neither  party  should  in  future  interfere  with  the  affairs  of  the 
native  princes.     Time  proved  how  useless  was  such  a  stipulation. 

The  peace  of  Aix-la-Chapelle  was  not  of  long  duration.  France  and 
England  were  still  at  war  in  the  East  indies,  and  their  differences  in  re- 
spect to  the  boinidaries  of  their  respective  colonies  in  North  .America  still 
remained  for  adiuslnipnt.  Another  war  in  Europe  was  the  inevitable  con- 
sequence ;  and  irom  the  term  of  its  duration  it  obtained  the  name  of  "  the 
seven  years'  war."  England  united  with  Prussia  ;  and  an  alliance  between 
the  emperor,  France,  Uussia,  Sweden,  and  Saxony,  was  immediately  con- 
cluded: A.  D.  17')tl.  The  coniinenceinent  of  the  cain|)aign  had  a  discoura- 
ging aspect  for  the  king  of  Prussia  ;  the  Russians  were  advancing  through 
Lithuaiiiii,  a  Swedish  army  occupied  his  attention  in  Poinerania,  and  the 
united  forces  of  the  French  and  Imperialists  were  advancing  through  Ger- 
many. With  his  cliaracterislic  boldness,  Frederic  anticipated  the  attack 
of  his  numerous  foes,  and  invaded  both  Sa.xony  and  IJohemia ;  making 
himself  master  of  Dresden,  routing  the  Austrians  at  Lowesitz,  and  com- 
pelling 17,000  Saxons  to  lay  down  their  ains  at  Parma. 

In  the  ensuing  campaign  the  inarsh;il  d'Estrecs  crossed  the  Rhine,  with 
80,000  men,  to  invade  Hanover.  The  Hanoverians  and  H<;ssiaiis,  under 
the  coiniiiaiid  of  the  diike  of  Cumberland,  were  driven  out,  and  the  French 
became  masters  of  the  electorate.  Uiiawed  by  the  formidable  prepara- 
timisof  his  enemies,  Frederic  again  asHuincil  tlin  offensive,  and  penetrated 
into  Rolieinia  ;  but  a  victory  olitaincd  at  Koliii,  by  the  Austrian  general 
Daiin,  coiiiprlleil  liiin  to  retreat  h  isiily  into  his  domiuioiiB,  which  W(!ri;  now 
threatened  in  every  direction.  The  Fr(  ich  had  rapidly  advanced  upon 
Magdeburg  ;liie  victorious  Russians  threatened  the  norlh  of  Silesia,  while 
the  Aiislrians  had  attacked  the  soutli  and  even  penetrated  to  llerlin, 
where  tliev  levied  liciivy  contribuiinns  ;  and  the  prince  of  Itninswick  He- 
vcrn  had  didtvereil  U[)  Hreslan.  In  thiseinergency,  Frederiir  c(Mild  scarce- 
ly expect  lo  ai'(juire  any  further  fiine;  but,  with  his  ("•cusiomed  energy, 
he  hasteni'i!  to  Dresden,  assembled  an  army,  and  with  half  the  nninberof 
his  French  and  (■crinan  opponents,  vjiive  them  battle  at  the  villageof  Ros- 
bai'li,  an  I  ohtaincd  over  them  a  most  brilliant  victory.  Ills  loss  amount- 
ed lo  only  five  tnindreii  men,  while  that  of  the  enemy  was  tniu^  tliDusand, 
in  killed,  wounded,  iniil  prisoners.  In  four  weeks  after  ho  obtained  the 
far  more  i'liportant  victory"!'  Mssa,  and  recovered  liresiaii. 

Dunni;  Iliecam|)ai:in  of  17r>^i,  ilie  Prnssian  monarch  recovered  Schweid- 
nitz,ini<l  invested  Oliii'ilz.  In  llie  meantime  I'rince  Ferdinand  of  llriiii!i« 
wick  cronscd  the  Rhine,  defcaied  the  French  at  Cr,  velt,  and  penetrat<'d  to 
the  very  gates  of  I.ouvain  in  Itr.iliant.  .No  (-(Mnmander,  perhaps  ever  en- 
dured the  vii'itaitudes of  fortune  in  more  rapid  succession  than  did  Fred 


■^: 


OUTMNK  8KETCH  OB   GENISKAL  HISTORY. 


77 


eric  in  this  csinipaign;  but  tliougli  he  was  several  times  in  the  most  immi- 
neiit  peril,  he  at  length  compelled  his  formidable  rival,  Marshal  Daun,  to 
raise  the  sieges  of  Dresden  and  Leipsic.and  to  retire  into  Bohemia,  while 
Frederie  himself  entered  the  former  city  in  triumph. 

It  is  in  crises  like  these  that  the  destiny  of  slates  is  seen  to  depend  less 
upon  the  extent  of  their  power,  than  upon  the  qualification  of  certain  emi- 
nent individuals,  who  possess  the  talent  of  employing  and  increasing 
their  resources,  and  of  animating  national  energies.  This  wa.i  in  an  es- 
pecial degree  the  case  of  Frederic  the  Great.  He  was  engaged  with  the 
powerful  and  well-disciplined  armies  of  Austria;  with  the  French,  whose 
tactics  ami  impetuosity  were  undisputed ;  with  the  immovable  persever- 
ance of  the  Russians  ;  with  the  veterans  of  Sweden,  and  with  the  admira- 
»ly  organized  forces  of  the  empire.  In  numerical  strength  they  far  more 
han trebled  tl.e  Prussians;  yet  he  not  only  kept  them  constantly  on  the 
ilert,  but  frustrated  their  combined  attacks,  and  often  defeated  them  with 
great  loss. 

At  the  opening  of  the  next  campaign  (17o9)the  fortune  of  war  was  on  the 
side  of  tlie  Prussians.  They  destroyed  the  Russian  magazines  in  Poland, 
levied  contributions  in  Dohemia,  and  kept  the  Imperialists  in  check. 
Prince  Ferdinand,  in  order  to  protect  Hanover,  found  it  necessary  to 
give  the  French  battle  at  Minden,  where  success  crowned  his  efforts, 
and  had  it  not  been  for  the  unaccountable  conduct  of  Lord  George  Sack- 
ville,  who  cominanded  the  cavalry,  and  disobeyed  or  misunderstood  the 
order  to  cliarge  tlie  discomfited  French,  a  victory  ns  glorious  and  com- 
plete as  that  of  Dlenheim  would  in  all  probability,  have  been  the  result. 
A  decided  reverse  soim  succeeded;  the  combined  Austrian  and  Russian 
army  of  80,000  men  attacked  the  Prussiatis  at  Cunersdorf,  and  after  a 
most  sanguinary  coullict  the  latter  was  defeated.  Frederic  soon  retrieved 
this  disaster,  and  tiie  war  continued  to  proceed  with  dubious  advantage  ; 
but  the  I'Jnglish  grew  tired  of  this  interminable  kind  of  warfare,  and  turned 
their  attention  from  the  actions  of  their  intrepid  ally  to  matters  aflecting 
their  colonial  interests  in  the  l']ast  and  West  Indies,  and  in  America. 

The  bold  and  skilful  operations  of  Clive  in  the  Hast  Indies  attracted 
great  notice.  Having  renistated  the  nabob  of  Arcot,  his  next  great  ex- 
ploit was  the  recaptnr(M)f  Calcutta,  which  had  been  taken  by  the  nabob  of 
llcngal.  This  was  followed  by  the  unexampled  victory  of  Plassy,  atid 
the  final  cstalilshmcnt  of  the  llriiish  in  nurilieru  India.  In  America,  Adini- 
ral  Hocaswen  burned  the  enemy's  ships  in  the  harbour  of  Louisburg,  and 
compelled  the  town  to  surrender;  the  i^land  of  .St,  .lohn  and  Gape  Ureton 
was  taken  iiv  (ieneral  Amherst ;  and  Ilrigadiiir  Forlie.s  captured  fort  Du 
Quosiu>,  while  the  Frcnidi  settlements  im  the  Afric.in  coast  were  reduced. 
The  island  of  Gaudaloupe,  in  the  VVe.st  Indies,  was  also  taken  by  the 
Emjlish.  ("rown  Point  and  Ticondcroga  wertMidiniuered  by  (Jcneral  Am- 
herst,  and  Sir  NViliium  .lohiisou  gained  jiossession  of  the  importatU  for- 
tress of  NiaKara.  The  Freiudi,  thus  attacked  on  every  side,  were  umdile 
to  with.stand  the  (lower  and  enthiisiisni  of  tlieir  enemies:  and  General 
Wolfe,  who  was  to  I:, ;•■"  been  assisted  in  his  attack  on  Quebec  by  Amherst, 
fitidinglhat  the  latter  general  was  unable  to  (<Mni  a  junction  with  him,  re- 
solved  to  attempt  the  arduous  and  ha/,ai''':Ms  enterprise  alone.  With 
this  vii'w  he  lauded  his  troops  at  night  under  tiie  heialits  of  Abraham, 
and  led  them  up  the  sleep  and  precipitous  ascent;  so  that  when  the  mor- 
ning dawned,  llii'  French  commaniler,  the  Marquis  de  Montcalm,  to  his 
astonishment,  saw  the  Knulish  occupying  a  posilidu  which  had  befure  been 
deemi  (I  in.iceessililc.  To  sav<f  the  city  a  buttle  was  now  inevitable  ; 
both  generals  prepared  with  ardour  for  the  rouflict.  .lust  as  the  scale  of 
victory  was  licijinniiig  to  turn  in  favoiirof  the  llritisli.  the  heroic  Wolfe  fell, 
mortally  wounded.  Willi  redoulilcd  energy  his  jrujlant  troops  fouiiht  on, 
till  at  length  the  French  lied  in  disorder;  and,  when  the  inlelligenro  wu 


/ 


I 


II 


78  OUTLINE  8KETCH  OF  GKKKIJAL  Hlf:TORV 

brought  to  the  dying  hero,  he  raisei)  hi?  hiad,  and  ivith  1  ?  <  t  breatn, 
fHintly  utleied,  "  I  f'ie  hapt;-  ;"  nor  ^•  ■  >.  tie  rip,  li  of  '  Tontivi!?!.  I  js  noble 
or  soldierlike.  He  had  bnii  morla  iy  ivouuiicd  ;  Mid  he  v-;'.,  ..>  sooner 
apprised  of  his  daitn^r  ihr.i!  he  Lxclai'ind,  "so  much  the  heurr:  I  shall 
II  t  live  to  witness  f.he  surrender  of  Qui.t  'C."  The  eonr)plete  subjugation 
of  tilt'  Oanadas  qiiirkly  followt"!.  And,  amiJst  the  exploits  of  Ins  army 
and  i:<i\y,  Georjic  !  .  expired  suddenly  at  Kensington,  in  the  34ih  year  of 
his  peiy.i,  and  was  SLicfceded  by  his  gra  idron,  George  HI.,  a.  v   1760. 

On  the  Kiiropcan  foiitinfiit  the  last,  c.jiiipaigns  \--vr<:  ca-  ■  led  or  with  less 
spirit  than  before;  both  sidi  s  wore  3xhiusted  by  theii  previous  efforts, 
and  the  p  rty  which  x'  i..s  desirous  of  p«;a"e  endeavourec.  to  avert  such  oc- 
currences as  might  revive  thu  hcpes  of  tlK!  eiiofi'  A  f-.mily  compact 
was  now  concluded  betwee  ,  the  rourtsof  Vrrsaiius  iid  Miulrid  ;  and  see- 
ing no  ••liance  of  gaining  any  colonial  adv.n;, ages  over  Briu.m  while  its 
navy  roiU'  triumphant  on  Iho  occiui,  tlicy  resolved  to  try  thvir  united 
slMiffth  in  attempting  the  subjngalion  of  its  ancient  ally,  Portujral.  That 
I  ni.iiry  was  defended  more  by  it-<  naturaJ  advantages  thr.n  by  its  military 
force  ;  the  progress  of  the  Spaniards  being  retarded  by  the  inisenble  con- 
dition of  the  roads,  and  by  the  neglect  of  all  provision  for  their  sustenance. 
An  English  force  of  8000  men,  t(i,','cther  with  a  large  supply  of  arms  and 
ammunition,  was  sent  to  assist  tli>'  Portuguese,  and  though  aeveral  towns 
at  first  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  S|K\niards,  the  British  and  native  troops 
displayed  a  decided  superiority  tln'Mighout  the  campaign,  and  compelled 
them  to  evacuate  the  kingdom  with  c("iisiderable  loss.  In  Germany,  Prince 
Ferdinand  and  the  marquis  of  Granby  not  only  protected  Hanover,  but  re- 
covered the  greater  part  of  Hesse.  At  the  saint?  time  Frederic  experienced 
an  unexpected  stroke  of  good  fortune.  The  empress  Klizabelli  of  Russia 
died,  and  l»cter  HI.,  who  had  long  adiuiied  the  heroic  king,  and  who  had 
never  forgotten  that  the  inlluence  of  Frederic  had  especially  contributed 
to  the  foundation  of  his  Mopes  and  qreatness,  had  no  soonc^r  ascended  the 
throne  than  he  made  peace  with  him,  ind  restcired  all  the  conquests  of 
the  Russians.  From  that  lime  the  king  was  not  only  enabled  lo  concen- 
trate his  whole  force  against  the  Austrians,  but  was  supported  by  Peter, 
who  concluded  an  alliance  with  him,  and  despatched  to  his  aid  a  corps  of 
20,000  men.  The  reisin  of  Peter  HI.,  was,  however,  of  very  brief  dura- 
tion; and  Gatharinc  H.,  although  sli(!  confirmed  the  peace,  recalled  the 
anxjiiary  Russians  from  the  F'russian  army. 

Meanwhile  the  Kiiglish  were  extending  their  conquests  in  the  West  In- 
dies, 'i'hey  took  llavannah  and  Manilla  from  the  Spaniards,  with  Marti- 
nique, St.  I.iicie,  (irenada,  and  St.  Vincent.  iVom  the  French.  Tired  of  a 
war  which  threatened  the  w  hole  o(  their  colonies  with  riiiu,  !!;*■  cabinets 
of  France  and  Spain  were  glad  to  find  that  llic  liritish  iniiester  was  ecjual- 
ly  anxious  to  bring  the  war  to  a  close.  Peace,  wliic!  'as  now  the  uni- 
versal object  of  desire  to  all  parlies,  was  concluded  at  Versailles,  on  the 
10th  of  February,  17(iH,  between  (ireat  Hrilain,  France,  and  Spain,  and  five 
days  later,  ai  Hiibertsbiirg  in  Saxony,  beiwei  i  Anstriaand  Prussia.  This 
memorable  contest,  which  had  reijujred  siieii  an  ''xtraordinary  expendi- 
ture of  bliiod  and  freasnr*? — a  war  in  which  the  half  of  Furope  had  been  in 
arms  against  lOiiglaiid  and  Prussia — was  concluded  .villi  »careeiy  any  al- 
teration III  the  territorial  arrangeiuents  of  (iermany,  and  without  proilii- 
cine  any  great  or  lasting  benefit  to  "ither  of  the  bell'igeranis,  so  tar,  ai  (east 
aj.  their  iiileresis  in  F.urop(>  were  ciii;ceni(  d.  Hut  in  the  Fast  and  West 
Inihes,  as  well  as  in  America,  it  had  added  greatly  to  the  colonial  poMses- 
flions  of  Great  liritian. 


t 


i 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OP  GENERAL  HISTORY 


79 


H> 


CHAPTER  XXI. 


fROM  THR 


CONCLUSION  OF  THE  SEVEN  VKARS 
POLAND. 


WAR  TO  THE    FINAL   PARTITION   Of 


The  "  seven  years'  war,"  the  principal  features  of  which  we  have  griv- 
^n,  left  most  of  the  contending  powers  in  a  stale  of  great  exiiansiion  ;  but 
.lone  had  been  more  affected  hy  it  than  France,  While  that  country,  how- 
ever, was  dcciining,  Russia,  under  the  Empress  Catharine  If.,  was  rapidly 
acquiring  a  preponderating  influence  among  the  nations  of  Europe;  and 
no  opportunity  of  adding  to  her  already  extensive  territories  were  ever 
neglected.  On  ^he  death  of  Augustus  III.,  king  of  Poland,  the  diet  assem- 
bled at  Warsaw  to  choose  a  successor.  Catharine  espoused  the  cause  of 
Stanislaus  Poiiiatowrky ;  and  as  the  discuscions  were  not  conducted  with 
the  temper  which  ought  to  characterize  deliberative  assemblies,  the  pru- 
dent empress,  us  a  friend  and  neighbour,  sent  a  body  of  iroops  thither  to 
keep  the  peace.  This  had  the  desired  effect,  and  Stanislaus  ascended  the 
throne.  Hut  Poland  had  long  been  agitated  by  disputes,  both  religious 
and  political,  and  the  new  sovereign  was  unable  to  control  the  elements 
of  discord  by  which  he  was  surrminded.  The  animosity  which  existed 
between  ilie  Catholics  and  the  Dissidents,  as  the  dissenting  sects  were 
called,  had  risen  to  a  height  incom[)atible  with  the  safety  of  the  kingdom. 
The  Dissidents,  who  had  been  much  oppressed  by  the  Catholics,  claimed 
an  equality  of  rights,  which  being  refused,  they  appealed  to  forei/'ii  pow- 
ers for  protection  ;  those  of  the  (Jreek  church  to  the  empress  of  Russia, 
and  the  Lutherans  to  the  kings  of  Prussia  and  Denmark.  A  civil  war 
now  arose  in  all  its  horrors,  and  its  miseries  were  greatly  aggravated  hy 
the  insolence  and  brutality  of  the  Russian  troops  which  Catharine  had 
sent  to  the  aid  of  the  Dissidents.  The  Catholic  nobles  formed  a  confede- 
racy for  ihc  maintenance  cf  their  privileges  and  tiieir  religion  ;  but  it  was 
useless  to  coniend  against  the  overwhelming  forces  brought  against  them. 
Cracow,  where  they  for  a  hmg  time  held  out  against  famine  and  pesti- 
lence, was  at  length  taken  by  storm,  and  the  unhappy  fugitives  were  pur- 
sued beyond  the  Turkish  frontiers. 

The  protection  which  the  confederates  received  in  Turkey,  and  mutual 
jomplainis  concerning  the  incursions  of  the  wmndering  hordes  of  Tartars 
«nd  Cossacks,  hud,  some  years  before,  furnished  a  pretence  for  war  be- 
tween the  Porte  and  the  Russians.  It  was  impossible  that  Mustapha  III. 
could  any  hniifer  contemplate  with  indifference  the  transactions  which 
took  place  in- Poland  ;  not  only  was  the  security  of  his  northern  provinces 
endangered,  but  he  felt  justly  indignant  at  the  violation  of  his  domii'^ons. 
He  accordingly  remonstrated  with  the  einpre.ss ;  and  she  speciously  re- 
plied, that  having  been  ri'(incsted  to  send  a  few  troops  to  the  assistaiu-o 
of  her  unhappy  ntighboiir,  in  order  to  (]tiell  some  internal  commotions, 
she  cmilil  nn  refuse.  Hut  a  body  of  Russians  having  afterwards  burned 
the  Turkish  town  of  Halla,  am)  put  all  its  inhabitants  to  death,  war  was 
declared,  and  the  Kuropeiiii  and  Asiaiii!  doirinicnis  of  the  Porte  sunuiioned 
to  arm.s.  Wliih!  all  tl;(!  odicers  who  wcr'"'  to  compose  the  suite  of  the 
grand  vizier  were  prcpari'  g  at  (\)nstintiiioi)le  for  their  departure,  the  mul- 
tifarious Ionics  of  militia  assembled  liiemseives  out  of  Asia,  and  covered 
the  IJdsphorus  and  llellcspimt  with  numerous  transports.  On  the  other 
hand,  the  (liirerenl  iiati<)ns  (composing  the  extensive  empire  of  iIk^  autocrat 
of  all  the  Russias,  iiiokI  of  wlmni  were  hut  a  few  degrees  removed  from 
barbarism,  put  themselves  in  iDotinn,  ai.d  a  body  of  troops,  sclect'd  from 
among  the  corjis  ilisfiersed  over  Pohiiid,  was  assembled  on  the  siije  of  ibo 
Ukraine.  The  capitation  tax  of  the  Russian  empire  was  raised,  ui'l  a  war 
cuiilribuiiun  of  20  pur  cent,  levied  on  uU  salaries.    Large  armies  on  both 


/ 


r)0 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OP  GENEllAL  HISTOHY. 


»iil(!N  ndviini'i'il  ii(;;iiiist  the  Danube  ;  and  in  ilic  spring  of  17()9  tlmTuikisn 
Ntiin.liiril  U'iiN  (liMphiycil  .11  tliu  fruiili;n's  uF  lliisaiii,  where  the  Ottoman 
troi»|m  riMinnilli'd  Irijjhtfiii  liivagts,  and  drove  ihi;  enemy  across  the  Uneis- 
li!l'  1  th'-y,  however,  suUered  a  severe  ih'feat  at  Choczun,  and  a  more  de- 
t'lHJvo  hhnv  WII9  soon  after  slrncl;  by  the  Russians,  vviio  twice  def(;ated  the 
TiH'kinh  lleet,  and  at  ienjriii  bmnt  fifteen  of  their  ships  of  tlie  line  in  the 
biiv  id'  ( 'henmu.  Mraiitime,  the  Uiissiaii  hind  for(;es  were  equally  success- 
fill;  Ihi;  (Jirand  Olloman  army  was  totally  overthrown  near  the  i'ruth,aiul 
lllti  ciiplme  u(  Dender.  Ismail,  and  other  places,  (juiekly  followed. 

(irecec,  long  aeeuslomed  to  suhjeetion,  was  but  ill-provided  with  troops, 
uiid  till!  inliahilaiils  pursued  their  own  affairs  unmolested;  but  wliea  they 
nioi'ived  iiilidli"eiu-e  of  the  enli  rprise  of  the  Russians — a  Christian  peo- 

Iilit  of  Ihe  (iieek  ehiirch — to  deliver  llie  (ireeks  from  the  yoke  of  the  Oar 
iiil'iaiiH,  the  love  of  liberty  was  rekindled  in  many  of  their  hearts.  All 
Idieoiiiii,  II113  plains  of  Argos,  Arcadia,  and  a  [lart  of  Achaia,  rose  in  iiisiir- 
nielioii,  and  upared  none  of  tiieir  former  rulers.  'I'iie  'i'nrks,  in  the  inean- 
tlllie,  eroNHcd  Ihe  islhniiis  in  order  to  relieve  Patra,  and  the  pasha  of  Uos- 
lllii,  with  ;)ll.lM)(l  men,  advanced  with  litile  resistance  into  the  ancient  Mes- 
Bi'lie;  at  Modoii  Ihe  (Jret^ks  were  defeated  with  great  loss,  and  it  was  cvi- 
ihtiit  that  Ihejr  hope  of  r(!gainiiig  their  freedom  was  a  delusive  one.  At 
llie  end  ol  Ihe  eampaigii  tlie  plague  broke  out  at  Yassy,  and  spread  to 
Mofii'ow,  Vr'here  It  earned  off  !J0,0()O  persons,  at  the  rale  of  nearly  1000 
vieliiiiN  (hilly. 

'I'liii  <  'rimea  was  seized  by  tlie  Russians,  and  the  grand  vizier  was  forced 
In  ritlienl  iiilo  IhiMmis  ;  the  .laiiizaries  rose,  put  their  aga  to  death,  and  set 
(Ire  lo  their  eaiiip.  'I'lie  I'orle  in  the  meantiini'  was  delivered  from  ,\ii  Hey, 
the  Muypliaii  p.l^«lla,  who  f(dl  in  battle  against  his  brother-in-law,  Moliuin- 
llli'd,  I'liirope  hail  lakeii  a  mine  lively  iiiieresl  in  his  adventures,  bei  iiiise 
he  iippeiired  lo  he  elevated  above  naliiiii  il  prejudices;  but  hi.s  fault  emi- 
HiHled  III  Ins  inaiiilesling  Ins  contcMiipt  lor  those  errins  tco  .Nirly,  and  in 
on  ih'i'ided  a  maimer.  'I'lie  Russians  at  len<>lli  erossed  ihe  Daiiiihe,  and 
llie  .hiiii/iaiieH  n.ive  way.  They  were  twice  coinpelh'd  lo  ahaiidon  the 
NK'Uii  of  Sili-lria,  and  ihey  lost  a  great  part  of  their  artillery  near  Varna. 
Hut  11  reveme  of  fortune  was  nigh;  for  not  long  afier,  Hassan  Pasha,  a 
mini  of  ureal  euiirage  and  iiitelligenee,  ly  birth  a  Persian,  and  who  was 
inuli  in  till'  favour  of  ihe  sultan,  swore  t'.  it  not  a  Russian  shoulil  pass  the 
iiuliimii  il  n|iiino.\  on  the  'I'mkish  .side  of  the  Damibe — and  he  laitlifuUy 
lim  word. 
1iiNlii|iha  III.  died  in  1774,  and  was  siieeeeded  by  his  brother,  .\bd-ul- 
Ijitllind,  Dili  neither  llu-  sultan  nor  his  peopli;  appean.'d  inclined  to  prus- 
(Ufllle  Ihe  war.  Ahmil  the  same  lime,  Pugatidieff,  the  (."ossack,  at  the 
liead  of  iiiiiiv  wailike  liordes,  broke  into  open  rebellion;  and  this  coii- 
viiieeiM ',ilh,iriiie  lliat  peace  was  not  less  desirable  for  Russia  than  for 
the  I'mli  .  A  Ireaiy  was  accordiniily  entered  into,  by  which  the  latter 
ceded  a  loiiHideriible  portion  of  teriiiory  to  the  empress,  together  wilh 
II  riuhl  lo  the  free  naviualion  of  the  Hlack  <Sea. 

We  Mow  reliirn  lo  iioliee  the  midain'holy  fat<'  of  Poland.  An  attempt 
on  the  peiNimal  liberty  {>(  Stanislaus  li.ivnig  been  made  by  the  tnrbuleni 
llllil  hiKoled  nobles,  it  served  as  a  prele.M  for  the  empress  of  Russia  first 
lo  ni'IhI  an  army  iiilo  tlii!  country,  and  alierwanls,  111  ciminnetion  with 
I'rilHHHi  anil  AuHiria,  lo  plan  its  dis'membeiineiit.  lOaeli  parly  to  tlie  coin- 
pael  had  some  old  pretended  elainis  to  uige  in  hrdialf  of  the  robbery,  and 
UN  I  lie  other  1 1  at  1011.4  of  Kurope  were  not  in  a  condition  to  wage;  war  against 
the  pinverliil  Irio,  their  ineiliatorial  iiiterferenee  woiilil  have  been  inetTec- 
tlial.  A  lliel  was  called  to  give  a  I'olonr  to  the  iransaclion,  and  a  major- 
lly  of  voliH  III  ing  secured,  the  arinn's  of  the  spmlers  severally  took  pos- 
^I'HHion  ol  Ihe  diMliii'ls  which  hail  been  previously  parcidled  out ;  ■.i".,l  lit- 
lln  tnie  reimiiiied  of  I'olaiid— iade|)eiidijnl  Poland — but  its  language  ant 
•In  aiiinei  A.  tJ  lT7;i. 


kepi 
Ml 


OUTLINE  HKlCTCll  OF  UENKIIAL  HIciTOUY. 


Bl 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

FBl>     Ilia  COMMENCEMENT  OF  THE  AMERICAN  WAR,  TO  THE  RKCOCNiriON  Of 
THE  INDEPENDENCE  Of"  THE   UNITED  STATES. 

To  describe,  with  clironologiciil  order,  even  a  limited  portion  of  the 
inoinenioiis  events  of  the  period  to  whicii  we  are  now  appniaching,  would 
be  impossible  in  an  outline  sketcii  of  general  history.  We  shall  tiiere- 
fore  coiiliMit  ourselves  with  merely  alluding  to  some  of  the  leading  fea- 
tures wliicli  present  themselves,  and  then  enter  upon  our  series  of  sepa- 
rate histories. 

The  first  great  event,  then,  which  in  this  place  demands  our  attention, 
18  llie  American  war.  Our  notice  of  it,  as  a  matter  of  course,  will  be 
most  brief  and  cursory.  Among  the  earliest  settlers  in  Ncn'ih  America, 
were  many  who  eniigriilcd  from  (iieat  Britain  on  account  of  civil  or  re- 
ligions persecution— men,  who,  being  of  republican  principles,  and  jeal- 
ous of  the  smallest  encroachments  of  their  rights,  naturally  instilled  those 
principles  into  the  minds  of  their  children,  and  thus  laid  the  fciuiidation  of 
that  spirit  of  resistance  to  arbitrary  acts  of  power,  which  kiiulUtd  the 
flames  of  war  between  the  mother  country  and  the  colonies,  and  ended  in 
the  establishment  of  a  powerful  republic.  The  consliiulion  of  the  Amer- 
icHii  colonies  bore  the  original  iininess  of  liberty.  Under  the  protection 
of  Great  Britain,  North  America  stood  in  fear  of  no  foreign  enemy,  and 
llie  consciousness  of  her  native  strength  was  alri^ady  too  great  to  |)ern)it 
her  to  feel  much  apprehension  even  oi  her  mother  counliy.  Religion 
was  everywhere  free  from  restraint,  agriculture  was  held  in  honour,  and 
peace  and  order  were  protected  Pt;a'iist  the  attempts  of  parties,  and  wild 
and  lawless  men.  The  people,  uke  the  country  they  inh.'l'i'c'  Mopen'td 
to  be  ill  the  full  vigour  of  yc  tli;  ardent,  iiKlependent,  and  capable  ot 
astdiiishing  exertions  when  ar  used  by  ihe  stimulus  of  the  passions. 

Ill  /'(Jo  a  stamp-duty  on  va.ious  articles  was  imposed  by  the  British 
parlianieni  on  the  colonists,  oi  I  on  their  remonstratiiig,  the  act  w'as  soon 
after  refiealed.  Subsequentlv  u  duty  was  laid  on  tea;  this  was  resisted, 
and  at  Boston  the  tea  was  thinwii  into  the  sea.  Coeri^ive  measures  were 
then  tried,  and  in  1775  a  civil  war  began.  In  the  following  year  the 
Ameiicans  issued  their  Decl:, ration  of  Ini'cpendeni'e.  Many  battles  were 
fought,  but  nothing  very  decisive  took  |.i  a;c  till  the  year  1777,  when  Gen. 
Burgoyne,  the  British  commander,  was  surrounded  at  Saratoga,  and  com- 
pelled to  surrender,  with  about  4000  men. 

With  a  blind  infatuation,  little  dreaming  of  the  danger  of  espousing 
primnph's  professedly  republiciin,  and  with  no  other  view,  indeed,  than 
that  uf  h'iMibling  a  powerful  neighbour,  France  now  entered  the  lists  as 
the  ally  of  the  Americans,  and  Spain  no  less  blindly  followed  the  exam- 
ple. But  Kiighiiid  had  augmented  the  iiumbtr  of  her  tr<i()ps,  an  I  placed 
them  ui'.der  the  cominand  of  lords  Cornwallis  and  Rawdon,  wiio  harassed 
the  Americans,  under  Washiiiglon,  while  Admiral  Rodney  displayed  hia 
Buperiorily  in  a  naval  enirageinent  with  the  Sp.iniaMs.  But  it  was  not 
merely  the  hnstility  of  the  Frei\ch  and  S()aiiianls  tlial  the  I'higlish  had  to 
cope  with;  the  jealousy  of  the  contiiieiital  powers  displayed  itself  by 
their  entering  into  an  armed  neutrality,  the  avowi'd  object  of  which  was 
to  resist  the  riylit  of  search  which  Kiiirhind's  long-eslablislied  naval  supe- 
riority had  taught  Iier  to  e.\ercise  as  a  riijht  over  the  vessels  of  other  iia- 
tion.s.  Holland  was  now  added  to  the  list  of  enemies,  iln;  faithless  con- 
duct of  that  state  having  induced  the  Brit;  ;'i  government  to  declare  war 
.•.oainst  it,  and  inan>  of  the  Dutch  possessions  in  South  America  and  the 
West  Indies  were  taken  from  them.  Meantime  the  war  in  AmiTUja,  as 
Well  as  on  its  coasts,  was  carried  on  with  increased  vigour,  the  rreiich 


'i2 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OP  OlSNERAL  HISTORY. 


exerting  themselves  not  as  mere  partisans  in  ;he  cause,  but  as  principals 
It  was  evident  that,  allhaugli  the  war  might  be  long  protracted,  the  recov- 
ery of  the  North  Anujr  can  colonies  was  not  likely  to  be  acconiplislied , 
and  as  the  English  had  been  several  limes  oul-sreneralled,  and  the  last 
loss  on  their  part  eonsis.ed  of  6000  men  at  Yorkown,  under  (^rnwallis, 
who  had  been  compelled  to  surrender  to  a  powerful  eombinfed  French  and 
American  army  commanded  by  Washington,  England  began  to  thmk 
•eriously  of  making  up  tlie  quarrel  with  her  rebellious  sons. 

During  the  latter  part  of  the  war,  Admiral  Rodney  gave  the  French 
fleet,  commanded  by  Count  de  Grasse,  a  memorable  defeat  in  the  West 
Indies,  while  General  Elliot  showed  the  French  and  Spaniards  how  futile 
were  their  attempts  against  Gibraltar.  In  short,  great  as  were  the  dis- 
advantages with  which  the  English  had  to  contend,  the  energies  and  re- 
sources of  the  nation  were  still  equal  to  the  task  of  suceesslully  coping 
with  its  enemies  in  Europe,  while  in  the  vast  empire  of  British  India 
fresh  laurels  were  continually  gathered,  and  the  French  were  there  dis- 
possessed of  all  their  stittlements. 

On  the  20th  of  Jamiary,  1783,  the  independence  of  the  United  States 
was  formally  acknowledged  by  England,  and  George  VVastiington,  the 
man  who  had  led  the  amiies  and  directed  the  councils  of  America,  wan 
chosen  president. 


CEIAPTER  XXITI. 

FROM  THE  COMMENCEMENT  OF  THE  FKKNCi!    RlVOLUTlON,  TO  THE  DEATH  or 

RUBESPIERKE. 

The  most  eventful  period  of  modern  history  now  bursts  upon  our  view 
In  the  course  of  the  ages  tha'.  have  passed  successively  before  us,  we 
have  witnessed  sudden  revolutions,  long  and  sanguinary  contests,  and 
the  transfer  of  some  province  or  city  from  one  sovereign  to  another  at 
the  teriniiiaiion  of  a  war.  These  have  been  ordinary  events.  We  have 
also  marked  the  gradual  rise  and  fall  of  empires,  the  suhjiigaiion  of  king- 
doms, and  the  annihilation  of  dynasties  ;  but  they  bear  im  comparison  to 
that  terrific  era  of  aiiarciiy  and  blood,  designated  "  the  French  Revolu- 
tion." The  history  of  that  frightful  period  will  be  elsewhere  related  ;  we 
Shall  not  hen'  attempt  to  describe  its  causes,  or  notice  the  rise  of  that 
ntupendmis  military  despotism  which  so  long  threatened  to  bend  the 
whole  civilized  world  under  its  iron  sceptre.  The  apologists  of  the 
French  revolution  tell  us  that  it  was  owing  to  the  excesses  of  an  expen- 
sive and  dissipated  court;  to  the  existence  of  an  immense  slanilnig  army 
in  the  time  of  peace;  to  the  terrors  of  the  Basiile;  to  teltres  de  cachet  (or 
mandates  issued  for  the  apprehension  of  suspected  individuals),  and  to  a 
general  system  of  espionage,  which  rendered  no  man  safe.  Others  as- 
Bcribe  it  partly  to  the  "spirit  of  freedtmi"  imbibed  by  the  French  soldiers 
during  the  American  war;  but,  still  more,  to  the  general  dilfnsion  of  po- 
litical pliilosopliical,  and  infidel  writimis,  which,  replete  with  sarcasm  and 
wit,  wer<!  levelltil  equally  at  the  pulpit  and  the  throne,  and  thus,  by  un- 
Bettlin<r  ;ie  minds  of  the  people,  destroyed  the  moral  bunds  and  safe- 
guards t><  s()ci<iy. 

Hut,  whatever  might  have  been  the  true  causes,  certain  it  is,  that  vague 
ideas  of  freedom  beneath  republican  instiliilions  had  tmsettlerl  the  minds 
of  men,  not  merely  in  France,  but  throughout  Europe.  It  wus  in  that 
country,  however,  that  piililic  discontent  was  most  strongly  manifested. 
The  piMiple  were  ripe  for  mnovation  and  (diange  ;  and  Louis  XVI.,  though 
amiable  as  a  man,  had  not  the  necessary  energy  or  abilities  to  counteract 
public  feeling  or  diteci  the  storm. 


■■'if 


% ' 


O'JTI.INE  SKETCH  OF  QENERAL  HIST  iRY. 


83 


I 


In  1789,  when  the  public  income  of  France  was  inadequate  to  the 
wants  of  the  state,  it  was  thought  advisable  to  convoke  the  States  Gen- 
eral, or  representatives  of  the  thrne  orders— nobles,  clergy,  and  tiers-iiat 
or  commons.  At  first  some  salutary  reforms  were  agreed  to;  but  the 
commons  wished  to  assume  too  great  a  share  of  the  power,  and,  beinst 
the  most  numerous  body  in  this  natinual  assembly,  they  carried  their  fa- 
vourite measures  in  spite  of  the  court  and  privileged  orders.  To  check 
the  rising  spirit  of  turbulencre  and  faction,  the  king  was  advised  to  collect 
a  large  body  of  troops  in  the  environs  of  Paris,  and  he  also  dismissed 
Necker,  his  minister  of  finance.  Both  these  measures  were  highly  un- 
popular, and  the  mob,  excited  by  the  democrats,  connnitted  great  ex- 
cesses. Among  other  acts  of  outrage,  they  seized  the  arms  deposited  in 
the  hotel  of  the  luvalides,  attacked  the  Bastile,  and  levelled  that  ancient 
fortress  with  the  ground.  From  that  hour  may  be  dated  the  fall  of  the 
monan'hy.  The  terrified  king  tried  every  mode  of  concession;  but  the 
infuriated  populace,  led  by  artful  and  interested  demagogues,  and  now 
familiar  wiih  scenes  of  blood  and  tumult,  were  not  to  be  appeased.  The 
capital  was  divid('d  into  sections,  and  the  National  Guard  was  formed, 
and  placed  under  the  command  of  the  Marquis  de  lu  Lafayette,  who  had 
earned  his  popularity  in  the  American  war.  Meanwhile  the  Assembly 
abolished  the  privileges  of  the  nobility  and  clergy,  confiscated  the  property 
of  the  church,  divided  the  kingdom  into  departments,  and  subverted  all 
the  ancient  forms  aiul  institutions;  a.  d.  1790. 

A  very  general  emigration  of  the  nobles  and  clergy  took  place,  and 
Louis,  ;ib;indoned  even  by  his  own  brothers,  was  virtually  a  prisoner,  or 
a  mere  tdol  in  the  hands  of  his  enemies.  And  now  aiose  that  democratic 
society,  afterwards  farmus  in  the  blood-stained  annals  of  the  revolution, 
under  the  name  of  Jamhins.  From  this  focus  of  rebellion  issued  numer- 
ous emissaries,  who  founded  similar  societies,  or  clubs,  in  every  part  ol 
Frane'c;  and  thus  their  coiuaminating  infiiienee  spread  around  till  the 
whole  j)olitical  atmosphere  became  one  corrupt  mass.  Stu'rounded  on 
every  side  by  enemies,  the  king  and  the  royal  family  at  length  resolved 
to  seek  refuge  in  one  of  the  frontier  towns;  but  they  were  discovered  at 
Varennes,  and  brouHJu  back  to  Paris  amid  the  insults  of  the  rabble.  The 
most  violent  Jacobins  loudly  demanded  his  death  ;  a.  d.  1791. 

War  had  eoiinneiiced  on  the  part  of  Austria  and  Prussia,  and  the  French 
at  first  met  wiih  some  severe  cheeks;  but  on  the  advance  of  the  Prus 
siaiis,  the  duke  of  Brunswick  published  a  violent  manifesto  against  the 
French  nation,  whieh  did  much  injury  to  the  cause  it  advocated.  A  de- 
cree was  issued  for  suspending  the  king  from  all  his  fm  itions,  as  well  as 
for  the  immediate  ccnvoeaiioii  of  a  national  c(i!iveiuion.  He  and  his 
family  were  closely  confined  it)  the  tower  of  tho  Temple,  and  the  com- 
mune of  Paris,  at  that  time  under  the  control  of  DanUjo,  Robespierre,  and 
Marat,  began  its  tyrannical  reign.  Under  a  pr»  leiice  tliat  the  Koyalists 
who  were  confiiied  in  the  different  prisons  were  domestic  enemies  of 
Frat. 'e.  the  forms  of  justice  were  dispensed  wiih.  and  they  were  inhu- 
maidy  butchered.  Royalty  was  next  formally  abolished;  and  it  was  re- 
solved ere  long  to  bring  the  king  to  the  scaffold.  Meanlime  two  power- 
fid  parlies  appeared  in  the  assembly  ;  the  (iirondists,  or  Brissotmes,  led 
by  Brissot,  who  were  sincere  republicans,  and  the  Jacobin,  or  mountain 
parly,  so  called  from  the  upper  sc  ais  whieh  they  occupied,  acting  under 
Robespierre  and  his  friends,  whose  sole  objects  were  atiarchy  and  blood- 
shed. 

Duinnuriez,  at  the  head  of  the  French  army,  h».d  found  it  impossible  to 
prevent  the  entrance  of  the  duke  of  B."unswick  into  Champagne;  but 
disease  and  famine  arrested  his  progress,  and  he  was  compelled  to  aban- 
don all  his  conquests.  The  Austriaus  were  also  obliged  to  retreat. 
Savoy  was  conquered  by  a  republican  force,  and  Germany  invaded.    This 


84 


OUTLINE  SKKTCH  OF  GENERAI,  HISTORY. 


Aiislrians  were  sifjiiHlly  defeated  at  Jemappe ;  and  this  was  qti.ckly  fol 
lowed  by  the  reduction  of  Brussels,  Leige,  Namur,  and  of  the  whole  of 
the  Netherlands,  which  were  declared  free  and  independent  oUtes. 

In  December,  1793,  the  royal  captive  was  led  to  the  bar  of  the  Converi' 
tion,  where,  after  undergoing  a  long  and  insuitinu;  examination,  he  was 
unanimously  declared  guilty  of  conspiring  agaiiisit  the  national  liberty, 
and  sentenced  to  die  by  the  guillotine.  He  conducted  himself  with  dig- 
nity, and  heard  the  decision  of  his  fate  with  firmness  and  resignation. 
Thus  perished,  in  the  39th  year  of  his  age  and  the  19th  of  his  reign, 
Louis  XVI.,  tiie  amiable  and  unfortunate  descendant  of  a  long  line  of 
kings.  Soon  after  this  judicial  murder,  a  decree  of  the  national  Conven- 
tion promised  assistance  to  every  nation  desirous  of  throwing  ofT  the 
yoke  of  its  rulers.  This  was  naturally  regarded  as  a  virtual  declaration 
of  war  against  all  the  kings  of  Kurope  ;  and  Kngland,  Holland,  and  Spain 
were  now  added  to  the  list  of  its  enemies.  The  war  for  a  lime  assumed 
a  new  feature;  a  British  army,  commanded  by  the  duke  of  York,  reduced 
Valenciennes,  and  attacked  Dunkirk,  and  the  French  lost  their  conquests 
as  rapidly  as  they  had  acquired  them.  But  before  the  close  of  the  year 
1793,  the  fortune  of  war  was  again  in  their  favour;  the  duke  of  York 
was  obliged  to  raise  the  siege  of  Dunkirk,  with  great  loss ;  while  the 
Austrians  were  driven  within  their  own  frontiers. 

The  iiorrors  of  civil  war  now  raged  in  France  with  unmitigated  fury. 
The  ferocious  Robespierre  was  at  the  head  of  the  fiercest  Jacobins;  and 
Paris  daily  witnessed  the  execution  of  the  most  respectable  of  its  citi- 
zens. Nearly  all,  indeed,  who  were  remarkable  either  for  rank,  property, 
or  talents,  were  the  victims  of  the  reign  of  terror;  and  among  the  num- 
ber who  fell  by  the  axe  of  the  guillotine  was  the  unfortunate  queen, 
Marie  Antoinette,  who  had  been  for  some  time  immured  within  the  dun- 
geon of  the  Conciergerie.  The  royalists  in  La  Vendee  dared  to  oppose 
the  revolutionary  decrees;  but  the  cities  which  resisted  the  regicide 
authorities,  particularly  Lyons  and  Nantes,  were  visited  with  the  most 
horrid  persecutions.  Hundreds  of  victims  were  daily  shot  or  guillotined, 
and  tlie  whole  country  was  laid  waste  with  demoniac  vengeance.  In  the 
meantime  extraordinary  measures  were  taken  by  the  convention  to  in- 
crease the  armies  by  levies  en  masse;  and  private  property  was  arbitrarily 
seized  to  support  them.  The  Rnglish  took  possession  of  Toulon,  but 
were  soon  forced  to  abandon  it  to  the  troops  of  the  convention.  It  is 
worthy  of  remark,  that  on  this  occasion  the  talents  of  Napoleon  Buona- 
parte were  first  signally  distinguished;  this  youngoflicer  having  the  com- 
mand of  the  artillery  of  the  besiegers.  The  war  in  the  Netherlands  was 
carried  on  with  vigour,  victory  and  defeat  alternately  changing  the  posi- 
tion of  tiie  allied  armies. 

The  progress  of  the  French  revolution  was  naturally  watched  with 
feelings  of  intense  interest  by  the  people  of  Kngland,  but  with  sentiments 
very  opposite  in  their  nature;  and  it  required  all  the  talents  and  vigour 
of  those  who  were  at  the  helm  of  state  to  uphold  the  ancient  institutions, 
and  direct  the  national  councils  with  safety. 

During  the  year  1794  the  French  armies  were  pretty  generally  success- 
ful. But  while  they  spread  terror  abroad,  the  French  nation  groaned 
under  the  sanguinary  despotism  of  Robespierre  and  his  ruthless  asso- 
ciates. The  time  had  at  length,  however,  arrived  when  this  monster  was 
to  pay  the  forfeit  of  his  own  wretched  life  for  the  outrages  he  had  com- 
mitted, and  the  unparalleled  misery  he  had  caused.  Being  publicly  ac- 
cused of  treason  and  tyranny  by  Tallien,  he  was  arrested,  and  executed 
the  following  day,  along  with  twenty-two  of  his  principal  accomplices, 
amidst  the  merited  maledictions  of  the  spectators.  In  a  few  days,  abova 
seventy  members  of  the  commune  also  shared  a  similar  fate. 


OUTMNE  SKETCH  OF  GENEilAL  HieTOtlY. 


S6 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

««UM   THK    ESTABLISHMENT   OF   THE    FRENCH    DIRKCTORTi   TO  THE   PEACE 

or    AMIRNS. 

A  great  naval  victory  over  the  French  was  achieved  by  lord  Howe  on 
•Ire  1st  of  June,  and  several  West  India  islands  were  taken  from  them, 
i'he  French  troops  were  uniformly  successful  in  Holland;  the  stadt- 
holder  was  compelled  to  seek  an  asylum  in  Kngland ;  and  the  country, 
under  the  new  name  of  the  Batavian  republic,  was  incorporated  with 
France.      Soon  after  tliis,  France  received  a  new  constitution,  which 

filaced  the  executive  power  in  the  hands  of  five  directors  and  the  legis- 
ative  coim(!il  of  elders,  and  a  council  of  "  five  hundred." 

In  1795  Prussia  and  Spain  made  peaix  with  France,  which  gave  the 
republicans  an  opportunity  of  bearing  with  their  whole  force  on  the  fron- 
tiers of  Germany.  The  royalists  in  La  Vaiide6  again  rose,  but  were 
speedily  reduced.  About  the  same  time  tiie  Cape  of  Good  Hope  and 
several  of  tiie  Dutch  Kast  India  possessions  were  taken  by  the  English, 
whilet  admirals  Bridport,  Hotliam,  and  Cornwallis  defeated  the  French 
fleets. 

Once  more  let  us  revert  to  Polisli  affairs.  The  late  partition  of  Poland 
had  opened  the  eyes  of  Europe  to  the  probable  future  encroachments  of 
the  courts  of  Vienna,  Pelersburgh,  and  Berlin ;  and  the  PoIes,*aware  of 
their  impending  fate,  resolved  to  oppose  the  designs  of  their  enemies  by 
a  vigorous  and  unanimous  effort.  Under  the  brave  Kosciusko  they  gave 
battle  to  the  Russians,  and  maintained  a  long  and  sanguinary  contest, 
which  ended  in  their  driving  the  enemy  out  of  Warsaw,  with  immense 
slaughter.  But  the  armies  of  Austria,  Russia,  and  Prussia,  invaded 
Poland  on  every  side ;  and  Suwarrof,  at  the  head  of  50,000  men,  anni- 
hilated their  army,  recaptured  Warsaw,  which  they  pillaged,  and,  sparing 
neither  age  nor  sex,  put  to  the  sword  nearly  30,000  individuals.  The 
final  partition  of  the  kingdom  then  took  place. 

The  campaign  of  1796  opened  with  great  vigour  on  the  part  of  the 
allies,  as  well  as  on  that  of  the  French,  and  numerous  severe  battles 
were  fought  in  Germany,  the  advantage  inclining  rather  to  the  side  of 
the  allies.  Moreau,  who  had  pursued  his  victorious  career  to  the 
Danube,  there  received  a  check,  and  was  farced  to  retrace  his  steps  to 
the  Rliine;  but  though  often  nearly  surrounded  by  the  Austrians,  he  ef- 
fected one  of  the  most  masterly  retreats  of  which  we  have  any  record  in 
modern  times. 

But  it  was  in  Italy  that  the  most  brilliant  success  attended  the  French 
arms. '  The  command  had  been  given  to  Buonaparte.  Having  routed 
the  Austrians  and  Piedmontese  at  Monte  Notie  and  Millesimo,  he  com- 
pelled the  king  of  Sardinia  to  sue  for  peace.  Then  followed  his  daring 
exploit  at  the  bridge  of  Lodi,  and  his  seizure  of  Bologna,  Ferrara,  and 
Urbino;  till,  at  length,  finding  himself  undisputed  master  of  tlie  north  ol 
Italy,  he  erected  the  Transpadane  and  Cis-padane  republics. — Among 
the  other  events  of  the  year  may  be  noticed  the  capture  of  St.  Lucia  and 
Granada,  in  the  West  Indies,  by  Sir  Ralph  Abercrombie;  the  failure  of  a 
French  expedition  sent  to  invade  Ireland,  which  was  dispersed  by  ad- 
verse winds;  the  abandonment  of  Corsica  hy  the  British;  some  fruitless 
negoiiatjons  for  peace  between  England  and  France,  and  the  demise  ot 
the  empress  Catharine  II. 

Tlie  papal  states  were  next  overrun  by  the  French,  and  the  pope  was 
under  the  necessity  of  purchasing  peace,  not  only  with  money  and  the 
surrender  of  many  valuable  statues,  paintings.  Sec,  but  by  the  cession  ot 
(Urt  of  his  territories.    Buonaparte  then  resolved  to  invade  the  lieredilarv 


80 


OUTLINE  SKKTCH  OF  GKNEHAI.  IITSTORY 


states  of  ilio  emperor;  and  the  Freiieh  nrmies  hiivinn- ir;iiiie.l  consider 
able  advantages  over  tlii'ir  adversaries,  the  Freiieh  directory  took  advan- 
tage of  their  position  and  offered  terms  of  peace,  and  a  delinilivo  treaty 
was  cvontnaliy  .signed  at  Cainpo  Forniio.  Uy  this  treily  the  Venetian 
states,  which  had  been  revoUitionized  by  Buonaparte  during  the  negotia- 
tions, were  reded  to  Austria,  while  the  Austrian  possessions  in  She  north 
of  Italy  and  the  Netherlands  were  given  to  Franco  in  oxehau'^e.  Genoa 
about  the  same  time  was  revolutionized,  ami  assumed  the  name  of  the 
Ligurian  republic.  At  the  latter  end  of  this  year  l^ord  Duncan  obtained 
an  important  victory  over  the  Dut<'h  fleet  ofT  the  coast  of  Holland. 

Till!  Frencli  havmg  no  oilier  power  than  (Jrcat  Hritain  now  to  contend 
with,  the  year  1708  was  ushered  in  with  runviurs  of  a  speedy  invasion; 
and  largo  bodies  of  triops,  assiMnbled  on  the  opposite  shores  of  France, 
were  said  to  be  destined  for  this  grand  attack,  which  was  to  be  under  'he 
direction  of  the  victorious  giMieral  Unonaparte.  These  preparations  v  •  re 
met  in  a  suitable  manner  by  the  Knglish,  whose  efTeciive  male  population 
might  aliuosi  literally  be  said  to  be  embodied  for  the  defiMure  of  the 
eouiilry.  At  the  same  lime  a  dangerous  and  extensive  rebellion  broke 
out  in  Ireland;  but  the  vigilance  of  the  government  di^feated  the  inten- 
tions of  the  reheis,  and  iliey  snbmiiled,  though  not  without  the  severest 
measures  being  adopted,  and  t!ie  conserineiit  etrusion  of  blood. 

A  secret  naval  expediiion  upon  a  large  scale,  with  a  w(!ll-appointed 
army  on  board,  under  the  command  of  Uuonaparle,  had  been  lor  some 
time  preparing.  It  at  length  set  sail  from  Toulon,  took  possession  of 
Malta  on  their  way  to  Fgypt,  and,  having  eluded  the  vigilam-e  of  Nelson, 
safely  landi'd  near  Alexanilria,  which  town  they  storiiiiMi,  and  massacred 
the  inliabitants.  'I'he  veteran  troops  of  France  everywhere  prevailed 
over  the  ill-iiiscipllned  M  unelnkes,  and  the  wliDJe  of  Fgypl  soon  sul)mit- 
ted  to  the  cotKiu'ror.  M  iniwliile  Admiral  Nelson  discovered  and  loially 
destroyed  the  French  licet  in  the  bay  of  Aboukir.  Wliile  these  event's 
were  passing  in  Fgypt,  the  French  governncni  (irosecnted  its  revolution- 
ary principles  wherever  its  emissaries  could  gain  admillanc(!.  Uoine 
\v  as  taken  by  them,  thi!  pope  imprisoned,  an-l  a  re-public  erected.  Swit- 
lerland  was  r.so  invaded,  and,  notwithstanding  the  gillanl  elTcH'ts  of  the 
Svviss  patriots,  the  country  was  united  to  France  under  llie  title  of  the 
Hidvetian  repulilic.  The  territory  of  Oeneva  was  also  incorpor,il<"d  with 
FraiK'c.  These  niijiistifiable  invasions  showed  so  plainly  the  a^^grandiz- 
ing  piilii-y  pursued  iiy  ilie  French  directory,  tli;'',  the  eni(>erors  nf  Russia 
and  Austria,  the  king  of  Naples,  and  the  Porte  united  with  Kngland  tr» 
cliei'k  their  a'nbitions  designs. 

The  year  179:)  presented  a  continued  scene  of  active  warfare.  The 
Neapolitans,  who  I'.ad  invaded  the  koman  territory,  were  not  onlv  driven 
hack,  but  the  whide  kingdom  of  Niples  siihnittcd  ti>  the  Freiii-h,  and 
'.he  king  was  comp'-lletl  to  seek  refuge  in  Sicily.  The  French  armies 
also  took  possession  of  Ti.'scany  and  Piedmont;  but  the  op-rations  of 
the  allies  weri'  conducted  with  vigour  and  success.  The  archduke 
Clnrles  routed  the  French  iiuijer  .fourdan  in  the  hard  fonijlit  Intiles  of 
Ostracli  and  Stockacdi;  and  the  Aiislro-Unssian  army  obtamcil  a  decisive 
victory  sit  f^issano,  ami  drove  ilie  enemy  oi  >tilan  and  (iciioa.  The 
arms  uf  the  republic  were  eijiially  unfortiinit"  in  oilier  parts.  Turin, 
'  'essandria,  and  M  iiitn.i  were  tikcn;  and  the  French  under  .loiiherl  and 
.loreaii,  were  totallv  routed  al  Novi.  .Switzerland  afierivards  b"camo 
the  |irincipa!  scene  of  action  ;  and  there  also  tlii!  army  of  Sow  irrof  w.ts 
HUcccssful ;  bill  another  Itissiin  arinv,  commanded  by  Ivoraskolf.  was 
nilnked  and  def''aled  by  M  issena,  .iiid  /nrich  taken  by  slorin.  In  ll.ilv, 
however,  sui'cess  still  alteililed  the  allies.  The  French  were  e\pell»r| 
rrom  \apluH  and  Ruino,  and  ihu  papal  chair  was  suoii  after  otrcuniod  t>y 
Pius  VU. 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  (  F  GENEBAL  HISTORY 


JIIU^II     \><1IIIU1      »a>7ll9      U\ll'll«lLt>  LIIIJ       ^WUill^V.     tllllJ     (WtlVltV     \Jl     kJli 

Sidney  Smilli  rcsisleil  the  rcpeiUcd  assiiulis  of  llic  h'lt'iicli  duriiijf  a  sieije 
ofsixly-niiK!  days:  iiiKi  Biioitiiparto,  tiioiigluit  the  Iwid  of  1J,0II0  vcleraM" 
was  coiii|)l(H(ly  foiled  in  all  his  alteiiipts,  and  was  obliged  to  relrt'itl  ii  j 
Kgypt.  lie  was  afterwards  successful  in  severul  eneoniilers  wiili  ihe 
Turks,  particularly  at  Aljoukir;  but,  foreseeing  thai  the  expedition  would 
ulliinately  prove  disastrous,  he  conlided  the  couiniaud  to  (ieneral  Kleber, 
and  secretly  returned  to  France.  Uuonaparte's  invasion  of  lOgypt  was  con- 
sidered as  pieparalory  to  au  uilenipt  on  India,  where,  at  the  vt^y  time, 
the  Briiisharnis  were  crowned  with  great  success — Seringapatani  having 
been  taken,  and  our  (urinidable  enemy,  TippooiSaib,  being  found  amung  the 
slain. 

Discord  ami  anarchy  reigned  thnnighout  France,  under  the  weak,  yet 
arbitrary  adniinisiraiion  of  the  directory  ;  anil  the  sudden  appearance  of 
Buonaparte  was  the  signal  for  a   new  revolution  in  that   governnxMit 


Al 


uuuiiii)iaiie  Wits  iiie  signal  lor  <i  new  revoiuiion  in  iiiai  ir(iveriini(Mii,  i\.\ 
the  he.id  oftlie  conspiracy  was  his  brother  LuiMcn,  president  of  ilio  coun- 
cil of  five  hundred,  who  was  supported  by  (^imbaccri's,  Talleyrand, 
Sii-yes,  Foiiclic,  &c.  The  directory  was  speedily  ovcrlnrned,  asenaieand 
tiiree  consuls  were  appoinlcil,  and  Hiiiina|)arle  was  chosen  first  consul. 

One  of  his  lirst  acts  was  that  of  making  paciiic  ovcriiiris  to  Kngland, 
wiiicli  were  rcjecled.  He  tlien  put  himself  at  the  head  of  tht:  army.cross- 
I'd  Mount  St.  IJeTiiard,  and  marclied  from  victory  to  vicioiy,  till  ilie  mem- 
orahle  baillc  of  Marengo  decided  tlie  fate  of  Italy.  The  successes  of  the, 
French  in  (JeriiMiiy  were  of  a  lessd<M'isive  naliire  :  but  the  dcf<  al  of  Ihe 
allies  at  ll.ihcnliiideii  iiuhiceil  i'-iaiicis  II.  to  sign  the  treaty  of  Liiiieville, 
!iy  whiih  he  ceded  soiiK!  of  Ins  possessions  in  (ierinany,  and  iransferrud 
Tuscany  to  tlieiiuke  of  I'aroia. 

Al  the  hemimiiig  of  1801  Kngland  was  without  an  ally,  and  had  to  ron- 
(eiid  with  aiioiher  formil.ible  opponent  in  I'aul  I.,  of  l{u^sl,l,  who  had  in- 
duced 8w(!deii  and  neiimark  to  iiiiiie  with  linn  in  fonniiig  an  armed  iieu- 
tr.ilily.  To  eriish  this  iiDrihern  confederacy  in  the  hud,  a  large  (let  was 
iii'Ut  to  the  I'altie,  under  the  command  of  .S,r  Hyde  Parker  and  Lord  Nel- 
son ;  (;o|KMihageii  was  attackeil,  and  tin;  wlioleof  the  Danish  ships  were 
either  taken  or  destroyed.  Tins  vicbiry  nave  a  latal  blmv  to  Ihe  ni.riliern 
confederacv,  «'lni'li  was  eveiitnallv  aiiniliilaicd  by  the  deaib  of  I'aul.  and 
the  accession  of  his  son  Alexander,  who  inimediatelv  released  the  British 
vessels  detaineil  in  bis  jtoris,  and  olhurwisu  Hheweil  liiit  iiicliiialion  tu  be 
on  amii-ahle  terms  with  Knghuul. 

in  Kgypt  (ieneral  Kleber  bad  been  assassinate 
llic  French   troops   devolved   on   Menoii       '  ■    ■• 


An 


Kalph  Abereromhie  had  now  arrive  I  and  a  decisi 


ami  the  command  ii( 
Kiiglisli  army,  under  .Si; 
•tory  was  gamed  hy 
(hem  al  Alevaiidria,  hut  they  had  to  btnieiit  the  loss  of  tin  ir  gall  nil  coiii- 
mander.  will)  fidi  iii  the  aclioii.  (iraiid  Cairo,  ItosiUla,  and  AlexandiiR 
soon  after  «ii'-reii:lere  I,  all  1  the  Frenen  agreed  to  evaeu  ile  ihe  country. 
The  other  events  of  the  year  IHOI  were  of  minor  im|i(irtaiii'e  :  and  m  llic 
spring  of  llie  fidlowniL'  year  |ieace  was  sii^neil  al  Amiens.  I'.iiglaiid  con- 
sented to  surrender  all  Its  compiesls,  with  ihe  t  xeeplion  of  (.'eylon  iiiiil 
Trinidad;  the  Ionian  is|  uids  were  to  form  a  republic  ,  and  .Malta  w.is  tu  be 
restored  to  iis  original  |)ossi'ssors. 

A  new  constitution  was  given  to  France  in  IHU-J,  by  which  Biinnnpartfi 
was  declared  chief  coi'sul  for  life  ;  Ihe  wlioh;  of  tin  exeeniivi'  anthorily, 
and  even  the  a|)pomiim'iil  of  Ins  two  cidle agues  being  ve^leil  in  linn.   New 


conslitiilions    w're    alsi  given    to    Swil/.erlaiid 


Ihe    It  iliaii   repiib- 


Un«      About  thid  |)criud  Buonuparlu   Mciit  a  coiisidcrable  force  to   luducu 


18 


OJTLINK  SKICTCH  OI''  OLNliHAL  HISTORY. 


ihe  island  of  St.  Domingo,  where  Toiilssaiil  L'Ouvertiirc,  a  negro,  had  erect 
ed  H  republic.  After  an  obstiiiute  and  saii'iuinHry  contest,  the  rebellious 
negroes  submitted,  and  Touissant  was  treacherously  seized  and  sent  to 
France ;  but  the  French  were  unable  fully  to  recover  Ih.e  island. 


CFAPTKR  XXV. 

FROM  THE  UECOMMENCKMKNT  OF    HOSTILITIES,  TO  THE  TREATV  OK  TlI.Sn. 

The  treaty  of  Amiens  was  little  better  than  a  hollow  truce  ;  and  many 
disputes  iirisin;;  respcclinu  lis  fuKilment,  the  war  was  resumed.  In  open 
violation  of  the  law  of  nalions,  UiKuiaparle  immediately  eomnianded  the  ar- 
rest of  all  the  Hnijlish  whotn  business  or  pleasure  had  drawn  into  Franiio. 
Hanover  was  iuvaded  and  plundered  ;  and  an  iirimense  force  was  collect*- 
ed  on  the  FrcMcli  coast,  for  the  avowed  purpose  of  anniliilaiinjf  the  IJritish 
power:  but  this,  :is  before,  proved  an  empty  boast.  Holland,  beiny;  placed 
under  the  control  of  Fiance,  was  dragfireii  into  the  wtir,  and  soon  lost  h^r 
eoloiiirs.  St  Doininiro  threw  otT  its  forced  allefriance  to  France,  unit 
Dessaliiies,  the  successor  of  Toiiissant,  was  made  president  of  the  repiib 
licof  Hayii,  Ihe  ancient  name  of  the  island,  'Vho  Fne;lisli  at  this  time 
were  very  successful  in  India,  under  the  government  of  the  marquis  o/ 
Wellesley. 

The  personal  amhiiion  of  lliioiiapnrle  was  every  day  more  evident,  and 
he  at  leiiL'tb  re<idved  to  aiinilidite  Ihe  repiiblie,  and  crown  himself  with 
an  ini[)t'rial  diadem.  Having  procured  ilie  assassiiialion  of  ilie  duke  d"Kii- 
gliein,  and  hy  the  basest  arts  inipressed  on  the  minds  of  the  people  ai) 
ideatli.it  treasonable  practices  were  carryiiit;  on  against  bun,  the  servde 
senate.  ile-*irous,  as  they  said,  of  investing  him  with  the  bii;liest  title 
of  sovereiu'iiiy,  in  order  tin'  more  elTeetu.dly  loeslahlisb  his  aulliority,  pro- 
(dainieil  linn  emii'Tor  of  till-  Fri'iich — a  title  which  was  acknowledged  im- 
mediately by  all  the  sovereigns  of  Kurojie,  (iieat  Britain  and  Swedei) 
•ilone  excepted  :  a.  i>.  IMOt. 

nuriin!  the  follow  lug  year  Hnonaparl(>  n'<sumed  Ihe  iron  crown  of  l.oin- 
bardy,  iiinler  the  title  of  king  of  Italy,  which  aroused  tlii;  iridlgiiation  oJ 
Francis  II.,  who  united  with  Hnglini  and  UiMsia-  lint  an  event  which 
of  all  others  was  most  calculated  to  raise  the  hopes  of  the  allies,  was  the 
nnexainiilcil  victory  gained  by  Nelson  off'I'Mfalgar  (Oct.  21)  over  the  com- 
bined (lei'ts  of  France  anil  Spain. 

In  (ieriniiiy  the  Austrian  army  was  doom,  d  to  siilTer  great  loss.  At 
the  head  of  II'), 000  soldiers,  Napoleon  crossed  tlii!  Illiine  ;  and  at  Flm, 
the  .Viistiiin  giMieral  Mack  surrendeii'il  his  whole  force,  consistiiii,' of  1 II),- 
000  men.  Vir'iina  was  soon  after  I'litered  by  Napoleon,  and  at  leimth  the 
Auslriaiis  were  completely  defeated  at  ihe  battle  of  .'.osterlii/..  This  in- 
duceil  Fr.iiieis  to  sue  for  peace  ;  and  a  lre,ily  was  coni'lnded  at  {•resbtirij, 
by  which  he  <'i<led  to  Fraiici  the  slates  of  Venice,  iind  resigned  the  Tyrol, 
&c  ,  to  llie  newly  I'reated  king  of  VVirleinbiirg. 

F.arly  iii  lr<0(i  the  F.nglish  re'  'k  Ihe  Cape  of  (Jooil  Hope  from  thn 
Dnlch.  About  llio  same  lime  Naples  was  invaded  by  the  Fn  iich,  ami 
Napoleon  g'lve  Ins  brother,  .losepli  lltioiiipavtc,  the  crown  of  that  king- 
dom, its  legitimate  sovereign  having  previous'''  iircd  to  .Sieilv.  Holland 
wan  also  ereetci)  into  a  kingdom,  aii<l  u'neii  l(  s  orotlier  l.ouis.  Amiilsi 
these  ail  I  iither  I  nport  lilt  changes  fiu'  lliii  a!rK<''"idr/>cinenl  of  Ins  family, 
Huonf.pirle  formed  the  "  confederalion  of  Ihe  liliine,"  Ihe  name  given  ii> 
Ihosi'  states  wdiine  rulers  renounced  the  ancient  laws  of  Ihe  empire.  The 
eonlinne.l  encroachmeiiis  of  France  now  ronsi'd  the  k  g  of  I'liissia,  who 
riisbed  |ireeipiialely  in'o  a  war,  and  imprn  lenlly  staked  his  fortni.e  on  the 
rhaiice  of  one  battle.  Tins  w.is  the  celebrated  battle  of  Jena,     liert  I  lO.UlMI 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OF  GENERAL  HISTOIIY. 


8fl 


Mrtissians  and  Saxons  conlendcd  with  150,000  of  the  French,  and  were 
Jefeafd  and  clostdy  pursued.  Ucrlin  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  victors, 
anri  the  Prussian  general,  Uiucher,  after  a  brave  resistance,  was  forced  to 
capitulate.  I'rince  Hohenloe  and  his  ariuy  surrendered  at  I'renlzlau. 
Silesia  was  overrun  by  the  French,  who  peniitrated  into  Poland,  and  exci- 
ted the  Poles  to  assert  their  in(le|)ehdence.  The  Russians,  who  were  now 
advancing',  met  and  defeated  tiie  French  at  Pullusk  ;  and,  notwithstand- 
nig  the  cond)ined  efforts  of  Murat,  Ijasnes,  and  Ney,  they  were  also  suc- 
cessful at  (ioloinyn.  In  the  insolence  of  [xivver.  Napoleon,  at  Berlin,  is- 
sued his  famous  decrees,  prohibiting'all  conimereial  nitercoiirso  with  the 
Urilisli  isles,  and  conmianding  tiu;  confiscation  of  every  article  of  Uritish 
manufacture,  which  scheme  of  exclusion  he  dignified  with  the  name  of  the 
"  continental  system." 

The  grand  Hussian  army  under  Denningsen,  enrountered  a  superior 
French  force  near  Fylau,  where  a  sanguine  but  indecisive  conflict  en- 
sued. IJanlzic  surrendered  to  Lefevre  ;  and  a  complele  victory  being 
gained  by  the  French  at  Friediand,  it  was  shorily  followed  by  the  irealy 
of  Tdsit.  The  Russians  and  Prussians  submitted  to  all  the  innieriui's 
demands  of  N'apcdeou  ;  but  (iustavus,  king  of  Sweden,  alone  refused  to 
treat  wiih  him,  or  to  recognize  his  imperial  dignity. 

Tluj  Danes  having  yielded  to  the  influence  of  France,  an  expedition  was 
sent  thither  by  H'.fjlaud,  for  the  [lurpose  of  preventing  the  l)anish  fleet 
from  falling  into  tiie  hands  of  the  French.  Copenlingeii  surrendered  after 
a  f<'w  days'  siege,  and  the  sliips  andiiaval  stores  were  delivered  Id  the  Fn- 
glish.  Tins  act  of  atfgression  was  resented  by  the  emperor  of  Kus^ia, 
who  dechired  war  agamst  Fiigland.  Among  other  rem  irkal>le  events  of 
this  year,  weri!  the  de()arture  of  the  prmce  regent  of  Porlugal  and  his 
conn  to  the  Urazil^;,  the  conquest  of  Portugal  by  the  French,  and  the 
erection  of  Saxony  mlo  a  kingdom. 


CH.\PTK(l  XX  VV 

TUK  FllKNCII  INVAHIOM  OK  SP.\IN,  AM)  81111s.         KNT  PKNINSULAR    WAIl. 

What  open  force  could  not  effect,  was  cai.icd  by  intrigue  nnd  treach- 
ery. Napoleon  having  invited  Charles  I  V.,kmg  of  Spain,  to  a  eoufercnoe 
at  llayoune,  sei/.e(l  his  (urson, compelled  him  to  abdicate,  and  triiusrerred  ihe 
crown  to  Joseph  llnonaparte,  whose  place  at  Nap'.i'.-'  was  so(mi  after  oc- 
cupied by  Mm-al,  .Napoletin's  <  "Ik  r m-law.  Spain  was  fil'ed  with  French 
troiips,  and  no  <ipposiiioii  was  i  i  a.i,  i ;  but  as  gixin  as  Ine  Spainards  re- 
covereil  from  tluir  cotislernaiion,  liie  people  rose  in  idl  piuMs,  and  |)ro- 
claimed  Ferdinand  VII.  The  natr  ■  s  beiriii  the  war  with  great  spirit ;  the 
usurper  fled  Inim  .Madrid;  while  Pahifox  ,ind  the  brave  inhabita. its  of  Sar- 
agossa  gained  nninorl.il  honour  by  the  mvinciMe  cinn'iige  l!iey  displayed 
ill  defending  their  town  against  tlie  lio'ious  attacks  of  th(^  French,  who 
were  eventually  compelled  to  retreat 

The  I'ortugiiise  fnllciwed  the  exainplr  of  the  Spaniards  ,  and  a  Hritish 
lirmy,comni  .:<ded  liv  Sir  ArlhnrWellesley,  landed  and  defeiled  the  Frencll 
general,  .lunol,  at  Vimiera.  Itiit  .Sir  Hugh  Dalrympli'  arriving  to  ai'^suine 
Ihe  ('(Hiiinaiid,  the  conveniiiin  (d' ('iiiini  was  eiileied  nitii,  by  which  the 
(•'reiich  army,  with  all  its  baggage,  artillery,  &c  ,  were  to  be  coiivevi'd  to 
France,  An  Ungl'sh  army  of  UO.Oiio  nien,  iiii(!i  r  Sir  .Tidm  M'  ire,  landed 
in  Sp.iin,  and  advanced  as  far  as  Nidamanea  ,  but  tin  French  fm:  e  in  that 
eotiiitry  amounted  to  1.')0,OIIO.  Madrid  was  lalicii,  and  lh(>  lliiglisb,  not 
being  well  sn,  orled  by  the  .SiiaiiiardM,  were  eoinprlled  to  retreat.  At 
('oi'iiina»  sevi^re  battle  wim  toiiglit,  and  Kir  John  Muoro  was  inurtallv 

S'UUIldl:d 


oo 


OUTLINE  8KETCH  OF  OKNEllAL  HISTORY. 


fiil 


Hi  ' 


■IS 


Austn;i  having  dccl.iivd  war  iiy;aiiist  France,  Napoleon  entered  tlie  field, 
repulsed  the  Ansirians  at  Kckiniihl,  and  took  possession  of  Viciuia.  Tlio 
dH  liduke  (Miarles  gave  liiui  battle  near  Essling,  wli  i  li  was  desperately 
contested,  and  terminated  in  favour  of  the  Austrians  ;  but  stum  after,  at 
Wagrani,  the  Ftench  {jained  an  important  victory.  The  brave  'J'yrolese 
in  ihis  campaign  made  the  most  heroic  efforts  against  the  Frencli;  but 
the  patriot  lioHer  was  taken  and  sliot. 

A  most  UMsuccessfnl  expedition  was  undertaken  by  the  English  against 
Antwerp.  It  was  composed  of  nearly  40  JOO  men;  great  numbers  of 
whom  were  swept  of  by  a  pestilential  fever  while  in  possession  of  the 
island  of  Walcheren;  and  ti.e  remainder  ri;urne(l  without  effecting  any 
Useful  object.  In  oilier  parts  the  Kiiglish  were  more  successful,  huvmg 
taken  Cayi  nnc,  Martinicjue,  and  three  of  the  Ionian  islands. 

In  'I'urkcy  tiie  sultan  Seliin  ha<l  been  assassinated;  Mahmond  was 
seated  on  the  throne,  and  peace  was  concluded  between  the  Porte  and 
Great  Uritain.  After  a  jirolraeted  negotiation  with  Napoleon,  the  emperor 
of  Austria  signed  the  treaty  of  Vienna,  by  which  he  was  ohlii^rod  to  sur 
reiuler  to  France,  Uavaria,  und  Russia,  a  considerable  portion  of  his  do 
millions. 

^-'ir  .Vrtliur  Wellesley  had  now  the  chief  command  in  the  PiMiinsela. 
He  fort-ed  the  passage  of  the  Uouro,  recovered  Oporlo,  and  drove  Soiill 
out  of  Portugal,  lie;  then  dcfeate.l  the  i'Vencli  with  great  slaughter  at 
T:iavera;  but  the  enemy  being  reint'orced,  lit-  was  obliged  to  retreat 
His  great  cervices  were,  liowever,  duly  appreciated,  and  he  was  created 
Haroii  Wellinglon.  At  the  close  of  180!'  the  (Spaiii>h  patriots  sostainet' 
some  severe  defeats,  and  (ieroiia  was  taken  by  them.  Marshals  Junoi 
and  Ney  commenred  the  ensuing  lanipaign  wilii  the  capture  of  Astorif 
and  (  iiidad  iiodrigo.  while  Masseiia  entered  Portugal,  anil  took  Aineida 
At  Biisiit'ii  Lord  WellnigtiMi  defeated  liiiii,  and  reaching  the  iinpregiiabli 
lines  of  'rovres  Vcdras,  he  look  up  a  I'ttrnng  positum,  from  w  Inch  the  French 
could  not  dislodge  him,  and  M.is.seiia  soon  afterwards  commenced  a  dis 
astrmis  retreat. 

'l"he  campaign  of  l>*\  1  was  distinguished  by  ii  series  of  battler,,  in  which 
the  eoiiteiiding  arinit  s  displayed  gnat  bravcv,  but  without  any  decided 
advantige  to  either  HI  the  fiid.  Among  tliu  r  ill  whicii  the  allies  were 
most  siKcessful,  were  Hidajoz,  Albeura.  and  llarrosa.  The  year  IrtU  was 
alFo  memiH-ahle  as  the  perivxt  wjien  the  Sn.iiiish  American  colonies  began 
to  renounce  their  allcgianee  to  Spam,  ami  struggle  for  indepeiidiniee. 

In  HP.' the  events  of  the  war  assiimeil  .i  new  eiimplr.\ioii.  .\  change 
had  taken  jilaee  in  the  govifiiinenl  of  Spam,  and  more  earnestness  and 
eturgy  was  displayrd  m  its  cjuiieils.  Lord  W  ('lliiiglon  cou'dieneed  with 
the  capture  of  <  'tiidx  !  Kodrigo  and  lladajix  ihen  advancing  'iilo  S|iain,  he 
gained  a  decis've  vioory  over  Marmoiit  near  >i»lam<iii('a,  wliiidi  was   fol- 


io wei 


1  by  I 


lis  einrunee  in 


to  Mil 


where  he  wa«  r<-iived  wi;h  the  most 


vnthuHiaste-  acclaiiiaiions.     In   uie  lueaiiiiine  iIm«  |i;iirii)i  armies  m  (he 


north  of  .Spiin  wer*"  niHnnnily  nuccess 


ful: 


iiid  HI  (lie  south  ilie  French 


rere  riimprll>-d  lu  riise  the  iteigf  of  (,^adiz,  and  evacuate  liranadu,  (^or< 
'lova,  Suville,  &c. 


rHAPTK.R  XWH 


li        ' 


I     ■ 

t   : 


r»OM  TUK  IMVASIO.I  OF  Bf  i<SI*   Br   THK    rKKNClI   TO  fHK   WtBTORATION    0» 

W«  mu»l  now  <«lci'>  a  npitJ  re»n-w  i#f  th»>*»*  pxlrnordinnry  ncpiteii  in  (he 
Nortli  «■•:!.  li  rneiud  tlif  AttcntMiii  of  all  Kunpc,  and  lillf(l  cveiy  breast 
WKll  MtkMius  exi(<  i'l«(.i(iii  Till'  i  inperor  At^sa'idi'r  fi'li  hnn»elf  liiiniilia- 
ti'd,  uiA  ins  cuuiti<ry  iii>«ruii  bv  Uiat  ri|{t<i  vuouivunco  of  llie  '  eontineiital 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OK   GiCNERAI,  HloI'OKY. 


Mi 


Hygteni"  whi(;li  N'jipoleon  Imd  insisted  on,  and  ttie  botiiuilcNS  ambitiou  o. 
the  liiltcr,  added  to  his  hatred  of  ail  that  was  English,  led  Inn)  to  attempt 
iho  subjugation  of  llie  Russian  empire.  He  concluded  an  offensive  and 
defensive  alliaiicb  with  Austria,  Prussia,  and  the  confearation  of  the  Rhine, 
whose  forces  were  destined  to  swell  his  ranks.  The  immense  army, 
*mounting  to  above  475,000  men,  now  marched  towards  the  Russian  fron- 
tiers; and  the  Russians  gradually  retired  at  the  approach  of  the  enemy, 
who,  thougii  checked  and  harassed  in  every  way  possible,  pressed  onward 
with  ninazing  rapidity.  At  length  a  tremendous  battle  was  fought  under 
the  walls  of  Smoleiisko,  and  the  city  was  quickly  after  evacuated,  the 
Russians  retreating  on  Moscow.  Having  received  daily  accessions  of 
Iroops,  among  whom  were  numerous  bodies  of  Cossacks,  Kntusoff,  the 
Russian  commander,  determined  on  hazarding  a  grand  battle,  when  a 
most  sanguinary  contest  ensued,  in  which  the  French  lost  about  40,000 
and  the  Russians  .'iO,000  men.  Hut  Napoleon  be'n\^  reinforced,  he  was 
enabled  to  take  possession  of  Moscow  ;  he  had  scarcely,  however,  taken 
up  his  head  quarters  in  the  Kremlim,  before  he  discovered  thit  the  city 
was  set  on  fire  in  several  places,  by  order  of  Rostopchin,  its  patriotic  gov- 
enor,  and  the  greater  part  of  it  was  soon  reduced  to  a  heap  of  ruhis.  Thus 
being  in  a  moment,  as  it  were,  deprived  of  shelter,  and  feeling  the  severity 
of  a  Russian  winter  fast  approaching,  Napoleon  endeavoured  to  negotiate, 
but  Alexander,  who,  at  the  commencement  of  tlie  French  invasion  had 
declared  that  "now  tiie  sword  was  drawn  he  would  not  again  sheath  it  as 
ling  as  an  enemy  remained  in  his  dominions,"  indignantly  rejected  every 
pioposition.  Cut  olT  from  all  supplies,  and  exposed 'o  the  incessant  at- 
tacks of  the  exasperated  Russians,  among  whom  were  hordes  of  Cossacks, 
the  wretched  troops  commenced  one  of  the  most  disastrous  r^Ureats  ever 
recorded  in  history.  Again  and  agiii  had  Ihey  io  sustain  the  vigorous 
attacks  of  th<'ir  |)ursucrs,  till  tlie  wlude  route  was  strewed  with  baggage, 
artillery,  and  ammunition,  and  wilh  the  mangled  and  frozen  bodies  of  men 
and  horses.  Of  the  mighty  force  that  invaded  Itussia,  oidy  30,000  returned 
to  France!;  400,000  perished  or  were  made  prisoners;  while  the  author  ol 
all  their  UMp;iralltled  siifTerings  basely  deserted  his  army,  travelled  through 
Poland  and  (Jermany  in  disginse,  and  reached  his  ea[)ital  in  saftMy. 

The  un(!xample(l  leverses  of  Napoleon  were  bailed  by  the  nations  on 
the  coniineiit  as  the  signal  for  their  deliveriince  from  his  iron  grasj).  Al- 
exander  conelnded  an  alliance  with  Sweden  and  I'russi.i,  and  they  pre- 
pared for  liositilines,  Smne  sanguimiry  but  iiideri.sive  battles  were  fought, 
and  a  short  arniisiice  was  agreed  npciu,  during  which  time  Au.'tria  joined 
the  le.Tgne,  and  all  p.irlies  prepared  for  tin?  renewal  of  the  eonlest  wilh 
increased  vigour.  The  grcitest  UMauimily  |irevajle(l  in  the  councils  \,[  the 
allied  sovereigns.  Their  armies  m:uU>  a  formldabli'  aliack  on  Dresden, 
though  lhe\  falliH!  in  their  object  of  tal  iiig  the  eily  li\  a  itni/i-dr  mam:  but 
the  veteran  lijuclx-r  dcfeate'd  the  enemy  at  Kalzbach,  and  thereby  deliv- 
ered Silesia.  V.Kidaniine  wna  Ix'aten  at  Cniin,  and  Ney  at  .lulterbock. 
It  was  now  resolved  ihat  the  wh(di' of  the  allied  armies  slioiild  make  9 
tiiinullaiieons  elTorl  to  I'nish  the  common  enemy.  The  forces  of  Napole- 
on were  eoncentr.ited  at  I.eipsic,  and  (here  it  was  that  the  allies  attacked 
and  totally  ilefeated  him.  The  sanguinary  liilile  raged  fri)m  dawn  of  day 
till  night ;  both  sides  sntVered  immense  loss,  but  that  of  the  Freiii'li  was  by 
far  the  greatest.  Coiisuliiii'j  his  own  |)rrsunal  safely,  as  in  liiri  retreat 
from  Russia,  Huonapiirle  hastily  reached  I'ari-  ,  whiU?  the  French  garii- 
cons  which  occupied  the  Sixon  and  Prussian  fortresses  were  idiandoned 
to  their  fate.  The  victory  of  laepsic  ;ir  )used  every  nation  yet  in  albanco 
wilh  Frince  to  throw  otT  the  oppressor's  yoke.  Among  the  number  wa« 
Holland,  whose  Inhabitants  expelled  the  Fn  nch,  and  recalled  the  (irilico 
of()ran«e.  The  Riissian  campaign  and  the  war  that  now  raired  in  fJer- 
many,  had  proved  bonclicuil  to  lliu  8^)uni8li  cause,  b)   withdriiwin<(  ludiiv 


>2 


OUTLINE  SKETCH  OF  GENERAL  HISTORY. 


of  Napoleon's  experienced  generals  and  veteran  troops.  Lord  Wellington 
crossed  the  Douro,  and  rnarchiuj^  northwards  CHme  up  with  the  French 
army,  commanded  by  Marshal  Jourdan,  at  Vittoria,  where  he  obtanied  a 
decisive  victory,  Jnue  21,  1813.  The  nicmotable  seige  of  St.  Sebasstian, 
nnd  the  defeat  of  Marshal  Soult,  to  wiiose  skill  the  ta.sk  of  defending  tiie 
frontiers  of  France  was  confided,  were  the  other  most  proinmunt  events 
of  the  campaign ;  and  France  was  soon  after  entere<l  on  the  sonth-west 
by  the  English  and  Spaniards,  and  on  the  north-east  by  the  combined  ar- 
mies of  Russia,  Prussia,  and  Austria. 

In  the  meanwhile  the  French  emperor  obtained  a  levy  of  .300,000  men, 
to  oppose  the  threatened  invasi-^  a.  Several  engagements  took  place  ;  but 
the  allies  marched  steadily  on,  h\  iliflTereiil  routes,  and  at  length  approached 
the  city  of  Paris,  which  capitulated.  On  the  following  day  (March  31, 
1814),  the  emperor  of  Russia  and  llie  king  of  Prussia,  accompanied  by 
their  generals  and  staff,  made  their  triumph, i!  entry  into  Paris,  amidst  the 
acclamations  of  the  uihabitants,  who,  wlit.her  sincere  or  not,  made  Ihe 
air  resound  with  reiterated  (!ries  of  "Vive  I'Kmpereiir  Alexandre  ;"  "Vi- 
vent  les  Uonrhons;"  "A  bas  les  tyran,  Sec.  In  the  meantime  the  mar- 
quis of  Wellington  had  defeatrd  Sonli  tear  Toulouse,  and  was  advancing 
towards  the  capita!.  Napolcn,  finding  that  tlib  senate  had  deposed  him, 
and  that  the  allied  powers  ivere  determined  not  to  enter  into  any  treaty 
with  hiiii  as  sovereign  of  F'rance,  abdicated  his  usurped  crown  at  Fon- 
tainbleau  ;  and  the  isle  of  KIba,  with  a  suitable  income,  was  assigned  him 
for  his  future  residence.  Louis  XVIII.  was  placed  on  the  throne  of  his 
ancestors,  the  other  sovereigns  who  had  been  deprived  of  their  dominions 
were  restored,  and  all  Kurope  once  more  hailed  a  general  peace. 

We  must  not  omit  to  notice  that  the  Americans,  having  l>"en  dissatis- 
fied with  the  Uritish  or<lers  in  eoimcil,  resulting  from  the  Ucrl.n  and  Milan 
decrees  of  Napoleon,  thought  proper,  in  1312,  to  declare  waraj^amsl  Kng- 
land,  and  ibillivvith  invaded  t'anada ;  they  were,  houever,  (Iriven  back 
fwilh  considerable  loss.  The  American  commodor^.  i'erry,  succeeded, on 
the  lOih  of  September,  181,'!,  in  capturing  the  Uri  licet  on  Lake  Erie. 
Fort  Krie  was  also  taken  l)y  the  Americans  in  July,  1814,  and  during  the 
same  month  were  fought  sanguinary  battles  at  Chippewa  and  Hridgewater. 
On  the  11th  of  September,  Sir  (Jcorge  Provost,  with  14,000  ukmi,  made  an 
attack  upon  PlaHsburg,  but,  after  a  severe  contest,  was  compelled  to  retire 
with  great  loss.  The  Uritish  llect  under  l)owni(!  was  ca|)inred  by  Com- 
modore M'Donongh,  on  Ihe  same  day.  The  war  was  terminated  by  the 
treaty  of  Ghent,  Dec.  12,  1814. J 


1 


i 


fii 


CHAPTKR  XXVIIL 

rnoM    TIIF.    BETUI   ••    OK    BUONAPAHTE  FROM  ELB.*,  TO  TIIF.  OF.NKRAI.  PEACK 

In  March,  181,'),  wiiile  the  plenipotentiaries  and  the  allied  sovreigiis  were 
oceupicil  at  the  congress  of  Vienna  in  laying  the  found  ition  of  a  perma- 
nent |)eace,  the  astoiin<liiig  news  arrived  iliat  Napoleon  had  left  F.lba,  and 
landed  in  Frame,  with  about  11 ')0  followers.  Such  was  the  encourage- 
ment he  received,  that  when,  on  the  ll'lh,  he  readied  Foiitainblean,  he  was 
at  tlu^  head  of  1.'»,000  veterans,  with  the  eertainiy  that  niimennis  corps 
were  advancing  on  every  side  to  join  Ins  standard.  Preparations  were 
made  to  arrest  ins  piogress;  but  on  his  march  he  was  powerfully  rein- 
forced, and  he  reached  Pans  unmolested.  Louis  had  previmisly  left 
Ihi'  capital  and  now  sought  an  asylum  in  the  Nctherlanils.  The  allien 
••ivircigiis  In  thi^  nicanlime  iNSiird  a  maiiiresto,  in  which  it  was  declared, 
tinil  Napuleun  Uuonaparte,  by  violating  the  cotivuntioti  in  virtue  of  wliicli 


OUTLINE  SKaTCn  OF  GKNRRAL  HISTORY. 


93 


PKACR 

lis  were 
ncrma- 
liii,  and 
)iiriigo- 
lii'  was 

«  corps 
s  were 

ly  rcin- 
y  left 
alliea 

^clared, 

r  wliich 


he  had  leoii  settled  at  Flba,  had  forfeited  every  claim  to  protection,  ami 
he  was  siiiemnly  pronounced  an  outlaw. 

Ill  answer  to  this  manifesto  Napoleon  published  a  declaration,  assert- 
ing tliat  lie  was  recalled  to  the  throne  by  the  unanimous  wish  of  the  French 
people.  Large  armies  were  assembled  with  all  possible  expedition,  and 
Buonaparte,  with  extraordinary  celerity,  opened  the  short  but  memorable 
campaign,  by  attacking  the  advanced  posts  of  the  Prussians  on  the  15th 
of  June.  On  that  and  the  following  day  considerable  success  attended 
his  arms,  but  on  the  field  of  Waterloo  (June  18)  the  genius  of  Wellington 
and  the  steady  valour  of  the  British  troops  gave  a  death-blow  to  his  hopes 
and  once  more  rescued  Europe  from  its  degrading  !tiralflom.  Having 
witne«3.'d  the  irretrievable  ruin  of  his  army,  he  fied  with  the  greatest 
precipitation  from  the  field  of  battle,  while  the  residue  of  his  discomfited 
troops  were  pursued  by  the  Prussians  uiulcr  Blucher.  The  combined 
armies  now  rapidly  advanced  towards  Paris,  an  1  Buonaparte,  finding  thai 
his  reign  was  at  an  end,  fled  to  the  sea-coast  in  the  hope  of  making  his 
escape  to  .\inerica.  In  this,  however,  he  was  foiled  by  the  vigilance  of 
the  Hritish  cruisers,  and  he  at  length  surrendered  to  captain  Maitland,  ol 
the  Bellerophon,  who,  at  his  request,  brought  him  to  tlie  British  shores, 
though  he  was  not  permitted  to  land.  Afier  some  discussion  it  was  re- 
solved he  should  be  imprisoned  for  life  in  the  ishiini  of  St.  Helena,  whither, 
accompanied  by  a  small  train  o(  attendants,  he  was  forthwith  sent.  Louis 
XVIII.  was  a  second  time  rc>:'  i f d  to  his  throne.  An  act  of  amnesty 
Was  passed,  from  which  a  few  oi  Napoleon's  most  strenuous  supporters 
were  excliuled,  whilst  Ney  and  Labedoyere  were  shot. 

By  th(^  terms  of  the  treaty  entered  into  between  France  and  the  allied 
powers,  it  was  agreed  that  sixteen  of  the  frontier  fortresses  of  France 
should  be  garrisoned  by  the  allies  for  five  years,  and  that  1.50,000  allied 
troops,  under  the  duke  of  Weilinglon,  should  he  maintained  in  that  king- 
dom for  the  same  space  of  time.  The  following  arraiiirements  were  also 
concluded  at  the  congress  of  Vienna;  Prussia  was  enriciied  by  t!ie  annex- 
ation of  a  portion  of  Saxony,  and  recovered  Lusatia;  Russia  received  a 
large  part  of  Poland;  the  Venetian  territories  were  given  to  Austria; 
Genoa  was  assigned  to  the  king  of  Sardinia  ;  the  papal  dor.iinions  were 
restored;  while  the  I'nited  Provinces  and  the  Netherlands  were  formed 
iiilo  a  kiiiL'dom  for  tlie  prince  of  Orange.  ICngland  restored  lo  the  Dutch 
some  of  ilie  colonies  she  had  taken  from  tliep;,  and  various  minor  cliaiiL'es 
also  took  place.  A  confederation  was  then  entered  into  by  the  sovereign 
.•itales  of  (iermany  for  nnitnal  defence  and  the  prevention  ot'  inleriial  war, 
and.  to  crown  the  whole,  the  emperors  of  Russia  and  Austria,  with  the 
king  of  Prussia,  boiinrl  themselves  by  a  solemn  compact,  called  the  Holy 
Alliance,  tlie  |)rofes«ed  oliject  of  which  was  to  preserve  the  p(>;icc  of  Eu- 
rope, and  to  maintain  the  principles  of  Christianity  in  their  respective 
domiiiioiis. 

Having  brought  our  "Outline  Sketch  of  (>eiieral  History"  down  to  a 
period  so  nioincnious,  we  shall  leave  all  sul)>.e(|neiit  events  for  narration 
m  the  Hisldrics  of  separate  countries  which  follow.  In  the  brief  and  cur- 
sory Inirii.'uii  iiiMi  we  have  given,  the  reader  has  had  a  rapid  view  of  t!ie 
rise  and  fill  of  empires,  the  excesses  of  despotic  povvfr,  and  somf  of  the 
.ounlless  eviK  atti  iiilant  on  a  state  of  anarchy.  Sidl  if  must  be  remem- 
bered that  ill  this  slight  sketch  we  have  only  pioi.erred  the  wnv.  As  we 
proceed.  It  will  be  our  aim  more  fully  to  d(> elope  the  moliv(»,  wliiie  wc 
describe  the  actions,  of  those  rer|ioiiKihle  individuals  in  who^e  hands  the 
destinies  <d'  nations  aie  eiiirn^led;  and  the  judicious  re  ider,  imprensed, 
as  he  cannot  f;iil  to  be,  with  the  niiitabilitv  ol  hnnian  inf<tiiiilioiiH  and  the 
in^labiliiy  (d'  human  grandeur,  will  lie  iiaiurally  Ini  i.o  eoiiiemplate  and 
admire  the  everruliitif  conduct  of  Divine  Providence  ui  ine  aioral  govern 
nient  uf  the  world- 


PRESENT  CONDITION  OF  THE  WORLD. 


EUROPE. 


Europe  lies  almost  entirely  in  tlie  northern  temperate  zone;  a  small 
part  of  it  at  the  northern  exireniity  is  e^teniled  beyond  tlie  arctic  circle, 
but  it  (iocs  not  iipproiich  nearer  to  the  equator  than  ;i5.1  ()cgrees.  On  the 
east  anil  soiuh-enst  it  is  bounded  by  Asia;  on  the  west,  north-west,  and 
south-west,  by  the  Atlantic  Ocean;  on  the  north,  by  the  Frozen  Ocean; 
and  on  the  south,  by  the  Mediterranean  Sea.  It  is  about  3,400  miles  in 
lenjjth,  from  Cupe  St.  Vincent  in  Portugal,  to  the  Uralian  Mountains  in 
Russia;  and  2,500  miles  in  breadth,  from  Cape  Malapan  to  the  Nortn 
Cape  in  Lapland. 

In  proportion  to  its  size,  Europe  is  the  most  populous  of  all  the  great 
divisions  of  the  globe,  and,  except  in  its  northern  slates,  it  enjoys  an 
agreinible  tenipiT.nure  of  climate,  Tlii!  soil,  thoujrh  not  equil  in  luxuri- 
ance to  ih;it  of  ihc  tropics,  is  \  -ll  a'lapted  to  tilliijie  and  pasturage,  so 
that  it  afionls  a  coiiions  supply  of  tlu'  necessariesof  life,  while  its  mines 
produce  the  most  useful  metals,  aii<l  its  seas  teem  with  fish. 

In  no  pint  of  the  world  are  manufactures  carried  to  greater  perfection 
than  in  several  of  the  European  countries,  especially  in  (treat  Britain, 
France,  and  (JernMuy,  and  that  commi'ri-ial  intercourse  which  of  late  years 
has  so  V(!ry  trreatly  increased,  is  griulnally  ohliteratin<j  naticnial  preju<lices, 
exciting:  emulation,  rewaviline;  iiuli.slry,  cultivating  fi^elinirs  of  mutual 
esteem,  and  increasing  the  eotnt  >its,  conveniences,  :ind  luxuries  of  all. 
To  the  commerce  of  Kurope,  in  f  '  (,  tliere  appears  to  be  rii>  limits;  its 
traders  are  to  be  seen  in  every  country,  luid  every  sea  is  lilled  wiih  its 
ships.  Moieover,  as  the  seat  oi^arl  and  scieiK'e,  as  .lie  region  where  civi- 
lization is  in  active  progress,  and  where  Cln'istiiiiiity  is  extending  its  be- 
nign iinhieiu-e  far  and  wide,  lOurope  Indeed  maintains  a  prou  i  eminence, 
and,  jndgMiy  from  present  appcarani:es,  its  inhabitants  bid  fnw  at  no  dis- 
tant day  lo  extend  their  dominions,  already  vast,  by  colonizing  and  giving 
laws  to  nations  now  scarcely  emerging  from  barbarism. 


ASIA. 

The  general  history  of  this  division  of  the  world  carries  nsback  to  the 
creation.  The  cradle  of  cnir  first  .'arents,  and  the  portion  of  the  earth 
where  the  most  slnpendcnis  acts  of  iivine  pnwer  and  wisdom  have  been 
displayed,  Asi;i  presents  a  most  inlcicsting  subject  for  the  contemplative 
mind.  It  was  here  that  the  world  before  the  flood,  as  far  as  we  know, 
was  eiincentered.  It  was  here  that  the  antediluvian  patriaridis  settled, 
and  spread  abroad  the  families  (>f  the  earth.  After  the  Hood,  Asia  was 
the  heart  of  life,  the  source  of  all  that  fiopuhition  which  has  sinc(!  covered 
the  gl<)l)e  with  its  myriads  of  iniialiil;nits.  The  present  race  of  Asi;ilics  is 
deduced  from  the  Hebrews,  the  Indinis,  and  the  Tartars.  I;  is  fo'.eign  to 
Oiir  purpose  to  follow  the  se'ieu  ;i  '^-e  various  tribes  of  population,  whieli, 


96 


PRESENT  CONDITION  OF  THE  WORLD. 


from  the  great  fountnin,  overspread  the  earth,  and  especially  Europe      !■• 
deed,  the  wlu.le  of  I'hiiope,  however  elevated  in  the  se^de  of  reason  an<t 
intcllig(!nee  above  their  primitive  sources,  derived  its  people  and  language 
from  Asia,  while  from  Asia  JMinor  have  flowed  arms,  arts  and  learning. 


AFRICA. 

Africa  is  situated  to  the  south  of  Europe,  and  to  the  west  and  soutii- 
west  of  Asia.  It  is  separated  from  the  former  by  the  Meditf  rranean  Sea 
and  the  Struits  of  Gibraltar,  and  from  Asia  by  the  Hed  Sea,  at  the  most 
northerly  extremity  of  which  it  is  united  to  Asia  by  the  isthmus  of  Suez. 

The  history  of  this  immense  peninsula,  like  several  of  the  kingdoms  of 
which  it  is  composed,  is  involved  in  much  obscurity.  Interesting  as  are 
the  monuments  of  former  greatness  to  be  found  in  this  part  of  the  world, 
esnecially  in  Kgypt,  there  are  no  memorials  on  which  the  eye  of  science 
rests  with  more  intensity  of  attention  tlian  upon  those  tablets  which  have 
enshrined  the  names  of  the  several  martyrs,  from  the  time  of  Pharaoh 
Necho,  to  the  inhuman  murders  of  many  an  enterprising  European  trav- 
eller. The  smi  of  civilization  which  once  illumined  with  all  its  splendour 
one  portion  of  this  division  of  the  world  has  been  greatly  obscured,  and 
of  the  greater  part  of  it  we  may  say, 

"  Shadows,  cloiuU,  and  darkness  rest  upon  it." 


AMERICA. 

Th!s  vast  continent,  or  New  World  of  the  Western  Hemisphere,  lies 
between  the  Atlantic;  and  Pacific;  Oceans,  the  former  separating  it  from 
Europe  atid  Africa,  and  the  latter  from  .\sia  and  Australia.  Its  iuimeuse 
rivers  and  proiiiy^ious  mountain  chains  are  (piite  uneqtiallcd  in  the  world, 
and  the  bays,  lakes,  cataracts,  and  forests,  are  also  of  unrivalled  extent 
and  grandeur.  It  is  divided  into  North  and  South  America,  and  is  in 
length  about  iiOOO  miles,  possessing,  of  course,  every  variety  of  climate, 
from  the  burning  heat  of  the  torrid  zone  to  the  intense  cold  of  the  arctic 
eircle.  Since  its  discovery  by  Cohnnbus,  vast  nnniliers  of  Europeans 
have  made  this  continent  their  home,  the  generality  being  attracted  hither 
by  the  eap.il)ilities  it  seeuu^d  to  afford  them  of  enriching  themselves: 
America  ha^  a)ho  been  an  asylum  fortlie  victims  of  political  and  religious 
persecution.  [Aboimding  with  every  production  necessary  for  the  com- 
fort and  convenience  of  man,  blessed  with  all  the  privileges  of  civil  and 
religious  freedcun,  this  new  coimtry,  wliicii  iiiit  three  and  a  half  centuries 
ago  was  miknown  to  the  ICastern  World,  iias  risen  to  a  height  of  pros- 
perity almost  unexampled  in  the  history  of  nations,  ami  the  colonies  of 
the  United  Stales,  which,  less  than  a  hundred  years  since,  Great  Britain 
scarcely  considered  worthy  of  her  notice,  has  sliaken  off  her  authority 
and  now  proudly  fling  out  their  lianners  side  by  side  with  those  of  the 
mother  country,  in  every  clime,  and  already  threaten  to  dispute  with  her 
uie  pre-eminence  she  so  justly  claims  upon  tlieseas.  Untrammelled  with 
the  wre(d;s  of  tottering  or  fallen  dynasties,  the  citizens  of  this  new  repub- 
lic are  working  out  upon  an  extensive  scale  the  great  problem  of  self- 
government.] 


>< 


A  SERIES  OF  SI 


TE  HISTORIES. 


THE  HISTORY  OF  ENGLAND. 


The  propriety  of  commencuig  our  series  of  separate  histories  with  England  must,  we 
think,  be  obvious  to  every  reader.  Its  rank  in  the  scale  of  nations  ;  its  unrivalled  com- 
merco  and  extensive  foreign  possessions  ;  its  naval  and  military  prowess ;  and  the  intel- 
ligence, enlerprizc,  and  industry  of  its  inhabitants — fully  entitle  it  to  the  honor  of  prece- 
dence. Uutthisis  not  all ;  the  love  of  our  country  excites  in  us  a  laudable  curiosity  to 
inquire  into  the  conduct  and  condition  of  our  ancestors,  and  to  become  acquainted  with  tlie 
memorable  events  of  their  history  ;  while  our  reverence  for  the  glorious  Constitution  by 
which  our  most  valuable  privileges  are  secured,  prompts  us  in  nn  especial  manner  to  trace 
its  rise  and  progress,  and  thoroughly  to  ascertain  upon  what  foundation  onr  political  and 
religious  liberties  are  based.  "  If  nn  Englishman,"  sold  the  great  Frederic  of  Prussio, 
■'  has  no  knowledge  of  those  kings  that  Riled  the  throne  of  Persia,  if  his  memory  is  not  em- 
barrassed with  that  infinite  number  of  popes  that  ruled  the  church,  we  are  reaily  to  excuse 
him  1  but  wo  shall  hardly  have  the  same  indulgence  for  him,  if  he  is  a  stranger  to  the 
origin  of  parliaments,  to  the  customs  of  bis  country  and  to  the  diSerent  lines  of  kings  who 
have  reigned  in  EoglaQd." 


CHAPTER  I. 

THE   BRITISH    AND    ROMAN    PERIOD — TO   TIIK    SUBJUGATION    OP    THE    ISLAND 

BV    THE    SAXONS. 

Tkb  rule  laid  down  by  the  celebrated  historian,  David  Huine,  for  his 
treatment  of  early  British  history,  is  so  reasonable,  so  obviously  the  only 
rule  by  which  the  historian  can  avoid  disfi<rurniii:  his  nariative  of  realities 
by  connecting  it  with  fables  and  figments,  thai  it  would  be  to  the  last  de- 
gree unwise  to  depart  from  it,  even  were  it  laid  down  by  a  writer  of  far 
less  celebrity  and  genius. 

We  cannot  belter  account  for  the  silence  with  which  we  pass  over  the 
very  early  a^es  of  Britain,  than  by  quoting  the  short  paragraph  in  which 
the  eminent  writer  to  whom  we  have  referred,  at  once  suggests  and  vindi- 
cates that  course. 

"The  fables,"  says  he,  "  which  are  commonly  employed  to  supply  the 
place  of  true  history,  ought  to  be  enliroly  disregarded;  or  if  any  excep- 
tion be  admitted  to  this  general  rule,  it  can  only  be  in  favour  of  the  ancient 
Grecian  fictions,  which  are  so  celebrated  and  so  agreeable,  that  they  will 
ever  be  the  objects  of  the  general  attention  of  mankind.  Neglecting, 
therefore,  all  traditions,  or  rather  talcs,  concerning  the  more  early  histo- 
ry of  Britain,  we  shall  only  consider  the  state  of  the  inhabitants  as  it  H\t- 
pt^ared  to  the  Romans  on  their  invasion  of  this  country.  We  shall 
bricflv  run  over  the  events  which  attended  the  conquest  made  by  that 
Vol.  I.— 7 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


1.0    !S"-  t^ 


I.I 


^  1^    12.2 
^    US.    12.0 


IM 


1.25 

1=  1  = 

^ 

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► 

Photographic 

Sciences 
Corporation 


33  WIST  MAIN  STRUT 

WIISTIR. NY.  MSIO 

(716)  •7a-4S03 


^s 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


empire  as  beIon<>;ing  nioie  to  Roman  than  to  British  story.  We  shall 
hasten  through  the  obscure  iinJ  uniuieresting  period  of  Saxon  annals,  and 
shall  reserve  a  more  full  narration  tor  those  times  when  the  truth  is  both 
so  well  ascertained  and  so  complete  as  to  proinis'j  entertainment  and  in 
struction  to  the  reader." 

That  Britain,  liite  Gaul,  was  originaliy  inhabited  by  a  tribe  of  theCeltae, 
IS  as  welt  ascertained  as  sucli  a  remote  fact  can  be  with  respect  to  a  peo- 
ple destitute  of  letters;  iaiiguafre,  nianners,  government  (such  as  it  was), 
and  religion,  all  tend  to  show  ther  common  origin.  But  the  Uritons,  from 
their  insular  situation,  retained  their  full  rudeness  and  their  primitive  man- 
ners and  customs  long  after  the  Gauls,  from  their  intercourse  with  the  in> 
iiabitants  of  other  parts  of  the  continent,  had  considerably  improved  in 
both  respects. 

The  British  people  were  divided  into  many  kingdoms  or  tribes ;  and 
though  each  tribe  had  a  monarch,  each  monarchy  was  principally  founded 
upon  physical  force,  and  of  course  greatly  tempered  by  it.  For  despotism, 
indeed,  there  was  but  little  opportunity,  whatever  the  inclination  of  the 
king.  War  was  the  principal  occupation  of  tribe  against  tribe,  and  hunt- 
ing at  once  the  chief  amusement;  and,  next  to  the  feeding  of  Hocks  and 
herds,  the  most  important  means  of  subsistence.  Wandering  hither  and 
thither  in  search  of  pasture  for  their  cattle,  these  wild  tribes  were  perpet- 
ually coming  into  collision  wiih  each  other;  and  so  frequent  and  fierce 
were  their  wars,  that  but  for  the  interference  of  the  Druids — in  this  respect 
a  body  of  men  as  useful  as  in  many  other  respects  they  were  mischievous — 
their  mutual  rancour  would  have  proceeded  well-nigh  to  mutual  annihila- 
tion. 

Though  we  have  stated  the  Britons  to  have  been  free  from  kingly  des- 
potism— though,  in  fact,  the  king  was  only  the  first  freeman  of  a  iribe  of 
freemen,  there  yet  was  a  despotism,  and  a  terrible  one,  for  both 
king  and  people — the  despotism  of  the  Druids.  The  Druids  were  the 
priests  of  the  Uritons;  and  they  were  also  their  teachers,  their  lawgivers 
and  their  inngistrates;  and  the  peculiar  tenets  which  were  iiu^nlcated  upon 
the  British  from  their  earliest  childhood,  were  such  as  to  render  the  Druid 
priests  omnipotent,  as  far  as  the  term  can  be  applied  to  men  and  man's  at- 
tributes. He  who  dared  to  ofii'iid  the  Druid  priest  in  any  one  of  his  multi- 
farious oflices,  lost  all  pca(te  in  tiiis  world,  even  if  his  life  were  spared; 
he  was  exiuiiiimunicated,  utterly  and  hopelessly  ;  shunned  by  his  fellow- 
men,  who  dared  neither  to  aid  nor  to  soothe  him,  he  could  but  retire  to 
the  deepest  solitudes  of  the  forest,  battle  for  his  precarious  existence  with 
the  forest  brutes,  and  perish  like  them,  obscure  and  unregarded.  Nor  was 
the  pang  with  which  he  closed  his  eyes  forever  upon  this  world  mitigated 
by  any  bright  and  cheering  hope  in  a  future  life.  The  ineteinpsycTiosia 
had  been  a  part  of  his  belief  from  infancy,  and  he  who  died  under  the  fear- 
ful ban  of  the  Druidsdied  in  the  assured  and  terrible  conviction  that  he  would 
live  for(!ver  under  successive  forms,  each  more  obscene  and  contemptible 
or  more  hated,  persecuted,  and  tortured,  than  that  which  had  preceded  it. 

Willi  such  means  of  upliolding  their  power  over  a  rude  people,  it  will 
easily  be  believed  that  ihe  Druids  had  little  trouble  in  ruling  both  king  and 
subjects.  And,  detestable  as  were  their  cruel  sacrifices  of  human  victims, 
this  exc(!eding  power  over  the  mini's  of  the  people  was  so  far  valuable, 
that  it  supplied  the  want  of  more  leg  timate  power  to  prevent  wild  courage 
proceeding  to  frenzied  ferocity,  and  .o  prevent  war  from  being  prosei  vtud 
to  the  extent  of  extermination. 

Humanity  can  never  fail  to  regret  the  miseries  and  the  crimes  that 
characterize  wars,  or  o  delesi  the  injustiiie  and  Ihe  insolence  of  Ihe 
feeling  wliiih  prompts  the  stniiig  to  trample  upon  the  weak,  and  thu 
wealthy  In  |iluiider  the  poor.  But,  while  we  neiressarily  look  with  iheie 
feelings  upon  invision  and  war  in  the  uL'siract,  we  must  not  close  our  eyes 


THE  TRKASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


to  tlie  fact,  that  the  sufferings,  however  great,  of  a  barbarous  people  inva- 
ded  ami  overrun  by  a  civilized  people,  are  but  temporary,  and  are  follow- 
ed and  more  than  couuterbalauteci  by  a  permanent  deliverance  from  the 
squalid  miseries  and  the  mental  darkness  by  which  savage  life  is  every, 
where  chiiracterized.  The  poet  may  tune  liis  harmonious  lay  to  the  Wiw 
of  those  primeval  ages, 

'■  When  wild  in  woods  the  noble  savage  ran ;" 

But  the  sterner  pen  of  history,  informed  by  the  actual  experience  of  the 
voyager,  must  give  no  such  flattering  picture  of  barbarism.  Whether  in 
the  prairies  of  America,  or  in  the  wild  bush  of  New- Holland,  we  find  the 
savage  invariably  miserable  and  a  mere  animal ;  superior  to  the  other  an- 
imals in  conformiition,  but, alas!  even  more  subject  to  disease  and  famine 
than  they  are.  We  may  sympathize  with  the  terror  which  the  poor  sav 
age  feels  when  civilized  man  invades  his  haunts,  and  we  have  every  right 
kto  demand  that  conquests  be  effected  with  the  least  possible  cruelty  ;  but 
\ve£till  must  admit  that  it  may  become  a  great  and  enduring  mercy  to  the 
coifffuered. 

•Britain,  whose  fleets  are  upon  every  sea,  and  upon  whose  conquests  and 
possessions  the  sun,  literally,  never  sets,  was  the  home  of  numerous 
tribes  of  mere  savages  long  after  the  mighty  name  of  Rome  was  heard 
with  awe  or  admiration,  with  love  or  hale,  in  every  civilized  nation  of  the 
earth. 

Dwelling  in  wattled  huts  of  the  meanest  construction,  most  of  these 
tribes  shifted  their  habitations  from  phue  to  place  as  new  pastures  became 
necessnry  for  their  cattle  ;  but  some  tribes  wer"^  stationiiry  and  practised 
agricidture,  which,  though  of  the  rudest  kind,  served  to  improve  their  sub- 
sistence. 

Julius  C.Tsnr,  the  renowned  Roman,  having  overrun  Oanl  at  ihc  head  o( 
his  irresistible  legions,  had  his  attention  attracted  to  Britain  b.  c.  .55.  He 
dntermiued  to  conquer  it,  and  it  is  to  his  invasion  that  vvc  primarily  owe 
our  present  splendour  and  importance.  From  his  own  history  of  his  Gal- 
lic wars  it  is  that  we  chiefly  derive  our  knowledge  of  the  state  of  Britain; 
ard  it  is  on  his  authority  that  we  describe  its  rude  and  poor  condition. 
Tne  conquest  of  such  a  coimtry  could  have  nothmg  but  the  love  of  con- 
quest for  Its  motive  ;  but  to  a  Roman,  and,  above  all,  to  a  C.csar,  that  mo- 
tive was  sufticieni  to  incite  to  the  utmost  enterprise,  and  to  reconcilt-.  lo 
the  utmost  danger  and  the  utmost  suffering. 

Not  far  from  the  present  site  of  the  town  of  Deal,  in  Kent,  C-esLr  made 
a  descent  upon  Britain.  The  savage  appearance  of  the  natives,  and  the 
fierce  reception  they  at  first  gave  to  their  invaders,  struck  a  temporary  ter- 
ror even  into  the  hearts  of  the  veteran  soldiers  of  Rome.  But  the  cheek 
was  only  momentary.  A  standard-bearer  lenped  upon  the  inhospitable 
shore,  and  the  legionaries  followed  their  eagle.  Ciesar  advanced  some 
distance  into  the  country  ;  but  every  mile  of  progress  was  made  under  the 
harrassing  attacks  of  the  natives,  whose  (lesnllory  mode?  of  warfare,  and 
their  Intimate  ae.qualnlancu  with  the  wild  country,  made  them  formidable 
In  spite  of  their  want  of  discipline  and  the  rude  nature  of  their  anus.  But 
the  steady  perseverance  and  serried  ranks  of  the  Uoman.s  enabled  them  still 
to  adviince  ;  and  they  giilned  so  much  advantage,  that  when  (;a's.ir  deemed 
it  nececsiiry  to  return  to  his  wlntei  qiiarlers  in  (Jaiil,  he  was  able  lo  e.v 
tort  promises  of  a  (Msaeeahlo  reception  when  he  should  think  proper  lo  re- 
turn, and  received  I  ostages  for  tiielr  fidelity.  He  withdrew  accordingly, 
and  the  Britons,  ignorant,  and,  like  all  barbarous  people,  incapable  of  look- 
ing forwiird  to  disiunt  consequences,  llanrantly  failed  to  perform  their  eii- 
ffHgeiiicn'.s.  Disoliedience  was  what  the  Koman  power  would  not  'it  that  tune 
have  brooked  from  a  pa  iple  far  more  civilized  and  powerful  that  the  Brit' 


^^.' 


lUO 


THE  TREASURY  OJJ"  HISTORY. 


3n8,  and  Caesar  early  in  the  ensuing^  summer  again  made  his  appearance 
on  the  coaot  or  Kent,  On  this  oi^casion  he  Tiiund  a  more  regular  and  or 
ganized  Ton^e  awaiting  liim;  several  powerful  tribes  having  laid  asidi 
their  domestic  and  petty  diflferences,  and  united  themselves  under  Cassi 
belaunus,  a  brave  man,  and  so  superior  to  the  majority  of  the  British  king» 
that  he  was  possessed  of  their  general  respect  and  confidence.  But  mere 
valour  could  avnil  little  against  the  soldiery  of  Rome,  inured  to  hardships 
rather  enjoying  than  fearing  danger,  thoroughly  disciplined,  and  led  bv  at 
consummate  a  soldier  as  Julius  Caesar.  The  Britons,  acordingly,  harrasS' 
ed  him  in  his  march,  and  disturbed  his  camp  with  frequent  night-alarms, 
but  whenever  they  came  (o  actual  battle  they  were  ever  defeated,  and  with 
dreadful  loss.  This  time  Coisar  made  his  way  far  into  the  country,  cross- 
ed the  Thames  in  face  of  the  enemy,  and  in  despite  of  the  precaution  they 
had  taken  to  stake  the  bed  of  the  river,  detroyed  the  capital  of  Cassibel- 
aunus,  and  establiished  askingoftheTrinobantesa  chieftain,  or  petty  king, 
named  Maiidubratius,  who,  chiefly  in  disgust  of  some  ill  treatment,  real  or 
imagined,  which  he  had  suffered  at  the  hands  of  his  fellow-countrymen^^ 
had  allied  himself  with  the  Romans.  ^ 

But  though  Caesar  was  thus  far  successful,  the  wild  nature  of  the  coim 
try  and  the  nomadic  habits  of  the  people  prevented  him  from  achieving 
anything  more  than  a  nominal  conquest  of  the  island.  He  was  obliged 
to  content  himself,  once  more,  with  the  promises  which  the  islanders  the 
more  readily  made  him,  because  they  never  intended  to  fulfil  them,  and 
he  again  Icit  the  island,  never  to  return  to  it;  for  the  domestic  troubles 
of  Rome,  greatly  caused  by  his  own  ambition  and  daring  genius,  left  nei- 
ther him  nor  the  Roman  people  any  leisure  to  attend  to  a  poor  and  re- 
mote island.  His  successor,  the  great  Augustus,  was  wisely  of  opinion 
that  it  rather  behoved  Rome  to  preserve  order  in  her  already  vast  empire, 
than  to  extend  its  bounds.  Tiberius  was  of  the  same  opinion ;  and  Cal- 
igula, flighty  and  fickle,  if  not  absolutely  mad,  though  he  made  a  demon 
Btratlon  of  completing  the  work  which  Caesar  had  begun,  seized  no  spoik 
more  valuable  than  cockle-siielis,  inflicted  only  a  fright  upon  the  Britons, 
and  gave  Rome  nothing  for  the  vast  expense  of  his  c  -ic  expedition, 
save  materials  for  many  a  merry  pasquinade  and  hear*  h. 

For  nearly  a  century  after  the  first  descent  of  Cae  .e  Britons  en- 

joyed peace  unbroken,  save  by  their  own  petty  disputes,  dut  in  the  reign 
01*^  the  emperor  (Maudius,  a.  d,  43.  the  design  of  coiiqiiering  the  island  of 
Britain  was  again  revived,  and  Plautius,  a  veteran  general,  landed  and 
fairly  established  himself  and  his  legionaries  in  the  coutitry.  As  soon  as 
he  received  tidings  of  the  success  and  position  of  his  general,  Claudius 
himself  came  over;  and  the  Cantii,  the  'iegiii,  the  Trinobantes,  and  other 
tribes  of  the  south-eastern  part  of  the  island,  made  their  formal  submis- 
sion to  him,  and  this  time,  probably,  witli  something  like  sincerity,  as 
they  had  experienced  the  power  of  the  Roman  arms,  and  the  superiority 
of  the  Roman  discipline. 

The  more  iidand  Briums,  however,  were  still  fiercely  determined  to 
maintain  their  liberty  and  preserve  their  territory;  and  several  tribes  of 
them,  united  under  the  command  of  Caractacus,  a  man  of  courage  and 
of  conduct  superior  to  what  could  be  anticipated  in  a  mere  barbarian, 
made  a  stout  resistance  to  all  attempts  of  the  Romans  to  extend  their 
progress  and  power;  a.  o.  50.  Indignant  that  mere  barbarians  should 
even  ill  a  slight  degree  limit  the  flight  of  the  destroying  eagle,  the  Ro- 
mans now  sent  over  reinforcements  under  the  command  of  Osloriiis  Sca- 
pula, whose  vigorous  conduct  soon  changed  the  face  of  affairs.  He  beat 
the  Britons  fai-iher  and  farther  back  at  every  encounter,  and  penetrated 
into  the  country  of  the  Slluri-s  (now  forming  part  of  South  Wales),  and 
here  in  a  general  engagement  he  completely  routed  them  and  took  u  vant 
numlicr  of  p  luiiers,  among  whom  was  the  brave  Caractacus. 


THK  TH.KA3URY  OF  HISTORY. 


101 


re- 


This  bravo  though  unfortunate  prince  was  sent  to  Rome.  Arrived  in 
that  mighty  city,  he  was  scarcely  more  astonished  at  the  vast  wealth  and 
grandeur  which  it  contained,  than  at  the  cupidity,  of  the  possessors  of 
such  a  city,  and  their  strange  desire  to  deprive  a  p';cple  so  poor  as  the 
Britons  of  their  wild  liberty  and  wattled  huts.  It  is  to  the  honour  of  the 
Romans  of  that  day,  that  Caractacus  was  treated  with  a  generosity  which 
was  at  once  equal  to  his  merits,  and  in  strong  contrast  with  the  treat- 
ment which  Rome  usually  reserved  for  defeated  kings  who  had  dared  to 
oppose  her.  And  this  generosity  of  the  Romans  to  Caractacus  individ- 
ually, is  the  more  creditable  and  the  more  remarkable,  because  his  cap- 
ture by  no  means  prevented  his  compatriots  from  continuing  the  strug- 
gle. Though  always  distressed,  and  often  decisively  worsted,  the  Britons 
still  fought  bravely  on  for  every  acre  of  their  fatherland ;  and  as  they 
improved  in  their  style  of  fighting,  even  in  consequence  of  the  defeats 
they  received,  Britain  was  still  considered  a  battle-field  worthy  of  the 
presence  of  tlie  best  officers  and  hardiest  vetenuis  of  Rome. 

Irritated  at  the  comparatively  slow  progress  of  their  arms  against  so 
poor  and  rude  a  people,  tlie  Romans  now  gave  the  chief  command  of 
their  troops  in  Britain  to  Suetonius  Paulinus,  a  man  of  equal  courage 
and  conduct,  and  notdd  even  among  that  warlike  race  for  unwavering 
sternness.  This  general  perceived  the  true  cause  of  the  British  perti- 
nacity of  resistance  in  the  face  of  so  many  decisive  defeats  and  severe 
chastisements.  That  cause,  the  only  one,  probably,  which  could  so  long 
have  kept  such  rude  people  united  and  firm  under  misfortune,  was  the 
religious  influence  of  the  Druids,  whose  terrible  anger  had  more  terror 
for  their  deluded  followers  than  even  the  warlike  prowess  and  strange 
arms  of  the  Romans.  Suetonius,  then,  determined  to  strike  at  the  very 
root  of  British  obstinacy  ;  and  as  the  little  isle  of  Anglesey,  then  called 
Mona,  was  the  chief  resort  (  'the  Druids,  he  proceeded  to  attack  it,  right- 
ly judging  that  by  making  a  lirrible  example  of  the  chief  seat  of  their 
religion  and  their  priests,  he  should  strike  more  terror  into  the  refractory 
Britons  than  by  defeating  them  in  a  hundred  desultory  battles.  His  land- 
nig  was  not  eflTected  without  considerable  difficulty ;  for  here  the  naturally 
brave  Britons  fought  under  the  very  eyes  of  their  powerful  and  dreaded 
priests,  and  with  the  double  motive  of  desire  to  win  their  praise,  and 
terror  of  incurring  an  anger  which  ti.e'y  believed  to  be  potent  in  the  fu- 
ture world  as  in  this.  Urged  by  such  considerations,  the  Britons  fought 
with  unexampled  ftiry  and  determination,  and  the  priests  and  priestesses 
mmgled  in  the  ranks,  shrieking  st-ange  curses  upon  the  invaders,  waving 
flaming  torches,  and  presenting  so  unearthly  and  startling  an  appearance 
that  many  of  the  Roman  soldiers,  who  would  have  looked  (^oolly  upon 
certain  death,  were  struck  with  a  superstitious  awe,  and  half  imagined 
that  they  were  actually  engaged  in  personal  warfare  with  the  tittelar  de- 
mons of  their  mortal  foes.  But  Suetonius  was  as  disdainful  of  super- 
stitious terrors  as  of  actual  danger,  and  his  exhortations  and  example  in- 
spired his  men  to  exertions  that  speedily  put  the  ill-armed  and  undiscip- 
lined Britons  to  flight. 

The  worst  crime  of  which  the  Druids  were  guilty,  was  that  of  ofTering 
to  their  gods  human  sacrifices.  Even  in  time  of  peace,  victims  selected 
by  the  Druids,  either  in  actual  malice  or  in  mere  wanton  recklessness,  fed 
the  devouring  flames.  But  it  was  more  especially  in  war  time  that  these 
truly  h(»rrible  sacrifices  were  frequent,  antl  the  victims  numerous.  Con- 
fident in  their  hope  of  defeating  the  Romans  by  force,  and  the  terrors  of 
their  superstition,  the  Druids  of  Mona  on  this  occasion  had  promised  their 
cruel  di'ities  a  plenteous  sacrifice.  The  fires  were  prepared— but  they 
who  were  to  have  been  the  ministering  priests  became  the  victims;  for 
Suetonius,  as  cruel  as  those  against  wwiom  he  fought,  burned  the  captive 
Druids  at  their  own  altars.    Having  wreaked  this  cruel  vengeance,  and 


THE  TBEASURY  OF  HISTORY 


uut  down  or  burned  the  dense  groves  in  which  the  Druids  had  tor  ages 
perfornied  the  dark  rites  of  their  mysterious  religion,  he  left  Anglesey 
and  returned  into  Uritnin,  confident  that  the  blow  he  had  thus  struck  at 
the  most  veneniled  seat  of  the  Briiish  faith  would  so  shake  tlie  courage 
and  confidence  of  its  votaries,  that  he  would  have  for  the  future  only  a 
series  uf  easy  triumphs.  But  his  absence  from  the  main  island  might 
have  been  of  more  disparagement  to  his  cause  tiian  his  feats  at  M(ma  had 
been  to  its  advantage.  Profiting  by  their  brief  freedom  from  his  pres- 
ence, the  scattered  tribes  of  the  Britons  had  reunited  themselves,  and  un 
der  a  leader,  who,  though  a  woman,  was  formidable  both  by  natural  char- 
acter and  sinimeful  provocation. 

Boadicea,  widow  of  the  king  of  the  Iceni,  having  offended  a  Roman 
tribune  by  the  spirit  with  which  she  upheld  her  own  and  her  subject's 
rights,  was  treated  with  a  shameful  brutality,  amply  sufficient  to  have 
maddened  a  far  feebler  spirit.  She  herself  was  scourged  in  the  presence 
of  the  Roman  soldiers,  amid  their  insulting  jeers,  and  her  three  daughters, 
scarcely  arrived  at  the  age  of  womanhood,  were  subjected  to  still  more 
brutal  outrage. 

Haughty  and  fierce  of  spirit  even  beyond  the  wont  of  her  race,  Boadicea 
vowed  tint  the  outrages  to  which  she  had  been  subjected  should  be  amply 
avenged  in  lioman  blood;  and  the  temporary  alisence  of  Suetonius  from 
Britain  was  so  well  employed  by  her,  that  he  found  on  his  arrival  from 
Moiia  that  she  was  at  the  head  of  an  immense  army,  which  had  already 
reduced  to  utter  ruin  several  of  the  Roman  settlements.  The  safety  of 
London,  which  was  already  a  place  of  considerable  importance,  was  his 
first  care;  but  though  he  marched  thither  with  all  possible  rapidity,  he 
was  not  able  to  save  it  from  the  flames  to  which  Boadicea  had  dnonied  it, 
and  all  those  of  its  inhabitants  who  were  not  fortunate  enough  to  make 
a  timely  escape.  Nor  was  the  Roman  discomfiture  confined  to  London 
or  its  nei<,'lil)<>urhood.  Successful  in  various  directions,  the  Uritoiis  were 
as  unsparing  as  successful ;  and  it  is  anirmed — though  the  luniiber  has 
always  appeared  to  us  to  he  very  greatly  exMga;erated— that  of  Romans 
and  the  various  strangers  who  had  a(;('ompained  or  followed  them  to 
Britain,  no  f(>wer  than  70,000  perished  in  this  determined  and  sanguinary 
endeavoiirof  the  Britons  to  drive  the  invaders  from  their  shores.  Kveii 
allowing  somewhat  for  the  error  or  exaggeration  of  early  historians,  it  is 
certain  that  the  loss  inflicted  upon  the  Romans  and  their  adherents  by 
Boadicea,  was  immense.  But  the  return  of  Siietmiins  inspired  his  coun- 
trymen with  new  spirit,  and  the  tide  of  lortiine  soon  left  the  native  island- 
ers. Pluslied  with  iiiimerous  successes,  and  win'ked  up  to  a  frenzy  of 
enthusiasm  even  by  the  cruel  use  which  they  h'nl  made  of  their  success, 
they  eollei'ted  all  their  forces  for  one  final  and  mighty  effort.  Suetonius 
and  Boadicea  in  person  commanded  tlieir  respective  forces.  'I'lie  latter 
liarnngued  her  troops  with  great  spirit;  the  former  contented  himself 
with  making  his  arrangements  with  consnmmnte  art,  well  knowing  that 
his  legionaries  required  no  exhortation  to  strike  hard  and  home  at  an 
enemy  that  had  put  the  Ron>ai)  eagle  to  flight,  and  make  earth  drink  deep 
of  the  prinid  Roman  blood.  The  battle  was  obstinate  and  terrible ;  but 
once  again  the  marvellous  superiority  of  (liscipline  over  mere  numbers 
and  courage,  however  vast  the  one  or  enthusiastic  the  other,  was  striking- 
ly displayed.  'I'hc  dense  masses  of  the  Britons  were  pierced  and  broken 
'  e  Roman  phalanx  ;  the  defeat  became  a  rout — tin;  rout  a  massacre. 


by 


Boadicea  escapcMl  from  the  field  by  the  swiftness  of  the  h(n-8es  of  her 
own  chariot :  but  despairing  of  ever  again  being  able  to  make  head  against 
the  detested  invaders  of  her  c(nnitry,  anil  preferring  death  to  falling  again 
into  the  hands  of  those  who  had  so  mercilessly  nialireated  ooili  herself 
and  her  ilaughters,  she  swallowed  a  potent  poison,  mid  when  i  vertaken  by 
till!  pursuing  soldiers,  waft  beyond  their  malice,  being  then  in  the  agonies 
of  death. 


THE,  TRKASURY  OF  HISTOttlf. 


103 


Though  Seutonius  had  achievt'd  great  successes  in  Britian.  he  had  done 
•o  only  at  llie  expense  of  such  extraordinary  htsses  and  cruelty  on  both 
sides,  that  Nero  recalled  him  from  his  government,  apparently  under  the 
impression  that  his  excessive  sternness  and  severity  unfitted  him  for  a 
TOst  in  which  it  was  not  merely  necessary  to  know  how  to  combat  the 
resisting,  but  also  how  to  conciliate  the  conquered.  Two  or  three  other 
generals  were  briefly  entrusted  with  this  difRi;nlt  and  delicate  post,  which 
they  filled  with  credit  to  themselves  and  the  Roman  name;  but  it  was  the 
goctd  fariune  of  Vespasian,  through  the  prowess  and  judijnient  of  his  fa 
mous  general,  Julius  Agricola,  completely  to  subdue  Britain  to  the  Roman 
dominion. 

A  consummate  soldier,  Julius  Agricola  was  no  Icps  consummate  as  a 
civil  governor;  and  while  he  led  his  victorious  legi(ms against  the  ISritons, 
driving  farther  and  farther  backwards  to  the  bleak  rocks  and  forests  of 
Caledonia  ihiise  who  did  not  perish  in  the  field,  or  were  too  proud  to  do 
homage  to  their  conqueror,  he  showed  himself  admirably  fitted  for  the 
pecuhar  duties  to  which  he  had  been  appointed,  by  the  skill  with  which 
he  made  kindness  and  liberality  to  the  submissive  go  hand  in  hand  with 
stern  severity  to  those  who  still  dared  to  resist  the  Roman  arms.  Having 
followed  the  more  obstinate  of  the  Britons  from  post  to  post,  !Uid  defeated 
their  collected  force  under  Galgacus  in  a  pitched  battle,  he  erected  a  chaia 
of  forts  between  the  Frith  of  Forth  and  that  of  Clyde,  and  thus  divided  the 
northern  retreat  of  the  hostile  Britons  from  the  southern  parts,  that  now 
formed  a  great  and  settled  Roman  province. 

In  this  province  the  British  inhabitants  were  by  this  time  but  little  in 
clined  to  give  any  farther  trouble  to  their  all  powerful  conquerors,  of 
whose  warlike  prowess  they  had  seen  too  many  proofs  to  give  ihem  even 
a  faint  hope  of  successful  resistance.  Moreover,  Agricola  skilfully  and 
assiduously  availed  himself  of  their  peaceable  disposition  to  instruct 
them  in  the  Roman  tongue,  as  well  as  in  the  Roman  habits  and  arts.  His 
efforts  in  this  direction  were  as  successful  as  his  former  exertions  to  put 
down  resistance  had  been  ;  and  both  London  and  the  smaller  places  soon 
negan  to  wear  a  busy  and  civilized  aspect.  The  skill  with  which  the  Ro- 
mans incorporated  with  themselves  even  the  rudest  and  most  intractable 
people,  when  they  had  once  by  their  conquering  prowess  fairly  got  fooling 
among  them,  was  to  the  full  as  astonishing  and  admirable  as  that  prowess 
itself.  The  Romans  from  time  to  time  strengthened  the  northern  fortifi- 
cations of  Britain,  and  thus  prevented  any  inroad  from  the  still  untamed 
hordes  native  to  Scotland  or  sheltered  there ;  and  the  southern  Britons 
were  so  fully  contented  with  their  situation,  and  became  so  perfectly  in- 
corporated with  their  conquerors,  and  initialed  into  their  habits  and  feel- 
ings, that  the  only  disturbances  we  read  of  in  Britain  during  a  long  series 
of  years  arose,  not  from  insurgent  attempts  on  the  part  of  the  Britons,  but 
from  the  turbulence  of  the  Roman  soldiers,  or  from  the  ambition  of  some 
Roman  governor,  \Vho,  made  presuming  by  holding  high  state  and  author- 
ity in  80  distant  a  province,  was  induced  to  assume  the  purple  and  claim 
the  empire. 

The  wonderful  improvement  made  in  the  condition  of  Britain  by  the 
residence  of  the  Romans  was  at  length  brought  to  a  period.  The  barbaric 
hosts  of  the  north  were  now  pressing  so  fiercely  and  so  terribly  upon  Rome 
herself,  that  the  old  and  hnig  sacred  rule  of  the  Roman  senate,  never  to 
contract  the  liiuiis  of  the  empire  by  abaiuloni:ig  a  colony  once  planted, 
was  obliged  to  be  disregarded.  The  outlying  legions  were  wanted  for  the 
defence  of  the  very  heart  of  the  empire  ;  and  the  insular  situation  of  Brit- 
ain, and  its  very  slight  consequence  with  respect  to  wealth,  naturally 
pointed  it  out  as  a  cidoiiy  to  be  earliest  and  with  the  least  regret  abandonea. 
Scarcely  had  the  Roman  legions  disparted  when  the  Uritons  were  assailed 
hv  the  Ficis  and  Scuts.    The  chain  of  northern  forts  was  strong  and  ad- 


Il      I 


lot 


THE  TREASI/RY  OF  HISTORY. 


iTiirably  planned,  but  hardy  and  warlike  defenders  were  no  less  necessary, 
and  the  Britons  had  so  long  been  ac<;ii»tonied  to  look  for  all  military  ser- 
vice to  the  veterans  who  had  dwelt  among  them,  that  they  had  lost 
much  of  their  ancient  valour,  and  were  no  match  for  the  fierce  barbarians 
whose  bodies  were  as  little  enervated  by  luxury  as  their  minds  were  un- 
tamed by  any  approach  to  letters  or  politeness. 

An  appeal  to  liome,  where  an  interest  in  Britam  was  not  yet  wholly 
lost  in  the  more  pressing  instincts  of  self-preservation,  was  answered  by 
the  immediate  despatch  of  a  legion,  which  drove  away  the  barbarians 
The  departure  of  the  Romans  was  immediately  followed  by  a  new  incur 
sion ;  aid  was  again  sent  from  Rome,  and  the  enemy  again  was  driven 
back.  But  the  situation  of  the  Roman  empire  was  now  so  critical,  that 
even  a  single  legion  could  no  longer  be  spared  from  home  defence,  and 
the  Romans,  having  put  the  northern  fortifications  into  repair,  exhorted  the 
Britons  to  defend  themselves  with  perseverance  and  valour,  and  took 
their  final  leave  of  them  in  the  year  44iS,  after  having  been  masters  of  the 
island,  and  exerted  their  civilizing  influence  upon  its  inhabitants,  for  very 
nearly  four  centuries. 

It  had  been  well  for  the  Britons  if  they  had  not  been  in  the  habit  of  re 
lying  80  implicitly  upon  the  Romans  for  defence.  Now  that  Rome  left 
them  thus  suddenly  and  completely  to  their  own  mastery,  they  were  in 
precisely  the  worst  possible  stage  of  transition  to  fit  them  for  a  struggle 
with  their  more  barbarous  northern  neighbonis ;  they  had  lost  much  of  the 
fierce  and  headlong  valour  of  barbarians,  without  acquiring  the  art  and 
discipline  of  civilized  warriors,  and  they  liad  just  so  nui<:h  of  wealth  and 
luxury  as  sufTu-cd  to  tempt  cupidity.  Many  of  their  boldest  and  most  vig- 
orous youth  had  cither  been  incorporated  in  the  Roman  soldiery,  or  had 
fallen  in  support  of  (irutian  and  Constantinc  in  their  ill-fated  pretensions 
to  the  impori'il  throne.  The  northern  barbarians,  ever  on  the  watch,  soon 
became  aware  that  the  Roman  legion,  before  which  their  untrained  hosts 
had  been  compelled  to  give  way,  had  departed  ;  and  they  forthwith  assent 
bled  in  vast  numbers  and  again  assailed  the  northern  fortifications.  To 
men  so  long  unaccustomed  as  the  Britons  were  to  self-defence,  the  very 
consciousness  of  having  to  rt  ly  wholly  upon  their  own  valour  and  pru- 
dence, had  an  appalling  and  bewildering  elTect.  They  made  but  a  feeble 
and  disorderly  rcsisiance,  were  speedily  beaten  from  their  forls,  and  then 
fled  onward  in  panic,  leaving  the  country  as  they  passed  through  it  lo  the 
mercy  of  the  savage  invaders.  The  behavior  of  these  was  precisely  what 
might  have  been  expected ;  the  sword  and  the  torch  marked  their  foot- 
steps, hamlet  and  town  were  razed  and  ruined,  and  the  blackness  of  deso 
latioii  was  seen  in  the  fields  whicrh  had  lately  been  covered  with  the  wealth 
of  harvest.  Beaten  at  every  point  at  which  they  attempted  to  make  head 
against  their  enemies,  and  Kccing  in  the  terrible  rage  with  which  they 
were  pursued  and  harassed,  no  prospect  but  that  of  utter  and  irredeemable 
ruin,  the  unfortunate  Britons  sent  an  embassy  to  Rome  to  iniplore  aid 
once  more.  Their  missive,  which  was  entitled  The  Gruans  of  the  Unions, 
graphically  paints  tiieir  situation  and  their  feelings.  "The  barbarians" 
said  this  missive,  "on  the  one  hand,  chase  us  into  the  sea,  the  sea  on  th" 
other  hand  throws  us  back  upon  the  barbarians;  and  we  have  only  the 
hard  choice  lift  us  of  perishing  by  the  sword  ov  by  the  waves." 

But  Altila,  that  terrible  Scuiirjfe  of  God,  as  he  profanely  boasted  him 
self,  was  now  pushing  Roini^  herself  to  mortal  extremity  ;  and  had  Britain 
hevn  even  rich  aiiil  important,  not  a  legion  could  have  been  prudently 
spared  at  this  crisis  for  its  defence.  Being  poor  and  insignificant,  it  ol 
vourse  could  not  for  an  instant  claim  the  attention  of  those  who  wcro 
combating  for  the  safety  of  the  empire,  and  who  had  already  begun  to  des- 
pair of  it.  When  the  llritoiis  found  that  they  were  indeed  fiifally  aban- 
doned by  Pome,  they  lost  all  heart,  deserted  even  their  8tron{{C8t  points 


r' 


'     ';! -i;'!'"!.!' 


''  litl'ii'feliPi 


iliii '.  ,,  'i  ■; , 


4WW 


!'i'^;:b'il|' 

m 


I  ::!;* 


■'■■I  li'iiJ-^ii'- 


THK  THEASUttY  OF  HISTORY. 


lUti 


of  defence,  and  fled  to  the  concealment  of  their  hills  and  forests,  leaving 
their  houses  and  property  to  the  mercy  of  their  enemies.  These,  in  their 
profusion  and  in  the  wantonness  of  their  destruction,  soon  drew  upon 
themselves  the  pan<rs  of  actual  want,  and  then  abandoned  the  country 
which  tliey  had  thus  converted  into  a  desert,  and  carried  all  that  was 
moveable  of  use  or  ornament  to  their  northern  homes. 

When  the  enemy  had  completely  retired  from  the  country  the  Britonv 
ventured  forth  from  their  retreats ;  and  their  industry,  exerted  under  the 
influence  of  the  most  instant  and  important  events,  soon  removed  the 
worst  features  of  ruin  and  devastati<m  from  their  country.  But  as  they 
remained  as  unwarlike  us  ever,  and  were  divided  into  numerous  petty 
communities,  whose  chiefs  were  at  perpetual  discord,  their  returning  pros- 
perity was  merely  an  invitation  to  their  barbarous  neighbours  to  make  a 
new  inroad  upon  people  ingenious  enough  to  create  wealth,  but  not  hardy 
enough  to  defend  it. 

To  Rome  it  was  now  quite  clearly  of  no  use  to  apply ;  and  Vortigern, 
prince  of  Danmonium.  one  of  the  most  powerful  of  the  petty  kings  oj 
Britain,  who  was  very  influential  on  account  of  his  talents  and  possessions, 
though  of  an  exceedingly  odious  character,  proposed  to  send  to  Germany 
and  invite  over  a  force  of  Saxons  to  serve  as  the  hired  defenders  of  Britain. 

As  a  general  rule,  calling  in  a  foreign  force  is  to  be  deprecated  ;  but,  sit- 
uated as  the  Britons  were,  we  do  not  see  what  alternative  they  had  be- 
tween doing  so  and  being  either  exterminated  by  the  barbarians  or  reduced 
to  their  own  wretched  and  rude  <;onditinn.  It  must,  indeed,  have  been  ob- 
vious to  Vortigern,  and  all  other  men  of  ability,  that  there  was  some  dan- 
ger that  they  who  were  sent  for  to  defend,  might  remain  to  oppress.  But 
this  was  a  distant  and  a  merely  problematical  danger;  that  with  which 
they  were  threatened  by  the  barbarians  was  certain,  instant,  and  utterly 
ruinous ;  and  even  had  both  dangers  been  on  a  par  as  to  certainty,  the 
Saxons,  as  less  rude  and  barbarous,  were  preferable  as  tyrants  to  the  Picta 
and  Scots. 

The  Saxons  had  long  been  famons  for  their  prowess.  Daring  in  the 
flght  and  skilful  in  seamanship,  they  had  made  descents  upon  the  sea-board 
of  most  countries,  and  had  never  landed  without  giving  the  inhabitants 
ample  reason  to  tremble  at  their  name  for  the  time  to  come.  Even  the 
Romans  had  so  often  and  so  severely  felt  their  tnis(;hievous  power,  that 
they  had  a  special  ofiicer  called  the  Count  of  the  Saxon  Shore,  whose  pe- 
culiar duty  it  was  to  oppose  these  marauders  upon  their  own  proper  ele- 
ment, and  prevent  them  from  landing  on  the  Italian  shore. 

When  the  Briions  determined  to  .^'".  ily  to  the  Saxons  for  aid,  two  broth 
ers,  by  name  Hengist  and  Horsa,  were  the  most  famous  and  respected 
warriors  among  that  warlike  people.  Tlicy  were  reputed  descendants  of 
the  god  Woden;  and  this  fabulous  ancestry  joined  to  their  real  personal 
qualities  and  the  great  success  which  had  attended  them  in  their  piratical 
expeditions,  h^d  given  them  great  influence  over  the  most  daring  and  ad- 
venturous of  the  Saxons.  Perceiving  that  the  Romans  had  abandoned 
Britain,  they  were  actually  contemplating  a  descent  upon  that  island  when 
the  British  envoys  waited  upon  them  to  crave  their  aid  as  mercenaries. 
To  a  request  which  harmonized  so  well  with  their  own  views  and  wishes 
the  brothers  of  course  gave  a  ready  assent,  and  speedily  arrived  at  the 
isle  of  Tlianet  with  sixteen  hunrlred  followers,  inured  to  hardship  and  in 
love  with  danger  even  for  its  own  sake.  They  marched  against  the  Picts 
and  Scots,  who  speedily  fled  before  men  whose  valour  was  as  impetuous 
as  their  own,  and  seconded  by  superior  arms  and  military  conduct. 

When  the  Britons  were  thus  once  more  dflivered  from  tlie  rage  and 
cupidity  of  their  fierce  neighbours,  they  became  anxious  to  part  \yiili  iheit 
deliverers  on  such  friendly  terms  as  would  insure  their  future  aid  should 
It  be  required.    But  the  Saxon  leaders  had  seen  too  much  of  the  beauty 


IM 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY 


and  fertility  of  the  country,  and  of  the  weakness  and  divisions  of  its  own 
ers,  to  feel  any  inclination  to  take  their  departure ;  and  Hengist  and  Horsa, 
80  far  from  niakin<r  any  preparation  to  return  home,  sent  thither  fur  rein- 
forcements, which  arrived  to  the  number  of  five  thousand  men,  in  seven- 
teen-war-ships.  The  Uritons,  who  had  been  unable  to  resist  the  Picts  and 
Scots,  saw  the  hopelessness  of  attempting  to  use  force  for  the  expulsion 
of  people  as  brave  and  far  better  organized,  and  therefore,  though  not  with- 
out serious  fears  that  those  who  had  been  called  in  as  mercenary  soldiers 
would  prove  a  more  dangerous  enemy  than  the  one  they  had  so  fiercely 
and  effectually  combated,  the  Britons  affected  the  most  unsuspecting 
friendship  and  yielded  to  every  encroachment  and  to  every  insolence  with 
the  bust  grace  that  they  could  command.  But  it  is  no  easy  matter  to  con- 
ciliate men  who  are  anxiously  watching  for  a  plausible  excuse  for  quarrel 
and  outrage.  Some  disputes  which  arose  about  the  allowances  of  provi- 
sioiLS  for  which  the  Saxon  mercenaries  had  stipulated,  furnished  this  ex- 
cuse, and,  siding  with  the  Picts  and  Scots,  the  Saxons  openly  declared  war 
against  the  people  whom  they  had  been  liberally  subsidized  to  defend. 

Desperation  and  the  indignation  so  naturally  excited  by  the  treacherous 
conduct  of  their  quondam  allies,  roused  the  Britons  to  something  like  the 
vigour  and  spirit  of  their  warlike  ancestors.  Their  first  step  was  to  de- 
pose Vortigern,  who  was  before  unpopular  on  account  of  his  vicious  life, 
and  was  now  universally  hated  on  account  of  the  bad  consequences  of  the 
measure  he  had  recommended,  though,  as  we  have  already  observed,  when 
he  suggested  the  subsidizing  of  the  Saxons,  the  Britons  were  in  such  a 
position  that  it  would  not  have  been  easy  to  suggest  a  better  measure.  His 
son  Vortimer,  who  had  a  reputation  for  both  courage  and  military  conduct, 
was  raised  to  the  supreme  command,  and  the  Britons  fought  several  battles 
with  great  courage  and  perseverance,  though  with  almost  invariable  ill  for 
tune.  The  Saxons  kept  advancing ;  and  though  Horsa  was  slain  at  the 
battle  of  Aytesford,  Hengist,  who  then  had  the  sole  command  of  the  Sax- 
ons, showed  himself  fully  equal  to  all  the  exigencies  of  his  post.  Steadi- 
ly advancing  upon  the  Britons,  he  at  the  same  time  sent  over  to  Germany 
for  reinforcements.  These  continued  to  arrive  in  immense  numbers,  and 
the  unfortunate  Britons,  worsted  in  every  encounter,  were  successively 
chased  to  and  from  every  part  of  their  country.  Whether  with  a  desire  to 
make  terror  do  the  work  of  the  sword  among  the  survivors,  or  with  a  real 
and  savage  intent  to  exterminate  the  Britons,  Horsa  made  it  an  invariable 
rule  to  give  no  quarter.  Wherever  he  conquered,  man,  woman,  and  child 
were  put  to  death  ;  the  towns  and  hamlets  were  again  razed  or  burned, 
and  again  the  blackened  and  arid  fields  bore  testimony  to  the  presence  and 
the  unsparing  humour  of  a  conqueror. 

Dreadfully  reduced  in  numbers,  and  sufTering  every  description  of  priva- 
tion, the  unfortunate  Britons  now  lost  all  hope  of  combating  successful- 
ly. Some  submitted  and  accepted  life  on  the  hard  condition  of  tilling  as 
slaves  the  land  they  had  owned  as  freemen ;  others  took  refuge  in  the  moun- 
tain fastnesses  of  Wales,  and  a  still  more  considerable  number  sought  refuge 
iu  the  province  of  Armorica  in  Gaul;  and  the  district  which  was  there  as- 
Bigned  them  is  still  known  by  the  name  of  Britanny. 

Hengist  founded  the  kingdom  of  Kent,  which  at  first  comprised  not  only 
the  couniy  now  known  by  that  name,  but  also  those  of  Essex  and  Middlesex, 
and  a  portion  of  Surrey.  Being  still  occasionally  disturbed  by  revolts  of 
the  Britons,  he  settled  a  tribe  of  Saxons  in  Northumberland.  Other  north- 
ern tribes,  learning  the  success  of  Hengist  and  his  followers,  came  over. 
The  earliest  of  these  vvas  a  tribe  of  Saxons,  who  came  over  in  the  year  477, 
anil,  after  much  fighting  with  some  of  the  Britons  who  had  partially  reco- 
vered  their  spirit,  founded  the  kingdom  of  Sussex.  I'his  kingdom,  of 
which  the  Saxon  MUa.  was  the  founder  and  king,  included  the  present  couii- 
tv  of  Sussex  and  also  that  of  Surrey. 


THE  TRBA8URY  OF  HISTORY. 


107 


Though  from  many  causes  there  is  considerable  difficulty  in  ascertain- 
ing the  exact  dates  of  the  events  of  the  very  earliest  Saxou  adventurers  in 
Britain,  it  is  pretty  certain  that  the  victorious  and  successrul  Hengist  en- 
joyed tliu  possudsion  of  his  ill-acquired  l^ingdoni  until  the  year  483,  when 
lie  died  at  Canterbury,  which  city  he  had  selected  as  his  capital. 

In  the  year  496  a  iribe  ofSaxons  landed  under  the  command  of  Cerdic 
and  hia  sun  Keiiric.  He  was  warmly  resisted  by  the  Britons,  who  still  re- 
mained attached  to  their  country  and  in  arms  for  their  freedom,  and  he 
was  obliged  to  seek  the  assistance  of  liie  Saxons  of  Kent  and  Sussex  to 
enable  him  to  niHiiitaiii  his  ground  until  reinforcements  could  arrive  from 
Germany.  These  at  length  came  under  the  command  of  his  sons  Mey  la  and 
Bledda,  and  having  consolidated  tlieir  forces  with  his  own  he  brought  the 
Britons  to  a  general  action  in  the  year  508.  The  Uritoiis,  who  mustered 
in  numbers  far  greater  than  could  have  been  expected  after  so  many  and 
such  great  losses,  were  commanded  by  Nazaii  Leod.  At  the  beginning 
of  the  day  the  courage  and  skill  of  this  leader  gave  him  greatly  the  advaii 
tagc,  and  had  actually  broken  the  main  army  of  the  8a.K0iis,  which  was 
led  by  Cerdic  in  person,  when  Heuric,  who  had  been  more  successful 
against  anollier  division  of  the  Britons,  hastened  to  his  father's  aid.  The 
fortune  of  war  now  turned  wholly  against  the  Britons,  who  were  com- 
pletely routed,  with  the  loss  of  upwards  of  five  thousand  men,  among 
whom  was  the  brave  Nazan  Leod  himself.  The  Saxons  under  Cerdic 
now  established  the  West  Saxon  kingdom,  or  WV ssex,  which  included  the 
countie?  of  Hants,  Wilts,  Dorset,  and  Berks,  and  the  fertile  and  pictur- 
esque Isle  of  Wight.  The  discomfited  Britons  next  applied  for  aid  to 
their  fellow-countrymen  of  Wales,  who  under  the  prince  Arthur,  whose 
real  heroism  has  been  so  strangely  exaggerated  by  romance,  hastened  to 
their  aid,  and  iiiHicted  a  very  severe  defeat  upon  Cerdic  in  the  neighbour- 
hood of  Bath.  But  this  defeat,  though  it  prevented  him  from  extending  thu 
kingdom  he  had  founded,  did  not  disable  him  from  maiiiiaining  himself  in 
it.  He  did  so  until  his  death  in  534,  when  he  was  succeeded  by  his  son 
Kcnrick  who  reigned  there  until  his  death  in  5G0. 

In  other  parts  of  the  island  other  tribes  of  adventurers  had  been  equally 
successful  with  the  two  of  wiilch  we  have  more  particularly  spoken  ;  but 
as  a  mere  repetition  of  fierce  invi'.iiion  on  the  one  hand,  and  resistance, 
often  heroic  but  always  unsuccessful,  would  neither  amuse  nor  instruct 
the  reader,  we  at  once  pass  to  the  event,  which  was,  that  the  whole 
island,  save  Cornwall  and  Wales,  was  conquered  by  bands  of  Saxons, 
Jutes,  and  Angles,  and  divided  into  seven  petty  kingdoms,  and  called  by 
the  name  of  Angles-land,  subsequently  corrupted  into  England.  Of  each 
of  these  kingdunis  we  shall  give  a  very  concise  account  up  to  that  period 
when  the  whole  island  was  united  under  one  solo  sovereign,  and  at  which 
the  history  becomes  at  once  clearer  in  its  details  and  more  interesting. 


CHAPTER  II. 

THE  HEPTARCHY,  OR  THE  SEVEN  KINGDOMS  OF  THE  SAXONS  IN  BRITAIN. 

It  has  already  been  seen  that  Hengist,  the  earliest  Saxon  invader  of 
Britain,  founded  the  kingdom  of  Kent,  and  died  in  established  and  secure 
possession  of  it.  He  was  succeeded  by  his  son  Escus.  This  prince, 
though  he  possessed  neither  the  military  prowess  nor  the  love  of  adven- 
ture which  had  distinguished  his  father,  maintained  his  plai;e  in  peace,  and 
not  without  dignity,  to  his  death,  which  occurred  in  512,  when  he  was 
succeeded  by  his  son  Octa. 

Ocia  like  his  fattier,  was  a  man  of  mediocre  talent,  and  unfortunatelv 


108 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


for  him  he  lived  in  a  time  when  his  neijrhbDurliood  was  Hiiything  but  traii 
quil.  The  kingdom  of  tiie  Kast  Saxons,  newly  estalilished,  greiitly  exien- 
<led  its  limits  at  his  expense,  and  at  his  death,  in  534,  he  lert  his  l<ingdoin 
less  extensive  than  he  had  received  it  by  the  whole  of  Kssex  and  Middle- 
sex. To  Oota  succeeded  his  son  Ymrick,  who  reigned  in  tolerable  tran- 
quillity during  the  long  period  of  thirty-two  years.  Towards  the  close  of 
his  reign  he  associated  with  him  in  the  government  his  son  Ethelbert, 
who  in  566  succeeded  him.  While  the  kings  of  the  Heptarchy  were  as 
yet  in  any  danger  of  disturbance  and  reprisals  on  the  part  of  the  outraged 
Britons,  the  meie  instinct  of  self-preservation  had  prevented  them  from 
having  any  considerable  domestic  feuds  :  but  this  danger  at  an  end,  the 
Saxon  kings  speedily  found  cause  of  quarrel  among  themselves.  Some- 
times, as  we  have  sen  in  the  case  of  Kent,  under  Octa,  one  state  was  en- 
croached upon  by  another;  at  another  time  the  spirit  of  jealousy,  which  it 
inseparable  from  petty  kings  of  territories  having  no  natural  and  cITicient 
boundaries,  caused  struggles  to  take  place,  not  so  much  for  territory  as 
for  empty  supremacy — mere  titular  chiefdom. 

When  Kthelbert,  himself  of  a  very  adventurous  and  ambitious  turn,  suc- 
ceeded to  his  kingdom  of  Kent,  Ceaulin,  king  of  Wessex,  was  the  moat 
potent  prince  of  the  Heptarchy,  and  used  his  power  with  no  niggard  or 
moderate  hand.  Ethelbert,  in  the  endeavour  to  aggranilize  his  own  do- 
minions, twice  gave  battle  to  his  formidable  rival,  and  twice  suffered  de- 
cisive defeat.  But  the  cupidity  and  tyraiuious  temper  of  Ceaulin,  having 
induced  him  to  annex  the  kingdom  of  Sussex  to  his  own  already  consid 
erable  possessions,  a  confederacy  of  the  other  princes  was  formed  against 
him,  and  the  command  of  the  allied  force  was  unanimously  voted  to  Eihel- 
bnrt,  who  even  in  defeat  had  displayed  equal  courage  and  ability. 
KthelbiTt,  thus  strengihencd,  once  more  met  his  ri'al  in  arms,  atid  this 
time  with  better  success.  Oaulin  was  put  to  the  rout  with  great  loss, 
and.  dying  shortly  after  the  battle,  was  succeeded  both  in  his  ambition  and 
in  his  position  among  the  kinss  of  the  Heptarchy  by  Ethelbert,  who  very 
speedily  gave  his  late  allies  aoundant  reason  to  regret  the  confidence  and 
the  Buppurt  they  had  given  him.  He  by  turns  reduced  each  of  them  to  a 
complctH  dependence  upon  him  as  chief,  and  having  overrun  the  kingdom 
of  MerciM,  the  most  extensive  of  nil  the  kingdoms  of  the  island,  he  for  a 
lime  seated  himself  upon  the  throne,  in  utter  contempt  of  the  right  and 
the  reclamations  of  VViibba,  the  son  of  Crid.i,  the  original  foimder  of  thai 
kingdom.  Unt  whether  from  a  sense  of  the  injustice  of  his  conduct,  or 
from  fear  that  a  continued  possession  of  so  extensive  a  territory,  in  addi- 
tion  to  that  which  of  right  belonged  to  him,  should  arm  againut  himself  a 
league  as  compact  and  determined  as  that  by  the  aid  of  which  he 
had  triumphed  over  his  formidable  rival  Oeaulin,  he  subsequently  resign- 
ed Mercia  to  Webba,  but  not  without  imposing  conditions  as  insulting 
ds  they  wore  wholly  unfoniided   in  any  right  save  that  of  the  strongest. 

From  the  injustice  which  marked  this  portion  of  Ethelbert's  condmrt, 
it  is  pleasing  to  have  to  turn  to  an  important  event  which  shed  a  liistrn 
upon  his  reign— the  introduction  of  Christianity  to  the  Saxon  population  of 
P.iiglaiiil. 

Though  the  Britons  had  long  been  Christians,  the  terms  upon  which 
llicy  lived  Willi  the  S,ixoiis  were  esjiecially  iinfavouriible  to  any  religious 
proselytism  bi-lwecii  the  two  pcoph?;  and,  indeed,  the  early  historians  do 
not  scruple  to  confess  that  thi-  Britons  considi'red  their  coiu|tierors  to  be 
unworthy  to  participate  in  the  blessings  of  (christian  knowledge  and 
faith. 

Ethelbert,  fortunately,  wns  mnrriod  to  a  Christian  lady,  Bertha,  dn"^h. 
ter  of  Carihert,  king  of  Paris,  who.  ere  he  would  consent  to  his  daii^rdter's 
njarri.tge  with  a  Pag  in,  sti|)Ulate(l  Ih  it  the  princess  should  fully  aui*  free- 
ly enjoy  her  own  re'.igion.     On  leaving  her  native  land  for  Knglaii'',  shr 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


109 


P 


was  attended  by  a  bishop,  and  both  the  princess  and  the  prelate  exerted 
their  uimost  credit  and  ability  to  propagate  the  Christian  faith  in  the 
country  of  tlieir  adoption  ;  and  as  Bertha  was  much  beloved  at  tlie  court 
of  her  husband,  she  made  so  much  progress  towards  this  good  end,  that 
the  pope,  Gregory  the  Great,  flattered  himself  with  the  hope  of  convert- 
ing  the  Saxons  of  England  altogether,  a  project  which  even  before  he  be- 
came  pope  he  had  conceived  from  having  accidentally  seen  some  Saxon 
slaves  at  Rome,  and  been  much  struck  with  their  singular  personal  beauty, 
and  the  intelligence  with  which  they  replied  to  his  questions. 

Encouraged  by  the  success  which  had  attended  the  eflforts  of  Bertha, 
Gregory  dispatched  Augustin  and  forty  other  monks  to  Britain.  They 
found  Kthelbert,  by  the  influence  of  his  queen,  well  disposed  to  receive 
them  hospitably  and  listen  to  them  patiently.  Having  provided  them  with 
a  residence  in  the  isle  of  Thanel,  he  gave  them  time  to  recover  from  the 
fatigues  of  travel,  and  then  appointed  a  day  for  a  public  interview ;  but 
friendly  as  the  brave  Pagan  was  toward  the  co-religionisis  of  his  wife, 
he  could  not  wholly  divest  himself  o.  si.perstitious  terrors ;  and,  lest 
the  stranger  preachers  should  have  some  evil  spells  of  power,  he  appoint- 
ed the  meeting  to  take  place  in  the  open  air,  where,  he  thought,  such 
spells  would  be  less  effective  than  within  the  walls  of  a  building. 

Augustin  set  before  the  king  the  inspiring  and  consoling  truths  ot 
Christianity.  Doctrines  so  mild,  so  gentle,  so  free  from  earthly  taint, 
and  from  all  leaven  of  ambition  and  violence,  struck  strangely,  but  no 
(ess  forcibly,  upon  the  spirit  of  the  bold  Ethelbert.  But  though  much 
moved,  he  was  ndl  wholly  convinced  ;  he  could  admire,  but  he  could  not 
instantly  embrace  tenets  so  new  and  so  different  from  those  to  which 
from  infancy  he  had  been  accustomed.  But  if  he  could  not  on  the  instant 
abandon  the  faith  of  his  ancestors  for  the  new  faith  that  was  now  preach- 
ed to  him,  he  was  entirely  convinced  that  the  latter  faith  was,  at  the 
least,  incapable  of  injuring  his  people.  His  reply,  therefore,  to  the  ad 
dresses  of  Augustin,  was  at  once  marked  by  tolerance  and  by  caution  i 
by  an  unwillingness  to  abandon  the  faith  of  his  youth,  yet  by  a  perfect 
willingness  to  allow  his  people  a  fair  opportunity  of  judging  between  that 
faith  and  Christianity. 

"  Your  words  and  your  promises,"  said  he,  "sound  fairly;  but  inas- 
much as  they  are  new  and  unproven,  I  cannot  entindy  yield  my  confi- 
dence to  them,  and  abandon  the  principles  so  long  maintained  by  my  an- 
cestors. Nevertheless,  you  may  remain  here  in  peace  and  safety,  and 
as  you  have  travelled  so  far  in  order  to  benefit  us,  at  least  as  you  sup- 
pose, I  will  provide  you  with  everything  necessary  for  your  support,  and 
you  shall  have  full  liberty  to  preach  your  do(rtiines  to  my  subjects." 

Well  would  it  have  been  for  mankind  if  all  potentates  in  all  times  and 
countries  had  been  as  wisely  tolerant  as  this  Pagan  Saxon  of  an  early 
and  benighted  age. 

The  decree  of  toleration  that  was  thus  accorded  to  Augustin  was  all 
that  he  required;  his  own  faithful  zeal  ami  well-cultivated  talents  assured 
liiin  of  success;  and  so  well  and  diligently  did  he  avail  himself  of  the 
opportunities  that  were  afforded  to  him  by  the  king's  toleration  and  the 
queen's  favour,  that  he  speedily  made  numbers  of  cfinverts.  Every  new 
success  inspired  him  with  new  zeal  and  nerved  him  to  new  exertions. 
His  aliBlinence,  liiii  p.iinful  vigils,  and  the  severe  penances  to  which  he 
subjected  hiinneir,  struck  these  rude  people  with  awe  and  admiration,  and 
not  merely  fixed  llieir  attention  more  strongly  than  any  other  means 
could  have  done  upon  his  preachings,  but  also  predisiiosed  them  to  be- 
litve  equally  in  the  sincerity  of  the  preacher  and  in  the  truth  of  his  doc- 
trine. Numbers,  not  only  of  the  poorer  and  more  ignorant,  but  also  of 
the  wealthier  and  better  inforined,  becanw  at  first  attentive  auditors,  and 
then  converts.    They  criwded  to  be  baptized,  and  after  a  great  inajorilr 


110 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


of  his  subjects  had  thus  been  admitted  into  the  pale  of  Christianity,  the 
king  himself  became  a  convert  and  was  baptized,  to  the  great  joy  oi 
Rome. 

Augustin  had  constantly  impressed  upon  the  king  that  conversion  to 
the  Christian  faith  must  he  the  result  not  of  force  or  ihreateuings,  but  of 
conviction ;  thai  the  religion  of  Christ  was  the  religion  of  love  and  of 
perfect  faith  in  doctrint^s  set  forth  iit  faithful  preaching.  He  had  con- 
stantly exhorted  the  king  to  allow  no  worhlly  motives  to  weigh  in  his 
own  conversion,  and  by  no  means  to  exert  his  authority,  or  the  terror  of 
it,  to  produce  an  unwilling  assent  on  the  part  of  any  portion  of  his  peo- 
ple, however  humble,  seeing  that  in  the  sight  of  Heaven,  and  in  things 
spiritual,  the  humblest  peasant  was  as  important  and  as  precious  as  the 
proudest  and  most  powerful  monarch. 

But  Gregory  the  Great  was  zealous  in  the  extreme  in  the  cause  ol 
proselytism,  and  by  no  means  backward  in  availing  himself  of  temporal 
power  for  the  fulfilment  of  spiritual  ends.  And  as  soon  as  he  learned 
that  Ethelbert  and  a  considerable  portion  of  his  subjects  had  embraced 
Christianity,  he  sent  to  the  former  at  once  to  conerratulate  him  upon  his 
wise  and  happy  conversion,  and  to  urge  hin),  by  his  duty  as  a  monarch, 
and  by  his  sympathies  and  faith  as  a  Christian,  not  any  longer  to  allow 
even  a  part  of  his  subjects  to  wander  on  in  the  darkness  and  error  of  Pa- 
ganism. To  have  the  kingly  power,  he  argued,  implied  and  included  the 
duly  of  using  it  in  all  ways  that  could  conduce  to  the  wclHire  of  his  sub- 
jects— and  what  more  weighty  and  tremendous  matter  could  concern 
ihem  than  the  possession  of  that  true  faith  which  alone  could  secure 
their  happiness  in  this  world  and  their  safety  in  the  world  to  come.  Ex- 
horting the  king  to  blandishment  and  persuasion,  he  also  exhorted  him, 
ni  the  case  of  those  means  failing  with  any,  to  resort  to  terror,  and 
threatening,  and  even  chastisement.  So  ditTprent  was  the  policy  of  the 
piipal  statesman  and  the  pious  and  sin(;erely  Cliristian  feelings  of  his 
zealous  missionary ! 

Gregory  at  the  same  time  sent  his  instructions  to  Augustin,  and  very 
piirticular  answers  to  some  singular  quc.stions  put  by  the  missionary  as 
to  points  of  morality  which  he  thought  it  necessary  to  enforce  upon  the 
understandings  and  practice  of  hi.s  new  and  numerous  flock ;  but  these 
questions  and  an-swers  would  bo  out  of  place  here,  as  they  only  tend  to 
illustrate  either  the  exceeding  grossness  of  the  flock,  or  the  exceeding 
simplicity  and  minute  anxiety  of  their  spiritual  pastor. 

Well  pleased  with  the  zeal  of  Augustin,  and  with  the  snccess  with 
whir-h  it  had  thus  far  been  crowned,  Gregory  ujade  him  archbishop  ol 
('aiuerl)nry,  sent  him  a  pall  from  Home,  and  gave  him  plenary  audiorily 
over  all  the  Uritish  churi^hes  that  should  he  erected,  llut  ihough  Agus- 
tin  was  thus  highly  apiyoved  and  honoured,  (iregory,  who  was  shrewdly 
rquainted  with  human  nature,  saw,  or  suspected,  that  the  good  mission- 
ary was  very  proud  of  a  success  wliich  was,  indeed,  little  less  than  mi- 
nculous.  whether  its  extent  or  its  rapidity  he  considered.  At  the  same 
time,  therefore,  that  he  l>oth  pra'sed  air'  exalted  him,  he  em(>liatically 
warned  him  against  allowing  himself  to  be  seduced  into  a  too  great  ela- 
tion on  account  of  his  good  work;  and,  as  Augustin  manireRtcd  some 
desire  to  exert  his  authority  over  the  spiritual  concerns  of  (>aul,  the  pope 
cautioned  him  ngaiiml  nny  such  interference,  and  expressly  iiifonned  liirn 
that  he  was  to  consider  the  bishops  of  that  country  wholly  beyond  his 
jurisdiction.  Strange  contradictions  in  human  reasoning  and  conduct? 
We  have  the  humble  missionary  dehorting  a  newly  coivverled  pagan  from 
persecution;  a  pope,  the  visible  head  of  ilii-  whole  f'hristiaii  world,  and 
the  presumed  infallible  expounder  of  ('hrislian  docirines,  strongly  and 
expressly  exhorting  him  to  it ;  and  anon  we  have  the  ainliitloiis  anil  des- 
potic patron  of  furciblu  pruselytisiii  witeljr  and  reasoiiably  interposing 


I 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


Ill 


riis  authority  and  Uiivicte  tu  prevent  the  recently  so  humble  missionary 
rroiii  maivuiir  sliipwrcck  of  Ins  character  Hud  usetulness,  by  an  unbecum- 
tng  iinil  uiijiislirnibie  indulgence  in  the  soaring  ambition  so  suddenly  and 
strongly  awakened  by  the  gift  of  a  111  tie  briel  anihonty  ! 

It  was  not  only  in  tiie  influence  that  Oertha  had  in  tiie  conversion  ol 
tlie  Saxon  subjects  of  her  husband  to  Christianity  that  shd  was  service- 
able to  tiieni,  though  compared  to  that  service  all  others  were  of  compar- 
atively small  value.  But  even  in  a  worldly  point  of  view  her  marrriage 
to  I'Ulit'lbert  was  of  real  and  very  important  benefit  to  his  subjects.  For 
her  intimate  connection  with  France  led  to  an  intercourse  between  that 
nation  and  K.ngland,  which  not  merely  tended  to  increase  the  wealth,  in- 
genuity, and  commercial  enterprise  of  the  latter,  but  also  to  soften  and 
polish  their  as  yet  rude  and  semi-barbarous  manners.  The  conversion  of 
the  Saxons  to  Chrisiianily  had  even  a  more  extensive  influence  in  these 
respects,  by  bringing  the  people  acquainted  with  the  arts  and  the  luxuries 
'if  Italy. 

Stormy  at  its  commencement,  the  reign  of  Elhelbert  was  subsequently 
peaceable  and  prosperous,  and  it  left  traces  and  seed  of  good,  of  which 
the  (English  are  even  to  this  day  reaping  the  benefit.  Ucsides  the  share 
he  had  in  converting  his  subjects  to  Christianity,  and  in  encouraging 
them  to  devote  themselves  to  commerce  and  the  useful  arls,  he  was  the 
first  Saxon  monarch  who  gave  his  people  written  laws;  and  these  laws, 
making  due  allowance  for  the  age  and  for  the  condition  of  the  people  for 
whose  government  they  were  proniulged,  show  him  to  have  been,  even 
if  regarded  only  in  his  civil  capacity,  an  extremely  wise  man  and  a  lover 
of  peace  and  justice.  After  a  long  and  useful  reign  of  fifty  years,  Elhel- 
bert died  in  the  year  CIG,  and  was  succeeded  by  his  son  Eadbald. 

History  but  too  fre(|uently  shows  us  the  power  of  worldly  passions  in 
perverting  reliuions  faith.  Durmg  the  lifetime  of  his  father,  Ladbald  had 
professed  the  Chiistiaii  religiini;  but  when  he  became  king  he  abandoned 
It  and  r(!turncd  to  the  gross  errors  of  paganism,  because  the  latter  aU 
lowed  the  indulgence  of  an  incestuous  passi<Mi  which  he  had  conceived, 
and  which  Christianity  denounced  as  horrible  and  sinful.  It  is  much  to 
be  feared  Uiat  among  the  very  earliest  converts,  in  the  case  of  the  oon- 
vi'rsion  of  a  nui.ierous  people,  many,  if  not  even  the  maj(trily,  are  guided 
into  the  new  way  rather  by  fear,  policy,  mere  (ashion,  or  mere  indolence, 
than  by  sincere  conviction.  In  the  present  instance  this  is  lamentably  ap- 
narent;  for  on  EaJbald  returning  to  the  gross  and  senseless  practices  of 
his  forefallH.'rs.  the  great  body  of  his  subjects,  outwardly  at  least,  return- 
ed with  Inin.  So  c<nn|)letely  were  the  Christian  altars  abandoned,  a;<d 
8<)  openly  and  geninally  was  the  (Miristian  faith  derided,  that  Justus, 
b  shop  ol  Rochester,  and  Mclitus,  bishop  of  London,  ab.indoned  their 
sees  in  d('S|)air,  and  departed  the  kingdom.  Lanrentius,  who  had  suc- 
ceeded Auunsini  in  the  Archiepiscopal  dignity  of  Canterbury,  had  pre- 
pared to  follow  tlicir  example;  but  tni  tlie  evi!  of  his  dc|tarture  he  deter- 
mined to  make  one  striking  and  final  etfort  to  bring  back  the  king  into 
the  fold  of  the  church. 

When  excessive  zeal  has  to  deal  wilti  ignnranee  and  rudeness— and 
even  yet  the  Saxons  were  both  ignorant  mikI  rude — we  are  tiiiiglit  by  all 
history  that  even  the  sincerest  men,  wrought  upmi  (ly  excessiv(>  zeal  for 
what  they  consider  to  be  a  righteous  and  iMi|iorlaiit  work,  will  descend 
to  pious  j'raiids  to  accomplish  thai  lor  wlii<-h  the  plain  truth  would  not 
under  the  circumstances  siillu'e.  L^mrciilius  was  no  excefitioii  to  this 
.■.oiiiiixHi  rul(^  StM'king  an  ini(>rvlt'w  with  the  king,  he  threw  ofT  hia 
upper  garments,  and  exhibited  his  body  covered  with  woiiihIs  and  hruisei 
to  BiKtli  an  extent  as  denoted  the  most  savage  ill-treatmiMil.  The  king, 
though  evil  passion  had  led  him  formally  to  atijiire  (.'hristianity.  was  not 
prepared  to  sue,  unmoved,  such  proof  of  brutality  and  irrevcreiico  having 


lis 


THE  THKA8URY  OF  HISTORY. 


been  shown  to  the  chief  teacher  of  his  abandoned  creed ;  and  he  eagerly 
and  indignanily  demanded  who  had  dared  thus  to  Ill-treat  a  personage  so 
eminent.  LHurentius,  in  reply,  assured  him  tliat  his  wounds  had  been 
inflicted  not  by  living  hands,  but  by  ihosc  of  St  Peter  himself,  who  had 
appeared  to  him  in  a  vision,  and  hud  thus  chastised  him  for  his  intended 
desertion  of  a  flock  upon  which  his  departure  would  inevitably  draw 
down  eternal  perdition.  The  result  of  this  bold  and  gross  invention 
showed  how  much  more  powerful  over  gross  and  ignorant  minds  are  the 
coarsest  fables  of  superstition,  than  the  sublimest  truths  or  the  most 
aflfecrtionate  urgings  of  genuine  religion.  To  the  latter,  Eadbaid  had  been 
contemptuously  deaf;  to  the  former,  he  on  the  instant  sai.-rificed  his  in 
cestuous  passion  and  the  object  of  it.  Divorcing  himself  from  her,  he 
returned  to  the  Christian  pale ;  and  his  people,  obedient  in  good  as  in  evil, 
returned  with  him.  The  reign  of  Eadbalii,  apart  from  this  apostacy  and 
re-conversion,  was  not  remarkable.  The  power  which  his  father  had  es- 
tablished, and  the  prestige  of  his  father's  remembered  ability  and  great 
ness.  enabled  him  to  reign  peaceably  without  the  exertion,  probably  with 
out  the  possession,  of  any  very  remarkable  ability  of  his  own.  After  a 
reign  of  twenty-five  years,  he  died  in  640,  leaving  two  sons,  Erminfrid 
and  Ercombert. 

Erconibert,  though  the  younger  brother,  succeeded  his  father.  He 
reigned  for  twenty-four  years.  This  reign,  too,  was  on  the  whole  peace- 
able, though  he  showed"  great  zeal  in  nxtting  out  the  n'maiiis  of  idolatry 
from  among  his  people.  He  was  sincerely  and  zealously  attached  to  the 
churcli,  and  he  it  was  who  first  of  the  S»,xon  monarchs  enforced  upon  his 
•ubjccts  the  observance  of  the  fast  of  Lent. 

Ercombert  died  in  Gfi4,  and  Avas  succeeded  by  his  son  Egbert.  This 
|)rince,  sensible  that  his  father  had  wrongfull^^obtained  the  throne,  and 
fearing  that  factions  might  be  found  in  favour  of  the  heirs  of  his  father's 
elder  brother,  put  those  two  princes  to  death — an  act  of  barbarous  policy 
which  would  probably  have  caused  his  character  to  dGS<;eiid  to  us  in  mitch 
darker  and  moro  hateful  colours,  but  that  his  zeal  in  enahliiig  Dunnina 
his  sister,  to  found  a  monastery  in  the  Isle  of  Ely  caused  him  to  find  fa 
vour  in  the  eyes  of  the  monkish  historians,  who  were  ever  far  too  ready 
to  allow  apparent  friendliness  to  the  temporal  prosperity  of  the  church  to 
outweigh  even  the  most  flagrant  and  hateful  sins  against  the  doctrines 
taught  by  the  church. 

It  is  nevertheless  true  that,  apart  from  his  horrible  and  mercil'^ss  treat- 
ment of  his  cousins,  this  prince  displayed  a  character  so  mild  and  thoiighl- 
ful  as  makes  his  commission  of  that  crin»e  doubly  remiirkablc  ai((l  lamen- 
table. His  rule  was  moderate,  though  firm,  and  during  his  shorf  reign  of 
only  nine  years  he  seems  to  have  embraced  every  opporlimi'y  of  en- 
couraging and  udvnncing  learning.  He  died  in  67.'1,  and  was  s'icceedetl 
by  his  brother  Lothaire ;  so  that  his  cruel  murder  of  his  nephcwi  did  nut 
prove  successful  in  securing  the  throne  to  his  son. 

Lothaire  associated  with  himself  in  the  government  his  son  Hichard, 
and  every  thing  seemed  to  proinist;  the  usurpers  a  long  anil  proiperout 
reign.  Hut  Edric,  the  son  of  Egbert,  uniippalled  by  the  double  power 
and  abilitv  which  thus  barred  him  from  the  throne,  took  shelter  iit  tho 
court  of  Edilwalch,  king  of  Su.ssex.  That  prince  heartily  espoused  his 
cause,  and  furnished  him  with  troops;  and  after  a  reign  of  eleven  years, 
Lothaire  was  slain  in  battle,  a.d.  HBt,  and  his  son  Jliclmrd  escaped  tu 
Italy,  where  he  (!i(!d  in  comparative  ol)scuriiy. 

Edric  did  not  long  enjoy  the  throne.  His  reign,  which  presents  no- 
thing worthy  of  record,  was  barely  two  years.  He  died  in  WCi,  and  wu 
succeeded  by  his  son  Widred. 

The  violence  and  usurpation  which  had  recently  taken  place  in  the 
kingdom  produced  tlie  usual  effect,  disunion  among  the  nubility  ;  and  iliiU 


TUK  TllEASUKY  OP  HISTORY. 


113 


disunion,  as  is  also  usiuiUy  the  case,  invited  the  attack  of  external  en- 
emies. Accordingly,  VVidred  had  hardly  ascended  the  throne  when  his 
kingdom  was  invaded  by  Cedwalla,  king  of  VVesscx,  and  iiis  brother 
Mollo.  But  though  the  invaders  did  vast  daniajfe  to  the  kingdom  of 
Kent,  their  appearance  had  the  good  effect  of  putting  an  end  to  domestic 
disunion,  and  VVidred  was  able  to  assemble  a  powerfull  force  for  the  de- 
fence of  his  throne.  In  a  severe  battle  which  was  fought  against  the  in- 
vaders, Mollo  was  slain;  and  Widred  so  ably  availed  himself  of  the  op- 
portunity afforded  to  him  by  this  event,  that  his  reign  extended  to  the  long 
term  of  thirty-two  years.  At  his  death,  in  718,  he  left  the  kingdom  to 
his  family;  but  at  the  death  of  his  third  successor,  Alric,  who  died  in  794, 
all  pretence,  even,  to  a  legitimate  order  of  succession  to  the  throne  was 
abandoned.  To  wish  was  to  strive,  to  conquer  was  to  have  right;  and 
whether  it  were  a  powerful  noble  or  an  illegitimate  connection  of  the 
royal  family,  every  pretender  who  could  maintain  his  claim  by  force  o( 
arms  seemed  to  consider  himself  fully  entitled  to  strike  for  tlie  vacant 
throne.  This  aniirchical  condition  of  the  kingdom,  and  tiie  weakness 
and  disorder  which  were  necessarily  produced  by  such  frequent  civil  war, 
paved  the  way  to  the  utter  antiihilution  of  Kent  as  a  sep.irate  kingdom, 
which  annihilation  was  accomplished  by  Egbert,  king  of  Wessex,  about 
the  year  820. 


Richard, 
{leroufl 
power 
at  the 

jcd  his 
years, 

aped  to 


in  the 
and  that 


CHAPTER  III. 

THK   HF.PTARCHV    (CONTINUED). 

The  kingdom  of  Northumberland  first  made  a  consideralile  figure  and 
exercised  a  great  share  of  influenee  in  the  Heptarchy  under  Adelfrid,  a 
brave  aiifi  able  but  ambitious  a. id  unprincipled  rider.  Originally  king  of 
Bornicia,  he  marri(!d  Acca,  daughter  of  Alia,  king  of  the  Deiri,  anil  ai  the 
death  of  that  monarch  dispossessed  and  expelleel  his  youihful  heir,  and 
united  all  the  country  norih  of  the  Huinber  into  one  kingdom,  the  limits 
of  which  he  still  farther  extended  by  his  victorii^s  over  the  Picts  and 
Scots,  and  tlie  Britons  in  Wales.  An  anecdote  is  related  of  this  prince 
which  seems  to  indicate  that  he  held  the  clergy  in  no  very  ureal  respect. 
Having  found  or  made  occasion  to  lay  siegi;  to  Chester,  he  was  opposed 
by  the  Britons,  who  marched  in  great  force  to  compel  him  to  raise  the 
seige,  and  they  were  accompanied  to  tlic  field  of  li.illie  by  upwards  of  a 
thousand  monks  from  the  monastery  of  B.iiigor.  On  being  informed  that 
this  numerous  liody  of  religions  men  hail  come  to  the  firld  of  battle,  not 
actually  to  fight  against  him,  but  only  to  exhort  their  CDUiitryinen  to  fight 
stoutly  and  to  pray  for  their  suceeaa,  tiio  stern  warrior,  wlio  could  not 
understand  the  nice  <]istin<'tion  between  those  who  fought  against  him 
with  their  arms  and  tliose  who  prayed  tli.it  those  arms  might  be  victori- 
ous, immediately  detached  soww  of  his  troops  witli  oiders  to  charge  upon 
the  monks  as  heartily  as  though  they  had  been  armed  and  genunie  sol- 
diers; and  80  faitlifully  was  this  rnililess  order  obeyed,  that  only  fifty  of 
the  monks  are  said  to  have  escaped  from  the  s  inguiiiary  si'eiie  \\iih  their 
lives,  [ii  the  battle  which  immeilialidy  followed  this  wiiiitoii  butchery 
the  Britons  were  completely  defiJaied,  and  .Vdelfrid  having  entered  Ches- 
ter in  triumph,  and  strongly  garrisoned  it,  pursued  his  inareh  to  the  mon- 
astery of  Bangor,  n'S(dveii  that  it  should  not  soon  again  send  out  an 
army  of  monks  to  pray  for  his  defeat. 

The  early  years  of"  the  sway  of  Catholicism  in  every  country  were 

marked   both  by  the   miinbers  of  the  monasteries  and  the  vast  expense 

that  was  lavished  upon  them.     This  was  espeeiallv  tlw  iMse  ni  both  I'lng- 

land  and — as  we  shall  hereafter  have  to  rem. irk — Ireland  ;  but  in   neither 

I.-8 


114 


THE  TREASURY  OF  H/STORY. 


of  tlifise  countries  was  there  anotlior  monastery  which  could,  for  extent 
at  least,  bear  comparison  with  that  of  Bungor.  From  gate  to  gate  it  cov- 
ereii  a  mile  of  ground,  and  it  sheltered  the  enormous  number  of  two 
thousand  monks;  the  whole  of  this  vast  building  was  now  sacrificed  to 
the  resentment  of  Adelfrid,  who  completely  battered  it  down. 

But  the  warlike  prowess  of  Adelfrid  was  fated  to  prove  insufficient  to 
preserve  him  in  the  power  which  he  had  so  unrighteously  obtained  by  de- 
priving a  young  and  helpless  orphan  of  his  heritage.  That  orphan,  now 
grown  to  man's  estate,  had  found  shelter  in  the  court  of  Redwald,  king  of 
the  East  Angles,  This  monan-h's  protection  of  the  young  Edwin,  and 
that  young  prince's  reputed  ability  and  courage,  alarmed  Adelfrid  for  the 
stability  of  his  ill-acquired  greatness ;  and  he  had  the  ineffable  baseness 
to  make  offers  of  large  presents  to  induce  Redwald  to  deprive  the  young 
prince  of  life,  or  to  deliver  him,  living,  into  the  power  of  tiie  usurper  ol 
his  throne.  For  some  time  Redwald  returned  positive  and  indignant  re- 
fusals to  all  propositions  of  this  kind ;  but  the  pertinacity  of  Adelfrid, 
who  still  increased  in  the  magnitude  of  his  off"ers,  began  lo  shake  the  con- 
stancy of  Redwald,  when,  fortunately  for  that  monarch's  character,  his 
queen  interposed  to  save  him  from  the  horrid  baseness  to  which  he  was 
well  nigh  ready  to  (consent.  Strongly  sympathising  with  f'/dwin,  she  felt 
the  more  interest  for  him  on  account  of  tlie  magnanimous  confidence  in 
her  husband's  honour  which  the  young  prince  displayed  by  tranquilly  con- 
tinuing hi''  residence  in  East  Anglia  even  after  he  was  aware  how  strong- 
ly his  protector  was  sued  and  templed  lo  baseness  by  the  usm'per  Adelfrid. 
Not  conleiited  with  having  successfully  dissuaded  her  husband  from  the 
treachery  of  yielding  up  tlu;  unfortunate  and  dispossessed  prince,  she 
farther  eiideavoured  to  induce  him  to  exert  himself  actively  on  his  behalf, 
and  to  march  against  the  usurper  while  he  was  still  i!i  hope  of  having  an 
affirnialive  answer  to  his  disgraceful  and  insultinrj  proposals.  The  king 
of  the  East  Angles  consented  to  do  tb.is,  and  suddenly  marched  n  power- 
ful army  into  Northumberland.  In  the  sanguinary  and  <lecisiv(?  hatllv. 
which  ensued,  Adelfrid  was  slain,  but  not  until  after  he  had  killed  Red 
wald's  son,  Regner. 

Edwin,  who  thus  obtained  possession  of  the  kingdom  of  Northninber 
land,  passing  at  oni-e  from  the  condiliou  of  an  exiled  and  dependent  fugi 
tive  to  that  of  a  powerful  monarch,  displayed  .ibility  equal  lo  the  latter  lot 
as  he  had  displayed  firm  and  digiiilied  resignation  in  the  former.  Just, 
hut  infli'xibly  severe  in  rcstniimng  his  subjects  from  wrong-doing,  he  put 
such  order  into  the  kingdom,  which  at  his  accessiim  was  noted  for  its 
licentiousness  and  disorder,  that  <)f  him,  as  of  some  other  well-governing 
priiu'es,  the  oM  historians  relate  that  he  caused  valuable  property  to  be 
exposeil  iiugnaril(;d  upon  the  hiifh  roads,  and  no  man  dared  to  appropriate 
it.  A  ni'Tc  (iguralive  and  hyperbolical  aiu'cdote,  no  doubt,  but  one  which 
evidences  the  greatness  of  the  truth  on  which  such  an  exaggeration  must 
be  founded. 

Nor  was  it  merely  within  even  the  wide  limits  of  his  own  kingdom  that 
the  fine  character  of  Edwin  was  appreciated;  it  procured  him  admiration 
and  proportionate  inlhiencc  throughout  the  Heptarchy.  His  benefactor 
Redwald,  king  of  the  East  Angles,  being  involved  in  serious  disi)utes  with 
his  snlijects,  was  overpowered  by  them  and  put  to  death.  The  eonductt 
of  Edwin,  both  while?  a  fugitive  and  a  soujourner  among  them,  and  in  his 
■ubsecpient  prosperity  and  greatness,  caused  them  to  offi^r  him  their  throne. 
Hut  they  were  incapable  of  imderslanding  the  whole  greatness  of  his  sjiirit 
He  lia<l  too  deep  and  abiding  a  sense  of  gratitude  for  the  favours  he  owed 
to  Iteiiwald,  aitil,  Still  more,  to  the  (]ueen  of  that  prince,  to  see  their  o(T- 
sprinsr  disinherited,  and  instead  of  accepting  the  throne,  he  threatened  the 
hast  Angles  with  chastisement  in  the  event  of  their  refusing  to  give  pos- 
BeBsion  of  i'  to  the  rightful  >wncr  Karpwold,  second  heir  of  the  murdered 


h;i 
re: 
is, 
ow 


nnr 

t 

his 

of  I 


THE  TREASUKY  OF  HISTORY. 


lis 


King.     Earpwold  acconlinjrly  iiscuiided  the  thrKiie,  and  was  protected 
upun  ■'.  by  the  power  and  repiitatiuii  uf  Edwin. 

Edwin  married  Ellielburga,  daughter  t»f  Ethelbert,  king  of  Kent,  by  Ber- 
tha, to  wlioin,  chiefly,  that  monarci.  und  iiis  people  had  owed  their  con- 
version to  Cliristianity.  Of  such  a  inotiier,  Etiielburga  on  the  occasion  of 
her  marriage  proved  herself  the  worthy  daughter ;  she,  as  her  mother  had 
done,  stipulated  for  full  and  free  exercise  of  lier  religion,  and  she  also  took 
with  her  to  her  new  realm  a  learned  bishop,  by  name  Paulirms.  Very 
soon  after  her  marriage,  she  began  to  attempt  the  conversion  of  her  1ms 
band.  Calm  and  deliberate  in  all  that  he  did,  Edwin  would  not  allow  the 
merely  human  feeling  of  conjugal  affection  to  decide  him  in  a  matter  so 
vitally  important  as  an  entire  cliange  of  religion.  The  most  that  her  af- 
fectionate importunity  could  obtain,  was  his  promise  to  give  the  fullest 
and  most  serious  attention  to  all  the  arguments  that  might  be  urged  in  fa- 
vour of  tlie  new  faith  that  was  offered  to  him;  and,  accordingly,  he  not 
only  held  frequent  and  long  conferences  with  Paulinus,  but  also  laid  be- 
fore tiie  gravest  and  wisest  of  his  councillors  all  the  arguments  that  were 
urged  to  him  by  that  prelate.  Having  undertaken  the  inquiry  in  a  sincere 
and  teachable  spirit,  he  could  not  fail  to  be  convinced,  and  the  truth  having 
fallen  bright  and  full  upon  his  enlightened  mind,  he  openly  declared  him- 
self a  convert  to  Christianity.  His  conversion  and  baptism  were  followed 
by  those  of  the  greater  part  of  his  people,  who  were  the  more  easily  per- 
suaded to  this  great  and  total  change  of  faith  when  they  saw  their  chief 
priest,  Coifi,  renounce  the  idolatry  of  which  he  had  been  the  chief  pillar 
and  proponnder,  and  excel  in  his  conoclaslic  zeal  against  the  idols  to  which 
he  had  so  long  ministered,  even  the  Christian  bishop,  Paulinus  himsel 

The  reign  of  Edwin  produced  great  benefit  to  his  people,  but  rather  by 
his  activity  and  industry  than  by  its  length,  he  being  slain  in  the  seven- 
teenth year  of  his  reign,  in  a  battle  which  he  fouaht  against  Cicdwalla, 
king  of  the  Welch  Uritons,  and  Penda,  king  of  the  Mercia. 

At  the  death  of  Edwin  the  kingdom  of  Northumberland  was  dismem- 
bered, and  its  inhabitants  for  the  most  part  fell  back  into  paganism.  So 
general,  indeed,  was  the  defection  from  Christianity,  that  the  widowed 
Eilu'iliurga  returned  to  her  natal  kinudom  of  Kent,  and  was  accompanied 
by  Paidinus,  who  had  been  made  archbishop  of  York.  ,, 

Alter  the  dismembered  kingdom  of  Northumberland  had  been  torn  by 
much  petty  but  ruinous  strife,  the  several  portions  were  again  united  by 
Oswald,  brother  of  Eanfrid,  and  son  of  the  usurper  Adelfrid.  Oswald  was 
stroni^ly  opposed  by  the  Uritons  under  the;  connnand  of  the  warlike  Cied- 
walla,  but  the  Mritons  were  so  desperately  beaten,  that  they  never  again 
made  any  general  or  vigorous  attack  upon  the  Saxons.  As  soon  as  he 
had  re-established  the  unity  of  the  Northumbrian  kingdom,  Oswald  also 
restored  the  (Mnistinn  religion,  to  which  he  was  zealously  attached.  It 
is,  probably,  rather  to  this  than  to  any  of  his  other  good  qualities,  that  he 
owes  the  marked  favour  in  which  he  is  held  by  the  monkish  histori'.ns, 
who  Ixslow  the  highest  |)ossible  praises  upon  his  piety  and  charity,  and 
who  moreover  aflirm  thai  his  mortal  remains  had  the  power  of  working 
miracles. 

Oswald  was  slain  in  battle  against  Penda,  the  king  of  Mercia.  After 
his  death  the  history  of  the  kingdom  of  Nortlnnnherland  is  a  mere  melange 
of  usur|i:itions,  and  of  all  tin-  distractions  of  civil  war,  op  to  the  lime  when 
Egbert,  kinij  of  Wegsi'X,  reduced  it,  in  (!onimon  with  the  rest  of  the  Hep- 
larchy,  to  obedience  to  his  rule. 


116 


THK  THKASUHY  OF  H18TOR\. 


I 


CHAPTER  IV. 

TUB  HEPTARCHY  (CONTINUED). 

The  kingdom  of  East  Aiiglia  was  foundod  by  Ufla ;  but  its  history  af- 
fords no  instruction  or  amusement ;  it  is,  in  fact,  in  the  words  of  an  enii- 
nent  historian,  only  "a  long  beadioU  of  barbarous  names,"  until  we  arrive 
at  the  time  of  its  annexation  to  tlie  powerful  and  extensive  kingdcin  oi 
Mercia,  to  which  we  now  proceed  to  direct  the  reader's  attention. 

Mercia,  tlie  most  extensive  of  all  the  kingdoms  of  the  Ileptarchy,  could 
not  fail  to  be  very  powerful  whenever  ruled  by  a  brave  or  wise  king.  Sit- 
uated in  the  middle  of  the  island,  it  in  some  one  point  or  more  touched 
each  of  the  other  six  kingdoms. 

Penda,  in  battle  against  whom  we  have  already  described  Oswald  of 
Northumberland  to  have  lost  both  throne  and  life,  was  the  first  really  pow- 
erful and  distinguished  king  of  Mercia;  but  he  was  distinguished  chiefly 
for  personal  courage  and  tiie  tyrannous  and  violent  temper  iti  which  he  so 
exerted  that  quality  as  to  render  himself  the  terror  or  the  detestation  of 
all  his  contemporary  English  princes.  Three  kings  of  East  Anglia,  Sige- 
bert,  Egric,  and  Annas,  were  in  succession  slain  in  attempting  oppose 
him,  as  did  Edwin  and  Oswald,  decidedly  the  most  powerful  of  the  kings 
of  Northumberland ;  and  yet  this  monarch,  who  wrought  such  havoc 
among  his  fellow-princes,  did  not  ascend  his  throne  until  he  was  more 
than  fifty  years  of  age.  Oswy,  brother  of  Oswald,  now  encountered  him, 
and  Penda  was  slain;  this  occurred  in  the  year  655,  and  the  tyrannical 
and  fierce  warrior,  whom  all  hated  and  many  feared,  was  succeeded  by 
his  son,  Penda,  whose  wife  was  a  daughter  of  Oswy.  This  princess  was 
a  Christian,  and,  like  Bertha  and  Ethelburga,  she  so  successfully  exerted 
her  conjugal  infiuence,  that  she  converted  her  husband  and  his  subjects  to 
her  faitii.  The  exact  length  of  this  monarch's  reign  is  as  uncertain  as  the 
manner  of  his  death.  As  regards  the  latter,  one  historian  boldly  asserts 
that  he  was  treacherously  put  to  death  by  the  order  and  connivance  of  his 
queen  ;  but  this  seems  but  little  to  tally  with  her  acknowledged  and  afTec- 
tionate  zeal  in  converting  him  to  Christianity  ;  and  as  nothing  in  the  shape 
of  proof  rr.n  be  produced  to  support  so  improbable  a  charge,  we  may  pretty 
safily  conclude  that  cither  ignorance  or  malice  has  given  a  mistaken  turn 
to  some  circumstances  attending  his  violent  death.  He  was  suitcceded  by 
his  son  Wolfhere,  who  inherited  his  father's  courage  and  conduct,  and  not 
merely  maintained  his  own  extensive  kingdom  in  excellent  order,  but  also 
reduced  Essex  and  East  Anglia  to  dependence  upon  it.  He  was  suc- 
ceeded by  his  brother,  Ethelred,  who  showed  that  he  inherited  his  spirit 
as  well  as  his  kingdom.  Though  a  sincere  lover  of  peace,  an<l  willing  to 
make  all  honoural)le  sacrifices  to  obtain  and  preserv;  it,  he  was  also  both 
willing  and  able  to  show  iiiinself  a  stout  and  true  soldier  when  the  occa- 
sion really  demanded  that  he  should  do  so.  Being  provoked  to  invade 
Kent,  he  made  a  very  successful  incursion  upon  that  kingdom;  and  when 
bis  own  territory  was  invaded  by  Egfrid,  king  of  Norlhunibcrland,  he  fairly 
drove  that  monarch  back  again,  and  slew  Elfwin,  Egfrid's  brother,  i.i  a 
pitched  battle.  He  niigned  creditably  and  prosperously  for  thirty  years, 
and  then  resigning  the  crown  to  his  nephew,  Kendrid,  he  retired  to  the 
monastery  of  Uiirdney.  Kendrid,  in  his  turn,  becoming  wearied  of  the 
cares  and  toils  of  royally,  resigned  the  cirown  to  ('eolred,  the  son  of  Ethel- 
red  ;  h(^  then  went  to  Home,  and  there  passed  the  remainder  of  his  life  in 
devout  preparation  for  another  and  a  better  world.  Ceolred  was  suc- 
ceeded by  V'-thelbald,  and  the  latter  by  OIT.i,  who  ascended  the  throne  in 
the  year  755  j  he  was  an  active  and  warlike  prince.  Very  early  in  his 
rcigii  he  defeated  Lothaire,  king  of  Kent,  and  Keiiwulph.kiiigof  VVesscx 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


117 


I 


and  annexed  Oxfordshire  and  Gloucestersliire  to  his  already  large  domin- 
ions. But  though  brave,  he  was  both  cruel  and  treacherous.  Bthelbert, 
kin^  or  the  East  Angles,  had  paid  his  addresses  to  the  daughter  of  OfTa, 
and  was  accepted  as  her  afliaiiced  husband,  and  at  length  invited  to  Here- 
ford to  celebrate  the  marriage.  But  iu  the  very  midst  of  the  feasting  and 
amusements  incident  to  so  importautand  joyful  an  event,  the  young  prince 
was  seized  upon  by  order  of  OiTa,  and  barbarously  beheaded.  The  whole 
of  his  retinue  would  have  shared  the  same  fate,  but  that  Elfrida,  the  daugh- 
ter whom  Offa  thus  barbarously  deprived  of  her  affianced  husband,  found 
out  what  cruelty  had  been  exercised  upon  their  master,  and  took  an  op- 
portunity to  warn  them  of  their  danger.  Their  timely  escape,  however, 
did  not  in  the  least  aflfect  the  treacherous  ambition  of  Oifa,  who  seized 
upon  East  Anglia. 

As  he  grew  old,  Offa  became  tortured  with  remorse  for  his  crimes,  and 
with  the  superstition  common  to  his  age,  sought  to  atone  for  them  by  os- 
tentatious and  prodigal  liberality  to  the  church.  He  gave  the  tithe  of  all 
his  property  to  the  church,  lavished  donations  upon  the  cathedral  of  Here- 
ford, and  made  a  pilgrimage  to  Kome,  where  his  wealth  and  consequence 
readily  procured  him  the  absolution  of  the  pope,  whose  especial  favour  ho 
gained  by  undertaking  to  support  an  English  college  at  Rome.  In  order 
to  fulfil  this  promise,  he,  on  his  return  to  England,  imposed  a  yearly  tax 
of  thirty  pence  upon  each  house  in  his  kingdom ;  the  like  tax  for  the  same 
purpose  being  subsequently  levied  upon  the  whole  of  England,  was  even- 
tually claimed  by  Rome  as  a  tribute,  under  the  name  of  Peter's  pence,  in 
despite  of  the  notoriety  of  the  fact  that  it  was  originally  a  free  gift,  and 
levied  only  upon  one  kingdom.  Under  the  impression  or  the  pretence 
that  he  had  been  favoured  with  an  especial  command  revealed  to  him  in 
a  vision,  this  man,  once  so  cruel  and  now  so  superstitious,  founded  and 
endowed  a  magnificent  abbey  at  St.  Albans,  in  Hertfordshire,  to  the  hon- 
our of  the  relics  of  St.  Alban  the  Martyr,  which  he  asserted  ho  had  found 
at  that  place. 

Ill  as  Offa  had  .acquired  his  great  weight  in  the  Heptarchy,  his  reputa- 
tion for  courage  and  wisdom  was  so  great  that  he  attracted  ihe  notice  and 
was  honoured  both  with  the  political  alliance  and  the  personal  friendship  of 
Charlemagne.  After  a  long  reign  of  very  nearly  forty  years,  he  died  in  the 
year  794. 

Offa  was  succeeded  hy  his  son  Egfrith,  who,  however,  survived  only  the 
short  space  of  five  months.  He  was  succeeded  by  Kenulph,  who  invaded 
the  kingdom  of  Kent,  barbarously  mutilated  the  king,  whom  he  took 
prisoner  and  dethroned,  and  crowned  his  own  brother  Cuthrcd  in  his  stead. 
Kenulph,  as  if  by  a  retributive  justice,  was  killed  in  a  revolt  of  the  East 
Anglians,  of  whose  kingdom  he  held  possession  through  tiie  treachery  and 
tyrannous  cruelty  of  Offa.  After  the  death  of  Kenulph  the  throne  was 
usually  earned  and  vacated  by  murder;  and  iu  this  anarchial  condition  the 
kingdom  remained  until  the  time  of  Egbert.  And  here  we  may  remark, 
«n  passant,  that  neither  in  its  political  nor  civil  organization  did  the  Anglo- 
Saxon  state  of  society  exhibit  higher  examples  of  social  order  than  are 
usually  to  be  found  in  communities  entering  on  the  early  stages  of  civ- 
ilization. 

Essex  and  Sussex  were  the  smallest  and  the  most  insignificant  of  all 
the  kingdoms  of  the  Heptarchy,  and  deserve  no  particular  mention,  even 
in  the  most  voluminous  and  detailed  history  until  the  union  of  the  whole 
Heptarchy,  to  which  event  we  shall  now  hasten. 

We  have  already  spoken  of  the  stout  resistance  which  the  Britons  made 
to  Cerdir,  and  his  son  Kenric,  the  founders  of  the  kingdom  of  Wessex.  A 
«uccession  of  ambitions  and  warlike  kings  greatly  extended  the  territory 
and  increased  the  importance  of  this  kingdom,  whii-h  was  extremely  pow 
erful,  tliough  in  much  interual  disorder,  whea  iUi  throne  was  ascended  bv 


iJ8 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


Egbert,  in  the  year  800.  This  monarch  came  into  possession  of  it  undei 
some  peculiar  ad  vanlHges.  A  great  portion  of  his  life  had  been  spent  at  the 
court  of  Charlemagne,  and  he  had  thus  acquired  greater  polish  and  know- 
ledge than  usually  fell  to  the  lot  of  Saxon  kings.  Moreover,  war  and  the 
merit  attached  to  unmarried  life  had  so  completely  extinguished  the  origi- 
nal royal  families,  that  Kgberl  was  at  this  lime  the  sole  male  royal  des- 
cendant of  the  original  conquerors  of  Britain,  who  claimed  to  be  the  de- 
scendants of  Woden,  tlie  chief  deity  of  their  idolatrous  ancestors. 

Immediately  on  ascending  the  throne,  Egbert  invaded  the  Britons  in 
Cornwall,  and  inflicted  some  severe  defeats  upon  them.  But  before  he 
could  completely  subdue  their  country,  he  was  called  away  from  that  en- 
terprise by  the  necessity  of  defending  his  own  country,  which  had  been 
invaded  ni  his  absence  by  Bernulf,  kingof  Mercia. 

Mercia  and  Wessex  were  at  this  time  the  only  two  kingdoms  of  the  Hep- 
tarchy which  had  any  considerable  power;  and  a  struggle  between  Eg- 
bert and  Bernulf  was,  as  each  felt  and  confessed  it  to  be,  a  struggle  foi 
the  sole  dominion  of  the  whole  island.  Apparently,  at  tlie  outset,  Mercia 
was  the  most  advantageously  circumstanced  for  carrying  on  this  struggle, 
for  that  kingdom  had  placed  its  tributary  princes  in  the  kingdoms  of  Kent 
and  Essex,  and  had  reduced  East  Anglia  to  an  almost  equal  state  of  sub- 
jection. 

Egbert,  on  learning  the  attempt  that  Bernulf  was  making  upon  his  king- 
dom, hastened  by  forced  marches  to  arrest  his  progress,  and  speedily  came 
to  close  quarters  with  him  at  Elandum  in  Wilts.  A  sanguinary  aiid  ob- 
stinate battle  ensued.  Both  armies  fought  with  spirit,  and  both  were  very 
numerous  ;  but  the  fortune  of  the  day  was  with  Egbert,  who  completely 
routed  the  Mercians.  Nor  was  he,  after  the  battle,  remiss  in  following 
up  the  great  blow  he  had  thus  struck  at  the  only  English  power  that  could 
for  an  instant  pretend  to  rivalry  with  him.  He  detached  a  force  into  Kent 
under  his  son  Eihelwolf,  who  easily  and  speedily  expelled  Baldrcd,  the 
tributary  king,  who  was  supported  there  by  Mercia,  Egbert  himscll'  at  the 
same  time  entering  Mercia  on  the  Oxfordshire  side.  Essex  was  con- 
quered almost  without  an  effort,  and  the  East  Anglians,  without  waiting 
for  the  approach  of  Egbert,  rose  against  the  power  of  Bernulf,  who  lost 
his  life  in  the  attempt  to  reduce  them  again  to  the  servitude  which  his 
tyranny  had  rendered  intolerable.  Ludican,  the  successor  of  Bernulf,  met 
with  the  same  fate  after  two  years  of  constant  strug^jle  and  frequent  de- 
feat, and  Egbert  now  found  no  difficulty  in  penetrating  to  the  very  heart 
of  the  Mercian  territory,  and  subduing  to  his  will  a  people  whose  spirit  was 
thoroughly  broken  by  a  long  and  constant  suc-cession  of  calamities.  In 
order  to  reconcile  them  to  their  subjection  to  him,  he  skilfuly  flattered 
them  with  an  empty  show  of  independence,  by  allowing  their  native 
king,  Wiglaf,  to  hold  that  title  of  his  tributary,  though  with  the  firmest 
determination  that  the  title  should  not  carry  with  it  an  iota  of  real  and  in- 
dependent power. 

He  was  now,  by  the  disturbed  and  turbulent  condition  of  Northumber 
land,  invited  to  turn  his  arms  against  that  kingdom.  But  the  Northunt 
brians,  deeply  impressed  with  his  high  reputation  for  valour  and  success, 
and  probably  sincerely  desirous  of  being  under  the  strong  stern  govern- 
ment of  one  who  had  both  the  power  and  the  will  to  put  an  end  to  the  an- 
archy and  confusion  to  which  they  were  u  prey,  no  sooner  heard  of  his 
near  approach  than  they  rendered  all  attack  on  his  part  wholly  unneces- 
sary, by  sending  deputies  to  meet  him  with  an  offer  of  their  submission, 
and  with  power  to  take,  vicariously,  oaths  of  allegiance  to  him.  Sincerely 
well  pleased  at  being  thus  met  even  more  than  half  way  in  his  wishes, 
Egbert  not  only  gave  their  envoys  a  very  gracious  reception,  but  also  vol- 
untarily allowed  them  the  power  to  elect  a  tributary  king  of  their  own 
choice.    To  East  Anglia  he  also  granted  this  flattering  but  hollow  and 


i 


f 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


119 


valueless  privilege,  and  thus  secured  to  himself  ti;e  good  will  of  the  people 
whom  he  had  subjected,  and  the  interested  fidelity  of  titular  kings,  whose 
royalty,  such  us  it  was,  depended  upon  his  breath  for  its  existence,  and 
who,  being  on  the  spot,  and  having  only  a  comparatively  limited  charge, 
could  detect  and  for  their  own  sakes  would  apprise  him  of  the  slightest 
symptoms  of  rebellion.  The  whole  of  the  Heptarchy  was  now  in  reality 
subjected  to  Kgbert,  whom,  dating  from  the  year  827,  we  consider  as  the 
first  king  of  England. 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE  .\NGr.0-S.lXONS  AFTER  THK  DISSOLUTION  OF  THE  HEPTARCHY. — REIONg 
OF  EGBERT,  ETHELWOLF,  AND  ELTHELBALD. 

Thb  vigorous  character  of  Egbert  was  well  calculated  to  make  the  Sax- 
ons proud  of  having  him  for  a  monarch,  and  the  fact  of  the  royal  families 
of  the  Heptarchy  being,  from  various  causes,  extinct,  still  farther  aided  in 
making  his  rule  welcome,  and  the  union  of  the  various  slates  into  one 
agreeable.  As  the  Saxons  of  the  various  kingdoms  had  originally  come 
not  from  different  countries  so  much  as  from  different  provinces,  and  as, 
during  their  long  residence  in  so  circumscribed  a  territory  as  England,  ne- 
cessary and  frequent  intercourse  had,  in  despite  of  their  being  under  dif- 
ferent kings,  made  them  to  a  very  great  extent  one  people,  their  habits 
and  pursuits  were  similar,  and  in  their  lungnage,  that  rnostimportant  bond 
of  union  to  mankind,  they  scarcely  differed  more  considerably  than  the 
inhabitants  of  Cornwall  and  thosn  of  Cumberland  do  at  the  present  day. 

Freed  from  the  unavoidable  differences  and  strife  which  had  occurred 
while  so  many  jarring  royalties  were  crowded  into  such  a  narrow  and  un- 
divided space,  tliey  now  seemed,  by  the  mere  force  of  their  union  into  one 
body,  to  be  destined  to  be  at  once  prosperous  among  themselves,  and  for- 
midable to  any  one  who  should  dare  to  attack  them  from  without.  All 
things  had  concurred  to  give  Egbert  the  supreme  power  in  England  ;  and 
all  tilings  seemed  now  to  concur  to  make  that  power  permanent  and  re- 
spectable. The  correctness  of  these  appearances,  and  the  real  degree  of 
force  possessed  by  the  united  people,  were  soon  to  be  tested. 

Britain,  which  both  by  condition  and  situation  seemed  so  nearly  allied 
to  Gaul,  and  so  fitted  by  nature  to  be  subject  to  it,  was  now,  in  a  great 
measure,  to  owe  to  tliat  situation  the  attacks  of  an  enemy  that  scarcely 
knew  fear,  and  did  not  know  either  moderation  or  mercy.  We  allude  to  the 
Danes.  To  these  bold  and  sanguinary  marauders,  who  were  as  skilful  on 
the  ocean  as  they  were  uns|)aring  on  the  land,  the  very  name  of  Christi- 
anity was  absolutely  hateful.  \Ve  have  seen  how  easily  in  England  the 
wild  and  unlettered  Saxons  were  led  into  tiiat  faith  ;  but,  in  Germany,  (lie 
Emperdr  Charlemagne,  instead  of  trying  to  lead  the  pagans  out  of  error 
into  truth,  departed  so  far  from  both  the  dictates  of  sound  policy  and  the 
true  spirit  of  Christianity,  as  to  endeavour  to  make  converts  to  the  religion 
of  peace  and  good-will  at  the  point  of  the  sword ;  and,  when  resisted,  as 
it  was  quite  natural  that  he  should  be  by  a  people  unacquainted  with  the 
faith  he  wished  to  teach  them,  and  strongly  prejudiced  against  it  by  the 
style  in  which  his  teachings  were  conducted,  iiis  persecution — generous 
and  humane  though  he  naturally  was — assinix^d  a  character  which  would 
not  be  accurately  characterized  by  any  epithet  less  severe  than  tiie  word 
brutal.  Decimated  when  goaded  into  revolt,  deprived  of  their  property  by 
fire,  andoftheirdearest  relatives  by  the  sword,  many  thousands  of  the  pa- 
gan Saxons  of  Germany  sought  refuge  in  Jutland  and  Demnark,  and  nat- 
urally, though  incorrectly,  judging  of  the  Christian  faith  by  the  ccniduct  oi 
the  Christian  champion   Charleiiiugne,  they  made  the  former  hateful  by 


120 


THK  TRKASIfHY  OF  HISTORY. 


by  ilieir  mere  relations  of  iheerueliies  of  the  latter.  When  the  feeble  ai»d 
divided  posterity  of  Charleniiigiic  made  llie  French  provinces  a  fair  murk 
for  hold  invaders,  tlie  mingled  races  of  Jutes,  Danes,  and  Saxons,  known 
in  France  under  the  general  name  of  Northmen  or  Nonnuns,  made  de- 
scents upon  the  maritime  countries  of  France,  and  then  pushed  their 
devastating  enterprises  far  iidnnd.  Kngland,  as  we  have  said,  from  its 
mere  proximity  to  France,  was  viewed  by  these  northern  marauders  as 
being  hi  some  sort  the  same  country  ;  and  its  inhabitants,  as  being  equal- 
ly Christian  with  the  FVeneh.  were  equally  hated,  and  equally  considered 
fit  objects  of  spoliation  and  violence.  As  early  as  the  reign  of  Urithrie  in 
the  kuigdom  of  Wessex,  in  787,  a  body  of  these  bold  and  unscrupulous 
pirates  landed  in  that  kingdom.  That  their  intention  was  hostile  there 
can  be  little  doubt,  for,  when  merely  questioned  about  it,  they  slew  the 
magistrate  and  hastily  made  off".  In  the  year  794  they  lauded  in  Nor- 
thumberland and  completely  sacked  a  monastery,  but  a  storm  prcventingr 
them  from  making  their  escape,  they  were  surrounded  by  the  Northum- 
brian people,  and  compleiely  cut  to  pieces. 

During  the  first  five  years  of  Egbert's  supreme  reign  in  England,  neither 
domestic  disturbances  nor  the  invasion  of  foreign  foes  occurred  to  ob- 
struct his  measures  for  promoting  the  prosperity  of  his  people.  But  about 
the  end  of  that  time,  and  while  he  was  still  profoundly  engaged  in  promoting 
the  peatreable  pursuits  which  were  so  necessary  to  the  w<nilth  and  comfort 
of  the  kingdom,  a  horde  of  Danes  made  a  sudden  descent  upon  the  isle  of 
Sheppy,  plundered  the  inhabitants  to  a  great  nnmtnit,  and  made  their  de- 
barkation in  safety,  and  almost  without  any  opposition.  Warned  by  this 
event  of  his  liability  to  future  visits  of  the  same  unwelcome  nature,  Eg- 
bert held  himself  and  a  competent  force  in  readii»ess  to  receive  them;  and, 
when  in  the  following  year  (a.i>.  t<32)  ihey  landed  from  thirty-five  ships  upon 
the  coast  of  Dorset,  they  were  suddenly  encountered  by  Egbert,  near  Char- 
mouth,  in  that  county.  An  obstinite  and  severe  contest  ensued,  in  which 
the  Danes  lost  a  great  number  ui'  iheir  force,  and  were,  at  Iciiglb,  totally 
defeated  ;  but  as  they  were  skilfully  posted,  and  had  taken  caiT!  to  pre>- 
serve  aline  of  communication  with  the  sea,  the  survivors  contrived  to  es- 
cape to  their  ships. 

Two  years  elapsed  from  the  battle  of  Charmoulh  before  the  pirates 
again  made  their  appearance  ;  and,  as  in  that  battle  they  had  sulTi-red  very 
severely,  the  English  began  to  hope  that  they  would  not  again  return  to 
molest  them.  Hut  the  Danes,  knowing  the  ancient  enmity  that  existed 
between  the  Saxons  and  the  British  remnant  in  Cornwall,  entered  into  an 
alliance  with  the  latter,  and,  landing  in  their  country,  had  an  easy  open 
road  to  Devonshire  and  the  other  fertile  provinces  of  the  West.  But  here 
afiain  the  activity  and  unslumbering  watchfiduess  of  Egbert  enabled  him 
to  limit  their  ravages  merely  to  their  first  furious  onset.  He  came  up 
with  them  at  flengesdown,  and  again  they  were  defeated  with  a  great  di- 
minution of  their  numbers. 

This  was  the  last  service  of  brilliant  importance  that  F/jbort  p*rfotmed 
for  England,  and  just  as  there  v-.s  every  appearence  thai  liis  ••  nhnir  and 
sagacity  would  be  more  than  ever  necessary  to  the  saf  ''  i>f  ;!■ ;  -  .''ry, 
he  died,  in  the  year  838,  and  was  succeeded  by  his  son  '  ;'..  i    ■  li. 

The  very  first  act  of  Ethelwolfs  reign  was  the  division  of  the  country 
which  the  wisdom  and  ability  of  his  father,  aided  by  singular  good  for- 
tune, had  so  happily  united.  Threatened  as  the  kingdom  so  frequently 
was  from  without,  its  best  and  chiefesi  hope  obviously  rested  upon  its 
•jnion,  and  the  consequent  facility  of  concentrating  its  whole  flghting 
."^rce  upci  any  threatened  point.  But,  unable  to  see  this,  or  too  indolent 
10  ii  •  the  v/hole  governincnt  of  the  country,  Eihelwolf  made  over  the 
., .  ui.?  of  ■>  ^ut,  Sus*  .«,  and  Essex,  to  his  sou  Athelstan  It  was  for 
•lunate  il.^u,  under  aich a  prince,  who  at  the  very  outset  of  his  reign  could 


1 


THE  TRKAaURY  OK  UlriTOftY, 


121 


eommit  an  error  so  capital,  England  Im  '.  in  most  of  lur  |)rincipal  places, 
magislrat(!s  (irgovornors  of  bravery  and  abdity. 

•rtiiis  VVolflitii-e,  governor  of  Hampshiro,  put  to  the  rout  a  strong  party 
of  tiie  maraudnrs  who  had  landed  at  Southampton,  fi mi  nofewerlhiin  three" 
and-thirly  sail ;  and,  in  the  same  year,  Athelhelin,  governor  of  Ditrseishire, 
encountered  and  defeated  another  powerful  body  of  tiiem  who  had  huid- 
ed  at  Portsmouth  ;  though,  in  this  case,  unfortunately,  tlie  gallant  govern- 
or died  of  h's  woundH.  Aware  of  the  certain  disadvantages  to  which  tluy 
would  I/'.;  exposed  in  fighting  pitched  battles  in  an  enemy's  country,  the 
I'Saiirg,  II'  their  subsequent  landing,  took  all  possible  care  to  avoid  the  ne- 
f^-v'v  :'J:)ingso.  Their  plan  was  to  swoop  suddenly  down  upon  a  re- 
iired  j).iii  of  the  coast,  plunder  the  country  as  far  inland  as  they  could 
prudenil)  advance,  and  re-embark  with  their  booty  before  any  consider- 
4  iiMe  force  could  be  got  together  to  o|)pose  them.     In  this  manner  they 

,  ^1  |ilundered  Kasl  Anglia  and  Kent,  and  their  depredations  were  the  more 

"iW  dibtressing,  because  they  by  no  means  limited  themselves  to  booty  in  the 

k  usual  sense  of  that  term,  but  carried  off  men,  women,  and  even  children 

into  slavery. 

The  frequency  and  the  desultoriness  of  these  attacks,  at  length,  kept  the 
whole  coastward  in  a  perpetual  state  of  anxiety  and  alarm  ;  the  inhab- 
itants of  each  place  fearing  to  hasten  to  assist  the  inhabitants  of  another 
place,  lest  some  other  party  of  the  pirates,  in  the  meantime,  should  rav- 
age and  burn  their  own  homes.  There  was  another  peculiarity  in  this 
kind  of  warfare,  which  to  one  order  of  men,  at  least,  made  it  more  terri- 
ble than  even  civil  war  itself;  making  their  descents  not  merely  in  the 
love  of  gain,  but  also  in  a  burning  and  intense  hatred  of  Christianity,  the 
Danes  made  no  distinction  between  laymen  and  clerks,  unless,  indeed,  that 
they  often  showed  themselves,  if  possible,  more  inexorably  cruel  to  the 
latter. 

Having  their  cupidity  excited  by  large  and  frequent  booty,  and  being, 
moreover,  flushed  with  their  success  on  the  coast  of  France,  the  Danes  or 
Northmen  at  length  made  their  appearance  almost  annually  in  England. 
In  each  succeeding  year  they  appeared  in  greater  numbers,  and  conducted 
themselves  with  greater  audacity:  and  they  now  visited  the  Knglish 
shores  in  such  swarms  that  it  was  apparent  they  contemplated  nothing 
less  than  the  actual  conquest  and  settlement  of  the  whole  country.  Divi- 
ding themselves  into  distinct  bodies,  they  directed  their  attacks  upon  dif- 
ferent points;  but  the  Saxons  were  naturally  warlike,  the  governors 
of  most  of  the  important  places  seaward  were,  as  we  have  already  re- 
marked, well  fitted  for  their  important  trust,  and  the  very  frequency  of  the 
attacks  of  the  Danes  had  induced  a  vigilance  and  organization  among  the 
people  themselves  which  rendered  it  far  less  easy  than  it  had  formerly 
been  to  surprise  them.  At  VViganburgh  the  Danes  were  defeated  with 
very  great  loss  by  (^  orle,  governor  of  Devonshire,  while  another  body  of 
the  marauders  was  attacked  and  defeated  by  Athelstan,  in  person,  off 
Sandwich.  In  tins  case,  in  addition  to  a  considerable  loss  in  men,  the 
Danes  had  nine  of  their  vessels  sunk,  and  only  saved  the  rest  by  a  pre- 
cipitate flight.  Uul  in  this  year  the  Danes  showed  a  sign  of  audacious 
confidence  in  their  strength  and  resources  which  promised  but  ill  for  the 
future  repose  of  Kngland  ;  for  though  they  had  been  severely  chastised  in 
?■  more  than  one  quarter,  and  had  sustained  the  loss  of  some  of  their  bravest 

]         .    men,  the  niaii.  body  of  them,  instead  of  retreating  wholly  from  the  island, 
i  as  they  had  usually  done  towards  the  close  of  the  autumn,  fortified  them- 

I  selves  in  the  Isle  of  Sheppy,and  made  it  their  winter  quarters.  The  prom- 

ise of  early  reiominencement  of  hostilities  that  was  thus  tacitly  held  out 
'  was  fully  and  promptly  fulfilled. 

Karly  in  the  spring  of  853,  the  Danes  who  had  wintered  in  the  Isle  of 
Thanet,  were  reinforced  by  the  arrival  of  a  fresh  horde,  in  350  vessels 


m 


122 


THE  THliA&UilV  OF  HISTORY. 


I  ; 


and  t!iR  whole  marched  from  tlie  Isle  of  Thanet  inland,  burning  and  de- 
Btroyiiiff  wlmtever  wiis  not  sufficiently  portable  for  plunder.  Urichtric, 
who — St)  far  had  Ethelbert  allowed  the  disjiniction  of  the  kingdom  to  pro- 
ceed— was  now  governor  and  titular  king  of  Mereia,  made  a  vain  attempt 
to  resist  tliein,  and  was  utterly  routed.  Canterbury  and  London  were 
sacked  and  burned  and  the  disorderly  bands  of  the  victorious  enemy 
sprf-ad  into  ttie  very  lieart  of  Surrey.  Ethel  wolf,  though  an  indolent  king, 
was  by  no  means  destitute  of  a  certain  princely  pride  and  during.  En- 
raged beyond  measure  at  the  audacity  of  the  marauders,  and  deeply 
grieved  at  tlie  sufferings  they  inflicted  upon  his  subjects,  he  assembled  the 
West  Saxous,  whom,  accompanied  by  his  second  son  Ethelbald  as  his  lieu- 
tenant, he  led  against  the  most  considerable  body  of  the  Danes.  He  en- 
countered them  at  Okely,  and,  although  tliey  fought  with  their  usual  reck- 
less and  pertinacious  courage,  tiie  Saxons  discomfited  and  put  them  to 
flight.  This  victory  gave  tiie  country  at  least  a  temporary  resi-ite ;  for 
the  Danes  had  suffered  so  much  by  it,  that  they  were  glad  to  pohipune  fur- 
ther operations,  and  seek  shelter  and  rest  within  their  intrencinnent  in  the 
Isle  of  Thanet.  Thilher  they  were  followed  by  Hudaand  Ealher,  the  pjv- 
ernors  of  Surrey  and  K'Mit,  who  bravely  attacked  them.  At  the  com- 
niencement  of  the  action  the  advantage  was  very  considerably  on  the  side 
of  the  Saxons:  but  tiie  fortune  of  war  suddenly  changed,  tiie  Danes  re- 
covered their  lost  grounds  and  the  Saxons  were  totally  routed,  both 
their  gallant  leaders  remaining  dead  upon  the  field  of  batile  ;  a.d.  853. 

Desperate  as  the  situation  of  tlie  country  was,  and  threatening  as  was 
the  aspt:ct  of  the  Danes,  who,  after  defeating  Huda  and  Ealher,  removed 
from  the  Isle  of  Thanet  to  that  of  Slieppey,  which  they  deemed  more  con- 
venient for  winter  ipiartcrs,  Ethelwelf,  who  was  extremely  superstitious 
and  bigoted,  and  who,  in  spile  of  the  occasional  (lashes  ofchivalric  spirit 
which  he  exhibited,  was  far  more  fit  fora  monk  than  foreithera  monarch 
or  a  military  coinniander,  this  year  resolved  upon  making  a  pilgriniiisjc 
to  Rome,  fie  went  and  carried  with  him  his  fourth  son, the  subseiiuently 
"Great"  Alfred,  but  who  was  then  ;i  child  of  only  six  years  old.  At 
Home  Ethel  wolf  remained  for  one  year,  i>assinghis  time  in  prayer;  earn- 
ing the  (latteries  ami  favmir  of  the  monks  by  liberalities  to  the  church,  on 
which  he  lavi.^hed  sums  which  were  too  really  and  tenibly  needed  by  liis 
own  im|(overislied  and  sufieriiig  coiintry.  As  a  specimen  of  his  profusion 
in  this  pious  sqiiaiideiing,  he  gave  to  tli(3  papal  sc(',  in  perpetuity,  the  year- 
ly sum  of  three  huiidied  maneuses — each  mancun  weighing,  says  Hume, 
about  the  same  as  the  English  half  crown — to  be  afiplied  in  three  etjual 
porliiiiis:  fir^l,  iIk^  iiroviding  and  maintaining  lamps  for  St.  Peter's;  sec- 
ond, for  the  same  to  St.  fauTs,  and  thirdly,  for  the  use  of  the  jiope  liim- 
Bidf.  At  till!  end  of  the  ye;ir"s  residence  which  lie  had  ])romis(Hl  himself 
h(!  reluriKMl  lidine  ;  happily  for  his  snhji'cts,  whom  lii.<  prolonged  stay  at 
Home  could  not  liav<^  failed  to  im|)nverish  ;  his  feolish  facility  in  giving, 
being  not  a  whit  iinirc  rcinarkalilc  than  the  unscrupulous  alacrity  of  the 
));i|)al  eoiiit  in  taking.  On  reaching  England,  he  was  far  more  astonished 
than  gr;itilied  at  the  state  of  aflairs  there.  Alhelslan,  his  eldest  son,  to 
whom,  as  we  iiave  before  menuoned,  he  had  given  Kent,  Sussex  and  Es- 
sex, li;ul  been  scnne  tune  dead;  and  l'',tlieli)ald,  the  second  son,  having,  in 
coiiseipniiee.  assmned  tlir  ri'geiicy  of  the  kingdom  duriiiix  his  father's  ab- 
Hcnce,  hail  allowed  filial  alVcctioii  and  the  loyalty  dm'  to  a  sovereign  to  he 
coiupiereil  by  ambition.  Many  of  the  warlikt!  nobility  lielil  Elhehvolf  in 
eoiiteiiipt,  and  'id  not  scruple  to  alUrm  that  he  was  far  iiim'e  fit  for  cowl 
iiiid  e|i)i.^ler  than  for  Ihi'  warrior's  weapon  and  the  nxinarcli's  throne.  The 
young  and  ambition  iiiinee  lent  too  facile  an  ear  to  these  disloyal  ileiiders 
and  snlT'iTcil  IiuiimII  to  be  persuaded  to  join  aiil  lii'ad  ;i  |iiirly  to  delhrone 
Ins  father  and  set  hiniM'lf  up  in  his  pl.ii'c.  Hut  Elhelwolf,  llionnh  despised 
by  the  ruder  and  fiercer  nobles,  was  nut  without  mitneruus  and  sinuero 


THE  TaKASURY  OF  UISTOllY. 


123 


fi lends  ;  liis  party,  long  as  he  had  been  absent,  was  as  strong  and  as  zeal- 
ous as  that  of  the  prince;  both  parties  .were  of  impetuous  temper  and 
well  inohned  to  decide  tlie  controversy  by  blows;  and  tlie  country  seemed 
to  be  upon  the  very  brink  of  civil  war,  of  wiiich  the  Danes  would  no 
doubt  have  availed  themselves  to  subject  the  island  altogether.  But  this 
extremity  was  prevented  by  Eihelwoif  himself,  who  voluntarily  proffered 
to  remove  all  occasion  of  strife  by  sharing  his  kingdom  with  Ethelbald. 
Tlie  division  was  accordingly  made  ;  the  king  contenting  himself  with 
the  eastern  moiety  of  the  kingdom,  which,  besides  other  points  of  inferior- 
ity, was  far  the  most  exposed. 

It  were  scarcely  reasonable  to  expect  that  he  who  had  not  shrewdness 
and  firmness  enough  to  protect  his  own  rights  and  interests,  would  prove 
a  more  efficient  guardian  of  those  of  his  people.  His  residence  at  Home 
hud  given  the  papal  court  and  the  clergy  a  clear  view  of  the  whole  extent 
of  the  weakness  of  his  nature  ;  and  the  facility  with  which  he  had  parted 
Willi  his  cash  in  exchange  for  hollow  and  cozening  compliments,  marked 
linn  out  as  a  prince  exactly  fitted  to  aid  the  Knglish  clergy  in  their  en- 
deavour to  aggrandize  themselves.  And  the  event  proved  the  coriectness 
of  tiieir  judgment;  for  at  the  very  same  time  that  he  presented  the  cler- 
gy with  the  tithes  of  all  tlie  land's  produce,  which  they  had  never  yet  re- 
ceived, though  the  country  had  been  for  nearly  two  centuries  divided  into 
parishes,  he  expressly  exempted  them  and  the  church  reviMuics  in  gcn- 
enl  from  every  sort  of  tax,  even  though  made  for  national  defence;  and 
this  at  a  moment  when  the  national  exigences  were  at  their  greatest 
height,  and  when  the  national  peril  was  such  that  it  might  have  been  sup- 
posed that  even  a  wise  selfishness  would  have  induced  the  clergy  to  con 
irilnite  towards  its  su,)port ;  the  more  especially,  as  towards  them  and 
their  property  the  Danes  had  »!ver  exhibited  a  peculiar  malignity. 

Klhelwolf  died  in  857.  about  two  years  after  he  had  granted  to  the  En- 
glish clergy  the  iinportiint  boon  of  the  tithes;  and  he,  by  will,  conlirmed 
tu  Kihclbald  the  western  moiety  of  the  kingdom,  of  which  he  had  alreaily 
put  him  in  possession,  and  left  tiie  eastern  moiety  lo  his  second  eldest  sur- 
viving son  Ethelbert. 

Tlie  reign  of  Ethelbald  was  short;  nor  was  his  character  such  as  to 
iiiaki!  it  desirable  for  the  sake  of  his  people  that  it  had  been  longer.  He 
wiis  of  extremely  di'liiiuched  habits,  aiul  gave  especial  scandal  and  disgust 
lo  his  people  by  marrying  his  mother-in-law,  Judith,  the  second  wife  of 
his  (Icceased  father.  'I  o  the  comments  of  the  people  upon  this  incestuous 
iiiiil  diagracefnl  coniKU'lioii  he  jiaid  no  attention;  but  the  censiire  of  the 
I'iiiirch  was  not  to  be  so  lightly  regarded,  ;iiid  iIk;  :idvi(!e  ,ind  autiiority  of 
Swil  hill,  bishop  of  Winchester,  indiiciul  him  to  consent  to  be  divorced. 
lie  died  in  ilie  year  8(ii),  and  was  succeeded  by  his  brother  ICthulbert,  and 
the  kingiiont  thus,  oiil'!  more,  was  united  under  one  sovereign 


CH.VPTER  Vr. 


TIIF.    HKKlNS    OF    K.rilKI.nKUT    AND    KTIIKMlli.K. 

The  reign  of  Ethclliert  was  greatly  disUirbed  by  the  fie(|nent  (lesceiits 
of  the  Danes.  On  one  oi'ciision  they  niai'i!  a  fiirions  attack  iipmi  Win- 
chi'sler,  and  did  an  iinmetise  deal  of  mischief  in  the  neighboiirliooii,  but 
were  finally  l)e;iten  off  with  great  loss  ;  and,  on  another  occasion,  the 
lioriic  of  tlii'm  that  was  settled  in  the  Isle  of  Thiiiict,  hiving  thrown 
I'^tlielbcrt  off  his  giiaril  by  their  apparent  determination  to  keep  sacred  a 
treaty  into  whitdi  they  hail  etilereil  with  him,  Hiiildeidy  broke  from  their 
;juaricrs,  marched  in  gri' it  niimbcrs  into  Ki'iil.  and  lliere  committed  the 
inosl  wanton  outnges  in  addition  to  -oizmg  immense  liootv- 


124 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HI3T0RY. 


w 


Ethelbert  reigned  solely  over  England  but  little  more  than  five  years  ; 
he  died  in  hG6,  and  was  succeeded  by  his  brother  Ethelred.  He,  too,  was 
greatly  harrassed  by  the  Danes.  Very  early  in  his  reign,  connived  at  and 
aided  by  the  East  Angles,  who  even  furnished  them  with  ilie  horses 
necessary  for  their  predatory  expedition,  they  made  their  way  into  the 
kingdom  of  Nortimniberland,  and  seized  upon  the  wealthy  and  important 
city  of  York.  iKlIa  and  Osbricht,  two  high-spirited  Northumbrian  princes, 
endeavoured  to  exjicl  them,  but  were  defeated  and  perished  in  the  assault. 
Fluslied  with  their  success,  the  Danes  now  marched,  under  the  (command 
of  their  terrible  leaders,  Hubha  and  Hinguar,  into  Mercia,  and  after 
much  carnage  and  rapine  established  themselves  in  Nottingham,  from 
which  (rentral  situation  they  menaced  tlie  ruin  of  the  whole  kingdom. 
The  Mercians,  finding  that  their  local  authorities  and  local  forces  were  no 
match  for  desperadoes  so  numerous  and  so  determined,  despatched  mes- 
sengers to  Ethelred,  imploring  his  personal  interference  on  their  behalf, 
and  the  king,  accompanied  by  his  brother  Alfred,  who  had  already  begun 
to  display  those  talents  which  subsequently  won  him  an  imperishable 
fame,  marched  to  Nottingham  with  a  powerful  army,  a.d.  870. 

The  gallantry  and  activity  of  the  king  and  his  brother  speedily  drove 
the  Danes  from  Mercia,  and  they  retired  into  Northumberland  with  the 
apparent  design  of  remaining  there  quietly.  But  peace  was  foreign  to 
their  very  nature,  and,  forgetful  of  their  recent  obligations  to  the  treachery 
of  the  East  Angles,  they  suddenly  rushed  forih  upon  them,  butchered  Ed- 
mund, their  tributary  prince,  in  cold  blood,  and  coimnitled  the  most  exten- 
sive iiavoe  and  depredations,  especially  upon  the  monasteries. 

The  Danes  having,  in  871,  made  Heading  a  station,  from  which  they 
greatly  harrassed  the  surrniiiKliiig  country,  Ethelred  determined  to  dis- 
lodge them.  l)n  desiring  the  aid  of  the  Mercians  he  was  disloyally  re- 
fused, they,  innnindful  of  the  ben<'fit  they  had  received  from  him,  being 
desirous  of  getting  rid  of  their  dependence  upon  him,  and  becoming  a 
8ei)aratc  people  as  in  the  Heptarchy.  Even  this  shameful  conduct  of  the 
Mercians  could  not  move  Ethelred  from  his  purpose.  Aided  by  Alfred, 
from  whom,  dmnig  his  whole  reign,  he  received  the  most  zealous  and 
ciricient  assistance,  he  raised  a  large  force  of  his  hereditary  subjects,  the 
West  tSaxons, and  marched  against  Ueiiiing.  Iteing defeated  in  an  action 
without  the  town,  the  Danes  retreated  within  the  gales,  and  lOthelred  com- 
menced a  scige,  but  was  driven  from  before  tlic  i)lacc  by  a  sudden  and 
well-conducted  sally  of  the  garrison.  .\ii  action  shortly  afterwards  took 
place  at  Aston,  not  far  from  Kcadnig,  at  which  an  incident  occurred  which 
Eivcs  us  a  strange  notion  of  the  manners  of  the  age.  A  division  of  the 
English  army  under  Alfred  connnenced  the  bailie,  and  was  so  skilfully 
surrounded  by  tln^  enemy  while  }ei  in  a  disadvantageous  position  and  not 
fairly  formed  in  order  of  baiilc,  ihat  it  was  in  the  most  ninnineni  danger 
of  Ik  ing  completely  cut  to  pieces.  Alfred  sent  an  ur!;cnt  message  to  his 
brollii'r  for  assistance,  but  I'Uliclred  was  hearing  inasN,  and  positively  re- 
fnseil  to  stir  a  stcji  until  its  cmiclusion.  Had  ihe  day  gone  against  the 
Saxons,  I'lthelred's  ■  onduct  on  this  occasion  would  |)rol)ably  have  been 
censured  even  by  tin  priests,  but  as  the  Danes  were  put  to  the  rout,  and 
with  signal  slaughter,  ilu^  whole  credit  of  the  victory  was  given  to  the 
piety  of  Ethelreil. 

Heatc'.i  iiiii  of  Herkshire,  the  Danes  now  took  up  a  strong  position  at 
Uasiiig,  in  Hams.  Hen;  they  received  a  iiovverful  reinforcement  from 
abroail,  and  sent  out  marauding  parties  in  all  directions  willi  great  suc- 
cess. St.  di,  indeed,  was  tliiir  havoc,  that  Englishmen  of  all  ranks 
began  to  contemplate,  with  unfeigned  terror,  the  near  probability  of  theii 
wlnde  ccniiilry  being  overrun  by  tliesi'  merciless  and  greedy  invaders 
The  anxiety  of  KlIiLdred  occasioned  by  these  gloomy  prosnects,  wliuh 


THE  TKEASUttY  OF  HISTORY. 


U5 


were  still  farther  increased  by  the  impatience  of  the  Mercians  and  others 
under  his  rule,  so  much  augmented  the  irritation  of  a  wound  he  had  received 
in  the  buttle  at  Basing,  that  it  terminated  his  life  in  the  year  671 


CHAPTER  VII 


rilK    REIGN    OF    ALFRKD    THE   GREAT. 


ALFRED  succeeded  his  brother  Ethelred,  and  scarce  were  the  funeral 
rites  performed  before  he  found  it  necessary  to  march  against  the  enemy, 
who  had  now  seizcfi  upon  Milton.  At  the  outset,  Alfred  had  considerably 
the  advantage,  but  his  force  was  very  weak  compared  to  that  of  tlie  enemy, 
and,  advancing  too  far,  he  not  only  missed  the  opportunity  of  completing 
their  defeat,  but  even  enabled  them  to  claim  the  victory.  But  their  vic- 
tory— if  such  it  was— cost  them  so  many  of  their  bravest  men  that  they 
became  alarmed  for  the  consequences  of  continuing  the  war,  and  entered 
into  a  treaty  by  wliicii  they  bound  themselves  altogether  to  depart  from 
the  kmgdoni.  To  enable  them  to  do  this  tliey  were  conducted  to  London, 
but  on  arriving  there  the  old  leaven  became  loo  strong  for  their  virtuous 
resolutions,  and,  breaking  off  from  their  appointed  line  of  inarch,  they 
began  to  plunder  the  country  round  London  for  many  miles.  Burthred, 
the  tributary  prince  of  Morcia,  of  which  London  formed  a  part,  thinking 
it  improbable,  after  his  shameful  desertion  of  Alfred's  brother  on  a  former 
occasion,  that  Alfred  would  now  feel  inclined  to  assist  him,  made  a  treaty 
witli  tiie  Danes,  by  which,  in  consideration  of  a  considerable  sum  of 
money,  they  agreed  to  cease  from  ravaging  his  dominions,  and  remove 
themselves  into  Lincolnshire;  but  they  had  on  former  occasions  laid 
that  county  waste,  and  finding  that  it  had  not  yet  so  far  recovered  as  to 
promise  them  any  booty  worth  having,  they  suddenly  marched  back  again 
upon  Mercia;  then  establishing  themselves  at  Repton,  in  Derbyshire,  they 
commenced  their  usual  career  of  slaughter  and  rapine  in  that  neighbour- 
hood. This  new  instanc(?  of  Danish  pcrfiily  filled  Burthred  with  despair, 
ami  seeing  no  probability  of  his  being  abb-  either  to  chase  the  Danes  away, 
or  to  render  them  peaceably  dis|)osed  eithiT  by  force  or  bribe,  he  aban- 
doned his  territory  altogether,  proi-eeded  to  Home,  and  there  took  up  bis 
abode  in  a  monastery,  wiiere  he  continueil  until  his  death.  nurthrc(l, 
who  was  broiher-iii-law  to  All'ied,  was  the  last  titular  and  tributary  king 
of  Mercia. 

The  utter  abandoiiniPiit  of  the  English  cnusc  by  Burthred  h-ft  It  no  other 
leading  defeiKU'r  but  Alfred  :  a.o.  S71.  Brave  and  able  as  that  prince  was, 
his  situation  was  now  truly  terrible.  New  swarms  of  Danes  came  over, 
under  the  leadershii)  of  laulhruni,  ('sital,  and  Amund.  ()iii<  liaml  of  the 
host  thus  formed  took  U|)  their  quarters  In  Noriliuniberland,  and  another 
Cambriilite,  whence  the  lalter  inarched  for  Warcbam,  in  DorscMsliIre,  and 
thus  sellli'il  llicinselvcs  In  the  very  midst  of  .MlVed's  territory.  This  cir- 
euinHlance,  from  Alfred's  superior  knowledge'  of  the  country  and  his  faell- 
ily  of  oblaining  sii|)plies,  gave  hiin  advantages  of  wliirh  he  so  ably  and 
promptly  aviuli'd  hims<'lf,  that  the  Danes  wer(^  glad  to  eni{ai>(^  llieinsclves 
to  depart.  They  hail  now,  however,  beeoini^  so  notorious  for  breaking 
their  treatii>s.  that  Alfreil,  in  concluding  this  one  with  them,  resorteil  to 
an  expeilient  very  charai'lcristic  of  that  rude  and  sllperstltlou^  age.  He 
made  them  confirm  their  pleilges  by  oallis  upon  holy  relliincs.  lie  thought 
It  unlikely  th.tt  even  Danes  would  venture  to  depart  from  an  agreement 
made  Willi  a  ceremony  winch  was  then  thought  so  treineinlou'*,  and  even 
sliiinld  they  be  impious  enoiigli  to  do  so,  lie  felt  quite  ecrlaiii  that  lliell 
awful  pcrinry  would  not  fail  lo  draw  down  full  deslrui'tion  upon  them. 
Bui  the  banes,  who  hated  (Miristianity,  and  held  its  forms  in  utter  con 


'13 


yl^ 


126 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


tempt,  no  sooner  found  tlieinselves  freed  from  the  disadvantageous  pos' 
tion  in  whic^li  Alfred  had  plac^ed  them,  tlian  ihey  fell  without  waniinn;  upon 
his  astounded  army,  put  it  completely  to  flight,  and  then  hastened  to  take 
posspssiiin  of  Exeter.  Undismayed  by  even  this  new  proof  of  the  faith- 
less and  indomitable  nature  of  the  enemy,  Alfred  exerted  himself  so  dili- 
gently, that  he  got  together  new  forces,  and  fought  no  fewer  than  eight 
considerable  battles  witiiin  twelve  months.  'I'liis  vigour  was  more  effec- 
tual against  snch  a  foe  than  any  treaty,  however  solemn,  and  they  once 
more  found  themselves  reduced  to  an  extremity  which  compelled  them  to 
sue  for  peace.  As  Alfred's  sole  wish  was  to  free  his  sulijects  from  the 
intolerable  evils  incident  to  having  their  country  perpetually  made  the 
theatre  of  war,  he  cheerfully  agreed  to  grant  them  peace  and  permission 
to  settle  on  the  coast,  on  the  sole  condition  that  they  should  live  peace- 
ably with  his  subjects,  and  not  allow  any  new  invaders  to  ravage  the 
country.  While  they  were  distressed,  and  in  danger,  the  Danes  were 
well  pleased  with  these  terms,  but  just  as  the  treaty  was  concluded  a  re- 
inforcement arrived  to  them  fnun  abroad.  All  thouglit  of  peace  and  treaty 
was  at  once  laid  aside  by  them  ;  they  hastened,  in  all  directions,  to  join 
the  new  comers,  seized  upon  the  important  town  of  Chippenham,  and  re- 
commenced their  old  system  of  plundering,  nmrdering,  and  destroying,  in 
every  direction,  for  miles  aroinid  their  qnarters.  The  Saxons,  not  even 
excepting  the  heroic  Alfred  himself,  now  gave  up  all  hope  of  success  in 
the  sirngule  in  which  they  had  so  long  and  so  bravely  been  engaged. 
Many  fled  to  Wales  and  the  continent,  while  the  generality  submitted  to 
the  invaders,  contented  to  save  life  and  land  at  the  exftense  of  national 
honour  and  individual  freedom.  It  was  in  vain  that  Alfred  reminded  the 
chief  men  among  the  Saxons  of  the  sanguinary  successes  they  had 
achieved  in  the  time  past,  and  endeavoin'ed  to  persuade  them  that  new 
successes  would  aitend  new  efforts.  Men's  spirits  wen;  now  so  utterly 
subdued  ttiat  the  Danes  were  looked  upon  as  irresistible;  and  the  heroic 
and  niifortiniale  Alfred,  unable  to  raise  siiflicieni  force  to  warrant  him 
in  again  endeavotning  to  save  his  country  from  the  yoke  of  tlie  foreign 
foeman,  was  fiin  to  seek  safety  in  concealment,  and  to  console  himsidf  in 
his  temporary  inactivity  with  the  hope  that  the  oppressions  of  the  Danes 
would  be  so  nnmeasined  and  intolerable,  that  even  the  most  peace-loving 
and  indolent  of  the  Saxons  would,  at  no  distant  day,  be  goaded  into  revolt. 
Unattended  even  by  a  servant,  Alfred,  disguised  in  \\w  coarse  habit  of  a 
peasant,  wandered  from  one  obscure  hilling- pjacf?  to  another.  One  of 
these  was  the  lowly  hut  of  a  neatherd,  who  had  in  happier  days  been  in 
his  servu'e.  The  man  faithfidly  obeyed  the  charg(!  given  to  jiiin  by  the 
king  not  to  rev(?al  his  rank  (?ven  to  the  yood  woman  of  the  house.  She, 
UMsuspirKMis  of  the  quality  of  her  guest,  was  at  no  pains  to  (•(Uieeal  her 
o()iiu(iii  that  so  able  a  man,  in  full  health,  and  with  an  ixlremely  vigonnis 
appetite,  inii;lil  lind  some  better  iinployinenl,  bail  llunigh  the  limi's  were, 
than  moping  about  and  muttering  to  liinis<'lf.  On  one  occasion  she  still 
more  siroiiiily  gav(!  her  opinion  of  the  iillene.>^8  of  her  guest,  lie  was 
seated  befine  the  ample  wood  fire,  putting  his  bow  and  arnnv  in  order  as 
she  |iut  some  wlieaten  cakes  down  to  bake,  and  being  called  away  by 
some  other  (Uniiestic  biisiness,  slie  desired  Alfred  to  mind  the  cakes,  giving 
him  especial  charge  to  liirn  ihem  frecpieiilly  lest  tliey  should  be  burned. 
The  king  prinniseil  due  obedience,  but  scarcely  bad  Ins  iinperious  hifstesg 
left  him  when  he  fell  into  a  profound  reverie  on  liisowii  forlorn  and  aban- 
doned eiiinlilion,  and  the  manifold  miseries  of  Ins  coniitty.  It  is  probable 
that,  diiriii'i  that  hnig  sad  day-dream,  more  tli:in  one  thought  suggested 
itself  to  Alfred,  bv  which  Knglaiid,  at  a  I'nlnre  il;iy.  was  to  be  greatly 
benefited,  lint,  as.suredly,  his  tlioiigbls  were,  fur  that  time  at  U'.isl,  of 
little  benefit  to  Ins  hostess,  who,  (Ml  her  return  lo  the  collage,  found  tho 
kmg  deeil  buried  in  Ins  gloomy  thoughts,  and  her  cakes  done,  indeed,  but 


THK  TREASURY  OF  HI3T0R\. 


127 


Qone — to  a  cincrer.  The  good  woman's  anger  now  knew  no  boimds  ;  oaf, 
lubber,  and  lazy  loon,  were  the  mildest  names  which  she  bestowed  iipon 
him,  as,  with  iiiinsilcd  anger  and  vexation,  she  contrasted  his  indolence  in 
the  matter  of  baking,  with  his  alacrity  in  eating  what  he  found  ready 
baked  for  his  use. 

So  successful  had  Alfred  been  in  destroying  all  traces  of  his  wander 
ings,  that  Hiibba  and  other  leading  Danes,  who  had  at  first  made  search 
after  him  with  all  the  activity  and  eagerness  of  extreme  hale,  not  nn- 
mingled  with  fear,  at  length  became  persuaded  that  he  had  either  left 
the  country  altogether,  or  perished  miserably  ere  he  could  find  means  and 
opportunity  to  do  so.  Finding  that  his  enemies  had  discoiuimied  their 
search  after  him,  Alfred  now  began  to  conceive  hopes  of  biMiig  able  once 
more  to  call  some  friends  to  his  side.  For  this  purpose  he  betook  him- 
self to  SoiiKTsetshire,  to  a  spot  with  which  he  had  accidentally  become 
acquainliHl,  which  singularly  united  obscurity  and  capability  of  being  de- 
fended. A  morass  formed  by  the  overflowing  of  the  rivers  Parret  and 
Thame  bad  nearly  in  its  centre  aboitt  a  couple  of  acres  of  firm  land. 
The  morass  itself  was  not  safely  practicable  by  any  one  not  well  aitquain- 
ted  with  the  coticealed  paths  that  led  through  it  to  the  little  terra  firma, 
audit  was  further  secured  from  hostile  visitors  by  numerous  other  morasses 
no  less  (liflii'ult  and  dangerous,  while  by  a  dense  growth  of  forest  trees 
it  was  on  (wery  side  environed  and  sheltered.  Here  he  built  himself  a 
rude  hut,  and,  having  found  means  to  comnninicate  with  some  of  the  inost 
faithful  of  his  personal  friends,  it  was  not  long  before  he  was  placed  at 
the  head  of  a  small  but  valiant  band.  Sallying  from  this  retreat  mider  the 
cover  of  tlie  night,  and  always,  when  practicable,  returning  again  before 
the  inorniiig,  he  harassed  and  spoiled  tin;  Danes  to  a  very  great  extent; 
and  his  attacks  were  so  sudden  ami  so  desultory,  that  his  enemies  were 
unable  either  elTcctually  to  guard  against  them,  or  to  conjecture  from  what 
quarter  they  proceeded. 

Kven  by  this  warfare,  petty  and  desultery  as  it  was,  Alfred  was  doing 
good  service  to  his  country.  For  with  the  spoil  which  he  thus  obtained 
he  was  enabled  to  subsist  and  from  tiint^  to  time  to  increase  his  followers; 
ami  while  his  attacks,  which  could  not  be  wholly  mtknown  to  the  Saxon 
population,  gave  them  vagim  ho[)es  that  armed  friends  were  not  wholly 
lost  to  tliein,  they  moderated  tln^  cruelty  and  imperiousness  of  the  Danes 
by  constantly  reminding  them  of  the  possibility  of  a  successl'id  and  gene  d 
revolt  of  ibe  Saxons. 

For  U[)warils  of  a  year  Alfred  remained  in  this  secure  retreat,  in  which 
time  he  h. id  gathered  together  a  considerable  iunnl)cr  of  followers;  and 
now  at  length  his  pers(!veranc(!  had  its  rewanl  in  an  opportunity  of  once 
more  meeting  his  foes  in  the  formal  array  of  battle. 

Hubbii,  the  most  warlil<(!  of  all  the  Danish  chiefs,  led  a  larjje  army  of 
liis  couiitryinen  to  besiege  the  castle  of  Kinvvilh,  in  Devonshire.  'I'hc 
earl  of  that  cmmlry,  a  brave  and  resolute  man.  di!emin<;  death  in  the  battle 
field  far  preferable  to  starving  witiiin  his  fortified  walls,  or  lite  preserved 
by  submission  to  t\w  haled  Danes,  collected  the  whole  of  his  garrison, 
mill,  having  inspired  iIkmu  with  liis  own  brave  deterininatinn.  made  a 
sudden  sally  upon  the  Danish  camp  in  the  (lirkness  of  night,  killed  llultba, 
and  roiiieil  the  D:inisli  force  with  immense  slaughter.  He  at  the  same 
time  (captured  the  enclianlcd  lieufni,  the  woven  -aven  which  adorned  the 
child'  stand  ird  of  the  Dam"",  and  the  loss  of  whiidi  their  siipi'r-<liti(ni» 
feelings  made  more  terrihU^  to  them  than  that  of  their  eliiif  and  their 
cmnradi's  who  had  perished.  This  Rmfin  bad  been  woven  mio  llubba's 
stauilard  liy  his  three  sisters,  who  ba'l  accompanied  tiieir  work  «  ith  certain 
magical  fonniila!  which  the  Dat)es  firmly  helieved  to  have  given  the  re- 
presented biiil  the  power  of  preincting  the  good  or  (n'il  ni  cess  of  any 
enterprise  by  the  motion  of  its  wings.     And,  considcrinjf  the  great  power 


128 


THE  TllKASUHY  OF  HISTOHY. 


I 


of  superstition  over  rude  and  untutored  minds,  it  is  very  probable  that 
the  loss  of  this  highly  valued  sliindard,  coinciding  with  not  only  the 
defeat,  hut  also  the  death,  of  its  hitherto  victorious  owner,  struck  such  a 
general  fear  and  doubt  into  the  minds  of  the  Danes  as  very  greatly  tended 
to  dispose  them,  shorllv  afttr,  to  make  peace  with  Alfred. 

As  soon  as  Alfred  lizard  of  the  spirit  and  success  with  which  the  earl 
of  Devonshire  had  defended  himself  aiid  routed  the  most  dreaded  division 
of  the  Danish  army,  he  resolved  to  leave  his  obscure  retreat  and  once  more 
endeavour  to  arouse  the  Saxon  populaticm  to  arms.  But  as  he  had  only 
too  great  and  painfid  experience  of  the  (^\lent  to  which  his  unfortunate 
people  haii  been  depressed  in  s()irit  by  liieir  long  continued  ill  fortune,  he 
determined  to  act  deliberately  and  cautiously,  so  as  to  avoid  an  appeal 
made  too  early  either  to  find  the  Saxons  sufliciently  recovered  to  nnike  a 
new  effort  for  their  liberty,  or  to  allow  of  their  being  prepared  to  make 
that  effort  succssfully. 

Still  leaviuff  his  followers  to  conceal  themselves  in  the  retreat  of  which 
we  have  spokcMi,  he  di.-iguised  himself  as  a  harper,  a  very  popular  charactei 
in  tliat  day,  and  one  which  his  great  skill  as  a  musiciari  enabled  him  suc- 
cessfully to  maintain.  In  this  clianu'ier  he  was  able  to  travel  alike  among 
Danes  and  Saxons  without  sns()icioiis  recognition;  and  his  music  at  once 
obtaitied  liim  admission  to  every  rank  and  the  opportunity  of  cotwersing 
with  every  description  of  people.  Kiid)oldcned  by  fitiding  liimself  ntisus- 
periled  by  even  his  own  subjects,  he  tiow  formed  the  bold  project  of  pen- 
etrating the  very  camp  of  tiie  enemy  to  iiote  their  forces  and  disposition. 
To  soldiers  in  camp  ainus"inent  is  ever  welcome,  and  the  skilfid  music 
of  Alfred  not  merely  gratified  tlie  cotnmoti  soldiers  and  itiferior  ofTiccrs 
but  even  procured  him,  from  their  recommiMidaiiDns,  adniittatice  to  the 
tent  of  Guihrum,  their  priiii'c  ami  leacjcr.  Here  he  reimiitied  longeiiough 
to  discover  every  weak  poitit  of  llie  enemy,  wiiether  as  to  llie  positioti  ol 
their  catnp,  wliicii  was  silualed  at  Kddiiiytoti,  or  as  to  the  carelessness  ol 
discipline  into  which  their  utter  contempt  of  the  "Saxcm  swine"  caused 
them  to  fall.  Having  made  idl  necessnry  observations  he  took  the  earliest 
opportnnily  to  depart,  and  sent  messages  to  ail  the  principal  Saxons  upon 
whom  he  could  depend,  requirmij  them  to  meet  liim  on  a  specifuHl  day,  at 
Hrixton,  in  the  forest  of  Selwood.  The  Saxmis,  who  had  long  mourned 
their  king  as  dead,  atid  were  gi'oaiiiiig  lieiiealh  the  l)rulai  tNramiies  of  the 
Danes,  joyfully  ol)(  yed  his  suM)imins,  and  at  the  appointed  time  he  foimd 
himself  surrounded  liy  a  force  so  nnuurous  ami  so  enlliusiaslic  as  to  give 
him  just  hopes  of  l)eing  able  to  attack  the  Danes  with  snc<'ess.  Km)wing 
the  importauee  of  not  allowin;^-  this  eullnisiastn  loco(d,  he  wasted  no  time 
in  useless  delay  or  vain  form,  Init  led  tlu'in  at  once  to  (tuthrmn's  camp,  of 
which  his  recent  visit  niade  him  acciuainled  with  the  most  |»iaclicablo 
points.  Sunk  in  apathetic  Indolenee,  aud  tliinkiug  of  nothing  less  than 
of  seeing  a  iMimeriUis  liand  of  Ijiglish  assembled  to  attack  them,  the 
DaiK's  were  so  panic-struck  and  smprised  thai  they  foiiylii  with  non(M)f 
Ihi'ir  accustomed  vigour  or  olistiincy,  auil  the  bailie  was  speedily  conver- 
ted into  a  mere  rout,  ('real  niunln'rs  of  i\w  Danes  |)erislied  in  this  affair; 
and  thoiiuh  llie  rest,  under  the  orders  of  (iiilhrtiui,  fortified  themselves  in 
a  camp  ami  made  preparations  lor  couliunnig  the  slniggle,  they  were  so 
closely  hcmuieil  in  by  .Vlfred,  th  il  absoliile  limiger  |)ripved  too  strong  for 
their  resolution,  and  r)iu;e  more  they  offercil  to  tical  for  (leace  with  the 
man  whose  meri  y  tliey  had  so  <dlen  aJMisecl,  anil  wlnise  vahnir  and  ability 
they  had  loni.''  since  imagined,  and  exultingly  believed,  to  be  bmied  in  an 
oliscnre  aud  premature  grave. 

The  endiniiig  aud  perseveiiug  inclination  to  cleineney  which  he  cnii- 
Rtantly  displayed  is  by  no  means  one  of  the  least  remarkable  and  admir- 
alile  trails  in  llie  cliara'ler  of  Alfred.  Tlioimh  lie  now  liiiii  the  very  lives 
of  his  fell  and  malignant  foes  in  Ins  power,  and  though  they  weie  bo  con- 


1  fiir  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


129 


111'  con- 
il  iidiiiir- 
;i'ry  lives 
e  so  con- 


scious of  their  helplessness  that  they  oflFered  to  submit  on  any  terms, 
however  huniiliiitiiig,  he  gave  them  their  lives  without  attemptiiijr  to  im- 
pose even  moilenitely  severe  terms.  Peace  for  his  subjects  wiis  siill  the 
great  load-star  of  all  his  wishes  and  of  all  his  polity ;  and  olien  as  he  had 
been  deceived  by  the  Danes,  his  real  magnanimity  led  him  to  believe  that 
even  their  faithlessness  could  not  always  be  proof  against  mercy  and  in- 
dulgence ;  he  therefore  not  only  gave  them  their  lives,  but  also  full  per 
mission  to  siHtle  in  his  country,  upon  the  easy  condition  of  living  in  peace 
with  ins  other  subjects,  and  holding  themselves  bounil  to  aid  in  the  defence 
of  the  country  in  whose  safety  they  would  have  a  slake,  should  any  new 
invasion  render  their  assistance  necessary.  Delighted  to  obtain  terms  so 
much  more  favourable  than  they  had  any  right  to  hope  for,  Gulhruin  and 
his  followers  readily  agreed  to  this;  but  Alfred's  mercy  had  no  taint  of 
weakness.  He,  with  his  usual  sagacity,  perceived  that  one  great  cause  of 
the  persevering  hostility  of  the  Danes  to  his  subjects  was  tiieir  diflference 
of  religion.  Reflecting  that  such  a  cause  would  be  perpetually  liable  to 
cause  the  Danes  to  break  their  peaceable  intentions,  he  demanded  that 
Guthrum  and  his  people  should  give  evidence  of  their  sincerity  by  embra- 
cing the  Christian  religion.  Tiiis,  also,  was  consented  to  by  the  Danes, 
who  were  all  baptized,  Alfred  himself  becoming  the  godfather  of  Guth- 
rum, to  whom  he  gave  the  honourable  Ciiristian  name  of  Athelstan.  The 
success  of  this  measure  fully  justified  the  sagacity  which  had  suggested 
i;  to  Alfred.  Tlie  Danes  settled  in  Stamford,  Lincoln,  Nolliiiglmin,  Lei- 
cester, and  Derby,  were  called  the  Five  Burghers,  and  they  lived  as  peace- 
ably as  any  other  of  Alfred's  subjects  and  gave  him  as  little  trouble.  For 
some  years  after  this  signal  triumph  of  Alfred's  prowess  and  policy,  Eng- 
land was  unmiilested  by  foreign  invaders,  excepting  on  one  occasion 
when  a  numerous  fleet  of  Danes  sailed  up  the  Thames,  beyond  London. 
They  committed  considerable  havoc  on  their  route,  but  on  arrivinir  at  Fnl- 
harn  they  found  the  country  so  well  prepared  by  Alfred  to  resist  them, 
that  they  made  a  panic  retreat  to  their  ships,  and  departed  with  such  spoil 
as  in  their  haste  they  were  able  to  secure. 

Freed  from  the  warlike  bustle  in  which  so  large  a  portion  of  his  life  had 
been  spent,  Alfred  now  devoted  himself  to  the  task  of  regulating  the  civil 
aff;iirs  of  the  kingdom.  He  committed  the  former  kingdom  of  Mercia  to 
the  government  of  his  brother-in-law,  Elhelbert,  with  the  rank  and  title 
of  earl  or  duke;  and  in  order  to  render  the  incorporation  of  the  Danes 
with  the  Sa.xons  tlie  more  complete,  he  put  them  upon  the  same  legal 
footing  in  every  respect.  In  each  division  of  the  kingdom  he  established 
a  militia  force,  and  made  arraiigenients  for  its  concentr.ition  upon  any 
given  point  in  the  event  of  a  new  invasion.  He  also  re|).iired  tiie  va- 
rious towns  that  had  sufTered  in  the  long  disorders  of  the  kingdom,  and 
erected  fortresses  in  commanding  siluaiions,  to  serve  bolli  as  depots  for 
armed  men,  and  as  rdlying  points  for  thi!  militia  and  levy,  en  massF,  of 
the  country  aniunil,  in  case  of  need.  But  tiiough  the  admirable  military 
(lispositioii.s  thus  niade  by  Alfred  made  it  certain  that  any  invaders  would 
fiiiil  tiienisclves  holly  ojiposed  in  whatever  quarter  they  might  make  tlieir 
ailack,  Alfred  w.is  more  anxious  to  have  the  internal  peace  of  ilie  conulry 
wholly  unbroken,  than  to  be  obliged,  however  triuinphanily  and  surely, 
to  ehaslisr  the  disturbers  of  it;  he  therefore  now  luriieil  his  altinlion  to 
the  organization  of  siicli  a  naval  force  as  shuuld  be  sulliiienl  to  keep  the 
piratical  enemy  from  landing  upon  his  siiores.  He  greatly  increased  the 
inimbi'r  and  sireii>ith  of  Ins  shipping,  and  pracliscd  a  larLte  puiliiiii  of  his 
leople  ill  naval  tactics,  to  which,  considering  their  iiisiilar  siiiiaiion,  the 
\liigs  and  pi'iiple  of  Kngland  had  hiiherto  been  siraiiLu  iy  indiUVreiii.  Toe 
good  eflccts  of  tlii.s  wise  prccauliim  were  soim  ni.iiiiiest ;  squadrons  of 
his  arinrd  vessels  lay  at  so  many  ami  at  such  well-chosen  pusiliiins,  that 
llie  D.iiies,  though  they  often  came  in  great  numbers,  were  eiUier  wliully 
1.-9 


i:' 


t30 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


m 


prevented  from  landing,  or  intercepted  when  retiring  from  before  the  land- 
forces,  and  deprived  of  their  ill-gotten  booty,  and  their  ships  either  cap- 
lured  or  sunk.  In  this  manner  Alfred  at  length  got  together  a  iuuidred 
and  twenty  vessels,  a  very  powerful  fleet  for  that  time,  and  as  his  own 
subjects  were  at  the  outset  but  indiffenMit  sailors,  he  supplied  that  defect 
by  sparingly  distributing  among  them  skilful  foreign  seamen,  from  whom 
they  soon  learned  all  that  was  known  of  naval  tactics  in  that  rude  age. 

For  some  years  Alfred  reaped  the  reward  of  his  admirable  policy  and 
untiring  industry  in  the  unbroken  tranquillity  of  the  country,  which  gave 
his  subjects  the  opportunity  of  advancing  in  all  the  useful  arts,  and  of 
gradually  repairing  those  evils  which  the  long-continued  internal  wars 
had  done  to  both  their  trade  and  their  agriculture.  But  a  new  trial  wag 
still  in  store  for  both  Alfred  and  his  subjects. 

A.D.  803.  Hastings,  a  Danish  chieftain,  who  some  years  before  had  made 
a  short  predatory  incursion  into  England,  but  who  recently  had  confined 
his  ravages  to  France,  finding  that  he  had  reduced  that  country,  so  far  as 
he  could  get  access  to  it,  to  a  condition  which  rendered  it  unproductive  of 
farther  booty,  suddenly  appeared  this  year  off  the  coast  of  Kent,  with  an 
immense  horde  of  his  pirates,  in  upwards  of  three  hundred  vessels.  Dis- 
embarking the  main  body  in  tlie  Holhcr,  and  leaving  it  to  guard  the  fort 
of  Apiddore,  whiidi  he  surprised  and  seized,  he,  with  a  detachment  of  nearly 
a  hundred  vessels,  sailed  up  the  Thames  as  far  as  Milton,  where  he  estab- 
lished his  head-quarters,  whence  he  sent  out  his  maurading  parties  in  every 
direction.  As  soon  as  tidings  of  this  new  incursion  reached  Alfred,  that 
gallant  monarch  concentrated  an  immense  force  from  the  armed  militia 
in  various  parts  of  the  country,  and  marched  against  the  enemy.  Setting 
down  before  Milton  and  Apuldorc,  Alfred,  by  his  superiority  of  force,  com- 
pletely hemmed  ii"  /le  mtiin  bodies  of  the  pirates,  and  their  detached  par- 
lies were  encounttied  as  they  relumed  with  their  booty,  and  cut  off  to  a 
man.  finding  that,  so  far  from  having  any  prospect  of  enriching  them- 
selves, they  were,  in  fact,  compelled  to  live  in  England  up(m  the  plunder 
that  they  had  seized  in  France,  the  pirate  garrison  of  Apuldore  made  a 
sudden  sally  with  the  design  of  crossing  the  Thames  into  Fsscj.v.  Hut  the 
vigilant  eye  of  Alfred  was  loo  constanily  upon  them  to  allow  either  secrecy 
or  suddenness  to  give  them  success  in  this  attempt.  Ui\  arrested  their 
march  at  Farnluim,  utterly  routed  them,  and  spoiled  them  of  all  their  prop- 
erty, including  numbers  of  valuable  horses.  The  slausihler  was  very  great, 
and  those  Danes  who  were  so  fortunate  as  to  survive  the  battle,  ii'adc  their 
way  in  panic  haste  to  their  piratical  vessels,  and  sailed  over  to  Essex, 
where  lliey  entrenched  Iheni-selves  at  Mersey  ;  Hastings,  with  the  division 
under  his  command,  at  the  smne  time  going  also  into  the  county  of  Essex 
and  entrenching  himself  at  Canvey. 

(lUthrum,  who  from  the  time  of  his  baptism  had  been  constantly  faith- 
ful to  the  engagement  into  which  he  had  entered  with  Alfred,  was  new 
dead,  as  also  was  Guthred,  another  Dane  of  rank,  who  was  very  faithful 
to  Alfred,  by  whom  he  had  been  made  governor  of  Northumbcrliind.  No 
longer  restrained  by  the  example  and  authority  of  those  two  ('ininenl 
chiefs,  the  East  Anglian  and  Norlhnmbiian  Danes  now  suddenly  exhibited 
their  ohi  [)riipensiiy  to  strife  and  rapine,  got  together  a  Heel  of  nearly  two 
hundred  and  fifty  vessels,  and  made  their  appearance  in  hostiU;  array  be- 
fore Exeter.  I,eaving  a  sufficient  force;  under  coni[)etent  command  to 
make  hea<l  aijainst  tin;  Danes  in  Essex,  Alfred  iminedjately  haslened  to 
Exeter,  and  fell  so  suddenly  ii[)on  ihem,  that  with  little  loss  on  his  side, 
ihey  were  driven,  in  complete  disorder  and  with  immense  loss,  to  their 
fleet.  They  made  attempts  to  land  in  other  jiarls  of  the  cnuntry  ;  but  the 
preparations  winch  Alfred  had  everywhere  made  of  militia  and  armed 
freemen,  whom  the  recent  aiarms  had  kept  more  than  usually  on  the  alert, 


THE  TRKA8UHY  OF  HlSTOllY. 


13J 


caused  the  pirates  to  be  so  warmly  received,  that  they  at  length  mailed 
from  the  island  altogether,  in  despair  uf  making  any  further  booty. 

The  Danes  in  Essex,  united  under  the  command  of  tlie  formidable  Has- 
tings, did  immense  mischief  in  that  county.  But  the  force  left  behind  by 
Alfred,  increased  by  a  large  number  of  Londoners,  marched  to  Braniflete, 
forced  the  pirates'  entrenchments,  put  the  greater  number  of  the  garrison 
to  the  sword,  and  captured  the  wife  and  children  of  the  pirate  ciiief.  This 
capture  was  the  most  importantly  useful  result  of  this  well-conducted  en- 
terprise. Alfred  had  now  in  his  hands  hostages  tiirough  whom  he  could 
command  any  terms ;  but  so  generous  was  his  nature,  that  he  restored  the 
women  and  children  to  Hastings,  upon  the  sole  and  easy  condition  that  he 
should  leave  the  kingdom  immediately,  under  a  solemn  engagement  to  re- 
turn to  it  no  more  as  a  foeman. 

But  though  the  worst  band  of  the  Danes  was  thus  forced  to  depart  the 
kingdom,  the  plague  of  the  Danes  was  by  no  means  wholly  at  an  end. 
There  were  very  numerous  scattered  hordes  of  them,  who  neither  owned 
the  leadership  of  Hastings,  nor  were  willing  to  leave  the  country  empty- 
handed.  These  united  into  one  large  force,  and  fortified  themselves  at 
Shobury,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Thames,  whence  tliey  marched  into  (xlou- 
cestershire,  and  being  reinforced  by  a  numerous  body  of  Welchmen,  for- 
tified themselves  very  strongly  at  Boddington.  Having  now  only  tiiis 
body  to  deal  with,  Allred  gathered  logetlier  the  whole  force  he  could  com- 
mand, and  drawins  lines  of  cireumvallation  around  the  pirates,  deliberately 
sat  down  with  the  determination  of  starving  them  into  submission.  They 
held  out  for  some  time,  slaying  tlieir  horses  to  subsist  upon  ;  but  at  length 
even  this  miserable  resource  failing  them,  tlicy  sallied  out  in  utter  des- 
peration. The  most  considerable  portion  of  iheni  fell  in  the  fierce  contest 
that  ensued,  but  a  still  formidable  body  escaped,  and,  ravaging  the  country 
as  tiiey  passed  along,  were  pursued  by  Alfred  to  VVatford,  in  Heriford- 
siiire.  Here  another  severe  action  ensued,  and  the  Danes  were  again 
defeated  with  great  loss.  The  renuiant  found  shelter  on  board  the  Heet 
of  Sigefort,  a  Northumbrian  Dane,  who  possessed  ships  of  a  construction 
very  superior  to  those  of  the  generality  of  his  countrymen.  The  king  pur- 
sued this  fleet  to  the  coast  of  Hampshire,  slew  a  g:reat  number  of  tlie  pi- 
rates, captured  twenty  of  their  ships,  and — <iven  his  enduring  mercy  being 
now  wearied — hanged,  at  Winchester,  the  whole  of  his  prisoners. 

The  effl<Ment  and  organized  resistance  which  had  of  late  been  experi 
enced  by  the  pirates,  and  the  plain  indications  given  by  the  Winchester 
exccuiions  that  the  king  was  determined  to  show  no  more  lenity  to  pirates, 
but  to  consign  them  to  an  ignominious  death,  as  connnon  disturbers  and 
enemies  of  the  whole  human  race,  fairly  struck  terror  even  into  ihe  hith- 
erto incorrigible  Danes.  Those  of  Northumberland  and  East  Anglia, 
against  whom  Alfred  now  marched,  deprecated  his  resentment  by  the 
humblest  submission,  and  tiie  most  solemn  assuratices  of  tlieir  future 
peaceable  behaviour,  and  their  example  was  imitated  by  the  Welch. 

The  same  admirable  arrangements  which  had  enabled  him  to  free  his 
country  from  the  Danes,  were  now  of  infinite  service  to  Alfred  in  restor- 
ing and  enforcing  order  among  his  own  subjects.  It  was  almost  iiievita 
ble  that  great  disorders  should  prevail  among  a  people  who  so  freqiieiiily, 
and  during  so  many  years,  had  been  subject  to  all  the  horrors  and  tinnults 
incident  to  a  country  which  is  so  unhappy  as  to  be  the  theatre  of  war.  In 
addition  to  making  very  extensive  and  wise  provisions  for  the  true  and 
ertlcieiit  administration  of  justice  in  the  superior  courts,  and  fraining  a 
code  for  their  gnidancit  so  exci'llcnt  that  its  siib.staiice  and  spirit  subsist 
1(1  this  day  in  the  eoinmiiii  law  of  Engiainl,  lie  most  en'e<'iiialiy  provided 
for  the  repression  of  petty  olVeiices,  as  Wdll  as  nune  serums  oiii's,  whetlicr 
against  persons  or  property,  and  the  maiiiKT  in  vviiiidi  lie  tlid  so,  like  tiie 
manner  in  which  he,  us  it  were,  made  his  whole  kingdom  a  series  o**  .ar- 


13'J 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HI9rOR\. 


riaona  to  restrain  the  Danes,  sliows  that  he,  with  admirable  ger.ius,  pt>r. 
ceived  the  immense  importanoe  of  an  attention  to  details,  and  the  eixtie 
with  which  many  graduated  efforts  and  arrangements  will  produce  a  result 
which  would  be  in  vain  aimed  at  by  any  one  effort  however  vast. 

Of  what  may  be  called  the  national  police  established  by  Alfred,  we  take 
the  following  brief  and  condensed,  but  extremely  lucid  and  grapliic,  ac- 
count from  Hume:  "The  English,"  says  Hume,  "reduced  to  the  most 
extreme  indigence  by  the  continued  depredations  of  the  Danes,  had  shaken 
off  all  bands  of  government,  and  those  who  had  been  plundered  to-dviy, 
betook  themselves  on  the  morrow  to  the  like  disorderly  life,  and,  from 
despair,  joined  the  robbers  in  pillaging  and  ruining  their  fellow-citizens. 
These  were  the  evils  for  which  it  was  necessary  that  the  vigilance  and 
activity  of  Alfred  should  provide  a  remedy. 

"That  he  might  render  the  execution  of  justice  strict  and  regular,  he  di 
Tided  all  England  into  counties;  these  counties  he  subdivided  into  hun- 
dreds, and  the  hundreds  again  into  tithings.  Every  householder  vas 
answerrtble  for  the  behaviour  of  his  family  and  his  slaves,  and  even  of  '.lis 
guests  if  they  lived  above  three  days  in  his  house.  Ten  neighbounr^ 
householders  were  formed  into  one  corporation,  who,  under  the  numc  of 
a  tithing,  decennary,  or  fribourg,  were  answerable  for  each  other's  con- 
duct, and  over  whom  one  man,  called  a  tithing-man,  headbourg,  or  bond- 
holder, was  appointed  to  preside.  Every  man  was  punished  as  an  outlaw 
who  did  not  register  himself  in  some  tithing,  and  no  man  could  change  his 
habitation  without  a  warrant  or  certificate  from  the  bondholder  of  the  tith- 
ing to  which  he  formerly  belonged. 

"  When  any  person,  in  any  tithing  or  decennary,  was  guilty  of  a  crime, 
the  bondholder  was  summoned  to  answer  for  him,  and  if  he  were  not  wil- 
ling to  be  surety  for  his  appearance  and  his  cleariiii'  hnnself,  the  criminal 
was  committed  to  prison,  and  there  detained  till  h  .^  trial.  If  he  fled, 
either  before  or  after  finding  surety,  the  hondholdor  and  decennary  be 
came  liable  to  inquiry,  and  were  exposed  to  the  petialties  of  the  law. 
Thirly-onc  days  were  allowed  them  for  producing  the  criminal,  and  if 
the  time  elapsed  without  their  being  able  to  find  him,  the  bondholder,  with 
two  other  members  of  the  decciniary,  was  obliged  to  appear,  and,  to- 
gether with  three  chief  members  of  the  three  neighbouring  decennaries, 
making  twelve  in  nil,  to  swear  that  his  decennary  was  free  from  all  priv- 
ity, both  of  the  crime  committed,  and  of  the  escape  of  the  criminal.  If 
the  bondholder  could  not  find  such  a  number  to  answer  for  their  inno- 
cence, the  decennary  was  compelled  by  fine  to  make  satisfaction  to  the 
king,  according  to  the  degree  of  the  offence.  Hy  this  institution  every 
man  was  obliged  by  his  own  interest  to  keep  a  watchful  eye  over  the 
conduct  of  his  neighbour,  and  was  in  a  manner  surety  for  the  behaviour 
of  those  who  were  placed  under  the  division  to  which  he  belonged  ;  whence 
these  decennaries  received  the  name  of  frank-pledges. 

"  Such  a  regular  distribution  of  the  people,  with  such  a  strict  confine- 
ment in  their  habitation,  may  not  be  necessary  in  times  when  men  are 
more  inured  to  obedience  and  justice,  and  it  might  perhaps  be  re^'arded  as 
destructive  of  liberty  and  commerce  in  a  polished  slate:  but  it  was  well 
calculiiled  to  reduce  that  fierce  and  licentious  people  under  the  salutary 
restraint  of  law  and  government.  Hut  Alfred  took  care  to  temper  these 
rigours  by  other  institutions  more  favonr.ihle  to  the  freedom  of  the  citi- 
zens, and  nothing  could  be  more  popular  or  liberal  than  his  plan  for  the 
administration  of  justice.  The  bondholder  summoned  together  his  whole 
dcceiniary  to  assist  him  in  deciding  any  lesser  difference  which  occurred 
among  tlic  members  of  this  small  community.  In  affairs  of  greater  mo 
mont,  in  appeals  friim  the  decennary,  or  in  controversies  ar'  .iug  between 
members  of  differtnt  decennaries,  the  cause  was  brought  before  the  hnn 
dred,  which  consisted  of  ten  decennaries,  or  a  hundred  families  of  free- 


of 


ii 


THE  TKEASURY  OF  HlSTOaY. 


133 


nmn,  and  which  was  regularly  assembled  ouce  in  four  weeks  for  the  de- 
ciding o(  causes.  Their  method  of  decision  deserves  to  be  noted,  es 
being  ilie  ori<rin  of  juries — an  institution  admirable  in  itself,  and  the  best 
calculated  for  the  preservation  of  liberty  and  tlie  administration  of  jus- 
tice tiiat  ever  was  devised  by  man.  Twelve  freeholders  were  ciiosen, 
who,  iiaviiig  sworn,  together  with  the  hundreder,  or  presiding  magistrate 
of  that  division,  to  administer  impartial  justice,  proceeded  to  tlie  exainiua- 
tiuii  of  tliat  cause  which  was  submitted  to  tiieir  jurisdiction.  And  beside 
tiiese  iiioiuiily  meetings  of  the  hundred,  there  was  an  annual  meeting  ap- 
pointed for  a  more  general  inspection  of  the  police  of  the  district,  for  the 
inquiry  into  crimes,  the  correction  of  abuses  in  magistrates,  and  tiie 
obliging  of  every  person  to  show  the  decennary  iu  wiiich  he  was  regis- 
tered. The  people,  ia  imitation  of  their  German  ancestors,  assembled 
there  in  arms — whence  a  hundred  was  sometimes  called  a  wapmitake, 
and  its  courts  served  both  for  the  support  of  military  discipline,  and  for 
the  administration  of  civil  justice. 

"  The  next  superior  court  to  that  of  the  hundred,  was  the  county  court, 
which  met  twice  a  year,  after  Micliaelmas  and  Easter,  and  consisted  of 
the  freeliolders  of  the  county,  who  possessed  an  equal  vote  in  tlie  deci- 
giuii  of  causes.  The  bishop  presided  in  this  court,  togetiier  with  the  aU 
dermaii,  and  the  proper  object  of  the  court  was  the  receiving  of  appeals 
from  tiie  hundreds  and  decennaries,  and  the  deciding  of  such  controver- 
sies as  arose  between  men  of  different  hundreds.  Formerly  the  alder- 
man possessed  both  the  military  and  the  civil  authority;  but  Alfred,  sen- 
sible that  this  conjunction  of  powers  rendered  the  nobility  dangerously 
independent,  appointed  also  a  sheriff  to  each  county,  who  enjoyed  a  co- 
ordinate auilioriiy  with  the  former  in  the  judicial  function.  His  office 
also  empowered  him  to  guard  the  rights  of  the  crown  in  the  county,  and 
to  levy  the  fines  imposed,  which  in  that  age  formed  no  contemptible  part 
of  the  public  revenue. 

"There  lay  an  appeal,  in  default  of  justice,  from  all  these  courts  to  the 
king  himself  in  council;  and  as  the  people,  sensible  of  the  equity  and 
great  talents  of  Alfred,  placed  their  chief  confidence  in  him,  he  was  soon 
overwhelmed  with  appeals  from  all  parts  of  England.  He  was  indefati- 
gable in  the  dispatch  of  these  causes,  but  finding  tiiat  his  time  must  be 
entirely  engrossed  by  this  branch  of  duty,  he  resolved  to  obviate  the  in- 
convenience by  correcting  the  ignorance  or  the  corruption  of  the  inferior 
maglstrat>;s,  from  which  it  arose.  He  took  care  to  have  all  his  nobility 
instructed  in  letters  and  the  law ;  he  chose  the  earls  and  sheriffs  from 
among;  the  men  most  celebrated  for  probity  and  knowledge ;  he  punished 
severely  all  malversation  in  office,  and  he  removed  all  the  earls  whom  he 
found  unequal  to  their  trust,  allowing  some  of  the  more  elderly  to  serve 
by  deputy,  till  their  death  should  make  room  for  more  worthy  successors." 

Without  any  qualifiualion  or  allowance  for  the  age  and  circumstances 
in  liich  he  lived,  the  military,  and,  even  more,  the  civil  talents  of  Al- 
fred, and  their  noble  and  consistent  ievotion  to  the  magnificeiit  task  of 
making  a  great  and  civilized  nation  out  of  a  people  disunited,  rude,  igno- 
rant, tierce,  and  disorderly,  would  justly  entitle  him  to  the  praise  of  being 
among  the  greatest  and  best  monarchs  that  have  ever  existed.  But  when 
we  reflect  that  he  had  to  contend  against  a  late,  an  imperfect,  and  irreg- 
ular education ;  that  he,  who,  in  a  comparatively  short  life,  so  largely 
figured  both  as  warrior  and  sage,  was  twelve  years  old  ere  he  began  to 
learn  even  the  very  elements  of  'ileralure,  and  that,  during  the  latter 
years  of  his  glorious  life,  he  laboured  under  frequent  and  painfiil  fits  of 
illness  almost  amounting  to  bodily  disability,  it  would  not  be  an  easy  task 
to  exagirerato  his  merits.  Good  as  well  as  great,  a  patient  and  thought- 
ful student,  as  well  us  a  mighty  chieftain  in  the  field  and  a  sage  statesman 
at  the  council-board,  he  probably  approached  as  nearly  to  perfection 


134 


THE  TREASURY  OF  KT8T0RY. 


both  as  man  and  mnnarch.  as  is  possible  for  one  of  onr  fallible  and  Iran 
race.  To  the  Enjriisli  r)f  his  own  age  he  gave  benefits,  some  of  which 
have  descended  even  to  onr  own  generation  ;  his  renown  shines  forth  in 
the  page  of  history  like  some  bright  particnhir  star,  a  beacon  of  greatness 
to  tilings  and  of  gooihiess  to  private  men:  and  sad  will  that  day  be  for 
England,  and  degraded  will  be  the  English  character,  when  the  general 
heart  shall  fail  to  throb  with  a  lively,  a  grateful,  and  a  gladly  proud  emo- 
tion at  the  mention  of  him  whom  their  sturdy  fathers  heartily  and  justly 
hailed  by  the  proud  name  of  Alfrer  the  Great. 


Cn.\PTKR  VIII. 

MlSTOnV  OK  THE  ANGLO-SAXUNS,  FROM  THE    DEATH  OK  ALFRED  THE  GREAT  TO 
THE  REIGN  OF  EDWARD  THE  MARTVR. 

Alered  the  Great,  who  died  in  the  year  901,  had  three  sons  and  three 
daughters  by  his  wife  Kiholswitha,  the  daughter  of  an  earl  of  Mereia. 
His  eldest  son,  Kdmund,  iliiMl  b(!fore  him,  and  he  was  succeeded  by  his 
second  s(ni,  Rdward,  who,  being  the  first  English  king  of  that  name,  was 
surnanied  The  Elder. 

Though  Edward  was  scarcely,  if  at  all,  inferior  to  his  truly  great  father 
in  point  of  military  talents,  his  reign  was,  upon  the  whole,  a  turbulent 
one,  and  one  that  by  no  means  favoured  the  growth  in  the  kingdom  ol 
that  civilized  prosperity,  of  which  Alfred  had  laid  the  foundations  both 
deep  and  broad.  But  the  fault  was  not  with  Edward ;  he  had  to  contend 
against  many  very  great  difficullies,  and  he  contended  against  them  with 
both  courage  and  prudence.  He  had  scarcely  paid  the  last  sad  offices  to 
his  royal  father  when  his  title  to  the  throne  was  disputed  by  his  cousm 
Eliudwold,  son  of  Ethelbert,  the  elder  brother  of  Alfred.  Had  the  hered- 
itary and  lineal  descent  of  the  crown  been  as  yet  strictly  settled  with  a 
regard  to  primogeniture,  the  claim  of  Eilielwold  would  have,  undoubted- 
ly, been  a  just  one.  But  such  was  far  from  being  the  case ;  many  cir- 
cumstances, the  character,  or  even  the  infancy  of  the  actual  heir  in  the 
order  of  primogeniture,  very  often  inducing  the  magnates  and  people,  as 
in  the  case  of  Alfred  himself,  to  pass  over  him  who  in  tiiis  point  of  view 
was  the  rightful  heir,  in  favour  of  one  better  qualified,  and  giving  higher 
promise  of  safety  and  prosperity  to  the  nation. 

Etiielwold  had  a  considerable  number  of  partizans,  by  whose  aid  he 
collected  a  largo  and  imposing  force,  and  fortified  himself  at  VVimborne, 
in  Dorsetshire,  with  the  avowed  determination  of  referring  his  claim  to 
the  dcci.sion  of  war.  But  the  military  condition  in  which  Alfred  had  left 
the  kingdom  now  rendered  his  son  good  service.  At  the  first  intimation 
that  he  received  of  his  cousin's  opposition,  he  on  the  instant  collected  a 
numerous  and  well  appointed  army  and  marched  towards  him,  deter- 
mined not  to  have  the  internal  peace  of  the  whole  kingdom  disturbtjd  by 
a  series  of  [jetty  struggles,  but  to  hazard  life  and  crown  upon  the  decision 
of  a  single  great  battle.  As  the  king  approached,  however,  the  informa- 
tion of  his  overwhelming  force  that  was  conveyed  to  Etiielwold  so  much 
alarmed  him,  that  he  suddenly  broke  up  his  army  and  made  a  hasty  re- 
treat to  .Normandy.  Here  he  remained  inactive  for  some  lime  ;  but  just 
as  all  ohserv(.'rs  of  his  conduct  imagined  that  ho  had  finally  abandoned 
his  pretensioiis,  Ik;  passed  over  into  Northumberland,  where  he  was  well 
received  by  iIk;  Danes  of  that  district,  who  were  glad  of  any  pretence, 
however  slight,  for  disavowing  their  allegiaiK^e  to  tlii;  actual  king  of  Eng- 
land. The  five  burghers,  who  had  so  long  been  in  a  state  of  rarely 
brok(Mi  tian(|inllity,  also  joined  Etiielwold,  and  the  country  had  once  more 
the  prospect  of  endles.'*  iml  ruinous  internal  warfare.    Ethelwold  led  hif 


THE  TREASUllY  OF  HI3T0EY. 


13fi 


ii 


troebooleis  iito  VViltsliii< .  Gloucestershire,  and  Oxfordshire,  and  made 
their  esca|je  good,  with  ;ui  iininense  booty,  ere  tlie  royal  fonjes  could 
couie  up  »iili  tlieui.  Hut  the  king  followed  his  foes  iuto  Kust  Aiiy;lia, 
and  fearfully  retaliated  upou  that  district  the  injuries  that  had  been  in- 
liided  upo.i'  his  peaceable  subjects.  When,  laden  with  spoil,  he  gave  the 
onUir  to  retire,  a  part  of  his  army,  chielly  Kentish  men,  disc^eyed  him. 
They  were,  coiisequenily,  left  behind  in  the  enemy's  country,  and,  while 
busily  engaged  in  adding  to  their  already  rich  booty,  were  suddenly  and 
furiously  set  upon  by  the  Danes.  The  battle  was  obstinate  on  both  sides. 
in  the  end  the  Danes  were  victorious ;  but  though  they  remained  masters 
of  the  field  of  battle,  they  lost  their  bravest  headers,  and  among  them  the 
original  promoter  of  the  war,  Kthelwold  himself.  Tiie  East  Anglians 
were  now  glad  to  accept  the  terms  of  peace  offered  to  them  by  the  king; 
and  he,  having  notiiing  to  fear  from  them,  turned  his  whole  attention  to 
subduing  the  Danes  of  Northumberland.  ;Ie  accordingly  fitted  out  a 
(leot,  under  the  impression  that  by  carrying  the  war  to  their  own  coast  he 
would  infallibly  compel  them  to  refrain  from  plundering  his  people,  by 
the  necessity  they  would  experience  of  staying  at  home  to  defend  their 
own  property.  But  the  consequence  of  this  mancBuvre  was  directly 
contrary  to  what  the  king  had,  and  not  illogically  either,  supposed  it  would 
be.  They  judged  that  the  king's  fleet  carried  the  main  armed  strength  of 
ICngland;  and,  trusting  the  safety  of  their  own  property  to  concealment 
and  the  chapter  of  accidents,  they  no  sooner  saw  the  royal  fleet  appear 
oir  their  coast  than  they  made  a  land  incursion  upon  the  English.  But 
they,  too,  had  reasoned  witli  more  seeming  than  real  correctness. 

I'jiiward  was  fully  prepared  to  meet  them  by  land  as  well  as  by  sea;  and 
he  attacked  them  at  Teieiihall,in  Slatlbrdshire,  put  a  great  number  of  them 
to  the  sword,  recovered  the  whole  of  the  spoils  they  had  taken  from  his 
sui)jects,  and  drove  all  those  of  them  who  escaped  death  or  captivity,  in  a 
.nost  desolate  and  poverty-stricken  state,  into  their  own  country. 

During  the  whole  remainder  of  Edward's  reign  he  was  engaged  with 
one  party  or  another  of  the  English  Danes.  Hut  he  chastised  each  party 
severely  in  its  turn;  and,  by  constant  care  and  unsparing  liberality,  he 
f(U'litied  Chester,  Warwick,  Colchester,  and  many  other  cities  so  strongly 
as  to  leave  ihem  little  to  fear  from  any  sudden  incursion  of  their  perse- 
vering and  rancorous  enemies.  In  the  end  he  vanquished  the  Northum- 
brians, the  East  Anglians,  the  Britisii  tribes  of  Wales  nearest  to  his  fron- 
tiers, and  compelled  the  Scots,  who  had  recently  been  very  troublesome, 
to  submit  to  him.  He  was  much  aided  in  his  various  projects  by  his  sister 
Ethelfleda,  widow  of  the  Mercian  earl  Ktheibert,  who  was  a  woman  ot 
masculine  genius  as  well  as  masculine  haiiits  and  feelings. 

Upon  the  whole,  though  the  reign  of  Edward  the  Elder  was  a  victo 
rious,  it  can  scarcely  be  called  a  fortunate  one;  for  in  it  many  of  those 
Danes  wiio  had  long  lived  in  habits  of  peace  returned  to  their  old  taste 
for  plundering,  and  so  many  battles  fought  in  his  own  country  could  not, 
even  when  he  was  the  most  signally  victorious,  be  otherwise  than  injuri- 
ous to  both  the  prosperity  and  the  morals  of  his  piJoplc. 

Edward  died  in  925.  We  have  already  reiuarked  upon  the  unsettled 
state  of  the  law  of  succiission  to  the  throne  in  that  age.  Another  instance 
of  it  occurred  now.  Edward  left  legitimate  children,  but  they  were  of 
years  far  too  tender  to  admit  of  their  assuming  the  reins  of  govornment 
under  any  circumstances,  and  cspei'ially  so  in  the  then  iMiiiiiiieiit  danger 
of  England  being  again  convulsed  by  llu;  Danes.  Tlie  chief  people  of  the 
nation  therefore  passed  those  young  cliildren  by  and  gave  the  throne  to 
Athelstan,  an  iilogiiimate  son  of  the  deceased  monarch.  Util  though  Alh 
elstaii  had  the  general  siiffraifi's  of  the  great  men,  there  were  some  excep- 
tions.  Among  those  wen;  Alfnid,  a  JSaxon  nobleman  of  greai.  inrtiience 
iiiid  popularity,  who  cudeuvoured  to  organize  an  armed  opposition  to  th': 


136 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORTT 


nrw  kinsr.  B"t  the  kinyr's  suspicion  fell  upon  this  nobleman  before  his 
('onspirH<'y  was  ripe  for  execution,  and  tie  was  seized  and  charfjed  with 
the  offence,  or  rather  llie  intent  of  offtMiding.  He  by  some  means  ascer- 
laiiied,  or  he  boldly  presumed,  that  the  king,  however  vehemently  he 
might  suspect  him,  had  in  reality  no  tangible  evidence,  and  he  offc'red  to 
(!lear  himself  of  the  imputed  crime  by  an  oath  taken  before  the  pope  — 
Such  was  the  awful  respect  in  which  tbe  pope  was  then  held,  and  such 
was  his  sanctity  supposed  to  be.  that  it  was  finally  and  universally  be- 
lieved that  the  fate  of  Ananias  and  Sapphira  would  inevitably  befal  any 
one  who  should  dare  to  make  oath  falsely  in  his  presence.  'I'his  belief, 
absurd  as  it  was,  had  singular  corroboration  given  to  it  by  the  fate  of  this 
Alfred.  He  was  permitted  to  purge  his  guilt  in  the  way  proposed  by  him- 
self, and  he  took  the  required  oath  in  the  presence  of  Pojie  .lolin,  but  had 
scarci.ly  pronounced  the  words  dictated  to  him  ere  he  fell  into  convul- 
sions, in  which  he  continued  till  his  death,  which  occurred  in  three  days 
This  story  has  been  spoken  of  as  being  a  pure  monkish  invention.  Wo 
think  differently.  The  monks  did  frequently  exaggerate  and  even  invent, 
but  that  is  no  reason  for  assuming  their  guiltiness  of  !ik(?  conduct  where 
there  is  no  proof  aeainst  them,  and  where,  without  attaching  (he  slightest 
consequence  to  the  alleged  sanctity  of  the  pope's  person,  we  can  explain 
the  actual  oct'urrence  of  the  event  by  a  simple  physical  cause.  Anil  what 
more  easy  than  to  do  so  in  this  case?  ,Super.-<tition  was  in  those  days  by 
no  means  confined  to  the  poor  and  lowly.  Ignorance — in  the  scholastic 
sense  of  that  word — was  the  birthright  of  the  pmverful  baron  as  well  as 
of  the  tramjiled  and  despised  churl,  long  after  the  time  of  .Mhclstan  ;  and 
many  a  noble  who  defied  all  human  laws,  and  looketl  scornfully  upon  all 
merely  physical  danger,  would  blanch  and  cower  at  tales  tlial  the  simplest 
village  l:iss  of  a  more  enlightened  day  would  smile  at.  Tlicre  is  nothing 
upon  record  to  lead  us  to  believe  that  this  Alfred  was  more  sceptical  in 
Biich  matters  than  the  generality  of  nobles.  I'rged  by  a  desire  of  safety 
for  life  and  possessions,  and  perhaps  entertaining  a  hope  of  escape  fron> 
the  conseipiences  alh'gcd  to  await  perjury  such  as  he  jiroposed  to  commit, 
he  might  he  buoyed  tip  siifflcicntly  to  commit  tiie  perjury,  and  yet,  at  the 
very  moment  of  commillniir  it,  terror,  compounded  of  the  consciousness 
of  a  trcinendons  cnilt.  ami  ol  the  tremendous  conseiiucnces  which 
from  infancy  he  had  heard  predical('(l  of  such  guilt,  would  surely  be  not 
unlikely  to  affect  his  brain.  Men  have  maddened  on  the  instant  at  be- 
holding some  horrilile  siijlil,  others  have  grown  gi'ey  in  a  siii'ilc  night  of 
mtense  and  harrowiiiiX  mental  auony  ;  why,  then,  should  we  suppose  it 
impossible  that  the  awful  feelings  incident  to  such  a  situation  as  that  of 
Alfred  HJionld  produce  sudden  epili'psy  anil  Hiibsc(|nent  death? 

'I'he  result  was  as  fortunate  for  Ailiejstan  as  it  was  disastrous  to  Alfred. 
The  kiiii;  was  freed  from  the  opposition  of  a  noble  who  iiiighi  have  been 
very  tronhlesonie  to  liim,  and  the  manner  of  that  nolilc's  death  was  to  all 
ranks  of  men  a  most  convincing  proof  not  only  that  Aifrcil  had  been 
doubly  giiiliy.  (irsi  of  conspiracy  and  then  of  perjury,  but  also  that  the 
king  was  the  riiihtfiil  possessor  of  the  crown,  and  that  toilis|)iiie  his  right 
was  to  incur  all  .Mlreil's  danijer  anil  much  of  Alfred's  guilt.  The  king 
look  care  to  siri'iiirlhcn  and  confirm  this  feelinii  by  confiscalniij:  tlie  whole 
of  Alfred's  properly,  as  though  his  deatli,  iimler  the  I'lrciiinsiances,  was 
lantamoiiiit  to  a  Jmlicial  Hciitence  ;  and,  as  he  [iriidenily  bestowed  this 
large  property  upon  tile  already  weallliy  moiiaslery  of  Milmsbiiry,  ho 
iiiailc  the  lall  of  a  sinnle  powerful  eiieniy  the  iinniediale  means  of  secur- 
ing the  friendship  of  an  nifiiiltely  more  powerful  i'or|Hiratioii, 

ilaviiiu  thiiH  become  free  from  what  at  first  seemed  a  very  imminent 
peril,  Allielsiaii  tinned  Ins  atteiiinni  loqnieimgihe  Noriliinnhi  lan  Danes, 
who  just  at  tins  tune  were  very  ilisconteiiteil  under  the  Mniflish  rule.  On 
his  urrival  he  saw  reasun  to  believe  that  he  cuuld  belter  S(!uure  their  obe> 


THE  TllEA  lURY  OP  HISTORY. 


137 


aience  by  giving  them  a  tributary  prince  of  tlieir  own  race  than  by  the 
utmost  severity,  and  he  accordingly  g;ive  the  title  of  king  of  Northum- 
bei'and  to  Sithric,  a  powerful  Danisli  chieflan,  to  whom  he  also  gave  the 
hand  of  his  own  sister  Hditha.  But,  though  this  was  siigacioua,  and 
seemed  to  be  especially  safe  policy,  it  gave  rise  to  (•onsiderable  dilficnlty. 
Sithric,  who  was  a  widower  wlien  honoured  with  the  hand  of  Kditha,  died 
about  a  year  after  his  second  marriage,  and  Aiilaf  and  Godefrid,  his  sons 
by  the  former  marriage,  assunied  the  sovereignty  of  Northnmberland,  as 
a  matter  of  permanent  and  settled  hereditary  tenure,  and  not  of  the  king'a 
favour  and  conferred  during  his  pleasure.  Highly  olTemled  at  this  i)re- 
gumption  of  the  young  men,  Athelstan  speedily  ejected  them  fiom  their 
assumed  sovereignty.  Aniaf  look  shelter  in  Ireland  and  (iodefrid  in  Scot- 
land, where  lie  was  very  kindly  and  honourably  treated  by  Constantiiie, 
then  king  of  tliat  country. 

Athelstan,  on  learning  that  tiie  pr'?sumptunus  Dane  who  was  so  likely 
to  prove  a  troublesome  enemy  to  him  was  protected  by  Constantiiie,  im- 
portuned him  to  put  his  guest  into  the  Kiiglish  power.  Desirous  of  avoid- 
ing, if  possible,  an  open  quarrel  vviih  so  powerful  a  prince  as  Athelstan, 
the  Scottish  monarch  gave  a  feigned  consent  to  a  proposal  which  it  was 
almost  as  infainmis  to  make  as  it  would  have  been  to  have  complied  with  ; 
but  he  gave  (iodefrid  private  inliniation  which  enabled  him  to  get  to  sea, 
where,  after  making  himself  dreaded  as  a  pirate,  he  at  length  finished 
his  life. 

Athelstan,  who,  probably,  was  well  informed  by  spies  at  the  Scottish 
court  of  the  part  which  Consiantine  had  taken  in  aiding  the  escape  of 
'^iodefrid,  nnrched  a  numerous  army  into  Scotland,  and  so  much  distressed 
that  counlry  that  (/onstaiitine  found  himself  obli;;i'd  to  make  bis  submis- 
sion in  order  to  save  his  country  and  himself  from  total  ruin.  Whether 
his  submission  went  to  the  extent  of  Constantine's  actually  acknowledg- 
ing himself  to  hold  his  crown  in  real  vassalage  to  the  king,  which  some 
historians  stoutly  atTirm  and  others  just  as  stoutly  deny,  or  whether  it 
went  no  farther  than  apology  and  satisfaction  for  actual  offence  given, 
certain  it  is,  that  (-oiistanime  took  the  earliest  and  most  open  opportunity 
of  showing  that  he  looked  upon  the  king  of  Kngland  in  any  other  rather 
than  a  friendly  light.  For  AnIaf,  brother  of  (Jonsiantine's  deceased  pro- 
Icgi',  having  gotten  together  a  body  of  Welsh  malcontents  and  Danish 
pirates,  ('onstaniine  joined  forces  with  him, and  they  led  an  immense  body 
of  marauders  into  ICngland.  IJndismayeil  by  the  numbers  of  the  invaders, 
Athelstan  marched  his  army  against  tliein,  and,  (diiefly  owing  to  the  valour 
and  conduct  of  'riirkeiul,  the  then  chancellor  of  Kngland,  the  invaders 
were  coinpletely  routed.  In  this  battle,  winch  was  fiuight  near  lirunan- 
hurg,  in  Nortliumlii-rland.a  ureat  number  of  tin-  Welsh  and  Danish  leaders 
perished,  and  AnIaf  ami  the  Scottish  king,  after  losing  a  great  part  of  their 
forces,  were  barely  abh;  to  effect  their  own  escape. 

It  is  said  that  on  the  eve  of  this  great  battle  AnIaf  was  the  hero  of  an 
adventure  in  the  Kiiglish  camp  like  llmt  of  AU'icil  the  (Jreat  in  the  camp 
of  (hilhrnm  the  Dane.  Habited  like  a  minslrid,  he  approached  the  Kiig- 
lish camp,  and  his  music  was  so  much  aihnired  by  the  siddters  that  tliey 
obtaineil  him  admission  to  the  kind's  tent,  where  he  played  during  the 
royal  repast,  so  much  to  thi^  delight  of  tlie  king  and  Ins  nobles,  that  on 
being  dismissed  lie  received  a  very  handsome  present.  Too  polilii!  to 
betray  bis  disguise  by  refusing  the  present,  the  noble  Dane  was  also  far 
too  haiiuhty  to  rel.iin  it;  and  iis  soon  as  he  believed  hiinself  out  of  the 
reiich  of  oiiservalion,  he  buried  it  in  the  earth.  One  of  Aihelsian's  sol- 
(hers,  who  had  formerly  fought  under  ilie  banner  of  .\nl.if,  had  al  the  very 
first  sight  imiigined  Unit  ht<  saw  his  old  chief  under  the  disjmse  of  a  min- 
strel. In  the  clesire  to  ascertain  if  his  suspicnm  were  correct,  he  followed 
\nlaf  from  the  royal  tent,  and  his  suspicion  was  changed  into  conviction 


138 


THE  TREASUKY  OF  HlriTOUY. 


1  i 


»• 


i  ; 


when  lir  saw  a  professedly  poor  and  wandering  minstrel  burynig  the 
kiny's  rich  gift.  He  acc-ordingly  warned  the  king  that  his  daring  enemy 
had  been  in  his  lent.  At  first  the  king  was  very  angry  that  the  sokher 
had  nut  made  this  discovery  while  there  was  yet  time  to  have  seized 
upon  the  pretended  minstrel;  but  the  soldier  nobly  replied,  that  having 
served  nnder  Aniaf,  he  conld  not  think  of  belraying  him  to  ruin,  any  nmre 
than  he  now  eould  peril  tiie  safety  of  Athelstan  himself  by  neglecting  to 
warn  him  of  Anlaf's  espionage.  To  such  a  mode  of  reasoning  there  could 
be  no  reply,  save  that  of  admiring  praise.  Having  dismissed  the  soldier, 
Athelstan  "pondered  on  the  probable  consequences  of  this  stealthy  visit 
paid  to  his  tent  by  Anlaf ;  and  it  having  struck  him  that  it  was  very  likely 
to  be  followed  iiy  a  night-attack,  he  immediately  had  his  lent  removed. 
The  bishops  of  that  day  were  to  the  full  as  brave  and  as  fond  of  war  as 
the  laity,  and  on  that  very  night  a  bishop  arrived  with  an  armed  train  to 
the  aid  t)f  his  sovereign.  The  prelate  took  up  the  station  which  the  king 
had  vacated ;  and  at  night  the  king's  suspicion  was  verified  with  great 
exaclilude.  A  sudden  attack  was  made  upon  the  camp,  and  the  enemy, 
disdaining  all  meaner  prev,  rushed  straight  to  the  tent  which  they  sup- 
[K  sed  to  be  occupied  by  tfie  king,  and  the  belligerent  bishop  and  iiis  im- 
ine(liate  attendants  were  butchered  before  they  had  time  to  prepare  for 
their  defence. 

'I'he  decisive  battle  of  Brunanburgh  gave  Athelstan  peace  from  the 
Danes,  and  he  devoted  the  remainder  of  his  reign  to  wise  and  active  en- 
deavours to  improve  the  character  and  i  ondition  of  his  subje<'ts.  Several 
of  his  laws  were  well  calculated  to  that  end,  and  there  is  one  which  particu- 
larly I'uiiiles  liim,  even  without  any  reference  to  the  barbarism  of  the  age 
in  which  he  made  it,  to  the  character  of  a  profound  and  sagacious  think 
er.  Anxious  to  encom'age  a  mercantile  spirit  among  his  subjects,  he  or- 
dained by  this  law  that  any  luercliaut  who  on  his  own  adventure  shoidd 
make  three  sea  voyages  should,  as  a  reward,  be  promoted  to  the  rank  of  a 
thane  or  gentle. 

After  an  c.Mremely  active  imd  prosperous  reign,  upon  which, however, his 
endeavoiu'lo  persuade  the  Scottish  king  into  the  cummission  of  an  act  of  the 
fiiullcsl  treachery  has  left  one  dark  and  indelible  stain,  though  the  oidy 
one,  this  King  ilicd  in  the  year  Oil,  and  was  succeeded  by  his  half  brother 
Ivlimnid,  the  legiiimate  son  of  I'Mward  the  Elder. 

Siinndateil  by  the  accession  of  a  ni.'w  king,  and  the  unsettled  state  of 
thiuijs  naturally  eonnecled  with  a  new  reign,  the  Danes  of  Northumber- 
land broke  out  into  rebellion  against  I'Mnnnid  as  soon  as  he  had  asceiuled 
the  thi-oiii'.  Itiit  I'Mimnul  mar(thed  so  proin|)tly  against  them,  and  ut  the 
head  of  SI)  imposing  a  force,  that  ti,iy  met  him  with  assurances  of  the 
most  hnmlile  and  pcrmaiu'nt  nibmission,  and  even  volmitariiy  olTered  to 
prove  their  sinrrriiy  as  (iuthrum  and  his  followers  had  formerly  done  to 
Alfred,  by  becoming  Christians.  K.dmund  accepted  their  Milimission,  but 
\h\  wisi'ly  jiidncd  that  the  submission  cxiiirted  by  an  armed  force  was  not 
liiM  ly  to  hist  much  longir  than  the  fear  which  tiial  Au'ce  awakened;  and 
he  therefore  removed  tlie  five  Hurgher  Danes  from  the  Mercian  towns  in 
wliiidi  they  had  liecn  allowed  to  settle.  A  wise  pri'canlion,  as  they  had 
invariably  taken  advantage  of  their  situation  to  aid  rebellious  or  invading 
Danes  to  penetrate  into  the  very  heart  of  the  kingdom. 

('umberland,  in  the  hands  nf  iIk^  Wcdsli  Dritims  had  beiMi  on  many  oc 
CHsidiis  ii  sore  amioy;tnce  t<i  the  northern  porliiui  of  tin  llhglisli  dominion, 
and  Hdmiind  took  an  o|ipiirlunily  to  wrest  it  from  the  llritims  and  li>  bestow 
it  as  a  mdilary  lii'f   im  Scutlaiid,  that  power  accepting  it  oi,  condition  ol 
protectjnu  the  northern  part  of  I'^ngjiiiKl  from  Danish  incursion. 

Ivlmniid's  active  and  useriil  ren^ii  h.id  (uily  endured  six  years  wlien  lie 
WH:*  iminliiid  under  rircninslaiices  which  giv('  us  a  slriinge  nniice  of  the 
iluiueatic  habits  of  royalty  at  tint  day.     He  was  seated  at  a  banipiet.  at 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


139 


liloiiccstor,  wnen  iiii  infamous  robber,  named  Leolf,  whom  he  had  some  time 
before  condemned  to  banishment,  entered  the  hall  of  banquet,  and  seated 
himself  at  the  royal  table  with  as  cool  an  assurance  as  thoufrh  he  had  been 
a  I'avoured  as  well  as  an  innocent  and  loyal  siibjeet.  The  king  angrily 
ordered  the  fellow  from  the  room,  and,  on' receiving  some  insolent  refusal, 
seized  him  by  the  throat  and  endeavoured  to  thrust  him  out.  Whether  the 
rulfuin  had  from  the  first  intended  to  assassinate  the  king,  or  whether  the 
knig's  strength  and  passion  alarmed  the  robber  for  his  own  life,  is  uncer- 
tain ;  but  from  whichever  cause,  Leolf  suddenly  drew  his  dagger  and 
killed  the  king  on  the  spot :  a.d.  946. 

Edmund  was  succeeded  by  his  brother  Edred  ;.  another  instance  of  ir- 
regularity in  the  successyon,  as  Edmund  left  children,  but  so  young  that 
they  were  deemed  unfit  for  the  throne,  audit  would  seem  that  the  n  ulual 
jealousy  of  the  Saxon  nobles  as  yet  prevented  them  from  thinking  of  a  tem- 
porary regency, as  aineans  atonce  of  preservingthe direct orderof succes- 
sion and  remedying  the  uonageofthedirectheirtothe  crown.  The  new  king 
had  no  sooner  ascended  his  throne  than  the  Danes  of  Northumberland 
pro\ed  how  justly  Athelstan  had  judged  of  their  sinrerity,  by  breaking  the 
peace  to  which  they  liad  so  solemnly  pledged  themselves.  But  Edred  ad- 
vancing upon  them  with  a  numerous  army,  they  met  him  with  the  same 
submissive  aspect  which  had  disarmed  the  wrath  of  his  predecessor.  The 
king,  however,  was  so  much  provoked  at  their  early  disobedience  to  him 
that  he  would  not  allow  their  humility  to  prevent  him  from  inflicting  a 
severe  punishment  upon  them.  He  accordingly  put  many  of  them  to  the 
sword,  and  plundered  and  burned  their  country  to  a  considerable  extent ; 
and  then,  his  wrath  appeaseil,  he  consented  to  receive  their  oath  of  alle- 
giance and  withdrew  his  troops.  Scarcely  had  he  done  so  when  these 
ever-faithless  people  again  broke  out  into  rebellion,  perhaps  prompted  on 
this  particular  occasion  less  by  ,iny  niercly  mischievous  feeluig,  than 
by  the  real  and  terrible  distress  to  which  the  king's  severity  had  reduced 
them.  This  new  revolt  was,  however,  speedily  quelled,  and  he  appointed 
an  KnuHish  governor  of  Northmnberlami,  and  placed  garrisons  in  all  the 
ciiic^f  towns  to  enable  him  to  support  his  authority.  Edred  about  ih's  time 
also  made  Malcolm  of  Scotland  repeat  his  homage  for  his  fiefof  Northum 
herland.  'I'houijh  Edred,  as  his  conduct  thus  early  in  his  reign  demon- 
strateil,  was  both  a  lirave  and  an  active  prince,  he  was  extremely  super- 
stitions. He  (ielighled  to  be  surrounded  by  priests;  and  to  his  e* 
peeial  favourite  Dnnstan,  abbot  of  (Jantcrbnry.  he  not  only  committed 
siinie  of  the  most  intluenlial  and  important  olHces  of  the  slate,  but  also 
tn  a  very  ridiculous  extent,  surrendered  the  guidance  of  his  own  common 
sense.  Of  a  hatiglity  temper,  and  extremely  ambitious,  tliis  monk,  n>  or 
rier  to  have  tools  for  the  accompi'shment  of  his  wide-spreading  purposes 
of  self-acgrandizemenf,  introduced  iito  England  a  great  immber  of  a  new 
order  of  monks,  the  Uenedicliiu's,  who,  laying  a  stress  upon  celibacy  b(?- 
yond  that  laid  by  any  former  order,  i.  ;d  professing  generally  a  niort;  rigid 
way  of  life  and  a  greater  jjurity  of  heart,  were,  in  trulli,  the  mere  tools  ol 
the  vast  anil  still  increasinij  ambition  of  Itome.  to  which  the  practice  ol 
celibacy  among  the  prieslliood  was  especially  favourable,  as  they  who  thus 
debarrid  themselves  from  conjugal  and  patiVnal  ties  could  not  fail  to  be 
more  uilhng  an<l  passive  servants. 

To  introduce  this  new  and  entirely  snliservient  order  of  monks  inio  Eng- 
land was  greatly  desireil  by  the  pope,  and  the  nmbiiious  poju'v  of  Dun- 
slan.  and  Ins  almost  despotic  power  over  the  snperstiiious  mmd  of  Edreil, 
niVordc'd  ("nil  opportunity  for  doing  so.  The  inflnei.'i'  of  iMnislau,  indeed, 
was  very  ureat  over  the  people  as  well  as  over  Ihi'  knig  ;  though  he  corn- 
Uienced  liff  under  circumstances  which  would  have  ruined  a  man  of  less  de- 
termineil  ainbitiim.nud  of  less  pliant  and  accomplisheil  liy|)0('nsy  than  him- 
Relf.  Of  iioblo  birth,  and  enjoving  the  great  advantage  of  huving  buuti  edu- 


.40 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


II 


caled  by  his  uncle,  the  accomplished  Adhelin,  archbishop  of  Canterbury, 
he  entered  the  church  early  in  life,  but  with  so  little  of  real  vocation  to  the 
sacred  profession,  that  his  way  of  life  procured  him  a  most  unenviable 
character;  and  King  Edmund,  in  whose  reign  this  famous  saint  of  the 
Roman  cidendiir  commenced  his  career,  looked  coldly  upon  a  priest  whosa 
debauchery  was  represented  to  be  such  as  would  disgrace  even  a  layman 
Enraged  at  finding  his  ambition  thus  suddenly  checked,  he  was  not  the 
less  determined  that  the  check  should  be  but  temporary.  AITectiiigto  be 
suddeiily  stricken  with  penitence  and  shame,  he  secluded  himself,  at  first 
from  tlie  court,  and  then  altogether  from  society.  He  had  a  cell  made  foi 
his  residence,  of  such  scant  dimensions,  that  he  could  neither  stand  fully 
upright  in  it,  nor  stretch  himself  out  at  full  length  when  sleeping;  and  in 
this  miserable  dwelling,  if  dwelling  it  can  be  called,  he  perpetually  turned 
from  prayer  to  manual  labour,  and  from  manual  labour  to  prayer,  during 
all  his  hours,  except  the  very  few  which  he  allowed  himself  for  sleep.  The 
austerity  of  his  life  imposed  upon  the  imaginations  of  the  superstitious 
people,  who  considered  austerity  the  .surest  of  all  proofs  of  sanctity  ;  and 
when,  wiiether  in  mere  and  unmingled  hypocrisy,  or  in  part  hypocrisy 
and  part  self-delusion,  he  pretended  to  be  I'reqnently  visited  and  templed 
by  Satan  in  person,  his  tale  found  greedy  listeners  and  ready  believers. 
From  one  degree  of  absurdity  to  another  is  but  an  easy  step  for  vulgar 
credulity.  It  being  once  admitted  that  Satan,  provoked  or  grieved  by  the 
immaculiite  life  and  fervent  piety  of  the  recluse,  visited  him  to  tempt  him 
into  sin,  what  (iifficiiUy  could  there  be  in  supposing  that  the  recluse  re- 
sisted a  long  time  only  with  prayer,  but  at  length  resorted  to  physical 
force,  and  held  the  fiend  by  the  nose  with  a  red  hot  pair  of  tongs,  until  he 
shrieked  aloud  with  agony,  aiul  promised  to  abstain  for  the  future  from  his 
unholy  importunity  t  Such  was  the  tale  which  Dunstan,  the  recluse,  had 
the  audacity  to  offer  to  the  public  belief  and  such  was  the  tale  to  which 
the  public  listened  with  attentive  ears, and  gave  "faith  and  full  credence." 
When  a  long  seclusion,  and  carefully  circulated  rumours  of  his  piety  and 
self-mortificaiion,  had  done  away  with  the  ill  impressions  which  had  been 
excited  by  wilder,  but  in  reality,  far  less  censurable  conduct  of  his  earlier 
days,  D'  'slaii  oiure  more  made  his  appearance  at  court ;  and,  as  Kdred 
was  deeply  tinged  with  superstitions  feeling,  the  priest  was  kindly  re- 
ceived at  first,  and  very  soon  favoured  and  promoted  above  all  the  othei 
courtiers.  Raised  to  the  direction  of  the  treasury,  and  being,  moreover, 
the  kiiiif'.s  private  adviser  in  all  important  concerns,  Dunstan  had  immense 
power  and  influence,  which  he  used  to  advance  the  great  object  of  Home 
m  substituting  the  devoted  monks  for  the  comparatively  independent  se- 
cular clergy,  who,  having  family  ties  and  affertitms,  were  not  sufficiently 
prostrate  or  blindly  obedient  to  suit  the  papal  purposi;.  During  nine  years 
— the  length  of  Kilreil's  reign — the  monks  made  ininiense  progress  in  Kng- 
land.  They  enlisted  the  feelings  of  the  people  on  their  side  by  their  se 
vere  and  passionate  declamation  against  the  worldly  lives,  and  esfiecially 
against  the  marriage  of  the  secular  clergy,  whose  wives  they  iiersisted  in 
calling  by  the  opprobrious  name  of  concubines.  And  Ihoiign  the  seculai 
clergy,  who  possessed  both  talent  and  wealth,  exerted  themselves  man 
fully,  not  only  to  defend  their  own  lives,  but  also  lo  expose  the  hypocrisy 
pretended  |iiirity,  and  aiaual  and  even  shameful  worldiiiess  and  sensuality 
of  their  opponents,  the  power  smd  credit  of  Dunstan  weighed  fearfully 
against  them.  The  death  of  I'dred,  which  (x-cnrred  in  9.55,  revived  then 
hopes,  and  threatened  to  stop  tin  progress  of  the  monks,  and  to  lower 
the  credit  of  tlu'ir  patron  Dunstan. 

The  children  of  Kdred  were  still  in  their  infancy  when  he  died,  and  his 
nephew.  Kilinund's  son  Kdwy.whohad  himself  been  passed  over  in  favour 
of  Kilit'd  <  ;i  tlu!  same  acconnl,  now  succeeded  to  the  throne,  lie  was  at 
the  time  of  his  succession  only  ujuut  seventeen  years  of  age,  and  blessed 


THE  lEEASQRY  OF  HISTORY. 


141 


fftih  a  fine  /»erson  and  a  powerful  and  well-trained  mind.  But  all  his  nat- 
ural and  acquired  good  qualities  were  rendered  of  but  little  use  to  hnn  by 
the  enmity  of  the  monks,  with  whcm  he  had  a  serious  quarrel  at  the  very 
commencement  of  his  career. 

Opposed  to  the  marriage  of  clerks  altogether,  the  monks  were  scarcely 
less  hostile  to  the  marriage  of  laics  within  the  degrees  of  affinity  forbid- 
den by  the  canon  law.  Edwy.  passionately  in  love  with  the  Princess 
Elgivii,  to  whom  he  was  related  within  those  degrees,  was  too  inexperi- 
enced to  perceive  all  tiie  evils  that  might  result  to  both  himself  and  the 
fair  Elgiva  from  his  provoking  the  fierce,  bigoted,  and  now  very  powerful 
monks  ;  and  in  despite  of  all  the  advice  and  warnings  of  the  ecclesiastics 
he  espoused  her.  The  coarse  and  violent  censure  which  the  monks  took 
occasion  to  pass  upon  the  marriage  aggravated  the  dislike  which,  on  ac- 
count of  their  gloom  and  severity,  Edwy  had  always  felt  to  the  monks, 
whom  he  took  every  occasion  to  disappoint  in  their  endeavours  to  possess 
themselves  of  the  convents  belonging  to  the  secular  clergy. 

If  the  king  had  disliked  the  monks,  the  monks  now  hated  the  king  with 
d  most  bitter  hatred.  By  his  marriage  lie  had  offended  their  rigid  bigotry, 
by  his  favours  to  the  seculars  he  disappointed  their  grasping  avarice,  and, 
favoured  and  advised  as  they  were  by  a  personage  at  once  so  able,  crafty, 
audacious,  and  powerful  as  Dunstan,  it  needed  not  the  spirit  of  prophecy 
to  foresee  that  hdwy  would  infalliby  be  their  victim. 

As  if  to  show  that  they  were  determined  to  carry  their  hatred  to  the 
utmost  extent,  they  chose  the  very  day  of  the  coronation  for  their  first 
manifestation  of  it;  the  day  upon  which  they  had  sworn  fealty  lo  the  sov^ 
ereign,  at  which  to  outrage  him  as  a  man,  and  commit  little  less  ilian  trea- 
sonable violence  upon  him  as  their  king!  so  little  docs  the  rancour  of 
mingled  bigotry  and  avarice  regard  even  the  forms  of  consistency  and 
decency. 

The  Saxons,  like  their  ancestors,  the  ancient  Germans,  drank  deep,  and 
were  wont  to  be  but  riotous  and  uncouth  companions  in  their  cups.  Both 
from  his  youth  and  his  natural  temper,  Edwy  was  averse  to  this  riotous 
wassail;  and  as  his  nobles,  at  his  coronation  feast,  began  to  pass  the 
bounds  of  teniprrance,  he  took  an  opporlunitv  to  leave  the  l)an(iueting 
apartment  and  go  to  that  of  his  young  and  lovefy  queen.  He  was  instant- 
ly followed  thilhcr  by  tlie  haughty  and  insoliMit  Ilunstan,  and  by  Odo, 
archbishop  of  Canterbury.  These  presinnptuous  chiircliincn  upbraided 
him  in  the  most  severe  terms  for  alleged  uxorioiisness,  applied  the  coars- 
est epithets  10  the  alarmed  queen,  and  finished  by  thrusting  him  back  into 
the  scene  of  riot  and  drunkenness  from  which  he  had  so  lately  escaped. 

Edwy  had  not  sufi^cient  power  and  influence  in  his  court  to  take  imme- 
diate and  direct  revenge  for  this  most  fliigrant  and  disgraceful  insult;  hut 
he  felt  it  too  deeply  to  pass  it  over  without  visiting  it,  at  the-  least  with  in- 
direct punishment.  Aware  that  Punstati  was  by  no  means  the  iminiicu- 
lale  and  unworldly  pernon  he  was  siippiiosed  to  be  by  the  ignorant  multi- 
ude, and  strongly  suspecting  that  he  had  taken  advantage  of  the  weak- 
ness and  superstition  of  Edrcd  greatly  to  enrich  himself,  he  desired  him  to 
give  an  account  of  his  receipts  ami  expenditure  during  that  jirince's  reign. 
Dunstan,  with  characteristic  insolence,  refused  to  give  any  account  of  Iho 
monies  which  he  aflirmcd  to  have  been  expended  by  order  of  Edred,  and 
whi'-h  he  on  that  account  pretended  that  Edwy  hud  no  right  to  inquirr 
about. 

Enraf^cd  at  the  insolence  of  Dunstan,  and  yet  not  allogcthcr  displeased 
at  being  fntiushed  with  so  good  a  pretext  for  ridding  the  court  of  the  pow- 
erful and  haughty  ecclesiastic,  Edwy  urijed  this  refusil  agiiiiist  him  as  a 
certain  proof  of  conscious  malversntion,  and  ordered  him  to  leave  the 
kingdom.  Powerful  as  I)iiiisi;iii  w;is,  he  was  not  yet  in  a  coiidiiion  to  dis- 
pute such  an  order;  he  could  bruliilly  iiisiiU  the  kiiitj,  but  lie  did  not  as 


142  THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 

yet  dare  openly  to  rebel  agiiiiist  the  kiiigly  autliority.  He  went  abroad, 
therefore,  but  he  left  behind,  in  the  person  of  Odo,  the  archbishop  of  Can- 
terbury,  one  who  was  both  qnahfied  and  willing  to  supply  his  place  in 
insolence  lo  the  king  personally,  and  in  traitorous  intrigue  against  his  royal 
authority.  Odo  and  the  monks  seized  upon  the  banishment  of  Dunstan, 
richly  as  his  conduct  had  merited  a  severer  punishment,  as  a  theme  upon 
which  to  sound  anew  the  praises  of  that  accomplished  hypocrite,  and  to 
blacken  the  character  of  the  king  and  queen  in  the  eyes  of  the  people. 
In  so  bigoted  and  ignorant  an  age  such  tactics  as  these  were  sure  to  suc- 
ceed; and  having  made  the  king  hateful,  as  well  as  the  queen,  whom 
they  represented  as  the  wicked  and  artful  seducer  of  her  husband  into  all 
evil  conduct,  both  as  a  man  and  sovereign,  Odo  and  his  base  tools  at 
length  ventured  from  whispered  calumny  and  falsehood,  to  violence  the 
most  undisguised,  and  to  cruelty  the  most  inhuman  and  detestable. 

Considiiruig  their  aversion  to  l^^dwy's  marriage  wiih  his  cousin  to  be 
the  chief  cause  of  his  0|)[)osition  to  their  interests,  Odo  and  the  monkish 
party  hated  the  queen  even  more  bitterly  than  tiiey  did  the  king  him- 
self. Proceeding  to  the  palace  with  a  strong  guard,  Odo  seized  upon  the 
lovely  queen,  branded  her  face  with  hot  irons  lo  ctTace  those  charms 
which  had  wrought  so  much  evil  to  tlie  ambitious  churchmen,  and  car- 
ried her  into  Ireland,  where  it  was  intended  she  should  be  kept  under 
strict  surveillance  for  the  remainder  of  her  life.  Kdwy  was  naturally 
both  brave  and  passionate,  but  he  was  powerless  in  t'le  hands  of  the  wily 
monks  as  a  lion  in  the  toils  of  the  hunters  ;  he  tei.  lerly  loved  his  un- 
happy queen,  but  he  could  neither  save  her  from  this  lu'rrible  outrage,  nor 
even  iiunish  her  brutal  and  unmanly  perseeutors.  Nay  more,  when  Odo, 
after  having  tortured  and  exiled  the  queen,  demanded  that  she  should  be 
formally  divorced,  so  much  more  powi^rful  was  the  crozier  than  the  scep- 
tre, th^it  the  unhappy  Kdwy  was  obliged  to  yield. 

Cruelly  as  Klgiva  had  been  treated,  the  brutality  of  her  enemies  fail- 
ed of  its  main  object ;  though  she  sulTcred  much  from  her  wounds,  they, 
singularly  enough,  left  scarcely  a  scar  lo  diminish  her  rare  beauty. 
Aware  of  the  lyraimy  which  had  been  practised  localise  lOdwy  to  divorce 
her,  and  considering  herself  still  his  lawful  wife  in  the  sight  of  Heaven, 
she  eludetl  the  vigilance  of  those  who  were  appointed  to  wat(di  her  move- 
ments, and  made  her  escape  back  to  Kngland.  Hut  befon;  she  could 
reach  her  husband  her  escape  was  made  known  to  Odo,  and  she  was  in- 
tercepted on  the  road  by  a  party  of  emissaries,  by  whom  she  was  ham- 
stringed ;  and  all  surgical  aid  bving  denied  her,  she  in  a  f(^w  days  died, 
in  the  must  fearful  agonies,  in  the  cily  of  (Jloiicestcr.  So  completely  monk- 
ridden  were  the  ignorant  people,  thai  even  this  (letcstable  anil  nmiatural 
cruelty,  which  ought  to  have  caiiseiloneunivi?rsal  outcry  agiinst  llie  miscre- 
ants who  insiigateil  it,  was  looked  upon  by  the  pco[)le  merely  as  a  [)iinish- 
mi'iit  iluc  lo  till!  sinful  opposition  of  king  and  queen  to  the  canon  law  and 
the  holy  monks. 

Having  gone  as  far  as  we  have  related  in  trciison,  it  cannot  bo  wonder- 
ed at  tliat  the  monks  now  |)ro( led  to  arm  for  ihe  deilironement  of  their 

uutia|ipy  king.  They  set  ii|)  as  his  competitor  his  younger  brotliir  Kdgar, 
who  was  at  this  lime  a  ymilh  of  only  tiiirtccii  or  foinleen  years  of  ngc ; 
and  they  sdoii  look  possession,  in  his  n;iine,  of  Mast  Aiiglia,  Mcnia,  and 
Norlhiimlii'rland.  I'Mwy  was  nowconfintd  to  the  southern  co  ml. es  of 
his  kiiigiliMn;  and  lo  ad  1  lo  his  danger  and  distress,  his  haiighly  and  im- 
placable cnrmy,  Dunstan.  openly  rcliirneil  lo  I'lnghuid  to  lend  Ins  power- 
ful inlliieni-e  to  Mdgar  in  this  ii:in,'itural  civil  strife,  lie  was  madi'  bishop, 
first  of  Worcester  and  Uicn  of  l.oiidou,  and.  Odo  dying,  Dunsiaii  was  then 
jiroinotcd  lo  the  arcliliishopric  of  rantcilinry  ;  Mritlielm,  who  had  beiMi  first 
uppoiiitcil  to  snci'ceil  Odo,  \)r\\\^  forcilily  I'Xpclled  fiU'  that  piir[)ose. 

The  coniiumnutle  cuiunng  u(  Dunsluu  fearfully  aggravated  the  oviis  'ii 


THE  TllEASUftY  OF  HISTORY. 


143 


Edwy's  condition,  for  the  wily  churchman  caused  liim  to  be  excommuni- 
cated, a  siMitence  wliich  in  that  rude  and  ignorant  a<Te  would  have  sufficed  to 
crush  a  far  more  powerful  monarch  than  he  had  been,  even  before  rebel- 
lion had  divided  his  kingdom. 

If  we  may  judore  from  the  unrelenting  purpose  shown  by  Dunstan,  the 
utter  dethronement  of  Edwy,  and  his  exile,  or  violent  death,  would  have 
been  the  sale  termination  of  this  disgraceful  affair;  but  from  the  sin  oi 
his  murdiir  liis  enemies  were  spared  by  his  untimely  and  rather  sudden 
death,  hastened  no  doubt  by  the  miseries  of  which  he  had  constantly  been 
a  victim. 

Edgar,  for  whom  for  their  own  purposes  Dunstan  and  the  monks  had 
usurped  a  part  of  the  kingdom,  now  became  the  undisputed  sovereign  of 
the  whole.  Though  very  young  at  this  time,  being  only  in  the  seventeenth 
year  of  his  age,  this  prince  showed  a  profound,  wily  and  politic  genius. 
Desirous  of  consolidating  and  improving  his  kingdom,  and  of  procuring 
it  a  high  degree  of  credit  among  foreign  nations,  he  seems  to  have  clear- 
ly perceived  that  he  could  only  preserve  the  internal  peace  wliich  was  in- 
dispensihle  to  his  purposes,  by  keeping  the  favour  of  Dunstan  and  the 
monks,  of  whose  power  he  had  seen  so  many  proofs  in  the  case  of  his 
imfortunate  brother.  Well  knowing  their  eager  desire  to  wrest  all  the 
religious  property  of  the  kingdom  from  the  hands  of  the  secular  clergy, 
he  bestowed  church  preferment  on  the  partizans  of  the  monks  exclusive- 
ly. To  Oswold  and  Ethelwold,  two  of  the  creatures  of  Dunstan,  he  gave 
the  valuable  sees  of  Worcester  and  Winchester,  and  he  consulted  them, 
and  especially  Diuistan,  not  incndy  upon  those  affairs  which  more  espe- 
cially coiiirerncd  the  church,  but  even  in  many  cases  upon  those  of  a  pure- 
ly civil  nature.  By  this  general  subserviency  to  the  ecclesiasticis  Edgar 
secured  so  strong  an  interest  with  them,  that  even  when  he  occasionally 
differed  from  thein,  and  preferred  the  dictates  of  his  own  strong  sense  to 
their  bigoted  or  interested  advice,  he  was  allowed  to  procijed  without 
any  auirry  feeling,  or  at  least,  without  any  opposition.  There  was  a  most 
startling  difference  in  the  treatment  bestowed  by  the  monks  upon  this 
prince,  and  that  which  they  indicted  upon  his  unhappy  brother.  As  they 
founded  their  claim  to  the  veneration  of  miuikind  upon  their  superior 
pi(;ty,  and  more  especially  upon  tluur  inviolable  observaiure  of  their  vow 
of  chastity,  so  Ihey  had  made  the  alledged  lewdness  of  Edwy  the  excuse 
for  their  abominable  In^atment  of  that  prince  and  Queen  Elgiva.  Yet  if 
lewdness  had  indeed  be  n  so  Intefiil  to  them  as  to  impel  them  to  barbarity 
towards  a  lovely  and  defi^noless  woman,  and  to  rebellion  and  treason 
towards  ihc'r  sovereign,  Edgar  was  tenfold  more  deserving  their  violent 
opposition  than  even  their  ov/n  statement  showed  Edwy  to  be.  TIk;  lewd- 
ness of  I'ldgar,  after  his  pliant  r.nd  politic  subserviency  to  the  monks,  was 
the  most  distinguishing  trait  in  his  character.  On  one  occasion  he  ac- 
tually br((ke  into  a  convent,  seized  a  nun.  by  nam:'  E  lilha,  and  fori;i- 
bly  viol.ited  ner.  For  this  two-fold  outrage  against  chastity  and  religion 
the  hypocrite  D;nstan,  who  had  inutilate(i  Elgiva,  and  pers(a'uted  Edgar 
even  to  an  untimely  grave,  merely  for  a  marriage  which  was  at  iIk;  worst 
irregular,  and  which  a  bull  from  the  pope  would  have  nude  regular,  sen- 
tentred  Ivlgar  to  the  absurdly  piuirile  punishmcul  of  abstaining  for  seven 
years  from  wearing  the  crown  ! 

.\s  if  to  make  the  favour  shown  to  him  by  the  monks  (iuil('  concdn- 
siv(!  as  to  lh(!  hypocrisy  of  the  pretences  upoi\  whiidi  they  liail  iiersecnted 
his  uitfortunate  brother,  this  prince  not  merely  in  iulgi'd  in  disgraceful 
amours;  he  actnilly  ol)tain(!il  his  second  wife  hy  murder!  The  story  is 
sufTlciently  striking  in  ilsidf  to  deserv(!  to  he  ridated  at  some  hMigih.  and  it 
aclnally  demands  to  he  so  relateil  an  a  (inal  and  eoiiidnsive  proof  of  the 
hypo"risy  of  the  monks  in  their  gross  and  barbarous  treatment  of 
Kinn  Edwy. 


144 


THE  TREABUKV  OF  HISTORY. 


Elfrida,  dnughmr  and  heiress  of  the  Rarl  of  Devonshire,  was  so  ex- 
trt niely  beauiifiil  that  it  was  no  wonder  thu  renown  of  her  nharnis  reached 
tile  couit,  and  tlie  inflanimahle  Kdgar  resolved  that  if  report  had  not  ex- 
aggerated tlie  beanty  of  the  lady  lie  would  make  her  his  wife ;  the  wealth, 
power,  and  eharaeler  of  her  fatliur  forbidding  even  the  unscrnpuious  and 
lewd  Edgar  from  hoping  to  obtain  her  on  any  less  honourable  terms. 
Being  anxious  not  to  commit  himself  by  any  advances  to  the  parents  of 
the  lady  until  quite  sure  that  she  was  really  as  surpassingly  beautiful  as 
she  was  reported  to  be,  he  sent  his  favourite  and  confidant,  the  Earl  Athel- 
wold,  to  visit  the  earl  of  Devon  as  if  by  mere  accident,  that  he  might  judge 
whetlier  the  charms  of  Elfrida  really  were  such  as  would  adorn  the  throne. 
Earl  Athehvold  fulfilled  his  mission  very  faithfully,  as  regarded  the  visit, 
but,  unhappily  for  himself,  he  found  the  charms  of  Elfrida  so  much  to  his 
own  taste,  that  he  forgot  the  curiosity  of  his  m:ister,  and  sued  the  lady  on 
his  own  account.  Well  knowing  that  with  the  king  for  an  avowed  rival 
his  suit  would  have  little  chance  of  success,  his  first  care  was  to  lull  the 
eager  anxiety  of  Edgar  by  assuring  him  that  in  this,  as  in  most  cases, 
rumour  with  her  thousand  tongues  had  been  guilty  of  the  grossest  exag- 
geration, and  that  the  wealth  and  rank  of  Elfrida  had  caused  her  to  be  re- 
nowned for  charms  so  moderate,  that  in  a  woman  of  lower  d(!gree  they 
would  never  be  noticed.  Hut  tliough  the  charms  of  Elfrida,  Earl  A»hel- 
wold  addeil,  by  no  moans  fitted  her  for  the  throne,  her  fortune  would  make 
her  a  very  acceptable  countess  for  himself,  should  the  consent  and  re- 
conuneudation  of  his  gracious  master  accompany  his  suit  to  her  parents. 

Fully  believing  that  his  favourite  really  was  actuated  only  by  merce- 
nary views,  Edgar  cheerfully  gave  him  the  permission  and  re(!onimenda- 
tion  he  soliciteii,  and  in  the  quality  of  a  favoured  courtier  he  easily  procured 
the  consent  of  the  huly — to  whom  he  had  already  made  himself  far  from 
indiflferent — ami  of  her  parents.  He  had  scarcely  become  possessed  of 
his  beautiful  bride  when  he  began  to  reflect  upon  what  woidd  be  the  pro- 
bable conse(|u(Mices  of  a  detection  by  the  king  of  the  fraud  that  had  been 
practised  to  gain  his  consent  to  the  marriage.  In  order  to  postpone  this 
detection  as  long  as  possible,  he  framed  a  variety  of  pretences  for  keep- 
ing his  lovely  bnde  at  a  distance  from  the  court ;  and  as  his  report  of  the 
homeliness  of  Elfrida  had  completidy  cooled  the  fancy  of  the  king,  Earl 
Athi.'lwold  began  to  liopc  that  his  dereit  would  never  be  discovered.  But 
the  old  adage  that  "a  favourite  has  no  friends"  was  provet'  in  his  case; 
encMuies  desirous  of  ruining  him  made  his  fraud  known  to  the;  king,  and 
spoke  more  rapturonsly  tlian  (,'ver  of  the  charms  of  Elfrida.  Enragei  at 
the  deception  practised  upon  )iim,  but  carefully  dissembling  hia  real 
motives  and  purpose,  the  king  told  Athcdwold  that  he  would  pay  him  a 
visit  and  bi!  introduced  to  his  wife.  'Vo  sui-h  an  intimation  the  unfortu- 
nate eail  could  make  no  objc^ction  which  would  not  wholly  and  at  once 
s  secret ;  but  he  obtained  permission 


ay  Ins  pei 


prec 


mg. 


under  |)retence  of  making  due  pre|)aralio!i  to  nJCi'ive  him,  but  in  reality  to 
prevail  upon  Elfrida  to  disguise  her  beauty  and  rusticate  her  behaviour  as 
far  as  possible.  This  she  promised,  and  probably  at  first  intended  to  do. 
But,  on  retli'ciiiin,  sh(!  naturally  considered  herself  injured  by  the  decep- 
tion which  had  cost  her  tlii!  throne,  and.  so  far  from  complying  with  her 
unfortun.ite  hushand's  desiri!,  she  called  to  the  aid  of  her  cliarins  all  the 
assi.itance  of  the  most  becoming  drc'ss,  and  all  tin;  sednctions  of  the  most 
graceful  and  accomplished  behaviour.  Fascinated  with  her  beauty,  Edgar 
was  beyond  all  expression  enrageil  at  the  diM-eil  by  wliiith  his  favourite 
had  contrived  to  chiMt  Inm  of  a  wife  so  lovely  ;  and  having  enticed  the 
unfirtiMialc  carl  Inio  a  ror(!st  on  a  hunting  excursion,  he  put  him  to  death 
with  his  own  band,  and  soon  after  married  IClfrida,  whos(^  perfidy  to  her 
murili'red  Inisb.iu  I  ma  Ic  her,  indeed,  a  very  fit  s[)i)ms(>  for  llie  murderer. 
'I'liougii  muiji  of  llus  monarch's  time  was  devoted  to  ilissolute  pleasures, 


I  I 


iiuthi 
and  I 

tCMC( 

puris 
gioiis 
Mu 
prese 
a  wall 
serve 
pliiiet 
liiat 
the 
such 
attein 
by  iii» 
could 
bours 
equal 
hiinse 
iaval 
exieiii 
tribiit; 
the  al 
actual 

Cllllllll 

I 


THE  TRBAaURY  OP  HISTORY. 


145 


he  by  no  iiieaus  neglected  public  business,  more  especially  of  that  kind 
wliicb  procured  hiui  the  indulgence  of  the  monks  for  all  his  worst  vices. 

Mucii  as  the  monks  and  the  king  iuid  done  towards  wresting  llie  church 
property  fioni  tlie  hands  of  the  secular  clergy,  more  still  remained  to  be 
done  ;  and  Kdgar,  doubtless  acting  upon  the  advice  of  Dunstan,  summoned 
a  council,  consisting  of  the  prelates  and  heads  of  religious  orders.  To 
this  council  he  made  a  passionate  speech  in  reprobation  of  the  dissolute 
and  scandalous  lives  which  he  aflirmed  to  be  notoriously  led  by  the  sec- 
ular clergy  :  tlieir  neglect  of  clerical  duty;  their  openly  livmg  with  con- 
cubines, for  so  he  called  their  wives ;  their  participation  in  hunting  and 
other  sports  of  tiie  laity  ;  and — singular  fault  to  call  forth  the  declamation 
of  a  kmg  and  employ  the  wisdom  of  a  council — the  smallness  of  their 
tonsure  !  Affecting  to  blame  Dunstan  for  having  by  too  much  lenity  in 
some  sort  encouraged  the  disorders  of  the  secular  clergy,  the  accomplished 
dissembler  supposed  the  pious  Edred  to  look  down  from  Heaven,  and 
tiius  to  speak  : 

"It  was  by  your  advice,  Dunstan,  that  I  founded  monasteries,  built 
churches,  and  expended  my  treasures  in  the  support  of  religion  and  reli- 
gious liouses.  Vou  were  my  counselor  and  my  assistant  in  all  my 
sciienies;  you  were  the  director  of  my  conscience;  to  you  I  was  in  all 
things  obedient.  When  did  you  call  for  supplies  which  I  refused  you ' 
\Vas  my  assistance  ever  witiiheld  from  the  poor!  Did  I  deny  establish 
menls  and  support  to  the  convents  and  the  clergy.  Did  I  not  hearken  to 
jour  instructions  when  you  told  me  that  these  charities  were,  beyond  all 
others,  the  most  grateful  to  my  Maker,  and  did  I  not  in  consequence  fix  a 
perpetual  fund  for  tiie  support  of  religion  ?  And  are  all  our  pious  endeav- 
ours  now  to  be  frustrated  by  the  dissolute  lives  of  the  clergy?  Not  that 
I  throw  any  blame  upon  you ;  you  have  reasoned,  besouglit,  inculcated, 
and  invtngiied,  but  it  now  behoves  you  to  use  sharper  and  more  vigorous 
remedies ;  and,  conjoining  your  spiritual  aulhonii/  with  the  civil  power,  U 
vuri^e  elfeclunlli/  the  temple  of  God  from  thieves  and  intruders." 

The  wonis  which  we  give  in  Italics  were  decisive  as  to  the  whole  ques- 
tion; tli(!  innocence  of  tlie  secular  clergy,  as  a  body,  could  avail  them 
nothing  against  tliis  union  of  civil  power  and  spiritual  authority,  backed 
and  cheered  as  tliat  union  was  by  the  people,  whom  the  hypocritical  pre- 
tences of  tin;  monks  had  made  sincerely  favourable  to  tliose  affected 
purists  ;  and  tiio  monkl-jh  discipline  shortly  prevailed  in  nearly  every  reli- 
gions house  in  the  land. 

Much  as  all  honourable  minds  must  blame  the  means  by  which  Edgar 
prcservcil  tlu;  favour  of  tiie  formidable  monks,  all  candid  minds  must 
award  him  tiie  praise  of  having  made  good  use  of  the  power  he  thus  pre- 
served in  his  own  hands.  He  not  only  kept  up  a  strong  and  well-discj- 
pline(!  land  forre,  in  constant  readiness  to  defend  any  part  of  his  kingdom 
tiiat  might  l)e  altai^ked,  but  he  also  built  and  kept  up  an  excellent  navy, 
the  vigilance  and  strength  of  which  greatly  diminished  the  chance  of  any 
siicli  attack  being  made.  Awed  by  his  navy,  the  Danes  abroad  dared  not 
atteni|)t  to  invade  his  country;  and  constantly  watched  and  kept  in  check 
by  his  army,  the  domestic  Danes  perceived  that  turbulence  on  (heir  part 
could  produce  no  effect  but  their  own  speedy  and  sure  rum.  His  neigh- 
bours of  ScHuland,  Wales,  Ireland,  and  the  adjacent  isles,  iield  him  m 
equal  respei-t ;  ami,  upon  the  whole,  no  king  of  England  ever  showed 
iiliuself  either  more  desirous  or  more  able  to  preserve  to  Ins  klngiloni  the 
invaluable  Ixini'his  of  peace  at  homt!  and  respect  abro.'d.  In  proof  uf  the 
extent  to  wliudi  he  carried  bis  ascendency  over  the  m  lijhbouring  and 
Irihutary  |)riuces,  it  is  allirmed,  tiiat  being  at  Chester,  and  desiring  to  visit 
the  abbey  of  St.  .lohii  the  Baptist,  in  the  neighlionrhood  of  that  city,  he 
actually  canseil  his  barg(;  to  he  rowed  thith(;r  by  eight  of  those  princes,  in- 
chiding  Kenneth  the  Third,  king  uf  Scotland. 

I— 10 


146 


THE  TKEASUTIY  OF  HISTORY. 


The  useful  a.ts  received  a  great  impulse  during  this  reign  from  the 
Vjreat  eueouragenient  given  by  Edg:ir  to  ingenious  and  industrious 
foreigners  to  se'lle  among  his  subjects.  Another  benefit  which  he  con- 
ferred upon  his  kingdom  was  that  of  the  extirpation  of  wolves,  which  at 
the  commencement  of  his  reign  were  very  numerous  and  mischievous. 
By  giving  rewards  to  those  who  put  these  animals  to  death,  they  wore  at 
length  limited  into  the  mountainous  and  woody  country  of  Wales,  and  in 
order  that  even  there  so  mischievous  a  race  might  find  no  peace  he  com- 
muted the  tribute  money  due  from  Wales  to  England  to  a  tribute  of  three 
hundred  wolves'  heads  to  be  sent  to  him  annually,  which  policy  speedily 
caused  their  entire  destruction.  After  a  busy  reign  of  sixteen  years  this 
prince,  still  in  the  flower  of  his  age,  being  only  thirty-three,  died,  and 
was  succeeded  by  his  son  Edward  in  the  year  975. 


CHAPTER  XI. 


rROM    THE    ACCESSION    OF   EDWARD   THE    MAItTVR   TO   THE   DEATH   OF  CANUTE 

Edward  II..  subsequently  surnamed  the  Martyr,  though  his  death  had 
nothing  to  do  with  religion,  was  the  son  of  Edgar  by  that  prince's  first 
wife,  and  was  only  fifteen  years  of  age  when  he  succeeded  to  the  throne. 
His  youth  encouraged  his  step-mother,  Elfrida,  to  endeavour  to  set  aside 
his  succession  in  favour  of  her  own  son  and  his  half-brother,  Ethelred,  who 
at  tliis  time  was  only  seven  years  old.  This  extremely  bad  woman  pre- 
tended that  the  marriage  of  her  husband  to  his  first  wife  was  on  several 
accounts  invalid,  and  as  her  beauty  and  art  had  been  very  su(;cessfully 
exerted  in  securing  favour  during  the  life  of  Edgar,  she  would  probably 
have  succeeded  in  her  iniquitous  design  had  the  circumstances  been  less 
favourable  to  Edward.  But  though  tliat  prince  was  very  young,  he  was 
at  least  much  nearer  to  the  age  for  reigning  than  his  half-brother  ;  the  will 
of  his  father  expressly  gave  him  the  succession ;  many  of  the  principal 
men  of  the  kingdom  imagined  that  the  regency  of  Elfrida  would  be  an 
extremely  tyrannical  one ;  and  Dunstan,  who  was  in  the  plcniliule  of  liia 
power,  nnd  who  reckoned  upon  the  favour  and  docility  of  young  Edward, 
powerfully  supported  him,  and  crowned  him  at  Kingston,  before  Elfrida 
could  bring  hor  ambitious  plans  to  maturity. 

The  prompt  and  energetic  support  thus  given  by  Dunstan  to  the  rightful 
heir  would  entitle  him  to  our  unqualified  applause,  were  there  not  good 
and  olivious  reason  to  believe  that  it  originated  less  in  a  sense  of  justice 
than  in  anxiety  for  the  interests  of  his  own  order.  In  spite  of  tiie  hoa\  y 
blows  and  great  discourr.gement  of  Edgar,  the  secular  clergy  had  stiil 
many  and  powerful  frie-ids.  Amonnf  these  was  the  duke  of  Mcrcia,  who 
no  sooner  asoertainoi'.  the  death  of  King  Edgar  than  he  expelled  all  the 
monks  from  the  religious  houses  in  Mercia.and  though  they  were  receiveil 
and  protected  hy  the  dukes  of  the  East  Saxons  and  the  East  Angliaus,  it 
was  clear  to  both  Dunstan  and  the  monks  that  there  was  a  .sulTicient  dis- 
like U;  the  new  order  of  ecclesiastics  tc  render  it  very  im[)ortant  tliat  they 
should  have  a  king  entirely  favourable  to  tliem.  And  as  Dunstan  had 
walclu"!  and  trained  Edward's  mind  from  his  early  cliildhood,  tliey  well 
knew  that  he  would  prove  their  fittest  instrument.  Hnt  thougii  they  had 
thus  sccureil  the  throne  to  a  king  as  favourable  and  docile  as  tliey  could 
desre,  tlicy  left  no  means  untriecl  to  gain  the  voices  of  th(!  inultilude.  .\t 
the  occasional  synods  that  were  held  for  the  st-ttiemcut  of  ecclesiastical 
disputes,  they  pretended  that  miracles  were  worked  in  their  favour;  and, 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


147 


in  the  :norant  state  of  the  people,  that  party  who  could  work  or  invoke 
the  must  iTiirafies  was  sure  to  be  the  most  popular.  On  one  of  lliese 
occasions  a  voice  that  seemed  to  issue  from  the  great  crucifix  wiiieh 
adorned  the  place  of  meeting,  proclaimed  that  ho  wiio  opposed  the  esiab- 
lishnicnt  of  the  monks  opposed  the  will  of  Heaven ;  on  another  occasion 
the  floor  of  the  lialt  fell  in,  killing  and  maiming  a  great  number  of  persons, 
but  tliat  portion  which  supported  the  chair  of  Dunstan  remained  firm  ;  and 
.on  another  occasion,  when  the  votes  of  the  synod  were  so  unexpectedly 
aijainsi  him  that  he  was  unprovided  with  a  miracle  for  the  occasion,  Dim- 
sllm  rose,  and,  with  an  inimitably  grave  impudence,  assured  the  meeting 
ihat  he  had  just  been  favoured  with  a  direct  revelation  from  Heaven  in 
favour  of  the  monks.  So  utterly  stultified  was  the  general  mind,  and  the 
populace  received  this  impudent  falsehood  with  so  much  fervent  favour, 
that  the  party  hostile  to  the  monks  actually  dared  not  support  any  farther 
the  views  of  the  question  upon  which  they  had  a  clear  and  acknowledged 
majority  ! 

Eihvard's  reign  deserves  little  further  mention.  No  great  event,  good 
or  evil,  marked  it;  he  was,  in  fact,  merely  in  a  state  of  pupilage  during 
the  four  years  that  it  lasted.  Having  an  excellent  disposition,  it  is  pro- 
bable that  had  he  lived  to  mature  years  he  would  have  shaken  off  the  be- 
numbing and  deluding  influenci;  of  the  monkish  party.  But  in  the  fourth 
year  of  his  reign,  and  while  he  was  yet  barely  nineteen  years  of  age,  he 
fell  a  victim  to  hi  atrocious  step  mother's  cruelly  and  ambition.  Not- 
witlislaiiding  the  i  ;stility  she  had  evinced  towards  him  at  the  death  of 
his  father,  young  lOdward's  mild  temper  had  caused  him  to  show  her  that 
respect  and  att(Mition  which  she  was  very  far  indeed  from  deserving.  She 
resided  at  Corfe  castle,  in  Dorsetshire  ;  and  as  the  young  prince  was  one 
day  hunting  in  that  neighbourhood,  he  rode  away  from  his  company,  and, 
wholly  unattended,  paid  her  a  visit.  Slie  received  him  with  a  treacher- 
ous appearance  of  kindness,  but  just  as  he  had  mounted  his  horse  to  de- 
part, a  rullian  in  her  employment  stabbed  him  in  the  back.  The  wound 
did  not  prove  instantly  mortal,  but  as  he  fainted  from  loss  of  blood  (^re  he 
could  disengage  his  feet  from  the  stirrups,  his  frightened  horse  galloped 
onward  with  him,  and  he  was  bruised  to  death.  Iiis  servants  having 
traced  him,  recovered  his  body,  which  they  privately  interred  at  Wareliam. 

By  this  surpassing  crime  of  his  vile  mother,  who  vainly,  even  in  that 
superstitious  age,  endeavoiu'cd  to  recover  the  public  favour,  and  expiate 
her  crime  in  public  opinion,  by  ostentatious  penances  and  by  lavishing 
money  upon  monasteries,  Etlielred,  son  of  Edgar  and  Elfrida,  succeeded 
to  the  throne. 

The  Danrs,  who  had  been  kept  in  awe  by  the  vigour  of  Edgar,  and 
who,  moreover,  had  fomul  ample  employment  in  conquering  and  planting 
settlements  on  the  northern  coast  of  l"" ranee,  a  resource  which  their  num- 
bers hiid  exhausted,  were  encouraged  by  the  minority  of  EllK-lred  to  turn 
their  attention  once  more  towards  England,  where  they  felt  secure  of  re- 
ceiving encouragement  and  aid  from  the  men  of  their  own  race,  who, 
though  long  settled  among  the  English,  were  by  no  moans  fully  incorpo- 
raied  with  them.  In  the  year  981  the  Dalies  accordingly  made  an  experi- 
mental liesccnt  upon  iSuuthampton,  in  seven  vessels  ;  and  as  they  took 
the  people  completely  by  surprise,  they  secured  considerable  plunder, 
witii  which  they  escaped  uninjured  and  almost  unopposed.  This  conduct 
tlicy  repeated  in  987,  with  similar  siuh'css,  on  the  western  coast. 

This  success  of  these  two  experiments  convinced  the  marauders  that 
the  vigour  of  an  Edgar  was  no  loiig(;r  to  be  dreaded  in  England,  and  they 
therefore  prepared  to  make  a  descent  upon  a  larger  scale  and  with  more 
extensive  views.  They  landed  in  great  numbers  on  the  coast  of  Essex, 
and  defeated  and  slew,  at  Maldtm,  Brithric,  tiie  (hike  of  that  county,  who 
liravely  attempted  to  lesist  theni  with  Ins  local  force;  and  after  their  vie- 


1 48 


THE  TREASUKY  OF  HISTORY. 


tory  they  devastated  and  plundered  all  the  neighbouring  country.  So 
soon  and  so  easily  does  a  people  degenerate  when  neglected  by  its  rulers, 
that  Ethelred  and  his  nobles  could  see  no  better  means  of  ridding  them- 
selves of  these  fierce  pirates  than  that  of  bribing  them  to  depart.  They 
demanded  and  received,  as  the  price  of  their  departure,  an  enormous  sum. 
They  departed  accordingly,  but,  as  might  have  been  anticipated,  so  large 
a  sum  so  easily  earned  tempted  them  very  speedily  to  repeat  their  visit. 
By  this  time  a  fleet  had  been  prepared  at  London  fully  capable  of  resisting 
and  beating  off  the  invaders,  but  it  was  prevented  from  doing  the  service 
that  was  expected  from  it  by  the  treachery  of  Alfric  duke  of  Mercia.  He 
had  formerly  been  banished  and  deprived  of  his  possessions  and  dignity, 
and  though  he  had  now  for  some  time  been  fully  restored,  the  affront 
rankled  in  his  mind,  and  he  conceived  the  unnatural  design  of  ensuring 
his  own  safety  and  importance  by  aiding  the  foreign  enemy  to  keep  his 
country  in  a  state  of  disorder  and  alarm.  He  was  entrusted  with  one 
squadron  of  a  fleet  with  which  it  was  intended  to  surround  and  destroy 
the  enemy  in  tlie  harbour  in  which  they  had  ventured  to  anchor,  and  he 
basely  gave  the  enemy  information  in  time  to  enable  them  to  avoid  the 
danger  by  putting  out  to  sea  again,  and  then  completed  his  infamous 
treachery  by  joining  them  with  his  whole  squadron.  The  behaviour  of 
the  king  on  this  occasion  was  equally  marked  by  barbarity  and  weakness. 
On  hearing  of  Alfric's  traitorous  conduct,  he  had  that  nobleman's  son 
Alfgar  seized,  and  caused  his  eyes  to  be  put  out ;  yet,  after  inflicting  this 
horrid  cruelty  upon  the  innocent  son,  he  so  far  succumbed  to  the  power 
and  iulluence  of  the  guilty  father,  as  actually  to  reinstate  him  in  his  ofllce 
and  possessions. 

A.  D.  993. — The  experience  the  Danes  had  acquired  of  the  weakness  oi 
Ethelred  and  the  defenceless  condition  of  his  kingdom,  encouraged  them 
to  make  new  and  still  more  formidable  descents.  Sweyn,  king  of  Den- 
mark, and  Olave,  king  of  Norway,  sailed  np  the  Humber  with  an  immense 
fleet,  laying  waste  and  plundering  in  every  direction.  Those  of  the  Danes, 
and  they  were  but  few,  who  refused  to  join  the  invaders,  were  plundered 
equally  with  the  Knglish.  An  army  advanced  to  give  battle,  and  so  fierce 
was  the  contest  that  the  Danes  were  already  beginning  to  give  way,  when 
the  tide  of  fortune  was  suddenly  turned  against  the  English  by  the 
treachery  of  Frena,  Frilhegist,  and  Godwin,  three  leaders,  who,  though  of 
Danish  descent,  were  entrusted  with  large  and  important  command.s. 
These  men  withdrew  their  troops,  and  the  English  were  in  consequence 
defeated. 

The  invaders  now  entered  the  Thames  with  a  fleet  of  upwards  of  ninety 
ships  and  laid  siege  to  London.  Alarmed  for  their  large  wealth,  the  citi- 
zens defended  themselves  with  a  stoutness  strongly  contrasted  with  the 
pusillanimity  which  had  been  displayed  by  both  the  king  and  the  nobles, 
and  their  resistance  was  so  obstinate  that  the  pintes  at  length  gave  up 
the  attempt  in  despair.  But  though  they  abandoned  the  metropolis  of  the 
kingdom,  they  did  not  therefore  give  up  their  determination  to  plunder. 
Spreading  their  bauds  over  Kssex,  Sussex,  and  Hants,  they  not  only  pro- 
cured large  booty  there,  but  also  a  sufficient  number  of  horses  to  enable 
them  to  extend  their  depredations  far  inland.  It  might  have  been  sup- 
post'd  that,  after  the  noble  example  set  by  the  traders  of  London,  the  king 
and  his  nobles  would  he  prevented  by  very  shame  from  ever  Jtgain  resort- 
ing to  the  paltry  and  impolitic  scheme  of  purchasing  the  absence  of  the 
invaders:  but  to  that  exjiedient  they  did  resort.  Messengers  were  sent 
to  offer  to  subsist  the  invaders  if  they  would  preserve  peace  while  they 
reni'iiiied  in  the  kingdom,  and  to  pay  tribute  on  condition  of  their  taking 
an  early  departure.  The  Danes,  wdy  as  they  were  li.irdy,  probably 
imagined  that  they  had  now  so  far  exhausted  the  kingdom  that  the  tribute 
nlfered  to  them  would  be  more  valuable  than  the  further  spoil  they  would 


I 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


149 


ninety 

the  citi- 

'ith  the 

nobles, 

fave  up 

of  tlie 
)luiKler. 
ily  pro- 

i'n;ihle 
nil  siip- 
ho  king 

resort- 

of  the 

re  sent 
ile  they 

taking 
robiibly 

tribute 
r  would 


be  likely  to  obtain,  and  they  readily  accepted  the  proposed  terms.  They 
took  up  their  abode  at  Southampton,  and  tliere  conducted  themselves  very 
peaceably.  Olave  carried  his  complaisance  so  far  as  to  pay  a  visit  to 
Kthelrcd,  at  Andover,  and  received  the  right  of  confirmation.  Many  rich 
gifts  were  consequently  bestowed  upon  him  by  the  king  and  the  prelates, 
and  the  sum  of  sixteen  thousaud  pounds  having  been  paid  to  him  and 
Sweyn,  they  took  their  departure.  Olave,  who  never  returned  to  England, 
was  so  great  a  favourite  with  the  churchmen  that  he  was  honoured  with  a 
place  among  the  saints  in  the  Roman  calendar. 

A.  D.  997. — The  repeated  proofs  Ethelred  had  given  of  his  willingness 
to  purchase  the  absence  of  pirates  ratlier  than  battle  against  them,  pro- 
duced, as  was  natural,  a  new  invasion.  A  large  fleet  of  the  Danes  this 
year  entered  the  Severn.  Wales  was  spoiled  for  miles,  and  thence  the 
pirates  proceeded  to  commit  similar  atrocities  upon  the  unfortunate  people 
of  Cornwall  and  Devonshire.  Thence  the  marauders  went  first  to  Dor- 
setshire, then  to  Hants,  then  Kent,  where  the  inhabitants  opposed  them  at 
Rochester,  but  were  routed  with  terrible  slaughter,  and  the  whole  of  their 
country  was  plundered  and  desolated.  Many  attempts  were  made  by  the 
braver  and  wiser  among  the  English  to  concert  such  a  united  defence  aa 
would  prevail  against  the  enemy;  but  the  weakness  of  the  king  and  the 
nobles  paralyzed  the  best  efforts  of  the  nobler  spirits,  and  once  more  the 
old  expedient  was  resorted  to,  and  twenty-four  thousand  pounds  were 
now  paid  as  the  price  of  the  absence  of  the  Danes,  whose  demands  very 
naturally  became  higher  with  their  increased  experience  of  the  certainty 
of  their  being  complied  with.  It  was  probably  with  some  vague  hope  that 
even  an  indirect  connection  with  these  formidable  northmen  would  cause 
them  to  respect  his  dominions,  tiiat  Ethelred,  having  lost  his  first  wife, 
this  year  espoused  Emma,  sister  of  Richard,  the  second  duke  of  Normandy. 

Long  as  the  domestic  Danes  had  now  been  established  in  England,  they 
were  still  both  a  distinct  and  a  detested  race.  The  old  English  historians 
accuse  them  of  effeminacy  and  luxuriousness,  hut  as  they  instance  as  evi- 
dence of  the  truth  of  these  charges,  that  the  D.incs  combed  their  hair  daily 
and  bathed  once  a  week,  we  mayfni'''  vnougii  acquit  the  Danes  of  all 
guilt  on  this  head,  and  conclude  tli  ,  rude  and  bad  as  the  race  was  in 
many  respects,  they  assuredly  wi'ie  5<iiperior  to  the  English  of  that  day 
in  the  very  important  matter  of  pi  rsKiiHl  decency.  But  a  dislike  to  men's 
personal  habits,  be  it  well  or  ill  lounil'  d,  is  a  very  powerful  motive  in  the 
increasing  and  perpetuation  of  h.itivd  founded  upon  other  feelings,  and 
that  hatred  the  Englisii  deeply  felt  tor  the  Danes  on  account  of  the  origin 
of  their  settlement  among  iIkih,  their  great  propensity  to  gallantry,  and 
their  great  skill  in  making  themselves  agreeable  to  the  English  women  ; 
above  all,  on  account  of  their  constant  and  shamefully  faithless  habit  of 
joining  their  invading  fellow-countrymen  in  their  violence  and  rapine. 
Ethelred,  like  all  weak  and  cowardly  [xjrsons,  was  strongly  inclined  towards 
both  cruelty  and  treachery,  and  the  general  detestation  in  which  the  Danes 
were  held  by  the  F^nglish  encouraged  liim  to  plan  the  univers;d  massaare 
of  the  former.  Orders  were  secretly  dispatched  to  all  the  governors  and 
ciiicf  ;r."!'.  of  t'lf  rniintry  to  make  all  preparations  for  this  detestable 
cruelty,  for  which  the  same  ua-y,  November  the  l.'lth,  beinu  St.  liritliric's 
day,  a  festival  among  the  Dunes,  was  appointed  for  the  while  kingdom. 

The  wicked  and  dastardly  orders  of  the  king  mc:l'  but  too  agreeable  to 
the  temper  of  the  populace.  On  the  same  day,  and  at  the  same  Hour,  liic 
unsuspecting  Danes  were  attacked.  Youth  and  age,  without  distinction 
of  sex,  were  alike  attacked  with  indiscriminate  fury,  and  they  were  the 
most  fortunate  among  the  unhappy  Danes  whose  butchers  were  so  eager 
to  destroy  them  tiiai  they  omitted  first  to  subject  them  to  tortures  terrible 
even  to  read  of.  So  unsparing  was  the  rage  against  them,  and  so  blind 
'o  consequences  were  both  high  and  low  among  the  infuriated  and  tern- 


ISO 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


porarily  trmmphiint  Knglish,  that  the  princess  Gmiilda,  sister  of  the  re- 
donbtiible  king  of  Dnnniark,  was  put  to  death,  after  seeing  her  hnsbaiid 
and  children  slaughtered,  though  her  personal  charaeter  was  excellent  and 
though  she  had  long  been  a  Christian.  As  she  expired,  this  mifortunate 
lady,  whose  murder  was  chiefly  caused  by  the  advice  of  Edric,  earl  of 
Wilts  (which  advice  was  shamefully  acted  upon  by  the  king,  who  ordered 
her  death),  foretold  that  her  death  would  speedily  be  avenged  by  the  total 
ruin  of  England.  In  truth,  it  needed  not  the  spirit  of  prophecy  to  foretel 
that  such  wholesale  slaughter  could  scarcely  fail  to  call  down  defeat  and 
ruin  upon  a  people  who  had  so  ofien  been  glad  to  pundiase  the  absence  ol 
the  Danes  when  no  such  cowardly  atrocity  had  excited  them  to  invasion, 
or  justified  them  in  inisparing  violence.  The  prophecy,  however,  was 
speedily  and  fearfully  realized.  Though  the  persua.sions  and  example  of 
Olave,  and  his  positive  determination  to  fulfil  his  part  of  the  agreement 
made  with  Ethelred  had  hitherto  saved  England  from  any  repetition  of 
the  annoyances  of  Sweyn,  king  of  Denmark,  that  fierce  and  warlike 
monarch  had  constantly  felt  a  strong  desire  to  renew  his  attack  npon  a 
people  who  were  so  much  more  ready  to  defend  their  country  with  gold 
than  with  steel.  The  cowardly  cruelty  of  Ethelred  now  furnished  the 
Dane  wiih  a  most  righteous  pretext  for  invasion,  and  he  liasKMied  to  avail 
himself  of  it.  He  appeared  off  the  western  coast  with  a  strong  fleet,  and 
Exeter  was  delivered  up  to  him  without  resistance;  some  historians  say 
by  llic  incapacity  or  neglect  of  Earl  Hugh,  while  others  say  by  his  treachery. 
1  his  last  opinion  hiis  some  support  in  the  fact  that  Earl  Hugh  was  him- 
self a  Norman,  and,  being  only  I'onnected  with  England  by  the  office  to 
which  he  had  but  recently  been  appointed  throuuh  the  interest  of  the 
queen,  he  might,  without  great  breach  of  charity,  be  suspected  of  leaning 
rather  to  the  piratical  race  with  which  he  was  connected  by  birth,  than  tc 
the  English.  From  Exeter,  as  their  head  quarters,  the  Danes  traversed 
llie  (rounlry  in  all  directions,  committing  all  tht;  worst  atrocities  of  a  win 
of  retaliation,  and  loudly  proclaiming  their  determination  to  have  ample 
revengf'  for  the  slaughter  of  their  fellow-countrymen.  Aware,  immedi- 
ately after  they  had  perpetrated  their  inhuman  crin>e  u[K)n  ttie  domestic 
Danes,  how  little  mercy  they  could  ex|«'ct  at  the  hands  of  \\\t'.  conntfy. 
men  of  their  murdered  victims,  the  English  had  made  more  than  usual 
preparations  for  resistance.  A  large  anil  well  furnished  army  was  ready 
to  I'  irch  against  the  invaders,  hut  tlie  (command  of  it  was  committed  to 
that  duk('  of  Mercia  whose  former  tri'ason  has  been  mentioned,  and  he, 
pretending  illness,  conlrived  to  delay  the  niarcdi  of  the  tr(M)ps  until  they 
were  thoroughly  dispirited  and  the  Danes  had  done  enorm<ms  mischief. 
He  died  shortly  iifter  and  was  succeeded  by  Edric,  wlio,Yhough  son-in- 
la*  to  iIk;  king,  proved  just  as  treacherous  as  his  pnMleeessor.  The  con- 
st ineu'T  was,  that  the  country  was  riivagcd  to  such  an  extent  that  the 
horror.^of  famine  were  soon  added  to  the  horrors  of  war,  and  the  dejiraded 
Engh.sh  once  more  sued  for  peace,  and  obtained  it  lit  the  price  of  thirty 
thousand  pounds, 

A.o.  1007. — Clearly  perceiving  that  they  might  now  reckon  upon  Danish 
invasion  as  a  periodical  nlaguc,  the  English  government  and  people  en- 
deavoured lo  prepare  lor  their  future  defence.  Troops  were  raised  anddis- 
riplined,  and  it  navy  of  nearly  eight  hundred  ships  wac  prepared.  Hut  a 
quarrel  which  arose  between  Edric,  duke  of  Mercia,  anil  Wolfnoll),  gov- 
trniir  of  .Sussex,  caused  the  l.iilcr  lo  desert  to  the  Danes  with  twenty 
vessels.  He  was  pursued  liy  i'llricVi  brother  llrighlric,  with  a  fleet  o> 
eighty  vessels;  l)Ut  this  rtect,  being  driven  ashore  by  a  tempest,  was  at 
tacked  and  burned  by  Woifiiolh,  A  hundred  vessels  were  thus  lost  to  lh»i 
Enulisli,  dissensions  spread  among  other  leading  men,  anil  the  tteet  whiclu 
If  eonci'iitraieil  and  aldy  direct  •(!,  might  havt^  given  safety  lo  tlie  nation, 
was  dispersed  mto  vanoim  portj  and  rendered  virtually  useless 


\h 


THE  TREAtUaV  OP  HISTOHY. 


151 


>n  liiiiiish 
■oplo  rn- 
il  and  iIIr 
nm  il 

illl.    1{IIV- 

twfiity 
t  (led  ()> 
WHS  ill 
isf  lollm 
■t  wliicli, 
'  iiaiioiv 


Tho  Danes  did  not  fail  to  take  advantage  of  the  dissensions  and  im- 
becility of  tiie  English,  and  for  some  time  Irom  this  period  the  history  of 
England  presents  us  with  nothing'  but  one  melancholy  monotony  uf  un- 
sparing cruelly  on  the  part  of  the  nivaders,  and  unmitigated  and  hopeless 
suffernig  on  the  part  of  the  invaded.  Repeated  attempts  were  made  to 
restore  something  like  unanimity  to  the  English  councils,  and  to  form  a 
settled  and  unaiumous  plan  of  resistance;  but  all  was  still  dissension, 
and  when  the  utmost  wretchedness  at  length  made  the  disputants  agree, 
they  agreed  only  in  resorting  to  the  old,  base,  and  most  impolitic  plan  of 
purchasing  the  absence  of  their  persecutors.  How  impolitic  lliis  plan  was 
common  sense  ought  to  have  told  the  English,  even  had  they  not  possessed 
the  additional  evidence  of  the  fact,  that  at  each  new  invasion  the  Danes  in- 
creased their  demand.  From  ten  thousand  pounds,  which  had  purchased 
their  tirst  absence,  they  had  successively  raised  their  demands  lo  thirty 
thousand,  and  now,  when  their  rapine  liad  more  than  ever  impoverished 
the  country,  they  demanded,  and,  to  the  shame  of  the  English  people,  or 
rather  of  the  king  and  the  nobles,  were  paid  the  monstrous  sum  of  eight- 
and-forty  thousand  pounds ! 

This  immense  sum  was  even  worse  expended  than  the  former  sums 
had  been ;  for  this  time  the  Danes  took  the  money,  but  did  not  depart. 
On  the  contrary,  they  continued  their  desultory  plundering,  and  at  the 
same  time  ma(h;  formal  dtimands  upon  (certain  distri<:ts  for  large  and  speci- 
fied sums.  Thus,  in  the  county  of  Kent  they  levied  the  sum  of  eight 
thousand  pounds;  and  the  arclibishoj)  of  Canttn'bury  venturing  lo  resist 
this  most  iniquitous  deninnd,  was  coolly  murdered.  The  general  state  of 
the  kingdom  and  the  butchery  of  a  pt.'rsonage  so  eminent  alarmed  the 
king  for  Ins  personal  safety;  the  more  (ispecially,  as  many  of  his  chief 
noLility,  haviiifr  lust  all  conlidence  in  his  power  to  redeem  his  kingdom 
from  ruin  were  daily  transferring  their  allegiance  to  Sweyii.  Having  first 
sent  over  his  queen  and  her  two  children  to  \v'.i  brother,  the  Duke  of  Nor- 
mandy, Edielred  himself  took  an  op|)ortuiiity  to  escape  thither,  and  thu» 
the  kingdom  was  virtually  delivered  over  to  Sweyn  and  his  Danes. 

A.D.  1014. — Sweyn,  under  all  the  eircnmstaiices,  would  have  foundiiltle 
difliculty  in  causing  liiinself  to  be  crowned  king  of  England;  nay,  it  may 
even  be  donlited  if  either  nobles  or  piuiple  woiilil  have  been  greatly  dis- 
pleased at  receiving  a  warlike  sovereign  instead  (if  the  fugitive  Eihelred, 
to  whom  they  had  long  been  accustomed  to  apply  the  scornful  epiihet  of 
the  Unready.  Hut  while  Sweyii  was  preparing  to  take  advantage  of  the 
magnificent  opportnuily  that  olfered  itself  to  hiin,  lie  was  suddenly  seized 
with  u  mortal  illness,  and  expired  at  (iainsliorongii,  in  Lincolnshire,  about 
six  weeks  after  the  lliglit  of  Elhelred  from  the  kiii^dom. 

This  cirt'iiinslance  gave  the  weak  Ethelred  yet  one  more  chance  of  re- 
deeming \\i>  kingly  character.  The  great  men  of  his  kiii;[>dom,  when 
they  informed  hjm  of  the  event  which,  soaiis|iicioiisly  for  him,  had  occur- 
red, invited  him  to  return.  They  at  the  same  lime  plainly,  though  in  a 
friendly  and  respectful  tone,  intimated  their  hope  that  he  would  profit  by 
his  experience,  to  avoid  for  the  fulure  those  errors  which  had  produced  so 
much  evil  to  both  himself  and  his  people. 

Ethelred  gladly  availed  himself  of  the  invitation  lo  resume  his  throne, 
hut  tlu!  advice  that  had  accompanied  that  invitatiim  Ik;  wholly  disregarded. 
Aniong  the  most  glaring  proofs  which  hi;  gave  of  hiHcoiuiiiucd  iiu'apacity 
to  rule  wistdy,  lie  remsiaicd  Ins  treacherous  son-in-l.iw,  Eilric,  in  all  his 
former  mlhieiice.  This  p.twer  Edric  mosl  shamefully  ahiisi'ii :  in  iiroof  of 
tins  we  iiei'd  give  but  a  single  instance  of  his  mL-icomliict.  'l'«o  .Alciriaii 
nobles,  by  name  Morcar  and  Sigi-licrl,  had  iinfniiniiali  ly  given  some  of- 
fence to  Eijrii-,  who  fiirlhwith  endeavoured  lo  p<  rsiiadc  (lie  king  lliat  lliey 
were  hostile  lo  his  rule ,  unit  the  et|iially  cruel  and  we.ik  nioiiarcli  not  only 
uiimved  at  their  murder  by  Edric,  but  gave  to  that  criiiiu  h  i/uusi  legal 


152 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY 


I  by  confiscating  the  property  of  the  victims  as  though  they  had 
ivlcted  of  treason,  and  lie  confined  Sigehert's  widow  in  a  convent. 


sanction 

been  conv 

Here  she  was  accidentally  seen  by  the  iiing's  son,  Kdmund,  wlio  not  only 

contrived  her  escape  from  the  convent,  but  immediately  married  her. 

A.o.  1014. — Kthelred  was  not  allowed  to  enjoy  his  recovered  throne  in 
peace.  Canute,  the  son  of  Sweyn,  was  to  the  full  as  warlike  as  his  fa- 
mous father,  and  set  up  his  claims  to  the  throne  with  as  much  grave  earn- 
estness as  though  Ills  father  had  filled  it  in  right  of  a  long  ancestral  pos. 
session.  He  committed  dreadful  havoc  in  Kent,  Dorset,  Wilts,  and  Som 
ersel;  and,  not  contented  wiih  slaughter  in  and  plunder  after  the  battle, 
he  shockingly  mutilated  his  prisoners,  and  then  gave  them  their  lil)erty,  in 
order  that  their  wretched  plight  might  strike  terror  into  their  fellow-coun- 
trymen. So  much  progress  did  Canute  make,  that  Ethelred  would,  in  all 
probability,  have  been  a  second  time  driven  from  his  throne  and  kingdom, 
but  for  the  courage  and  energy  of  his  sun  Edmund-  The  treacherous 
Edric  deserted  to  the  Danes  with  forty  ships,  after  having  dispersed  a 
great  part  of  the  English  army,  and  even  made  an  attempt  at  seizing  upon 
the  person  of  the  brave  prince.  Undismayed  by  so  many  ditHculties, 
which  were  much  increased  by  the  general  contempt  and  distrust  felt  for 
the  king,  Edmund,  by  great  exertions,  got  together  a  large  force,  and  pre- 
pared to  •rive  battle  to  the  enemy.  Uul  the  English  had  been  accustomed 
to  see  Ihi'ir  kings  in  the  vanguard  of  the  hatile  ;  and,  though  Edmund 
was  universally  popnlai,  the  soldiers  loudly  demanded  that  his  father 
should  head  tliem  in  person.  Ethelred,  however,  who  suspe<'led  his  own 
subjects  fully  as  much  as  he  feared  the  enemy,  not  merely  refused  to  do 
this,  on  the  plea  of  illness,  but  so  completely  left  his  heroic  son  without 
supplies,  thai  the  prince  was  obliged  to  allow  llie  northern  part  of  the 
kingdom  to  fall  nito  subjection  to  the  Danes.  Still  delermlned  not  to  sub- 
mit, Edmund  niarelied  his  discouraged  and  weakened  army  to  London,  to 
make  a  final  stand  against  the  invad<>rs ;  but  on  his  arrival  he  founil  the 
metropolis  in  a  state  of  the  greatest  alarm  and  confusion,  on  account  of 
the  death  of  the  king. 

A.I).  101'). — Ihlielred  tht!  I'nready  had  reigned  thirty-five  years,  and  his 
inca|iacily  had  rtMlueed  the  country  to  a  slate  which  would  have  betMi  suf- 
ficiently pllial)l'  anil  dilfieult,  cv(  ii  had  not  the  fierce  and  warlike  Danes 
been  swarming  in  lis  iinrthern  provinces.  The  people  wen;  dispirited  and 
disaficcled,  and  the  nobles  were  far  less  intent  u|)on  repelling  the  common 
enemy  than  upon  pursuing  (heir  own  iniseliievoiis  and  |X'lly  (piarrels;  and 
Edmund  had  only  tmi  iniii'h  reason  to  fear  that  the  example  of  Ins  treacii- 
eroiis  brother-in-law  woiihl  be  fojhuved  by  other  nobles.  Rightly  jihlging 
that  oeeiipatldii  was  the  most  eireeliial  remedy  for  the  (lisemirageinent  ol 
the  peonle,  and  the  best  safeguard  against  the  tri'achery  of  the  nobles, 
Edinniiii  |ii»l  no  time  in  allaeking  tlie  enemy.  At  (•illiiigham  he  defe.ited 
a  detaeliineiit  of  ihein,  tind  then  inarched  igiiiist  ('aiiiite  in  person.  The 
hostiji-  armies  met  near  .'""eoerton,  in  (ilouiester.+hire,  and  in  the  early 
part  of  ilie  i)attle  llie  English  prince  li.iil  so  iniu  h  success  that  it  seemej 
probable  he  would  have  a  deeisive  and  crowning  victory.  Hut  thai  ca- 
I. unity  of  Ins  einiiitry,  Edrie,  having  slain  Osniiir,  who  very  much  resem- 
bled the  kiii'j  in  connlenance,  had  Ins  head  fi.xed  upon  ibe  jiuiiit  of  a  sp''ur 
and  displayed  to  the  English.  .\  punie  imineiliately  spreail  ilirough  the 
hitherto  vieloriitus  army.  It  was  in  vain  that  I'Minuinl,  heedless  of  the 
arrows  that  flew  around  hnn,  rode  barehcad(  il  among  Ins  troops  to  assure 
them  of  liic  sal'ely.  "Save  hiiiiself  who  can,"  was  the  universal  cry; 
a  1 1  though  Ediiiiind  at  lent^th  contrived  to  li'ad  his  troups  from  the  field 
in  comparatively  good  order,  the  golden  moment  fir  seeiiniig  iriimiph 
11  I  passed.      Ivl-mnnd  was  suliseipieiitly   del'eated  with   gK  it  loss,  at  As- 


sni'4tiiii.  III  Efisex.  biil  with  e.xeinpl.iry  aeiivily  a<.!  nil  r.iiM'd  an  army  an 


IM'eparcd  to  muke  unu  more  deupcratc  ctTorl  lu  expel  the  ciiuiuv>     Uul  tht 


THE  THEA8URY  OF  HISTORY. 


153 


and  his 

been  suf- 

DaiR's 

itt.'d  iiiid 

iMiiinoM 

U;  iiiiU 

ircach- 

jutlgiiig 

incut  ut 

nolili's, 

eff.itfd 

1.    The 

I'  curly 

SfCilK'J 

lli;il   Cil- 

ICSCIll- 

;t  s()''ar 
ujiU  thf 
<)(  tho 
1  assure 
^.il  crv; 

ic  fH'ld 
iriinnph 
tl  As- 

my  iind 

Hut  Iht 


leading  men  on  both  sides  were  by  this  lime  wearied  with  »i.rife  and  car- 
nage, and  a  negolialion  ensued  which  led  to  a  division  of  the  kingdom, 
Canute  taking  the  northern  portion  and  Edmund  the  southern. 

It  might  have  been  supposed  that  tho  infamous  SJdric  would  have  been 
satisfied  with  having  thus  mainly  aided  ni  despoiling  his  brave  but  unfor- 
tunate brother  in-law  of  a  moiety  of  his  kingdom.  But  as  though  the  very 
existence  of  a  man  so  contrary  and  so  superior  to  himself  in  character 
were  intolerable  to  him,  this  arrangement  had  scarcely  been  made  a  month 
when  he  suborned  two  of  the  kmg's  chamberlains,  who  murdered  their  un- 
fortunate master  at  Oxford. 

A.D.  1017.  It  does  not  clearly  appear  that  Canute  was  actually  privy 
to  this  crime,  though  his  previous  conduct  and  the  fact  that  he  was  the 
person  to  be  benefited  by  the  death  of  Kdmund  may  justify  us  in  suspect- 
ing him.  And  this  suspicion  is  still  further  justified  by  his  immediately 
seizing  upon  Edmund's  share  of  the  kingdom,  though  that  prince  had  left 
two  sons,  Edwin  and  Edward.  It  is  true  that  those  princes  were  very 
yoiMig,  but  the  most  that  Canute  ought  to  have  assumed  on  that  account 
was  the  guardianship  of  the  children  and  the  protectorate  of  their  heritage. 
Indeed,  some  writers  represent  that  it  was  in  tlie  character  of  guardian 
that  Canute  affected  to  act ;  but  a  sufficient  answer  to  that  pretence  is  to 
be  found  in  Mie  fact  that  Canute  reigned  as  sole  king,  and  left  the  kingdom 
to  his  son. 

SanguiuHi  -  asping  as  Iiis  whole  former  course  had  been,  this  able, 

though  unp    ;  prince  was  too  anxious  for  the  prosperity  of  the  king- 

dom of  whi.,.1  .11  liiiU  possessed  liiinst.'lf,  not  to  take  all  [)ossiblr  precaution 
to  avert  opposition.  He  called  a  council,  at  which  he  caused  witnesses 
to  affirm  that  it  had  been  agreed,  at  the  treaty  of  Gloucester,  that  he  should 
succeed  Kdunnul  in  the  southern  portion  of  tlie  kingdom ;  or,  as  the  writers 
to  wliom  we  ]v.\y  alluded  afl!irm,  that  he  slioidd  have  tiie  guardianship  and 
protectorate.  ■  evidence,  and,  perhaps,  terror  lest  the  well  known 

fierceness  of  (,'a  uie  should  again  desolate  tlie  kingdom,  determined  the 
council  in  his  favour,  and  the  usurper  peaceably  moimted  the  throne,  while 
the  despoiled  princes  werr;  sent  to  Sweden.  Not  content  with  tiius  seiz- 
ing their  dominion  and  exiling  them,  Canute  charged  tho  king  of  Sweden 
to  put  them  to  death ;  but  that  king,  more  generous  than  hin  ally,  sent 
them  in  safety  to  the  court  of  Hungary,  where  they  were  educatctf.  Ed- 
win, the  elder  of  the  princes,  married  the  daugiiter  of  the  king  of  Hunga- 
ry; and  Edward,  the  younger,  married  Agaliia,  sister-in-law  of  the  same 
iniinarch,  and  had  by  her  Edgar  Atlieling,  Margaret,  snhsciquently  queen 
of  Scotland,  and  C^hristina,  wlio  took  the  veil. 

The  experience  which  Canute  had  of  tlu^  treachery  of  tho  English  no- 
liiiity  of  tins  period  made  him,  as  a  mailer  of  policy,  show  the  most  un- 
biiunded  liberality  to  llieni  at  the  commencement  of  his  luuliviiled  reign. 
To  Thnrkill  he  gave  the  dukedom  of  East  Analia,  to  Yric  that  of  Northum- 
berland, and  to  Edric  that  of  Mercia,  confining  his  own  direct  and  personal 
rule  to  Wesscx.  Hut  this  aecming  favour  was  only  the  croucliiiig  of  tho 
'iger  ere  he  sjirings.  When  he  fcniud  himself  firmly  fixed  upon  his  throne, 
and  froiH  his  judicious  as  well  as  firm  conduct  hecoming  evcrv  day  more 
popular  among  his  subjects,  he  found  a  pretext  to  deprive  'riiurkill  and 
S'ric  of  tlK'ir  (hiki'doins,  and  lo  send  Iheiii  into  exile.  It  would  seem  that 
even  while  he  had  profited  by  the  treason  of  the  Enjjlish  nobllilv  lie  had 
maiilluess  eiiougli  lo  detest  the  traitors  ;  f(U',  besidi's  expelling  I',  dukes 
of  East  Aiiulia  and  Northumlierlaud,  he  pul  several  oilier  noble  tr  tors  lo 
deatli,  anil  ainon„'  lliein  that  worst  of  all  traitors,  Edric,  whose  ody  he 
had  catt  into  llie  Thames. 

Tlioiiirh  Cainile  showed  much  disiiosilion  to  cdnciliale  the  favourof  his 
»iibjerts,  be  was  at  the  commeiicemrul  of  his  rcigii  obliged,  by  the  stalt 
of  the  kingdom,  to  tax  them  very  heavily.     From  the  iiution  ut  lariie  li« 


154 


THE  TREASURY  OF  iilSTORY. 


I  'I- 


at  one  demand  obtained  the  vast  sum  of  seventy-two  thousand  pounds,  and 
from  the  city  of  London  a  separato  furtiier  sum  of  eleven  lliousand.  But 
Ih  li  it  was  evident  that  much  of  tiiis  money  was  devoted  to  the  reward 
o!  ..a  own  countrymen,  and  though  in  the  heavy  sum  levied  upon  London 
there  clearly  appeared  something  of  angry  recollection  of  the  courage  the 
Londoners  had  shown  in  opposing  him,  tlie  jjcople  were  by  this  time  so 
wearied  with  war,  that  they  imputed  his  demands  to  necessity,  and  prob- 
ably thought  money  better  paid  for  the  support  of  a  Danish  king  than  for 
the  temporary  absence  of  an  ever-returning  Danish  enemy. 

To  say  the  truth,  usurper  thougli  Canute  was,  he  liad  no  sooner  made 
his  rule  secure,  than  he  made  great  efforts  to  render  it  not  merely  toler- 
able but  valuable,  lie  illobanded  and  sent  home  a  great  number  of  his 
Danish  niercenaries ;  he  made  not  the  slightest  difference  between  Danish 
and  Knglish  subjects  in  the  ev  ?ntion  of  the  laws  guarding  property  and 
life,  and,  still  farther  to  engage  the  affections  of  the  Knglisii,  he  formally, 
in  an  assembly  of  the  states,  restored  the  Saxon  customs. 

In  order  also  to  ingratiate  himself  with  the  English,  as  well  as  to  pro- 
pitiate the  powerful  duke  of  Normandy,  who  had  shown  a  strong  dispo- 
sition to  disturb  him  in  his  usurped  power,  he  married  that  prince's  sister, 
Emma,  widow  of  Ethelred.  By  dint  of  this  conciliatory  policy,  he  so  far 
succeeded  in  gaining  the  affections  of  the  English,  that  he  at  length  ven- 
tured to  sail  to  Denmark,  which  was  attacked  by  his  late  ally,  the  king  of 
Sweden,  against  whom  he  felt  additional  anger  on  account  of  his  contu- 
macy in  refusing  to  put  the  exiled  I'Jnglish  princes  to  death.  He  was  com- 
p.t'iely  victorious  in  this  expedition,  chiefly  owing  to  the  energy  and  valour 
of  the  afterwards  famous,  and  more  than  regally  powerful,  Earl  Godwin, 
to  whom,  in  reward  for  his  conduct  on  this  occasion,  he  gave  his  daughter 
in  marriage. 

In  10v!8  he  made  another  voyage,  and  expelled  Olaus,  king  of  Norway. 
Powerfid  abroad  and  at  peace  at  home,  he  now  devoted  his  attention  to 
religion;  but  he  did  t;o  after  the  grossly  superstitious  fashion  of  the  agr. 
lie  did  not  rccal  the  <'xil('i!  princes,  or  make  restitution  of  any  of  the 
property  which  he  had  unjustly  ac(iuired  either  in  Norway  or  in  England, 
but  he  huilt  clnirchcs  and  showered  gifts  upon  churchmen;  showed  his 
sorrow  for  tiie  slaughter  of  which  he  still  retained  the  profit,  by  causnig 
masses  to  l)e  said  for  the  souls  of  the  shiughtered,  and  c(nnponnded  f"r 
continuing  his  usurjicd  rule  of  England  by  obtaining  certain  privileges  for 
En;;lishinen  at  Home,  to  which  city  he  made  an  ostentatious  pilgrimage. 

An  anecdote  is  told  of  Canute  when  at  the  very  height  of  his  glory  and 
power,  wlii('li  is  highly  charactc^ristic  of  the  baseness  of  the  English  no- 
bles of  that  day,  and  whi(di  at  the  same  time  shows  him  to  have  jiossessed 
a  certain  <lry  humour  as  well  as  sound  good  sense.  It  seems  that  while 
walking  on  the  seashore  with  some  of  these  degenerate  and  unworthy 
noliles.  they  in  the  excess  of  their  (lattery  aitril)uli;d  omnipotence  to  him. 
Disgusted  by  their  fulsome  eulogy,  he  ordered  a  chair  to  be  placed  upon 
the  beach,  and  sealing  hiinself  In;  commanded  the  waves  to  approach  no 
near<'r  to  him.  The  astiniishi.'d  ccjurliers  looked  on  with  a  feeling  of  con- 
tempt for  the  king's  credulity,  which  was  sjieedily  to  b(!  transferred  to 
their  own  baseness.  The  inlr  surijed  onward  and  onward  to  the  shore 
till  it  began  to  wet  his  feet;  when  ho  calmly  rose  and  relinked  li'sfli  tterers 
for  attnliiitiiig  lo  Inm  llie  great  characlerislic  of  the  Deity,  omnipotence!. 

The  .Scuts  III  the  reign  of  Ellieired  had  been  taxed  one  shilling  a  hifle 
on  their  lii'f  of  '"iiinberlaiid  for  I)iiucf:r!t,  or  money  to  be  applied 
protection  of  the  kiiigil(Hn  against  the  Danes.  The  Scols  refused 
It,  and  tliouuh  Ellielied  allem|ileil  force,  lie,  as  tisn  d  with  lilin, 
MalciiliM,  llie  thane  of  Sciitlaiiil  \\  ho  had  llins  failed  in  lijs  vassalage  lo 
Ethelred,  on  ilic  grimiid  ihat  lir  coiiM  defe  ui  lllln^elf  against  lli(>  Danes, 
oow  refused  to  do  liomaKu  for  Cumberland  to  Canute,  on  the  ground  o( 


to  the 
lo  nay 
tailed. 


hi 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY 


155 


that  king  not  having:  succeeded  to  the  throne  by  inheritance.  But  Canute 
speedily  broujjht  him  to  his  senses;  at  the  first  appearance  of  the  Knglish 
iiimy  Malcolm  submitted.  This  was  Canute's  last  expedition:  he  died 
about  four  years  after,  in  the  year  1035. 


(it  to  the 
I.)   piiv 

in,  liiilcd. 
hiKc   III 

DiUH'S, 
illllll    of 


CHAPTER   X. 

THE    REI0N8   OF    HAROLD    AND    HARDICANCTE. 

Canute  left  three  sons,  Sweyu  and  Harold  by  his  first  wife,  Allwcii. 
daughter  of  the  earl  of  Hampshire;  and  Hardicanute  by  his  second  wife, 
Emma,  the  widow  of  Ethelred. 

On  the  marriage  of  Canute  and  Emma  the  former  had  formally  agreecJ 
that  his  children  by  her  should  inherit  the  throne.  But  as  her  brother,  tli.3 
duke  of  Normandy,  died  before  Canute,  the  latter  thought  fit  to  depart  from 
thit>  agreement,  and  to  leave  the  English  throne  to  Harold,  his  second  son 
by  the  first  wife,  rather  than  entrust  it,  with  its  abounding  difliculties,  to 
the  weak  hands  of  so  young  a  prince  as  Hardicanute,  his  son  by  Emma. 
By  his  last  will,  therefore,  Canute  left  Norway  to  Sweyn,  his  eldest  son, 
and  England  to  Harold,  his  younger  son  by  the  first  marriage  ;  and  to  Har- 
dicanute, liis  son  by  Emma,  he  left  his  native  Denmark. 

The  difference  between  llie  arrangement  made  by  the  king's  will  and 
that  which  was  agreed  upon  by  his  treaty  of  marriage  with  Emma,  placed 
the  kingdom  in  no  small  danger  of  a  long  and  sanguinary  civil  war.  Har- 
old, it  is  true,  had  the  express  last  will  of  his  father  in  his  favour,  and  be 
ing  upon  the  spot  at  the  moment  of  his  father'^  death,  he  si'izod  upon  the 
r>yal  treasures,  and  thus  'lad  the  means  of  supporting  his  claim  either  by 
open  force  or  corruption.  But  Hardicanute,  though  in  Denmark,  was  the 
general  favourite  of  the  people,  and  of  r.ot  a  few  of  the  nobility ;  being 
looked  upon,  on  account  of  his  mo;h.3r,  in  the  light  of  a  native  English 
prince.  To  his  father's  last  will,  upon  which  it  would  have  been  easy  to 
throw  suspicion,  as  though  weakness  of  mind  had  been  superinduccif  by 
bodily  suflTering,  he  could  oppose  the  terms  of  the  grave  treaty  signed  by 
his  father  while  in  full  possession  of  his  vigorous  mind,  and  in  full  pos- 
session, too,  of  power  to  resist  any  article  contrary  to  his  wish.  And, 
above  all,  Hardicanute  had  the  favour  and  influence  of  the  potent  Earl 
Godwii;.  With  such  elements  of  strife  in  existence,  it  was  extremely  for- 
tunate that  the  most  powerful  men  on  both  sides  were  wisely  and  really 
auxioiH  to  avert  from  the  nation  the  sad  coiise(iueiices  inseparalile  from 
civil  strife.  Conferences  were  held  at  which  the  jarring  claims  of  the  two 
princes  were  discussed  with  unusual  candour  and  calmness,  and  it  was  at 
lensfth  agreed  that,  as  each  had  a  plea  too  powerful  to  be  wholly  done  away 
with  by  his  coii^petitor's  couuterplea,  the  kingdom  shouhl  once  more  be 
divided.  liOndon  and  the  country  north  of  the  Thames  fell  to  the  lot  of 
Harold,  the  country  south  of  the  Thames  to  Hardicanute,  in  whose  name 
Emma  took  possession,  and  fixed  her  residence  at  Winchester  till  he 
should  reach  Englanii  to  govern  for  himself. 

The  two  young  princes,  Alfred  and  Edward,  the  sons  of  Emma  by 
Ethelred,  had  hitherto  remained  at  Normandy ;  but  finding  themselves, 
from  the  circi;nistance>  of  that  court,  less  welcome  than  they  had  been, 
they  resolved  to  visit  their  mother,  whose  high  state  at  Winchester  prom- 
ised tluMii  all  possibli!  protection  and  (;omfort,  and  they  accordingly  land- 
e  I  in  l';ii!ilan(l  with  a  niiinerous  and  splendid  suite.  But  the  appearances 
by  wliii'ii  they  had  been  allured  to  take  this  step  were  exceedingly  d(!- 
ceitfnl.  (lodwin,  whose  ainliition  was  resth-ssand  insatiable,  had  been  skil- 
fully liin|ii'red  with  by  tliecrafiy  H,irold,  who  promised  to  marry  the  earl's 
daiigtiler.  The  idea  of  being  father-in  law  to  the  soli-  king  of  Enylaiid 
pul  ixw  end  to  all  <iOilwiii's  moderate  notions,  and  to  all  the  favour  will. 


156 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


which  he  had  previously  looked  upon  the  expedient  of  partitioning  tn» 
kingdom,  and  he  now  very  readily  and  zealously  promised  his  support  to 
Harold  in  his  design  to  add  his  brother's  possessions  to  his  own,  and  to 
cut  off  tile  iwo  English  princes,  whose  coming  into  England  seemed  to 
inc*-  >  V  determination  to  claim  as  heirs  of  Ethelred.  Alfred  was, 
vi,  .iiv  ,y  hypocritical  compliments,  invited  to  court,  and  had  readied 
as  far  as  Guildford,  in  Surrey,  on  his  way  thither,  when  an  assemblage  of 
Gcdwin's  people  suddenly  f-^ll  upon  the  retinue  of  the  unsuspeetin<j 
prince,  and  put  upwards  of  six  hundred  of  them  to  the  sword.  Alfred 
was  himself  taken  prisoner — but  far  happier  had  been  his  fate  had  he 
died  in  the  battle.  His  inhuman  enemies  caused  his  eyes  to  be  put  out, 
and  he  was  then  thrust  into  the  monastery  of  Ely,  where  he  perished  in 
agony  and  misery.  His  brother  and  Queen  Emma  readily  judged,  from 
this  horrible  affair,  that  they  would  be  the  next  victims*  andf  they  imme- 
diately fled  from  the  country,  while  Harold  forthwith  added  the  southern 
to  the  northern  division  of  the  kingdom. 

Commencing  his  sole  reign  over  England  by  an  act  of  such  hypocrisy 
and  sanguinary  cruelty,  Harold  would  probably  have  left  fearful  traces  of 
his  reign  if  it  had  been  a  lengthened  one.  Happily,  however,  it  was  but 
short;  he  died  unregretted,  about  four  years  after  his  accession,  leaving 
no  trace  to  posterity  of  his  having  ever  lived,  save  the  one  dark  deed  of 
which  we  have  spoken.  He  was  remarkable  for  only  one  personal  qual- 
ity, his  exceeding  agility,  which,  according  to  the  almost  invariable  prac- 
tice at  that  time  adopted  of  designating  persons  by  some  trait  of  char- 
acter or  pliysical  quality  for  which  they  were  remarkable,  procured  him 
the  appellation  of  Harold  Harefoot. 

A.  D.  10.39. — Although  Hardicanute  had  been  deemed  by  his  father  too 
young  to  sway  the  English  sceptre,  he  himself  helf'.  a  different  opinion, 
and  he  had  occupied  himself  in  his  kingdom  of  Norway  in  preparing  a 
i"orce  witli  which  to  invade  England  and  expel  his  brother.  Having  com- 
pleted his  preparations,  he  collected  a  fleet  under  the  pretence  of  visiting 
Queen  Emma,  who  had  taken  refuge  in  Flanders,  and  was  upon  the  point 
of  sailing  when  he  received  intelligence  of  Harold's  death,  upon  which 
he  immediately  sailed  for  London,  where  he  was  received  with  the  warm- 
est welcome.  He  commenced  his  reiiin,  however,  very  inauspiciously, 
by  the  mean  and  violent  act  of  having  }Iarold's  body  disinterred  and 
thrown  into  the  Thames.  IJeing  found  by  some  fishermen,  the  royal 
body  was  carried  to  London  and  again  con-.mitted  to  the  earth ;  but  Har- 
dicanute obtaining  information  of  what  had  occurred,  ordered  it  to  be 
again  disinterred  and  thrown  into  the  river.  It  was  once  more  found — 
but  this  time  it  was  buried  so  secretly  that  the  king  had  no  opportunity 
to  repeat  his  unnatural  conduct. 

Tiu!  part  which  (Jodwin  had  taken  in  the  murder  of  the  unfortunate 
Alfred,  led  Prince  Edward,  wlm  was  invited  over  to  the  PjUglish  court  by 
Fiardicanutc,  to  .iccuse  him  of  that  crime,  and  to  demand  justice  at  the 
hands  of  the  knig.  Uiit  Goilwin,  who  had  already  exerted  all  the  arts  of 
K(  rvilily  to  conciiiate  the  king,  made  him  a  present  of  a  magnificent  gal- 
ley, manned  with  sixteen  handsome  and  gorgeously  appointed  rowers, 
aild  the  king  was  so  well  pleased  with  the  ()re8ent,  that  he  merely  re- 
quirt  d  that  Godwin  should  swear  to  his  own  innocence,  which  that  per- 
sonage made  no  rA-rnple  of  doing. 

The  reign  of  Hardicanute  was  short,  yet  liis  violent  temper  and  cupid- 
ity cause  i  it  to  be  marked  by  a  revolt.  He  had  the  injustice  and  Impru- 
di'iu'c  to  renew  the  tax  known  by  thi;  name  of  Danrirell,  and  cliarg<'d  a 
very  heavy  sum  for  the  flci^t  which  had  conveyed  him  from  Denmark. 
("i)in|il  lints  and  n'sistauce  arose  in  many  jiarts,  and  in  Worcester  the 
ni'Ojilf  nut  oidy  refused  to  pay  the  tax,  hut  actually  put  two  of  the  col- 
leclor«  to  death,    (iodwin,  with  Siward,  duke  of  Northumberland,  and 


THE  TEEASUKY  OP  HISTORY. 


157 


Leo^rio,  duke  of  Mercia,  were  immediately  sent  to  Worcester  with  a 
powerful  force,  and  with  orders  to  destroy  the  city.  They  actually  did 
set  fire  to  it  and  gave  it  up  to  the  pillage  of  the  soldiery,  but  they  saved 
the  lives  of  the  inhabitants  until  the  king's  anger  was  cooled,  and  he 
gave  them  a  formal  pardon. 

Though  possessed  of  uncommon  bodily  strength,  Hardicanute  was  an 
iltra  Northman  in  the  habit  of  drinking  to  excess,  and  he  had  scarcely 
feigned  two  years,  when,  being  at  the  weddinff-feast  of  a  Danish  noble- 
.nan,  he  indulged  to  such  an  extent  that  he  died  on  the  spot.         ,^— ' 


CHAPTER  XI. 


THE  REION  OF  EDWARD  THE  CONFESSOR. 


A,  D.  1042.—  SwEYN,  the  remaining  son  of  Canute,  was  in  Norway  wnen 
Hardicanute  thus  suddenly  died,  and  as  there  was  no  one  whom  the 
Danes  could  set  up  in  his  place,  or  as  his  representative,  the  English  had 
a  most  favourable  opportunity  to  place  upon  the  throne  a  prince  of  their 
own  race.  The  real  English  heir  was  undonbtedly  the  elder  son  of  Ed- 
mund Ironside ;  but  that  prince  and  his  brother  were  in  Hungary,  and 
Edward,  the  son  of  Ethelrcd,  was  at  the  English  court,  and  the  necessity 
of  instant  aulion  to  prevent  the  Danes  from  recovering  from  their  sur- 
prise was  too  obvious  to  allow  the  Engiis!;  Lo  affect  tipon  this  occasion  a 
punctiliousness  upon  direct  succession  which  thev  had  not  yet  learned  to 
feel. 

There  was  but  one  apparent  obs»  j  of  any  magnitude  to  the  peace- 
able succession  of  Edward,  and  tha.  .vas  the  feud  existing  between  him 
and  the  powerful  Earl  Godwin  relative  to  the  death  of  Prince  Alfred. 
So  powerful  was  Godwin  at  this  time,  that  his  opposition  would  have 
been  far  too  great  for  Edward's  means  to  surmount.  But  Godwin's 
power  lay  principally  iit  Wessex,  which  was  almost  exclusively  inhabited 
by  English,  among  whom  Edwttrd's  claim  was  very  popular;  and  as  Ed- 
ward's friends  induced  him  to  disavow  all  rancour  against  Godwin,  and 
even  to  conseii'  to  marry  his  daughter  Editlia,  the  powerful  and  crafty 
carl  easily  consented  to  insure  his  daughter  a  throne.  He  forthwith 
summoned  a  council,  at  which  he  so  well  maniiged  niatters,  that  while 
the  majority  were  Ensjlish,  and  in  fav(uirof  Edward,  the  few  Danes  were 
fairly  silenced,  and  the  more  easily  because  whatever  warmth  might  he 
in  their  individual  feeUngs  towards  the  absent  Sweyn,  they  had  no  leader 
of  influence  to  unite  them,  or  of  eloquence  to  impress  and  support  theit 
wishes. 

The  joy  of  the  English  on  finding  the  government  once  more  in  the 
hands  of  a  native  prince  was  excessive,  and  would  have  been  attended 
with  extensive  ill  conse(]nonces  to  the  Dant^s.  had  not  the  king  very  equi- 
tably interposed  on  their  behalf.  A;s  it  was,  they  suffered  not  a  little  in 
property,  for  one  of  ihc  first  acts  of  the  king's  reign  was  to  revoke  all 
the  grants  of  his  Danish  predecessors,  wlio  had  heaped  large  possessiims 
upon  their  fnllnw-countrymen.  In  very  many  cases  il  may  be  assumed 
that  the  grants  h.id  been  made  unjustly;  but  the  Englisti  made  no  dis- 
tinclion  between  cases,  and  heartily  rejoiced  to  see  the  resinnption  of  the 
grants  reducirig  many  of  the  hateil  Daiu's  to  their  original  poverty.  To 
liis  niother,  tne  iineen  ICmma,  I'Mward  behaved  with  an  unpardonalile 
8PV(>rit y  ;  unparlonable,  even  admitiing  that  he  was  right  when  ho  af- 
firmed that,  haviny  been  so  much  better  treated  by  Canute  than  bv  Ethel- 
red,  she  had  always  ijiven  the  prefereni'c  to  llardicainite,  and  held  hei 
children  hy  Ethelrcd  in  comparative  conieni|it  or  indifference.  Me  i\(U 
inlv  took  from  her  the  great  riches  which  she  had  heaped  up,  but  also 


ISO 


THE  TREA8UR\  OF  HISTORY. 


committed  her  to  close  custody  in  a  nunnery  at  Wincbester.  Some 
writers  liuve  gone  so  far  as  to  say  that  he  accused  her  of  the  absurdly 
improbable  crime  of  having  connived  at  the  murder  of  the  prince  Alfred, 
and  that  Kmnv.i  [)urged  herself  of  this  guilt  by  the  marvellous  ordeal  of 
walking  barefooted  over  nine  red-hot  ploughshares;  but  the  monks,  to 
whom  Kmma  was  profusely  liberal,  needed  not  to  have  added  fable  to 
the  unfortunate  truth  of  the  king's  unnatural  treatment  of  liis  twice  wid- 
owed mother. 

Apart  from  mere  feelings  of  nationality,  the  desire  of  the  English  to 
see  their  throne  filled  by  a  man  of  their  own  race  was,  no  doubt,  greatly 
excited  by  their  unwillingness  to  see  lands  and  lucrative  places  bestowed 
by  stranger  kings  upon  stranger  courtiers.  In  this  respect,  however,  the 
accession  of  Edward  was  by  no  means  f-<,  advantageous  to  the  English  as 
they  had  anticipated.  Edward  had  lived  so  much  in  Normandy  that  he 
had  become  almost  a  Frenchman  in  his  tastes  and  habits,  and  it  was 
almost  exclusively  among  Frenchmen  that  he  had  formed  his  friendships, 
and  now  chose  his  favourites  and  confidants.  In  the  disposal  of  civil  and 
military  employments  tlie  king  acted  with  great  fairness  towards  liie 
English,  but  as  the  Normans  who  thronged  his  courts  were  both  more 
polished  and  more  learned,  it  was  among  them  principally  that  he  dis- 
posed of  the  ecclesiastical  dignities,  and  from  them  that  he  ciiiefly  select- 
ed his  advisers  and  intimate  companions.  The  favour  thus  shown  to  ilie 
Normans  gave  great  disgust  to  the  English,  and  especially  to  the  power- 
ful Godwin,  who  was  too  greedy  of  power  and  patronage  to  look  with 
complacency  upon  any  rivals  in  the  king's  good  graces. 

He  WHS  the  more  offended  that  tlie  excln.>*ivc  favour  of  the  king  did  not 
fall  upon  him  and  his  family,  because,  independent  of  the  king  having 
married  thr  earl's  daughter  Editha,  the  mere  power  of  Godwin's  own 
family  was  so  princely  as  to  givo  him  high  claims,  whii^h  he  was  by  no 
means  inclined  to  underrate.  He  himself  was  earl  of  Wcssex,  to  which 
extensive  government  the  counties  of  Kent  and  Sussex  wer-'  added; 
Sweyn,  his  eldest  son,  had  like  authority  over  the  counties  of  Hereford, 
Gloucester,  Oxford,  and  Herks  i  while  Harold,  his  second  son,  was  duke 
of  East  Anjrlia.  with  Essex  added  to  his  government. 

Possessed  of  such  extensive  power,  still  secretly  hating  Edward  on  ac 
count  of  II  open  fcnid  about  the  murder  of  Prince  Alfred,  and  consid- 
ering that  to  his  forbearance  alone,  or  principally,  Edward  owed  his 
throne,  (Jodwin,  who  was  naturally  haughty,  was  not  inclined  to  bear  the 
neglect  of  the  king  without  shiiwiii?  his  sense  of  it,  and  his  ill  hutnonr 
was  the  more  deep  and  the  more  bitterly  expres::ed,  because  his  daughter 
Editha  iis  well  its  himself  suffered  from  the  king's  neglect.  The  king 
had  married  her,  indeed,  iti  compliance  with  his  solemn  protnise,  but  he 
would  never  live  with  her-  His  determination  on  this  head  was  rightly 
attributed  by  Godwin  to  his  having  transferred  to  the  <laiighter  a  part  of 
the  hatred  he  entertained  for  the  father,  tiiougli  the  monks,  with  their 
usual  ingenuity  in  finding  piety  where  no  one  (ilse  would  think  of  look- 
ing for  it,  attribute  this  conduct  to  his  religious  feeling;  and  to  this  con- 
dnit  It  is  that  lu;  chiefly  owed  the  being  lit)noured  by  the  monks  with  the 
respectable  surname  of  The  Gonfessor. 

A.n  104'^. — {''ntertaining  strong  feelings  of  both  disappointment  and  dis- 
content, it  was  not  likely  that  a  nobleman  of  Godwin's  great  power  and 
great  ill-li'inper  too,  would  fail  to  find  some  pretext  upon  which  to  break 
out  into  opi'ii  quarrel.  Politic  as  he  was  ill  tempered,  (Jodwin  "eized  upon 
the  favouritism  of  the  king  towards  the  Noiinatif  as  a  cause  of  (piarrel 
upon  which  he  was  sure  to  have  the  synipatliy  of  the  English,  who  were 
to  the  full  as  m,.ch  prejudiced  as  liiins(df  a^'ainst  Ihe  foreigners. 

While  Gi)i|win  was  thus  anxious  to  cpiarrel  with  the  king  whom  he  had 
done  so  much  to  put  upon  the  throne,  and  only  wailing  for  the  occurrence 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


15 


ol  an  occasion  suffi(;ieiuly  plausible  to  hide  his  meaner  and  more  entirel)' 
personal  motives,  it  chant-ed  that  Eustace,  count  of  Boulogne,  passed 
through  Dover  on  his  way  back  to  liis  own  country  after  a  visit  paid  to  the 
English  court.  An  attendant  upon  '.he  count  got  into  a  dispute  with  a  man 
nt  whose  house  he  was  quartered  and  wounded  him  ;  the  neighbours  in- 
terfered, and  ihe  count's  attend-.nt  was  shiin;  a  general  battle  tooit  place 
between  the  count's  suite  and  ihe  townspeople,  and  tlie  former  got  so  much 
the  worst  of  Ihe  affray,  that  the  count  himself  had  some  difficulty  in  sav 
ing  his  life  by  flight.  The  king  was  not  merely  angry,  but  felt  scandal- 
ized that  forei-guers  who  had  just  partaken  of  his  hospitality  should  be  thus 
roughly  used  by  his  subjects,  and  he  ordered  Godwin — to  whom,  as  we 
have  said,  the  government  of  Kent  belonged — to  make  inquiry  into  the  af- 
fair, and  to  punish  the  guilty.  But  Godwin,  who  was  delighted  at  an  oc- 
currence which  furnished  him  with  a  pretext  at  once  plau.sihie  and  popular 
for  quarrelling  with  his  sovereign  and  son-in-law,  promptly  refused  to 
punish  the  Dover  men,  whom  hs  alledged  to  have  been  extremely  ill-treated 
by  the  foreigners.  Edward  had  long  been  aware  of  the  hostile  feelings 
of  Godwin,  but  as  he  was  also  aware  of  the  very  great  and  widely-spread 
power  of  that  noble,  he  hart  prudently  endeavoured  to  avoid  all  occasion 
of  open  disagreement.  But  this  blank  refusal  of  the  earl  to  obey  his  orders 
provoked  the  king  so  much,  that  he  threatened  Godwin  with  the  full  weight 
of  his  displeasure  if  he  dared  to  persevere  in  his  disobedience. 

Aware,  and  probably  not  sorry,  that  an  open  rupture  was  now  almost 
unavoidalile,  dodwiii  assembled  a  force  and  marched  towards  Glouces- 
ter, where  the  king  was  then  residing  with  no  other  guar<l  than  his  or- 
dinary reliime.  Edward,  o!i  hearing  of  the  approach  and  hostile  hearing 
of  his  too  potent  father-in-law,  applied  for  aid  to  Siward  and  Leofric,  the 
powerful  dukes  of  .Northumberland  and  Mercia,  and  to  give  them  time  to 
add  to  the  forces  with  whii-h  they  on  the  instant  proceeded  to  aid  him,  ho 
opened  a  negotiation  with  Godwin.  Wily  as  the  earl  was,  he  on  this  oc- 
casion fiirgiit  the  rebel  maxim — that  he  who  draws  the  sword  against  his 
sovereign  should  throw  away  the  scabbard.  He  allowed  the  king  to 
air.use  him  with  messages  and  proposals,  while  the  king's  friends  were 
raising  a  force  sufficiently  powerful  to  assure  him  success  should  the  quar 
rc'l  procctni  to  blows.  As  the  descendant  of  a  long  line  of  English  kings, 
and  himself  a  king  remarkable  for  humane  and  just  conduct,  Edward  had 
a  popularitv  whi(!h  not  even  his  somewhat  overweening  partiality  to  for- 
eigners coiild  abat(! ;  and  when  his  subjects  learned  tliat  he  was  in  danger 
from  the  anger  and  ambition  of  Godwin,  they  hastened  to  his  defence  in 
siirh  nnniliers  that  he  was  able  to  summon  him  to  answer  for  his  treason- 
ahle  cciulnct.  Both  Godwin  and  his  sons,  who  had  joined  in  the  rebellion, 
professci!  perfect  vvillinyncss  to  proceed  to  London  to  answer  for  their 
conduct,  on  c(ni(lition  that  lliey  should  receive  hostages  for  tlieir  personal 
safety  and  fair  trial.  But  the  king  was  now  far  too  powerful  to  grant 
any  such  terms,  and  (lodwin  and  his  sons  perceiving  that  in  negotiating 
with  the  king  while  he  was  but  slenderly  attended  they  h'd  lost  the  golden 
opportunity  of  wresting  the  sovereignity  from  him,  hastily  disbanded  their 
troops  and  went  abroad;  Godwin  and  three  of  his  stms  taking  refuge  with 
llalilu  in,  earl  of  Flanders,  and  his  other  two  sons  taking  shelter  in  Ireland. 

Having  thus  for  the  time  got  rid  of  enemies  so  powerful,  the  king  be- 
Ftowed  their  estates  and  governments  upon  some  of  his  favonriles;  and 
&s  he  no  longer  Ihonghl  himself  obliged  to  keep  any  terms  with  his  im- 
perinns  father  in-law,  he  thrust  Queen  Editha,  whom  he  had  never  loved, 
into  a  convent  at  Whcrwell. 

But  the  ruin  of  the  powerful  Godwin  was  more  apparent  than  real ;  he 
had  innnercois  friends  in  I'ngland,  nor  was  he  without  such  foreign  alli- 
ances as  wiHild  still  enable  him  to  give  those  friends  an  opportuinty  ol 
nerving  him.     His  ally,  the  carl  of  Elandcrs,  who  was  the  more  interested 


160 


.HE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY 


I' 


in  his  l)Phalf  on  account  of  Godwin's  son  Tosti  liaving  married  llit  ^-m  s 
daughter,  gave  him  tlie  use  of  his  iiarbours  in  wiiieli  to  assemble  a  flett, 
and  assisted  him  to  hire  and  purcliase  vessels;  and  Godwin,  liaving  com- 
pleted his  preparations,  made  an  attempt  to  surprise  Sandwich.  But  Ed 
ward  had  constantly  been  informed  of  the  earl's  movements,  and  had  a  far 
superior  force  ready  to  meet  him.  Godwin,  who  depended  fully  as  much 
upon  policy  as  upon  force,  returned  to  Fhinders,  trusting  that  his  seeming 
relinquishment  of  his  design  would  throw  Edward  off  his  guard.  It  turned 
out  precisely  as  Godwin  had  anticipated.  Edward  neglected  his  fleet  and 
allowed  his  seamen  to  disperse,  and  Godwin,  informed  of  this,  suddenly 
sailed  for  the  Isle  of  White,  where  iie  was  joined  by  an  Irish  force  under 
Harold.  Seizing  the  vessels  in  the  southern  ports,  and  summoning  all 
his  friends  in  those  parts  to  aid  him  in  obtaining  justice,  he  was  able  to 
enter  the  Thames  and  appear  before  London  with  an  overwhelming  force. 
Edward  was  undismayed  by  the  power  of  the  rebel  earl,  and  as  he  was 
determined  to  defend  himself  to  the  utmost,  a  civil  war  of  the  worst  de- 
scription would  most  probably  have  ensued  but  for  the  interference  of  the 
nobles.  Many  of  these  were  secretly  friends  of  Godwin,  and  all  of  them 
were  very  desirous  to  accommodate  matters,  and  the  results  of  their  time- 
ly mediation  was  a  treaty,  by  which  it  was  stipulated  on  the  one  hand  that 
the  obnoxious  foreigners  should  be  sent  from  the  country,  and  on  the  other, 
that  Godwin  should  give  hostages  for  his  future  good  behaviour.  This  lie 
did,  and  Edward  sent  the  hostages  over  to  Normandy,  being  conscious 
that  he  could  not  safely  keep  them  at  his  own  court. 

Though  a  civil  war  was  undoubtedly  for  the  present  averted  by  this 
treaty  between  the  king  and  Godwin,  yet  the  ill  example  thus  given  of  the 
necessities  of  the  king  (compelling  him  to  treat  as  upon  equal  urms  with 
his  vassal,  would  probably  have  produced  farther  and  more  mischievous 
acts  of  presumption  on  the  part  of  Godwin,  but  for  his  death,  which  sud- 
denly occurred  as  he  was  dining  with  the  king  shortly  after  this  hollow 
reconciliation  had  been  patched  up  between  them. 

Godwin  was  succeeded  both  in  his  governments  and  in  the  very  impor- 
tant office  of  steward  of  the  king's  household  by  his  son  Harold,  who  had 
all  his  father's  ambition,  together  with  a  self-command  and  seeming  hu- 
mility far  more  dangerous,  because  more  diflicult  lo  be  guarded  against, 
than  his  father's  impetuous  violence.  Although  unavoidably  prejudiced 
against  him  on  account  of  his  parentage,  Edward  was  won  by  his  seeming 
humility  and  anxiety  to  please.  Bui  though  Edward  could  not  refuse  him 
his  personal  esteem,  his  jealousy  was  awakened  by  the  anxiety  and  suc- 
cess with  which  Harold  endeavoured  lo  make  partizans ;  and,  in  order  to 
curb  his  ambition,  he  played  off  i  rival  against  him  in  the  person  of  Algar, 
son  of  Leofric  duke  of  Mercia,  upon  whom  was  conferred  Harold's  old 
government  of  East  Ana;lia.  But  this  notable  expedient  of  the  king  whol- 
ly failed.  Instead  of  the  power  of  Algar  balancing  that  of  Harold,  the 
disputes  between  the  two  rivals  proceeded  to  actual  warfare,  in  wliich,  as 
usual,  the  unoffending  people  were  the  greatest  sufferers.  The  death  oi 
both  .\lgar  and  his  father  put  an  end  to  this  rivalry,  or  probably  the  very 
means  wliich  the  king  had  taken  to  preserve  his  authority  would  have 
wholly  and  fatally  subverted  it. 

A.n.  lO.').'). — There  was  now  but  one  rival  from  whom  Harold  could  feat 
any  effectual  competition;  iSiwaid,  (iuk(;  of  Northumberland;  and  his 
death  speedily  left  Harold  without  peer  ai.d  without  competitor.  Sisvard 
liad  ffreatly  distinguislicd  himself  in  the  only  foreign  expedition  of  this 
reign,  which  was  nnderlaken  to  restore  Malcolm,  king  of  Scotland,  who 
'lad  been  chased  from  that  kingdom  after  the  murder  of  his  father.  King 
Duncan,  by  a  traitorous  noble  named  Macbeth.  In  this  expedition  Siward 
was  fully  successful  ;  hut  unfortunately,  though  he  defeated  and  slew  the 
usurper,' .Macbeth,  he  in  the  same  aution  lost  his  eldest  son,  Osborne,  who 


THE  TREASUHY  OF  HlSTOllY. 


1CI 


had  iriven  liigh  promise  of  both  will  and  power  to  uphold  the  glory  of  hia 
family. 

Sisviird's  character  had  much  of  the  Spartan  resolution.  He  was  con 
soled  for  the  death  of  his  gallant  son  when  he  learned  that  his  wounds 
were  all  in  front ;  and  when  he  felt  the  hand  of  death  upon  himself  he  had 
his  armour  cleaned  and  a  spear  placed  in  his  hand,  that,  as  he  said,  he 
might  meet  death  in  a  guise  worthy  of  a  noble  and  a  warrior. 

Owing  to  the  health  of  the  king  buiiig  fast  declining,  and  his  having  no 
children,  he  grew  anxious  about  the  succession;  and  as  he  saw  iliat  Har- 
old was  sufficiently  ambitious  to  seize  upon  the  crown,  he  sent  to  Hunga- 
ry for  his  elder  brother's  son  Edward.  That  prince  died  almost  immedi- 
ately after  his  arrival  in  Kngland ;  and  thi)U]Lih  the  title  of  his  son  Edgar 
Atheling  would  have  been  fully  as  good  and  indisputable  as  his  own,  Edgar 
did  not,  to  the  anxious  eyes  of  the  king,  seem  either  by  yi^ars  or  character 
a  competent  authority  to  curb  the  soaring  ambition  of  Harold.  VV'illing  to 
see  any  one  rather  than  Harold  secure  in  the  succession,  the  king  turned 
his  attention  to  William,  duke  of  Normandy.  Tiiis  prinite  whs  the  natural 
son  of  William,  duke  of  Normandy,  by  Harlotta.  the  daughter  of  a  tanner 
of  the  town  of  Falaise;  but  illegitimacy  in  that  age  was  little  regarded. 
He  had  shown  great  vigour  and  capacity  in  pultitig  down  the  opposition 
made  to  his  succession  to  th  dukedom,  and  though  he  was  of  very  tender 
age  wiieti  his  father  died,  his  conduct,  both  at  that  diflicnit  crisis  and  in 
Ills  subsequent  government,  fully  justified  the  high  opinion  of  him  which 
had  induced  his  father  to  bequeath  to  him  the  dukedom,  to  the  prejudice 
of  other  branches  of  the  ducal  family.  He  had  paid  a  visit  to  England  and 
gained  much  upon  the  good  opinion  of  Edward,  wiio  had  actually  made 
known  to  him  liis  intention  of  making  him  his  heir  even  before  he  sent  to 
Hungary  for  Prince  Edward  and  his  family. 

Harold,  though  by  no  means  ignorant  of  the  king's  desire  to  exclude 
hint  from  all  cliHiice  of  succeeding  to  the  liiroiio,  steadfastly  pursued  his 
plan  (if  conciliating  the  powerful,  and  making  himself  noted  as  the  friend 
and  protector  of  tlie  weak.  In  this  respect  lie  was  eminently  successful, 
but  tliere  was  an  obstacle  in  the  way  of  his  final  triumph  from  which  he 
anticipated  veiy  great  difTiculty.  Among  tiie  hostages  giviMi  by  Ins  father, 
Marl  Godwin,  were  a  sou  and  a  gratnlson  of  that  iKibh'inan  ;  and  when 
Harold  perceived  that  Duke  William,  to  whose  custody  the  hostages  were 
committed,  had  hopes  of  being  left  heir  to  the  Fhiglish  crown,  he  natural- 
ly became  anxious  aliout  the  consequences  of  his  intended  rivalry  to  rela- 
tives so  near.  To  g(a  them  out  of  the  duke's  power  [irevious  to  the  death 
of  llie  king  was  of  the  utmost  imporlr.iicc  ;  and  hea[)plied  to  the  king  for 
tiieir  release,  dwelling  iniicii  upon  the  constant  obedience  and  duiifulnesg 
of  iiis  conduct,  U|)on  which  hi;  argued  it  was  in  some  s(nt  an  injurious  re- 
flection longer  to  keep  the  hostages.  As  his  conduct  really  had  been 
to  all  appearaiK^es  of  unbroken  faith  and  undeviating  loyalty,  the  king  was 
unable  to  make  any  solid  reply  to  his  arguments,  and  at  length  yielded  the 
point  and  empowi^red  Harold  to  go  to  Normandy  and  release  them.  Ho 
iiastcncd  to  fulfil  this  very  agreeable  commission,  but  a  viideiit  tempest 
arose  while  lie  was  at  sea  and  drove  him  ashore  upon  the  territory  of  Guy, 
count  of  Ponlhien,  who  made  liiin  prisoner  in  the  hope  of  extortinu:  a  very 
large  sum  from  him  by  the  way  of  ransom.  Harold  sent  to  the  duke  of 
NorniHiidy  for  aid  in  this  dilemma,  reiiresenting  that  the  duke's  honour  as 
well  as  his  liberty  was  infringed  by  this  imprisonnu'iit  of  a  ii'diieman 
bound  to  the  court  of  Normandy.  Noltiin<i:  could  have  happen 'd  more 
agieable  to  iIk;  wishes  of  Willi.im,  who.  if  of  a  more  hasty  temperament 
than  Harold,  was  no  less  politic;  and  he  at  once  clearly  perceived  that 
this  unexpected  incident  would  give  him  the  means  of  practisimr  upon  his 
only  formidable  eonijietilor  for  the  English  thioiic.  He  i.nmeili.itcly  dis- 
patched a  messenger  to  demand  tfie  liberty  of  Harold;  and  the  count  of 
I.— 11 


ifii; 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


li 


Poiuhieu  complied  on  the  instant,  not  daring  to  irritate  so  warlike  and 
powerful  a  prince  as  Duke  William.  Harold  then  proceeded  to  William's 
court  at  Rouen,  where  he  was  received  with  every  demonstration  of  the 
warmest  good  will.  William  professed  the  greatest  willingness  to  give 
up  the  hostages,  and  at  the  same  time  took  the  opportunity — as  if  ignorant 
of  Harold's  own  secret  intentions — to  beg  his  aid  in  his  pretensions  to  the 
crown  of  England,  assuring  him  in  return  of  an  increase  to  the  grandeur 
and  power  already  enjoyed  by  his  own  family,  and  offering  him  a  daughter 
of  his  own  in  marriage.  Though  Harold  had  the  least  possible  desire  to 
aid  in  his  own  defeat,  he  clearly  enough  saw  that  if  he  were  to  refuse  to 
promise  it  he  would  be  made  a  prisoner  in  Normandy  for  the  remainder  of 
his  life.  He  agreed,  therefore  to  give  William  his  support.  But  a  mere 
promise  would  not  serve  William's  turn,  he  required  an  oath,  and  as  oaths 
sworn  upon  reliques  were  in  that  age  deemed  of  more  than  usual  sanctity, 
he  had  some  reliques  of  the  most  venerated  martyrs  privately  hidden  be- 
neath the  altar  on  which  Harold  was  sworn  ;  and,  to  awe  him  from  break- 
ing his  oath,  showed  them  to  him  at  the  conclusion  of  tlie  ceremony. 
Harold  was  both  surprised  and  annoyed  at  the  shrewd  precaution  of  the 
duke,  but  was  too  politic  to  allow  his  concern  to  appear. 

Imagining  that  he  had  now  fully  secured  the  support  of  Harold  instead 
of  having  to  fear  his  opposition,  William  allowed  him  to  depart  with  many 
expressions  of  favour  and  friendship.  But  Harold  had  no  sooner 
obtained  his  own  liberty  and  that  of  his  relatives,  than  he  began  to  exert 
ert  himself  to  suggest  reasons  for  breaking  the  oath  which  actual  though 
nominal  durance  had  extorted  from  him,  and  the  accompaniment  of  which 
had  been  brought  about  by  an  overt  fraud.  He  shut  his  eyes  upon  the 
fact  that,  having  consented  to  take  the  oath,  it  really  mattered  little  whe- 
ther he  was  aware  or  not  of  the  presence  of  the  reliques  ;  had  they  not 
been  there  his  oath  would  still  be  in  full  force,  and  he  could  only  act 
in  contravention  of  it  by  gross  perjury.  Determined  to  have  the  crown  if 
possible,  even  at  this  fearful  price,  he  now  redoubled  his  efforts  at  gaining 
public  favour,  hoping  that  his  superior  popularity  would  deter  the  king 
from  making  any  further  advances  to  Duke  William,  and  relying,  in  the 
last  resort,  upon  the  armed  defence  of  the  nation.  In  pursuance  of  this 
plan  he  headed  an  expedition  against  the  Welsh,  and  pressed  them  to  sucli 
straits  that  they  beheaded  tlieir  prince,  Griffith,  and  consented  to  be  gov 
erned  by  two  noblemen  appointed  by  Kdward. 

The  popularity  he  gained  in  this  expedition  was  greatly  enhanced  by  his 
politic  and  ostentatious  disjjlay  of  rigid  partiality  in  a  case  in  which  his 
brother,  Tosti,  duke  of  Northumberland,  was  a  principal  party.  Tosti  had 
conducted  himself  with  such  tyrannical  violence  that  the  Northumbrians 
expelled  him  ;  and  the  deceased  Duke  Leofric's  grandsons,  IMorcar  and 
Kdward,  having  sided  with  the  people,  the  former  was  by  them  elected  to 
be  tlieir  duke.  The  king  commissoned  Harold  to  put  down  this  insurrcL'- 
tion,  which  it  was  naturally  supposed  that  he  would  be  all  the  more  zeal- 
ous in  doing,  as  the  intenists  of  his  own  brother  were  concerned.  But  Mor- 
car,  liaving  demanded  a  conference  with  Harold,  gave  him  such  proofs 
of  the  misconduct  of  Tosti,  and  appealed  so  flatteringly  to  his  own  very 
opposite  conduct,  that  Harold  not  merely  withdrew  the  army  with  wliicli 
he  was  about  to  chastise  the  Northumbrians,  but  made  such  a  representa- 
tion of  the  case  as  induced  the  king  not  oidy  to  pardon  the  Northumbri- 
ans but  also  to  confirm  Morcar  in  Tosti's  government.  Tosti  fled  to  the 
court  of  Flanders,  but  subsequently  took  an  opportunity  to  show  the  extent 
of  his  dissatisfaction  with  his  brollier's  decision. 

Shortly  after  this  affair  Harold  married  the  sister  of  IMorcar,  a  step 
svliich  plainly  intimated  how  little  he  held  himself  bound  lo  perform  the 
sworn  engagements  to  William  of  Normandy.  In  fact  he  was  now  go 
very  popular,  that  he  made  no  secret  of  his  pretension  to  the  throne,  but 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


163 


openly  urged  that  as  Edgar  Atheling  was  by  all  acknowledged  to  be  unfit 
to  wear  the  English  crown,  he  was  the  fittest  man  in  the  nation  to  suc- 
ceed Edward ;  and  though  the  king  was  too  much  opposed  to  Harold's 
succession  directly  and  positively  to  sanction  his  pretension,  he  was  too 
weak  in  both  mind  and  body  to  take  any  energetic  steps  for  securing  the 
succession  of  William. 

The  king  had  long  been  visibly  sinking,  and  yet  though  conscious  of  his 

approaching  end,  and  really  anxious  to  prevent  the  accession  of  Harold, 

he  could  not  muster  resolution  to  invite  Duke  William,  but  left  chance, 

policy,  or  arms  to  decide  the  succession  at  his  death,  which  occured  in  the 

sixty-fifth  year  of  his  age  and  the  twenty-fifth  of  his  reign.    Tiiough  both 

Godwin  and  Harold  excited  his  dislike  by  the  influence  they  acquired  over 

lim  by  superior  talent  and  energy,  the  peaceableness  of  his  reign  was,  in 

ict,  mainly  attributable  to  their  power  and  influence.   Edward  was  natural- 

/  weak  and  superstitious,  and  if  it  had  chanced  that  he  had  fallen  into  other 

inds,  it  is  probable  that  his  reign  would  have  been  both  troubled  and 

lortened.    The  superstitious  custom  of  touching  for  the  king's  evil  origi- 

.jbted  with  this  prince. 


CHAPTER  Xn. 

THE   REION   OP   HAROIiD   THE   SECOND. 

A.D.  1066. — The  death  of  Edward  the  Confessor  had  so  long  been 
probable,  that  Harold  had  ample  time  to  make  his  preparations,  and  in  the 
mere  fact  of  his  being  on  the  spot  he  had  a  great  and  manifest  advantage 
over  his  Norman  rival.  Not  only  were  his  partizans  numerous  and  pow- 
erful by  their  wealth  and  stations,  they  were  also  compactly  organized. 
Neither  Duke  William  nor  Edgar  Atheling  was  formally  proposed,  but  it 
was  taken  for  granted  that  the  unanimous  voice  of  the  people  was  repre- 
sented by  that  of  the  lay  and  clerical  nobles  who  surrounded  Harold ;  and, 
without  even  waiting  for  the  formal  sanction  of  the  states  of  the  kingdom, 
he  was  crowned  by  tlie  archbishop  of  York  on  the  very  day  after  the  de- 
cease of  Edward.  Nor,  in  fact,  was  the  consent  of  the  nation  so  mere  an 
assumption  as  it  sometimes  has  been ;  for  Harold  was  universally  popu- 
lar, and  the  Normans  were  as  universally  hated  as  foreigners,  and  feared 
on  account  of  their  fierce  and  warlike  character.  But  popular  as  Harold 
was  in  England,  he  was  not  long  allowed  to  enjoy  his  elevation  in  p;  •"? 
His  brother  Tosti,  who  had  remained  in  voluntary  banishment  at  the  r^':\r. 
of  Flanders  ever  since  Harold's  memorable  decision  against  him,  deeai  -J 
that  his  time  was  now  arrived  to  take  revenge.  He  exerted  his  utmost  in- 
fluence with  the  earl  of  Flanders,  and  sent  messengers  into  Norway  to 
raise  forces,  and  journeyed  personally  to  Normandy  to  engage  Dnke  Wil 
liani  to  join  him  in  avenging  both  their  grievances. 

This  last  step  Tosti  had  not  the  slightest  occasion  to  take,  for  Duke  Wil- 
liam was  far  too  much  enraged  at  Flarold's  breach  of  faiih  to  require  any 
urging.  He  had  already  determined  that  Harold  should  at  the  least  have 
to  fight  for  the  throne ;  but  as  it  was  obviously  important  to  stand  as  well 
as  possible  with  the  English  people,  he  sent  ambassadors  summoning 
Harold  to  perform  the  promise  he  had  made  under  the  most  solemn  form 
of  an  oath.  Harold  replied  at  some  length  and  with  considerable  show 
of  reason  lo  the  duke's  message.  As  related  to  his  oath,  he  said,  that  had 
been  extorted  from  him  under  circumstances  of  durance  and  well-grounded 
bodily  terror,  and  was  consequently  null ;  and,  moreover,  he  as  a  private 
person  could  not  lawfully  swear  to  forward  the  duke's  pretentions.  He 
nad  himselt,  he  added,  been  raised  to  the  throne  by  the  unanimous  voice 
of  his  people,  and  he  would  indeed  be  unworthy  of  tiieir  love  and  trust 


Ib4 


THE  TREASUIIY  OF  HISTORY. 


were  he  not  prepared  to  defend  the  liberties  they  liad  entrusted  in  |ii« 
care.  Fi;  flly,  he  said,  should  the  duke  attempt  by  force  of  arms  to  dis- 
turb him  and  tiis  kingdom,  he  would  sooii  learn  how  great  is  the  power 
of  a  united  people,  led  by  a  prince  of  its  own  choice,  and  one  who  was 
firmly  determined  that  he  would  only  cease  to  reign  when  he  should  cease 
to  live. 

Wdliam  expected  sueh  an  answer  as  this,  and  even  while  his  messen- 
gers were  travelling  between  Normandy  and  the  English  court  he  was 
busily  engaged  in  preparations  for  reiiiforfing  his  pretensions  by  arms. 
Brave,  and  posses.sed  of  a  high  reputation,  he  could  count  not  only  upon 
the  zealous  aid  of  his  own  warlike  Norman.s,  who  would  look  on  tlie  in- 
vasion of  such  a  country  as  Kn<!land  in  the  light  of  an  absolute  (godsend, 
but  also  of  the  innnerous  martial  nobles  of  the  continent,  who  literally 
made  a  trade  of  war,  and  were  ever  ready  to  range  themselves  and  their 
stalwart  men-at-arms  under  the  hainier  ol  a  bold  and  famous  leader,  with- 
out exjiressing  any  troublesome  curiosity  as  to  the  rightfulness  of  his 
cause.  Among  these  unscrupulous  sworders  the  wctalth,  fame  and  a  cer- 
tain blunt  and  hearty  hospitality  of  William  made  him  extremely  popular; 
and  in  the  idea  of  conquering  sueh  a  kingdom  as  Kngl.md  there  was  much  to 
tempt  their  cupidity  as  well  as  toitiflanie  their  valour.  Fortune,  too,  fa- 
voured William  by  the  siulden  death  of  Conati,  count  of  Urittany.  Be- 
tween this  nobleman  and  William  there  was  an  old  and  very  iiiveterate 
feud,  ami  C'oiian  lu)  sooner  learned  l)id<e  William's  di  sign  upon  Kiigland, 
than  he  endeavoured  to  embarrass  and  prevent  him  l)y  n'viving  his  own 
claim  to  the  duchy  of  Normandy,  which  he  recpiired  to  be  settled  upon  him 
in  the  event  of  tlie  duke  succeeding  in  Knglaiid.  This  demand  would 
have  caused  the  duke  much  iiieonveiiu'iice,  but  (^onan  had  scarcely  made 
it  when  he  died,  and  ('oniil  Hoel,  his  successor,  so  far  from  seeking  lu 
embarrass  William,  sent  him  fi\e  thousand  men  under  command  of  his 
son  Alain.  The  earl  of  Flanders  ;iiid  the  count  of  Anjou  |)ermitted  th.  ii 
subjects  to  join  Williaiu's  army,  and  though  the  regency  of  France  osten- 
sibly counnaiidi'd  him  to  lay  aside  his  enterprise,  the  earl  of  Flanders, 
who  was  at  till"  heail  of  the  regency  and  who  was  !iis  ('aiherin-law,  took 
care  to  let  the  French  nolidity  know  that  no  ul)jeclion  wotild  lie  olTered  to 
tlieir  enlisiiii;'  under  Willliun.  S;jll  niore  important  aid  and  eiicom'airc- 
meiit  were  aliordcil  to  Wdliam  by  thr  emperor  Henry  IV.,  who  not  only 
assisted  him  in  levying  men  in  his  <toinimon,  but  also  pronnscil  to  protect 
the  (luiiiv  of  N(n'MiiiM(ly  during  tlif  duke's  a!)sencc  ;  but  the  most  imp(n'taiit 
proteclcM' anil  enciuirager  of  William  in  Ins  projec^led  enterprise  was  Pope 
Alexander  111.,  \»  liimi  the  didie,  «itli  shrewd  jiidgnieiU,  had  completely 
won  to  Ins  interests  by  voluntarily  niakini,'  him  the  me  liaior  between 
them.  The  great  anxiety  ofllie  pupal  eoiiils  to  have  an  inllneiiee  as  well 
over  the  leinporiil  as  over  the  sjuritnal  alViirs  of  the  nation  would  hive 
rendered  this  one  stroke  of  William's  policy  ipnte  decisive  of  .Mexamler'i 
coiiiluet.  Inn  the  pontilT  was  still  farther  interested  in  the  duke's  success 
by  his  belief  iiial  sliiiuld  the  Normans  eiiiiipier  lliigland,  they  would  sub- 
iect  that  nation  inine  coin|)let(dy  than  it  had  yet  been  to  ilie  papal  see, 

l''roiu  the  stales  of  Ins  own  duchy  William  at  firht  met  with  some  ojipo- 
»iti(iii,  tlie  supplies  he  reipiired  being  iinprei'eilently  and  onerously  large. 
Hut  Olio,  bishop  of  IJ.iyeiix,  Willi, im  Fii/ovborne,  cniiiil  of  llrctriiil  and 
constable  of  Normandy,  with  the  toiiuiof  I,i>ngiieville  and  otiii  r  .Nor- 
man magnates,  so  eireclu  illy  aldid  liini  that  this  dirtieiilly  was  gut  over, 
nii'l  the  stales  aitrced  to  furaish  linn  with  all  the  aid,  oidy  under  protest 
that  their  eoin|t|iaiiee  should  not  l)u  drawn  iiitu  u  precedence  inJnrnMis  to 
their  posterity. 

Il\  I'leat  aetiv  ily,  perseverance,  and  address,  William  at  lenjith  foinid 
tiimsi  If  at  the  heitd  of  a  m.igmfii'ciilly  iippuinted  force  of  Ibri'e  lliousaiid 
vcRMels  of  variuui  raicD,  and  uj)wariis  uf  )>i),i)U()  men  ;  uiid  bo  popular  had 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY 


16S 


his  purpose  now  become  ainoii^  the  warriors  of  the  continent,  that  he 
coiilii  probably  liuve  nearly  doubled  the  number  of  men  hud  he  thought 
it  necessary  to  do  so.  Nor  was  it  merely  by  dint  of  numbers  that 
his  force  was  imposing.  His  veteran  am'  disciplined  men-at  arms  were 
led  by  some  of  the  most  famous  champion  ■  of  even  that  age  of  knights  and 
true  warriors  ;  among  whom  he  could  reckon  Kustace,  count  of  Uoulogne, 
William  de  Warunne,  Roger  de  Beaumont,  Hugh  d'  Estaples,  and  the  far- 
famed  Charles  Mariel. 

While  William  excited  the  ardour  of  these  and  other  gallant  lead(TS  by 
promising  them  rich  spoils  from  the  land  they  were  about  to  conquer  for 
him,  Tosii,  the  infuriated  brother  of  Harold,  was  busied  by  Williain's  ii).- 
struclioiis  in  ravaging  the  coasts  of  England,  and  distracting  the  attention 
of  Harold  and  his  subjects  from  their  more  redoubtable  enemy's  prepara- 
tions. In  conjunction  with  Harold  Halfager,  king  of  Norway,  Tosli  led  a 
powerful  lleet  into  the  Humber,  and  began  to  despoil  the  country.  Mor- 
car,  duke  of  Northumberland,  and  Kdwin,  duke  of  Mercia,  got  together 
sucii  forces  as  time  would  allow,  and  endeavoured  to  beat  bai-k  the  marau- 
ders, but  were  put  to  the  rvUt  by  them.  Hut  thougii  the  effort  of  these  noble- 
men was  in  itself  disastrously  unsuccessful,  it  gave  Harolu  time  to  raise  a 
compact  force  and  hasten  to  meet  the  invaders  in  person.  He  met  tliein 
ut  Stanford,  in  Linconshire,  and  ti  the  action  that  vnsued  the  invaders 
were  completely  defeated,  and  both  Tostiand  the  kiii^  of  Norway  pi^rished 
on  the  field.  Prince  Olave,  smt  of  the  king  of  Norway,  was  taken  pris- 
oner, and  the  wiiole  of  the  Norwegian  fleet  was  captured;  but  Harold, 
with  great  generosity,  gave  the  young  prince  his  freedom,  and  allowed 
him  to  take  twenty  ships  and  depart  to  his  own  country. 

Though  this  victory  and  Harold's  moderation  after  it  gave  the  Hnglisb 
great  reason  to  be  satisfied  with  the  clntice  they  had  made  of  a  king,  il 
was,  in  fact,  very  disastrous  to  Harold,  as  it  cost  him  a  great  number  o. 
Ills  best  men  and  olTicers  at  the  precise  time  when  he  most  needed  their 
services;  and  even  his  returning  the  spoils,  though  he  was  actuated  by  a 
dcsne  to  spare  his  |)eopic  as  much  as  possible  in  the  approaching  cinitest 
Willi  Duke  William,  gave  so  much  disgust  to  his  soldiery,  that  many  ut 
tiiem  at:tu;illy  deserted,  and  the  rest  wore  discontented.  His  brother 
(jiiirili,  a|)prelien(ling  some  fatal  conscquencps  from  this  really  uiireasona- 
lile  (lisccnileiit,  endeav(nired  to  dissuade  flarold  frmn  risking  his  own  |)er- 
9011  III  tlie  field  against  William.  He  urged  that  it  would  he  unwise  to 
risk  all  upon  one  battie,  when  by  retiriin;  before  the  enemy  he  who  could 
(lepi  lid  upon  the  loyally  and  afleclion  of  his  subjects  for  abundant  siipplii!!« 
could  weiiry  out  the  invaders,  and  starve  them  into  submission  or  retreat} 
and  he  added,  that  .is  Harold  had,  however  nnwittiiigly,  sworn  upon  the 
reliques  to  support  instead  of  opposing  the  duke,  it  would  be  far  belter  foi 
him  to  refrain  I'roni  taking  any  personal  part  in  the  a|)|)roaching  contest, 
liul  Harold  would  heed  no  reasoning  and  no  remonstrance  ;  he  was  deter- 
mined literally  to  fulfil  the  terms  of  his  reply  to  William's  summons,  and 
to  cease  to  reign  only  in  c(!asing  to  live. 

After  s(Hne  dillicullies  from  bad  weather  and  contrary  winds,  in  which 
the  Dukf  lost  some  small  vessels,  tin?  Norman  fleet  a|ipear(Ml  off  the  coast 
of  Sussex,  and  the  army  landed  ut  Pevensy  without  opposition.  The  duke 
in  Ins  hurry  to  leap  :ishore  stmnbled  and  fidl  to  the  criuind  :  but  he  with 
great  presence  of  ntind  prevented  his  s<ddiers  from  nilerpreting  this  acci* 
dent  into  an  evil  omen,  by  loudly  exclaiming  tha^  he  hail  now  taken  pos* 
session  of  the  country. 

Harold,  who  had  approached  with  his  army,  sent  a  monk  to  Duke  Wil- 
liam to  oiler  to  settle  their  dispute  by  the  payment  of  a  sum  of  money  to 
mm.  W  illiain,  who  was  e(|ually  confident  of  sueee'<H,  replied  that  he 
would,  if  Harold  elio^e,  put  the  issue  up(Mi  a  single  cimibat,  and  thus  spare 
the  tUnsion  of  blood;  tint  Hiindd  declined  tins  propositi,  and  s.tid  that  tlin 
od  of  battles  would  soon  decide  between  them. 


16C 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HI8T0KY. 


I* 


The  eve  of  the  momentous  day  of  strife  was  passed  by  the  Normans  m 
prayer,  and  in  confessing  their  sins  to  the  host  of  monks  by  whom  they 
were  accompanied ;  but  the  Knglisii,  more  confident  or  more  reckless,  gave 
themselves  up  to  wassail  and  merriment. 

Early  in  the  morning  the  Duke  addressed  the  principal  leaders.  He  rep- 
resented to  them  that  tliey  had  come  to  conquer  a  fine  country  from  the 
hands  of  a  usurper  whose  perjury  could  not  fail  to  call  down  destruction 
uponliis  head;  that  if  they  fought  valiantly  their  success  was  certain,  but 
that  if  any,  from  cowardice  or  treachery, should  retreat,  they  would  infal- 
libly perish  between  a  furious  enemy  and  the  sea  towards  which  ho  would 
drive  them.  His  address  finished,  the  duke  formed  his  immense  force  into 
three  divisions.  His  choice  and  heavy-armed  infantry  was  commanded 
by  Cliarles  Martcl,  the  arciiers  and  light-armed  infantry  by  Roger  de 
Montgomery,  and  the  cavalry,  winch  flanked  both  those  divisions,  was 
under  his  own  immediate  leading. 

Harold  had  chosen  his  situation  with  great  judgment.  His  force  was  dis 
posed  upon  the  slope  of  a  rising  ground  and  the  flanks  were  secured  against 
cavalry,  in  which  lie  was  but  weak,  by  deep  trenches.  In  this  position  he 
resolved  to  await  the  attack  of  the  enemy,  and  be  placed  himself  on  foot, 
accompanied  by  bis  brothers  (Jurth  and  Leofwin,  at  the  head  of  his  infan 
try.  The  first  attack  of  the  Normans  was  fierce,  but  the  steadiness  with 
which  Ihey  were  n)et  and  the  great  difhculty  of  the  ground  compelled 
them  to  retire,  and  tlie  Knglish  pursued  and  ttirew  them  into  a  disorder 
which  threatened  to  degenerate  into  actual  rouf.  Duke  VVilJiam,  who 
saw  that  all  bis  hnpi's  were  at  tliis  moment  in  jeopardy,  led  on  the  flower 
of  his  cavalry,  and  speedily  compelled  the  Knglisii  to  relinquish  their  bard- 
earned  advantage,  and  retire  to  their  original  position.  William  now  or- 
dered up  additional  troops  to  the  attack,  but  fin-ling  the  Knglish  stand  firm 
he  made  a  feint  of  retreat.  With  far  more  bravery  than  judgment,  the 
Knglish  abandoned  their  advantageous  post  to  pursue  the  Hying  and  seem- 
ingly terrified  enemy,  when  the  Norman  infanlry  suddenly  ludled  and  faced 
the  Kiigli,sli,  whose  flanks  were  at  the  saini!  instant  i'lir'onsly  charged 
by  the  Norman  cavalry.  William  was  admirably  obeyed  i  •  his  tronpn. 
and  the  Knglish  fell  in  vast  numbers;  lint  the  survivors  by  i,ieat  e.\ertio^ 
regained  the  hill,  where  the  aid  and  example  of  Harold  enabled  them  to 
del'enil  themselves  with  greater  advantage.  Kxlraonlinary  as  it  may  seem, 
the  ardour  of  the  Knglish  enabled  William  to  |)nl  the  same  feint  into  exe- 
cution a  second  time,  and  with  ei)nal  advantage  to  himself,  though  the 
main  body  of  Harold's  army  still  remained  firmly  entrenched  upon  the 
hill.  lint  galled  by  the  incessant  play  of  William's  archers,  who  discharg- 
ed their  deadly  misniles  over  the  heads  of  the  advancing  lieavy-ml'inlry, 
the  Knglish  were  at  length  broken  by  the  furious  y»'t  steady  charges  ol 
these  latter,  and,  Harold  and  both  his  brothers  being  rdaiii,  Ihey  flf(; 
and  were  |iursn»;d  with  terrilile  slaughter  by  the  victorious  Normans.— 
Willi:iin  did  not  gain  this  important  victory  witlnuit  vast  toss,  the  battle 
having  hi'iMi  conMiined  with  almost  unabated  fury  on  both  sides  from 
moriiiiiu  iiiiiil  eV'  iiig.  The  dead  body  <iftlie  ill-fateil  Harold  was  found, 
and,  liy  tin  urdcrs  of  ihe  duke,  restored  to  his  mother;  and  the  Noriiianj 
having  soli'innty  returned  thanks  for  their  signal  triumph,  marched  on 
wanl  to  pursuit  their  advantage. 

Hail  tliu  I'liiglish  still  |)oss>'ssed  a  royal  family  of  the  high  courage  and 
popularity  of  Harold,  Duke  \\  illiain,  in  sjute  nf  Ins  first  brilliant  snei-esii, 
miglil  for  years  have  been  harassed  by  the  iieci  -.siiy  of  coiiiinnally  fight- 
ing small  and  indecisive  battles  in  evcrv  provnici'  of  tin- kiiicilnm.  Hut 
Kiigiir  Ailii'liiiu,  the  only  Saxon  heir  to  ihe  i-rowii,  leid  neither  the  capaci 
ty  nor  the  repiitaiion  which  would  eiial)le  liiin  to  oru:iiii/,i'  and  direct  a  re 
Histniii  (t  of  this  stern  ami  Rtnliborn  desi  ri|iliiiii,  lliil  Ins  mere  liiieagr 
went  fur  much  in  the  cireumstances  of  the  kingdom,  und  the  dukes  .Murcai 


cliargL'd 

I  troi ){)!». 

rxiriion 

tlieiii  to 

[iiiiy  seem, 

into  cxo- 

li(>ii(;li  the 

upon  the 

(iisi'liiirjf- 

iiirmtry, 

ijirj^cs  oj 

they   (led 

rinuiis.— 

ic  hiittio 

I's  fniin 

i?*  fi)iiiiil, 

Niiriiiiirij 

I'licd  on 

SIICCCSP, 

ly  fiKht- 

Mil.        Milt 

';i|i:i('l 
reel  ii  re 
liii(M|;p 
N  MortMi 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


167 


anil  Kdwin,  now  the  most  powerful  and  popular  men  left  to  the  En- 
ghsh,  proclaimed  Edgar,  and  called  upon  the  people  to  support  their  Saxon 
sovereign  against  the  Norman  invader.  In  this  measure  the  dukes 
were  zealously  assisted  by  Stigand,  archbishop  of  Canterbury,  whose 
wp  iltli  and  influence  made  him  of  great  service  to  them. 

William  m  the  meantime,  took  possession  of  Romney  and  then  of  Do- 
ver, thus  securing  himself  a  communication  with  his  duchy  in  the  event 
of  any  adverse  turn  of  fortune.  Having  given  his  troops  a  week's  rest  at 
Dover,  the  duke  availed  himself  of  the  time  to  publish  to  the  people  the 
pope's  bull  in  favour  of  his  enterprise,  it  being  a  document  which  he  well 
knew  would  have  a  great  efl"eet  upon  the  superstitious  minds  of  the  multi- 
tude, and  thus  disincline  them  to  aid  the  resistance  planned  by  their  lead- 
ers, lie  marched  towards  London.  A  large  body  of  Londoners  attempt- 
ed to  arrest  his  course,  but  they  were  routed  with  terrible  slaughter  by 
about  five  hundred  horse  of  the  Norman  advance;  and  this  new  disaster, 
lo'rotlier  witli  the  little  confidence  and  enthusiasm  excited  by  Edgar,  so 
completely  dispirited  the  people,  that  even  Morcar  and  Edwin  now  de- 
spiiiicd  of  success,  and  retired  to  their  respective  governm-uits.  All  Kent 
submitted  ;  Soutiiwark  attempted  some  resistance,  and  was  set  on  fire  : 
unil  llie  Normans  seemed  so  wholly  irresistible  that  Stigand,  archbisliop 
of  Canterbury,  Edgar  Atlieling,  and  other  leading  men  of  the  kingdom, 
tt'iidiTcd  William  the  crown  and  r'ade  their  submission  to  him.  With  a 
degree  of  hypocrisy,  which  the  vast  preparations  he  had  made  and  tiie 
greit  toils  he  had  undergone  for  the  purpose  of  obtaining  the  crown  made 
riiiiciilmis,  the  duke  pretended  to  hav(!  scrujilcs  about  accepting  the  crowp 
v.iihout  some  more  formal  consent  of  the  English  people.  iJut  his  own 
friends,  ashamed  of  his  gratuitous  8imulati<tn,  or  afraid  that  his  affected 
scruples  might  give  rise  to  some  adverse  turn  of  events,  remonstrated  so 
plainly  with  him  that  hi-.  fiMgned  reluctance  was  laid  aside,  and  orders 
were  given  for  the  necessary  preparations  for  his  immediate  coronatis)n. 
Stigand,  archbishop  of  Canterbury,  was,  aitcording  to  etiquette,  tin;  pro- 
per person  to  have  crowned  William.  Hut  the  al.icrity  thai  prelate  had 
sliiiwii  ill  defending  his  country  made  liini  an  object  of  the  Comiuerer'a 
dislike,  who  refused  to  be  crowned  by  him,  on  the  ph-a  that  his  pall  iiad 
been  irregularly  obtained  ;  and  the  melancholy  oflict^  fell  upon  Aldred. 
archbishop  of  York. 


CHAPTER  XHI. 

TIIK.   BK.KiM  or  WII.MAM    I.,  USUALLY  STTLKD   "WILLIAM  TIIK  COtCqUEROR." 

TiiR  principal  I'.ntilish  and  Norman  nobility  hejng  assembled  in  West- 
minister  abbey  (Dec.  '-.'.'i,  lOGG),  Aldred  asked  them  if  they  were  willing  to 
hav<'  Willi.im  fur  their  king,  and  being  an.^wered  by  aflirmative  acclama- 
lidiis,  he  admonished  him  to  ujihold  the  i-liiireli,  love  justice,  and  execute 
justice  with  mitrcy  ;  and  then  put  the  crown  on  his  head  amid  the  loud 
applause  of  the  spectators  of  both  nations.  A  strong  guaril  of  Norinana 
surriMinded  the  alibcy,  and  hearing  the  shouts  within,  tliey  imagined  that 
the  duke  was  attacked;  upon  which  they  iiiimedialtdy  fell  u|)oii  the  popu- 
lace and  tired  the  housi's  around,  and  it  w.is  oi|iy  by  great  e.xertioii  and 
his  peisoiial  presence  that  William  was  enabled  to  put  an  cud  to  the  out- 
ruje  and  disiuibance. 

riiongh  he  had  experienced  so  much  good  will  from  the  |)rineipa1  En- 
glisli,  Willi, nil  even  yet  felt  doubtful  how  far  he  might  rely  iimiii  the  peaiu;- 
able  conduct  of  his  new  sulijeets,  especially  the  sturdy  l.oiiiloners,  and  ho 
showed  the  jealousy  he  felt  by  eau!*iug  strong  furtressi  s  to  be  erected  la 
ovurawo  tho  Knalisn  and  serve  as  places  uf  refuge  fur  his  own  poophi. 


1(J8 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


r 

1 1' 


II 


•i 


int 


A.  D.  1067. — His  jeiiloiisy  of  his  new  subjects  was  still  further  shown  oy 
his  retiriiiij  from  London  to  Biirkinij,  in  Essex,  where  he  held  a  court  for 
the  purpose  of  reeeiving  i*  ■  homage  of  those  Kiiglisli  nobles  who  had  not 
been  presented  at  the  cu.onalion.  Kdric,  snrnaincd  the  Forester,  the 
brave  Earl  (Jo.xo,  lOdwin  an-J  Morcar,  who  had  so  zealously  though  iiief 
feelually  endeavoured  to  |)ievenl  him  from  enslaving  their  country,  and  a 
crowd  of  nobles  of  smaller  ote  waited  upon  him  there,  made  their  sub- 
mission in  form,  and  w.  re  confirmed  by  him  in  their  authority  and  pos 
sessions,  and  though  the  new  reign  had  commenced  in  war  and  usurpation 
there  was  thus  far  every  appearance  of  its  being  both  a  just  and  a  tran- 
quil one. 

Having  received  the  submission  of  all  his  principal  Eniflish  subjects, 
William  now  busied  liiuis(.'lf  in  distributing  rewards  among  the  Norman 
soldiery  to  whom  he  owed  his  new  crown.  He  was  enabled  to  behave 
the  more  liberally  towanis  them,  because,  in  addition  to  the  large  treasure 
of  the  unfortunato  Harold  which  had  fallen  into  his  hand.s,  he  wasenri(;hed 
by  great  presents  made  to  bun  by  numerous  wealthy  English  who  were 
desirous  of  being  among  the  earliest  to  worship  the  risinir  sun,  that  they 
might  enlarge,  or  :i I  I'm  least  preserve  their  estates.  As  the  clergy  had 
greatly  assisted  Intn  In  made  rich  presents  to  them  also;  and  he  ordered 
an  abbey  to  be  erected  near  the  site  of  the  late  battle,  and  to  be  called 
after  it. 

An  aneedote  is  related,  in  connection  with  this  abbey,  that  William  was 
informed,  after  the  foundations  were  laid,  that  the  workmen  could  not 
find  ah>  spring  of  water  for  the  supply  of  the  intended  edifice.  "  Let 
them  work  on,"  replied  William,  "  let  them  work  on,  by  the  blessmg  of 
God,  wine  sl'.all  be  more  plentiful  in  that  abbey  than  water  in  any  other 
in  Eiig.and." 

W  .li.tm  doubtless  built  tiiis  magnifieeiil  abbey  partly  for  the  sake  of 
I  'acii  i!  there  his  most  zealous  friends  among  the  Norman  monks,  and 
lATUy  as  a  splendid  and  durable  monument  of  his  great  triumph  ;  but  he 
affecKid  lo  dedieat(!  it  chielly  to  'he  saying  of  masses  for  the  repose  o/ 
that  unfortunate  prince  whom  he  had  dejirived  of  both  kingdom  and  life. 

Though  William  had  obtained  his  throne  strictly  by  coniiuest  and  usur- 
pation, lie  comincnccd  his  reign  in  a  manner  the  best  ealculaied  to  recon- 
cile his  subjccls  to  their  change  of  sovereigns.  'I'lie  pride  of  comiuesl  did 
not  blind  him  to  the  neeessily  of  eoncilialion,  and  while  Ik;  was  in  reality 
the  most  busy  in  iilaeiiig  all  power  mxl  infiuence  m  Norman  bands,  he  lost 
no  opportunity  of  showing  apparent  favour  lo  and  confidenci!  in  the  lead- 
in({  Saxons.  Though  he  confiscated  not  only  the  estates  of  Harold,  but 
also  those  of  many  of  tin  leading  men  who  bad  sided  with  that  uii'c'u- 
nale  prince,  he  in  numerous  cases  availed  lnmselfof  ^lellder  excuses  for 
restoring  iln'  propertit's  to  their  rightful  owners.  Satisfied  that  the  imbe- 
cility of  Edgar  Allielinii  secured  the  jieaceable  behavi(Mir  of  that  |)rince, 
he  confirmed  him  iii  the  earldom  of  Oxford  with  which  he  bad  been  in- 
vested by  the  dcM-eased  king;  and,  by  the  studied  kindness  of  his  de- 
meanour towards  the  Saxon  nobles  who  approached  him,  he  sirove  to  add 
to  tlii'ir  gratitude  for  the  solid  favours  he  cdiiferrcd  ii|)on  iliciii,  a  feeling 
of  personal  kinilness  and  alfeclioii.  Nor  did  he  omit  to  secure  llieirood- 
will  of  the  people  at  large  by  nuimtaining  among  Ins  troops  that  strici  ihs- 
eijiline  for  which  li(>  had  been  remarkable  in  Nonnamly.  N'ictors  llioiigh 
Ihcy  were,  and  both  ordered  and  encouraged  to  keep  ilic  S.ixon  popula- 
tion III  strict  olifdieiice  to  the  new  uovernincnt,  tliey  were  not  allowed  to 
add  insolence  lo  iiiilhorily,  and  the  sliirhtcHt  disorder  or  invasion  of  pro- 
perlv  w.is  promptly  iiiid  strictly  puiiisiied.  His  coueilialing  policy  ex- 
leiulcd  III  tlie  metropolis.  Tlml  city  had  been  warmly  opposed  to  hiin, 
but  Ins  anger  for  the  p.ist  opposition  w.is  kept  dowii  by  a  prudent  con- 
tiileralion  of  the  iin|iortant  part  so  powerful  ii  city  inii{ht  at  s(nno  luitire 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


169 


D  siiko  of 

(inks,  and 

h  ;  but  he 

rupose  of 

unit  life. 

Ill  U8ur- 

I  rcciin- 

jucsi  (li(' 

1  rc;ility 

i,  li(<  lost 

ho  Icail- 

riild.  hut 

inilV-'u- 

uscs  for 

le  iinl)(!- 

l  jirnicp, 

liiM'ii  in- 

his  (Ic- 

'  to  ailil 

I  fi'rhni,' 

II'  triiiiil- 

llll-l  lIlS- 

ihiiu!,'li 
|"i|mlii- 
Dwi'd  to 
)  of  pro. 
ilii'y  f'X- 
to  hiin, 
lit  con- 
0  future 


tune  lake  for  or  against  him  ;  and  lie  therefore  confirmed  its  charter  and 
prlvlk'gf »  iis  early  and  with  as  much  apparent  good-will  us  he  did  those  of 
the  other  cities  of  the  kingdom. 

These  instances  of  justice  and  moderation  produced  the  greater  efTect 
on  aci'ouut  of  the  warlike  fame  and  generally  stern  character  of  the  king, 
and  while  his  imposing  presence  and  brilliant  reputation  caused  him  to  be 
looked  upon  with  awe  wherever  he  appeared,  as  he  took  care  to  do  in 
those  parts  of  which  he  most  suspected  the  loyally,  his  studied  courtesy 
to  the  high  and  benignity  to  the  lowly  obtained  him  very  general  liking. 

But  at  the  same  time  that  he  was  thus  coiii!iliatiiig  his  new  subjects  by 
justice  and  moderation,  which  latter,  under  all  the  circumstances,  might 
in  soii!!^  cases  be  called  by  the  stronger  name  of  mercy,  be  took  abundant 
care  to  keep  the  »»ne  thing  needful,  power,  in  his  own  hands.  While  he 
confirmed  the  privileges  of  the  prospcmus  and  populous  cities,  he  built 
fortresses  in  many  of  them  and  carefully  disarmed  them  all.  He  thus 
commanded  all  the  best  military  posts  in  the  kingdom,  and  had  them  con- 
stantly occupied  by  his  veteran  soldiers,  while  by  bestowing  upon  the 
leaders,  to  whose  valour  and  conduct  he  owed  so  much,  tlie  contiscated 
possessions  of  the  Siixon  nobility  and  gentry,  he  created  nunutrous  minor 
despotisms  dependant  upon  his  sway,and  vitally  interested  in  its  prosperity. 

His  politic  mixture  of  rigour  and  mildness  had  all  the  success  he  could 
have  aniici[)atcd  or  even  wished,  and  the  kingdom  settled  down  so  calmly 
under  his  authority,  and  so  implicitly  obeyed  his  orders,  that  he  even  con- 
sidered it  safe  to  pay  a  visit  to  France.  On  this  occasion,  however,  lie 
exhibited  his  usual  policy  ;  while  he  entrusted  the  government  of  Knglaiid 
to  William  Filzosborne  and  his  own  half-brother,  Odo,  bishop  of  Uayeux, 
whom  he  knew  that  he  could  safely  trust  both  as  to  ability  and  fidelity,  he 
mviird  ihc  principal  Saxons  to  accompany  him  on  his  journey,  thus  making 
tlicm  hostages  while  seeming  to  make  them  attendants  upon  his  state  and 
conipaiiions  in  his  pleasure.  Among  the  personages  whom  lie  thus  de- 
prived of  the  power,  even  supposing  them  to  have  tlie  will,  of  exciting  any 
disturbances  (luring  his  absence,  were  the  earls  Kdwin  and  Mun-ar,  and 
Stigand,  archbishopof  Canterbury,  of  whose  faith  he  was  somewhai  doubt- 
ful on  account  of  their  opposition  to  him  when  he  first  invaded  their  coun- 
try. He  also  took  with  him  Kdgar  Athcling,  whose  very  name  he  thought 
likely  to  prove  a  s|)('li  ;.o  temjit  the  Kiiglish  to  rebellion,  and  iinmerous 
personages,  who,  tlio  ..vn  of  less  luiie,  had  great  influence  from  wealth  or 
civil  or  ecclesiastical  station. 

Though  William  (mi  arriving  in  his  old  dominion  played  the  hospitable 
host  to  his  English  attendants,  and  thou;>h  they,  anxious  to  fmiiisli  liiiii 
with  every  inducement  to  continue  in  bis  uraciousand  just  course,  wore 
joyful  and  CDiitented  coimtenances,  and  endeavoured  to  do  honour  to  their 
new  master  iiy  displaying  before  his  ancient  subjects  their  utmost  wealth 
and  magnificence,  they  were  in  secret  much  gallcil  and  irritated  by  the 
insolciil  superiority  which  tlie  Norman  barons  and  co'irliers  did  not  fail 
to  assume. 

The  complete  submission  and  order  to  which  \\  illiam  had  reduced  the 
kinsidoin  of  Kngland,  a  submission  and  order  so  |ier''"it  as  to  encoiii;ij;p  a 
monarch  naturally  so  suspicions  and  ;;olitic  to  pay  a  ;iansinarine  visit 
within  1  (pnrlcr  of  a  year  from  the  date  nf  his  liostilt-  laiidi.ig  in  that  kinji- 
doni,  seiins  almost  incredible,  and  can  only  be  accounted  for  by  the  pro- 
digious powe'  and  vindiclivencss  attributed  to  him  personally.  Hut  .Nor- 
mandy is  the  111  .:r  neighhdur  of  Knglaiuj ;  and,  on  the  slinhlest  iniinialioii 
from  bilo  and  Kit/osborne,  William  ••oiild  speedily  return  in  jierson  to 
exert  bis  dreaded  power  in  repressing  rehellimi,  ind  to  manifest  his  ter- 
rible vindictiveness  in  punishing  ijic  revolte(|  ;  hmv  then  are  we  to  aeeoiml 
for  t'le  personal  absenee  of  tlit^  king  almost  immediately  prodiicinn  revolt 
in  Kngland  !     Are  we  tu  8UN|icct  tli.it.  W  illiain  absenlcd  himself  jiurpoiielv 


170 


THE  TREi;dURY  OP  HISTORY. 


to  encouragt  revoit,  not  d  )ii!Hing  that  the  English,  deprived  of  (heir  «jcst 
and  most  zealous  friends  aiil  leaders,  who  were  in  close  atteniiiice  -.icior 
him,  would  easily  be  put  do  u  by  his  victorious  army,  and  tha:  he  ^■■'.j\k' 
thus,  without  any  risk  to  h)^  new  conquest,  acquire  a  plausibl;  right  to 
make  a  vast  and  sv..  eping  tmnsfer  of  the  property  of  ihe  king;;'  in  frtai 
Saxon  to  Norman  hands  1  Or  shall  we  raiher  suppose  Hi  it  the  &'  axon  pop- 
ulation  willingly  remained  qu\?5t  while  thu  personal  pri'-uiicu  of  tli.  stern 
and  strict  conqueror  preven'ed  his  officers  und  soldier?  from  tru'  pling 
and  oppressing liie  conquered,  and  that  the  idU'.r  were  so  lU-ircuted  duriny 
his  absence  us  to  be  driven  into  ui  utter  rfn-kioibness  of  consequences] 
The  first  siipposition,  though  anyiluiig  but  honourable  to  William,  i;iri«8 
indifferently  well  with  his  dark  and  deep  policy  ;  the  kttter  m  in  tlie  very 
nature  of  tilings  higidy  probable.  Perhaps,  however,  via;  In'tl.  lies  be- 
tween. William's  wishes  and  viev  s  would,  no  Joubt  govern  the  chir; 
ir.en  among  tlie  \orni  .ns  left  in  England,  as  to  the  greater  <<)  lt.:s  decree 
of  .severity  they  shou!  i  exercise  during  his  absence  ii  keeping  the  Ni:r. 
mail  sol'lii  i>  in  order;  and  the  lat'er  would  be  abundaniiy  rf.uiy  to  av.i,! 
iiiemst  >"^^  L'f  any  relaxation  in  the  ^liictness  of  discipline  to  whicU  they 
had  beei  n  <'usa>ined,  withom  greatly  troubling  themselves  to  dive  into 
the  poliiii;  niouvc.i  j.i  which  llvd  relaxation  had  its  origin.  Aiul  this  view 
of  the  case  is  ^Ik'  nunc  r'-asonable,  because,  while  policy  obliged  William 
to  conciliate  i  it,  J  .xons  at  the  commencement  of  his  reign,  i!ie  vastness 
and  liie  nuinl>ei  ,•!"  the  Nirman  claims  upon  him  must  have  made  him 
much  in  want  of  more  c.>;lendi'd  means  to  satisfy  them  than  his  early 
ost''nt:i!io,i  of  lenity  had  left  him;  and  certainly  the  Norman  k:iights  and 
leaders,  who  were  so  sure  to  profit  by  new  confiscations  of  >'  ixoii  prop- 
erty, would  not  be  slow  to  provoke  the  Saxon  population,  by  evi  ry  insult 
and  injury  in  tlieir  power,  to  such  conduct  as  would  lead  to  conliscation. 
T'ijs  view  of  the  case,  finally,  is  much  strengthened  by  the  iinprohability 
til. It  .-^o  suspicious  and  politic  a  person  as  William  would  so  early  ti,  ve  ex- 
posed his  new  conquest  to  danger,  however  guarded  auaiiist  by  tli.'  trusti- 
ness o:  tlioso  left  to  rule  for  him,  in  mere  childish  nnpatience  to  dazzle 
the  ey(  s  of  hi.s  ancient  subjects  with  his  new  splendour,  and  without  some 
deei)  and  important  ulterior  view. 

From  whatever  cause,  however,  it  is  quite  certain  that  very  soon  after 
the  coiKiueror's  departure  from  Normandy  the  English  began  to  exiiibii 
symploins  of  impatience  under  their  yoke.  Kent,  which  had  been  the  first 
to  submit  to  him  after  the  great  batlle  of  Hastings,  was  now  also  the  first 
to  take  advantage  of  his  absence  and  rebel  against  his  autiiority.  Headed 
by  Eustace,  count  of  Uoulogne,  they  not  only  did  much  damage  in  the  open 
,;ou;itry,  hut  even  had  the  boldness  to  attempt  the  capture  of  Dover  castle, 
and  alinoht  at  the  same  lime  Edric,  the  Forester,  whose  possessions  lay 
towards  llie  Wtdch  border,  leagued  him.self  with  some  discontented  Welcli 
chieftains,  being  induced  to  do  so  by  the  wanton  insolence  with  which 
some  of  the  Norman  leaders  in  the  neighliourhood  had  spoiled  his  projier- 
ty.  These  atlein|)ts  at  openly  opposing  the  Normans  were  too  hastily  and 
loosely  made  to  be  su  cessfnl,  but  t'li-y  served  to  fan  into  a  llanie  the 
smouldering  fires  of  discontent  which  sccreily,  but  no  less  steadily,  hnrneil 
in  the  hearts  of  llie  people.  Not  meridy  to  rcvtdt  against  the  Noriiiaii  rule, 
but  to  rise  on  \\w  same  day  in  every  village  and  town  in  the  natimi  aiiu 
massacre  tlif  Normans  to  a  man,  was  now  made  the  object  of  .i  general 
coii8|)ira('y  among  the  Saxon  population;  ami  so  general  and  so  deK'rmiiied 
was  the  frenzied  desiri!  to  carry  tins  object  into  ellfct,  that  Karl  (-'oxo 
having  refused  to  place  himself  at  the  head  of  his  numerous  serf.,  was  ac 
tiially  pill  to  death  as  an  enemy  to  his  country  and  an  ally  of  the  Normar 
oppressors, 

Inrciriiiation  of  the  'ebeltions  slate  of  hit)  new  kingilom  was  Bjieedilv 
conveyed  to  William,  wiio  hastened  over  and  a|<|)li('il  hinmelf  to  the  tail 


TUIC   TKEA8URY  01''  HISTORY. 


171 


01  puiiisliiiig  tliose  who  had  openly  revolted,  and  of  intimidating  those 
who,  though  still  in  outward  appearance  'oyal,  might  be  contemplating 
similar  course.  The  estates  of  the  revolted  wore,  as  a  matter  of  course 
cinfiscated  ;  and  William  thus  obtained  a  large  increase  of  sure  means  to 
gratify  the  rapacity  of  his  myrmidons  and  to  insure  their  zeal  and  fidelity. 
I3ut  while  he  thus  availed  himself  to  the  utmost  of  a  plausible  reason  for 
confiscation  or  plunder,  and  at  the  very  moment  when  he  at  once  insulted 
and  oppressed  the  Saxon  people  by  reimposing  the  tax  of  danegell,  so  es 
pecially  onerous  and  odious  to  them,  he  with  consummate  art  preserved  an 
i'ppearance  of  moderation  and  of  strict  adherence  to  justice,  by  ordering 
vhe  restoration  to  their  possessions  of  Saxons  who  had  been  violently  and 
unjustly  dispossessed  during  his  absence  in  Normandy.  By  this  plausible 
measure  he  at  once  taught  his  subordinates  that  he  would  allow  no  wrong 
to  be  done  but  vvith  his  own  sanction,  procured  a  certain  popularity  among 
the  Saxons,  and  obtained  a  sort  of  anticipative  counter  plea  against  the 
complaints  that  might  bo  made  of  his  subsequent  injustice,  even  though  it 
should  be  displayed  towards  the  very  proprietors  whom  he  now  restored. 
A.D.  1068. — The  activity,  watchfulness,  and  severity  of  William  ren- 
dered the  general  rising  of  the  Saxons  wholly  impracticable;  but  the  de- 
sire for  it  had  spread  too  widely  to  pass  away  without  some  appeals  to 
arms,  however  ill-concerted  and  partial.  The  inhabitants  of  Exeter,  a  city 
wliicii  had  always  been  among  the  greatest  sufferers  from  invaders,  and 
in  which  great  influence  was  possessed  by  Githa,  mother  of  the  deceased 
Harold,  ventured  openly  to  brave  the  resentment  of  William  by  refusing 
to  admit  a  Norman  garrison  within  its  walls ;  and  when  the  men  of  Exeter 
armed  in  support  of  this  determination,  they  were  instantly  joined  by  a 
vast  number  of  Devonshire  and  Cornwall  men.  But  the  more  prudent 
among  their  leaders,  greatly  influenced,  no  doubt,  by  selfish  considerations, 
IK)  sooner  heard  that  William  was  approaching  them  with  a  vast  body  of 
his  disciplined  and  unsparing  troops,  than  they  counselled  submission,  and 
induced  their  followers  to  send  the  king  hostages  for  their  good  behaviour. 
But  as  it  is  ever  far  easier  to  excite  the  multitude  to  revolt  than  to  lay  the 
spirit  of  violence  when  once  raised,  the  people  broke  out  anew  even  after 
the  delivery  of  the  hostages.  They  soon  found  they  had  to  do  with  one 
who  had  little  inel'nalion  to  halt  at  half  measunis.  He  immediately  drew 
up  his  force  under  the  walls  of  the  place,  and  by  way  of  showing  the  re- 
volted people  how  little  mercy  they  had  to  expect  from  him,  he  barbarous- 
ly caused  tiii;  eyes  of  one  of  the  hostages  to  be  put  out.  This  stern  and 
savaye  severity  had  all  the  efl"ect  he  expected  from  it;  the  people  instant- 
ly submitted  themselves  to  his  mercy,  and  he  contented  himself  with  plac- 
ing a  strong  'ruard  in  the  city.  Gil  ha,  whose  wealth  would  have  furnished 
a  rich  booty  for  William  and  his  followers,  was  fortunate  enough  to  escape 
to  Flanders  witli  the  wlude  of  her  treasures.  The  submissive  example 
>  f  I'lxeter  was  speedily  followed  by  Cornwall,  and  William,  having  strong 
ly  ganisoimd  it,  returned  with  his  army  to  Winchester,  where  he  then 
>i(!ld  his  court,  and  being  now  joined  by  Queen  Matilda,  who  had  not  pre- 
viously thought  it  safe  to  visit  her  new  kingdom,  he  caused  her  coronation 
to  be  solcimiiz(!d  with  much  pomp.  Soon  after  this  ceremony  the  queen 
presciiled  her  husband  with  their  fourth  son,  Henry;  the  three  elder 
lirothers  of  this  prince,  Robert,  Richard,  and  VVilliam,  were  born  and  still 
rcinaiiied  in  Normandy.  The  signal  success  and  ease  with  which  the  king 
had  (piclled  the  revolt  in  the  west  did  not  prevent  disturbances  arising  in 
other  parts  of  the  coimtry.  In  fact,  such  distiirbaiK'es  were  almost  inevi- 
table, for  the  Norinaii  chiefs  who  were  posted  in  various  parts  of  the  king- 
dom weri>  far  too  much  intere.slcd  in  causing  confiscations,  to  imitate 
even  the  prclencc!--  made  to  iiioiler.ttion  by  their  prince,  and  their  exactions 
and  insolence  were  such  as  lo  l)e  well  calcul.ited  to  excite  the  discoMteiit 
anil  resistunce  of  a  far  more  patient  and  orderly  people  than  Iho  Saxons. 


172 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


m 


In  the  north  where,  being-  remote  from  the  king's  immediate  authority, the 
Norman  nobles  had  prolmbiy  carried  tlieir  license  to  an  intolerable  extent, 
the  people  were  enraged  to  so  bold  a  temper,  that  Edwm  and  Morcar 
thought  it  not  impolitic  to  place  themselves  at  their  head;  anticipating,  it 
would  seem,  an  effectual  o|iposilion  to  the  hated  rule  of  the  invader.  Their 
cause  seemed  the  more  likely  to  be  successful,  because,  in  addition  to  the 
number  and  resolution  of  the  Saxons  in  revolt,  they  had  the  promise  ol 
support  from  Malcolm,  king  of  Scotland,  Uletliyn,  prince  of  Wales,  who 
was  related  to  them,  anil  Sweyn,  king  of  Denmark,  who  had  a  personal 
and  peculiar  inlercsl  in  the  success  of  the  Saxon  cause. 

The  conduct  of  Mdwin  and  Morcar  on  William's  first  invasion,  when 
they  only  withdrew  tlieir  opposition  on  perceiving  that  they  could  no  lon- 
ger rely  upon  the  zealous  co  operation  of  the  people,  sufficiently  attests 
their  sincere  love  of  ciMinlry.  Hut  we  must  not  omit  to  state  that  on  this 
occasion  of  rising  in  the  north  the  noblemen  in  question  were  to  a  con- 
siderable extent  inlhienced  by  private  animosity.  How  seldom,  alas! 
is  even  the  purc.t  patriotism  free  from  all  taint  of  selfish  and  personal 
feeling! 

To  high-spirited  nobles  like  Edwin  and  Morcar,  the  mere  indications  of 
distrust  which  William  could  not,  with  all  his  policy,  wholly  avoid  giving, 
woiilil  have  been  highly  offensive  in  themselves.  Uiit  as  regarded  Kdwni, 
the  flistrust  manifested  by  the  king  assumed  a  deeper  tint  of  oflTence,  inas- 
much as  he  inanifest(>d  it  by  an  arbitrary  and  capricious  refusal  to  perform 
the  [iroinise  he  had  made  (ui  ascending  the  throne,  to  give  to  that  noble- 
man the  hand  of  his  daiighlerin  marriage.  This  afriont,  implying  so  much 
dislrnsi,  and  certainly  giving  the  rejected  suitor  and  his  brothergnod  reason 
to  infer  the  foregone  deiermination  of  still  further  and  more  direct  proofs 
of  the  king's  ill-will,  undiiiibiedly  had  its  iiitluence  in  causing  the  brothers 
openly  to  put  themselves  at  the  head  of  the  present  revolt. 

However  litth;  reason  William  had  to  expect  a  new  outbreak  so  soon 
after  the  exam|)le  he  had  made  in  the  west,  he  was  not,  in  the  military 
sense  of  the  word  at  least,  surprised.  His  troops  wvva  constantly  keptir 
marching  order,  and  tliongli  from  their  vast  nuinber  they  were  distributed 
over  a  large  s|)ace  of  country,  their  lines  of  comiiiunication  were  so  ai 
ranged  that  a  vast  nninber  eonhl  on  the  shortest  notice  he  assembled  in 
one  compact  body.  The  inst;  nt,  iherefiu'c,  that  he  was  informed  of  this 
new  revolt,  he  set  (Uit  for  the  north  by  forced  marches,  caused  Warwick 
and  Notliiigham  castles  to  be  strongly  garrisoned  under  the  respective  .  om- 
mand  of  Henry  de  lleaim  nit  and  William  l*everil,  and  reached  York  with 
such  unexpected  c(,'lerity,  iliat  he  apjieared  in  front  of  the  astonished  in- 
surgents before  they  bid  received  any  of  the  foreign  aid  upon  which  ihcy 
had  so  greatly  reckoned  when  forming  their  [ihiiis.  I'Mwin  and  Morcar, 
together  with  another  very  powerful  noble  who  had  taken  part  with  them, 
wisely  gave  up  all  thought  of  making  any  resistance  with  their  very  in- 
ferior force,  and  were  received  into  the  king's  [leace  and  pardon.  He  not 
only  spared  them  in  person,  hut  in  their  possessions  also;  still  confisca- 
tions were  too  esscntiil  a  part  of  his  means  of  eimsolidaliiig  and  perpetu- 
Bliiig  his  power,  to  he  generally  dispciiHcd  with.  While  the  leading  men 
were  thus  allowed  to  escape  impoverishment  as  well  as  the  more  severe 
pii'iisliineiit  of  rebellion,  their  humbler  anil,  comparatively,  unoffending 
followers  were  mulcted  with  the  most  merciless  severity.  The  whole 
secret  of  his  clemency  to  the  three  powerful  leaders  whom  wt;  have  named 
seems  to  have  been  his  dmibt  whether  In;  eoiild  just  then  crush  them  with< 
out  a  ri>k  more  than  proportioned  to  the  gain. 

The  failure  of  this  rebellion  at  the  iioilli,  and  the  peace  made  between 
William  and  .Malcolm  of  Scotland,  which  seemed  to  cut  off  all  hopeof  fii. 
tiirc  aid  fioiii  that  iiionarch,  iiii|iressed  the  wliolc  iialliui  with  a  hopeless 
•ciise  uf  complete  and  miriended  subjection.    The  multitude  muttered  the 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


173 


aeepciirses  to  which  they  dared  not  give  louder  iitteranue,  and  prepared  to  toil 
oil  ill  tlieir  ordinary  routine,  and  bear  more  or  less  oppression  as  the  ca- 
price or  the  polii-y  of  their  tyrants  might  delermine.  But  the  hopeless- 
ness of  braver  and  more  passionate  spirits  was  of  a  less  passive  kind.  Un- 
able to  free  their  land  from  the  rule  of  the  oppressor,  they  at  least  had 
pliiiosophy  enough  to  abandon  it  and  seek  freer  homes  in  stranger  climes, 
whence  tliey  could  return  should  a  brighter  day  beam  upon  England. 
Among  those  who  thus  voluntarily  went  into  e.xile  was  Edgar  Aiheling, 
who.  with  liis  sisters  Margaret  and  Christina,  sought  peace  in  Scotland. 
Malcolm  not  only  showed  every  kindness  to  the  unfortunate  exiles,  but 
married  Margaret ;  and  partly  on  account  of  the  connection  he  thus  formed 
with  the  most  illustrious  of  the  Saxon  families,  thouf;li  mainly,  perhaps, 
with  the  politic  view  of  streiigtheiiiiig  his  kingdom,  he  gave  ready  shelter 
to  nil  Saxons,  of  whatever  rank,  who  sought  it  in  his  dominions. 

If  many  of  the  English  were  driven  into  exile  by  despair  of  being  able 
to  free  tiieir  country,  not  a  few  of  the  Nonnans  began  to  grow  weary  of 
living  in  a  land  so  frequently  disturbed,  and  among  a  people  to  whom  they 
felt  that  they  were  so  ttioronglily  hateful  that  their  lives  as  well  as  pos 
sessions  would  infallibly  be  forfeited  should  that  people  get  the  upper  hand 
of  them  even  for  a  single  day.  This  weariness,  moreover,  was  by  no 
means  exclusively  confined  to  the  meaner  sort.  Many  of  the  higher  chief- 
tains, and  among  them  Humphrey  de  Teliol  and  Hugh  de  Gratesmil,  re- 
quested their  dismissal  and  permission  to  return  home.  The  kiiiif  could 
scarcely  refuse  compliance  with  such  a  request,  but  h'  ■iked  his  grants 
in  the  case  of  all  who  made  il,  telling  them  that  the  laiit.  I  its  defenders 
must  go  together.  And  though  some  of  his  bravest  leaders  k-ft  him  upon 
these  unfriendly  terms,  he  had  liitic  oc(;asion  to  regret  them,  for  his  liber- 
ality and  aiii|)le  means  of  displaying  it  insurml  him  abundance  of  new  ad- 
vciiliirers.  not  merely  willing  l)ut  eager  to  enlist  under  his  baiin">'. 

A.  D  106!). — The  (h-parture  of  so  many  malcontents  from  Ens;laiid  had 
by  no  means  the  cffecl,  as  il  iiiight  sei'in  certain  to  have,  of  Mininishing 
the  chances  of  disturiiancrs.  The  voluntary  exiles  carried  ''.leir  grii;f8 
and  their  rancour  with  tlicm,  and  i-.st  no  opportunity  of  niriiiing  friends 
for  England  and  foes  for  England's  Norman  tyrants.  Nor  di  i  ihey  want 
for  a  rallying  point.  When  Harold  fell,  bravely  battling  ag.«',ist  the  inva- 
ders, his  three  sons,  Godwin,  Edmoiid,  tind  Magnus,  sought  '-'.lelter  in  Ire- 
land. They  were  well  received  by  the  princes  and  chief's  of  that  wild 
country,  and  soon  became  very  popular  among  them.  Eoraged  at  t'-o 
cause  of  their  exile  from  I'^ngland,  and  consian.ly  surrounded  by  sucii 
practical  lovers  of  strife  as  tlw;  Irish  [)riiices  of  that  time,  they  naturally 
began  to  conicmplatn  a  d('sc(  lit  upon  England,  and  to  calculate  what  aid 
they  could  rely  upon  beyoml  that  which  Ireland's  own  wild  chieftains  and 
strife  loving  kerns  could  allbnl  them.  Deiiuiark  they  could  with  tolerable 
certainty  depend  upon;  and  Ihey  hopec'  tliat  both  .Scotland  and  W'lles 
would  he  induced  to  aid  lliein  when  the  strife  sliould  once  fairly  be  'ifoot. 
Encoiiri'.Licd  by  these  confideiii  expeetalions  of  aid,  they  landed  wilii  a  ron- 
siulerabh'  but  disorderly  force  upon  the  (uiast  of  r)evonshire.  IJiit  instead 
of  finding  the  English  peasantry  llocking  aniuiid  them,  grateful  for  iheir 
coming  and  eager  to  join  in  their  enterprise,  liiey  on  the  contrary,  had 
scarcely  set  foot  upon  the  shore  when  tlu^y  found  theinsclves  vigorously 
assailed  hv  th.'  trai  ii'd  liireiinu:s  of  the  Norman,  under  the  coininaiid  of 
Uiiaii,  son  of  the  I  iiiint  of  UriHany,  who  worsteil  them  in  several  petty 
battles,  and  at  Icngili  drove  them  back,  withinuch  loss  and  some  disgrace 
to  their  vessels. 

I'nsuceessfnl  as  thif  attempt  of  the  sons  of  Harold  was  in  itself,  it  ser- 
ved as  a  signal  for  the  niiineKius  risings,  especiallv  in  the  northern  part  of 
the  kingi'otn.  Tiie  Noith'.ie'.hrians  rose,  look  T'lirham  by  surprise,  a  id 
^lew  upwards  of  seven  hundred   iiieii,  among  whom  was  the  governor 


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t74 


THE  TRtSASURY  OF  HISTOEY. 


Robert  de  Com3'n,  to  whose  negligence  the  Saxo.is  were  said  to  hav« 
been  mainly  indebted  for  their  success.  From  Duvham  the  inclinatioii  t ) 
revolt  spread  to  York.  There  the  governor,  Robert  Fitz-Richard,  and 
many  of  his  people  were  slain  ;  and  the  second  in  command,  William 
Mallet,  secured  the  casile,  to  which  the  rebel?  Dromplly  laid  seige.— . 
They  wore  aided  in  this  bold  attempt  by  the  Danes  who  now  landed  from 
three  hundred  ships,  and  by  the  appearance  among  them  of  Edgar  Alhe- 
ling,  wh(,  was  accompanied  by  several  Saxon  exiies  of  rank  and  some  in- 
fluentinl  Scots,  who  promised  the  aid  of  large  numbers  of  their  country- 
men. The  castle  of  York  was  so  strong  and  so  well  garrisoned,  that  ii 
is  probable  it  might  easily  have  held  out  against  all  the  rude  and  unscien- 
tific atta(;ks  that  the  revolted  Northumbrians  and  their  allies  could  have 
made  upon  it,  but  for  an  accident.  William  Mallet,  the  gallant  defender 
of  the  castle,  perceiving  that  some  houses  were  situated  so  near  as  to 
••o  -unand  a  portion  of  the  walls,  ordered  them  to  be  fired  lest  they  should 
serve  as  works  for  the  besiegers.  But  fire  is  a  servant  as  uncertain  and 
uncontrollable  as  it  is  swift.  A  brisk  wind  carried  the  flames  beyond  the 
nouses  which  were  specially  devoted  to  their  destroying  ministry ;  every- 
where the  flames  found  abundant  fuel,  nearly  all  the  buildings  being  of 
wood,  and  the  conflagration,  defying  the  inadequate  means  by  which  the 
pjople  tried  to  stop  it,  destroyed  nearly  the  whole  of  the  city,  which  even 
at  that  time  was  very  populous.  The  alarm  and  confusion  which  were 
caused  by  this  event  enabled  the  rebels  to  carry  the  castie  by  storm  ;  and 
scarco'y  a  man  of  the  garrison,  numbering  nearly  three  thousand,  was 
spared  alive.  Hereward,  an  East  Anglian  nobleman,  at  the  same  time 
wrought  much  confusion  and  diflicul'y  lo  the  Normans  ;  cutting  oflT  their 
marching  parties  and  retiring  with  their  spoils  to  llie  Isle  of  •*''■'.  somer- 
set and  Dorset  were  in  arms  to  a  man,  and  Devon  and  Cornwall  also  rose, 
with  the  exception  of  Exeter,  which  honourably  testified  its  sense  of  the 
clemency  twice  shovvn  to  all  its  population,  save  one  unfortunate  hostage, 
and  held  its  gates  closed  for  the  king  even  against  its  nearest  neighbours. 
Edric  the  Forester,  who  had  many  causes  of  quarrel  with  the  Normans, 
allied  himself  with  a  numerous  body  of  Welsh,  and  not  only  maintained 
himself  against  the  Norman  force  under  Fitzosborne  and  Earl  Briant,  but 
also  laid  seige  to  the  castle  of  Shrewsbury. 

When  to  tliese  instances  of  open  and  powerful  rebellion  we  add  innu- 
merable petty  revolts  in  other  parts  and  the  univers.d  hostility  and  rest- 
lessness of  the  Saxons,  it  will  be  admittnl  that  there  was  enough  in  the 
state  of  the  country  to  have  made  the  boldest  of  monarchs  anxious.  And 
William  was  anxious,  but  undismayed.  To  'lis  eagle  eye  a  single  glance 
revealed  where  force  was  absolutiiy  requisite,  ami  where  bribery  would 
still  more  readily  succeed.  To  the  Danes,  who  were  headed  by  Osliorne, 
brother  of  the  king  of  Denm.irk,  iind  by  Harold  and  Canute,  sons  of  that 
tnonari'li,  he  well  knew  that  the  fici'dom  of  the  e(,tiiitry  was  a  mere  pre 
text,  and  that  their  real  iii<-enlive  to  strife  was  desire  of  gain.  These  he 
at  one"  resolved  to  buy  ofT;  and  he  quickly  succeeded  in  getting  them  to 
retire  to  Denmark,  by  p;iyiiig  tliein  a  sum  of  money  and  giving  them 
leave  to  plunder  the  coast  on  their  way.  Deserted  by  so  (jonsiderable  an 
ally  the  native  leaders  beraine  alarmed,  aiui  Williaiii  fmnid  no  dilliculty 
in  persuailiiiL^  Wallheof,  who  had  been  made  governor  of  York  by  the 
Saxons  on  tlicir  takin;j  the  castle  by  storm,  to  submit  on  promise  of  fa- 
vour; a  |)romise  whiidi  tli'  king  sirirlly  k(|)t.  Co.s[)atrie  followed  the 
examph?  and  was  maiie  earl  of  Northumberl.i'id  ;  and  K(h'i(!  tin;  Forester 
also  submitted  and  was  tak(Mi  into  i  ivour.  Edi^ar  Atheliiig  iiad  no  course 
open  to  him  but  to  hasten  back  to  Scotland,  for,  while  llie  loss  of  all  his 
allies  rendered  any  stni!r;ile  on  his  part  so  hopeless  that  it  would  have 
biM'u  ridiculous,  he  fcartiil,  and  with  great  apjiareiit  reasmi,  that  his  Saxon 
blood  royal  would  incite  William  to  put  him  to  death.     The  king  of  Scot- 


If 

34 

m 

S 

,'«•; 


■*f» 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


175 


land,  to  whose  tardy  coming  the  confederates  in  some  degree  owed  their 
ill  success,  seeing  that  the  northern  confederBcy  was  broken  up,  march- 
ed his  troops  back  again.  The  failure  in  the  north  struck  terror  into  the 
rebels  throughout  the  kingdom,  and  William  saw  all  his  late  opponents 
lubject  to  liim,  save  Hereward,  who  still  maintained  his  partizan  war 
fare— not  quite  exclusively  preying  upon  the  Normans  it  is  to  be  feared- 
owing  his  protection  to  the  difficulty  of  access  to  his  swampy  retreiit 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

THE  RGiON  or  WILLIAM  I.  (CONTINUED.) 

A.  D.  1070 — Havino  by  force  and  policy  dissipated  the  confederacy 
which  had  threatened  iiim,  William  now  determined  to  show  that  what- 
ever kindness  and  favour  he  might  extend  to  individual  Saxons,  whether 
from  genuine  good  feeling  or  from  deep  policy,  the  great  body  of  the  peo- 
ple had  no  mercy  to  hope  from  him.  And  as  the  north  had  been  espe- 
cially troublesome  to  him,  so  he  selected  that  part  to  he  the  first  to  feel 
how  terrible  his  wrath  could  be.  Between  the  rivers  Humber  and  Tees, 
a  vast  expanse  of  sixty  miles  of  country  as  fertile  as  it  was  beautiful 
was  by  his  stern  order  utterly  laid  waste.  The  cattle  and  .such  other 
property  as  could  be  conveyed  away  became  the  booty  of  the  Norman 
soldiery ;  the  houses  were  burned  to  the  ground  and  the  wretched  inhabi- 
tants left  to  perish  upon  their  desolated  lands,  without  shelter,  without 
food  and  without  hope  or  pity.  Vast  numbers  of  them  made  their  way 
into  the  lowlands  of  Scotland,  but  many  there  were  who  could  not  do  so, 
or  were  so  attached  to  the  site  of  their  once  happy  homes,  that  they  re- 
mained in  the  woods,  and  perished  slowly  by  hunger  or  the  terrible  dis- 
eases produced  by  exposure  to  the  elements.  It  is  calculated  that  by  this 
one  act  of  merciless  severity  not  fewer  than  a  hundred  thousand  Saxons 
miserably  perished ! 

Though  the  north  was  thus  especially  marked  out  for  the  exlerminat 
ing  rigour  of  the  Conqueror,  the  rest  of  the  country  was  by  no  means  al- 
lowed to  escape.  The  unsuccessful  revolts  had  placed  nearly  all  the 
great  landholders  of  the  nation  at  his  mercy ;  for  they  being  especially 
interested  in  throwing  ofT  his  yoke,  had  nearly  to  a  man  been  implicated 
either  by  personal  appearance  in  the  field  or  by  furnishing  supplies. 
Hitherto  the  king,  as  a  matter  of  policy,  had  affected  something  like  mod- 
eration and  mercy  in  putting  the  laws  of  attainder  and  ferfeiture  into  ef- 
fect. But  now  he  no  longer  needed  to  pursue  that  wily  policy  ;  the  un- 
successful attempts  to  shake  off  his  authority  had  terminated  in  making 
it  absolute  and  even  unassailable.  The  whole  nation  lay  bound  hand 
and  foot  at  his  pleasure,  and  he  proceeded  so  to  dispose  of  the  lands  that 
he  in  fact  became  the  one  great  landlord  of  the  nation.  No  one  knew 
better  than  he  did  that  the  property  of  a  nation  is  its  power ;  and  that 
power  of  the  Saxons  he  now  transferred  to  the  Normans  in  addition  to 
their  terrible  power  of  the  sword.  No  antiquity  of  family,  no  excellence 
of  character,  even,  could  save  the  Saxon  proprietor  from  being  despoiled 
of  his  possessions.  The  more  powerful  and  popular  the  family,  the  more 
necessary  was  its  abasement  and  impoverishment  to  the  completion  of 
William's  purpose  ;  he  who  had  taken  any  share  in  the  revolts  was  mulct- 
ed of  his  property,  and  assured  that  he  owed  it  to  the  king's  great  lenity 
that  his  life  was  spared ;  and  he  who  had  taken  no  such  part,  but  was  con- 
victed of  the  crime  of  being  wealthy,  was  equally  despoiled,  lest  his 
wealth  should  at  some  future  time  lead  him  into  rebellious  practices. 

Having  thus  effected  the  utter  spoliation  of  the  noble  and  wealthy  Sax- 


Ik 


176 


THE  TRKASUay  OF  HISTORY. 


ons,  Williinii'ss  next  care  was  to  dispose  of  tlie  lands  of  England  in  such 
wise  as  to  give  iiiinself  the  most  absolute  power  over  them  ;  an  '  here  he 
had  no  need  of  any  inventive  genius;  he  had  merely  to  apply  lo  England 
the  old  feudal  law  of  France  and  his  native  Normandy.  Having  largely 
added  to  the  already  large  demesnes  of  the  crown,  he  divided  all  the 
forfeited  lands— which  might  almost  without  hyperbole  be  said  lo  be 
all  the  hinds  of  Kngland— into  baronies,  which  baronies  he  conferred 
npon  his  bravest  and  most  trusty  leaders,  not  in  fee  simple,  hut  as 
fiefs  held  upon  certain  payments  or  services,  for  the  most  |)art  military. 
The  iiidiviilnal  grants  thus  made  were  infinitely  too  vast  to  be  aoiiially 
held  in  use  by  the  individual  grantees,  who,  therefore,  parcelled  tliein 
out  to  knights  and  vassals,  who  held  of  them  by  the  same  suit  and 
service  by  which  they  held  from  their  lord  paramount,  the  king.  And 
that  the  I'eudiil  l.w  might  universally  obtain  in  Engl  md,  and  that  there 
might  be  no  exception  or  qualification  lo  the  paramount  lordship  of  the 
king  over  the  wliole  laud,  even  the  few  Sa.xon  proprietors  who  were 
not  directly  and  by  attainder  deprived  of  their  lands  were  compelled  to 
hold  them  by  suit  and  service  from  some  Norman  baron,  who  in  his  turn 
did  suit  and  service  for  tli(!in  l.)  the  king. 

Consiilcriiig  the  su[)erstitio:i  of  the  age,  it  might  liave  been  supposed 
that  the  church  would  have  been  exein()te(l  from  William's  tyrannous  ar- 
rangement liul  tlimigh,  as  wi;  sliall  presently  have  an  occasion  to  show, 
he  was  anxious  to  exalt  the  power  of  Rome,  he  was  not  thi!  less  de- 
•erinined  thai  even  Rome  slioulil  be  second  to  him  in  pow(^r  in  his  own  ilo- 
minions.  lie  called  up(Ui  the  bishops  and  abbots  for  qnit-ri  nts  in  peu-e, 
and  for  their  ipidta  of  knights  and  lueii-at  arms  when  he  should  be  at  war, 
in  proporluui  to  their  posMssnms  aliaclied  lo  sees  or  abbeys,  as  the  case 
might  be.  It  was  in  vain  iliai  the  clergy  b<'waih:d  the  tyranny  of  the 
king,  which,  now  that  it  afTccied  iheuiselves,  they  discovered  lo  be  (piile 
intuli'rabh- ;  ami  it  was  eipi. illy  in  vani  that  the  pope,  who  had  so  ^eal. 
ously  allied  and  cncoura<{eil  U  illiain  in  his  invasion,  r<'inousirated  iipiiii 
ills  ihiH  conl'iiiindiug  the  clergy  wiih  the  laity.  William  had  the  [louci 
of  tint  sworil,  and  wailinifs  and  reinoiislrances  were  alike  ineUVctiial  In 
work  any  chaiiite  n|)oii  bis  iron  will.  As  by  eoni[)clling  the  nmleprivtcl 
lay  Saxons  lo  liiild  umler  Nonnaii  lords  he  so  cuniplctely  snbjcctcii  thciu 
us  to  render  rcvidl  impraciic.ilile,  'o  he  took  cart;  that  luMicclnrih  all 
ecclesiastical  dmiiities  sliuuld  be  I'Xcliisividv  confcrrcil  upon  Nonnaiis, 
who,  indeed  were  by  their  grcit  superiority  in  learniiiy  fir  more  tilled 
for  ihein.as  was  shown  i)y  the  greit  number  of  Norman  compared  lo 
Saxoii  I'isliiips  <'ven  before  the  invasion. 

Jiiil  there  was  one  Saxmi,  Siiyaiid,  the  archbishop  of  C'anlerbiiry, 
whose  aiilbonly  was  too  great  nol  to  be  obnoxious  to  the  su^incions  and 
fears  of  William,  the  ninre  especially  as  ■Sngaiid  liad  b()tli  wcalih  anil 
nowerfiil  coniieclioiis  in  addiiinn  to  his  olfii-ial  dignity,  and  was  a  man  of 
both  t.ileiil  ami  courage.  'I'lii  se  coiisideralions,  while  they  made  Wil- 
li.im  desirous  of  ruining  ilii'  prnuale,  at  the  same  time  made  lilin  dissemble 
his  inleiitiiiiis  iiiilil  he  couid  securely  as  well  as  surely  carry  them  into 
cITeei.  He  cipiisei)Ui  mly  seemed,  by  every  civility,  to  endeavour  to  ef- 
face  from  the  piimaie's  rrcdliM'tion  the  alfroiit  ofiercd  lo  hull  at  Iheeoro- 
nation;  ami  a  siipeilieial  observer,  or  one  uiiac(piaiilted  with  the  hiig's 
wily  ax  ^^ell  as  resolute  naiiire,  Wdiild  for  a  long  tiine  have  Imauined  Sli> 
anil  to  have  been  one  of  Ins  prime  fivouriii  s — for  a  .Saxon,  lint  when 
Vllhain  had  stibilued  he  rest  of  the  nation  so  coin|ilelely  that  hu 
had  no  fear  of  his  atti'i'  pt  iipim  Siigaml  eli(  iiing  any  powerrnl  (M' perilous 
opposilimi,  the  ruin  of  Ihe  pninaie  was  at  once  determined  upon  and 
wroiiiiht.  Am!  etr-'imst.iiiies  inruisiied  him  with  an  instrninent  by 
whose  means  he  w.is  imle  lo  accomplish  Ills  unjust  work  with  at  lean) 
•omn  a|ipeaiancu  of  judicial  re;jul.u'ily. 


?< 


THE  TRKASUHY  OFHISTORY. 


177 


lliiiil  so  Teiil- 


he  powt'i 


iioi'l'iirili  fill 
II  Norinaim, 


picioiis  ;iiiil 
wimIiIi  ami 


lis  a  mail  ol 


Iv  llicin  iiitd 


at  I  lie  foro- 


(ir  nrnUiiii 


Pope  Alexander  II.,  whose  countenance  and  encouragement  had  lender- 
ed  William  jj'""'  service  in  iiis  invasion,  anxious  to  leave  no  means  un- 
tried of  increasing  the  pipal  iiilluciice  in  England,  had  oiilj'  awaited  Wil- 
liam's seeiiiiiiy  perfect  esiablishinent  upon  the  throne,  and  he  now  sent  over 
Ermeiifroy,  a  f  tvourite  bishop,  on  his  legate.  This  prelate,  who  was  the 
first  legale  ever  sent  to  Kiigland.and  the  king  served  eacli  others'  ends  to 
admiration.  William,  by  receiving  the  legate  at  once,  confirmed  the 
friendly  feeling  of  the  papal  court,  and  secured  the  services  of  an  authori- 
ty competent  to  deal  wilti  the  primate  and  oilier  prelates  in  ecclesiastical 
form,  and  nominally  upon  ecclesiasticval  grounds,  while  in  reality  merely 
wreaking  the  vengeance  of  the  tcnijioral  nionarcli;  and  the  legate,  while 
serving  as  an  instrument  of  the  king's  individual  purjioses,  exalted  both 
his  own  power  and  that  of  the  pope  in  the  eyes  of  the  people.  Having 
formed  a  court  of  bishop  and  abbots,  with  the  assistance  of  the  cardinals 
John  and  Peter,  he  cited  Stigaiid  to  answer  to  three  charges  ;  viz:  of  liold- 
:!Tthe  bi.slio|)ric  of  Winchester  together  with  the  primacy  of  Canterbiiry  ; 
I.,  having  officiated  in  the  pall  of  his  piedeces.sor ;  and  of  having  received 
his  own  pall  from  Benedict  IX  ,  who  was  alledgtjd  to  having  intruded  him- 
self into  the  papacy.  The  substance  of  Ibis  last  charge  the  reader  will 
doubtless  recognize  as  the  pretext  upon  which  William  refused  to  be 
crowned  by  Siigand  ;  and  all  the  charges  are  so  trivial  that  the  mere  men 
tioii  of  them  must  sntricienlly  show  the  animus  in  which  they  were  made. 
Even  the  most  serious  (diarge,  that  of  being  a  pluralist,  was  then  compar- 
atively trivial ;  the  practice  being  frequent,  rarely  noticed  at  all,  anil  never 
visited  by  any  more  severe  condemnation  than  of  being  coui|)elled  to  re- 
sign one  of  the  sees. 

When  so  powerful  and  wilful  a  monarch  as  William  had  delermined 
upon  the  ruin  of  a  subject,  however,  it  matters  but  little  how  trivial  may 
be  tiie  charge  or  how  ineimclusive  the  evideiii'(!  ;  Siigand  was  degradi.'d 
from  his  (lignity  by  the  obse<jnii)iis  legate,  and  thus  thrown  indpl'ss  into 
the  hands  of  tlie  kiiiu.  who  imt  menly  confiscated  all  his  possessions, 
but  also  (Committed  him  to  prison,  where  he  lingered  in  most  undeserved 
suffering  and  neglect  for  the  rest  of  his  life. 

Having  thus  easily  cmslied  the  chief  and  In  far  tin?  most  iiii|iortanl 
Saxon  personage'  ol  the  liierarchy,  William  |)roceei|ed  to  besiow  the 
siuiiehard  trealinent  upon  l)isliops  .\15elrie  and  .\g:h\are,  who.  being  for- 
mally de])osed  by  the  obseipiious  legate,  were  imprisoned  by  the  king 
llnehvin,  bisliii|)  of  Diirliam,  was  marked  <nit  lor  ihe  same  fate,  tint  ho 
hud  timely  warning  and  escaped  from  the  kingdom.  .VIdred,  anlibishop 
nfYork,  was  so  grieved  that  ir.  having  performed  the  eeremniiy  ■  f  VVil- 
liain'  ciM'onatioii  lie  had  even  incidentally  aided  in  raiding  np  so  unspar- 
ing an  enemy  of  his  brethren  of  the  bierareln-,  that  his  nn  nt  d  siilfeiings 
produced  a  mortal  disiu'der,  and  it  is  said  that  with  his  dying  brcitli  he 
called  down  Heaven's  vengeani'e  upon  William  for  his  general  tyranny, 
and  for  his  espeeial  misconduct  towards  the  church  in  direct  violation  ul 
of  his  coronation  oath. 

Appareiiily  reirardless  of  the  curses  of  the  archbishp  or  of  llio  deep 
lialred  of  the  Saxoiis  in  general,  William  sie  idily  pursued  Ins  eiuirse. 
lie  took  care  to  (ill  all  ccrlesiastieal  vacancies  Willi  foieiuneis.  w  ho,  while 
doing  their  utmost  til  proiiiole  tlie  papal  inithoriiy  and  inteiesis  ifi  l'".ng- 
laiid,  were  ,il  llie  same  lime  /ealocs  si'pporters  of  the  anllnoily  of  the 
king,  whom  ihey  esjieeially  aided  in  that  Miresi  of  all  mems  ol  ilestroy- 
iiig  a  I'oiupiered  people's  nation, ility,  the  introdiietion  of  ihe  l,iii;.iiage  of 
till  coinpierors  in  general,  '.nit  more  especi,;lly  into  legal  use. 

In  the  leeeiit  general  and  signally  nnsncceHsfnl  revidts,  the  e  uls  Mor- 
car  and  I'dwin  liail  taken  no  nirt.  Unt  now  lli;it  the  <  niKpnror  had  no 
longer  any  li  in|ilation  to  hypoi  ritieal  and  politic  mildness,  ilie  siiii  iii.ni  of 
tliesc  iiobleineii  w. is  a  truly  perilous  and  lillieiili  i.ii".     Their  Very  InieaKe 

I.-l'J 


r7fl 


THE  TREASUKY  OF  HISTOHt. 


»"-■  T 


and  the  pnpuliirity  tlipy  enjoyed  nmonnr  the  men  of  their  own  race  mad« 
them  liaicl'iil  ro  ihe  kmg,  who  fell  thai  they  were  constantly  looked  up  to 
as  leaders  likely  at  somo  piM'iod  'v'fjid  the  Saxons  in  throwing  olThisyoke. 
Their  we:dth,  on  the  oilier  hand,  exposed  them  to  ihe  envy  of  the  needy 
and  graspiniT  among' the  Norman  noldes.  who  eagerly  longed  lo  see  iliern 
engMued  ni  some  eMter()rise  which  wonid  lead  lo  their  aitainder  and  for- 
feit nic.  Heiiig  <'(invinc<'()  I  hat  their  ruin  was  only  deferred  and  w(tiild  he  com- 
pleted ii|)oii  the  lirst  plansihle  occasion  that  might  present  itself,  they  dc- 
termiiied  openly  to  brave  the  worst,  and  to  fall,  if  fall  they  imisl,  in  the 
attempt  todeliver  both  themselves  and  their  conntry.  Kihvin,  therefore, 
weni  to  his  possessions  in  the  north  to  prepare  his  followers  for  fme  more 
stniaale  against  the  Norman  power;  aii<l  Morcar,  with  snch  followers  as 
he  could  inimediatidy  command,  joined  the  brave  Hereward  who  siill  niain- 
laiiu'd  Ins  |i(isiiion  among  the  almost  inaccessit)le  swamps  of  the  Isle  of 
Kly.  Unt  VN  illiain  was  now  at  leisnre  to  brinu  his  gigantic  power  lo  bear 
upon  this  (diicf  sheltiT  of  tlii!  com[iaraiively  few  Saxons  wdio  still  dared  to 
strive  against  his  tyriumy.  He  caused  a  large  number  of  llat-hottomed 
piiiils  lo  be  coiislrnctcd,  by  which  be  c(mld  land  upon  the  island,  and  hy 
aim  of  vast  bilionr  he  made  a  praciicable  cimseway  llironuh  the  morasses, 
and  siirrcmnilc'i  the  revoltr-d  with  such  an  <iver\vhcliiiing  force,  thai  a  sur- 
render at  discr<'!ioii  was  the  only  <'oiirse  that  could  b('  tak(  n.  Hereward 
however,  made  his  way  throimb  the  enemy,  and  having  gained  the  sea, 
contimii'd  upon  tli:i|  element  to  be  so  daring  and  elTcctive  an  enemy  lo  the 
Normans,  that  William,  who  had  enoiiirh  generosity  rcinaiiiing  to  value 
even  in  an  enemy  a  spirit  so  congenial  to  Ins  own,  voluntarily  foryave 
hint  all  his  ,icts  of  opposition,  and  resloreii  him  lo  liij  estate  and  to  liig 
jtandini:  in  the  coimlry.  Ilarl  Morcar,  and  Kuelwin,  the  bishop  of  Dur- 
liam,  were  taken  among  tic  revoliid,  and  llirown  into  prixm,  when'  the 
latter  speedily  jierished.eitherof  grief  orof  the  severities  mllictcd  upon  hmi. 
I'Mwiii.  (Ml  the  new  success  of  Ihe  king  ni  capt;i''iiig  the  Harrison  of  the 
Isle  of  Kly,  set  out  for  Sciitlaiid.  where  he  was  certain  of  a  warm  wel- 
come.  Hut  some  niiscreant  who  was  in  the  secret  (d'  his  route,  divnljjed 
it  to  a  party  of  Normans,  w  ho  overtook  him  before  he  ccmid  rca(  h  the 
bordi-r,  ami  in  the  conll'ct  that  eiiNiicd  he  \(as  slam.  His  gallaniry  hail 
made  him  admired  even  by  his  enemies,  ami  both  Normans  and    Saxons 

Ioiiied  in  limenlMig  Iiim  mitiimdy  I'lid.  'I'lic  king  of  Si-otland,  who  had 
ent  his  aid  lo  the  ri'volicd,  was  eompidled  to  submil  to  tin'  vicloiioaB 
William  ;  and  Mdgar  .\llielMig,  no  longer  able  to  depend  upon  salViy  even 
ill  Scotland,  threw  hmisidf  upon  William's  mercy.  The  ( 'oiKpieror,  who 
Beenis  to  have  In  1  1  Ihe  idiaracter  of  that  prince  in  the  most  entire  eon. 
tempt,  not  only  irave  Inm  life  and  liberty,  but  allo\sed  him  a  pi  nsiim  In  en. 
able  him  to  live  in  i-omfurt  as  a  subject  in  that  land  of  wliii  li  he  ought  to 
have  been  the  sovereign. 

rpon  this  occasion,  as  upon  all  others,  \\  illiatn's  policy  made  clemency 
n\u\  seviriiy  go  hand  ,n  band.  While  in  the  leadmi;  men  of  ihe  revolted 
he  showed  eilliei  cnmparative  or  posilivc  leiillV.  he  ViMteil  the  coniiimii 
herd  with  the  most  frightful  rigour,  piitimg  out  the  eyes  and  ciiliiiii;  olT 
the  bands  of  nianv  ot  them,  iind  sciidmir  llieiii  forth  ill  tins  horrible  con 
ditioii  as  a  wnrmiig  to  iheir  fellnw-counlrymeii. 

A.n.  lOT'l. — l'"roin  Kngland  William  was  obliu'i'd  to  'iirii  bis  ;ittenliont(> 
Frame.  The  province  of  Maine  in  that  eonnirv  had  lieeii  willed  to  Imii 
before  he  bee  one  kini;  of  I'hutlan.l,  by  (  oiiiii  llcrbcil.  Ki'ceiilly  the  pi  o- 
p|p,  eiiciMirai;<  d  by  W  illialirw  residence  in  Kiiul  iiid,  and  reiideiad  li-  ai. 
lenteil  by  the  vexation"  (ipjiprrssKin  of  the  Normans,  lo  whom  In  ■  'ii- 
iru-ieil  the  go\ernnieiil,  rone  and  expelled  Iheni;  lo  wineli  dccimva 
course  Ihey  were  I'licinii.iged  by  Ktllke,  I'luml  of  Alipm,  who,  bill  I'orCo.iiit 
HeiherlV  «  ill.  would  have  suceecdi'd  to  the  province.  The  complelB 
imlijeetion  of  iMighiiiil  furnisheil  the  kim;  wiib  leisuie  lo  rdiastin)  'be  pco- 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


179 


ace  mad€ 
)ked  ii|i  to 
r  Ins  yoke, 
llie  needy 
see  lliein 
r  and  for- 
dil  heroin- 
r,  lliey  de- 
i'.«t.  III  tlie 
tlieiel'ore, 
r  one  more 
dlowers  as 
still  in:un- 
llie  Isle  of 
v(>r  U)  bear 
illdari'd  to 
l-hoUomed 
1(1,   iiiul  liy 
I  morasses, 
lliai  a  siir- 
Mcri'ward 
ed  the  sea, 
lemy  lotlie 
IT   to   value 
•ily  foryave 
;iiid   to  his 
io|>  of  Diir- 
wlific  the 
,1  u|ioii  liiin. 
isoii  of  llie 
warm   vvcl- 
c.  (Iivilljjed 
reach  the 
lllaiiiry  had 
nd    Saxons 
,   will)  had 
viclorioas 
iifiiy  (Veil 
oiror.  who 
(  uiire  I'lm. 
i^mii  to  eil- 
,lii    ou^ht  10 

(di'tiiency 

III'  revolted 

|ic  eoimi'oii 

leiittinu  olT 

irrilde  eon 

iilteiitioii  t(V 
lllnl  to  hull 
jllV  the  peo- 

llil  ll'  Ml. 
Ill,  .     ■ll- 

il    ll,  eixivi! 
|i  for  I  o.iiil 
eoiii|ilelP 
n  llie  peo- 


of  Miiinp,  and   he  aceordingly  went  over   with  a  large  force,  chiefly 
Rd  of  Kiiglish  from  the  distriets  most  prone  to  revolt.     With  these 


pie 

coiiii"''«f 


troops,  who  exerted  llienis(dves  greatly  in  the  hope  of  winning  tlie  favour 
of  ;i  iiioiiarcli  whose  power  they  had  no  longer  any  means  of  shaking  off, 


and  "1 


til   a  stifficient   mmiber  of    ntitives  of  Normaiidv   to    insiiie   him 


acraiiist  any  treachery  on  the  part  of  tlu;   English,  he  entered  Maine,  aii4 
coini)i'll  'dtlie  siihinissioii  of  that  province,  and  the  relinquishment  by  the 


earl  of  Anjou 


if  all 


pi"tensions  to  it. 


_.ri.  lOT-l. — While  William  was  thus  successful  in  France.  Eiiglanii  was 
disUirhfd,  not  by  the  English,  but  by  tlit;  most  powerful  of  the  king's  own 
fiivoiirite  Normans.  Obedient  to  their  leader  in  the  field,  the  Norman  bn- 
toiis  were  accu-<iomed  in  civil  life  to  deem  themselves  perfectly  iiidepc^n- 
deiit,  and  these  feinhil  idiiefs  having  in  their  own  territory  absolute  pow- 
er, even  lo  the  infliciioii  of  deatli  ujion  olfendiTs,  were  too  .'-overeign  to 
hrook  wilhoiil   ridnciaiice  the  arbitrary  way  in  whi'li 


Will 


lam  was  accus- 


tOIIK'll 


to  issue  and  enforce  disorders.     The  consecjuence  was  a  very  get 


rr.d.  thdiifih  hitherto  a  secret,  discontent  among  the  Norman  barons  of 
EiiL'I'iiid.  The  long  snioiildering  discontent  was  brought  to  light  by  the 
arhiii  nv  interference  of  the  king  in  the  domestic  afViiis  of  Uoirer,  sun  of 
his  I'livoiirile  Fit/.osboriie.  Roger,  who  had  been  created  earl  of  Hereford, 
Wislii'd  to  give  his  sister  in  marriag(!  to  Ralph  d(^  (iiiader,  earl  of  Norfolk, 
and.  rather  as  a  respectful  formality  than  in  the  e.xpcclation  that   the  king 


wiMild  iiiicrpose  any  obstacle,   had  reijucited  liis  sanelioi 


I,  w  'n 


h  \V 


iiliain 


iirhitroily  and  wiiliont  assigning  a  reason  refused.  .Sur|)rise(l,  and  still 
mori'  iiidianaiit  at  the  king's  refusal,  both  the  earls  deteriiiined  that  the 
niiinii'jc  siionlil  proceed  iiutw  llhstanding.  They  accnr(liii|.dy  nsseriibled 
(lie  iVii'iiils  of  tlieir  respective  hmiscs,  and  at  the  banquet  which  followed 
till'  ceriniony  they  openly  and  w  armly  inveighed  against  the  caprice  of 
the  king,  and  esjiecially  against  the  rigour  of  the  authority  wliieli  he 
jircini  d  so  much  delermilieil  lo  exercise  over  those  nobles  to  whose  gal- 
|;inlr\  he  owed  the  richest  of  his  terrilories  and  the  pioiiilest  of  Ins  dis- 
lliiciious.  The  coilip.oiy,  after  the  Norman  fasliion,  had  drunk  deeply; 
,111(1  til  men  warmed  with  wine  any  arunmenls  will  seem  cogent.  And 
ciilMinly  many  of  the  argnmeiils  w  liicdi  were  now  im'i\  to  induce  some  of 
llie  MKisi  powerful  of  the   .Norman  nobility  to  rcbi  I  iigMinst   the  kin,'  re 


<{iiircil  ;dl  llie  ai( 
I'lirc  I 


lof 


wine  and  wiissmiI  to  enable  them   to   pass  iiiu^ei 


be- 


ven  the  most   siiinrCiiial  jinlixes.     Tliougli  cv(  ly   Norman   pceseiit 
'd  all  that  he  had  of  English  wealth  or  Eiiulisli  rank  to  the  rinii  of  the 
[rhilul   Saxon  owners,  the  crui  Ily  of  the  kiiiir  low  ards  the  Saxoes  was 
viiMlinl  iiuaiiisl  with   the  most  hypocritnal  and  loathsome  cant,   men  ly 

^    von 


tii'c.iiise  Waltheof,  e.n  I  cd"  Norlliiliiilieilaiiil,  n  h 


IS  pri'sent,  w 


hv  liirlli  and  well  known  lo  be  still  S.ixini  in  In  an,  liiongh  be  w,i  i  prime 
fiiMMinle  of  the  king,  who  had  given  liim  his  niece  .liiihth  ill  marriaffo. 
\i;:iin,  the  Icgitim  i(\  of  Williinn's  birtli  was  iKm  It  upon  as  ,t  rca''  n  for 
"I'Viiliintr  ;ig.iiiist  In-  authority,  thmiuli  it  bad  from  hiv  very  cliildhood  been 
lliil  the  viighti'Sl  bar  to  111."  snccessuni  to  Ins  father's  diikeiloiii,  llion;'h  it 
was  considered  no  dislinnoiii  "i  aiiv  ei.untry  III  lairope,  and  thiMigb  Wil- 
li;Mn  liiinsi  If  made  no  lii'.li'  secret  ol  Ins  irngnlar  birth,  that  he  very  coin- 


(mpiilv .  as  duke  of  Niuanandv,  >ii;ni'i 


nsi  If  (lull- linns  IliistiirJii 


Tlie  ni,ih'onieiil  .Vcrmins,  as  il  liinieil  oi,;,  li.id  fur  belter  l,a\c  left 
W.illhcof 'Mil  id'  their  .  .ilcillilion.  The  cnllniMasin  of  a  festive  neeting, 
/iciii'j,'  upon  Ins  strong  th  luu'li  deeply  eimccah  d  ••\iiipalliy  with  Ins  mifor- 
tiliiate  I'ellow-conntrMiU'i  ,  caused  him  to  enter  ve'v  reiidily  into  the  coil- 
ipra  "V  that  was  now  formed  .igainsl  the  anthonty  of  Williiin.  Ilul  with 
niidir  iniimeiits  cmiik  oilier  feelimjs.  Tyrant  Jhiiiuh  William  was  to 
iillicrs,  lo  hull  III' bad  been  a  most  (jraeioiis  inon.irch  >'id  'literal  friend  j 
there  ,Viis  i!an::cr,  loo,  that  ;-.ny  conspir.iey  ai  hhI  n  king  so  w.ilidifiri 
»iid  so  |),'wjri'.ii  H    4ld  bo  rinitoiis  only  lo  the  consinralurH  thuin»elvL"« 


•il 


% 


IRO 


THE  THEA8URY  OF  HISTORY. 


I' 


'V, 


and  finally,  setting  asitle  both  personal  gratitnde  and  personal  fears,  was 
it  not  proliable  that  in  aiding  to  overthrow  William,  he  would,  in  fa<"t,  be 
aiding  to  overthrow  a  single  and  not  invariably  cruel  tyrant,  only  to  set 
up  a  multitude  of  despots  to  spoil  and  trample  the  unhappy  people  1  Which- 
ever way  his  reflections  turned  he  was  perplexed  and  alarmed  ;  and  hav- 
ing confidence  equally  in  tlie  afTection  and  in  the  judgment  of  his  wife, 
he  entrusted  her  with  the  secret  of  the  conspiracy,  aiid  consulted  her  as 
to  the  course  that  it  wouhl  best  befit  him  to  take.  But  Judith,  whose 
marriage  had  been  brought  about  with  less  reference  to  her  inclinjition 
than  to  the  king's  will,  had  suffered  her  aflTections  to  be  seduced  from  iter 
husband,  and  in  the  abominable  hope  of  ridding  herself  of  him  by  cxpo^ino 
him  to  the  fatal  anger  of  the  king,  f>h(^  sent  VVilliam  all  the  particulars 
which  she  had  thus  confidently  acquired  of  tiio  cons[)iracy.  Walthcof  In 
the  nx'aniinie,  growing  daily  more  and  more  perplexed  and  alarmed,  con- 
fided Ins  secret  and  his  consequent  perplexities  to  Lanfranc,  whom,  from 
being  an  Italian  monk,  the  Conqueror  liad  raised  to  the  archbishopric  of 
Cainerbnry,  on  the  degradation  and  iiii|)risoiimeiit  uf  {\w  uiifortunale  Sti- 
gaud.  Laiifranc  advised  iiiin  faithfully  and  well,  pointing  out  to  him  how 
paramount  his  duly  to  the  king  and  his  own  family  was  to  any  considera- 
tion he  could  hav<!  for  the  conspirators,  and  how  likely  it  was  that  even 
by  some  one  of  them  the  cf)nspiracy  would  be  revi^aied  to  the  king,  if  he 
did  not  by  speedy  informatiiMi  at  once  secure  himself  from  punishineiit, 
and  obtain  whatever  merit  William  might  attacli  to  the  earliest  informa- 
tion upon  so  important  a  snlijcct.  'I'liese  arguments  coincided  so  exactly 
with  Walthcof's  own  fi'eling,-,  that  be  no  longer  liesitutcd  how  to  act,  hut 
at  once  went  over  to  Normandy  and  confessed  everything  to  the  king. 
With  his  usual  p<ditic  tact,  William  gave  the  repentant  conspirator  a  gra- 
cious reception,  and  professed  to  feel  greatly  obliged  by  his  care  in  giving 
him  the  information  ;  hut  knowim:  it  all  already  by  means  of  Wallheof's 
treacherous  wife,  William  inwardly  determined  that  Walthcof,  especially 
as  he  was  an  Kiiglisliman.  should  eventually  profit  but  little  by  his  tardy 
repentance. 

Mi'aiiwhile,  Waltheors  sudden  journey  to  the  king  in  iV'irmaiidy  alarmed 
the  conspirators  ;  not  doiihtiiiii  that  they  were  betrayed,  yc|  imwijlinir  to 
fall  unresisting  victims  to  the  king's  raire,  they  binke  into  open  revolt  f.tr 
irore  prematurely  tlinn  olherwiwc  they  would  Krotn  the  lirst  dawn  ny 
of  the  conspiracy  it  bad  beni  a  lc;idiiig  point  of  their  tgreemeiit  that  tlic- 
■boiild  make  no  open  dcmonsiration  of  liosiility  to  the  king  until  the  a< 
rival  of  a  large  lb  c|  of  tlic  Dani-s,  with  wIkhii  ibey  had  secretly  .illieii 
themselves,  ami  whose  aid  was  (jniic  iiidispnisible  to  their  i'<iint)atiag, 
with  any  reasonable  cliance  of  success,  the  yrf-at  majoriiy  of  the  noliility, 
who,  from  real  attaehowiit  to  trie  kini;  or  from  rtinre  silfish  ihdIivcs,  woiilil 
be  sure  lo  defend  the:f  absent  sovereicn.  But  now  that  they  wrrf.  ag 
they  risjhtly  ennjeetiired,  lietrayed  by  Wallhe<^.  they  could  no  lonijer  lei;. 
ulaie  their  rondiict  by  ilie  jiiriei  mnxiins  (<f  prndeni-e.  The  earl  of  Here 
ford,  as  he  wa>!  the  first  of  the  conKpiralorw.  no  also  was  lue  first  openly 
to  raise  Ins  m  nidard  iig;nnst  thi'  kmg  I  Fe,  however,  was  li(>mmed  in,  and 
prevented  from  passing  the  Severn  to  c'.rry  r»hetiion  m^o  tlie  heart  of  the 
klli'_"loni,  by  \Uf-  biohop  of  Worcester  and  ihe  mitrerl  alilxi'  "f  Kve»h;un  iii 
that  e.)nnty,  ai'VI  by  V.'alter  de  I.ary.  n  powerful  NoriniKi  baron.  Tie' 
Piirl  f)f  Ni'rfolk  •*«  d«'feati'd  at  Trai(j^iii«  in  rHuihridgeMhirf,  by  Odo,  tliu 
kiin!'«  half  iir'Hticf,  who  was  left  as  n-gent  of  th.  kingdom,  ind  Uirliard 
de  Mienfaite  mid  William  de  Wareiine,  the  lords  pistieiiiri**  The  f  »rl  nf 
Norfolk  was  fortunate  eiioujh  to  esciipe  to  Norfolk,  bin  tbowof  hisfmiteil 
followers  who  Were  ko  uiifortiiiiate  as  to  be  made  prismieri'  ^tid  not  ulam 
iimnedi  ilely  after  the  irtion.  were  li:rlmroiisly  '■omli-mn'-d  i«»  hme  ili«»ir 
rij" III  feel  When  news  id"  ib'!i  nffoiir  reacli'M  the  earl  iM  hw  iJanifti  rw- 
treal,  he  i;ave  up  all  ho|)e  of  tx'iftg  able,  nn  rt  would  Mem  he  had  Mtiil  m 


li 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


181 


lynluriiipd 

illin<r  to 

n-voli  fir 

(lawiiii; 

tli;il  the- 

il  the  V 

•tly  allied 

iinhatnig, 

iKil'ility, 

CS,  Wdlllll 

iii"i'r  rt'u- 

if  H<n 

St  iipi'iiiy 

■i|  lii.:iMii 
ail  (iCtllP 
iHham  M\ 
m  Til'' 
Olio,  tliu 
I  Itirliard 
he  •  il-l  -if 
Ins  roiilt'il 
iKil   «l:iil\ 

)aiil«i"   "»• 

li    Hllll    III 


ended,  to  raise  any  niither  disturbance  in  England;  he  therefore  pro- 
jeeded  to  his  large  possessions  in  Brittany. 

A.D.  1075. — When  the  news  reac  led  William  of  the  conspiracy  h.iving 
actually  broken  out  into  open  revoU  he  hastened  over  to  Kiipland,  where, 
however,  so  speedily  was  the  preniiture  and  ill-managed  outbreak  put  an 
end  to,  he  only  arrived  in  time  ta  si,Tiialize  his  severity  once  more  by  the 
punishments  which  he  inflicted  upon  (he  common  herdof  tlie  rebels.  Many 
of  these  unhafipy  wretches  had  iheii  eyes  put  out,  and  still  more  were  de- 
prived oftiieir  right  hands  or  feet,  vt\d  thus  made  a  perpetual  and  terrific 
warning  against  arousing  tlie  terrible  anger  of  the  king.  The  earl  of  Here- 
ford, wlio  was  taken  prisoner,  and  upon  whom,  as  the  primary  cause  of  the 
revolt  and  the  consequent  misery  and  sulTering,  il  might  have  been  antic- 
ipated that  the  king's  wrath  would  have  fallen  with  deadly  severity,  es- 
caped far  better  than  the  wretched  peasants  whom  his  imprudence  had  led 
into  ruin.  He  was  deprived  of  bis  estate  and  condemned  to  imprisonnumt 
during  the  king's  pleasure.  But  the  king  gave  evident  signs  of  an  inten- 
tion to  release  the  prisoner,  whom  he,  in  that  case,  would  most  probably 
have  restored  to  his  estate  and  to  favour,  but  the  impolitic  and  peculiarly 
ill-timed  hauteur  of  the  earl  gave  fresh  oirenee  to  the  fiery-tempered  mon- 
urcli,  and  the  senleiice  of  imprisontnent  was  made  perpetual. 

'I'lnis  far  VValtheof  had  felt  no  fear  for  himself.  He  had  been  guilty  of 
no  overt  act  of  treason,  and  he  had  not  only  repented  of  the  crime  of  con- 
spiracy ahnost  as  soon  as  he  had  committed  it,  but  bad  hastened  to  warn 
the  king,  who  had  received  his  information  with  gr.  at  apparent  thankful- 
ness. Hut  Waltheof  left  out  of  his  calculation  one  very  im[)orlant  point; 
lie  forgot  10  take  into  consideraiion  the  fatal  fact  of  his  being  an  Kiiglish- 
nian.  Moreover,  lie  had  the  |)le, dings  against  bini  of  his  infamous  wife 
Juililh.  TIk!  influence  she  bad  over  her  uncle  would  scarcely,  perhaps, 
have  sufficed  to  save  her  husband,  unUiss  powerfully  backed  by  some  other 
cirriiinstanccs ;  but  it  was  ijuite  |iowerful  enough,  when  addeil  to  hat  oi 
the  miincrims  eonrti.'rs  who  looked  with  greedy  eyes  upon  the  great  prop- 
erty of  Waltheof,  to  dose  the  king','',  ears  to  the  voice  of  mercy,  and  I  he 
unhappy  Waltheof  was  tried  ami  executed.  We  have  not  said  that  he 
was  condemned  ;  having  said  that  he  was  tried,  his  eoiideinnatioii  need 
not  lie  ineutioued;  for  who,  when  the  king  wished  his  ruin,  could  in  that 
age  In;  tried  and  not  coudemiied  ! 

Waltheof,  beinir  universally  considered  the  last  F.nulisbmHii  of  rank  from 
whose  exertions  his  uiiha|)py  fellow-countrymen  could  have  hoped  for  any 
ainclioralion  of  their  suflVrings,  was  greatly  lamented  ;  nay,  to  sui'h  an 
extent  was  the  popular  grief  earrii'd.  .iiid  so  much  was  il  mixed  up  with 
tlie  siipersiitioii  of  the  ige.  that  his  remains  were  siippiited  to  lie  endued 
with  the  power  of  working  miraeli'S,  and  of  thus  imlireclly,  at  least,  bear- 
ing ti'stimiMiy  to  bis  sanelily  and  to  the  injustice  of  Ins  execution.  In  pro- 
[lortiim  to  the  ri');ret  felt  f(>r  the  deceaseij  earl  was  the  public  detestation 
of  Ins  widow.  To  that  delestaiioii  retributive  fortune  soon  added  the  loss 
of  the  king's  favour,  ami  the  whole  remainder  of  Iter  life  wad  spent  in  ub 
sciire  and  nnpiticd  misery. 

Having  completely  |nit  an  end  to  all  disturbance  in  Kiiirlmd.  William 
now  hastened  over  to  Normandy  to  prepare  lo  invade  the  possesMons  of 
Ffilph  lie  (iander,  earl  of  Norfolk.  Um  that  nobleman  was  so  well  sup- 
purled  liy  the  I'arl  of  liriltany  and  the  kiii^r  of  I'raiiee,  tlia>  be  was  able  to 
niaintain  himself  m  the  fortress  of  Did  a>>ainst  all  the  fince  that  William 
ciMilil  array  against  him.  Il  wa-4  no  part  of  Willi.mi's  policy  lo  have  any 
periiianenior  serious  cpiarrel  with  the  king  of  France;  .iiid  (iiKliiiL'  that 
bolli  il',,it  iiiiHiaicli  and  the  earl  of  Itnltany  were  residutely  bent  iipon  sup- 
piirtiii<{  lialpli  de  (iauder,  at  whatever  conseijueaceN,  lie  wisely  made  h 
peace  with  all  three. 

A.tt.  107G.~Luufr»iic,  raised  by  William  to  tli«  archbishopric  of  Oaiite» 


;j 


182 


THE  THEASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


bury,  waf3  at  oiicc  an  ambitious  man  and  a  faithful  and  zealous  servant  ol 
the  pajjacy.  Though  he  had  been  raised  to  iiis  high  st;iiioii  by  the  favour 
of  tlie  king,  to  whom  he  was  really  and  gralefully  attached,  he  woiilii  not 
allow  the  rights  of  the  elunch  to  be  in  any  wise  inl'rin^^ed  upon.  On  ilie 
death  of  Aldred,  by  whom  it  will  be  rcmenibered  th.il  William  had  chosen 
to  be  crowned,  'riionias,  a  Norman  monk,  was  appointed  to  sueceed  him 
in  the  archbishopric  of  York.  The  new  archbishop,  probably  presimniig 
upon  the  king's  favour,  pretended  that  the  arcliiepiscopal  see  of  York  liad 
precedence  and  superiority  to  that  of  Canterbury.  'I'he  fact  of  Aldred, 
his  predecessor,  having  been  called  upon  lo  crown  the  king,  most  prob- 
ably weighed  with  the  prelate  of  York;  in  which  case  he  must  have  for- 
gotten or  wilfully  neglected  the  circumstances  of  that  case.  Lanfrauc  did 
neither  one  nor  the  other;  and,  heedless  of  what  the  kmg  might  think  or 
wish  ujion  the  subject,  he  boldly  commenced  a  procej^^'on  to  the  papal 
court,  which,  after  the  dcliiy  for  which  Rome  was  alreimv  proverbial,  uas 
terminatt'fi  most  Iriiiniphantly  for  Laiifranc.  It  will  riaiiiiy  be  suj)posed 
that  under  such  a  prelate  the  people  of  England  were  not  allowed  to  lose 
any  portion  of  their  exorhiianl  respect  for  the  papacy.  William,  indeed, 
was  not  a  monarch  to  allow  even  the  church,  potent  as  it  was,  lo  i.i.ister 
him.  \''ery  early  in  his  reign  he  expressly  forbade  his  subjects  frmii  ac- 
knowledging any  one  as  pope  until  autlioriztHl  to  do  so  by  tin  king;  he 
required  all  canons  of  the  synods  to  be  submitted  for  his  apjiroval ;  and 
though  even  he  did  not  deem  it  safe  to  dispute  the  rigi  I  of  the  diurcli  to 
excommunicate  evil-doers,  he  very  etfectually  curbed  that  right,  na  applied 
to  his  own  subjects,  by  ruling  f'ai  no  papal  bull  or  letter  siioiild  be  held 
to  lie  an  authoritative  ur  even  an  antheiitiit  docuinent,  until  it  should  have 
received  his  sanction,  it  was  rather,  therefore,  in  iinbiMug  the  minds  uf 
the  people  with  a  solenui  awe  and  n  /erence  of  the  pojie  and  the  clnncli, 
that  Lanl'ranc  was  engaged  during  Ibis  reign;  and  in  this  he  was  so  suc- 
cessful, that  siibse(|ucnt  monarclis  of  less  ability  and  firmness  than  Wil- 
liam were  grievously  inc'immuded. 

(ueuory  VII.  probal)ly  pushed  the  powerof  the  papacy  over  the  tempo- 
ral concerns  of  the  kinyjdoins  of  Europe  further  than  any  previous  pope. 
He  excominunicatcd  .\ii'c|ih(n'us,  the  emperor  of  the  c;ist,  iiiid  HnlnTl 
(uiiscard,  the  Norman  conqueror  of  Naples  ;  betook  away  from  I'tdaiid 
her  very  rank  !i«  a  kiiigdoin  ;  ;inil  lie  pretended  to  the  right  of  parci-lliiig  out 
till!  territory  of  .'^()aiii  among  those  adventurers  who  should  conquer  it 
from  the  Moors.  Though  he  was  boldly  and  ahly  op[X)sed  by  the  eiii|)e- 
ror  Henry  IV.,  he  was  not  a  whit  detert'cd  in  his  iiinhitious  course ;  and 
even  the  warlike,  able,  and  somewlnit  fierce  character  of  Wiljr.nn  did  not 
»l:ii'ld  liim  from  being  ass;iiled  by  the  extravagant  (jemiinds  (if  Koine. 
(J.M'gory  wrote  to  lijni  to  demand  the  payment  of  Peter's  pence,  wlich 
koine  had  convened  into  a  riylilful  trilinte,  thmigli  ;i  .Saxon  prince  had 
oiiizinally  given  the  coniribinioii.  so  calleil,  merely  as  a  voluntary  doiiii- 
timi  ;  and  he  h:;d  ;it  the  same  tune  averred  that  William  had  promised  to 
do  homage  to  Koine,  for  his  kingdom  of  England.  William  sent  the 
money,  but  he  phr  ily  and  smnewliat  tartly  lidd  the  pojie  at  the  saiiii 
Inne,  that  he  had  neiiher  iiromiscMl  nor  i  'er  intended  to  do  hi/iiiagc 
lo  Home.  The  po[)e  wisely  forbore  lo  press  the;  subject;  lint  tlioiii;!) 
in  aildiiiiiii  i(»  tins  plain  refusal  to  eoinpiy  with  an  unreasonable  de- 
maud,  William  still  further  showed  his  nulipeiidence  by  forbidding  ttifi 
Knglish  lo  ailend  a  council  winch  (iregmy  li.id  sniiimoned,  he  had  ii& 
means,  even  had  he  Inniself  been  more  free  from  supeistiiion  lh;iii  be  ap 
pears  to  li.ive  been,  of  prevenlini/  llie  progress  of  \\\f  chrtfy  in  sulijee.l 
mg  the  mil.  Is  of  the  people.  The  greatevl  efforts  were  made  to  leiidei 
the  eehbacy  of  tlie  eleriry  gent-ral,  and  to  t;ive  llie  iippear.im'c  of  aihlitioii.;> 
ianetiinomini-iiies*  to  ilieir  outward  life,  in  order  the  more  deeply  t( 
impress  the  [leojije  with  ilunioiionof  the  jjeiiume  saiictiiy  of  their  tliaraclet 


THE  TREAaO-RY  OF  HISTORY. 


183 


Prosperous  as  WJUiiiin  was  in  his  public  affairs,  lio  had  iiiiich  domestic 
troublo.     He  was  obligiid  to  remain  for  some  years  in  Nor.nan'iy,  iliou^h 
as  a  residi'tice  he  greatly  preferred  Kiigland.     Uiit  his  eldest  sun  Uobert, 
«in'n;iined  (>)iirthose,  on  ai-eoniii  of  llui  shortness  of  Ids  hiirs,  made   his 
l.iiher  fear  for  tlie  safely  of  Normandy.     It  appear     that  wuen  Maine 
suliinitlt'd  to  William,  he  promised  the  people  of  that  province  that  they 
slioiiM  hav(!  Robert  f<ir  their  prinee  ;  and   when  he  st^t  out  to  conquer 
Kiiirlaud,  Ins  in  complianee  with  the  wish  of  the  French  kimj,  wliom  i! 
was  jii^i  theji   his  es[)ecial   interest  and  desire  to  satisfy,  nam  vl   Uobert 
;is  his  Mircessor  in  the  dm-hy  of  Normandy.      He  was  well  aware  Ihat 
(luiiiij  this  was  his  sol(!   means  of  reeoniMliusi;  Fr.inee  to  his   eoiiijuest  o 
KiiLtlaii  I,  but  he  had  not  the  slii,'lnest  iiileiitioii  of  performing  his  promise 
Iiiileo  I,  wlieii   h(!  was  su!)se(i;i  ;iitly  askel  by  his  sou  to  put  hi  n  in  |)i)S 
3(^ssion  of  Normandy,  he  riilictuled  the  yoiiiig  man's   credulity  by  reply 
inj;,  in  the  vulgar  proverb,  that  lu  did  not  intend  to  undress  till  \u'.  went 
tohcd.     'rhedisappoinlmenleuraiied  the  nalurally  liad  temper  of  Robert; 
uoiiic  t]narr(ds  with  his  brothers  William  and  Henry,  whom  he  liatcil  for 
till'  superior  favour  they  enjoyed  with  the^r  father,  inlliiiued  him  still  far 
(her,  ami  he  factiously  did  all  that  he  could  to  thwart  his  father's  wishes 
iiiil  interest  in  Normandy;  nay,  he  was  more  than  suspected  of  having, 
by  Ins  intrinui's,  confirmed  the  kiiiij  iif  France  and  the  earl  of  IJrittany  in 
tlicir  support  of  his  rebellious  vassal,  the  earl  of  Norfolk. 

So  thoroughly  bent  was  Robert  upon  undiitifid  opposition  to  his  father, 
that  he  seized  upon  the  i>|)porinuity  affordcil  by  an  e.vireinidy  childish 
(|ii;urel  between  himsidf  and  his  brothers,  in  wdiich  he  accused  his  father 
of  partiidly  sidiiig  airaiiisl  him,  an  1  hastened  to  itonen,  w'lfr  ■  hi^  en  leav- 


to  surprise  ami  seize  the  citad( 


11 


e  was  previMited  from  siiccee 


,1- 


iiij  ill  this  treason  by  the  suspicion  and  activity  of  the  goviiriior,  Roj  er 
itr  Ivcry.  'Still  bent  upon  this  uiniitnral  opp()sitiou,  iiob  Tt  retired  to  vhe 
(Msilc  of  Hii^h  de  Ncnchatel,  who  not  only  gave  him  a  hospitable  recep- 
tion, bill  assisteil  iind  encouraged  him  to  make  open  war  upon  his  sove- 
rcisjii  ana  father.  TIk;  liery  but  ueiierous  character  of  Robert  made  him 
a  very  ureat  favonriti!  among  the  chivalrous  Normans,  .-iiid  espccinlly 
aiiioug  the  younger  nobles  of  Niirmandy  and  the  neighbouring  provinces; 
tiid  as  Robert  was  supposed  to  be  privately  favoured  by  his  mother,  he 
hail  no  didicnlty  in  raising  forces  sniUcient  to  throw  his  father's  heredit*- 
ry  dmniiiious  into  Ironlile  and  eonfusioii  for  several  years. 

So  tronblcsonie  (li<l  Robert  and  Ins  adhineiits  ai  Iciigih  become,  tliat 
William,  growing  seriously  alarmed  lest  !\e  sliunid  actually  hav(>  the  mor- 
tificaiioii  and  disgrace  of  seeing  Norinaiidy  forcibly  wrested  from  him  by 
his  own  son,  sent  over  to  F.ngl.tiid  for  forces.  They  arrived  under  some 
of  th(!  veteran  chii'fs  who  had  helped  to  coiKiuer  I'higlaud;  and  the  iinduti- 
I'lii  lioberl  was  driven  from  tin'  posts  he  had  conquered,  and  coinpcll(;i|  to 
lake  refuge  in  (he  castle  of  (ierlieniy,  whiidi  refuge  tlu'  king  of  France, 
who  had  secretly  connscllcil  and  abetted  his  misconduct,  had  proviiled  for 
him.  He  was  folhnved  ilnther  by  his  failier  in  person,  ^ut  the  garrison 
being  strong  and  well  provided,  the  resisiaiice  was  obstinate  in  propor- 
liiiii.  Fretjnenl  sallies  were  made,  and  on  one  of  these  occasions  Robert 
was  personiilly  opposcil  to  his  f.ither,  whom,  from  the  king's  \isor  being 
dow  n,  he  did  not  recognize.  The  fight  was  l'ier<'e  on  both  sides ;  an  1  Uob- 
ert, having  the  advantaue  of  Kuperim'  agiliiv,  wonnded  and  uniiorsed  Ins 
father.  The  king  shouted  lo  one  of  his  oiVicers  for  aid  to  ri  inoiiiit :  and 
Robert  recoLrnizmg  his  pirent's  voice,  was  so  struck  with  l.orrin'  at  th« 
larrow  escape  he  hail  had  ol  sl.iying  the  author  of  Ins  beliefs  ih  it  he  threw 
liiinsi  If  upon  his  kiiei's  and  eiitrciiled  foruiveuess  fm-  his  miscoudu  -t  Hut 
the  kins;  was  toodee|ilv  olVcnded  lo  be  reconciled  on  the  iiwlani  to  his  er- 
ring and  iM'inieiii  son,  ami.  nnmnliiig  Uohert's  horse,  he  rode  t  •  his  own 
canii).     'I'he  sw^a  was  sliurll)  afterwards  ruined;  and  (Jiiueii  .Matilda hav 


■hi 


184 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


iug  siiccfpdcd  ill  briiigiiirr  about  :i  r('conri!i;ition.  the  kincr  not  only  rI- 
lowed  IfobLTl  to  iiccoiiipiiny  liiin  to  Kiiirl.iiul,  l>iil  also  eiii rusted  him  with 
an  army  to  chastist;  the  Scotch  for  some  incursions  they  liad  made  upon 
tlie  northern  parts  of  Kughind.  'I'tie  Welsh  who,  as  well  as  the  Scotch, 
had  taken  advai  tage  of  the  king's  ahseuce  to  make  incursions,  «'ere  now 
also  eli.istiscd  and  hrought  into  submiss   >n. 

A.D.  1081, — Flaviiig  both  his  Norman  and  Knglibb  dotninions  now  in  a 
state  of  profound  quiet,  Willi;)'  rnrn(^d  liis  attenlion  lo  the  important  ob- 
ject of  a  survey  and  valna'ic.i  o'  the  lands  of  Knp;lanii.  Takmg  for  his 
model  the  survey  wblcb  had  Ixfen  made  by  onler  of  Alfre(l,  and  which 
was  deposiced  at  W'nicboster,  he  iiad  tli.-  extent,  lenuie,  value,  and  kmd 
of  the  land  in  each  district  carefully  noted  down,  togellier  with  the  names 
of  the  proprietors,  and,  in  some  eases,  the  names  of  the  tcu;iiiis,  with  the 
number,  age,  and  sex  of  the  cottagers  and  slaV(!S.  lly  gooil  arrangement 
this  important  work,  in  despite  of  its  great  extent,  was  completed  within 
six  years,  and,  under  the  name  of  the  Domesday  Book,  It  to  this  day  re- 
mains to  give  us  the  most  accurate  account  of  Knaiand  at  that  time,  with 
the  exception  of  the  northern  [iidvinces,  whiidi  the  ravages  of  war  and 
William's  own  tyranny  had  reilnced  to  such  a  wretched  condition,  that  an 
account  of  them  was  not  considered  worth  '.  ikiiig. 

The  king's  acts  wen?  not  always  of  so  praiseworthy  a  character.  At 
tached.  like  all  Normans,  to  the  pleasures  o'  ilie  chase,  lie  allowed  that 
pleasure  to  seduc(;  him  Into  cruellies  in(n'e  el  ar.M'teristic  of  a  demon  than 
a  man.  The  iraine  in  the  royal  forests  was  pn-ti^eted  by  laws  far  more 
severe  than  those  that  protei^icd  the  lives  of  luiman  beings.  He  who  kil- 
led a  man  could  atom'  to  the  law  by  the  payment  of  a  pecuniary  fine;  but 
he  who  was  so  unhappy  as   to  be  (N-iecled  in  killing  a  deer,  a  boar,  or 


><ar 


■!'Ji    M    :    li 


form  one.  Houses,  whoU;  villaues,  churches,  nay,  even  <'onvents,  were 
destroyed  for  this  pur|iose;  and  a  multitude  of  wretched  [jeople  were 
thus  without  any  coinpiMisation  deprived  of  their  homes  and  propeity 
and  cast  upon  the  world,  in  many  eases,  to  perish  of  want. 

Uesides  the  trouble  which  Wiiliain  bad  been  caused  by  (be  petulance 
of  Ills  sou  Uoberi,  hi!  towards  tin!  eiul  of  his  reign  had  two  very  grt^al 
trials;  the  ungrateliil  conduct  of  bis  half  brotluT  Odo,  bislii)p  of  IJayenx,  and 
the  death  of  Qnei^n  MaliMa,  to  whom  througlioni  be  was  most  IVrvenily  at- 
tacheil.  The  presii  nptiou  of  Odo  had  led  him  not  oidv  to  aim  at  the  pa- 
pal throne,  but  also  to  attempt  to  seduce  some  of  W  illiain's  nobles  from 
their  alleijiance  and  a(rcom|)auy  him  to  Italy.  William  ordered  the  proud 
prelate  to  be  arrested  ;  and  liiidiiig  that  Ins  ollicers,  deterred  by  their  feat 
of  the  clinrch.  were  afraid  to  seize  the  bishop,  he  went  in  person  to  arri'Sl 
him;  and  when  Odo,  inistakmgly  imagimiiL'  that  the  king  shared  the  pop- 
ular prejudice,  plea  led  his  sacred  character.  William  drily  replied,  "I  do 
not  arrest  the  Hislmp  of  Hayi'ux,  Init  the  earl  (d"  Ki'iit" — which  title 
Willuiii  had  hesiowecl  n|)on  him.  He  iheii  sent  him  to  Normandy,  and 
ther^  kept  him  in  coiitinemeiit.  William's  end,  liowcvei  noiv  approached. 
Some  iu'-tirsioiis  made  u|ion  Normandv  bv  Krciich  kiiighis,  ami  a  coarse 
joke  parsed  upon  bis  corpulence  by  the  l''ieiicli  king,  so  itnicli  provoked 
iiim.  that  he  proceedr  1  lo  1  iv  w.iste  the  tosvii  of  M.iules,  with  the  avowed 
intention  of  carrynig  Ins  rrige  still  I'lirther.  Hut  wliiU  he  watched  the 
buriiiuir  of  the  iown  bis  bor.-^e  -ii  irled,  and  the  kinu  was  so  seven  ly 
bruiHed  that  he  died  a  few  day  iltervvanld  at  the  tiKUiastery  of  St.  (Jer- 
V  itMriiiir  )iJH   muriiil  tUnesf  he  niinie  grcit  grants  lo  cUurulteti  tuid 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


185 


pptulaiice 

very  great 

iiyciix,  ami 

rvenily  at- 

at  the  pa- 

>l)l('^s  from 

I  lie  proud 

their  feat 

II  to  arrest 

ij  llie  |)()p- 

ied,  "!  do 

liich  title 

niidy.  and 

[iroached. 

a  eoarse 

provoked 

11  avowed 

Itched  ihe 

severely 

St.  (ier- 

iieheH  and 


monasteries,  by  way  of  atonement  for  tho  hideous  cruelties  of  whic.i  he 
hid  lieen  ffiiil'yi  mit,  vvitti  the  usual  incoi.sjstency  of  superstition,  he 
coiiidliar.il  he  pcoiia''  d  to  accompany '.iis  istentatious  branch  of  pen- 
itence by  'I"  lory'veuess  ind  release  of  Ins  half-brother  Odo.  He  at 
length,  h(^'  ^  er,  ihougli  with  a  reluctance  that  did  him  no  eredit,  consent- 
ed to  -f  le;!^:^■  Hiifl  foriiive  Odo,  and  he  at  the  same  time  gave  orders  for 
the  release  oi  Morcar  and  other  eminent  English  prisoners.  He  had 
scarcely  give,'  liese  orders;  when  he  died,  on  the  9th  of  September,  1087, 
ill  the  tweiity-i.'si  year  of  his  usurped  reign  over  England. 

Now  that  we  have  arrived  at  the  close  of  William  the  Conqueror's  reign, 
it  ina  he  as  well  before  we  proceed  further  with  our  narrative,  to  make 
a  sli'-rt  di;"'es.-ii()n  relative  to  the  genealogical  right  by  which  the  future 
monarchs  of  England  successively  claimed  the  throne.  The  Norman  coii- 
qiiest,  as  we  have  seen,  introduced  an  entire  char.gi,  in  the  laws,  lan- 
guai;'-',  manners,  air!  customs.  England  began  to  make  :•  more  consider- 
able figure  among  the  nations  of  Europe  than  it  had  assui.  ed  previous  to 
this  important  event ;  and  it  received  a  new  race  of  sovereigns,  which 
either  by  tht  male  or  female  line  has  continued  down  to  the  present  day. 
These  monarchs  were  of  several  '"houses"  or  families,  according  to  the 
persons  who  espnused  the  princesses  of  England,  and  from  such  mar- 
riages gave  to  th«  nation  its  kings  or  queens,  or  accordi.ig  to  the  ditTer- 
ent  biau(!hcs  into  which  the  royal  family  was  divided.  Thus  the  Nor- 
mans began  with  William  the  Conqueror,  the  head  of  the  whole  race, 
v.u<i  ended  with  Henry  I.,  in  whom  the  male  line  failed.  Steplien  (gener- 
ally included  in  the  Norman  line)  was  the  only  one  of  the  house  of 
Blois,  from  the  marriage  of  Adela,  the  Conqueror's  fourth  daughter,  with 
Stephen,  earl  of  Hlois.  The  Plantaoenets,  or  House  of  Anjou,  began 
with  Henry  U.,  from  the  marriage  of  Matilda  or  Maud,  daugh'er  of  Henry 
I ,  with  (xeofFrey  Plantageiiet,  earl  of  Anjou;  and  continued  undivided  to 
Richard  U.,  inclusive.  These  were  afterwards  divided  into  the  houses 
of  Lancaster  and  York;  the  former  beginning  with  Henry  IV.,  son  of 
John  of  (Taunt,  duke  of  Lancaster,  fourth  son  of  Edward  HL,  and  ending 
with  Henry  VL  The  latter  began  with  Edward  IV.,  son  of  Richard, 
duke  of  York,  who  on  the  father's  side  was  grandson  to  Edmund  de 
Liiiigley,  fifth  son  of  Edward  III.,  and  by  his  mother  descended  "rom  Li- 
onel, third  son  of  the  said  king;  and  ended  in  Riidiarci  III.  'I'lit:  family 
of  Ihe  TunoRS  began  with  Henry  VII.,  from  Ihe  marriage  of  A!argaret, 
great  grandiiaugliterof  .lotin  of  (Jaunt,  with  Edmund  Tudor,  eai ,  of  Rich- 
mond ;  aihl  ended  with  Queen  Elizabeth.  The  house  of  Stcakt  began 
with  James  I.,  son  of  Henry  Stuart,  Lord  Dariiley,  and  Mary,  Queen  of 
Scots,  whose  grandmother  was  Margaret,  daughter  to  Henry  VH.,  and 
ended  with  Queen  Anne.  William  HI.  was  the  only  one  of  tie'  house 
ofOiiANOE,  whose  mother  was  Mary,  daughter  of  Charles  I.  And  the 
house  of  URUNSwirK,  now  reigning,  began  with  George  I.,  whose  grand- 
mother was  the  princess  Elizabeth,  daughter  of  James  I. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

THE   HEION  OV  WILLIAM  II. 

AD.  1087. — Richard,  one  of  the  Conqueror's  sons,  died  before  his  fa 
titer.  To  Uobert  his  eldest  son  he  left  Normandy  and  Maine  ;  to  lienry  he 
:eft  only  his  mother's  possessions,  hut  consoled  him  for  this  by  p  •■  ;)hesy- 
ing  that  hr  would  in  the  end  be  both  richer  ;ind  iiKuc  pow.  rlul  than 
either  of  his  brothers;  and  to  William  was  left  the  most  splenilnl  of  all  his 
father's  possessions,  the  crown  of  England,  which  the  ("oncpieror,  in  a 
letter  wrillen  on  his  deathbed,  (Uijoiiied  Lanfranc,  arehhisho))  of  Canter 
hury,  to  iil.iec  upon  his  Lead.    The  young  Pnncc  William,  wlio.  from  thb 


166 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HfSTORY 


I 


tii 


;ll 


^ 


ii    :  h 


eolour  of  liis  hair,  was  siiriiiimed  Ri'fus,  was  so  anxious  to  avail  himsell 
of  this  letter,  that  he  did  not  even  wait  at  the  monastery  of  St.  CJervas 
long  enough  to  receive  his  father's  last  breath,  but  hastened  to  Kngiand 
before  the  danger  of  the  Conqueror  was  generally  known,  and  obtained 
ossession  of  the  royal  treasure  at  Winchester,  amounting  to  jC()0,000 
-a  large  sum  at  that  lime.  He  also  possessed  himself  of  tlie  important 
fortresses  of  Pevensey,  Hastings,  and  Dover,  which  from  their  situation 
could  not  fail  to  be  of'great  service  to  him  in  the  event  of  his  right  to  the 
crown  being  disputed.  Such  dispute  he,  in  fact,  had  all  possible  roaso« 
to  expect.  The  manner  in  which  Robert's  right  of  primogeniture  was 
completely  set  aside  by  an  informal  letter  written  upon  a  deathbed,  when 
even  the  strongest  minds  may  reasonably  be  supposed  to  be  unsettled, 
was  in  itself  sufficient  to  lead  to  soine  discontent,  even  had  that  prince 
been  of  a  less  fiery  and  fierce  temper  than  his  disputes  with  his  father  and 
brothers  had  already  proved  him  tn  be.  Lanfranc,  who  had  edui-ated  the 
new  king;  and  was  much  attached  to  him,  took  the  best  means  to  render 
opposition  of  no  effect.  He  called  together  some  of  the  chief  nobles  and 
prelates,  and  performed  the  ceremony  of  the  coronation  in  the  most  im- 
plicit obedience  to  the  deceased  (Conqueror's  letter.  This  promptitude  had 
the  desired  efTect.  The  partizans  of  Robert,  if  absence  from  England 
had  left  him  any.  made  not  the  slightest  attempt  to  urge  his  hereditary 
right;  and  he  seemed  to  give  his  own  sanction  to  the  will  of  his  father, 
by  peaceably,  and  as  a  matter  of  course,  assuming  the  government  of 
Maine  and  Normandy  which  it  conferred  upon  him. 

But  thiuigh  no  opposition  was  made  to  the  accession  of  William  Rufus 
at  the  time  when,  if  ever,  such  ojiposition  could  reasonably  have  been 
made,  namely,  previous  to  his  coronation,  he  was  not  long  seated  upon 
his  throne  '  !  >i  >  he  experienced  the  opposition  of  some  of  the  most  pow- 
erful Nor'Kiiii  ill'. lies.  Hatred  of  Lanfranc,  and  envy  of  his  great  power, 
actuatpi'  s,(ii.;v  •  f  them  ;  and  many  of  them  possessing  properly  both  in 
Englaie';  u.  I  \.."mandy,  were  anxious  that  both  countries  should  be  uni- 
ted iiu-i-i  Kobf-it,  foreseeing  danger  to  their  property  in  one  (.'r  the  other 
couniry  vuM'nr'oever  the  separate  sovereigns  should  disagree.  They  held 
that  Robert  ;!■■  eldest  S(ni,  was  entitled  to  both  Kngiand  and  Normandy; 
and  they  were  the  more  anxious  for  his  success,  because  his  careless 
and  excessively  gcMierous  temper  promised  them  that  freiulom  from  inter- 
ference upon  which  they  set  so  high  a  value,  and  which  the  haughty  and 
hard  character  of  William  Rufus  threatened  to  deprive  them  of  Odo, 
bishop  of  Hayeux,  and  Robert,  earl  of  Mortaigne,  another  half-brother  ol 
the  Conqueror,  urged  these  argunieuts  upon  some  of  the  most  eminent  oi 
the  Norman  nobility.  Eustace,  count  of  Boulogne,  Roger  Bigod.  Hugh 
de  Greatsinil,  W'illiam,  bishop  of  Durham.  Robert  de  Moubray,  and  other 
magnates,  joined  in  the  conspiracy  to  ilcthrone  William  ;  and  they  sev- 
erally put  their  castles  into  a  state  of  defence.  William  felt  the  full  value 
of  pronifititude.  Even  the  doinesi'c  cmispiriitors  were  powerful  enough  to 
warrant  consideralde  alarm  and  anxiety,  but  the  king's  danger  would  be 
increased  trnl'old  by  the  arrival  of  reinfor(!enients  to  them  fitnti  Nor- 
mandy. The  king  tlierefore  ra[)idly  got  together  as  strong  a  force  as  he 
could  and  inarched  into  Kent,  where  Rochester  and  Pevensey  were  seized 
and  garrisoiK'd  by  his  uncles  Odo  and  Robert.  He  starved  the  conspira- 
tors at  both  placen  into  submission,  and  he  was  strongly  inclined  to  put 
the  leadcu's  to  deaih  :  but  tlip  more  humane  counsel  of  William  de  War- 
enne  and  Robert  Fitzhammond,  who  had  j'^nefl  him.  prevailed  upon  liim 
to  content  himself  with  confiscating  the  property  ol  the  ofTenders  and  ban- 
ishing them  from  the  kingdom.  His  success  over  the  foremost  men  ol 
the  rebel  party  de"ided  the  striiugle  in  his  favour.  His  powerful  fieel  had 
by  this  lime  stationed  itself  upon  the  coast,  so  that  Robert  no  longer  had 
aiiy  opportunity  to  land  the  reinforcements  his  indolence  had,  so  fatally 


THE  IMIEASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


187 


for  his  cau^l^  delayed.  Tlie  earl  of  Shrewsbury,  upon  wliom  the  conspi- 
rators liad  greatly  depended,  was  skilfully  won  over  by  the  king  ;  and  tne 
rest  of  tin;  leaders  became  hopeless  of  success,  and  either  fled  from  the 
country  or  made  their  submission.  Some  were  pardoned,  and  others 
were  very  lightly  punished;  the  majority  were  attaimed,  an.)  their  -states 
were  bestowed  upon  those  barons  who  liad  sided  with  the  king  wli  e  his 
crown  was  yet  in  danger. 

As  soon  as  he  had  completely  broken  up  the  confcderaoy  v  'licli  had  so 
early  threatened  his  throne,  Rufus  began  to  exhilut  himsc  true 

natiMR  to'.vards  his  Knglish  subjects.     As  long  as  his  ca'i  at' 

douliiiid,  he  had  promised  the  utmost  kindness  and  considr 
especi  lily  won  tlie  support  and  the  good  wishes  of  his  Kn 
hy  proiiusing  a  great  relaxation  of  the  odious  forest  laws  ol 
sor.    Now  that  he  was  secure,  he  not  merely  failed  to  miti^  iv 

ranny  under  which  the  people  groaned,  but  he  increased  it.  VVIiili^  La'n- 
franc  lived,  the  zeal  and  ability  of  that  prelate,  added  to  the  superstition 
of  the  age,  rendered  the  property  of  the  church  sacred.  Uiit  Lanfranc 
died  soon  after  the  accession  of  William  Rufus,  who  made  his  own  will 
the  sole  law  for  all  orders  of  his  subjects,  whether  lay  or  clerical.  On 
the  death  of  a  bishop  or  abbot  he  either  set  the  see  or  abbey  up  for  open 
sale,  as  '.le  would  any  other  kind  of  property,  or  he  delayed  the  appoint- 
m(;nt  of  a  new  bishop  or  abbot,  and  .so  kept  the  temporalities  in  hand  for 
his  own  use.  Such  conduct  produced  much  discontent  and  murmuring  ; 
but  the  power  of  the  kin^  was  too  great,  and  his  cruel  and  violent  temper 
was  too  well  known,  to  allow  the  general  discontent  to  assume  a  more  tan- 
gible and  dangerous  form.  So  confident,  indeed,  did  the  king  feel  of  his 
power  in  England,  that  he  even  thought  it  not  unsafe  to  disturb  the  peace 
of  his  brother  Robert  in  Normandy,  where  the  licentious  barons  were  al- 
ready in  a  most  disorderly  state,  owing  to  the  imprudent  indulgence  and 
lenity  of  their  generous  and  facile  duke.  Availing  himself  of  this  state 
of  tlnna;s,  William  bribed  the  governors  of  Albemarle  and  St.  Valori,  and 
thus  obtained  possession  of  those  impcn'tant  fortresses. 

He  was  also  near  obtaining  possession  of  Rouen,  but  was  defeated  in 
that  object  by  the  singular  fidelity  of  his  brotner  Henry  to  Robert,  under 
circunistances  of  no  small  provocation  to  very  different  conduct. 

Henry,  though  he  had  inherited  only  some  money  out  of  all  the  vast 
possessions  of  ills  fatli(!r,  had  lent  Duke  Robert  three  thousand  marks  to 
aid  him  in  his  attempt  to  wrest  the  crown  of  I'lngland  from  William. 
13y  way  of  security  for  this  money,  Henry  was  put  in  possession  of  con- 
siderabli!  territory  in  Normandy  :  yet  upon  some  real  or  pretended  sus- 
picion Robert  not  only  deprived  him  of  this,  but  also  threw  him  into  prison. 
Though  he  was  well  aware  that  Robert  only  at  last  liberated  him  in 
conseqiKMKje  of  requiring  his  aid  on  the  threatened  invasion  of  Knp^kmd, 
Henry  behaved  most  loyally.  Having  learnt  that  Conaii,  a  very  power- 
ful and  intluential  citizen  of  Rouen,  had  traitorously  bargained  to  give 
up  the  city  to  King  William,  the  prince  took  him  to  the  top  of  a  lofty 
tower,  and  with  his  own  hand  threw  him  over  the  battlements. 

The  king  at  length  landed  a  numerous  tinny  in  Normandy,  and  the 
state  of  things  became  serious  and  threatening  indeed  as  regarded  tho 
duke,  llul  ilie  intimate!  connection  and  mutual  interests  of  the  leading 
men  on  both  sides  favoured  him,  and  a  treaty  was  made,  by  which  the 
l']n'ilisli  king  on  one  hand  obtained  the  territory  of  Ku,  and  some  other 
territorial  advantages,  while,  on  the  other  hand,  he  engageil  to  restore 
those  barons  who  were  banished  from  I'yiigland  for  espousing  the  cause 
of  Ilobert  in  the  laic  revolt,  and  to  assist  his  brother  against  the  people 
of  Maine  who  had  revolti;d.  It  was  further  agreed,  under  the  witness  and 
guarantee!  of  twelve  of  the  chief  barons  on  either  side,  that  whoever  o( 
the  two  brothers  should  survive  should  inherit  the  possessions  of  the  other 


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THB  TKEA3I;RY  OF  HISTORY. 


I 


In  all  tills  treaty  not  a  word  was  inserted  in  favour  of  Prince  Henrjr 
who  naturally  felt  indignant  at  being  so  much  neglected  by  his  brothei 
Robert,  from  whom  he  certainly  had  merited  belter  treatment.  With- 
drawing  from  Rouen,  he  fortified  himself  at  Si.  Michael's  Mount,  on  tha 
Norman  coast,  and  sent  out  plundering  parties,  wlio  greatly  annoyed  the 
whole  neighbourhood.  Robert  and  VViiliam  besieged  iiim  here,  and 
during  tiie  siege  an  incident  occurred  which  goes  tu  show  that  Hobert'i 
neglect  to  hr^  brother  was  owing  rather  to  carelessness  than  to  any  real 
want  of  generous  feeling.  Henry  and  his  garrison  were  so  tnuch  (hstres- 
sed  for  water  that  they  must  have  speedily  submitted.  When  this  was 
told  to  Robert,  he  not  only  allowed  his  brother  to  supply  himself  with 
water  but  also  sent  him  a  considerable  quantity  of  wine.  William,  who 
could  nu!  sympathize  with  this  chivalrous  feeling,  reproached  Robert  with 
being  imprudent.  "What!"  replied  the  generous  duke,  "should  I  suffer 
our  brother  to  die  of  thirst  1  Where  shall  we  find  another  when  he  is 
gone  ?"  But  this  temporary  kindness  of  Robert  did  not  prevent  the  un- 
fortunate Henry  from  being  pressed  so  severely  that  he  was  obliged  to 
capitulate,  and  was  driven  forth,  with  his  handful  of  attendants,  almost 
destitute  of  money  and  resources. 

A. D.  1091. — Robert,  who  was  now  in  strict  alliance  with  the  king  and 
brother  who  had  so  lately  invaded  his  duchy  with  the  most  hostile  inten- 
tions, was  entrusted  with  the  chief  command  of  an  English  army,  which 
was  sent  over  the  border  to  compel  Malcolm  to  do  homage  to  the  crown 
of  England.     In  this  enterprise  Robert  was  completely  successful. 

A.D.  1093. — But  both  peace  and  war  were  easily  and  quickly  terminated 
in  this  age.  Scarcely  two  years  had  elnpsed  from  Malcolm's  submissioii 
and  withdrawal  of  the  English  troops,  when  he  invaded  England.  Having 
plundered  and  wasted  a  great  portion  of  Norihumberland,  he  laid  siege  to 
Alnwick  castle,  where  he  was  surprised  by  a  party  of  English  under  the 
earl  de  Moubray,  and  in  the  action  which  followed  Malcolm  perished. 

A.D.  1094. — William  constantly  kept  his  attention  fixed  upon  Normandy 
The  ciireless  and  generous  temper  of  his  brother  Robert,  and  the  liceiiiiou3 
nature  of  the  Norman  Larons,  kept  that  duchy  in  constant  uneasiness 
and  William  took  up  his  temporary  abode  there,  to  encourage  his  own 
parliz:iiis  and  be  ready  to  avail  himself  of  any  thing  that  inieht  seem  to  fa- 
vour his  designs  upon  his  brother's  inheritance.  While  in  Normandy  the 
king  raised  the  large  sum  of  ten  thousand  pounds  by  a  roguish  turn  of  in- 
genuity. Being,  from  the  nature  of  the  circumstances  in  which  he  was 
placed,  far  more  in  want  of  money  than  in  the  want  of  men,  he  sent  or- 
ders to  his  minister.  lialph  Flambard,  to  raise  an  army  of  twenty  thousand 
men,  and  march  it  to  the  coast,  as  if  for  iiiRtunt  embarkation.  It  is  to  be 
supposed  that  not  a  few  of  these  men  thus  suddenly  levied  for  foreign 
service  were  far  more  desirous  of  staying  at  home ;  and  when  the  army 
reached  the  coast,  these  were  gratified  by  the  information  that  on  the  pay- 
ment of  ten  shillings  to  the  king,  each  man  was  at  liberty  to  return  to  his 
home.  With  the  money  thus  obtained,  William  bribed  the  king  ot 
France  and  some  ttf  those  who  had  hitheito  sided  with  Robert,  but  before 
he  could  gain  any  decisive  advantage  from  his  Machiavclian  polii.y,  he 
was  obliged  to  hasten  over  to  England  to  repel  the  Welsh,  who  had  made 
an  incursioi'  duriiiu;  his  absence. 

A.I).  1095.  — WhiTc  William  had  been  so  discreditably  busy  in  prontoting 
discord  in  tlio  ducliy  of  his  brother,  his  owi;  kingdom  had  not  het-ii  free 
from  inirigucs.  Robert  de  Moiihray,  earl  of  Norlliumbcrlaud,  the  (,'ount 
D'Eii,  Roger  de  Lacey,  and  many  otlicr  powerful  harons,  who  had  been 
ueeply  ■>l1'eiiiled  by  the  king's  haughty  and  despoiic  temper,  were  this 
year  ucicctcd  in  a  coiif piracy  whirh  had  for  itsohifciihe  (h'lhroiiiMiicnt  of 
the  king  in  favour  of  Nlephcn,  count  of  Auinalc,  and  ncpi.ew  of  Williaui 
the  (^nqueror.     With  his  usual  promptitude,  Williunii  n>  gaining  inlellr 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


189 


gence  of  the  conspiracy,  took  measures  to  defeat  it.  De  Moubray  was 
surprised  before  he  had  coinpltted  his  preparations,  and  though  he  resist- 
ed gallantly  he  was  overpawered  and  thrown  into  prison.  Attainder  and 
forfeiture  followed  as  a  matter  of  course,  and  for  the  long  period  of  thirty 
years  the  unfortunate  noble  lingered  in  prison,  where  he  died.  The  Count 
D'Eu,  who  also  was  surprised,  firmly  denied  his  participation  in  the 
conspiracy,  and  challenged  Geoffrey  Baynard,  by  whom  he  had  been  ac- 
cused. 10  mortal  combat.  The  count  was  defeated,  and  the  brutal  sen- 
tence upon  him  was  castration  and  deprivation  of  sight.  The  historians 
speak  of  William  de  Alderi,  another  of  the  conspirators,  who  was  hanged, 
as  having  been  more  severely  dealt  with  ;  but  we  think  most  people  would 
consider  that  death  was  among  the  most  merciful  of  the  sentences  of  this 
cruel  and  semi-barbarous  age. 

A  war,  or  rather  a  series  of  wars,  now  commenced,  to  which  all  the 
skirmishes  of  Scotland,  and  Wales,  and  Normandy,  were  to  prove  as 
mere  child's  play  in  comparison.  We  allude  to  the  first  crusade,  or  holy 
war,  the  most  prominent  events  of  which  we  have  given  in  our  brief 
"Outline  of  General  History."  Priest  and  layman,  soldier  and  trader, 
noble  and  peasant,  all  were  suddenly  seized  with  an  enthusiasm  little 
short  of  madness.  Men  of  all  ranks  and  almost  of  all  ages  took  to  arms. 
A  holy  war,  a  crusade  of  the  Christians  against  the  infidels  ;  a  warfare  at 
once  righteous  and  perilous,  where  valour  fought  under  the  sacred  sym- 
bol of  the  cross,  so  dear  to  the  Christian  and  so  hateful  to  the  infidel! 
Nothing  could  have  more  precisely  and  completely  suited  the  spirit  of  an 
age  in  which  it  was  difficult  to  say  whether  courage  or  superstition  were 
the  master-passion  of  all  orders  of  men. 

The  temper  of  Robert,  duke  of  Normandy,  was  not  such  as  to  allow  him 
to  remain  unmoved  by  the  fierce  enthusiasm  of  all  around  him.  Brave 
even  to  rashness,  and  easily  led  by  his  energetic  but  ill-disciplined  feelings 
to  fall  into  the  general  delusion,  which  combined  all  the  attractions  of  chiv- 
alry with  all  the  urgings  of  a  mistaken  and  almost  savage  piety,  he  very 
early  added  his  name  to  that  of  the  Christian  leaders  who  were  to  go  forth 
to  the  rescue  of  the  holy  sepulchre  and  the  chastisement  of  heathenism. 
But  when,  in  the  language  of  that  book  which  laymen  of  his  period  but 
little  read,  he  "sat  down  to  count  the  cost,"  he  speedily  discovered  that 
his  life-long  carelessness  and  profusion  had  left  him  destitute  of  journey- 
ing to  the  east  in  the  slyh^  or  with  the  force  wliich  would  become  liis  rank. 
It  was  now  th;it  the  cooler  and  more  sordid  temper  of  '.Viliiam  of  Kng- 
land  gave  that  monarch  the  fullest  advantage  over  tiis  improvident  and 
headstrong  brother,  who  recklessly  mortgaged  his  duchy  to  William  for 
the  comparatively  insignificant  sum  of  l(>n  thou'sand  marks.  William 
raised  the  moi^ey  by  means  of  the  most  nnblushing  and  tyrannous  imposts 
upon  his  subjects,  and  was  forthwith  put  in  possession  of  Normandy  and 
and  Maine  ;  while  Robert,  expending  his  money  in  a  noble  outfit,  proceed- 
ed to  the  east,  full  of  dreams  of  temporal  glory  to  bo  obtained  by  the  self- 
same slaughter  of  pao^ans  which  would  insure  his  eternal  salvation. 
Though  William  was  tlius  rcudy,  with  a  view  to  his  own  advantage,  to 
expedite  the  departure  of  his  brother  to  the  Holy  Land,  he  was  himself 
not  only  too  free  from  the  general  cntliusiasm  to  go  thither  himself,  but 
he  also,  and  very  wisely,  discouragc-d  his  subjects  from  doing  so.  He 
seems,  indeed,  thougli  auffl;'iently  suiierstiiious  to  be  easily  worked  upon 
by  the  clergy  when  he  deemed  his  life  in  danger,  to  have  been  care- 
less about  reliiiion  even  to  the  verge  of  iinpiety.  More  than  one  unbe- 
comi'ig  jest  upon  religion  is  on  record  against  him;  hut  we  m a }',  per- 
haps, safely  bcdieve  that  the  clergy,  the  sole  historians  of  the  times, 
with  whom  his  arbitrary  and  ungovernable  iialure  made  him  no  favourite, 
have  palmed  him  in  this  respect  somewhat  wiirse  than  he  was. 

It  was  in  one  of  his  fits  of  superstition  thai,  believing  himself  on  the 


m 


THE  THEASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


point  of  (Inatli,  lie  was  at  length  induced  to  fill  up  the  archbishopric  ol 
(/uutcrhury,  which  he  had  kept  unfilled  from  the  death  of  Lanfranc. 
Ill  terror  of  hin  supposed  approaching  death  he  conferred  this  dignity 
upon  Anselni,  a  pious  and  learned  Norman  abbot.  Anselm  at  first  re- 
fuMud  the  promotion,  even  in  tears;  but  when  he  at  length  accepted  it, 
h«  nhuiKhintly  proved  that  he  was  not  inirlined  to  allow  the  interests  of 
tilt)  ehui'cli  to  lack  any  defence  or  watchfulness.  His  severity  of  demean- 
our mid  life,  and  his  unsparing  sternness  towards  every  thing  that  either 
rontioii  or  sniierslition  pointed  out  as  profane  and  of  evil  report  were  re- 
niurknbiu.  He  spared  not  in  censure  even  the  king  himself,  and  as  William, 
on  rrcoveri'ii;  from  the  illness  which  caused  him  to  promote  Anselm, 
very  plauily  allowed  that  he  was  not  a  jot  more  pious  or  just  than  before, 
(liHputi'H  vi.'ry  soon  grew  high  between  the  king  and  the  archbishop  whom 
ill!  had  taken  80  much  trouble  to  persuade  into  acceptance  of  dignity  and 
power.  'I'lie  church  was  at  this  time  much  agitated  by  a  dispute  be- 
tween Urban  and  Clement.  Each  maintained  himself  to  be  the  true,  and 
liiti  opponent  the  anii-pope.  While  yet  only  an  abbot  in  Normandy,  An- 
fiehll  had  acknowledged  the  authority  of  Urban;  and  he  now  in  his  higher 
dignity  and  wider  influence,  still  espoused  his  cause,  and  resolved  to 
OMtabliMh  his  authority  in  England.  As  the  law  of  the  Conqueror  was 
ntlll  ill  I'oree  that  no  pope  should  be  acknowledged  in  Fhiglaiid  until  his 
auihority  idiould  have  received  the  sanction  of  thn  king,  William  deter- 
mined to  make  this  disobedience  the  pretext  upon  which  to  endeavour  to 
deprive  the  archbishop  of  his  high  ecclesiastical  dignity.  The  king  ac- 
eordiiiKly  sinninoned  a  synod  at  Rockingham,  and  called  upon  it  to  depose 
AtiHelm.  Ihit  the  assembled  suffragans  declined  to  pass  the  required  sen- 
UMlce,  <lerlarnig  that  ihey  knew  of  no  auth(n-ity  by  which  they  could  do  so 
without  the  eoiiiinaiid  of  the  pope,  who  alone  could  release  them  from  the 
re»i)eet  anil  obedience  which  they  owed  to  their  primate.  While  the 
euNe  wuN  in  this  state  of  incertitude  and  pause,  some  circumstances  arose 
whii'li  rendered  it  expedient  for  ^Villiam  to  acknowledge  llie  legitimacy 
of  |Irlt;m's  election  to  the  paj'  ';e,  but  the  apparent   reconciliation 

which  llii«  pniiliiced  between  ll  and  Anselm  was  but  of  short  dura- 

lioii.  Till'  main  cause  of  >,nie\..  .  ,  though  itself  removed  by  the  recon- 
eilialion  of  Wdham  and  the  pofie,  left  behind  an  angry  feeling  which  re- 
(inired  only  a  pretext  to  liiir-<t  forth,  and  liuit  pretext  the  haugliiy  state 
ileitpoliHm  of  William  and  the  no  less  haughty  clinrch  zeal  of  Anselm 
vpeedily  I'linilHlied. 

Wii  ineiilinni"!  .iiiioiig  the  numerous  despotic  arrangements  of  tlieCon- 
qiiei'or,  liift  liavii.g  req'ii red  from  bisiliopri''s  and  aliiieys  the  same  feudal 
Nerviee  in  the  lielil  us  IVinn  kiy  banniies  of  like  value.  William  Rufus 
ill  lliiH,  im  in  all  despotisin,  followed  cioM'iy  upon  the  track  left  by  his 
father  (  and  having  rewidved  upon  an  expet'ition  into  Wales,  he  calli-d  upon 
AiiNelin  I'lir  his  regulated  quota  of  men.  Aiiscliii,  in  common  with  all  the 
ehnri  liiiii'ii,  deemed  lliis  hjiecies  of  serviiuile  very  grievous  and  imbecom- 
ing  III  I'liiii'i'limeii ;  hnl  the  (les|iotlc  nature  of  William,  and  that  feeinig  ot 
fetiiliil  MiiliiniMsioii  wliieli,  next  to  snbmitisioii  to  tlie  eluiri-li,  seems  to  have 
been  the  iiiiikI  powerful  and  irresistible  frcling  in  lliiisi;  days,  prevented 
him  from  t;iviiigan  absolute  refusal.  lie  iherefore  look  a  middle  course ; 
he  Ni'iil  III  ipiota  of  men,  imleeil,  but  so  iiisiiiruiently  accoutred  ami  pro- 
vidi'd  tli.il  tliey  were  utterly  useless  and  a  ilisuriec  to  the  well-ap|iiiiiiied 
force  of  wliii'li  iliey  were  inti  iided  to  fiPiiii  apart.  The  king  threatened 
AliNelni  Willi  a  proseeiilion  for  this  olivii>nsly  inienlional  and  iiisiilliiig 
evaHioii  ol'  the  Kpirti  of  his  duty  whilt<  coinplyiii<i  wiili  it.s  mere  letter,  and 
the  prel  lie    retorteil  by  a  deniainl  for  the   restur  ilimi  uf  ihe    reveiiui!  ol 

which  Ins  see   liail  I ii  arbitrarily  anil  unfairly  deprived  by  the  kiii'i,  ap- 

|iealiiiu  to  the  p'lpe  at  the  sanii!  time  for  pMiieetion  and    n  jnsi  ilecinion. 
The  king's  violent  temper  was  m  inueh  inlhuiied  by  the  prelate's  opposi 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


lUl 


lion,  that  the  friends  of  Ansehn  became  alarmed  for  his  peroonal  safety, 
and  application  was  made  to  the  king  for  permission  for  the  prelate  to 
leave  the  country,  a  permission  which  lie  readily  gave,  as  the  hest  way 
at  once  to  riil  himself  of  an  opponent  whose  virtuous  and  religi  lus  char- 
acter made  him  holh  troublesome  and  dangerous,  and  to  obtain  possession 
temporarily,  at  the  very  least,  of  the  whole  of  the  rich  temporalities  of  the 
see  of  Canterbury.  Upon  these  he  seized  accordingly,  but  Anselin,  whom 
the  papal  court  looked  upon  as  a  martyr  in  the  cause  of  the  church,  met 
with  such  a  splendid  reception  at  Rome  as  left  him  littls  to  regret  in  a 
worldly  point  of  view. 

A.  n.  10!)7. — Though  freed  from  the  vexatious  opposition  of  the  indom- 
itable and  upriglit  churchman,  William  was  not  even  now  to  enjoy  re- 
pose ;  if,  indeed,  repose  would  have  been  a  source  of  enjoyment  to  a  tem- 
per so  fierce  and  tnrlmlent.  Though  his  (fooler  judgment  had  enabled 
liini  10  oliiain  Normandy  and  Maine  from  his  thoughtless  and  prodigal 
brotiier,  it  did  not  enable  him  to  keep  in  subjection  the  turbulent  and  al- 
most independent  barons  of  those  provinces.  They  were  perpetually  in 
a  stale  of  disorder,  eitiier  from  personal  quarrels  or  as  the  result  of  the 
ariful  iiisiigations  of  the  king  of  France,  wiio  lost  no  opportunity  of  in- 
citing llieni  to  revolt  against  the  king  of  England.  Among  the  most 
Irouljlesoi'.K!  of  these  barons  was  Helie,  lord  of  La  Fleche,  n  c((inparative- 
ly  small  tnwn  and  territory  in  the  province  of  Anjou.  He  was  very  pop- 
ular among  the  people  of  Maine;  and  iliouyh  William  sev(;ral  tini(!s  went 
from  England  for  the  express  purpose  of  putting  him  down,  llelie  as 
constantly  returned  to  his  old  courses  tiie  moment  the  niiniareh  had  re- 
turned home.  William  at  Icniith  took  Helie  jirisoner,  but  at  the  interces- 
sion of  the  king  of  France  and  the  earl  of  Anjou  he  gave  him  his  liberty. 
Untamed  either  by  the  narrow  est  ape  he  had  had  from  death  in  being  re- 
leased from  toe  hands  of  so  passionate  ami  resolute  a  prince  as  Wdliam, 
Helie  again  commenced  his  plundering  and  d(!stroying  course,  ttiok  posses- 
sion, with  tiie  connivance  of  the  citizens,  nf  the  town  of  Mans,  -.nid  laid 
siege  to  the  garrison  which  remained  faithfid  to  the  king  of  England. 
VViiliiim  was  engaged  in  his  favourite  pursuit  of  hunting  in  the  Ni'w  For- 
est wiien  he  rcciuved  this  intelligence,  and  he  was  so  transported  with 
fury  tliat  he  galloped  'mniedialely  to  Dartmouth  and  hurried  on  hoard  a 
vessel.  The  weather  was  so  stormy  and  threatening  that  the  sadors  were 
iinwiiling  to  venture  from  port;  but  tin;  king,  with  u  good-huuKMireil  reck- 
lessness and  scorn,  assur(;d  th(mi  th.it  kings  were  never  drowned,  and 
conip(dled  them  to  set  sail,  Tliis  p"omplitude  enahled  him  to  arrive  in 
time  to  raise  the  siege  of  Mans,  and  he  pursued  Helie  to  Majol  ;  hnt  he 
had  scariMdy  commence^]  the  siege  of  that  place  when  he  received  so 
severe  a  wound  that  it  rendered  it  necessary  for  him  to  return  to  Eng- 
land. 

A.  n.  1100 — The  cusading  mania  was  still  as  strong  as  ever.  Wil- 
liam, duke  of  I'oictiers  and  earl  of  Cuienne,  einnloiis  of  the  fame  of  the 
earlier  (.■rnsaMers  and  wholly  untaught  by  their  misfortunes,  raised  an  im- 
nii'iise  force — some  historians  say  as  in^iiiy  as  sixty  thousand  cavalry 
and  a  much  larger  number  of  infantry.  To  convey  such  a  force  to  the 
Holy  [.and  reLpiired  no  small  sum  of  money,  and  Count  William  offered 
to  mortgage  his  dominions  to  William  of  l']nglaiid,  to  whom  alone  of  all 
liu!  lay  sovereigns  of  Europe,  the  crusades  promised  to  lie  truly  profita- 
ble. Till!  king  gladly  agreed  to  advance  the  money,  in  tin;  confulent  bo 
lief  that  it  would  never  he  in  the  power  of  the  mortgager  to  redeem  his 
province*,  and  was  in  the  very  act  of  preparing  tin;  necessary  fttice  to  es- 
cort the  money,  and  to  take  possession  of  the  provinces,  when  an  acci- 
dent, famous  in  history,  caused  his  dealli. 

The  .New  Forest,  jilanted  by  the  most  inicinitous  cruelty,  was  very  fatal 
to  tl'.e  C  oiiijueror's  family ;  so  much  so,  as  to  leave  us  little  reason  to 


192 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


wonder  that,  in  so  superstitious  an  age,  it  was  deemed  that  there  was  a 
special  and  retributive  fate  in  the  royal  deaths  which  occurred  there. 
Richard,  elder  brother  of  King  William  Rufus,  was  killed  there,  as  was 
Richard,  a  natural  son  of  Duke  Robert  of  Normandy.  William  Rufus  was 
now  a  lliird  royal  victim.  He  was  himling  there  when  an  arrow  shot  by 
Walter  Tyrrel,  a  Norman  favourite  of  the  monarch,  struck  a  tree  and,  glan- 
cing off,  pierced  the  breast  of  the  king,  who  died  on  the  spot.  The  uiiiti- 
tenlional  homicide  dreading  tiie  violent  justice  which  the  slayer  of  a  king 
was  likely  to  experience,  no  sooner  saw  the  result  of  his  luckless  shot, 
than  he  galloped  off  lo  the  sea  shore  and  crossed  over  to  France,  wiience 
he  with  all  speed  departed  for  the  Holy  land.  His  alarm  and  flight, 
though  perfectly  natural,  were,  in  fact,  quite  needless.  William  was  little 
beloved  even  by  his  immediate  attendants  and  courtiers ;  and  his  body 
when  found  was  hastily  and  carelessly  interred  in  Winchester,  without 
any  of  the  gorgeous  and  expensive  ceremony  which  usually  marks  the 
obsequies  of  a  powerful  monarch. 

London  Bridge — taken  down  only  a  very  few  years  since,  and  Westmin- 
ster Hail,  were  built  by  this  monarch.  '  For  the  last-named  structure, 
which  has  the  largest  roof  in  the  world  unsupported  by  pillars,  he  obtain- 
ed the  timber  from  Ireland,  which  at  that  time  was  very  celebrated  for 
its  timber  of  all  kmds,  but  especially  for  the  very  durable  and  beautiful 
sort  known  by  the  name  of  bog  oak. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 


THE  REION  OF  HENRV  I- 


WiLLiAM  Rufus,  who  died  on  the  second  of  Augn'it,  1100,  in  the  forti- 
eth year  of  his  age  and  the  tliiitieth  of  his  reign,  left  no  legitimate  issue, 
and  was  succeeded  by  his  brother  Henry,  who  wa".  of  the  hunting  party  at 
which  the  king  lost  his  life. 

Robert,  dnke  of  Normandy,  who  as  the  elder  brother  of  the  deceased 
king  had  a  preferable  claim  to  that  of  Henry,  was,  as  has  already  been 
related,  one  of 'he  chief  and  most  zealous  leaders  of  the  crusaders.  Af- 
ter slaughter  tt  ible  merely  to  think  of,  and  sufferings  from  famine  and 
disease  such  as  ^e  pen  of  even  a  Thucydides  would  but  imperfectly  de- 
scribe,  the  crusai.  's  had  obiaitu-d  possession  of  Jerusalem.  Solynian, 
the  Turkish  empe.  r,  was  thoroughly  defeated  in  two  tremendous  bat- 
tles, and  Nice,  the  fr-  'xl  of  his  government,  was  captured  after  an  obsti- 
nate  siege.  The  soi.  'n  of  H<jypt,  however,  succeeded  the  Turkisli  em- 
peror in  the  poss(^ssio•l  of  Jerusalem,  and  he  offered  to  allow  free  ingress 
and  egress  to  all  Ciiristian  pilgrims  who  chose  to  visit  the  holy  sepulchre 
unarmed.  But  the  religious  Zeal  of  the  champions  of  the  cross  was  fir 
too  highly  inflanie<l  by  their  recent  triumphs  over  the  crescent  to  allow 
of  their  acxepting  this  compromise;  they  haughtily  demanded  the  cession 
of  the  -lity  altogether,  and,  on  his  refusal,  siege  was  laid  lo  it.  For  five 
weeks  the  soldan  defended  himself  with  the  utmost  coolness  and  valoui 
against  the  assaults  of  higlily-disciplined  and  veteran  troops,  whose  mill 
tary  ardour  was  now  exciied  to  the  utmost  by  fanaticism.  But  at  the  eiu' 
of  that  time  the  zeal  and  fury  of  the  (Jhri^tians  prevailed  ;  Jerusalem  was 
carried  by  assault,  and  a  scene  of  carnagf?  and  suffering  ensued  whieli 
might  almost  bear  coiii|)arisoii  with  that  earlier  and  dread  scene  in  the 
lame  city,  of  which  we  owe  the  undying  narrative  to  Josephus.  Nor  wan 
the  carnage  contiiied  even  to  iIk;  furious  and  maddened  first  hours  of  suc- 
cess. Long  after  the  streets  of  the  holy  city  were  strewed  with  carcasses, 
and  upon  every  lieartli  lay  ihi;  dead  forms  of  those  who  had  vainly  en- 
deavoured  tu  liefend  them — long  after  the  pulses  of  the  warrior  had  ceaseH 


THE  TRBASUEY  OP  HISTOEY. 


IM 


to  be  quickened  by  the  perilous  assault,  and  his  better  natnre  to  be  stifled 
by  tlie  irritation  of  resistance — an  unarmed  rabble  of  ten  thousand  people, 
of  both  sexes  and  all  ages,  to  whom  quarter  had  been  promised  as  the 
reward  of  submission,  were  treacherously  and  brutally  murdered  in  cold 
blood  by  ruffians  who  soon  after  knelt  in  tearful  rapture  at  the  sepulchre 
of  him  who  died,  lamb-like,  for  the  salvation  of  all !  Awful  indeed,  the 
contrast  between  the  professed  motive  of  this  holy  war  and  the  conduct 
of  the  w:irriors! 

The  city  of  Jerusalem  was  taken  just  about  twelve  months  previous  to 
the  death  of  William  llufus,  and  the  crusaders,  having  elected  Godfrey  of 
Boul<i<,'iie  king  of  Jerusalem,  and  settled  other  nobles  and  knights  in  the 
Holy  Land,  returned  to  Europe.  Had  Robert,  duke  of  Normandy,  has- 
tened  home  direct,  he  probably  would  have  been  able  to  prevent  the  usur- 
pation of  Kugland  by  his  younger  brother.  His  knowledge  of  the  charac- 
ter of  William  Rtifus  might  naturally  have  been  expected  to  hurry  him 
home  by  anxiety  about  Normandy;  but  Robert  was  to  the  full  as  careless 
as  he  was  brave.  Passing  through  Italy  he  fell  in  love  with  and  married 
a  noble  lady,  Sibylla,  daughter  of  the  Count  of  Conversana,  and  remained 
a  whole  year  in  her  native  clime,  abandoning  himself  to  the  delights  of 
love  am)  that  most  delicious  country,  while  his  friends  in  England — and 
his  niiimal  character,  as  well  as  the  fame  of  his  achievments  in  the  east, 
made  them  very  numerous — were  in  vain  hoping  that  he  would  arrive  to 
defeat  the  unjust  ambitiou  of  Henry.  The  latter  prince  was  as  alert  as 
his  brother  was  iudolent.  The  instant  that  he  ascertained  the  death  of 
his  brother,  he  galloped  into  Winchester  and  seized  upon  the  royal  trea- 
sure. De  Breteuil,  the  keeper,  endeavoured  to  secure  it,  and  remonstra- 
ted with  the  prince  on  the  absolute  treason  of  seizing  the  treasure  and 
crown,  which  belonged  of  right  to  his  elder  brother,  who  was  no  less  his 
sovereign  for  being  absent.  But  Henry,  whose  friends  hastened  to  sup- 
port him,  threatened  to  put  De  Breteuil  to  death  if  he  attempted  any  resist- 
ance to  his  will,  and,  hastening  to  London  with  the  money,  he  made  so 
judi(!ioiisly  prodigal  a  use  of  it,  alike  among  friends  in  fact  and  foes  by 
inclination,  that  he  easily  obtained  himself  to  be  elected  king  by  acclama- 
tion, and  he  was  crowned  by  Maurice,  bishop  of  London,  within  three 
days  of  Ins  brother's  sudden  and  violent  death.  Title  to  the  throne  it  is 
quite  plain  that  Henry  had  none.  But  he  now  had  possession ;  and  as  his 
judicious  bribery  had  procured  him,  at  the  least,  the  ostensible  support  of 
all  the  most  eminent  and  powerful  barons,  even  the  most  sincere  and  zeal- 
ous friends  of  the  absent  Robert  were  obliged  to  confess,  however  sor- 
rowriiily,  that  his  own  indolence  had  deprived  him  of  all  possibility  of 
obtaining  the  throne  from  his  more  active  and  enterprising  brother,  unless 
at  the  fearful  expense  of  a  civil  war. 

Politic  as  he  was  resolute,  Henry  felt  that,  obtained  as  his  crown  had 
been  by  tHe  most  flagrant  and  unqualified  usurpation,  he  would,  at  the 
outset  of  his  reign  at  least,  be  best  secured  against  any  attempts  which 
in  mere  desperation  his  brothel"  might  make  to  dethrone  him,  by  the  alTcc 
tion  of  the  great  body  of  the  people  as  well  as  of  the  nobles.  To  obtain 
this,  the  tyrannies  of  his  immediate  predecessors  afforded  an  ample  and 
easy  scope. 

"Besides,"  says  Hume,  "taking  the  usual  coronation  oath  to  maintain 
the  laws  and  execute  justice,  ho  passed  a  Chartrb  which  was  calinilated 
to  remedy  many  of  the  grievous  oppression!  which  had  been  complaineil 
of  during  the  reigns  of  his  father  aiul  brother.  He  there  promised  that  ut 
the  death  of  any  bishop  or  abbot  ho  never  would  seize  the  revenues  of  the 
lee  or  ablx  ;  during  the  vacancy,  but  would  leave  the  whole  to  be  reaped 
by  the  successor,  and  that  he  would  never  let  to  farm  any  ecclesiastical 
benefice,  nor  dispose  of  it  for  money.  Kdet  this  concesssion  to  the  church 
whose  favour  was  of  so  great  importance  to  him,  he  proceeded  to  cnumor 
»— 13 


194 


THE  TEEASURY  OF  HI8T0EY. 


ate  tbe  uivil  grievances  which  he  purposed  to  redress.  He  promised  thai 
upon  the  death  of  any  earl,  baron,  or  military  tenant,  his  heir  should  be 
admitted  to  the  possession  of  his  estate  on  paying  a  just  and  lawful  relief, 
without  being  exposed  to  sucn  violent  exactions  as  had  been  usual  during 
the  late  reigns — he  remitted  the  wardship  of  minors,  and  allowed  guar- 
dians to  be  appointed  who  should  be  answerable  for  the  trust — he  prom- 
ised not  to  dispose  of  any  heiress  in  marriage  but  by  the  advice  of  all  the 
barons,  and  if  any  baron  intended  to  give  his  daughter,  sister,  niece,  ot 
other  kinswoman  in  marriage,  it  should  only  be  necessary  for  him  to  con- 
sult the  king,  who  promised  to  take  no  money  for  his  consent,  nor  even 
to  refuse  permission,  unless  the  person  to  whom  it  was  purposed  to  mnrry 
her  should  be  his  enemy.  He  granted  his  barons  and  military  tenants  the 
power  of  bequeathing  by  will  their  money  or  personal  estates,  and  if  they 
neglected  to  make  a  will,  he  promised  that  their  heirs  should  succeed  to 
thcin.  He  renounced  the  right  of  imposing  moneyage  and  of  levying  taxes 
at  pleasure  on  the  farms  which  the  barons  retained  in  their  own  hands, 
and  he  made  some  general  professions  of  moderating  fines,  offered  a  par- 
don for  all  offences,  and  remitted  all  the  debts  due  to  the  crown.  He  re- 
quired that  the  vassals  of  the  barons  should  enjoy  the  same  privileges 
which  he  granted  to  his  own  barons  ;  and  he  promised  a  general  confirma- 
tion and  observance  of  the  laws  of  King  Edward.  This  is  the  substance 
of  the  chief  articles  contained  in  that  famous  charter." 

Though,  to  impress  the  people  with  the  notion  of  his  great  anxioty  foi 
the  full  publicity  and  exact  performance  of  these  gracious  promises,  Henry 
caused  a  copy  of  this  charter  to  be  placed  in  an  abbey  in  every  county, 
his  subsequent  conduct  shows  that  he  never  intended  it  for  anything  hut  a 
lure,  by  which  to  win  the  support  of  the  barons  and  people,  while  that  sup- 
port as  yet  appeared  desirable  to  his  cause.  The  grievances  which  lie  so 
ostentatiously  promised  to  redress  were  continued  during  his  whole  reiirn; 
and  as  regards  the  charter  itself,  so  completely  neglected  was  it,  that  when 
in  their  disputes  with  the  tyrant  John,  the  English  barons  were  desirous 
to  make  it  the  standard  by  which  to  express  their  demands,  scarcely  a 
copy  of  it  could  be  found. 

The  popularity  of  the  king  at  the  commencement  of  his  reign  owed  not 
a  little  of  its  warmth  to  his  just  and  politic  dismissal  and  imprisonnient  of 
Ralph  Flamhard,  bishop  of  Durham,  who,  as  principal  minister  and  fuvour- 
ite  of  William  Rufus,  had  been  gtiilty  of  great  oppression  and  cruelty,  es- 
pecially in  raising  money.  The  Dudley  and  Enipson  of  a  later  reign  were 
scarcely  more  detested  than  this  man  was,  and  nothing  could  bi  more 
agreeable  to  the  people  than  his  degradation  and  punishment.  I3ut  the 
king,  apart  from  his  politic  desire  to  gratify  the  public  reseniinent  ug:iinst 
Ills  brother's  chief  and  most  unscrupulous  instrument  of  oppression,  seems 
to  have  had  his  own  pecuniary  advantage  chiefly  in  view.  Instead  of  im- 
mediately appointing  a  successor  to  the  bishopric,  he  kept  it  vacmit  'or 
five  years,  and  during  all  that  time  he,  in  open  contempt  of  the  positive 
promise  of  his  charter,  applied  the  revenues  of  the  see  to  his  own  use. 

This  shameful  invasion  of  the  rigiits  of  the  church,  however,  dul  not 
prevent  him  from  otherwise  seeking  its  favour.  Well  aware  of  the  high 
rank  which  Anselm  held  in  the  affections  of  both  the  clergy  and  tlii'  peo- 
ple, he  strongly  invited  him  to  leave  Lyons— where  he  now  lived  in  gieiit 
state— and  resume  his  dignity  in  England.  Rut  the  king  accompanied  this 
invitation  with  a  demand  that  Anselm  should  renew  to  him  the  hnmago 
he  had  formerly  paid  to  his  brother.  Anselm,  however,  by  his  residence 
at  Rome,  had  learned  to  look  with  a  very  different  eye  now  upon  thiit  ho- 
mage which  formerly  he  had  (considered  as  so  mere  and  innocuous  n  form, 
and  he  returned  for  answer,  that  he  not  only  would  not  pay  homiigc  him- 
■elf,  but  he  would  not  even  communicate  with  any  of  the  clergy  who  should 
do  ao,  or  who  would  accept  of  lav  investiture.     However  much  mortified 


THE  TREA8UHY  OF  HISTORY. 


x9B 


Henry  was  at  finding  the  exiled  prelate  thus  resolute,  he  was  too  anxious 
for  the  support  and  countenance  of  Anselni — which  if  thrown  nito  the 
scale  for  Robert  might  at  some  future  lime  prove  so  formidable — to  insist 
upuM  ills  own  proposal.  He  therefore  agreed  that  all  controversy  on  the 
lulijeets  should  be  referred  to  Rome ;  and  Aiiselm  was  restored  to  his  dig* 
nity,  and,  undoubtedly,  all  the  more  powerful  both  from  the  circumstanct^s 
which  led  to  his  exile  and  those  which  accompanied  his  return.  His  au- 
llionty  Wcis  scarcely  re-established  when  it  was  Hppualed  to  upon  a  sub- 
ject of  the  highest  interest  to  the  king  himself.  Matilda,  daughter  of  Mal- 
colm HI.,  king  of  S(;otland  and  niece  of  Edgar  Atheling,  had  been  educa- 
ted in  the  nunnery  of  Ramsay.  Well  knowing  how  dear  the  royal  Saxon 
liiieiige  of  this  lady  made  her  to  the  Eiijflish  nation,  Henry  proposed  to 
espouse  her.  It  is  a  striking  instance  of  the  extent  to  which  the  piihjiu 
mind  was  enslaved  by  R(Hne,  that  the  mere  residence  and  education  of  this 
princess  in  a  convent,  the  mere  wearing  of  the  veil  without  ever  having 
taken  or  intended  to  lake  the  vows,  seemed  to  make  it  doubtful  whether 
she  could  lawfully  contract  matrimony!  So  it,  however,  was;  mid  a  sol- 
emn council  of  prelates  and  nobles  was  held  at  Lambeth  to  determine  the 
piiiiit.  This  council  was  held  so  soon  after  the  restoration  of  Anselin  to 
his  dignity,  that  we  may,  without  great  breach  of  charity,  suspect  that  a 
desire  to  secure  the  support  of  Aiiselm  upon  this  very  subject  was  at  least 
one  of  the  motives,  if  not  the  idiief  one,  by  which  the  king  was  actuated 
ill  recalling  him.  Before  this  council  Matilda  stated  that  she  had  never 
contemplated  takinp;  the  vows,  and  that  she  had  only  worn  the  veil,  as  it 
was  quite  commonly  worn  by  the  English  ladies,  as  a  8afc<juard  fmm  tlie 
violence  of  the  Norman  soldiery.  .\s  it  whs  well  known  that  against  such 
violence  even  an  Knglish  princess  really  had  no  other  secure  guard,  the 
council  determined  that  ihe  wearing  of  the  veil  by  Matilda  had  in  no  wise 
pledged  her  to  or  connected  her  with  any  religions  sisterhood,  and  that 
she  was  as  free  to  marry  as  though  she  had  never  worn  it.  Henry  and 
.Matilda  were  married.  The  ceremony  was  performed  by  Aiiselm,  anil  was 
accompanied  with  great  and  gorgeous  rejoicing.  Tins  marriage  more 
lliaii  any  other  of  his  politic  arrangements  attached  the  English  people  to 
him.  Married  to  a  Saxon  princess,  he  seemed  to  them  to  have  acquired 
a  greater  right  to  the  throne  than  any  Norman  prince,  without  that  recom- 
meiutaticHi,  could  draw  from  any  other  circMiiistaiices. 

AD.  1101. — It  soon  appeared,  that,  great  as  Henry's  cat  '  rjd  been  to 
fortify  himself  in  the  general  heart  of  the  people,  it  had  iieen  •  "iihcr  un- 
necessary nor  excessive.  Robert,  who  had  wasted  so  much  time  in  Italy, 
returned  to  Normandy  about  a  month  after  the  death  of  Ins  brother  Riifus. 
Henry  had  given  no  orders  acd  made  no  pr^'paraiioiis  to  oppose  Holieri's 
resumption  of  ihe  duchy  of  Normandy.  Possessed  of  iliat  point  d'nppni, 
and  being  much  endeared  to  the  warlike  Norman  banms  by  his  acliii've- 
meiits  in  the  Holy  Land,  Robert  immediately  coiiniienced  prc^paralioiis  for 
invading  England,  nnd  wresting  his  birihriglil  from  the  usurping  hands  of 
liis  brother.  Nor  were  the  wishes  for  his  success  confiiied  to  those  bar- 
ons who  chiefly  or  wholly  lived  in  Normandy.  On  the  contrary,  many  of 
the  great  barons  of  England  decidedly  preferred  Robert  to  Henry;  and 
feeling  the  same  dislike  to  holding  their  English  and  Noriiian  pos.sessions 
under  two  sovereigns  which  had  been  so  stroiittly  expressed  at  tiie  ai-itcs- 
sion  of  William,  they  secretly  encouraged  Robert,  and  sent  him  assiiran- 
cci  that  they  would  join  him  with  their  levies  as  soon  as  he  should  land 
in  England.  Among  these  nobles  were  Robert  de  Belesnie,  earl  of 
Shrewsbury,  William  de  Waremie,  earl  of  Surrey,  Hugh  de  Grciitniesuil, 
Uobcrl  de  Mallet,  and  others  of  the  very  highest  and  most  powerful  men 
in  England.  The  enlhnsiasni  in  his  favour  extended  to  the  navy ;  and 
when  Henry  had,  with  great  expense  and  exertion,  made  a  fleet  ready  to 
oppose  his  brother's  landing,  tl.c  seamen  deserted  with  the  greater  iiumboT 


199 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


of  the  ships,  and  put  themselves  and  their  vessels  at  the  disposal  of  Robert. 
This  incident  gave  the  king  great  alarm,  lest  the  army,  too,  should  desert 
him,  in  which  case  not  only  his  crown  but  his  life  would  be  in  the  most 
imminent  danger.  Henry,  notwithstanding  this  peril,  preserved  his  cool- 
ness,  and  did  not  allow,  as  men  too  frequently  do,  the  greatness  of  the 
danger  to  turn  away  his  attention  from  the  best  means  of  meeting  and 
overcoming  it.  Well  knowing  the  superstition  of  the  people,  he  consid- 
ered nothing  lost  while  he  could  command  the  immense  Mifluence  which 
Anselm  had  over  the  public  mind.  Accordingly  he  redoubled  his  court  to 
that  prelate,  and  succeeded  in  making  him  believe  in  the  sincerity  of  his 
professed  design  and  desire  to  rule  justly  and  mildly.  What  he  himseli 
firmly  believed,  Anselm  diligently  and  eloquently  inculcated  upon  the 
minds  of  others ;  and  as  his  influence  and  exertions  were  seconded  by 
those  of  Roger  Bigod,  Robert  Fitzhammond,  the  earl  of  Warwick,  and  other 
powerful  nobles  who  remained  faithful  to  Henry,  the  army  was  kept  in 
good  humour,  and  marched  in  good  order,  and  with  apparent  zeal  as  will 
aa  cheerfulness,  to  Portsmouth,  where  Robert  had  landed. 

Though  the  two  armies  were  in  face  of  each  other  for  several  days,  not 
a  blow  was  struck ;  both  sides  seeming  to  feel  reluctant  to  commence  a 
civil  war.  Anselm  and  other  influential  men  on  either  side  took  advantage 
of  this  pause  to  bring  about  a  treaty  between  the  brothers ;  and,  after  niucli 
argument  and  some  delay,  it  was  agreed  that  Henry  should  retain  the 
crown  of  England,  and  pay  an  annual  pension  of  three  thousand  marks  to 
Robert ;  that  the  survivor  should  succeed  to  the  deceased  brother's  pos- 
sessions ;  that  they  should  mutually  abstain  from  encouraging  or  harbour- 
ing each  others  enemies ;  and  that  the  adherents  of  both  in  the  present 
quarrel  should  be  undisturbed  in  their  possessions  and  borne  harmless  foi 
all  that  had  passed. 

A.  D.  1102.— Though  Henry  agreed  with  seeming  cheerfulness  to  this 
treaty,  which  in  most  points  of  view  was  so  advantageous  to  him,  he  signed 
it  with  a  full  determination  to  break  through  at  least  one  of  its  provisions. 
The  power  of  his  nobles  had  been  too  fully  manifested  to  him  in  their  en- 
couragement of  Robert  to  admit  of  his  being  otherwise  than  anxious  to 
break  it.  The  earl  of  Shrewsbury,  as  one  of  the  most  powerful  and  also 
the  most  active  of  those  who  had  given  their  adhesion  to  Robert,  was  first 
fixed  upon  by  Henry  to  be  made  an  example  of  the  danger  of  offendinj; 
kings.  Spies  were  set  upon  his  every  word  and  action,  and  his  bold  anu 
haughty  character  left  them  but  little  difllculty  in  finding  matter  of  oflencc. 
No  fewer  than  five-and-forty  articles  were  exhibited  against  him.  He  wiis 
too  well  aware  both  of  the  truth  of  some  of  the  charges,  and  of  the  rigid 
severity  with  which  he  would  be  judged,  to  deem  it  safe  to  risk  a  triiil 
He  summoned  all  the  friends  and  adherents  he  could  command,  and  threw 
himself  upon  the  chances  of  war.  But  these  were  unfavourable  to  him 
In  the  influence  which  Anselm  possessed,  and  which  he  zealously  exerteil 
or,  behalf  of  the  king,  Henry  had  a  most  potent  means  of  defence,  and  h>' 
with  little  difficulty  reduced  the  carl  to  such  straits,  that  he  was  glad  lo 
leave  the  kingdom  with  his  life.  All  his  great  possessions  were  of  coursi' 
confiscated,  and  they  aflbrdcd  the  king  welcome  means  of  purchasin;^ 
new  friends,  and  securing  the  fidelity  of  those  who  were  his  friends  al 
ready. 

A.  D.  1103. — The  ruin  of  the  earl  of  Shrewsbury  produced  that  of  his 
brothers,  Roger,  earl  of  Lancaster,  and  Arnulf  de  Montgomery.  But  the 
vengeance  or  the  policy  of  the  king  required  yet  more  victims.  Robert 
de  Pontefract,  Robert  de  Mallet,  and  William  de  Warenne  were  prose- 
cuted, and  the  king's  power  secured  their  condemnation;  and  William, 
carl  of  Cornwall,  though  son  of  the  king's  uncle,  was  deprived  of  all  hia 
large  property  in  England.  The  charges  against  these  noblemen  weru 
artfully  made,  not  upon  their  conduct  towards  the  king  in  his  dispute  with 


THE  THEASUay  OF  HISTORY. 


197 


(lis  brother,  but  upon  their  misconduct  towards  their  vassals.  In  this  re- 
spect, indeed,  they  were  guilty  enough,  as  all  the  Norman  barons  were; 
but  it  was  not  this  guilt,  which  was  equally  chargeable  upon  the  king's 
firmest  and  most  powerful  defenders,  for  which  they  were  prosecuted 
and  ruined.  Robert  of  Normandy,  with  his  characteristic  generosity  and 
imprudence,  was  so  indignant  at  the  persecution  of  his  friends,  whose 
chief  crime  in  the  king's  eyes  he  well  knew  to  be  the  friendship  they  had 
shown  to  himself,  that  he  crossed  over  to  England  and  sharply  rebuked 
his  brother  with  the  shameful  und  ill-veiled  breach  of  a  principal  part  of 
their  treaty.  Confident  in  his  kingly  power,  Henry  was  but  little  aifected 
by  the  just  and  eloquent  reproaches  of  his  brother.  On  the  contrary,  he 
so  clearly  gave  him  to  understand  how  far  his  imprudent  rashness  in 
venturing  to  England  had  compromised  his  own  safety,  that  Robert  was 
glad  to  get  liberty  to  return  to  Normandy  at  the  expense  of  making  a 
forinHl  resignation  of  his  pension. 

The  time  soon  came  for  Henry  to  complete  the  ruin  of  the  brother 
whom  he  had  already  despoiled  of  the  fairest  and  most  precious  portion 
of  his  inheritance.  The  imprudent  thoughtlessness  and  levity  of  Robert 
not  merely  affected  his  conduct  as  far  as  he  himself  was  concerned ;  it 
made  him  wholly  unfit  to  rule,  and  opened  the  widest  possible  doors  16 
the  needy  and  the  profligate,  the  avaricious  and  the  tyrannical  among  his 
turbulent  and  unprincipled  barons  to  plunder  him,  as  well  as  to  rob  and 
then  ill-treat  his  unfortunate  subjects.  A  monarch  who  was  so  utterly 
careless  that  his  domestic  servants  plundered  him,  not  merely  of  the  little 
money  which  his  prodigal  habits  left  to  him,  but  even  of  his  clothes  and 
furniture,  was  but  ill  fitted  tu  preserve  his  subjects  from  the  ill-treatment 
of  the  most  licentious  nobility  in  all  Europe.  And  it  was  very  natural, 
that  when  the  more  thoughtful  and  observant  among  the  Normans  con- 
trasted the  loose  government  of  Robert — if  indeed  it  deserved  the  name 
of  ii  government  at  all — with  the  steady,  firm,  and  orderly  rule  of  Henry 
over  K  much  larger  and  more  important  state,  they  sliould  begin  to  think, 
and  to  whisper,  too,  that  even  a  usurper,  such  as  Henry,  was  far  better 
for  the  welfare  of  his  subjects,  than  such  a  legitimate,  but  utterly  inca- 
pable,  ruler  as  the  good-natured  and  generous,  but  extravagant  and  de 
bauched  Robert.  Disorders  at  length  rose  to  such  a  height  in  Normandy, 
as  to  give  Henry  a  pretext  for  going  over,  nominally  to  mediate  between 
the  opposing  parties,  but,  in  reality,  personally  to  observe  how  far  affairs 
were  in  train  to  admit  of  his  depriving  his  brother  of  the  duchy  alto- 
getlior.  Skilled  in  every  art  of  intrigue,  and  having  both  the  means  and 
the  will  to  bribe  most  piofi'soly,  Henry  soon  formed  a  strong  party ;  and 
having  returned  to  Eit^und  and  raised  the  necessary  force  by  the  most 
shimieless  and  unsparing  extortion,  he,  in  1105,  landed  again  in  Nor- 
mandy, no  longer  under  the  hypocritical  pretence  of  mediating,  but  with 
the  avowed  purpose  of  conquering,  if  possible.  He  laid  siege  to  Bayeux, 
and,  although  obstinately  and  bravely  resisted,  at  length  took  that  place 
by  storm.  Caen  he  prepared  to  besiege,  but  it  was  surrendered  to  him 
by  the  inhabitants.  He  then  laid  siege  to  Falaise,  but  here  he  was  suc- 
cessfully opposed  until  the  setting  in  of  the  winter  compelled  him  to  raise 
the  siege. 

A.  D.  1106. — With  the  return  of  favourable  weather  Henry  returned  to 
Mormandy  and  recommenced  his  operations,  opening  the  campuign  with 
the  siege  of  'rinchchray  with  a  force  so  mighty  that  it  was  quite  evident 
lie  contemplated  nothing  short  of  the  entire  subjugation  of  Normandy. 
It  required  all  the  success  that  Henry  had  as  yet  achieved,  and  all  the 
persuasions  of  his  own  friends,  to  arouse  Robert  from  his  lethargy  of 
natural  indolence  and  sensual  pleasure.  But  once  roused,  he  showed  that 
the  warrior  had  slumbered,  indeed,  in  his  heart,  but  was  not  dead.  Aided 
by  R(»bert  de  Bch^sme,  aud  by  the  earl  of  Mortaigne,  the  king's  uncle 


108 


THE  TaEASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


who  was  iiivetcralftly  opposed  to  Henry  on  aceonnt  of  his  ireatmenl  of 
RIoriaiRne's  son,  William,  earl  of  Cornwall,  Robert  speedily  raised  a 
piiwurlul  Torce  and  marched  against  his  brother,  in  the  hope  of  putting  an 
end  to  their  i-oniroverMies  in  a  single  battle.  Animated  at  being  led  by 
the  viiiiant  prince  wliose  feats  on  the  plains  of  Palestine  had  struck  terror 
into  Pagan  hearts,  and  won  the  applause  of  Christian  Europe,  Knbert'g 
tnuips  charged  so  boldly  and  so  well,  that  the  English  were  thrown  into 
CiuifuNion.  Had  the  Nornnin  success  been  well  followed  up  by  the  whule 
o(  llicir  force,  nothing  could  have  saved  the  Enttlish  army  from  defeat 
i.nd  de.>truciion.  But  the  troops  of  Roger  de  Belesine  were  suddenly  niid 
uiosi  unaccountably  seized  with  a  panic,  which  c(mmiunteatcd  itself  to 
the  rest  of  the  Normans.  Henry  and  his  friends  skilfully  and  promptly 
av  lilcd  tliemselves  of  this  sudden  turn  in  the  state  of  affairs,  charged  the 
enemy  again  and  again,  and  entirely  routed  them,  killing  vast  numbers  and 
iiakiiig  ten  thousand  prisimers,  among  wh(mi  was  Robert  himself. 

Tins  yreat  victory  gained  by  Henry  was  soon  after  crowned  by  the 
B.ii'iender  of  Rouen  and  Falalse ;  and  Henry  now  became  completely 
niiister  of  Normandy,  having  also  got  into  his  power  Robert's  son,  the 
young  prince  William,  who  was  unfortunately  in  Fulaise  when  thai  im> 
ponant  post  snrrt-iidered.  As  though  there  had  been  nothing  of  violence 
or  unfairness  in  his  con(hu:t,  Henry  nowcimvoked  the  states  of  Normandy 
and  received  their  homage  as  though  he  had  been  righifuMy  their  d<ike; 
after  which,  having  dismantled  su(di  fortresses  as  he  deemed  dangrrouft 
to  Ins  interests,  and  revoked  the  grants  which  R4>bert*s  foolish  facility  had 
iixlnccd  him  to  make,  he  returned  to  England,  taking  his  unfortunate 
brother  with  hlin  as  a  prisoner,  and  eoinmilting  yining  William  to  the 
custody  of  Helie  de  St.  Laen,  who  had  married  Robert's  natural  daugh- 
ter, and  who  treated  the  captive  /r.ri-te  with  a  tenderness  and  respect 
which  do  him  the  highest  honour  '  Robert  himself  was  committed  to  the 
custody  of  the  governor  of  Cardiff  castle  in  Wales,  where  for  twenty, 
eiglil  years,  the  whole  remainder  of  his  life,  he  remained  a  melancholy 
spectacle  of  fallen  greatness,  and  a  striking  example  of  the  uselessness 
of  courage  without  conduct,  and  of  the  danger  of  generosity  if  unregu- 
latt'd  liy  prudence. 

At  the  bailie  nf  Tinchebray,  so  fatal  to  Duke  Robert,  his  friend  Edgar 
Atlieling  was  taken  prisoner.  Though  on  more  than  one  occasion  this 
prince  gave  siirnal  proofs  of  bravery,  both  his  friends  and  his  enemies 
seem  to  have  held  his  intellect  in  considerable  contempt.  The  two  Wil- 
lianis  and  Henry  I.,  princes  4)f  such  different  qualities,  yet  so  perfectly 
agreeing  in  despotic  and  jealous  tempers,  equally  held  his  powers  of  ex- 
citing the  English  to  revolt  in  the  utmost  scorn.  'I'hough  his  Saxon  de- 
aceni  could  not  but  endear  him  to  the  Eiiolish  people,  and  though  both  at 
home  and  in  the  Holy  Land  he  had  proven  himself  to  possess  very  high 
courasfe,  there  was  so  general  and  apparently  go  well  founded  an  opinion 
of  his  deficiency  in  the  higher  imelleclual  qualities,  that  neither  did  the 
Sax(ms  look  up  to  him,  as  otherwise  they  gladly  would  have  done,  as  a 
a  rallying  point,  nor  did  the  Normans  houour  him  with  their  suspicious 
fear.  Even  now  when  Henry,  whose  treatment  of  his  own  brother  suf- 
ficiently proves  how  inexorable  he  could  be  where  he  saw  cause  to  fear 
injury  to  Ins  interests,  had  so  fair  an  excuse  for  committing  Edgar  to  safe 
custody,  he  showed  his  entire  disbelief  of  that  prince's  capacity,  by  al- 
lowing h:in  to  enjoy  his  full  liberty  in  England,  and  even  granting  him  a 
pension. 

A.  D.  1107. — Henry's  politic  character  and  hia  judgment  were  both  em- 
inently displayed  in  managing  his  very  delicate  dispute  with  the  nope  on 
the  subject  of  ecclesiastical  investitures.  While  showing  the  most  pro- 
found external  respect,  and  even  affection,  to  both  the  pope  and  Arch- 
oishop  Anselin,  Henry  proceeded  to  fill  the  vacant  sees  concerning  whitl 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


199 


there  was  dispute.  But  Ansclni,  though  \\o.  had  been  on  many  importiint 
occasions  a  staunch  and  useful  friend  tu  thi;  king,  was  far  too  gooil  a 
churchman  to  brooic  disobedience  to  the  papal  authority,  even  when  that 
disobedience  was  veiled  by  smiles,  and  couched  in  gentle  and  holiday 
terms.  He  refused  to  communicate  with,  far  less  to  consecrate,  the  bishops 
invested  by  the  king;  and  those  prelates  saw  themselves  exposed  to  so 
much  obloquy  by  their  opposition  to  so  revered  a  personage  as  Anseim, 
tliat  they  resigned  their  dignities  into  the  king's  hands.  The  complete 
defeat  of  a  scheme  which  he  had  prosecuted  with  such  dexterous  and 
painful  art,  deprived  the  king  of  his  usual  command  of  temper,  and  he  let 
fall  sucli  signilicant  threats  towards  all  opponents  of  his  authority,  that 
Anseim  became  alarmed  for  his  personal  safety,  and  demanded  permis- 
sion to  travel  to  Rome  to  consult  the  pope.  Well  knowing  the  popularity 
of  Anseim,  Henry  was  very  well  pleased  to  be  thus  peaceably  rid  of  his 
presence.  Anseim  departed,  and  was  attended  to  the  ship  by  hosts  of 
both  clergy  and  laity,  who,  by  the  cordial  respect  with  which  they  took 
their  leave  of  him,  tacitly,  but  no  less  plainly,  testified  their  sense  of  the 
justice  of  his  quarrel  with  their  sovereign. 

As  soon  as  Anseim  had  left  England  the  king  seized  upon  all  the  tem 
poralities  of  his  see ;  and,  fearful  lest  the  presence  of  Anseim  at  Romr- 
should  prejudice  him  and  his  kingdom,  he  sent  William  de  Warehvast  as 
ambassador  extraordinary  to  Pascal,  the  pope.  In  the  course  of  the  ar- 
gument between  the  pope  and  the  king  of  England's  envoy,  the  latter 
warmly  exclaimed  that  his  sovereign  would  rather  part  with  his  crown 
than  wiih  the  right  of  investiture  ;  to  which  Pascal  as  warmly  replied, 
that  he  would  rather  part  with  his  head  than  allow  the  king  to  retain  that 
right.  Anseim  retired  to  Lyons,  and  thence  to  his  old  monastery  of 
Bee.  The  king  restored  him  the  revenues  of  his  sees,  and  great  anxiety 
was  expressed  by  all  ranks  of  men  for  his  return  to  England,  where  his 
absence  was  affirmed  to  be  the  cause  of  all  imaginable  impiety,  and  of 
the  most  gross  and  disgusting  immorality.  The  disputes,  meantime,  be- 
tween Henry  and  the  pope  grew  warmer  and  warmer.  The  emperor, 
Henry  V.,  and  the  pope  were  at  feud  on  the  same  subject,  and  the  pope 
being  made  an  actual  prisonoi'.  was  compelled  by  a  formal  treaty  to  grant 
the  emperor  the  right  of  investiture.  The  king  of  England  was  less  ad- 
vantageously situated  than  the  emperor.  He  could  not,  by  getting  the 
pope  into  his  power,  cut  the  Gordian  knot  of  the  controversy  between 
them.  The  earl  of  Mellent  and  other  ministers  of  Henry  were  already 
Bulfering  under  the  pains  of  excommunication :  Henry  himsrlf  was  in 
daily  expectation  of  hearing  the  like  dreadful  sentence  pronounctcd  on 
himself,  and  he  well  knew  that  he  had  numerous  and  powerful  enemies 
among  his  nobles  who  would  both  gladly  and  promptly  avail  themselves 
of  it  to  throw  off  their  uneasy  allegiance.  He  and  the  pope  were  mu- 
tually afraid,  and  a  compromise  was  at  length  entered  into,  by  which  the 
piipe  had  the  right  of  ecclesiastical  investiture,  while  Henry  had  the  right 
of  demanding  homage  from  the  prelates  for  their  temporalities.  Tlic 
main  difference  being  thus  settled,  minor  points  presented  no  difficultu;.-*, 
and  Henry  now  had  leisure  to  turn  his  attention  to  Normandy. 

In  committing  the  natural  son  of  his  brother  Robert  to  the  careofHelic, 
Henry  was  probably  desirous  to  show  the  world,  by  the  unblemished  char- 
acter of  the  man  to  whom  he  entrusted  the  infant  prince,  then  only  six 
years  old,  that  he  meant  fairly  by  him.  But  as  the  young  prince  grew  up, 
and  became  remarkable  for  talent  and  gracefidness  of  person,  he  acquired 
a  popularity  which  gave  so  much  uneasiness  to  Henry,  that  he  ordered 
nis  guardian  to  give  up  his  young  ward.  Helie.  probably  doubtful  of  the 
king's  intentions,  yet  feeling  himself  unable  to  shelter  him  should  the  king 
resort  to  force,  immediately  placed  young  William  under  the  protection 
Jf  Fulke,  count  of  Anjou.    The  protection  of  this  gallant  and  eminent  no- 


8      T 


1 

11 

1 
1 

«00 


THE  TREA8UEY  OF  HISTORY. 


We  and  his  own  singular  graces,  enabled  William  to  create  great  inteiest 
on  iiis  behalf,  and  at  every  court  which  he  visited  he  was  able  to  excite 
the  greatest  indignation  against  the  injustice  with  which  his  uncle  had  treat, 
ed  him.  Louis  Ic  (iros,  king  of  Fran(;e,  joined  with  Fulke,  count  of  An- 
jou,  and  the  count  of  Flanders,  in  disturbing  Henry  in  his  unjust  posses- 
sion of  Normandy,  and  many  skirmishes  took  place  upon  the  frontiers. 
But  before  the  war  could  produce  any  decisive  results,  Henry,  with  his 
cnstinnary  artful  policy,  deiached  Fulke  from  the  league  by  marrying  his 
son  William  to  that  prince's  daughter.  The  peace  consequent  upon  this 
witiidrawal  of  Fulke  did  not  last  long.  Henry's  nephew  was  again  taken 
in  hiuid  by  the  galhint  Baldwin  of  Flanders,  who  induced  the  kin?  ol 
France  to  join  in  renewing  the  attack  upon  Normandy.  In  the  action 
near  V.u  Baldwin  was  slain  ;  and  the  king  of  France,  despairing,  after  the 
loss  of  so  capital  an  ally,  of  liberating  Normandy  from  the  power  of 
Henry  by  force  of  arms,  resolved  to  try  another  method,  of  which,  proba- 
bly, he  did  not  perceive  all  the  remote  and  possible  consequences. 

The  papal  court  had  always  manifested  a  more  than  sufficient  inclina- 
tion to  interfere  in  the  temporal  concerns  of  the  nations  of  Christendom; 
and  Louis  now  most  unwisely  gave  sanction  and  force  to  that  amb.tious 
and  inisidions  assumption,  by  appealing  to  Rome  on  behalf  of  young  >Vil. 
liain.  A  general  ciuncil  having  been  assembled  by  the  pope  at  Rheiins, 
Louis  took  his  proteg6  there,  represented  the  tyranny  of  Henry's  conduct 
towards  both  the  young  prince  and  his  father,  and  strongly  and  eloquent- 
ly dwelt  upon  the  impropriety  of  the  church  and  the  Christian  powers  al- 
lowing so  trusty  and  gallant  a  champion  of  the  cross  to  linger  on  in  his 
melaniiholy  imprisonmont.  Whatever  might  be  the  personal  feelings  oi 
(.ilixtiis  II.,  the  then  pope,  he  showed  himself  strongly  inclined  to  inter- 
fere on  behalf  of  both  vViliiam  and  his  father.  But  Henry  was  now,  as 
ev-  r,  alert  and  skilful  in  the  defence  of  his  own  interest.  The  I']iigli8h 
bishiips  were  allowed  by  him  to  attend  this  couu<:il;  but  he  gave  them 
fair  iioiicc  at  their  departure,  that  whatever  might  bo  the  demands  or  de- 
cisimis  of  the  council,  he  was  fully  determined  to  in.iintain  the  laws  and 
cusionis  of  England  and  his  own  prerogative-  "Go,"  said  he,  as  they 
look  leave  of  him,  "  salute  the  pope  in  my  name,  and  listen  to  his  apostuU 
icnl  prei'cpts  ;  but  be  mindful  that  ye  bring  back  none  of  his  new  inven- 
tuiiKs  into  my  kingdom."  But  while  hi!  thus  outwardly  manifested  his 
detirmin.ition  to  Kupporl  himself  even  against  the  hostility  of  the  church, 
he  took  the  most  etrectual  means  to  prevent  that  hostility  from  beingex- 
hibited.  The  most  liberal  presents  and  promises  were  distributed ;  and 
so  ('(Tectually  did  hi!  cinieiliate  the  pope,  that  having  shortly  afterwards 
had  an  in'.ervii!w  with  Henry,  he  pronounced  him  to  be  beyond  compari- 
son tlin  mo^tt  elixpient  and  persuasive  man  he  had  ever  spoken  with. 
I'jHin  this  hi^h  eulogy  of  the  sovereign  |)oiitiff,  Iluine,  with  dry  eauslicily, 
reiniiiks,  that  Henry  at  this  interview  "had  probably  renewed  his  prc^siMils." 

Louis,  finding  that  he  was  out-maii(Puvred  by  HiMiry  in  the  way  of  in- 
triune,  renewed  his  attempts  njion  Normandy"  in  the  way  of  arms.  He 
m;iile  an  atli'inpt  to  surprisi!  Noyen,  but  Henry's  ()rofuse  liberality  caused 
him  to  be  well  served  by  his  spies,  and  he  suddenly  fell  upon  the  French 
troo|)».  A  severe  action  ensued,  and  Prince!  VViliiam,  who  was  present, 
heli!tve(l  with  great  distinclion.  Henry  also  was  present,  aiKl,  penetrating 
with  his  enstoiiniy  yallantry  into  tlu!  vi!ry  thickest  of  the  tight  w.is  se- 
verely womided  by  Crispin,  a  Norman  ollirer  in  the  French  army.  Hen- 
ry, who  [tossessed  great  personal  streiiglli,  struck  Crispin  to  llie  enrih, 
and  led  his  troops  onward  in  a  ehmge  so  lierceand  heavy,  that  the  Fi'enrh 
w«'re  ullerly  routed,  and  Louis  himself  only  escaped  with  great  iliirunlty 
fnmi  liiiiig  inaile  prisoner.  The  result  of  this  action  so  diseoiiriigi'd  Loins 
that  he  shortly  ai'tcrw.irds  entered  into  u  treaty  with  Henry,  in  which  lU* 


Dkaih  ur  I'liiNcc  VViLLUM  and  HII  SllTBR. 


■      1  .■  ■)?K,S?3 


m 


^ 


TUB  TbEASUHY  OF  HISTOaV 


SOI 


nterests  of  William  and  the  liberty  of  Robert  were  wholly  left  out  of 
the  question. 

Thus  far  the  career  of  king  Henry  had  been  one  unbroken  series  of 
prosperity;  he  was  now,  under  circumstances  the  least  to  have  been 
feared,  doomed  to  suffer  a  very  terrible  misfortune.  Judging  from  the  fa- 
cility with  which  lie  had  usurped  the  crown  of  England  and  the  duchy  ol 
Normandy,  that  similar  wrong — as  he  chose  to  call  it,  though  wrong  it 
would  surely  not  have  been — might  easily  be  done  to  his  own  son,  unless 
proper  precautions  were  taken,  he  accompanied  his  son  William  to  Nor- 
Miandy,  and  caused  him  to  be  recognized  as  his  successor  by  the  states, 
and  to  receive  in  that  character  the  homage  of  the  barons.  This  impor- 
liint  step  being  taken,  the  king  and  the  prince  embarked  at  Barfleur  on 
their  return  to  England.  The  weather  was  fair,  and  the  vessel  which 
coDveyed  the  king  and  his  immediate  attendants  left  the  coast  in  safety, 
lomething  caused  the  prince  to  remain  on  shore  after  his  father  had  de- 
jaried;  mid  the  captain  and  sailors  of  the  ship,  being  greatly  intoxicated, 
jailed,  in  their  anxiety  to  overtake  the  king,  with  so  much  more  haste 
than  skill,  that  they  ran  the  ship  upon  a  rock,  and  she  immediately  be- 
gan to  sink.  William  was  safely  got  in  the  long  boat,  and  had  even  been 
lowed  some  distance  from  the  ship  when  the  screams  of  his  natural  sis- 
ter, the  countess  of  Perche,  who  in  the  hurry  had  been  left  behind,  com- 
pelled his  boat's  crew  to  return  and  endeavour  to  save  her.  The  instant 
that  the  boat  approached  the  ship's  side,  so  many  persons  leaped  in,  that 
the  boat  also  foundered,  and  William  and  all  his  attendants  perished ;  a 
fearful  loss,  there  being  on  board  the  ill-fated  ship  nofewerthan  a  hundred 
and  forty  English  and  Norman  gentlemen  of  the  host  families.  Filzste- 
|)lien,  the  captain,  to  whose  intemperance  this  sad  calamity  was  mainly 
uitributable,  and  a  butcher  of  liouen  clung  to  the  mast ;  but  the  former 
voluntarily  loosed  his  hold  and  sank  on  hearing  that  the  prince  had  perished. 
The  butcher,  free  from  cause  of  remorse,  resolutely  kept  his  grasp, 
»nd  was  fortunate  enough  to  be  picked  up  by  some  fishermen  on  the  fol- 
lowing  morning. 

When  news  reached  Henry  of  the  loss  of  the  vessel,  ho  for  a  few  days 
buoyed  himself  up  with  the  hope  that  his  son  had  been  saved  ;  but  when 
the  full  extent  of  the  calatniiy  had  been  ascertained  he  fainted  ;  and  so 
violent  was  his  grief,  that  he  wiis  never  afterwards  known  to  smile.  So 
deeply  could  he  suffer  under  his  own  calamity,  though  so  stern  and  un- 
l)lcnt.hing  in  the  infliction  of  calamity  upon  others. 

The  death  of  Prince  William,  the  only  legitimate  male  issue  of  Henry, 
WH8,  n»  will  be  perceived  in  the  history  of  the  next  reign,  not  merely  an  indi- 
ilivldii'jl  calamity,  but  also  a  most  serious  national  one,  in  so  far  as  it  gave 
rise  to  much  civil  strife.  But  it  was  probable  that  William  would  have 
been  a  very  severe  king,  for  ho  was  known  to  threaten  that  wnenever  ha 
raine  to  the  throne  ho  would  work  the  Kiii{lish  like  mere  beasts  of  burden. 
The  early  Norman  rulers,  in  fact,  however  policy  might  occasionally  in 
dure  them  to  disguise  it,  detested  and  scorned  their  English  subjects. 

Prince  William,  son  of  the  wroimed  and  imprisoned  duke  of  Normandy, 
itill  enjoyed  the  friendship  and  protection  of  the  French  king,  though 
nircuinstanccs  had  induced  that  moiinreh  apparently  to  abandon  (he 
piiiiee's  interest,  in  makiiiij  a  treaty  with  Henry.  The  death  of  Ui'iiry's 
BOM,  too,  broke  off  the  connection  between  Henry  and  the  count  of  An- 
Oii,  who  luiw  again  took  up  the  cause  of  Prince  William,  and  jxave  him 
Is  daughter  in  marriage.  Even  this  connection,  however,  between 
Fulke  anil  William  did  not  prevent  the  artful  policy  of  Henry  from  again 
ti'ciiriiig  the  frieiidship  of  the  former.  Matilda,  Henry's  daughter,  who 
was  innrried  to  the  emperor  Henry  V  .was  left  a  widow  ;  ami  the  kinp 
HOW  gave  her  in  niarriiige  to  (ieoffrey  Plaiiiagenet,  earl  of  Aiijou,  and  ho 
Ht  the  same  tunc  ciiiised  her  to  receive,  as  his  Nuccessor,  the  honiiigp  of 
the  nobles  and  clergy  of  both  Normandy  and  Enulund. 


i 


209 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


Ill  tlio  meantime  Prince  WilliHm  of  Normandy  was  greatly  strengthened. 
ChiirtoH,  earl  of  Flandnrs,  was  assassinated,  and  iiis  dignity  and  posses- 
aioiii  wore  immediately  bestowed  by  the  king  of  France  upon  Prince 
William.  Dut  this  piece  of  seeming  good  fortune,  though  it  undoubtedly 
Bavo  greater  strength  to  William's  party  and  rendered  his  recovery  of 
Normandy  more  probable,  led  in  the  result,  to  his  destruction ;  so  blind 
arc  wo  in  all  that  relates  to  our  future!  The  landgrave  of  Alsace,  deeming 
hi»  own  claim  upon  Flanders  superior  to  that  of  William,  who  claimed 
only  from  the  wife  of  the  Conqueror,  and  who  moreover  was  illegitiniHte, 
attt'iiipted  to  possess  himself  of  it  by  force  of  arms,  and  almost  in  the  first 
tkiniiiith  that  took  place  William  was  killed. 

Many  disputes  during  all  this  time  had  taken  place  between  Henry 
and  the  pope ;  chiefly  upon  the  right  to  which  the  latter  pretended  of 
havinjK  a  legate  resident  in  England.  As  legates  possessed  in  tlieir  re- 
•ncutive  provinces  the  full  powers  of  the  pope,  and,  in  their  anxiety  tu 
ploaso  that  great  giver  and  source  of  their  power,  were  ever  disposed  to 
putli  the  papal  authority  to  the  utmost,  the  king  constantly  showed  a  great 
iiitd  wise  anxiety  to  prevent  this  manifestly  dangerous  encroachment  of 
Home.  After  much  manoeuvring  on  both  sides,  an  arrangement  whs  made 
by  which  the  legate  power  was  conferred  upon  the  archbishop  of  Canter- 
bury :  and  thus  while  Rome  kept,  nominally  at  least,  a  control  over  that 
Kowcr,  Henry  prevented  it  being  committed  to  any  use  disagreeable  to 
Im,  and  had,  moreover,  asecurity  for  the  legate's  moderation  in  the  kingly 
power  over  ihe  archbishop's  temporalities. 

A  perfect  peace  reij^ning  in  all  parts  of  England,  Henry  spent  pan  of 
tini  and  1I3'.3  in  Normandy  with  his  daughter  Matilda,  of  whom  he  wag 
pnnsionately  fond.  While  he  was  there  Matilda  was  delivered  of  a  son, 
who  was  (ihrislened  by  the  name  of  Henry.  In  the  midst  of  the  rejoicing 
thiN  event  caused  to  the  king,  he  was  summoned  to  England  by  an  incur- 
■inn  mad(!  by  the  Welsh  ;  and  he  was  just  about  to  return  when  lie  was 
■oizi'd,  at  Nt.  Dennis  le  Forment,  by  a  fatal  illness,  attritiuted  to  his 
having  eaten  lampreys  to  excess,  and  he  expired  Dec.  1,  1135,  in  the 
tliirly-nflh  year  of  his  reign  and  sixty-seventh  of  his  age. 

'riiou|(h  a  usurper,  and  though  somewhat  prone  to  a  tyrannous  extrtion 
of  liiH  UNUrped  authority,  Henry  at  least  deserves  the  praise  of  having 
been  an  able  monarch.  He  preserved  the  peace  of  his  dominions  under 
elrcnnislances  o(  great  difBcnlty,  and  protected  its  interest  ajiaiiist  at- 
teini)lH  under  which  a  less  firm  and  politic,  prince  would  have  been  crushed. 
He  nad  no  fewer  than  thirteen  illegitimate  children.  Other  vices  he  was 
toleriibly  free  from  in  his  private  capacity;  but  in  protecting  his  resources 
for  the  ithaKC,  of  which,  like  all  the  Norman  princes,  he  was  passionately 
oiiamoiiri'd,  he  was  guilty  of  every  unjustifiable  cruelty.  In  the  gciienil 
HdniiniNtrallMn  of  justice  he  was  very  severe.  Coining  was  piini^'hed  l)y 
liiin  with  dentil  or  the  most  terrible  mntilaiion,  and  on  one  occasion  fifty 
persons  charged  with  that  offence  were  subjected  to  this  horrible  inixleoi 
torinre,  It  was  in  this  reign  that  w.irdmotes,  common-halls,  a  court  of 
IliiNliiiKK,  the  liberty  of  hunting  in  MiddlcHcx  and  Surrey — a  great  and 
lioiioitritlile  privilege  at  that  time — the  right  to  elect  its  own  sheriff  and 
Jiisliriary,  iiiiil  to  hold  pleas  of  the  crown,  trials  by  combat,  and  lodging 
i)t  the  kinu's  retinue,  were  granted  to  the  city  of  London. 


CHAPTER  .XVH. 


TMC  KKUIN  (IK  STEIMIKN. 


A.  n.  Il.lft,— The  will  of  Henry  I.  left  tliekinedom  of  Eni;land  and  Hie 
Jtichy  of  Normandy  to  his  daughter  Matilda,     liy  the  precuutiuns  which 


I'Hlfi  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


'203 


mil  Hw\  Hie 
tioiiH  wliicli 


ne  li;iil  (aKcii  it  wiis  very  evident  th«t  he  feared  lest  any  one  shnuUI  imi 
t;iii!  liie  inegiilariiy  liy  which  he  himself  had  mounted  to  power.  Strangely 
eiiuugli,  however,  the  attempt  he  anticipated,  and  so  (tarefuilv  provided 
again."*',  was  made  hy  one  wh((to  Henry's  own  patronage  and  liberality 
owed  his  chief  jiower  to  oppose  Henry's  daugliter.  A  new  proof,  if  sni'li 
were  wanting,  of  the  blindness  un  particular  points  of  even  the  most  poli- 
tic and  prudent  men. 

Ailela,  danifhier  of  William  the  Conqueror,  was  married  to  Steplien, 
couat  of  Blois.  Two  of  her  sons,  HcMiry  and  Stephen,  were  invited  to 
Ku!;laiiil  by  Henry  I.,  who  behaved  to  them  with  the  profuse  iibeiality 
which  he  was  ever  prone  to  show  lo  tho.->e  whom  he  look  into  his  favour. 
Iltiny  was  luade  abbot  of  Glastonbury  and  bishop  of  Winchester,  and 
Sie|iheii  was  even  more  highly  favoured  by  the  king,  who  married  him  to 
Manilla,  daughtc^r  and  lieiress  of  Kustacje,  eomit  of  Boulogne,  by  which 
laaiii.ige  he  acquired  both  the  feudal  sovereignly  of  Boulogne  as  well  as 
eiiiiinious  landed  property  in  Kiigland.  Subsequently  the  king  still  far- 
ther enriched  Stephen  by  conferring  upon  him  the  forfeited  possessions 
of  ilie  earl  of  Moriaigne,  in  Normandy,  and  of  Robert  de  Mallet  in  Kng- 
raiul.  The  king  fondly  imagined  that  by  thus  honouring  and  aggrandiz- 
ing .Stephen  he  was  raising  up  a  f.ist  and  powerful  friend  for  his  daughter 
wlieiK'ver  she  should  come  to  the  throne,  and  the  conduct  of  Stephen  was 
so  v\ily  and  skilful,  that  lo  the  very  hour  of  Henry's  death  he  contrived 
tocoiiiiriu  him  in  this  delusion.  Brave,  active,  generous  and  affaliic,  he 
was  a  very  general  I'avonriie;  but  while  he  exerted  himself  to  the  utmost 
to  retain  and  increase  his  popularity,  especially  among  the  Londoners, 
of  whiiin  In;  anticipated  making  great  use  in  the  ultimate  scheme  he  had  in 
view,  he  took  good  care  to  keep  those  eflTorls  from  the  king's  knowledue. 
He  professed  himself  the  fast  friend  ami  ready  chainpion  of  the  princess 
Matilda,  and  when  the  barons  were  re()uircd  by  the  king  to  do  homage  to 
licr,  as  the  succ-essor  lo  the  crown,  Stephen  actually  had  ii  violent  dis- 
pute with  Ridiert.  earl  of  (Jloucester,  who  was  a  natural  son  of  the  king, 
n:i  to  which  of  them  should  first  take  the  oath! 

But  with  all  this  lip  loyalty  to  the  kiiiL'  and  seeming  devotion  to  the 
princess,  Stephen  seems  all  along  lo  have  harboured  the  most  ungrateful 
and  faithless  intentions.  The  moment  the  king  had  ceased  to  live  he 
hurried  ovtir  to  Kngland  to  seize  upon  the  crown.  Elis  designs  having 
bi'iMi  made  known  at  Dover  and  ('antftrbury,  the  citizens  of  both  those 
places  honourably  refused  to  admit  him.  Nothing  daunted  by  this  honest 
rebuke  of  Ins  ungrateful  design,  he  hurried  on  to  London,  where  he  hud 
emissaries  in  Ins  pay,  who  caused  him  to  be  hailed  as  king  by  a  multi- 
lude  of  the  common  sort. 

The  first  step  being  thus  made,  he  next  busied  himself  in  obtaining  the 
sanction  and  suffrage  of  the  clergy.  So  much  weight  was  in  that  age 
attached  to  Ihe  ceremony  of  unction  in  the  coronaliini,  that  he  considered 
it  hut  little  likely  that  Matilda  woulil  ever  be  able  to  dethrone  him  if  he 
could  so  far  secure  the  clergy  as  to  have  his  coronation  performed  in  due 
Older  and  with  the  usual  formalities.  In  this  important  part  of  his  daring 
scheme  good  service  was  done  to  him  by  his  brother  Henry,  bishop  of 
Winchester,  who  caused  the  bishop  of  Salisbury  to  join  him  in  persuad- 
ing William,  aii  hbishop  of  Canterbury,  to  uive  Stephen  the  royal  unction. 
The  primate  having,  in  common  with  all  the  nobility,  taken  Ihe  oath  of 
Blii'gi/iiKte  to  Matilda,  was  unwilling  to  comply  with  so  startling  a  step; 
Imi  his  reluclHiice,  whether  real  or  assumed,  gave  way  when  Roger 
lligod,  who  held  tlii!  important  ofllce  of  steward  of  the  household,  made 
)ath  that  Henry  on  his  death-bed  Ind  oviiii;od  his  displeasure  with  Matilda, 
Hiid  expressed  his  deliberate  preference  of  Stephen  as  his  successor. 
it  is  not  easy  to  believe  that  so  shrewd  a  person  us  Ihe  archbishop  really 
favc  any  crudciice  tu  this  shullow  tale,  but  he  uflfected  to  do  so,  and  upon 


ilil 


304 


THE  TREASUtty  OF  HISTOEY. 


its  authority  crowned  Stephen.  The  coronation  was  but  meagrely  atter« 
ded  by  the  nobles ;  yet,  as  none  of  them  made  any  open  opposition,  Ste- 
phen proceeded  to  exercise  the  royal  authority  as  coolly  as  though  hi 
had  ascended  the  throne  by  the  double  right  of  consent  of  the  people  am 
heirship. 

Having  seized  upon  the  royal  treasure,  which  amounted  to  upwards  0/ 
a  hundred  thousand  pounds,  Stephen  was  able  to  surround  his  usurped 
throne  with  an  immense  number  of  foreign  mercenaries.  While  he  thus 
provided  against  open  force,  he  also  took  the  precaution  to  endeavour,  by 
the  apparent  justice  of  his  intentions,  to  obliterate  from  the  general  mem- 
ory, and  especially  from  the  minds  of  the  clergy,  all  thought  of  the 
shameful  irregularity  and  ingratitude  by  which  he  had  obtained  the  throne. 
He  published  a  charter  calculated  to  interest  all  ranks  of  men,  promising 
to  aoolish  Danegelt,  generally  to  restore  the  laws  of  King  Kdward,to  cor- 
rect  all  abuses  of  the  forest  laws,  and — with  an  especial  view  to  concili- 
ating the  clergy— to  fill  all  benefices  as  they  should  become  vacant,  and 
to  levy  no  rents  upon  them  while  vacant.  He  at  the  same  time  applied 
for  the  sanction  of  the  pope,  who,  well  knowing  what  advantage  posses- 
sion must  give  Stephen  over  the  absent  Matilda,  and  being,  besides,  well 
pleased  to  be  called  upon  to  interfere  in  the  temporal  affairs  of  England, 
very  readily  gave  it  in  a  bull,  which  Stephen  took  great  care  to  make 
public  throughout  England. 

In  Normandy  the  same  success  attended  Stephen^  who  had  his  eldest 
son,  Eustace,  put  in  possession  of  the  duchy  on  doing  homage  to  the  king 
of  France;  and  Geoflfrey,  Matilda's  husband,  found  himself  reduced  to 
such  straits  that  he  was  fain  to  enter  into  a  truce  with  Stephen,  the  latter 
consenting  to  pay,  during  the  two  years  for  which  it  was  made,  a  pen- 
sion of  five  thousand  marks.  Though  Stephen  was  thus  far  so  success* 
ful,  there  were  several  circumstances  which  were  calculated  to  cause 
him  considerable  apprehension  and  perplexity.  Robert,  a  natural  son  of 
the  late  king,  by  whom  he  had  been  created  earl  of  Gloucester,  possessed 
considerable  ability  and  influence,  and  was  very  much  attached  to  Ma- 
tilda, in  whose  wrongs  he  could  not  fail  to  take  a  great  interest.  Tliia 
nobleman,  who  was  in  Normandy  when  Stephen  usurped  the  throne  ol 
England,  was  looked  upon  both  by  the  friends  and  the  enemies  of  Stephen 
as  the  most  likely  person  to  head  any  open  opposition  to  the  usurper. 
In  truth,  the  earl  was  placed  in  a»very  delicate  and  trying  situation.  On 
the  one  hand,  he  was  exceedingly  zealous  in  the  cause  of  Matilda;  on  the 
other  hand  to  refuse  when  required  to  take  the  oath  of  allegiance  to  Ste- 
phen, was  inevitably  to  bring  ruin  upon  his  fortunes,  as  far  as  England 
was  concerned.  In  this  perplexing  dilemma  he  resolved  to  take  a  middle 
course,  and,  by  avoiding  an  open  rupture  with  Stephen,  secure  to  himself 
the  liberty  and  means  otacting  according  to  the  dictates  of  his  coiisclenec, 
should  circumstances  become  more  favourable  to  Matilda.  Ho  therefore 
consented  to  take  the  oath  of  allegiance  to  Stephen,  on  condition  liial  the 
king  should  duly  perform  all  that  he  had  promised,  and  that  he  should  in 
no  wise  curtail  or  infringe  the  rights  or  dignities  of  the  earl.  This  singu- 
lar and  very  unusual  reservation  clearly  enough  proved  to  Stephen  that 
he  was  to  look  upon  the  earl  as  his  good  and  loyal  subject  just  so  long  as 
there  seemed  to  be  no  chance  of  a  successful  revolt,  and  no  longer;  but 
the  earl  was  so  powerful  and  popular  that  he  did  not  think  it  safe  to  re- 
fuse his  oath  of  fealty,  even  on  these  unusual  terms. 

Though  we  correctly  call  these  terms  unusual,  we  do  so  only  with  rr f- 
erence  to  former  reigns ;  Stephen  was  obliged  to  consent  to  them  In  still 
more  important  cases  than  that  of  the  earl  of  Gloucester.  The  clergy, 
finding  tlie  king  willing  to  sacrifice  to  expediency,  and  well  knowing  how 
inexpedient  he  would  find  it  to  quarrel  with  their  powerful  body,  would 
only  give  him  their  oath  of  allegiance  with  the  reservation  that  theii 


THE  TREASURY  OV  HISTORY. 


205 


a1Ie<riance  shouj  1  endure  so  long  as  the  king  should  support  the  discipline 
of  the  church  and  defend  the  ecclesiastical  liberties.  To  how  much  dis- 
pute, quibble,  and  assumption  were  not  those  undefined  terms  capable  of 
leading  under  the  management  of  the  possessors  of  nearly  all  the  learning 
of  the  age;  men,  too,  especially  addicted  to  and  skilled  in  that  subtle 
warfare  which  renders  tlie  crafty  and  well-schooled  logomachist  abso- 
lutely invulnerable  by  ar.y  other  weapon  than  a  precise  definition  of  terms! 

To  the  reservations  of  the  earl  of  Gloucester  and  the  clergy  succeeded 
the  still  more  ominous  demands  of  the  barons.  In  the  anxiety  of  StephcMi 
to  procure  their  submission  and  sanction  to  his  usurpation  the  barons  saw 
an  admirable  opportunity  for  aggrandizing  their  already  great  power 
at  the  expense  of  the  security  of  both  the  people  and  the  crown.  They 
demanded  that  each  baron  should  have  the  right  to  fortify  his  castle  and 
put  himself  in  a  state  of  defence ;  in  other  words,  that  each  baron  should 
turn  his  possessions  into  an  itnperium  in  imperio,  dangerous  to  the  author- 
ity of  the  crown  on  occasions  of  especial  dispute,  and  injurious  to  the 
peace  and  welfare  upon  all  occasions,  as  making  the  chances  of  wrong 
and  oppressions  more  numerous,  and  making  redress,  already  difficult,  for 
the  future  wholly  hopeless.  A  legitimate  king,  confident  in  his  right  and 
conscientiously  mindful  of  his  high  trust,  would  have  periled  both  crown 
and  life  ere  he  would  have  consented  to  such  terms;  but  in  the  case  of 
Stephen,  the  high  heart  of  the  valiant  soldier  was  quelled  and  spell-bound 
by  the  conscience  of  the  usurper,  and  to  uphold  his  tottering  throne  in 
present  circumstances  of  difllculty,  he  was  fain  to  consent  to  terms  which 
would  both  inevitably  and  speedily  increase  those  difficulties  tenfold. 

The  barons  were  not  slow  to  avail  themselves  of  the  consent  thus  ex- 
torted from  the  king.  In  every  direction  castles  sprang  up,  or  were 
newly  and  more  strongly  fortified.  Even  those  barons  who  had  at  the 
outset  no  care  for  any  such  privilege,  were  soon  in  their  self-defence 
obliged  to  follow  the  example  of  their  neighbours.  Jealous  of  each 
other,  the  barons  now  carried  their  feuds  to  the  extent  of  absolute  petty 
wars;  and  the  inferior  gentry  and  peasantry  could  only  hope  to  escape 
from  being  plundered  and  ill  used  by  one  party,  at  the  expense  of  siding 
with  the  other,  in  quarrels  for  neither  side  of  which  they  had  the  slight- 
est real  care. 

The  barons  having  thus  far  proceeded  in  establishing  their  quasi  sove- 
reignly and  independence  of  the  crown,  it  is  not  to  be  wondered  at  that 
they  soon  proceeded  still  farther,  and  arrogated  to  themselves  within  their 
mimic  royalties  all  the  privileges  of  actual  sovereignty,  even  including 
that  of  coining  money. 

Though  Stephen,  as  a  matter  of  policy,  had  granted  the  privilege  of 
fortific.ition,  out  of  which  he  must,  as  a  shrewd  and  sensible  man,  have 
anticipated  that  these  abuses  would  issue,  he  was  by  no  means  inclined 
to  submit  to  the  abuses  themselves  without  a  trial  how  far  it  was  prac- 
ticable to  lake  liack  by  his  present  force  what  had  been  extorted  from  iiis 
former  weakness.  And  thus,  as  the  nobles  abused  the  privileges  he  had 
granted,  he  now  by  his  mercenary  force  set  himself  not  merely  to  anni- 
hilate those  extorted  privileges,  but  also  to  make  very  ser'ous  encroach- 
ments upon  the  more  ancient  and  legitimate  rights  of  iht  subject.  The 
pHrpetual  contests  that  thus  existed  between  the  king  and  the  barons,  and 
among  (ho  barons  themselves,  and  the  perpetual  insult  and  despoiling  to 
whicli  the  great  body  of  the  people  were  in  consequence  subjected,  caused 
BO  general  a  disconyjiit,  that  the  earl  of  Gloucester,  deeming  that  the 
favourable  and  long-wished-for  time  had  at  length  arrived  for  the  o\}e^^ 
advocacy  of  ttie  claims  of  Matilda,  suddenly  departed  from  England.  As 
•oon  as  no  arrived  safely  abroad,  ho  forwarded  to  Stephen  a  solemn  ile 
Qaiice  and  renunciation  of  fealty,  and  reproached  him  in  detail,  and  in  the 


i 


S06 


THE  TKEA8URY  OF  HISTORY. 


strongcfit  liingURge,  with  his  breaches  of  the  promises  and  conditioin 
upon  which  that  realty  had  been  sworn. 

A.  D.  1138. — Just  as  Stephen  was  thus  doubly  perplexed,  a  new  enemy 
arose  to  threaten  him,  in  the  person  of  David,  king  of  Scotland,  who, 
being  uncle  to  Matilda,  now  crossed  the  borders  with  a  large  army  to 
assert  and  defend  her  title.  So  little  was  Stephen  beloved  by  the  tur- 
bulent barons,  with  not  a  few  of  whom  he  was  even  then  at  personal 
feud,  that  had  David  now  added  a  wise  policy  to  his  sincere  zeal  in  the 
cause  of  his  niece,  there  seems  little  reason  to  doubt  that  Matilda  would 
have  ousted  Stephen  utmost  without  difUculty  or  bloodshed  ;  for  he  h»d 
by  this  time  so  nearly  expended  his  once  large  treasure,  that  the  foreign 
nieri-enaries,  on  whom  he  chiefly  depemled  for  defence,  actually,  for  the 
most  part,  subsisted  by  plunder.  But  David,  un-:)ble  or  unwilling  to  enter 
into  points  of  policy  and  expediency,  inHrked  his  path  from  the  border  to 
the  fertile  plains  of  Yorkshire  by  such  cruel  bloodshed  and  deslruclion, 
that  all  sympathy  with  his  intention  was  forgotten  in  dis<;ust  and  iiuliiriia- 
tion  at  his  conduct.  The  northern  nobles,  whom  he  might  easily  Have 
wtin  to  his  support,  were  thus  aroused  and  unitfd  against  him.  William 
Albemarle,  Robert  de  Ferres,  William  Percy,  Robert  de  Bruce,  Roirei 
de  Mowbray,  Ilbert  Lacy,  Walter  I'Epee,  and  numerous  other  nohlcs 
in  the  north  of  England,  joined  their  large  forces  into  one  great  army 
and  encountered  the  Scots  at  Northallerton.  A  battle,  called  the  battle 
of  the  Standard,  from  an  immense  crucifix  which  was  carried  on  a 
car  in  front  of  the  English  army,  was  fnught  on  the  22d  of  Ai!<fiist, 
1138,  and  ended  in  so  total  a  defeat  of  the  Scottish  army  that  David  7iim- 
self,  together  with  his  s  >ii  Henry,  very  nearly  fell  iiit(»  the  hands  of  tlie 
English.  The  defeat  of  the  king  of  Scotland  greatly  tended  to  daunt 
the  enemies  of  Stephen,  and  to  give  a  Impe  of  stability  to  his  rule;  hut 
he  had  scarcely  escaped  the  ruin  that  this  one  enemy  intended  for  lijui, 
when  he  was  engaged  in  a  hitler  controversy  with  an  enemy  still  more 
zealous  and  more  powerful — the  clergy. 

A.  n-  113i). — The  bishops,  as  tliey  had  been  rated  for  military  service  in 
common  with  the  barons,  so  they  ailded  all  the  slate  and  privilcgi-s  of 
lay  barons  to  those  proper  to  their  own  character  and  rank.  And  when 
the  cust(nn  of  ereciing  fortresses  and  keeping  strong  garrisons  in  pay 
becatne  general  ainimg  the  lay  barons,  several  of  the  bishops  followeil 
their  example.  The  bishops  of  S;ilislinry  and  Lincoln  had  done  so;  the 
former  had  completed  (uie  at  Sherborne  and  another  at  Devizes,  nn:l  iiad 
even  cmnmenced  a  third  at  Malineshury ;  and  the  lait(T,  who  wa»  his 
nej)h(!w,  had  erected  an  exceedingly  strong  and  stately  one  at  Newark. 
Unwisely  deeming  it  safer  to  begin  by  attacking  llie  fortresses  of  the 
clergy  than  those  of  the  lay  barons,  Stephen,  availinsr  himself  of  some 
dislurbuii(;es  at  court  between  the  armed  followers  of  the  bishop  of  Sal- 
isbury and  those  of  the  earl  of  Uriliany,  threw  both  the  liishop  of  Salis- 
bury and  his  nephew  of  Liiicidn  into  prison,  and  compelled  them,  hy 
threats  of  still  worse  ireatiiK'iil,  to  surrender  their  fortresses  into  his 
hands.  This  act  of  power  called  up  an  opponeiii  to  Sti'plien,  in  a  person 
from  whom,  of  the  whole  of  the  clergy,  he  had  the  least  reason  to  fear 
any  opposition. 

Tiie  king's  brother,  Henry,  bishop  of  Winchester,  to  whom  he  owcrt 
80  much  in  accomplishing  his  usurpation  of  ih<:  crown,  was  at  this  tluie 
ariiKid  with  tlie  leganiine  commissiou  in  Eiigl:in<l;  ami  diicming  his  duly 
to  the  church  p.ir.unount  to  the  lies  of  bloo  I,  he  a^scMnbled  a  synod  at 
Westmiiisler,  which  he  opened  willi  a  formal  coniplainl  of  what  he  termed 
the  imuiety  of  the  king.  The  syiiol  was  well  inclined  to  acquiesce  in 
Henry  s  view  of  the  case,  and  a  Ibrmil  sn  ninons  was  sent  to  the  kiinr  to 
account  to  the  synod  for  the  coiiilncl  of  wliiidi  it  c(nnplaiiicd.  With  a 
strange  neglect  of  what  would  have  been  his  true  policy — a  peremptory 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


207 


denial  of  the  right  of  the  synod  to  sit  in  judgment  upon  the  sovereign  on 
a  question  which  really  related,  and  related  only,  to  the  police  of  his 
kingdom — Stephen  virtually  put  the  judgment  of  his  case  into  the  hands 
of  a  coiirl,  that,  by  the  very  charge  made  against  him  by  Its  head,  avowed 
itself  iaimiiial,  partial,  and  prejudiced,  by  sending  Aubrey  de  Vere  to 
plead  liis  cause.  De  Vere  set  out  by  charging  the  two  bishops  with  se- 
ditions conduct  and  treasonable  designs  ;  but  the  synod  refused  to  enter- 
tain  that  charge  until  the  fortresses,  of  which,  be  it  observed,  the  bishops 
hail  been  deprived  upon  lliat  charge,  should  be  restored  by  the  king. 

The  clergy  did  not  fail  to  make  this  quarrel  the  occasion  of  exasper- 
ating tiie  minds  of  the  always  credulous  mullilu(ic  against  the  king.  So 
general  was  the  discontent,  that  the  earl  of  Gloucester,  constantly  on  the 
watcli  fur  an  opportunity  of  advocating  the  cause  of  Matilda,  brought 
tliat  princess  to  England,  with  a  retinue  of  a  hundred  and  forty  knights 
and  llieir  followers.  She  fixed  her  residence  first  at  Bristol,  but  thence 
removed  to  Gloucester,  where  she  was  joined  by  several  of  the  must 
powerful  barons,  who  openly  declared  in  her  favour,  and  exerted  every 
enerjjy  to  increase  her  already  considerable  force.  A  civil  war  speedily 
raged  in  every  part  of  the  kingdom ;  both  parties  were  guilty  of  the 
must  atro  ions  excesses,  and,  as  is  usual,  or  rather  universal,  in  such 
cases,  whichever  party  was  temporarily  triumphant,  the  unhappy  peas- 
anlry  were  massacred  and  plundered,  to  the  sound  of  watchwords  which 
they  si^arcely  comprehended. 

A.  D.  1140. — While  the  kingdom  was  thus  torn,  and  the  people  thus  tor- 
mented, the  varying  success  of  the  equally  selfish  opposing  parties  led 
to  frequent  discussions,  which  led  to  no  agreement,  and  frequent  treaties 
made  only  to  be  broken. 

An  action  at  length  took  place  which  promised  to  be  decisive  md  to 
restore  the  kingdom  to  peace.  The  castle  of  Lincoln  was  captured  and 
garrisoned  by  the  partlzans  of  Matilda,  under  Ralph,  earl  of  ("lieste.-,  and 
\Villi mi  de  Iloumard.  The  citizens  of  Lincoln,  however,  remained  faith- 
ful to  the  cause  of  Stephen,  who  immediately  proceeded  to  lay  siege  to 
tiiB  casile.  The  earl  of  Gloucester  hastened  to  the  support  of  the  be- 
leaguered garrison,  and  on  tiie  2(1  of  February,  1141,  an  action  took 
place,  in  which  Stephen  was  defeated,  and  taken  prisoner  while  fighting 
desperately  at  the  head  of  his  troops.  He  was  taken  in  triumph  to 
Gloucester,  and  though  he  was  at  first  treated  with  great  external  respect, 
gome  real  or  pretended  suspicions  of  his  friends  having  formed  a  plan  for 
his  rescue  caused  him  to  be  loaded  with  irons  and  thrown  into  prison. 

'I'he  capture  of  Stephen  caused  a  great  accession  of  men  of  all  ranks 
to  the  party  of  Matilda;  and  she,  under  the  politic  guidance  of  the  (Nirl 
of  GImieester,  now  exerted  herself  to  gain  the  good-will  of  the  clergy, 
without  which,  in  the  then  state  of  the  public  mind,  there  could  be  but 
hitle  prospect  of  permanent  prosperity  to  her  cause,  just  as  it  doubtless 
was. 

She  invited  Henry,  bishop  of  Winchester  and  papal  legate,  to  a  con- 
ference, at  which  she  promise<l  everything  that  either  his  individual  ain- 
liitldii  or  his  zeal  for  the  church  could  lead  him  to  desire  ;  and  us  all  tiie 
principal  men  of  her  parly  had  oflered  to  become  responsible  for  her  due 
fulfilment  of  her  promises,  which  slie  made  wilh  the  ac(;ompanyiiig  sol- 
enuiity  of  an  oath,  Henry  conducted  her  with  great  pomp  and  form  to 
Winchester  cathedral,  and  there  at  the  high  aliar  solemnly  denoimcetl 
curses  upon  all  who  should  curse  her,  and  invoked  blessings  upon  all  who 
should  bless  her.  To  give  still  greater  triumph  and  security  to  her  cause, 
Theobald,  archbishop  of  Canterbury,  also  swore  allegiance  to  her. 

Subseijneinly  the  crown  was  forn'ially  adjudged  to  Matilda,  in  a  speech 
made  by  Henry  to  the  assembled  clergy  and  a  few  of  the  cliief  men  of 
'london ;  and  Henry,  with  an  assurance  perfectly  marvellous  after  having 


SOS 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


been  so  powerful  an  instnimeut  of  liis  brotlier's  usurpation,  now  spake  of 
him  as  having  merely  filled  the  throne  in  the  absence  of  the  rightful 
owner,  and  dwelt  with  great  force  and  bilterneos  upon  the  breach  by  Ste- 
phen of  the  promises  he  had  made  of  respect  and  protection  to  tlie  church. 

Matilda  to  a  masculine  daring  added  a  very  harsh  and  imperious  spirit, 
and  she  had  scarcely  placed  her  cause  in  apparently  permanent  prosper- 
ity when  she  most  unwisely  disgusted  some  of  those  whose  favour  wai 
the  most  important  to  her. 

The  Londoners,  though  circumstances  had  compelled  them  to  submit  to 
Matilda,  were  still  very  partial  to  Stephen.  They  joined  his  wife  in  pe. 
titioiiiiig  that  he  might'be  released  on  condition  of  retiring  to  a  convent 
A  stern  and  laconic  refusal  was  Matilda's  answer  both  to  this  peiition  and 
a  subsequent  one  presented  by  them  for  the  establishmeut  of  King  Ed- 
ward's laws  instead  of  those  of  Henry.  An  equally  harsh,  and  still  more 
impolitic  refusal  was  given  to  the  ungate  who  requested  that  his  nephew 
Eustace,  should  inherit  Boulogne  anu  the  other  patrimonial  possessions 
of  Stephen;  a  refusal  which  gives  one  as  low  an  opinion  of  Matilda's 
sense  of  justice  as  of  her  temper  and  policy. 

Her  mistaken  conduct  was  not  long  in'  producing  its  appropriate  ill 
effects  to  her  cause.  The  legate,  whose  very  contradictory  conduct  Kt 
different  times  can  only  be  satisfactorily  explained  upon  the  supposition 
that  to  his  thoroughly  selfish  ambition  that  cause  ever  seemed  the  best 
which  promised  the  greatest  immediate  advantages  to  himself  or  to  the 
church,  marked  the  mischief  which  Matilda's  harshness  did  to  her  cause, 
and  promptly  availed  himself  of  it  to  excite  the  Londoners  to  revoli 
against  her  government.  An  attempt  was  made  to  seize  upon  her  person, 
and  so  violent  was  the  rage  that  was  manifested  by  her  enemies,  that  even 
her  masculine  and  scornful  spirit  took  alarm,  aitd  she  fled  to  Oxford. 
Not  conceiving  herself  safe  even  there,  and  being  unaware  of  the  under- 
hand conduct  of  the  crafty  legate,  she  next  flew  for  safety  to  him  at  Win- 
chester. But  he,  deeming  her  cause  now  so  far  lost  as  to  warrant  him  in 
openly  declaring  his  real  feelings  towards  her,  joined  his  forces  to  the 
Londoners  and  other  friends  of  Stephen,  and  besieged  her  in  the  castle  ol 
that  city.  Here,  though  stoutly  supported  by  her  friends  and  followers, 
she  was  unable  long  to  remain,  from  lack  of  provisions.  Accompanied 
by  the  earl  of  Gloucester  and  a  handful  of  friends,  she  made  her  escape, 
but  her  party  was  pursued,  and  the  earl  of  Gloucester,  in  the  skirmisli, 
was  taken  prisoner.  This  capture  led  to  the  release  of  Stephen,  for 
whom  Matilda  was  glad  to  exchange  the  earl,  whose  courage  and  judg- 
ment were  the  chief  support  of  her  hopes  and  tlic  main  bond  of  her  party; 
and  with  the  release  of  Stephen  rame  a  renewal  of  the  civil  war,  in  all 
its  violence  and  mischief,  (a.  d.  1143).  Sieges,  battles,  skirmishes,  and 
their  ghastly  and  revolting  accompaniments,  followed  with  varying  suc- 
cess; but  the  balance  of  fortune  at  length  inclined  so  decidedly  to  tlie 
side  of  Sippiien,  that  Matilda,  broken  in  health  by  such  long-continued 
exertion,  both  bodily  and  mental,  at  length  departed  from  the  kingdom 
and  took  refuge  in  Normandy. 

A.n.  1147. — The  retirement  of  Matilda  and  the  death  of  the  earlof  Glou 
cester,  which  occurred  about  the  same  time,  seemed  to  give  to  Stephen 
all  the  opportunity  he  could  desire  firmly  to  establish  himself  in  the  pos- 
sessiiin  of  the  kingdom.  But  he  kindled  animosities  among  his  nobles  by 
demanding  the  surrender  of  their  fortresses,  which  he  justly  deemed  dan- 
gerous to  lioth  himself  and  his  subjects ;  and  he  offended  the  pope  by  re- 
fusing to  allow  the  attendance  of  five  bishops,  who  had  been  selected  by 
the  p(Mitiff  to  attend  a  council  at  Rlieims,  the  usual  practice  being  for  the 
English  church  to  elect  its  own  deputies.  In  revenge  for  this  affront,  as 
he  deemed  it,  the  pope  laid  all  Stephen's  party  under  his  interdict ;  a  meas- 
ure which  he  well  knew  could  not  fail  to  tell  with  fearful  effect  against 


THE  a'KEASUXlY  OP  HISTORY. 


ana 


tlie  interests  or  a  prince  who  was  seated  not  only  upon  a  usurped,  bui  also 
a  disputed  throne. 

A.D.  1153. — Prince  Henry,  son  of  Matilda,  who  had  already  given  signal 
proofs  of  talent  and  bravery,  was  now  encouraged  by  the  divided  stale  of 
the  public  mind  to  invade  England.  He  defeated  Stephen  at  Malmesbury 
and  they  again  met  before  Wallingford,  when  a  negotiation  was  entered 
into,  by  which  Henry  ceded  his  claim  during  the  life  of  Stephen  on  con- 
dition of  being  secured  of  the  succession,  Boulogne  and  the  other  patrimo- 
nial possessions  of  Stephen  being  equally  secured  to  his  son  William — his 
eldest  son  Eustace  being  dead.  This  treaty  having  been  executed  in  due 
form,  Prince  Henry  returned  to  Normandy ;  whence  he  was  recalled  by 
the  death  of  Stephen  on  the  25lh  of  October,  1154. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

fHB  REIGN  OP  HENRY  11. — PRECEDED  BV  OBSERVATIONS  ON  THE  RIGHT  OP  THE 
ENGLISH  TO  TERKITORY  IN  FRANCE. 

Methodtcal  reading,  always  desirable,  is  especially  so  in  reading  History ; 
and  before  we  commence  the  narrative  of  the  eventful  and,  in  many  re- 
spects, importnnt  reign  of  Henry  '!.,  we  deem  that  we  shall  be  doings  the 
reader  good  service  in  directing  his  attention  to  the  origin  of  the  earlier 
wars  between  England  and  France;  a  point  upon  which  all  our  historians 
have  rather  too  confidently  assumed  the  intuitive  knowledge  of  their  read- 
ers, whom  they  have  thus  left  to  read  of  results  without  ac^ouaintance  with 
processes,  and  to  indulge  their  iinaginalions  in  the  details  of  warlike  enter- 
prises without  any  data  upon  which  to  judge  of  the  justice  or  injustice 
with  which  those  enterprises  were  undertaken. 

Even  with  the  invasion  of  William  the  Conqueror,  England,  by  its  new 
sovereign,  became  interested  in  no  small  or  insignificant  portion  of  France. 
Up  to  that  period  England's  connexion  with  foreigners  arose  only  from 
the  invasions  of  the  Northmen,  but  with  William's  invasion  quite  a  new 
relation  sprang  up  between  England  and  the  continent.  From  this  moment 
the  connections  of  Normandy,  and  its  feuds,  whether  with  the  French  king 
or  with  any  of  his  powerful  vassals,  entered  largely  into  the  concerns  of 
Ilnglaiid.  With  Henry  II.,  this  connection  of  England  with  the  affairs  of 
the  continent  was  vastly  increased.  In  right  of  his  father  that  monarch 
possessed  Touraine  and  Anjou;  in  right  of  his  mother  he  possessed  Maine 
and  Normandy  ;  and  in  right  of  his  wife,  Guicnne,  Poictou,  Xaintogne, 
Anvergne,  Perigord,  Angournois,  and  the  Limousin;  and  he  subsequently 
became  really,  as  he  was  already  nominally,  possessed  of  the  sovereignty 
of  Brittany,  If  the  reader  now  (tast  his  eyes  over  the  map  of  that  vast 
and  populous  territory  which  is  cnlied  France,  he  will  perceive  that  Henry 
thus  possessed  a  third  of  it,  and  the  third  of  greatest  fertility  and  value. 
Left  unexplained  as  this  usually  is  by  our  historians,  the  impression  upon 
the  minds  of  even  readers  not  wholly  deserving  of  the  censm-e  implied  in 
llie  term  superficial,  must  almost  necessarily  be,  that  the  wars  of  which 
hy-and-by  we  shall  have  to  speak  between  Fran(;c  ami  England,  originat- 
ed in  the  mere  greediness  and  ambition  of  kings  of  the  latter  country,  who, 
dissatisfied  with  their  insular  possessions,  desired  to  usurp  territory  in 
Trance;  whereas  the  direct  contrary  is  the  case,  and  they  in  these  wars 
made  use  of  theii  English  C(mqucsts  to  retain  possession  of,  or  to  extend 
hy  V.  ay  of  reprisal  their  eiirlicr-conqucreil  or  fairly-inherited  French  ter- 
ritory. The  kings  of  France,  in  point  of  f.ict,  at  this  early  period  of  French 
history,  were  nni  kings  of  France  in  the  present  acceptation  of  tliat  title. 
They  had  n  nominnl  rather  than  a  real  feudal  superiority  over  the  whole 
country :  there  were  six  great  eclesiastical  peerages,  besides  the  six  la> 
I.— 14 


310 


THE  TBEA30IIY  OF  HISTORY. 


pfterages  of  Burgundy,  Normandy,  Guienne,  Flanders,  Toulouse,  and 
Chani|uigne.  Each  of  these  pteragos,  though  nominally  subject  to  Ihe 
French  crown,  was,  in  reality,  an  independent  sovereignty.  If  it  chanced 
that  the  warlike  designs  of  the  king  coincided  with  the  views  and  interest 
of  his  great  vassals,  he  could  lead  an  immense  and  splendid  force  mto  tlio 
field ;  but  if,  as  far  more  frequently  happened,  any  or  all  of  his  great  vas- 
sals chanced  to  be  opposed  to  him,  it  at  once  became  evident  that  he  was 
only  nominally  their  master.  That  in  becoming  masters  of  our  insnl 
land,  the  Norman  race  should  sooner  or  later  see  their  French  terr'ory 
mending  itself  into  that  of  the  French  king  and  adding  to  his  po'vtr  v  as 
inevitable,  as  we  can  now  perceive;  but  in  the  time  of  ourscco'id  Hmrv. 
the  king  of  France  feared — and  the  aspect  of  things  then  w  .rrantej  hi. 
fear — the  precisely  opposite  process.  By  bearing  thi<3  briuf  f".;nlanatioii 
carefully  in  mind,  the  reader  will  find  himself  greatly  asslMoil  m  under 
standing  the  feelings  and  views  of^the  sovereigns  of  Knglaiul  auA  France, 
in  those  wars  which  cost  each  country  rivers  of  its  best  blood. 

Previous  to  the  death  of  Stephen  Henry  married  Eleanor,  the  divorced 
wife  of  Louis  VII.  of  France.  She  had  accompanied  that  monarch  to  the 
Holy  Land,  and  her  conduct  there  partook  so  much  of  the  levity  and  im- 
morality wliich  marked  that  of  too  many  of  her  sex  in  the  same  scene, 
that  Louis  felt  bound  in  honour  to  divorce  her,  and  he  at  the  same  time 
restored  to  her  those  rich  provinces  to  which  we  have  already  alluded  as 
her  dower.  Undeterred  by  her  reported  immorality,  Henry,  after  six 
weeks'  courtship,  made  her  his  wife,  in  defiance  of  the  disparity  in  their 
years ;  having  an  eye,  probably,  to  the  advantage  which  her  wealth  could 
not  fail  to  give  him,  should  he  have  to  make  a  struggle  to  obtain  the  En- 
glish crown. 

A.D.  n  ;,5. — So  secure,  however,  was  Henry  in  the  succession  to  Eng. 
land  III  Stephen's,  death  that  not  the  slightest  attempt  was  made  to  set  up  any 
coiinter-cl:iinis  on  the  part  of  Stephen's  surviving  son,  William  ;  and  Henry 
himself,  being  perfectly  acquainted  with  the  state  of  the  public  mind,  did 
not  even  hasten  to  England  immediately  on  receiving  news  of  Stephen's 
death,  but  deferred  doing  so  until  he  had  completed  the  subjection  of  a 
castle  that  he  was  besieging  on  the  frontier  of  Normandy.  This  done,  he 
proceeded  to  England,  and  he  was  received  with  the  greatest  cordiality  by 
all  ranks  and  conditions  of  men.  The  popularity  that  he  already  enjoyed 
was  greatly  increased  by  the  first  act  of  his  reign,  which  was  the  equally 
wise  and  just  dismissal  of  the  hordes  of  foreign  mercenaries  whom  Ste- 
phen had  introduced  into  England,  and  who,  however  serviceable  to  the 
usurper  in  question,  had  been  both  in  peace  and  in  war  a  burden  and  a 
curse  to  the  English  people.  Sensible  that  his  popularity  was  such  as  to 
enable  him  to  dispense  with  these  fierce  prajtorians,  who,  while  mischiev- 
ous and  offV-nsive  to  the  subject  ui^'er  'ill  circumstances,  might  by  pecu 
liar  ciivumstanccs  bo  rendered  .ni:;(  h'i  vkih  ,ind  even  fatal  to  the  sovui- 
cign,  iu"  sent  them  all  out  of  the  ooim'''',  ai..''  with  then;  ^"  «;ent  Wiliiuin 
of  Ypres,  their  commander,  vm'  v '.-s  x,!'  mely  unpo[.  .:  from  having 
been  the  friend  and  adviser  o;  ■  '  i.;i.  ;i,  m.iiiv  of  whose  worst  measures, 
perhaps  untruly,  for  Stephen  was  not  of  a  temper  requiring  to  be  prompt- 
ed to  arbitrary  courses,  were  attributed  to  his  councils. 

In  the  necessities  caused  by  civil  war,  both  Stephen  and  Matilda  had 
made  many  large  grants  which — however  politic  or  even  inevitable  at  the 
time — were  extremely  injurious  to  the  interests  of  the  crown  ;  and  Henry's 
great  object  was  to  resume  these  grants,  not  even  excepting  those  of  Ma- 
jlda  herself. 

His  n«^xt  measure  was  as  dangerous  as  it  was  necessary.  The  country 
was  ill  a  perfectly  dreadful  state  of  demoralization;  Ihe  highways  and 
by-ways  alike  were  infested  by  troops  of  daring  and  vi(dent  robbers,  and 
«hese  obtained  encouragement  and  opportunity  from  the  wars  carried  on 


lii.-piited 
beloiige( 
rated  b\ 
secured 
^v  belru 
'"((htL 

IK'UtlC  s 

Henry  n 


THE  i  IIKA3liHY  OK  lllriTOEY. 


Sll 


ny  the  nobles  against  each  other.  The  troop  of  soldiers  f(»llowing  the 
baron's  pennon,  or  keeping  watch  an^!  ward  upon  thf  balllenieniH  of  his 
strong  castle,  became,  whenever  his  nt ed  for  their  servi<!es  ceast-d,  the 
banditti  of  the  roads  and  forests.  In  such  a  state  of  tiutig^  it  would  have 
been  hopeless  to  have  attempted  to  reduce  the  country  warder,  without 
first  dismantling  those  fortresses  to  which  the  disorder  was  mainly  owing. 
A  weak  or  unpopular  sovereign  would  most  probably  have  been  ruined  had 
he  made  any  attempt  upon  this  valued  and  most  mischievous  privilege  of 
the  nobles  ;  and  even  Henry,  young,  firm,  and  popular,  did  it  at  no  incon- 
siderable risk.  The  earl  of  Albemarle  and  one  or  two  other  proud  an.  1  pow- 
erful nobles  prepared  to  resist  the  king ;  but  his  force  was  so  compact, 
and  his  object  was  so  popular  with  the  great  body  of  the  people,  that  tlie 
factious  nobles  submitted  at  the  approach  of  their  sovereign. 

A.D.  1156. — Having  by  an  admirable  mixture  of  prudence  and  firmness 
reduced  all  parts  of  Kngland  to  complete  peace  and  security,  Henry  went 
to  France  to  oppose  in  person  the  attempts  his  brother  GeortVoy  was  mak- 
ing upon  the  valuable  provinces  of  Maine  and  Anjoii,  of  some  port  <)ns  of 
which  that  prince  had  already  possessed  himself.  The  mere  apptirance 
of  Henry  had  the  eflfectof  causing  the  instant  submission  of  the  (iisii;'"(;ted 
and  Geoffrey  consented  to  resign  his  claim  in  consideration  of  a  ;.  early 
pension  of  a  thousand  pounds. 

A.  u.  1157. — Just  as  Henry  had  completed  his  prudent  regulation-  for 
preventing  future  disturbances  in  his  French  possessions,  he  was  (billed 
over  to  England  by  the  turbulent  conduct  of  the  Welsh,  who  had  veniured 
to  make  incursions  upon  his  territory.  They  were  beaten  back  bei  >re 
his  arrival ;  but  he  was  resolved  to  chastise  them  still  farther,  and  for  that 
purpose  he  followed  them  into  their  mountain  fastnesses.  The  dillicult 
nature  of  the  country  was  so  unfavourable  to  his  operations,  that  he  was 
more  than  once  in  great  danger.  On  one  occasion  his  vanguard  w:is  so 
beset  in  a  rocky  pass,  that  its  discipline  and  valour  could  not  prevent  it 
from  being  put  to  complete  rout ;  Hc^iry  de  Kssex,  who  held  the  high 
office  of  hereditary  standard  bearer,  actually  threw  down  his  standard  and 
joined  the  flying  soldiery,  whose  panic  he  increased  by  loudly  exclaiming 
that  the  king  was  killed.  The  king,  who  fortunately  was  on  the  spot,  gal- 
loped from  post  to  post,  re-assured  his  main  body,  and  led  it  on  so  gal- 
lantly, that  he  saved  it  from  the  ruin  with  which  it  was  for  a  time  threat- 
ened by  this  foolish  and  disgraceful  panic. 

Henry  de  Essex,  whose  behaviour  had  been  so  remarkably  unknightly 
on  this  occasion,  was  on  its  account  charged  with  felony  by  Robert  de 
Montford,  and  lists  were  appointed  for  the  trial  by  battle.  De  Essex  was 
vanquished,  and  condenmed  to  pass  the  remainder  di  his  life  in  a  convent 
and  to  fi-rfeit  all  his  property. 

A.  D.  .  lo8. — The  war  with  the  Welsh  ended  in  the  submission  of  that 
people,  and  Henry's  attention  was  again  called  to  the  continent.  VViien 
liis  hrtiilier  Geoflrey  gave  up  his  pretensions  to  Anjou  and  Maine  tiiat 
prince  took  possession  of  the  county  of  Nantes,  with  the  consent  of  its 
inhabitants,  who  liad  chased  away  their  legitimate  prince.  Geoffrey  died 
soon  after  he  had  assumed  his  new  dignity  ;  and  Henry  now  claimed  to 
suiHCcd  as  heir  to  the  command  and  possessions  which  Geoffrey  had  him- 
self owed  only  to  the  voluntary  submission  of  the  people.  His  claim  was 
disputed  by  Conan,  earl  of  Brittany,  who  asserted  that  Nantes  properly 
belonged  to  his  dominions,  whence  it  had,  as  he  alledged,  only  been  sepa- 
rated by  rebellion,  and  he  accordingly  took  possession  of  it.  Henry 
seeured  himself  against  any  interference  on  the  part  of  Louis  of  France 
by  belrithini;  his  son  and  heir,  Henry,  then  only  five  years  old,  to  Louis's 
'  ii«hter  Maryaret,  who  was  nearly  four  years  younger.  Having  by  this 
piMiiic  siroke  rendered  it  hopeless  for  Conan  to  seek  any  aid  from  Louis, 
Henry  now  marched  into  Urittany,  and  Conan,  seeing  the  impossibility  of 


212 


THE  TllfcASUHY  OK  IlISTUHY. 


successful  resistance,  at  oi\ce  airreeil  to  give  up  Nantes.  Soon  after,  Co. 
nan,  anxious  to  secure  llie  powerful  supuoil  of  Kenry,  gave  his  only 
daug;hter  and  lieircss  to  tliat  jirince's  son  Geoffrey.  Conan  died  in  a  few 
years  after  this  betrothal,  and  Henry  immediately  took  possession  of  Biii. 
tany  m  right  of  his  son  and  daughter-in-law. 

A.  D.  1159. — Henry,  through  his  wife,  had  a  claim  upon  the  comUry  o| 
Toulous(s  and  he  now  urged  that  claim  against  Raymond,  the  relgnjiio 
count,  who  solicited  the  protection  of  the  king  of  France;  and  the  l.aicr 
both  as  Raymond's  feudal  superior,  and  as  the  prince  more  ilian  all  olliei 
prin(!e.s  interested  in  putting  a  check  on  the  vast  aggrandizement  of  Henry 
immediatc'ly  granted  Raymond  his  protection,  in  spite  of  the  slartliiig  fact 
that  Louis  himself  had  formerly,  while  Kleanor  was  his  wife,  cluimed 
Toulouse  in  her  right,  as  Hiiiry  now  did.  So  little,  alas!  are  the  plainest 
princi|)les  of  honesty  and  consistency  regarded  in  the  strife  of  politics. 

Henry  advanced  upon  Toulouse  with  a  very  tonsiderable  army,  chiefly 
of  mercenaries.  Assi.-5ted  by  Trincaral,  count  of  Nismes,  and  Ucrengor, 
count  of  Harcelona,  he  was  at  the  outset  very  suc:cessful,  taking  Verdun 
and  several  other  places  of  lesser  note.  He  then  laid  siege  to  the  ciipiial 
of  the  county,  and  Louis  threw  himself  into  it  wiih  a  rcinforcentent. 
Henry  w;is  now  strongly  urged  by  his  friends  to  t:ike  the  place  by  assiuilt, 
as  he  probably  might  have  done,  and  by  thus  making  the  Fremh  king 
prisoner,  obtain  whatever  terms  he  pleased  from  that  prince.  But  Henrj's 
prudence  never  forsook  him,  even  amid  the  excitement  of  war  and  the 
flush  of  success.  Louis  was  his  foidal  lord  ;  to  make  him  prisoner  wmild 
be  to  holdout  encouragement  to  his  own  great  and  Im'bulent  vassnls  to 
break  through  their  feudal  bonds,  and  instead  of  prosecuting  the  sipnre 
more  vigorously,  in  order  to  make  Louis  prisoner,  Henry  immediately 
raised  it,  saying  that  he  coultl  not  think  of  fighting  against  a  place  that 
was  defended  by  his  superior  lord  in  pers(m,  and  departed  to  defend  Nor- 
mandy ag;iinst  the  count  de  Drenx,  brother  of  Louis. 

The  chivalrous  delicacy  which  hart  led  IL'ury  to  depart  from  before 
Toulouse  did  not  immediately  terminate  the  war  between  him  Louis;  but 
the  operations  were  feebly  conducted  on  both  sides,  and  ended  first  in  a 
cessniiou  of  arms,  and  then  in  a  formal  peace. 

A  new  cause  of  bitter  feeling  now  sprmig  up  between  them.  When 
Prince  Henry,  the  king's  eldest  son,  was  afTianced  to  Margaret  of  France, 
it  was  slipulaled  that  part  o(  the  princess's  dowry  should  be  the  iinpnrliuii 
fortress  of  (tisors,  which  was  to  be  delivered  into  the  baiiils  of  the  king  on 
the  celcliralion  of  the  marriage,  and  in  the  meaniime  (o  remain  in  the  ens- 
tody  of  the  knights  templars.  Henry,  as  was  suspected,  bribed  the  pr;ind 
master  of  the  tem|)Iars  to  deliver  the  fortress  to  him,  furnishing  lilni  wiili 
a  prelexi  fur  so  doing  by  ordering  the  immediate  celebration  of  the  niiir 
riage,  ihough  the  afTianced  prince  and  princess  were  mere  children.  I.oui^ 
was  naturally  much  ofTcnded  at  this  sharp  practice  on  the  part  of  Henry, 
and  was  on  the  point  of  recommencing  war  again,  when  Pope  AleNanilrr 
ML,  whmn  the  trunnph  of  the  anti-pope,  Victor  IV.,  compelled  to  resiijr 
ill  France,  sncccssfnlly  interposed  his  mediation, 

A.  n.  11(1.;, — Friendship  lieing,  at  least  nnnimally  and  externally,  eslah 
lishcd  between  Louis  and  Ilenry,  the  latter  moiuircli  rcinrncd  to  Kngl.ind, 
and  devoted  his  alti'iition  to  the  dilicale  and  dilTlcult  task  of  restraiiiini} 
th('  aiiilinrily  of  the  clergy  wilhiii  reasonable  Innils.  That  he  iiiijihl  (lie 
rnore  safely  and  rcailily  do  this,  lie  took  Ihe  o[ip(irlnniiv  now  afTurded  turn 
by  the  (lentil  of  Theobnld,  arcliliisho()  of  Canlerbui  y.  to  place  that  dl!,'iiil) 
ill  Ihe  hands  of  a  man  whom  he  dermed  entirely  drvdieil  to  liiinseH'.  bin 
wliri,  in  the  resiill,  proved  the  irre.ilest  enemy  to  the  authority  of  ihe 
crown,  and  the  sioii'est  and  li.iugiiliesi  elininpoii  of  the  elnirch,  niid  tiiiiLih 
Menry  the  danger  of  trusting  to  a|ipcnraiiceH,  by  imbilterin({iind  perplex 


THK  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


213 


llv,  cstnh- 

I'lliylilUll, 

slriiiiiiiig 
tniulil  the 
ronlril  liMTi 
r.il  (liijnil) 
iii'ii'ir.  tnii 
II  y  (if  llio 
ml  liin^h 
(I  prr)ilt'M 


jiir  whole  3'ears  of  his  hfe.  This  man,  in  whose  character  and  temper  the 
liiiic  iiiiiiii'  so  grievous  a  mistaiie,  was  the  celebrated  Thomas  :\  Becket. 

Bom  of  respectable  pirenlage  in  London,  and  having  a  good  educaiion, 
lie  was  fortunate  enough  to  attract  the  attention  and  ohiaiu  the  favour  ol 
aiclibisliop  Theobald,  who  bestowed  some  oiRces  upon  him,  the  einolu- 
nieiils  of  which  enabled  him  to  go  to  Italy,  where  he  studied  Ihe  civil  and 
cauoii  law  wiih  so  much  success  that  on  his  return  archbishop  Theobald 
iravc  him  the  lucrative  and  important  appoinltnenl  of  archdeacon  of  Can- 
terbury, a;id  subsequently  entrusted  him  with  a  mission  to  Rome,  in 
whicii  he  acquitted  himself  with  his  usual  ability.  On  the  accession  of 
Huiiry,  ibe  archbishop  strongly  recommended  Becket  to  his  notice ;  and 
(leiiry,  (imling  him  remarkably  rich  in  the  lighter  accomplishments  of  the 
cDurlicr,  as  well  as  in  the  graver  qualities  of  the  statesman,  g,'<vc  him  the 
hjirh  office  of  chancellor,  which  in  that  age  included,  besides  its  peculiar 
duties,  nearly  all  those  of  a  modern  prime  minister.  Kings  often  take  a 
deliglit  in  overwhelming  with  wealth  and  honours  those  whom  they  have 
oiicu  raised  above  the  struggling  herd.  It  was  so  even  with  the  prudent 
Henry,  who  proceeded  to  confer  upon  his  favourite  chancellor  the  pro- 
lostsliip  of  Beverley,  the  deanery  of  Hastings,  and  the  constableship  of 
llie Tower;  made  him  tutor  to  Prince  Henry,  and  gave  him  the  honours 
of  Kye  and  Berkham,  valuable  new  baronies  which  had  escheated  to  the 
crown.  Beckel's  style  of  living  was  proporiioned  to  the  vast  wealth  thus 
heaped  upon  him  ;  his  suinptuousness  of  style  and  the  numerous  attend- 
ance paid  to  his  levees  exceeded  all  tiiat  had  ever  been  seen  in  the  case 
of  ii  mere  subject;  the  proudest  nobles  were  his  guests,  and  gladly  placed 
liieir  sons  in  his  house  as  that  in  which  they  would  best  become  accom- 
plislii'd  gentlemen;  he  had  a  great  number  of  knights  actually  retained  in 
(lis  service,  and  he  attended  the  king  in  the  war  of  Toulouse  with  seven 
iiuiulred  knights  at  his  own  charge  ;  on  another  occasion  he  mainlained 
twelve  hundred  knights  and  twelve  hundred  of  their  followers  during  the 
furiy  days  of  their  stipulated  service;  and  when  sent  to  France  on  an 
embassy,  ho  completely  astonished  that  court  by  his  magnificiMit  aitend- 
aiice.  With  all  this  splendour  Becket  was  a  gay  companion.  Having 
taken  only  deacon's  or'iers,  he  did  not  hesitate  to  join  in  the  sports  of  lay- 
men, or  even  lo  take  his  share  of  warlike  adventure.  He  wis  conse- 
quently the  favourite  companion  of  the  king  in  his  leisure  hours.  It  is 
said  that  Henry,  riding  one  day  with  Bei;ket,  and  me(!tiiig  a  poor  wretch 
wli(is(!  rags  shook  in  the  wind,  seized  the  chiincellor's  scarlet  and  (Tiiiine- 
liiicil  coal  and  gav((  it  to  the  poor  man,  who,  it  may  well  be  sujjpos  ;d, 
was  much  surprised  at  such  a  gift. 

living  thus  in  both  the  official  and  private  intimacy  of  the  king,  Beeket 
was  well  ariiuaiiited  with  all  his  views  and  designs  towards  the  church; 
anil  ;is  \w  hail  always  profcised  to  agree  with  tlicm,  and  was  manifestly 
piis'.i'sscd  of  all  tlie  fulrnts  and  resolution  which  would  make  him  valuable 
ill  the  stri:i<i{l(-,  the  king  made  him  archbishop  at  the  death  of  his  old 
patron  TlnMbald. 

Having  lliiis  (il)tained  the  second  place  in  the  kin3:dom, Thomas  :\  Becket 
at  once  cast  oflT  all  the  gay  haliils  and  light  huniour  which  lie  had  inado 
till' iiistruini'iits  of  obtaining  ami  fixing  the  personal  favour  of  the  king. 
Ills  fust  slip  on  being  coiisecriti'd  archbishop  of  Canterbury  was  to  re- 
^v^n  his  i'liaiu-cllorshi|)  into  the  hands  of  the  king,  on  III,  signincant  plea 
that  his  spiiilual  fiim'timi  woiihl  lieiiccforih  demand  all  his  eMergi<'s  and 
jillt'iitjiin,  to  tli>'  entire  cxcliiMioii  of  all  secular  afTairs.  In  his  household 
am!  i'ipii|):igi'S  he  n-tained  all  his  (dd  magninceiice,  but  in  his  own  person 
lie  now  aHsiiiniil  a  rigid  austerity  biTilliiig  an  anchorite.  He  wore  a  hiir 
clutli  next  bis  skill,  wliicli  was  torn  and  raw  with  the  merciless  disci|)lina 
ilia;  lie  inllicteil  u|)on  liimself ;  bread  was  almost  his  only  diet,  and  his 
only  beverage  was  water,  which  he  rendered  uiipalatablo  by  an  infuiioa  o 


214 


TlIK  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


i*     ' 


disagreeable  herbs.  He  daily  had  thirteen  beggars  into  hu  palace  ana 
washed  their  feet ;  after  which  ceremony  they  were  supplied  with  refresh- 
ments, and  dismissed  with  a  pceimiary  present.  While  thus  exciting  ili«j 
wonder  and  admiration  of  the  laity,  he  was  no  less  assiduous  in  aimjiia 
at  the  favour  of  the  clergy,  tp  whom  he  was  studiously  accessible  and 
affable,  and  whom  he  still  further  gratified  by  his  liberal  gifts  to  hospital 
and  convents ;  and  all  who  were  admitted  to  his  presence  were  at  once 
edified  and  surprised  by  the  grave  and  devotional  aspect  and  rigid  life  of 
one  who  had  but  recently  been  foremost  among  the  gayest  and  giddiest  of 
the  courtiers.  Far  less  penetration  than  was  possessed  by  Henry  might 
have  enabled  him  to  see  in  all  this  sudden  and  sanctimonious  austerity  a 
sure  indication  that  he  would  find  a  powerful  foe  in  Uecket  whenever  he 
should  atteiTipt  to  infringe  upon  the  real  or  assumed  rights  of  the  church, 
But,  in  truth,  Dccket  was  too  eager  to  show  his  ecclesiastical  zeal,  even 
to  wait  until  the  measures  of  the  king  should  afford  him  opportunity,  and 
himself  commenced  the  strife  between  the  mitre  and  the  crown  by  calling 
upon  the  earl  of  Clare  to  surrender  the  barony  of  Tunbridge  to  the  eeo 
of  Canterbury,  to  which  it  had  formerly  belonged,  and  from  which  Becket 
affirmed  that  the  canons  prevented  his  predecessors  from  legally  separat- 
ing it.  The  earl  of  Clare  was  a  noble  of  great  wealth  and  power,  and 
allied  to  some  of  the  first  families,  and  his  sister  was  supposed  to  have 
gained  the  affections  of  the  king;  and  as  the  barony  of  Tunbridge  had 
been  in  his  family  from  the  con(]ucsl,  it  seems  probable  that  Becket  was 
inilncedto  select  him  for  this  demand  of  restitution  of  church  property,  in 
order  the  more  emphatically  to  show  his  determination  to  prefer  the  inter- 
ests of  the  church  to  all  personal  considerations,  whether  of  fear  or  favour. 
William  D'Kynsford,  one  of  the  military  tenants  of  the  (irown,  was  the 
patron  of  a  living  in  a  manor  held  of  the  archbi.'^hop  of  Canterbury.  To 
this  living  Becket  presented  an  incinnbent  named  Laurence,  thereby  in- 
fringing  the  riglit  of  D'Kynsf'^:;'.  who  instantly  ejected  Laurence  vi  el 
urints.  Becket  forthwith  cited  l)"l''ynsfonl,  and,  acting  at  once  accuser 
and  judge,  passed  sentence  of  excommunication  upon  bin.  D'Kynsford 
applied  for  the  interference  of  the  king,  on  the  ground  that  it  was  illegal 
that  such  a  sentence  should  be  passed  on  one  who  held  m  cajnie  from  llio 
crown,  wiilnnit  the  royal  assent  first  obtained.  Hcin-y  accordingly,  act- 
ing upon  the  [iractiee  established  from  the  coiKiuest.  wrote  to  Beek(  t,  with 
wliorn  he  no  longer  had  any  personal  intercourse,  and  desired  him  to  absolve 
D'Kynsford.  It  was  only  reluctantly,  and  after  some  delay,  that  Iteckpl 
complied  at  all ;  and  even  when  he  did  so  he  coupled  his  compliance  with 
a  message,  to  the  eirect  that  it  was  not  for  the  king  to  instruct  him  as  to 
whom  he  shoidd  exeotnniiinicate  and  whom  alisolvi?  t  Tli(>iii,'li  this  cini- 
diiet  abundantly  showed  Henry  the  sort  of  opposition  he  had  to  ex|)icl 
from  the  man  whom  his  kindness  had  fiiriiisheil  with  the  means  of  hi'iiii 
nntrnitefnl.  there  were  many  considerations,  apart  (Voiii  the  boldness  ami 
dci'ision  of  the  king's  temper,  wlneh  made  Henry  rt  solute  in  not  losini; 
any  time  m  cniieavouriug  to  |iut  sometliinu  like  a  curl)  upon  the  licentioiii* 
nisolenee  to  which  long  impunity  iunl  gross  superstition  of  the  great  binl) 
:if  the  people  had  eiieonriiged  the  clergy.  The  papacy  was  just  now  cnii 
siderably  weakened  by  its  own  schismatieal  ilivisioii,  while  Htniry,  wealthy 
in  territory,  wasfortiinatcMn  having  the  kiiigiloin  of  Kiii^laml  thoroui.'lily  in 
Rubniission,  with  the  sole  exception  of  the  clerical  disorders  and  assinn|)- 
lions  t<i  which  lie  li;id  now  (e'termined  to  put  a  slo|).  t>i)  the  oilier  liami 
those  (lisnrders  were  so  seaiidalous,  and  those  assuin|ilions  in  many 
rases  were  so  starlliuijly  unjust,  that  Henry  eonlil  could  scarcely  fail  to 
have  the  best  wimies  ot  Ins  subjects  in  general  for  the  siici'ess  of  Ins 
project.  The  praeiiee  of  ordiiiimig  the  sous  of  villains  had  not  merely 
caused  an  inonliiiiite  increase  in  tin-  nuinlper  of  the  clergy,  but  had  also 
caused  an  even  more  than  correspotulmy  (lelenuraliua  of  liie  clerical  cliur 


THE  TREASURY  JF  HISTORY. 


216 


ter  in  England.  The  incontinence,  gluttony,  and  roystering  habits,  at- 
tributed to  tiie  lower  order  of  tiic  clerfjy  by  the  writer  of  a  nnich  later 
day,  were  liglit  and  comparatively  venial  olTences  compared  totliose  which 
seem  but  too  truly  to  be  attributed  to  that  order  in  the  reign  of  Henry  II. 
Robbery,  adulterous  seduction,  and  even  rape  and  murder,  were  attrib- 
uted to  them ;  and  the  returns  made  to  an  inquiry  which  Henry  ordered, 
showed  that,  only  counting  from  the  conunencement  of  his  reign, ».  e.,  a 
period  of  somewhat  less  than  two  years,  a  hundred  murders  had  been 
committed  by  men  in  holy  orders  who  had  never  been  called  to  account. 

Henry  resolved  to  take  steps  for  putting  a  stop  to  this  impunity  of  crim- 
iiials  whose  sacred  professions  only  made  their  criminality  the  greater 
and  more  detestable.  An  opportunity  of  bringing  the  point  of  the  clerical 
impunity  to  issue  was  afforded  by  a  horrible  crime  that  was  just  now 
committed  in  Worcestershire,  where  a  priest,  on  being  discovered  in  car- 
rying on  an  illicit  intercourse  with  a  gentleman's  daughter,  put  her  father 
to  death.  The  king  demanded  that  the  offender  should  be  delivered  over 
to  the  civil  power,  but  liecket  confmed  the  clerkly  culprit  in  the  bishop's 
prison  to  prevent  his  being  apprehended  by  the  king's  oHicers,  and  main- 
tained that  the  highest  punishment  that  could  be  indicted  upon  the  priest 
was  degredation.  The  king  acutely  cauglit  at  this,  and  demanded  that, 
after  degredation,  when  he  would  have  become  a  layman  again,  the  cul- 
prit should  be  delivered  to  the  civil  power  to  be  further  dealt  witii  as  it 
might  deem  fit ;  but  liecket  deninrred  even  to  this,  on  the  plea  that  it 
would  be  unjust  to  try  an  accused  man  a  second  time  upon  the  same 
charge. 

.Angered  by  the  arrogance  of  Uecket,  and  yet  not  wholly  sorry  to  iiave 
puch  a  really  sound  pretext  for  putting  some  order  into  the  pretensions  of 
ilie  church,  Henry  summoned  an  assembly  of  tlie  |)relates  of  England,  for 
the  avowe(i  purpose  of  putting  a  teimination  to  the  frequent  and  increasing 
controversies  between  the  ecclesiastical  and  the  civil  Jurisdiction. 

Henry  himself  commenced  the  business  of  the  assembly  by  asking  the 
iiisiiops,  plainly  and  categorically,  whetlier  they  were  willing  or  unwilling 
to  submit  to  the  ancient  laws  and  customs  of  the  kingdom.  To  this  plain 
(jiit'stion,  the  bishops,  in  a  more  Jesuitical  spirit,  replied  that  they  were 
willing  so  to  submit,  "  saviii;^  their  own  order  ;"  a  mental  reservation  by 
which  they  clearly  meant  that  they  would  so  submit — until  resistance 
sjioiild  bi^  safe  and  easy  !  ^o  shallow  and  palpable  an  artifice  could  not 
impose  upon  so  shrewd  a  prince  as  Henry,  whom  it  greatly  piovoked.  He 
vlcparied  from  the  assembly  in  an  evident  rage,  and  immediately  stint  to 
require  from  Itecktit  the  surrender  of  the  castles  and  honours  of  Kye  and 
lli'i'kham.  This  dtMnand,  and  tin;  anger  which  it  indicated,  greatly  alarm- 
ed the  i)ishops  ;  but  Uecket  was  undismayed ;  and  it  was  not  without  much 
dilliculty,  that  I'htlip,  the  pope's  legate  and  almoner,  prevailed  upon  him 
to  consent  to  the  retraction  of  thi;  oiti'iisivi!  saving  clause,  and  give  an  ab- 
'iohite  and  utiqualilied  promise  of  submission  to  the  ancient  laws.  But 
Henry  was  now  determined  to  have  a  more  precise  understanding  ;  a  for- 
mal and  definite  decision  of  the  limits  of  the  eci-lcsiastical  and  the  civil  au- 
(liority ;  and  thus  in  some  measure  to  destroy  the  undue  asccndani-y  which, 
as  effectually  as  insidiously,  the  former  hail  for  aloiigtimi!  past  iiet-n  oh- 
taiiiing.  He  therefori;  collated  and  reihict'd  to  writing  those  ancient  cus- 
toms of  the  realm  which  had  been  the  most  egregioiisly  (•ontravciictl  by 
by  the  cli-rgy.  and  having  called  a  great  couiicii  of  the  banms  and  prelates 
at  (Uaniiiloi),  in  Derkshire,  he  submitted  this  digest  In  tlieiii  in  a  form  of 
a  series  of  artieli-s,  which  are  known  in  history  under  the  title  of  the 
'('onstitntions  of  Claremloii;"  which  are  lliiis  briefly  simimedup  ;  "It 
was  enacted  by  these  ecmstitutions  that  all  suits  coiu'ernmg  the  advowson 
and  preNentaliiin  of  churches  should  lie  determined  in  tlit!  eivil  courts' 
liiut  lu  future  tho  churches  belonging;  to  the  kind's  see  should  nut  begruntCL 


^ 


i 


i!     IS 


.     :^LM 


;  .^♦•(ir- 


214 


THE  TaEASURV  OF  HISTORY 


ill  pi.rpptiiity  without  his  cDnsent ;  that  clerks  accused  of  any  crhne  should 
Ih)  Irittil  ill  ilic  civil  courts  ;  that  no  one,  particularly  no  clerirymaii  of  sny 
rank  mIiouUI  depart  the  kingdom  without  the  king's  license:  that  excoin. 
niuiiictiitod  pcr(<ons  should  not  be  bound  to  give  security  for  their  coiuimi. 
ili^  ill  their  present  place  of  abode  ;  that  laics  should  not  be  accused  in 
•piriluiil  courts,  except  by  legal  and  reputable  promoters  and  witnesses; 
timl  no  chief-tfiiant  of  the  crown  should  be  excomnuinicatcd,  nor  his 
IiiikIh  he  put  under  an  interdict,  except  with  the  king's  consent;  that  all 
nppealH  In  Hpirilual  causes  should  be  carried  from  the  archdeacon  to  tin 
bmhiij),  from  the  bishop  to  the  primate,  and  from  the  primate  to  the  king, 
ttiid  HJiould  proceed  no  farther  but  with  the  king's  consent  ;  that  should 
any  liiw-snit  arise  between  a  layman  and  aclergyman  concerning  a  tenant 
tiliil  it  bo  (ii-piiled  wln^ther  the  land  be  a  lay  or  an  ecclesiastical  fee,  it 
Hliould  he  (irrit  determined  by  the  verdict  of  twelve  lawful  men  to  what 
cliiHN  it  hclongcil,  and  if  the  laud  be  found  to  be  a  lay  fee,  then  the  cause 
ihonid  fliiaily  be  determined  in  the  civil  courts;  that  no  inhabitant  in  a 
liiy  (IcmcHni'  should  be  excommunicated  for  non-nppearance  in  a  spiritual 
court  until  the  chief  oiTicer  of  the  place  where  he  resides  be  consulted, 
lliiit  he  may  c(»mpe!  him  by  the  civil  authority  to  give  satisfaction  to  the 
uhlircli;  dial  the  nrchbifhops.iiishopsandotlierspiritualdignitaries  should 
b(i  rcKiirdcd  as  barons  of  the  r(^alm,  should  possess  the  privileges  and  be 
suliJiK'ti'il  to  the  burdens  belonging  that  rank,  and  should  be  bound  to  at 
tend  the  king  in  his  great  councils,  and  assist  in  all  trials,  till  the  sentence 
cither  of  dealh  or  of  loss  of  nK.'iiibers  be  given  against  the  criminal;  that 
the  revenue  of  vacant  sees  should  belong  to  the  king,  the  chapter,  or  such 
of  iheiii  as  he  chooses  to  summon  should  sit  in  the  king's  chapel  till  tlio) 
made  the  new  (dcciion  with  his  consent,  and  that  the  bishop  elect  should 
do  honiiige  to  the  crown  ;  that  if  any  baron  or  tenant  in  cnpite  should  rc- 
fuhi!  to  siiinnit  lu  the  spiritual  courts,  the  king  should  employ  his  authority 
ill  obliging  him  lo  make  such  suhmissions ;  that  if  any  one  thrr  '.  olF  his 
Mllegiaiit'e  lo  the  king,  the  prelates  slunild  assist  the  king  witli  ;!i('irccu 
i»ure»  in  rcMluciiig  him;  that  goods  forreit('d  to  the  king  slKuihl  lot  he  pro- 
tected ill  churclieH  or  chnrchyar.ls ;  that  the  clergy  should  in  ■  longer  pre- 
tend to  the  right  of  enforcing  payment  of  debts  (;ontraciei!  by  oath  oi 
primiiHc,  but  should  leave  these  law-suits,  equally  with  others,  to  the  de- 
lerminatioii  of  thi>  civil  courts  ;  and  that  the  s(m;'>  of  villians  shouUl  not  l)<> 
urdaiiied  clerks  without  the  consent  of  their  lord." 

The  haions  present  at  this  great  council  were  all  on  thoking's  sid  ^eilhci 
fnmi  actual  participation  of  his  sentiments  towards  tlie  clergy  or  from  awe 
of  his  |)ower  and  temper  ;  and  the  prelates,  perciving  that  they  had 
both  the  king  and  the  lay  peerage  against  them,  were  fain  lo  coiisrnl 
to  llu'se  iirtii'lcH,  which  accordingly  were  voted  without  o|)posilion.  Ihit 
Henry,  imsdoiilitiug  that  the  bishops,  though  they  round  it  useless  to 
oppime  the  united  will  of  the  crown  and  jieerage,  wimid  whenever 
circmnHlauies  should  be  favomabli!  to  lliem  deny  the  authority  of  tlie 
comnIiIuIioiis,  as  being  enacted  by  an  authority  in  ilsidf  incompleti', 
would  ind  ii(!  I'ontenled  with  the  mere  verhial  iissent  of  the  prelates, 
hill  deiiiaiided  llial  each  of  them  shimld  set  his  hand  an<l  seal  to  the 
coimliiuiions,  and  to  their  solemn  promise  to  observe  them.  To  this 
(lemainl,  Ihough  the  rest  of  the  prelates  complied   with  it,   Deckel  gave 

II  h(dd  and  Hal  refusal.  The  earls  of  Cornwall  and  Leicester,  the  ineM 
powerful  nieii  in  the  lay  peerage,  stront^iy  urged  him,  as  it  matter  of 
jioliey  Hi  uell  as  obedieie'c,  U>  comply  with  the  king's  demand.  IIi 
wiiH  no  well  aware  of  Henry's  drift,  and  so  far  from  being  desirous  (ji 
leciirmg  lli<'  pern.anent  ohs(>rvani'e  of  tlie  ciiiistiliitions  of  ClaiendDii, 
lliiil  III'  eiilrealicH  could  induce  him  to  vield  assent,  until  Hichard  ilc 
llaNiing'*,  Diiglish  graml  prior  of  the  kingiits  teniplirs,  Knelt  to  him,  ami 

III  leara  imiilured  liim,  if  iiol  for  lu«  uwii  sake,  ul  least  for  Uie  Bake  u> 


THE  TREASURY  OK  HISTOttV. 


217 


the  thnrcli,  not  to  continue  an  opposition  which  must  be  nnsuncessful 
and  would  only  excite  the  ruinous  opposition  of  a  monarch  equally  reso- 
lute ami  powerful.  Stern  and  resolved  as  Becket  had  shown  himself 
as  re^nuded  the  nnportunity  of  laymen,  this  evident  proof  that  up(»n  this 
point,  at  least,  he  no  longer  had  the  sympathy  of  even  churchmen, 
caused  Becket  to  give  way  ;  and  he  therefore,  though  with  evident  re- 
luctance, took  an  oath  "  legally,  though  with  gooil  fuiih,  and  without 
fraud  or  reserve,  to  observe  the  constitutions  of  Clarendon." 

But  the  king,  though  he  had  thus  far  triumphed  even  over  the  firm  and 
haughty  temper  of  the  primate,  was  by  no  means  so  near  to  complete  suc- 
cess as  he  deemed  himself.  Pope  Alexander,  who  stdl  remained  in 
Friuice,  and  to  whom  in  his  contests  with  the  anti-pope  Hcm-y  had  done 
no  unimportant  service,  no  sooner  had  the  constiiutidus  presented  to  him 
for  ratification,  than  he  perceived  how  completely  they  were  calculated 
to  make  the  king  of  England  independent  of  his  (dergy,  and  the  kingdom 
Itself  of  the  papacy;  and  he  was  so  far  from  ratifying,  tliat  he  condemned 
and  annulled  them.  When  Becket  found  liis  own  former  opposition  thus 
sanctioned  by  the  present  feelings  and  conduct  of  the  pope,  he  regretted 
that  he  had  allowed  any  considerations  to  indiu;e  him  to  give  his  signature 
and  assent.  He  immediately  increased  his  already  great  and  painful  aus- 
terities of  life  and  severity  of  dis<!ipline,  and  would  not  even  e.\ercise  any 
of  the  functions  of  his  dignity  milil  he  received  the  absolution  of  the  pope 
for  what  he  deemed  his  offence  against  the  ecclesiastical  privileges.  Nor 
did  lie  ciMifine  himself  to  mere  veil)al  repentance  or  his  own  personal  dis- 
cipline, hut  used  all  bis  eloquence  to  induce  the  English  prelates  to  engage 
with  him  in  a  fixed  and  firm  confederacy  to  regain  and  maintain  their 
foniuion  rights.  Henry,  hoping  to  beat  Becket  at  his  own  weapons,  now 
applied  to  Alexander  to  grant  the  legatine  connnission  to  the  archbishop 
of  York,  whom  he  obviously  only  wished  to  arm  with  that  inordinate  and 
dangerous  authority,  in  order  that  he  might  make  him  the  instrument  of 
Bi'cket's  ruin.  But  the  design  was  too  obvious  to  escape  so  keen  an  ob- 
server as  Alexander,  who  granted  the  connnission  of  legate,  as  desired, 
hut  carefully  added  a  clause  iniiibiting  the  legate  from  executing  any  act 
lo  the  prejudice  of  the  ar(dibisho|)  of  Canterbury.  On  finding  himself  thus 
h.idlcd  upon  the  very  point  on  which  alone  he  was  solicitous,  Henry  so 
cnniplelcly  lost  his  temper,  that  he  sent  back  the  doinnneut  by  the  very 
mc'»>seng(T  who  brought  it  over,  thibi  giving  to  Alex.inder  the  (Minpliment 
ofdisceriinient,  and  the  satisfaction  of  haviugcomplctely  baffled  his  plan. 

The  anger  which  the  king  now  exhibit<'d  threatening  extreme  measures, 
Becket  •wice  endeavoured  to  leave  the  kingdom,  but  was  detained  on  both 
oci^asinns  by  contrary  winds;  and  Henry  was  thus  enabled  to  cause  him 
irreat  expense  and  annoyance,  by  inciting  J(»iin,  mareschal  of  the  ex- 
clicquer,  to  sue  tin;  archbishop  in  his  own  court  for  some  lands  belonging 
In  the  manor  of  Pag<diam,  arid  thence  to  appeal  to  the  king's  court.  When 
the  day  arrived  for  trying  the  cause  on  the  appeal,  the  archbishop  did  not 
personally  appear,  but  sent  four  knights  to  apologize  for  his  absence  on 
the  si'orc  of  illness,  and  to  make  certain  teciinical  objections  to  the  form 
of  John's  appeal.  'I'lie  king  treated  the  absence  of  Btcket  as  a  wilful  and 
offensiv(!  contempt,  and  the  kniy  lis  who  b(U'e  his  apolngy  narrowly 
cs(M|)('d  being  committed  to  prison  for  its  alledged  falsehood.  Being  rc- 
siilveil  that  neither  absence!  nor  tecdinical  ty  should  save  Becket  from  suf- 
feriui;,  tlie  king  now  summoned  a  great  council  of  barons  and  jirehites  at 
\(irthan)pton.  Before  this  court  Be(  ket,  with  an  air  of  great  uioih'ralion, 
urijed  that  the  mareschal's  cause  was  proceeding  in  the  archiepiscopal 
oiMiri  Willi  all  possilile  reyulariiy,  tliougb  ll..t  testimony  id'  the  sheriflf 
Would  show  that  cause  lo  lie  iiiiipiitous  and  unjust ;  that  he,  Becket,  far 
fioui  sliiiwiiig  any  I'ontempt  of  the  king's  court,  had  most  explicitly  ac- 
Liiuwledged  and  submitted  tu  his  uuthou'-v  bv  sending  four  of  iin>  kuiglitB 


ft?!'' 


m 


i  ■ 

r  f 

r 

a  ~r '"  '  . 

,  1  >»♦«»«'*■ 


2I« 


THK  THKAStlHY  OP  HISTOEY. 


to  appear  for  him;  that  even  if  their  appearance  should  not  be  accepted 
as  being  tantamount  to  his  own,  and  he  should  be  technically  made  guilty 
of  an  offence  of  which  he  was  virtually  innocent,  yet  the  penalty  attaciied 
10  that  crime  was  but  a  small  one,  and  as  he  was  an  inhabitant  of  Kent 
lie  was  entitled  by  law  to  an  abatement  even  of  that ;  and  that  he  was 
now,  in  loyal  obedience  to  the  king's  summons,  present  in  the  great 
(iouncil.  and  ready  before  it  to  justify  himself  against  the  charges  of  the 
marcschal.  Whatever  may  be  thought  of  the  general  arrogance  of  the 
prmiate  and  of  his  ambition,  both  as  man  and  churchman,  it  is  impossible 
not  to  perceive  that  his  reasonings  were  here  very  just,  and  that  the  king's 
whole  conduct  was  far  more  indicative  of  the  monarch  who  was  intent  on 
crushing  a  too  powerful  subject,  than  of  one  who  was  sincerely  and  right- 
eously desirous  of  "  doing  justice  and  loving  mercy ;"  and  it  is  equally  im. 
possible  not  to  feel  some  sympathy  with  the  haughty  and  courageous  pri- 
mate, who,  when  pressed  down  by  a  foe  so  powerful  and  so  vnidictive, 
was  aV.and()ncd  by  the  dignitaries  of  that  very  church  for  wliose  sake, 
pnncipally  at  least,  he  had  so  courageously  combatted.  In  the  present 
case,  as  in  the  case  of  the  constitutions  of  Clarendon,  the  bishops  were 
induced  to  coincide  with  the  lay  barons,  who  had  from  the  first  determined 
to  side  with  the  king,  and  notwithstanding  the  convincing  logic  of  his  de- 
fence, he  was  pronounced  guilty  of  contempt  of  the  king's  court  and  of 
neglect  of  the  fealty  which  he  had  sworn  to  his  sovereign ;  and  Henry, 
bishop  of  \V  inchester,  the  once  powerful  brother  of  the  late  king  Stephen, 
was,  in  spite  of  all  his  remonstrances,  compelled  to  sentence  the  primate 
to  confiscation  of  all  his  goods  and  chattels. 

Even  this  severe  sentence,  upon  what  we  cannot  but  consider  a  most 
iniquitous  judgment,  did  not  sufliciently  satisfy  the  vengeance  of  the  k.ng, 
who  on  the  very  next  day  demanded  from  becket  the  sum  of  three  hun- 
dred pounds,  which  had  been  received  by  him  from  the  manors  of  Eye  and 
Berkham.  To  this  demand  Becket  replied,  that  as  this  suit  was  not  men- 
tioned in  his  summons  to  the  council,  he  ought  not  be  called  upon  to 
answer  it ;  that,  in  point  of  fact,  he  had  expended  more  than  that  sum 
upon  Kye  and  Uerklnim  castles  and  the  royal  palace  in  London;  but  that 
rather  than  a  dispute  about  money  should  make  any  difference  between 
his  sovereign  and  himself,  he  would  at  once  consent  to  pay  the  sum,  for 
which  he  innnediately  gave  the  necessary  sureties.  Even  this  submission 
could  not  soften  the  king's  determination ;  he  demanded  five  hundred 
marks  which  he  had  lent  Becket  in  the  war  of  Toulouse — during  which 
war  he  had  done  tlie  king  much  zealous  and  good  service  ! — and  a  similar 
sum  for  wliich  the  king  alleged  that  he  had  become  Bucket's  surety  to  a 
Jew;  and  tlien,  as  if  to  leave  him  without  the  slightest  hope  of  eseape,  lie 
called  upon  him  to  furnish  an  account  of  his  administration  as  chancellor, 
and  to  pay  in  the  balance  due  from  him  on  account  of  all  the  baronies 
prelacies,  and  abbeys  which  had  been  under  his  management  during  his 
chancellorship.  To  this  demand  Becket  replied,  that  it  was  so  suddenly 
and  unexpectedly  made  that  he  nuist  require  some  delay  ere  he  could 
answer  to  it.  The  king  then  demanded  sureties,  and  Becket  difsired  leave 
to  consult  his  suffragans  upon  that  point.  They  agreed  with  him  that  it 
would  be  utterly  impossible  for  him  lo  procure  satisfactory  security  for 
the  enormous  amount  of  '14,000  marks,  at  which  the  king  chose  to  esti- 
mate a  (l(!inand  which  nnisl  in  its  very  nature  be  uncertain;  and  Henry, 
bishop  of  VVinchcslcr,  advised  him  at  once  to  make  the  king  anotlVrof 
two  tiiousand  marks,  by  way  of  payment  in  full  of  all  demands,  certain  oi 
uiKM  rlain.  This  he  a(;cordinKly  offiired,  but  the  king  refused  it,  as  lie 
might  liave  been  ('X|)(!ct(Ml  to  do  ;  for  in  the  first  place  he  desired  money 
far  less  than  the  torment  and  ruin  of  Becket,  and  in  the  itext  place,  tli- 
sum  of  two  thousand  marks,  though  large  in  itself,  was  small  ii'dcR*  '• 
comparison  to  the  sum  demanded  by  the  king,  and  could  hardi  <  U^ 


THE  TREASUKY  OF  HISTORY 


219 


pected  to  satisfy  him  if  money  really  were  his  object.  Some  oi  Beckel's 
suffra'faiis,  now  plainly  perceiving  that  his  ruin  was  the  king's  object, 
advised  him  to  resign  his  see  by  way  of  terminating  all  the  king's  charges 
and  demands ;  while  others  advised  that  he  should  plainly  submit  to  the 
kinif's  mercy.  But  Becket  seemed  to  gather  courage  trom  the  very  cir- 
cumstances which  would  have  plunged  men  of  a  more  timid  spirit  into 
despair,  and  resolved  to  brave  the  utmost  that  the  king  could  inflict. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

THE   REION   OF   IIE.NKT   M.    (CONTINUED). 

Having  spent  a  few  days  in  retirement  and  meditation  upon  the  trymg 
and  difficult  circumstances  in  which  lie  was  placed,  Becket  at  length  went 
10  church  and  performed  mass ;  having  the  communion  service  com- 
menced with  the  words  "  Princes  sat  and  spake  against  me,"  by  the 
selection  of  which  passage  he  appeared  to  desire  to  liken  himself  to  the 
persecuted  and  martyred  St.  Stephen.  From  church  Becket  proceeded  to 
the  royal  palace.  On  arriving  at  tlie  gate  he  took  the  cross  from  the  hands 
of  the  bearer,  and,  holding  it  before  him,  marched  to  the  royal  apartments 
as  though  in  some  danger  which  made  the  presence  of  the  sacred  symbol 
necessary  for  his  protection.  The  king,  who  from  an  inner  apartment 
perceived  the  extraordinary  demeanour  of  Becket,  sent  some  of  tiie 
bishops  to  reason  with  him  upon  its  impropriety.  They  reminded  him 
that  he,  by  subscribing  to  the  constitutions  of  Clarendon,  had  agreed  with 
them  that  it  was  necessary  to  do  so ;  and  they  complained  lliat  he  ap- 
peared to  wish  to  induce  them  now,  by  his  example,  to  revolt  against  the 
civil  power,  when  it  was  too  hite  for  either  of  them  to  do  so  without  the 
jiiilt  of  offending  against  laws  to  wliich  they  had  consented  and  sworn  to 
support.  To  this  Becket  replied,  tiiat  if  he  and  they  had  done  wrong  in 
swearing  to  support  laws  destructive  of  tlie  ecclesiastical  privileges,  the 
best  atonement  they  now  could  make  would  be  to  submit  themselves  to 
the  auiiiority  of  the  pope,  who  had  solemnly  nullified  the  constitutions  of 
Clarendon,  and  had  absolved  them  from  the  oatii  taken  to  secure  those 
constitutions;  that,  for  his  own  part,  tiic  heavy  penalty  to  whicii  he  had 
been  condemned  for  an  offence  which  would  be  but  slight  even  had  he 
been  guilty  of  it,  which  he  was  not,  and  the  preposterous  demands  sub- 
sequently made  upon  him  by  the  king,  very  clearly  showed  that  it  was 
intended  utterly  to  ruin  him,  and  thus  prepare  a  way  for  the  destruction 
of  all  spiritual  immunities  ;  that  to  the  pope  he  should  appeal  against  what- 
ever iniquitous  sentence  should  be  passed  upon  him ;  and  that,  terrible  as 
the  vengeance  of  so  powerful  a  king  as  Henry  most  undoubtedly  was,  it 
had  power  only  to  slay  the  body,  while  the  sword  of  the  church  could 
slay  tile  soul. 

In  thus  speaking  of  appealing  to  the  pope,  Becket  not  only  opposed  the 
express  provision  of  ttio  constitutions  of  Clarendon,  by  whicli  appeals 
were  done  away  with  even  in  ecclesiastical  cases,  but  opposed  even  <!om- 
inon  custom,  such  appeals  never  having  lain  in  civil  cases.  Whatever 
excuse  Henry's  violence  might  furnish  for  appealing  to  Rome,  in  the  eyo 
of  reason,  to  do  so  was  an  offence  both  by  tlie  letter  and  the  spirit  of  the 
law;  Becket,  however,  waited  not  for  any  further  proof  of  the  king's  vin- 
diciivcncss,  but  departed  secretly  for  Northampton,  and  after  wandering 
abiiiit  f(M'  some  time  in  disguise,  and  undergoing  much  difliculty,  at  Ic  ith 
procured  a  ship  and  arrived  safely  at  Gravelines. 

In  France  the  persecuted  churchman  was  sure  to  find  warm  friends,  if 
not  actually  from  their  conviction  of  his  having  the  right  in  tiie  quarrel 
between  himself  and  the  king,  at  least  because  it  was  their  interest  to  up- 


220 


THE  TREASURY  Of  HISTORY. 


hold  all  who  were  likely  in  any  degree  to  check  the  proud  prosperity  ol 
Henry.  In  this  both  the  king  of  France  and  his  powerful  vassal  iheearlof 
Flanders  had  an  interest ;  and  in  that  particular  interest  they  forgot  their 
infinitely  greater  concern  in  the  obedience  of  subjects  to  their  sovereign, 
and  gave  the  self-exiled  prelate  a  warm  reception,  the  king  of  France 
even  going  so  far  as  to  pay  him  a  personal  visit  at  Soissoiis,  where  he 
had  fixed  the  prelate's  residence.  Henry  sent  a  magnificent  embassy  to 
Lyons  to  justify  his  conduct  to  the  pope  ;  but  he,  who  was  so  deeply  in- 
terested  in  the  success  of  Becket,  gave  the  envoys  of  Henry  a  very  cool 
recepiion,  while  upon  Becket,  who  also  attended  to  justify  his  conduct, 
he  lavished  his  kindness  and  distinction.  The  king,  doubly  annoyed  iha't 
Becket's  person  was  beyond  his  power  and  that  he  had  obtained  so  marked 
a  welooine  abroad,  not  only  put  all  the  revenues  of  Canterbury  under 
sequestration,  but  even  proceeded  to  the  meanly  malignant  length  of  ban- 
ishing the  whole  of  the  archbishop's  family  and  dependants,  to  the  number 
of  four  hundred.  In  order  that  there  might  be  no  doubt  that  his  intent 
in  this  measure  was  to  embarrass  Becket,  by  throwing  upon  him  the  sup- 
port of  this  host  of  helpless  people,  a  burden  the  more  ruinous  from  tlie 
simultaneous  sequestration  of  his  revenue,  he  compelled  them  before  their 
departure  to  swear  that  they  would  immediately  join  the  archbishop.  In 
this  part  of  his  vindictive  design,  however,  Henry  was  defeated  by  the 
pope ;  for  as  soon  as  these  exiles  arrived  in  France,  Alexander  absolved 
them  from  their  involuntary  oath,  and  distributed  them  among  the  con- 
vents of  Flanders  and  France  ;  and  to  Becket  himself  the  convent  of  Pon- 
tigny  was  given  for  a  residence,  his  income  being  furnished  by  the  reve- 
nues of  that  convent  and  a  very  liberal  pension  allov/ed  to  him  by  the  king 
of  France  ;  and  here  Becket  remained  in  great  esteem  and  magnificence 
for  some  years. 

A.D.  1165. — Though  far  removed  from  Henry's  presence,  Thomas  h 
Becket  had  lost  neither  the  will  nor  the  power  to  annoy  him.  Both 
with  that  end  and  for  the  purpose  of  confirming  the  favourable  opinion  of 
the  pope  towards  himself,  he  now  resigned  into  Alexander's  hands  his 
see  of  Canterbury,  on  the  alledged  ground  that  he  had  been  uncanoiiically 
presented  to  it  by  the  king;  appparently  quite  unaware  or  careless  of  the 
fact,  that  that  plea  made  the  whole  of  his  conduct  illegal  and  gratuitous  by 
his  own  showing.  Alexander  well  pleased  at  the  deference  thus  shown 
to  him,  accepted  his  resignation,  but  inmiediately  reinvested  him  and 
granted  him  a  bull  by  which  he  pretended  to  free  Decket  from  the  sentence 
passed  on  him  at  Northampton  by  the  great  council.  Another  glaring  in- 
consistency; this  sentence  being  fully  authorized  as  to  jurisdiction,  ty- 
rannical as  it  was,  in  fact,  by  the  constitutions  of  Clarendon,  which 
Becket  himself  had  signed  and  sanctioned.  But,  in  truth,  this  whole 
quarrel  was  a  series  of  inconsistencies,  absurdity,  and  wilfulness,  both 
on  the  one  side  and  on  the  other.  Being  unable  to  obtain  an  interview 
with  Alexander,  the  favourable  stale  of  whose  aflTairs  enabled  him  to  re- 
turn to  Rome,  Henry  now  made  earnest  and  wise  preparations  for  pre- 
serving his  kingdom  and  himself  from  the  worst  consequences  of  the  open 
quarrel  with  the  pope  which  now  seemed  to  bo  inevitable.  He  issued  the 
strictest  orders  to  his  justicaries  neither  to  forward  nor  to  allow  of  any 
appeals  from  their  courts  either  to  Becket  or  the  pope,  or  in  anywise  to 
appeal  to  or  obey  their  authority.  He  at  the  same  time  made  it  a  trcii- 
sonablo  offence  to  bring  any  interdict  into  the  kingdom  from  oitlier  of 
these  dignitaries,  and  denouncing  upon  all  such  ofTences  the  punislinipnt, 
m  case  of  clerks,  of  castration  and  deprivation  of  sight,  and  in  the  case 
of  laics,  of  deatli ;  while  sequestration  and  banishment  were  to  be  the 
puuishmeiit  not  only  ofall  persons  who  should  obey  such  interdict,  but 
also  of  :ill  their  relations;  and  to  give  the  more  solemn  effect  to  tlipse 
stern  orders,  he  obliged  all  his  subjects  to  swear  obedience  to  them 


THK  TKEA3URY  OP  HISTOUY. 


n\ 


Some  notion  maybe  formed  of  the  tremendous  power  Henry  possessed, 
wliei)  it  is  (considered  tiiat  orders  so  sweeping  as  these,  wliieii  in  some 
sort  severed  the  kingdom  from  its  dependance  on  the  papiil  court,  were 
made  not  by  the  great  council  of  the  nation,  but  by  the  king's  will  alone. 
As  Beckct  still  possesed  vast  influence  over  the  clergy,  who  in  that  age 
iiad  an  ahnost  absolute  power  over  the  minds  of  the  great  mass  of  the  peo- 
ple, Henry  did  not  deem  himself  sufficiently  armed  by  these  orders,  but 
oiilcred  into  a  close  engagement  with  the  celebrated  emperor,  Frederic 
Barbarossa,  who  was  at  open  war  with  the  pope  Alexander;  and  still  far- 
ther to  alarm  the  pope,  Henry  showed  some  inclination  to  acknowledge 
liie  aiui-pope,  Pascal,  111. 

A.D.  una. — Nothing  daunted  by  the  prudent  arrangement  of  Henry,  oi 
by  the  effect  they  undoubtedly  had  upon  the  mind  of  Alexander,  Beckct 
now  issued  a  censure  which  excommunicated  the  king's  chief  advisers  by 
name  and  generally  all  persons  who  should  favour  or  even  obey  the  con- 
stitutions of  Clarendon.  Thus  placed  in  the  dilemma  of  being  unable  to 
release  liis  friends  from  the  terrible  effects  of  excommunication,  without 
undoing  all  ihat  he  had  done,  and  making  a  formal  and  complete  acknowl- 
edgement of  the  pope's  power  to  absolve  and  tiierefore  to  exconnnunicate, 
Henry  listened  to  tiie  advice  of  John  of  Oxford,  his  agent  wiihtlie  pope, 
and  consented  to  admit  the  mediation  of  the  legates  Otho  and  William  of 
Pavia.  When  these  personages  proceeded  to  examine  into  the  affair,  the 
king  reqiitred  that  all  the  constitutions  of  Clarendom  should  be  fully  ratified; 
Becket,  on  the  other  hand,  insisted  that  before  any  su(di  agreement  were 
made,  holh  himself  and  his  adherents  should  be  restored  to  their  posses- 
sions  and  position.  The  legate  William,  who  was  greatly  interested  for 
Henry,  took  care  to  protract  the  negotiation  as  far  as  possible,  and  to  rep- 
resent Henry's  disposition  in  the  most  favourable  light  to  the  pope.  But 
the  pretensions  and  demands  of  the  opponent  parties  were  far  too  much 
opposed  at  the  very  outset  to  admit  of  any  good  result  and  the  negotiation 
soon  fell  to  the  ground;  Henry,  however,  profited  by  its  duration  and  the 
partial  restoration  of  the  pope's  good  opinion,  to  procure  a  dispensation 
for  the  marriage  of  his  third  son,  Geoffrey,  to  the  heiress  of  Brittany,  a 
favour  to  wlii('h  he  attached  ail  the  more  importance  because  it  very  deep- 
ly mortified  both  Becket  and  the  king  of  France. 

A.  D.  llfi?. — The  count  of  Auvergne,  a  vassal  of  the  Duchy  of  Guienne, 
having  offended  Henry,  that  iiumarch  entered  his  vassal's  domain;  and 
the  count  appealing  to  the  kingof  France  as  superior  lord,  a  war  ensued 
between  the  two  kings ;  but  it  was  conducted  with  no  vigour  on  eithei 
side,  and  peace  was  soon  made  on  terms  sufficiently  unfavourable  to 
Henry  to  show  that  his  quarrel  with  Rome  had  lost  him  not  a  little  of  that 
superiority  which  he  had  previously  enjoyed  over  the  king  of  France. 

Both  the  pope  and  Henry  began  to  tire  of  their  disputes  which  lliey  at 
lengili  perceived  to  be  mutually  iiurtful,  and  still  more  darigerous  as  to 
the  future  than  presently  injurious.  This  c((nsideralion  ii\(;lined  both  par- 
ties to  a  reconciliation,  but  was  not  sufficient  to  put  an  end  to  their  jeal- 
ousies and  suspicions.  Several  attempts  at  coming  to  a  good  understand- 
ing were  frustrated  by  petty  doubts  or  petty  punctilio  on  either  side  ;  but 
at  length  the  nuncios  Gralian  and  Vivian  w(Me  commissioned  by  the  pope 
to  bring  about  an  accommodation,  ami  for  that  purpose  they  had  a  meet- 
ing with  Henry  in  Normandy.  After  much  tedious  discussions  all  difli- 
enliies  seemed  happily  brouglit  to  an  I'ud.  Henry  offered  to  sign  a  treaty 
ill  the  terms  projiosed  by  the  pope,  only  with  a  salvo  to  his  royal  dignity, 
lint  liecket,  who,  however  much  wronged  at  one  time  seems  at  length  to 
have  learned  lo  love  strife  for  its  own  sake,  took  fire  at  this  limitation, 
and  the  excommnnicatioii  of  the  king's  ministers  was  immediately  renew- 
Hil.  No  fewer  than  four  more  treaties  were  broke'  ..n  i)\  a  similar  petti- 
ness of  temper  on  either  side:  and  it  is  quite  clear  from  all  accounts,  that 


53  "^HK 


8S9  THE  TKEASUEY  OP  HISTORY. 

the  fajlt  lay  chiefly  with  Becket,  who,  certainly,  whatever  other  qualities 
of  a  Christian  prelate  he  was  endowed  with  was  sadly  deficient  in  meek- 
ness. 

A.  D.  1169. — Henry,  who  perceived  this  fault  of  Becket,  did  not  fail  to 
point  it  out  to  the  attention  of  King  Louis.  "  There  have  been,"  said 
Henry,  witii  great  force  and  shrewdness,  "many  kings  of  England,  some 
of  greater,  some  of  less  authority  than  myself;  there  have  also  been  many 
archbishops  of  Canterbury,  holy  and  good  men,  and  entitled  to  every  kind 
of  respect ;  let  Becket  but  act  towards  me  with  the  same  submission 
which  the  greatest  of  his  predecessors  have  paid  to  the  least  of  mine, 
and  there  shall  be  no  more  controversy  between  us."  This  view  of  the 
case  was  so  reasonable  that  it  induced  Louis  for  a  time  to  withdraw  lijg 
friendship  and  support;  but  bigotry  and  interest  proved  an  overmatch  for 
reason,  and  the  prelate  soon  regained  the  Frsiieh  king's  favour. 

A.  D.  1170. — At  length,  to  the  great  joy  of  a)  sensible  men  and  well- 
wishers  to  England,  all  difficulties  were  doiiP  ;:ivay  with,  and  Becket  re- 
turned to  England.  By  this  treaty  he  wps  noi  required  to  yield  any 
of  the  original  points  in  dispute ;  he  and  his  adherents  were  restored 
to  their  possessions,  and  in  cases  where  vacancies  in  the  see  of  Canter- 
bury had  been  filled  up  by  the  king,  the  incumbents  he  had  appointed  were 
now  expelled,  and  their  places  filled  by  men  of  Becket's  own  choice.  On 
the  king's  side  the  only  advantages  derived  from  this  reconciliation  were 
the  removal  of  the  terrible  sentence  of  excommunication  from  his  friends 
and  ministers,  and  the  terminaiion  of  the  dread  in  which  he  had  so  long 
).ived  of  seeing  an  interdict  laid  upon  his  whole  dominions.  But  that  was 
an  advantage  the  preciousn^ss  of  whicli  it  is  scarcely  possible  for  our 
generation,  so  happily  free  IV'^;^  terrors  which  Rome  could  then  strike  into 
the  hearts  of  the  mightiest  niuiuns,  adequately  to  appreciate.  That  Henry 
set  no  ordinary  value  upon  the  peai  e  tlius  procured  may  be  judged  from 
the  fact,  that  this  proud  and  powerful  king,  among  the  many  servile  flat- 
teries with  which  he  wooed  the  good-Iiuniour  of  the  man  whose  greatness 
was  his  own  creation,  actually  on  one  occasion  stooped  so  low  as  to  hold 
the  stirrup  of  Becket  while  the  haughty  churchman  mounted  !  In  a  king 
this  excessive  and  unseemly  condescension  passes  for  policy  and  astute- 
ness ;  in  a  meaner  man  it  would  scarcely  escape  being  called  by  the  plainer 
and  less  complimentary  names  of  hypocrisy  and  servility. 

But  the  peace  secured  by  so  niuch  sacrifice  of  dignity  did  not  last 
long.  Henry  during  Becket's  absence  iiad  associated  his  heir,  Prince 
Heniy,  with  him  in  the  sovereignty,  and  had  caused  liie  unction  to  be  be- 
stowed upon  him  by  Hoger,  archbisiiop  of  York.  This  had  not  been  done 
so  sc(;relly  hut  that  the  exiled  prelate  had  been  informed  of  it,  and  both 
he  and  tlie  king  of  France  demanded  that  the  archbishop  of  Canterbury, 
who  alone  could  regularly  bestow  the  unction,  should  renew  the  cere- 
mony both  upon  Prince  Henry  and  his  youthful  bride,  Margaret  of  France 
To  this  reasonable  demand,  which  indeed  was  of  the  utmost  importance  to 
the  prince  and  princess,  the  king  readily  and  frankly  acceded  ;  but  not 
contented  with  this  tacit  confession  that  in  a  case  of  urgency  the  king 
trenched  upon  his  iirivilegc  and  he  was  now  ready  to  make  the  best  repa- 
ration in  his  power.  Deckel  had  scarcely  landed  in  England  ere  he  sus- 
pended the  archbishop  of  York  and  exconiniunicated  the  bishops  of  Lon- 
don and  Salisbury,  by  authority  with  which  the  pope  had  armed  him.  De 
Warenne  and  Gervase,  two  of  the  king's  ministers,  astonished  and  dis- 
gusted at  this  wanton  and  gratuitous  breach  of  the  peace  so  lately  made 
up,  indignantly  demanded  whether  the  archbishop  really  desired  to  return 
to  his  native  land  only  to  bring  fire  and  sword  with  him. 

Entirely  unmindful  of  the  construction  which  sensible  and  just  men 
might  put  upon  his  litigious  and  vainglorious  airs  and  conduct,  lie  pro- 
ceeded to  make  a  triumphal  entry  into  his  see ;  and  he  was  received  bv 


m  * 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


SS3 


the  multitude  with  a  rapturous  joy  and  applause  well  fitted  to  confirm  him 
in  his  uncompromising  humour.  Stimulated  by  his  evident  popularity, 
he  now  published  sentence  of  excommunication  against  Nigel  de  Sack- 
ville,  Robert  de  Broc,  and  others,  on  the  ground  of  their  liaving  either 
assisted  at  the  coronation  of  Prince  Henry,  or  joined  in  the  king's  perse- 
cution of  the  exiled  clergy. 

When  the  archbishop  of  York  and  the  bishops  of  London  and  Salisbury 
arrived  at  Uayeux,  where  Henry  then  was,  and  informed  him  of  Becket's 
new  violence,  the  king's  indignation  that  all  his  careful  pohcy,  and  the 
coiulescension  which  could  not  but  have  been  most  painful  to  so  proud  a 
prince,  were  thus  completely  thrown  away,  was  tremendous.  He  broke 
out  into  the  most  violent  invectives  upon  the  arrogance  and  ingratitude  of 
Becket,  and  unfortunately  allowed  himself,  in  reply  to  the  archbishop  of 
York,  who  remarked  that  peace  was  hopeless  while  Becket  lived,  to  say 
that  it  was  the  want  of  zeal  on  the  part  of  his  friends  and  servants  that 
had  caused  him  so  long  to  be  exposed  to  so  much  insolence  and  annoy- 
ance. Such  words  could  not  in  that  age  fall  innocuously  from  the  lips  of 
a  monarch  far  less  powerful  and  far  less  beloved  by  his  courtiers  than 
Henry  was.  Reginald  Fitzurse,  William  de  Tracey,  Hugh  de  Moreville, 
and  Richard  Brito,  four  gentlemen  of  the  king's  household,  taking  a  mere 
e.xpression  of  very  natural  peevishness  for  an  actual  wish  for  the  death  of 
Becket,  immediately  agreed  to  cross  over  to  England  and  put  their  mas- 
ter's enemy  to  death.  They  were  missed  by  Henry,  who,  fearing  their 
desperate  purpose,  dispatched  a  message  charging  them  on  their  allegi- 
ance to  do  no  personal  injury  to  Becket.  Unhappily  they  were  not  over- 
taken in  time  to  arrest  tlieni  in  their  ruthless  design.  Becket,  proud  of 
the  power  he  had  displayed,  was  residing  at  Canterbury  in  all  the  haughty 
security  of  one  who  felt' the  peace  and  safety  of  the  whole  nation  to  be  in 
some  sort  hostages  for  his  safety  ;  of  one,  in  fact,  whose  person  the  most 
daring  of  his  enemies  must  look  upon  as  something  sacred  and  inviolable. 
This  lii;(h  opinion  of  his  value  in  llie  eyes  of  mankind  was  fatal  to  him. 
When  the  four  resolved  assassins  reached  Canterbury  the  archbishop  was 
hut  slenderly  guar<ied,  an<l  tliey  saw  him  go  without  fear  or  suspicion  to 
hear  vespers  in  the  chureh  of  St.  Benedict,  whitlier  tliey  followed  and 
butchered  him  ;  unopposed  equally  in  the  connnission  of  their  foul  and 
cowardly  crime  and  in  their  subsequent  departure. 

To  Henry  the  news  of  this  detestable  and  no  less  impolitic  crime  came 
like  a  thunderbolt.  Confident  that  even  the  pope  would  see  the  impro- 
priety of  Becket's  conduct,  he  had  already  contemplated  the  arrest  and 
regular  punishment  of  the  proud  prelate,  not  doubting  that  by  dexterous 
miuiagcment  he  could  induce  ihe  pope  not  merely  to  a[)prove,  but  even  to 
aid  his  measures.  But  now  his  position  was  completely  altered ;  instead  of 
proceeding  as  an  injured  and  insulted  king,  he  would  have  to  defend  him- 
self against  Ihe  odious  charge  of  assassination.  He  could  not  but  see 
that,  even  in  the  judgment  of  the  most  disinterested  and  unprejudiced  men 
tiiere  would  be  but  too  many  circumstances  of  shrewd  suspicion  at  hiast; 
while  the  pope,  whose  policy  it  was  to  seize  upon  every  circumstance 
that  could  tend  to  increase  the  subjection  of  so  powerful  a  king  to  Rome, 
would  not  fail  publicly  to  attribute  this  crime  to  him,  whatever  mirrht  be 
his  private  judgment;  and  for  himself  and  his  devoted  kingdom  lir  could 
now  anticipate  notiiing  but  excommunication  and  interdict ! 

So  compUitely  was  'he  king  unmanned  by  his  fears,  that  he  shut  him- 
self up  in  Ins  own  apartments  for  three  days,  allowing  no  light  i'  enter 
them,  wholly  abstaining  from  food,  and  not  permitting  even  llif  most 
favoured  of  his  subjects  to  approach  him.  Alarmed  lest  this  conduct 
should  actually  be  carried  to  the  extent  of  self-destruction,  his  friends  at 
length  forced  their  way  to  him,  and  prevailed  upon  him  to  emerge  from 


■■    ,! 


jiliiif 


t  ■■ 


224 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


his  solitude  nnrt  resume  tlic  cares  of  government  which  now  more  tnan 
ever  demamlud  tlie  fnllest  possible  exertion  of  his  fine  laleuls. 

A.  D.  1171.— It  must  be  evident  that  the  main  difiicnlty  of  Henry's  situ- 
ation originalfd  in  the  uiiwillingnei;y  which  the  pope  would  feel  to  admit 
even  the  most  cogent  reasonings  against  the  king's  parlieipation  of  the 
trnilt  of  Ik'cket'.s  murderers.  Rlen  do  not  easily  yield  credence  to  argu- 
ments—and Henry  conld  only  offer  arguments,  not  proofs — that  militate 
again.st  ti'eir  own  dear  and  cherished  interests.  But  this  calamity  buih 
to  the  king  and  kingdom  was  too  terrible  and  too  instant  to  allow  of  any- 
thing beinu  left  unattempted  which  promised  even  the  probability  of  suc- 
cess, and  Henry  immediately  sent  the  archbishopof  Roaen,  together  with 
tlie  bishops  of  Worcester  and  Evreux,  and  live  other  men  of  talent  and 
station,  to  make,  in  the  king's  name,  tlie  most  humble  submission  to  the 
pope.  'I'here  was  some  difficulty  in  gaining  admission  to  his  holiness, 
who  was  at  the  very  lime  that  his  forbearance  was  thus  abjectly  sought  by 
the  potent  and  prond  Henry,  almost  a  prisoner  in  his  own  palace;  so  sur- 
rounded and  pressed  was  he  by  his  enemies.  It  was  now  nearly  EiLster, 
and  it  was  expected  that  the  name  of  Henry  would  be  included  in  the  list 
of  those  who  at  that  season  received  the  solemn  and  terrible  curses  of  the 
church.  Happily,  however,  Richard  Barre,  one  of  Henry's  envoys,  and 
others,  contrived  so  far  to  mollify  the  anger  of  the  pope,  that  his  fearful 
anathema  was  bestowed  only  in  general  terms  upon  Becket's  murderers 
and  their  instigators  or  abettors.  Two  legates  were  appointed  to  inquire 
into  the  alTair;  and  thus,  after  all  his  fears,  Henry  escaped  the  worst  con- 
sequences of  a  crime  of  which  he  seems  really  to  have  been  innocent,  but 
of  which  circumstances  would  as  certainly  have  enabled  the  pope  to  icm 
to  think  him  gudty — if,  indeed,  it  had  not  been,  just  then,  rather  more  to 
the  papal  interest  to  obtain  a  stron|f  hold  upon  Kngland,  by  accepting  the 
king's  submission  and  allowing  his  assertions  to  pass  for  proof,  than 
har.shly  to  drive  both  king  and  nation  to  despair.  Thus  happily  delivered 
from  a  peril  so  imminent,  Henry  directed  his  attention  to  Ireland. 

A.  D.  IIT."}. — All  men's  eyes  had  of  late  been  anxiously  turned  upon  tho 
king's  heir,  the  young  prince  Henry.  He  had  given  many  proofs  that  he 
possessed  in  no  ordinary  degree  the  princely  qualities  of  courage,  liberal- 
ity, and  a  kindly  disposition;  but  those  who  looked  beneatli  the  surface 
perceived  that  bis  very  kindness,  unless  ruled  by  a  severe  and  unconnnon 
discretion,  was  likely  to  give  him  a  fatal  facility  in  listening  to  the  advice 
of  any  friends  who  should  unduly  minister  to  his  other  chief  characteris- 
tic—an excessive  ambition.  At  the  time  when,  during  Becket's  absence, 
he  irregularly  niceived  the  royal  unction,  he  made  a  remark  wiiich  was 
much  commented  upon,  and  which  mat\y  did  not  fail  to  interpret  into 
proof  of  a  haughty  and  aspiring  turn.  His  father  waited  upon  him  at  table, 
and  good-hnmouredly  observed  that  never  was  king  more  royally  attended; 
tipon  which  the  prince  remarked  to  one  of  his  favourites,  that  it  surely  was 
nothing  so  very  remarkable  that  the  son  of  a  count  should  wait  upon  the 
son  of  a  king. 

Agreeable  to  the  promise  made  by  the  king  at  the  period  of  the  return 
of  Bucket,  young  Henry  and  the  princess  Margaret  were  now  crowned 
and  anointed  by  the  archbishop  of  Rouen,  and  in  the  subsequent  visit  which 
the  prince  paid  to  his  father-in-law  it  Is  thought  that  the  latter  persuaded 
him  that  the  fact  of  his  being  crowned  during  the  life-time  of  his  fatlicr, 
instead  of  being  a  mere  ceremony  to  secure  his  future  succession,  gave 
liim  an  instant  claim  upon  a  part,  if  not  upon  the  whole,  of  his  father's 
domini(nis,  and  tlu^  prince  was  unfortunately  but  too  well  inclined  to  give 
credit  to  the  arguments  by  w  liich  this  view  of  the  case  was  supported. 
Eager  to  enjny  the  power,  of  wliirli  he  probably  but  little  understood  the 
pains,  he  formally  demanded  that  his  father  sliould  resign  either  England 
or  Normandy  to  liim.    The  king  very  properly  refused  to  comply  with  so 


THE  TREABURY  OF  HISTORT. 


235 


return 
jwned 
IvhiL'h 
liacJed 
jitlipr, 

Hier's 
J  give 
pi'ted. 
tlic 
land 
Ith  so 


sxiraordiiiary  a  request,  and  after  upbraiding  his  father  in  undutiful  terms, 
he  hastened  to  Paris  and  put  himself  under  the  protection  of  the  king  of 

France. 

Nor  was  this  the  only  domestic  vexation  that  assailed  the  king  just  as 
his  pnblii;  affairs  looked  so  hopeful.  Queen  Kieaiior.  who  as  queen  of 
FraiKie  had  been  remarkable  for  her  levity,  was  in  her  second  marriage 
no  less  remarkable  for  her  jealously.  Being  just  now  labouring  undei  a 
new  afcessdf  that  feeling,  her  anger  with  her  husband  led  her  to  the  most 
uiijuslifiable  length  of  exciting  their  children  against  him.  Acting  upon 
the  ifiint  afforded  by  the  demand  of  Prince  Henry,  she  persuaded  the 
princes  Geoffrey  and  Richard  that  they  too  were  unkindly  and  unjustly 
used  by  their  father  who,  she  affirmed,  ought  no  longer  to  wilhold  from 
them  possession  of  the  portions  he  had  formally  assigned  to  them.  Offer- 
ing them  aid  in  the  undutiful  v,onrse  which  she  reciommended  to  them,  she 
actually  disguised  herself  in  male  attire,  and  was  on  the  pomt  of  departing 
for  the  French  court,  there  to  carry  on  intrigues  contrary  to  her  duty 
alike  as  wife,  mother,  and  subject,  when  the  king  obtained  information  of 
her  designs,  and  placed  her  in  confinement.  Tliis,  however,  did  not  put 
anend  to  the  misconduct  she  had  mainly  originated,  and  there  were  princes 
who  were  sufficiently  envious  of  the  power  and  prosperity  of  Henry  to 
lend  their  aid  and  countenance  to  this  unnatural  coaliiinn  of  sons  against 
their  father,  and  of  subjects  against  their  sovereign,  .hidging  by  his  own 
■experience  of  the  terror  in  which  even  the  proudest  and  boldest  men  held 
the  censure  and  interdictof  Rome,  Henry  in  Ibis  must  distressing  situation 
did  not  hesitate  to  apply  to  the  pope.  But  he  had  to  learn  that  to  arm  the 
papal  interdict  with  all  its  terrors  it  was  necessary  that  the  clergy  should 
have  some  strong  interest  in  the  question. 

Tiie  pope  issued  his  bulls,  excommuniitating  the  enemies  of  Henry;  but 
as  the  interests  of  the  church  were  in  no  wise  concerned  the  clergy  cared 
not  to  e.\ert  themselves  and  the  bulls  fell  to  tlie  groinid  a  mere  brulern 
fulmen.  Disappointed  and  disgusted  at  finding  thai  weapon  so  powerless 
for  him  which  was  so  formidable  against  him,  Henry  now  had  recourse  to 
the  sword  ;  and,  as  he  had  prudently  amassed  great  treasin-es,  he  was  able 
lolake  ink)  his  pay  large  bodies  of  the  banditii-likc  soldiery  with  whom 
the  continent  swarmed,  and  who  were  always  ready  to  fight  zealously 
and  bravely  too  in  any  cause  that  afforded  regular  pay  and  promised  large 
plunder.  His  sons,  on  the  otiier  hand,  were  not  wiiliont  the  means  or  tlie 
Inclination  to  imitate  this  part  of  their  father's  condii.-t,  and  most  of  the 
barons  of  Normandy,  Gaseony,  and  Hrittany  willii'.gly  look  part  with  the 
young  princes,  who  they  knew  must  in  the  c(nirse  of  nature  hec'oint^  their 
righilul  sovereigns,  their  several  territories  being  already  irrevocably  set- 
tled upon  Ihein  in  the  usual  forms.  Nor,  to  tlu;  distrraec!  of  the  English 
chivalry,  did  the  disaffection  to  the  injured  king  and  [larent  slop  even  here  ; 
several  powerful  Knglish  barons,  and  amniio  tlierii  the  cirls  of  Chester 
and  Leicester,  openly  declared  against  the  king.  That  no  sane  man  could 
have  been  led  into  tliis  opposition  to  the  king  by  any  diniht  as  to  tlie  jus- 
tice of  his  cause  is  morally  certain,  and  to  all  the  oilier  foulness  of  treason, 
these  at  the  least  laid  themselves  open  to  the  low  and  disgraceful  charge 
of  basely  deserting  from  what  they  knew  to  be  the  more  just  side,  but 
deemed  to  be  also  the  weaker  one.  And  the  weaker  one,  to  all  human 
judgment,  it  doubtless  appeared  to  be.  But  few  comparatively  of  his 
barons  brought  their  retainers  to  the  aid  of  the  king,  whose  chief  dis- 
posable force  was  an  army  of  about  twenty  thnnsaud  of  tliose  foreign 
niirceiiaries  of  whom  we  just  made  mention,  and  some  well-disciplined 
English  whom  he  withdrew  from  Ireland.  On  the  other  hand  the  combi 
nation  was  potent  and  threatening  indeed.  In  addition  to  the  numerous 
wealthy  and  warlike  barons  already  alluded  to  as  having  given  in  their 
adhesion  to  the  voung  princes,  the  four  counts  of  Ku,  Blois,  Flanders  and 
1—15 


'■*•  U  It' 


f.,,^f5fl^»' 


226 


THE  TREASUttY  OF  HISTORY. 


3gne  and  Flanders  besfan  the  unnatural  war  by  lay. 
1  the  frontier  of  Normandy.     The  Count  d'Aumale 


Boulogne,  followed  their  example,  and  William,  king  of  Scotland,  tlie 
natural  enemy  of  England,  gladly  joined  this  most  unholy  alliance. 

Louis  of  Kranee  summoned  the  ciiief  vassals  of  the  crown  to  Paris,  and 
solemnly  bound  them  by  oath  to  adhere  with  him  to  the  cause,  and  Prince 
Henry  on  his  part  swore  to  be  faithful  to  his  allies  among  whom  he  dis- 
tributed large  gifts  of  territory — to  be  conquered  from  his  king  and  pa- 
rent — under  the  seal  of  state  which  he  treasonably  caused  to  be  made  for 
that  purpose. 

The  counts  of  Boulog 
ing  siege  to  Aumale  on  mc  nuimci  ui  iiuiiimiiujr.  xuc  \^uiiiii  u  -■vuniaie 
who  seems  to  have  been  only  withheld  by  some  prudential  and  increlv 
selfish  motive  from  openly  and  in  form  allying  himself  with  his  master's 
enemies,  made  a  mere  show  of  defence  and  then  surrendered  the  place. 
Being  thus  apparently  a  prisoner  in  the  hands  of  those  whose  confederate 
he  seems  really  to  have  been,  he  had  a  specious  ground  for  committing 
still  further  treason,  without  exposing  himself  to  any  very  deadly  peril  in 
the  event  of  the  king  being  ultimately  triumphant  over  the  formidable  and 
unscrupulous  confederacy  against  him. 

The  king  of  France,  in  the  meantime,  was  not  idle;  with  seven  thou- 
sand knights  and  their  follower.s  and  a  proportionate  force  of  infantry,  he, 
accompanied  by  the  young  Prince  H(;nry,  laid  seige  to  Verneuil.  The 
place  was  bravely  defended  by  Hugh  de  IJeaucliamp,  but  the  garrison  at 
the  end  of  a  month  became  so  short  of  provisions,  that  de  Heauclianip  wag 
obliged  to  consent  to  a  surrender  should  he  not  bo  relieved  in  the  course 
of  three  days.  lOre  the  expiration  of  this  time  King  flenry  and  his  army 
appeared  on  the  neighbouring  heights,  iind  the  French  monarch  then  de- 
manded a  conference,  for  th(!  [)urpose,  as  be  alleged,  of  putting  an  end  to 
the  differences  between  Henry  and  hi.s  sons — (lilFerences,  it  should  never 
be  forgotten,  which  Louis  had  himself  done  his  utmost  to  fan  into  ullanu'. 
Henry,  not  for  a  moment  suspecting  Louis  of  any  treacherous  intention, 
agreed  to  this  proposal;  and  Louis  liaving  thus  beguiled  him  into  abstiiiu- 
ing  from  foreihie  interference  on  behalf  of  the  brave  garrison  until  the 
term  agreed  upon  for  thi!  truce  had  completely  exjiircd,  called  upon  Ueiiu- 
(diaiiip  to  make  good  his  promise  of  snrremler,  on  pain  of  being  held  man 
sworn;  and  then,  having  set  Ctiv.  to  Verneuil,  set  his  army  on  the  rciicHt 
from  before  it,  and  Henry  fell  upon  the  r»!ar,  which  lost  many  both  in 
killed  and  prisoners. 

The  har-)ns  of  Brittany,  headed  by  R:il|)li  de  Fougeres  and  the  earl  ol 
Chester,  were  encountered  by  the  king's  tnjops  near  Did,  and  defcatwl 
with  the  loss  of  fifteen  hundred  in  kdled,  besides  an  imiUiMise  number  of 
wounded  and  prisoners.  Tlu;  leaders  with  llif'ir  diminished  forces  took 
shelter  in  I)ol,  but  Henry  besieged  the  place  so  vi;,'orously,  that  they  weri 
speedily  compelled  to  surreiuler. 

Instead  of  neing  scduired  by  his  successes  into  any  invelerney  of  pur- 
pose against  bis  enemies,  Henry  once  more  agrccil  to  treat  with  the  cliief 
of  them,  Louis  of  France,  A  meeting  accordingly  took  plact-  between 
the  two  monaridis,  the  three  young  [irinccN,  to  their  infiiute  (list  redit,  prom- 
inently ajjpi'aring  in  the  retiinn?  of  ihiir  father's  enemy.  As  their  <Milra- 
geous  demands  were  in  fact  the  minii  cause  of  dispute  between  the  two 
moiiarcbs,  Henry  i.i'dressed  himself  to  those  deinaiids,  ;md  made  his  soni 
offers  far  nutre  liberal  than  became  hiin  to  offeror  lliv'm  to  accept ;  but  ili» 
peaci'able  purpose  of  this  memorable  meeliiig  was  wholly  fruslralcd  by 
the  earl  of  Liecester,  who,  prohaldy  at  the  si  rret  inslitjalioii  of  Ltuns,  he 
haved  with  such  open  iiisolenci<  to  Henry,  that  the  meeliug  was  brokcu 
up  without  any  emudusion  being  arrived  at. 

Thniigb  Henry  hail  been  so  successful  on  the  continent  in  repressing  lii§ 
enetnicH  and  m  upimliliiig  bis  auibonty,  it  was  in  no  snial'  dang(>riii  Fug 
iHiid;   fur,  Prmee  Henry  having  agreed  to  resign  Hover  and  the  utiiti 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


ii7 


strongholds  of  Ke  U  into  the  hands  of  the  earl  of  Flanders,  there  was  so 
little  of  pure  public  spirit  among  the  English,  that  a  most  extensive  con- 
federacy was  formed  to  aid  in  this  scheme,  which  would  have  deserved  no 
milder  name  than  that  of  a  national  suicide.  But  fortunately  for  both 
Henry  and  his  kingdom,  while  the  lay  nobles  and  their  dependants  were 
thus  hostile  or  indifferent,  he  was  in  good  odour  with  the  clergy  just  at 
this  period,  to  which,  probably,  he  mainly  owed  it  that  he  was  not  utterly 
ruined. 

Kicliard  de  Lacy,  whom  Henry  had  entrusted  with  the  high  and  impor- 
tant office  of  guardian  of  the  realm,  greatly  distinguisheil  himself  at  this 
period,  both  by  his  loyalty  and  his  conduct.  He  repelled  and  obtained  the 
submission  of  the  king  of  Scotland,  who  had  led  his  ravaging  troops  into 
Northumberland  ;  and  immediately  after  having  done  this  good  service. 
led  Ills  victorious  troops  southward  to  oppose  a  far  superior  force  of  Flem- 
ings who  had  landed  on  the  coast  of  Suffolk,  and  thence  marched  into  the 
very  heart  of  the  kingdom.  In  the  action  which  ensued  the  Flemisli  force, 
consisting  for  the  most  part  of  hastily-raised  and  ill-disciplined  artizans. 
were  routed  almost  at  the  first  charge  of  De  Ijacy's  disciplined  followers, 
and  nearly  ten  thousand  were  slain  or  made  prisoners,  the  earl  of  Leices- 
ter liimsclf  being  among  the  latter. 

Tliis  defeat  of  the  Flemings  delivered  the  kingdom  from  that  particular 
Janp'r,  indeed,  but  in  no  wise  abated  the  evil  determination  of  the  king's 
heartless  sons  and  their  allies.  The  earl  of  Ferrers  and  several  powerful 
friends  of  the  earls  of  Leicester  and  Chester  were  openly  in  arms  against 
lliiirking;  the  earls  of  Clare  and  Gloucester  were  strongly  suspected  of 
benig  prepared  to  take  the  same  course  ;  and  the  king  of  Scotland  scarce- 
ly allowed  the  term  to  expire  during  which  he  had  engaged  to  keep  the 
jieaee,  ere  he  invaded  the  northern  counties  of  Kngland  with  a  force  of 
eighty  thousand  men,  who  comniitt(!d  the  most  wanton  and  cxieusivi' 
spoliation.  In  tlii.s  state  of  things,  Henry,  having  put  his  continental  ter- 
ritories into  a  state  of  comparative  security,  hastened  over  to  England  to 
try  the  effect  upon  his  enemies  of  his  personal  presence. 

Well  knowing  tli(!  effect  of  all  superstitious  observances  upon  the  prin- 
cipal part  of  his  sui>j(;cts,  he  had  no  sooner  landed  at  Southampton  than 
lie  hastenc^d  to  the  city  of  Canterbury,  distant  as  it  was,  and,  arriving  tlicre. 
(luilicd  his  horse  and  walked  barefooted  to  the  shrine  of  that  now-sainted 
Thomas  ii  lieckct,  who  in  life  had  caused  him  so  much  annoyance  and 
daintcr.  Having  prostrated  himsi-lf  before  the  shrine,  lie  m^xt  caused  tli»' 
monks  of  the  place  fo  he  assembled,  and,  stripping  off  his  giirinents,  sub- 
niillcd  his  bare  shoulders  to  the  scourge.  How  liutnilialiii<;  an  idea  docs 
It  not  give  us  of  that  age  to  rellcct  that  this  (lc!,'radiiiR  conduct  was,  pcr- 
hips,  the  most  politic  that  Honry  could  have  chosen  to  forward  the  great 
oliject  he  then  had  in  view — the  conciliation  of  the  zealous  good-will  of  all 
ranks  of  his  subjects — for  among  all  ranks,  not  excepting  the  very  hii;licst, 
sn|H'rslition  then  had  a  mysterious  and  a  inii;lity  jxiwer.  Having  com- 
pleii'd  all  the  degrading  ceremonials  that  the  monks  chose  to  consider  es- 
snilial  to  the  liiial  and  complete  reconciliation  of  llu^  king  to  the  saint. 
al)s(dntion  was  solemnly  given  to  Henry,  ami  he  departed  for  Ijondon. 
News  shortly  after  arrived  of  a  great  victory  that  Henry's  troops  had  ob- 
lamcd  over  the?  .'^cots ;  and  the  monks,  ever  iiiclinc<l  to  the  pa.ii  Iwr,  prc/irr 
hoc.  principle,  did  not  fail  to  attribute  that  victory  to  tlic  pious  means  by 
wliiili  Henry  had  appeased  Saint  'I'homas  a  llecket,  who  had  thus  sigiiai- 
lied  his  forgiveness. 

William  of  .Scotland,  though  repulsed  by  Henry's  generalfi,  still  showed 
liitnHclf  unwilling  to  dcprivi;  his  troops  of  the  agreealde  einployment  of 
wasting  the  northern  nrovinces  of  England  ;  and  like  a  half-gorgeil  vulture 
(liHliirhcd  ill  Its  ravening  feast,  he  still  lingereil  near.  II  ivin;i  foriiii'd  a 
samp  ut  Alnwick,  in  Northumberland,  he  sent  out  numeroiiH  detachmunlM 


226 


THE  TllEASIJKY  OF  HISTOllY. 


in  quest  of  spoil.  However  favoiinibli!  this  course  might  be  to  his  ciipid 
ity,  it  greatly  weiikeiied  him  in  a  miiiiiiry  point  of  view ;  and  Glanville 
the  celebrated  lawyer,  who  at  this  time  was  a  very  principal  leader  and 
support  of  the  English  army,  having  obtained  exact  information  of  Wij. 
liam's  situation,  resolved  to  make  a  bold  attempt  to  surprise  him.  After 
a  fatiguing  march  tc  Newcastle,  he  barely  allowed  his  troops  time  for  hasty 
refreshment,  of  which  both  man  and  horse  stood  in  dire  need,  and  tlien 
set  out  on  a  forced  night-man-li  to  Alnwick,  a  distance  of  upwards  of  thirt) 
miles,  where  he  arrived  very  early  in  the  morning  of  the  ]5ih  of  July, 
and,  fortunately,  under  cover  of  a  genuine  Scotch  mist,  so  dense  as  to 
prev(  nt  his  approach  from  being  observed.  Though,  after  making  all  al- 
lowance for  the  detachments  which  William  had  sent  out,  Glanville  felt 
that  he  was  far  inferior  in  force  to  the  Scots,  he  gallantly  gave  his  troops 
the  order  to  charge.  So  completely  secure  had  William  fell  from  any  such 
atta(!k,  that  it  was  not  until  English  banners  (lew  and  English  blades  flashed 
in  his  very  camp,  that  he  dreamed  of  any  hostile  force  being  within  many 
miles  of  him.  In  the  furious  scence  that  ensued  he  behaved  with  great 
personal  gallantry,  boldly  charging  upon  the  serried  ranks  of  tlie  English 
with  only  a  hundred  of  his  immediate  followers.  But  his  negligence  as  a 
connnander  had  produced  a  stale  of  disadvantage  which  was  not  to  be 
remedied  by  any  valour,  however  great.  This  little  band  was  speedily 
dispersed,  and  he,  being  fairly  ridden  down,  was  made  prisoner.  The  news 
of  his  capture  speedily  spread  among  his  troops,  whose  confusion  was 
thus  rendered  too  complete  to  allow  of  their  leaders  rallying  them ;  and 
they  hasiily  retreated  over  the  borders,  fighting  among  themselves  co  fn- 
riouhly  during  th-ir  retreat,  that  they  arc  said  to  have  actually  lost  nioro 
in  killed  and  wounded  by  Scottish  than  by  English  swords. 

This  defeat  of  the  Scotch,  and  Ilic  capture  of  William,  upon  whom 
the  English  rebels  had  so  mainly  depcixied  for  diversion  of  tiieir  kind's 
streiiglh,  as  well  as  for  mon;  direct  assistance,  left  these  latter  no  safe 
course  but  submission  ;  and  that  course,  accordingly,  was  speedily  followed 
by  all  ranks  among  them.  The  clergy  with  their  usual  self-comphicenev 
attriiiuted  all  this  success  to  the  sulimission  whi'h  they  had  indiicrd  the 
king  lo  make  to  Uccket ;  and  llenrv,  well  knowing  how  much  more  power 
superstition  had  over  the  minds  of  liis  siibjccls  than  any  political  or  even 
moral  consideralions.  however  clear  or  iinportaiit,  astutely  alfected  to  he- 
lieve  all  that  ihiy  afTirincd,  and  by  every  means  endeavoured  to  propagate 
the  like  belief  among  his  siihjccls. 

Mcaniinu'  the  serpent  of  revolt  was  on  the  continent,  "scotched  not  kil- 
led ;"  the  yi>uiig  piince  llciiiy-  with  a  perscver.iiicc  worthy  of  a  belli  r 
ciUM",  having  in  s|iile  of  all  his  father's  iriiiinphs  persisteii  in  carrying  iin 
Ills  r'  hellions  (le.«igns.  lie  and  llie  earl  of  Fl;iiiilers  had  assembled  a  l,M|;e 
army,  with  winch  lliey  were  pre|);irini;  U>  enihaik  at  (Jravclini's  ;  bill  w  lien 
they  heard  of  th<' signal  defeat  which  King  llciny's  troops  had  iiiflieied 
upon  the  I'lcinings  llieylaid  aside  llieir  intention  of  invading  Eii^laiel,  and 
proceeded  to  join  Iheir  force  to  thai  "f  the  king  <if  Fr.ince,  wlio  wa^  be- 
sieging Itoncn,  in  N'<irma;uly. 

The  [leoph^  of  F.iiiicii.  who  were  milch  atlacheil  to  King  Henry,  and 
proportionallv  fearful  of  falling  under  tin;  rule  <if  Ijniiis,  defended  the' place 
with  so  much  coiirag<'  and  sncccs>',  lliat  Lmiis  deemed  it  necessary  to 
ha*e  recourse  to  a  siralagem  that  did  far  mori-  crciiil  to  his  ingcmijiy  IIkui 
to  Ins  honour.  The  festival  of  .S|.  I.,inreiiec  occurring  jiisi  al  lliiil  nine, 
he  pniclaiined,  niidcr  preleiice  of  a  piniis  desire  lo  keep  it  with  due  sideiiiii 
ity,  .1  eess.ilion  of  arms.  This  was  agreed  lo  on  llie  pari  of  llie  niisiis- 
pecling  citizens  ;  and  I miis,  hopiiiy  to  surprise  them,  iiiimcdinlclv  maile 
prep.iralioiis  for  the  aliaik.  li  cliancnl  thai  «liile  all  in  the  Freneli  camp 
Were  III  niolicill,  i.oiiic  priests  of  Itmieii  had  inoiniled  lo  a  steeple  lo  over- 
look It,  merely  fuMii  curiosity.    SIruck  willi  a  degree  of  hnsile  llial  seemed 


THE  TttEASUBY  OP  HISTORY. 


229 


to  inapproprirtte  to  the  solemn  truce  that  had  been  proclaimed,  tliey  (caused 
the  diann  bell  of  tlie  city  to  be  ruii^,  and  ilie  soldiers  and  cltizuns  iinnie- 
iliattHy  hastened  to  their  appointed  stations,  and  were  but  just  in  lime  to 
repiiUe  the  enemy,  many  of  whom  had  already  succeeded  in  mountinj}  the 
walls-  Tiie  French  lost  many  im-n  in  this  assault,  and  on  the  following 
day,  before  they  could  renew  it.  King  Henry  marched  into  the  place  in  full 
view  of  the  enemy,  and,  ordering  the  gates  lobe  thrown  open,  dared  them 
10  ilie  renewal  of  their  attack.  Louis,  who  now  saw  Rouen  completely 
safe  at  the  very  moment  when  he  fancied  it  almost  wiihin  his  grasp 
hail  no  thought  left  but  how  he  should  best  release  himself  from  the  dan- 
ger of  a  decisive  defeat.  Trusting  to  the  desire  wiilch  Henry  had  ail 
aliiiis;  manifested  to  come  to  peaceable  terms,  Louis  proposed  a  confer- 
eiice"  Henry  readily  fell  into  the  snare,  and  Louis  profited  by  the  interval 
whii'ii  he  thus  gained,  and  marched  his  army  into  Frai    e. 

Having  thus  secured  his  army,  however,  Louis,  who  by  this  lime  was 
nearly  as  anxious  as  Henry  for  a  termination  of  their  disputes,  agreed  to 
a  meeting,  which  accordingly  look  place  near  the  ancient  city  of  Tours, 
ami  peace  was  concluded  on  terms  far  more  favourable  to  Henry  than 
lliose  ho  had  offered  at  the  memorable  conference  which  was  abruptly  ter- 
minated by  the  insolent  misconduct  of  the  earl  of  Leicester. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

THE    REIGN    OF    IIEMIT    II.    (cOxVCLUDED). 

A.  D.  1175. — Firm  in  adversity,  Henry  had  the  still  further  and  more  un- 
I'nnnnon  merit  of  being  inoileratc  in  prosperity.  He  had  in  various  ac- 
tions taken  nearly  a  Ihonsanil  kinghts  prisoners,  and  these  he  now  liberated 
wiihnut  ransom,  thong'i  the  customs  of  the  age  would  have  warranted 
contrary  conduct  without  the  slightest  impeachment  of  either  his  honour 
iir  Ills  generosity.  To  William  of  Scotland,  as  the  repeated  enmity  of 
that  nionnrch  fully  warranted,  he  behaved  with  more  rigour.  As  the  price 
of  ills  release  William  was  obligeil  to  agree  to  do  homage  for  his  terri- 
tories to  Henry,  to  engage  that  the  prelates  and  barons  of  his  kingdom 
shonid  also  do  homage,  and  that  llie^  should  swear  to  side  with  the  king 
of  Kngland  even  against  their  native  prince  ;  and  that  as  security  for  the 
lurfiirin nice  of  this  agreement,  the  five  principal  Scoiiisli  fortresses, 
iianirly,  Kdinburgh,  Stirling,  Dcrwiek,  Roxburgh,  and  Jedburgh,  should 
he  placed  in  the  hands  of  iving  tlenry.  Even  when  the  terms  of  the 
agrecincnt  had  been  duly  complied  with  by  the  Scotch,  Henry  showed 
III)  inclination  to  relax  from  his  severity  upon  a  people  who  had  caused 
lilni  so  much  annoyance  by  their  inveterate  enmity.  Contrariwise,  he  now 
nqnlrcd  that  Uorwiek  an  I  Roxburgh  should  be  given  up  to  him  aliogether, 
ami  that  he  shonId  for  a  g'ven  time  retain  the  casth;  of  F<dinburgh.  'I'hus 
(he  enger.ie»<8  with  which  A'llliam  lent  his  aid  in  the  endeavour  to  crush 
Henry,  ended  in  the  latter  prince  obtaining  the  first  triumph  over  thai 
kiii<<iliiin  which  was  ever  obtained  by  an  English  monarch. 

AM.  117(1.— Henry  wisely  emploved  the  peace  which  his  victories  had 
nroeiii'cd  him  in  remedying  those  disi>rders  which  had  sprung  up  among 
Ins  (uvii  siilijects.  He  made  or  restored  laws  against  those  crimes  which 
had  the  inoNt  liagrantlv  increased,  such  as  counterfeiting  coin,  ars(Hi,  rob- 
hery,  and  murder.  K;  wlicn  we  read  of  his  enacting  such  severe  punisli- 
iiients  fur  thoxe  ofTenrea  as  amputation  of  the  right  hand  and  foot,  we  feel 
iiirliiied  to  censure  the  king,  we  must  hear  in  mind  that  lu;  had  to  deal 
will)  an  age  little  heller  ihaii  semi-barliiimus,  and  was  probal>ly  obliged 
ausiiisl  his  will  lo  legislate  Jnwn  to  the  public  intelligence.  We  are  the 
mure  in  dined  to  iiiaku  Una  allowance  for  him  in  soint!  cases,  because  in 


1  = 


^  ,4,i*it>k* 


.'30 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


I    k 


I 


Otlinrs  lio  giivp  very  plain  proofs  that  he  possessed  both  uiiderstanrlina  and 
({00(1  feeliii)^  far  in  advance  of  his  age.  In  the  case,  for  instance,  of  the 
ilbmird  trial  by  battle,  which  disgraced  the  statute-book  even  so  lately  as 
iho  mg»  of  George  III.,  Henry,  though  the  time  was  not  ripe  for  its  com- 
pli.'le  abolition,  enacted  that  either  of  the  parties  might  challenge  iu  its 
moiid  II  trial  by  a  jury  of  twelve  freeholders. 

To  ninke  the  administration  of  justice  more  certain,  with  a  view  both  to 
rcpri'SNing  crime  and  to  protect  the  community  against  the  oppressions  ol 
tilt!  nobles,  llcnry  divided  England  into  four  great  circuits,  to  be  traveised 
by  itinerant  justices  selected  from  among  those  prelates  and  lay  noblej 
inoNt  remarkable  for  learning  and  their  love  of  justice.  He  also  made 
»onio  very  useful  regulations  with  a  view  to  a  defeni-e  of  the  kingdom, 
each  man  bring  obliged  to  arm  himself  according  to  his  rank. 

While  the  king  was  thus  wisely  employing  his  leisure,  bis  sons  were 
nirditaling  further  annoyance  to  him.  Prince  Henry  renewed  his  demand 
for  the  conipletc  resignation  of  Normandy,  and  on  receiving  a  refusal  pro- 
ceeded 10  the  court  of  France  with  bis  queen  with  the  evident  design  of 
renewinji;  his  hostilities  against  his  too  indulgent  father.  Bui  Philip,  who 
hail  jiiKl  succeeded  to  Louis  on  the  throne  of  France,  was  not  just  now 
|)repared  for  war  against  so  powerful  a  king  as  Henry,  aiul  the  young 
|irince  was  tluM-i-fore  once  more  obliged  to  make  his  submission  to  his 
miii'h-rndiiriug  sovereign  and  parent.  Princi;  Henry  and  Gcoftrey  now 
became  engaged  in  a  feudal  strife  with  their  brother,  Prince  Richard. 
The  king,  with  bis  usual  anxiety  for  the  welfare  of  these  most  tnriailfiii 
imd  imdiitifiil  princes,  interfered  to  restore  peace  among  them,  but  li;iij 
»(!iircely  succeeded  in  doing  so  when  !ic  once  more  found  Prince  Henry 
urrayeil  ai;ainst  liim. 

A  f).  IIH.I.— To  what  end  the  shameful  conspiracies  of  this  incorrigible 
mid  ungrateful  prince  would  at  length  have  arrived  it  is  difficult  to  jmlj>c. 
lliough  we  may  but  too  reasonably  presume  that  his  real  aim  was  the 
actual  deposition  of  his  father.  But  the  career  of  the  prince  now  drew  to 
III!  end.  He  had  retired  to  the  castle  of  Martel,  near  Turenne,  to  niiiture 
Ills  schemes,  and  was  there  seized  with  a  fever.  Finding  himself  in 
danger,  he  iietit  to  entreat  that  his  father  would  visit  him  and  personally 
assure  him  of  forgiveness.  But  the  king,  though  in)t  less  afTectionato 
tliiiii  of  yore,  hud  received  so  many  proofs  of  his  son's  perfidy,  that  he 
feared  to  trust  himself  in  his  hands.  The  prince  died  on  the  lltn  of  Jniii'; 
and  the  king,  who  fainted  on  hearing  the  news,  bitterly,  but  surely  most 
imjiisily,  reproached  himself  with  hardhcartedncss  in  having  refused  to 
visit  him. 

Prince  Henry,  who  died  in  the  twenty-eighth  year  of  his  age,  thoiiirji 
married,  left  no  children.  The  Princt;  Richard,  therefore,  now  filled  liie 
imporlimt  situation  of  heir  to  the  Knglish  throne;  and  the  king  propeNiil 
that,  in  this  altered  state  of  things,  Prince  John,  who  was  his  fa- 
voiirile  son,  should  inherit  (>uiemie.  But  Hichard,  unmindful  of  the  grief 
whirli  his  father  was  already  enduring,  not  merely  refused  to  consent  to 
this  iirraiigemeiit,  but  |>i'oceede(I  lo  put  that  duchy  into  a  condilioii  to 
make  war  agiiinst  his  brother  GeolTrey,  who  was  in  possession  of  Brittany, 
and  lo  resist,  if  needful,  the  king  himsidf.  Well  knowing  how  much  niori' 
influence  F.leauor  had  over  their  sons  than  he  had.  tin;  king  sent  for  licr, 
mid  as  she  was  the  actual  heiress  of  (tiiieniie,  Bichard,  so  undutifiil  to- 
wards his  father,  at  once  delivered  the  duchy  up  to  her. 

A.  n.  llH.'i.— Si  arcely  had  Richard  become  reconciled  to  his  father, 
when  (JeoiTrey,  being  refused  Anjou,  of  which  he  had  (lemaiided  ilie  an- 
nexation to  |iis  duehy  of  Brittany,  levied  tniojis  and  declared  war  ai;aiust 
his  father;  bnl  before  this  unnatural  prince  could  do  any  considerable 
piirtiiiM  iif  the  mischief  which  he  obviously  intended,  he  wis  siain  acci- 
li'iiiiiily  by  imeof  his  o|)ponents  at  ii  touriiimietit.     His  posthimious  soil 


'^   i 


THE  TREASURY  OF  UISTOllY. 


231 


^.I'O  was  christenpii  Arthur,  was  invested  with  the  ihichy  of  Urittany  by 
King  Henry,  wiio  also  constituted  himself  guardian  of  the  youthful  prince. 
Tiie  attention  of  both  Henry  and  his  rival,  Philip  of  France,  was  soon 
called  from  their  personal  diffeiences  to  a  new  crusade,  which  Rome  was 
now  anxious  that  the  European  sovereigns  should  engage  in.  Saladin,  a 
gallant  and  generous-spirited  prince,  but  no  less  a  determined  opponent  of 
ilie  cross,  having  seated  himself  on  the  throne  of  Egypt,  boldly  undertook 
the  task  of  expelling  the  Christians  from  the  Holy  Land.  His  object  was 
greatly  favoured  by  the  folly  of  the  Christian  leaders,  who,  instead  of 
uiiiiing  to  oppose  the  Infidels,  were  perpetually  at  enmity  among  them- 
selves. To  this  general  folly  treason  was  added,  and  the  count  of  Tripoli, 
who  had  the  command  of  the  Christian  forces  on  the  frontier,  perfidiously 
allowed  Saladin  to  advance,  and  deserted  to  him  at  Tiberiad,  where  the 
soldan  was  completely  victorious,  the  long  tottering  kingdom  of  Jerusa- 
lem being  completely  overturned,  and  the  holy  city  itself  captured.  The 
kingdnm  of  Anlioch  was  also  subdued  ;  and  of  all  that  the  Christians  had 
possessed  in  the  Holy  Land  nothing  now  remained  to  them  but  a  few 
pptty  towns  upon  the  coast.  So  soon  and  so  easily  was  that  territory 
lost  which  it  had  coit  the  warrior-hosts  of  Christendom  so  much  blood, 
treasure  and  time  to  conquer  from  the  infidels  of  an  earlier  generation. 

A.  n.  1188. — The  intelligence  of  this  triumph  of  the  crescent  produced  a 
general  and  profound  grief  in  Europe.  Pope  Urban  HL  actually  sinkened 
and  (lied  from  sorrow  at  the  calamity,  and  his  successor,  Gregory  VIII  , 
bestowed  nearly  all  his  attention  during  his  short  reign  upon  the  necea 
sary  preparations  for  attempting,  at  the  least,  the  re-conquest  of  tht 
holv  city. 

Henry  of  England  and  Philip  of  France,  as  by  far  the  most  powerfm 
nionarchs  in  Europe,  were  naturally  appealed  to  by  Rome,  and  William 
archbishop  of  Tyre,  caused  them  to  have  a  meeting  at  Gisors.  His  des- 
cription of  the  sufferings  of  the  Christians  in  the  East,  and  his  eloquent 
appenl  to  the  love  of  military  glory,  which,  after  superstition,  was  tha 
most  powerful  passion  of  both  monarchs  and  private  men  in  that  age,  so 
wrought  upon  both  princes,  that  they  at  onct  assumed  the  cross  and  com- 
menced the  necessary  preparations. 

A.  D.  1189. — As  the  clergy,  notwithstanding  the  zeal  of  the  papal  court, 
did  not  show  their  usual  alacrity  in  aiding  the  new  enterprize  either  with 
money  or  eloquence,  some  delay  and  difficulty  were  experienced  by  both 
kinijs  in  obtaining  the  necessary  supplies,  and  in  the  meantime  new  quar- 
rels sprang  up  between  them.  Philip,  always  jealous  of  Henry's  supe- 
riority, found  that  kitig's  son.  Prince  Richard,  fully  as  credulous  and  as 
prone  to  disloyal  and  unduliful  conduct  as  his  deceased  brother  Henry  had 
been;  and  he  had  no  difRculty  in  persuading  him  that  he  was  more  inter- 
ested in  the  welfare  of  France  than  in  that  of  the  kingdom  over  which  he 
was  one  day  to  rule.  In  a  few  words,  Richard  was  the  credulous  and 
liotheaclcd  dupe,  and  Philip  the  resolved  and  wily  deceiver.  Philip,  de- 
sirous of  a  cause  for  quarrel  with  Henry,  and  yet  unwilling  to  incur  the 
disgrace  which  could  not  but  attach  to  one  crusader  who  should  without 
strong  provocation  make  war  upon  aiu)ther  whih-  Palestine  yet  groaned 
beneath  the  yoke  of  the  proud  and  bigoted  pagan,  persuaded  Richard  to 
furnish  him  with  a  pretext  for  war  by  making  an  inroad  upon  Toulouse. 
As  I'liilip  had  foreseen,  Raymond,  count  of  Toulouse,  appcah'd  to  him  foi 
support  as  superior  bird  ;  and  with  as  much  gravity  as  though  he  had  then 
first  heard  of  Richard's  achievement,  Philip  complanu-d  to  the  king  of 
England  of  his  son's  infringement  upon  the  rights  anil  property  of  a  vassal 
of  the  crown  of  France.  Hut  Richard,  if  wicked  or  Ihougliilcss  enough 
to  unilertake  the  evil  measures  against  his  own  sovereign  anil  father,  was 
not  piuilent  enough  to  keep  his  own  coimsel :  and  Henry  was  able  to 
reply  ty  the  hypocritical  comjjlaiut  of  Philip,  that  Prince  Uichard  had  con- 


^     " 


Inijm 


83a 


THE  TKEA8UHY  OF  HISTORY. 


I 


eased  to  the  archbishop  of  Dublin  that  it  was  at  the  express  desire  and 
personal  suggestion  of  Philip  himself  that  he  had  made  his  unprovoked 
attack  upon  the  county  of  Toulouse.  Far  from  being  either  ashamed  or 
dismayed  by  this  discovery  of  his  treacherous  designs,  Pl-.ilip,  on  receiv- 
ing Henry's  reply,  innnediat'j!y  invaded  Berri  and  Auvergne,  and  did  so 
under  the  pretence  of  retaliating  the  injury  to  the  count  of  'roulouse,  which 
it  was  so  well  known  that  he  had  himself  caused  to  be  done.  Henry, 
now  thoroughly  provoked  as  Philip  himself  could  have  desired  him  In  be,' 
crossed  the  French  froniit^r,  and,  besides  doing  much  other  damiige, 
burned  the  town  and  fortress  of  Dreux,  After  much  mutual  injury  and  a 
futile  attempt  at  treaty,  the  two  kings  were  at  length  induced  once  more 
but  in  vain,  to  attempt  to  come  to  terms ;  chiefly,  howuver,  as  far  as 
Philip  was  concerned,  by  the  refusal  of  some  of  his  most  powerful  vassals 
to  serve  any  longer  against  Henry,  whom,  as  well  as  their  own  sovereign, 
they  desired  to  see  combating  for  the  redemption  of  Palestine.  On 
Henry's  side  the  feeling  was  as  much  more  sincere  as  it  was  less  com- 
pulsory;  but  the  terms  proposed  by  Philip  were  so  insidiously  calculated 
to  work  future  evil  to  Knglaiid,  that  Henry  had  no  choice  but  to  refuse 
them.  For,  well  aware  as  he  was  of  the  mischief  whi(;h  had  accrued  to 
Henry  in  consequence  of  his  having  consented  to  the  coronation  of  his 
former  heir,  he  demanded  that  the  same  honour  should  now  he  bestowed 
upon  Richard,  and  with  this  aggravation,  that  whereas  Richard  in  the  very 
act  which  had  produced  this  war  had  shown  how  ready  he  was  lo  do 
pught  that  would  injure  and  annoy  his  father,  Philip  demanded  his  being 
pu>  into  immediate  possession  o."  all  the  French  possessions  of  his  father, 
and  that  his  nuptials  slnjuld  fort  with  be  celebrated  with  Alice.  Philip's 
sister.  In  full  expectation,  as  it  should  seem,  that  Henry's  good  sense 
would  dictate  this  refusal,  Philip  had  caused  Richard  to  agree  that  on  re- 
ceiving such  a  refusal  he  would  immediately  disclaim  further  allcgimee, 
and  do  homage  to  Philip  for  all  the  Anglo-French  possessions,  as  though 
he  had  already  and  lawfully  been  invested  with  them. 

The  war  accordingly  recommenced  as  furiously  as  ever  between  the 
two  kiiins;  and  Cardinal  Albano,  the  Pope's  legate,  despairing  of  ever 
seeing  the  two  powerful  monandis  arrayed  side  by  side  against  the  In- 
fidels while  these  (jnarrcls  existed  between  them,  and  looking  upon  the 
unnatural  conduct  of  Richard  as  a  chief  cause  of  them,  pronounced  sen- 
tence of  excomnnmication  against  him.  'I'he  srntcnce  fell  iniiociionsly 
on  his  head,  owing  to  the  liikewarmness  of  the  clergy,  and  Kicliard  hav- 
ing  formally  received  from  Philip  the  investiture  of  Guieinie,  Normandy, 
and  Anjou,  the  nobles  of  those  provinces  sided  with  him  in  spite  of  the 
declared  wili  of  Rome,  and  overran  the  territories  of  all  who  still  main, 
tained  tl:e  cause  of  tin;  king  of  Kngland. 

At  Henry's  request.  Cardinal  Adagiii,  who  had  succeeded  Albano  us 
legate,  threateneii  Philip  with  an  interdict  upon  his  dominions;  but  Philip 
scornfully  replied,  that  it  was  no  part  of  the  papal  duty  to  interfere  in 
the  temjioral  quarrels  of  princes;  and  Richard,  who  was  present  at  the 
interview,  went  so  far  as  to  draw  his  sword  upon  the  cardinal,  and  wiis 
not  without  dilTiculty  withheld  from  proceeding  lo  still  more  outrageous 
and  criminal  lengths. 

Mans,  Amboise,  Chateau  de  Loire,  and  several  otlicr  places  were  sue 
cessively  taken  by  Philip  and  Richard,  or  treacherously  dijiveicd  to  tlieni 
by  their  governors.  In  this  state  of  the  war,  when  everything  seemed 
lo  threaten  Henry  with  ruin,  the  urchbishop  of  Rlieiins,  the  duke  o( 
Huigmidy,  and  the  earl  of  Flanders  st('n|)ed  forward  as  mediators.  In- 
lelligcnce  at  the  same  time  reached  Henry  that  Tours,  long  menaci'd, 
wiis  at  length  taken;  and,  hard  as  wen;  the  terms  proimsed,  he 
!faw  nothing  left  for  him  but  to  agree  to  them.  And  hard  those  terms 
<ndi-ed  wer(!  to  a  prince  who  hitherto  had  been  so  much  ui^custoincd  to 


THE  TREA3l/a\  OP  HISTORY. 


233 


dictate  terms  to  others.  He  consented  to  the  immediate  marriage  of 
Richar.l  am!  Alice — liiough  some  historians  relate  liiat  lie  was  himself 
enamiiured  of  that  princess— and  should  receive  hoinaire  and  fealty,  not 
only  for  the  Anglo-French  doniinioiis,  hul  also  fur  England  itself;  that 
the  king  of  France  should  receive  twenty  thousand  marks  to  defray  his 
expeiisi's  in  this  war;  that  the  barons  ol  Kngland  should  be  security  for 
I'eiiry's  due  performance  of  his  part  in  this  treaty,  and  should  undertake 
to  join  their  forces  with  those  of  Richard  and  the  king  of  France  in  the 
event  (if  his  breaking  his  engagement,  and  that  all  and  sundry  his  vassals 
who  hail  sided  with  his  son  should  be  held  harmless. 

If  tlie  last-mentioned  idause  was  in  itself  calculated  to  wound  the  feel- 
Inifs  of  so  proud  a  prince  as  Henry,  it  led  to  his  being  wounded  in  a  feel- 
ing fnr  deeper  than  pride;  for,  on  his  demanding  a  list  of  those  whom  he 
was  thus  engaged  to  pardon,  the  very  first  name  that  met  his  eye  was 
that  of  his  favourite  son.  Prince  John,  on  whom  he  had  conferred  kind- 
ness even  to  the  extent  of  arousing  the  anger  and  jealousy  of  the  passion- 
aio  Richard. 

Tliough  proud  and  bold,  Henry  was  a  singularly  afTectinnate  parent;  he 
had  already  suffered  much  sorrow  from  the  unnatural  conduct  of  his  sons, 
and  lliis  new  proof  of  the  utter  callousness  of  heart  of  the  best  beloved 
and  niiLst  trusted  of  tliem  was  a  blow  loo  severe  for  his  declining  strength. 
He  sickened  on  the  instant,  and  bestowed  upon  his  ingrate  and  heartless 
children  a  solemn  curse,  which  no  entreaties  of  the  friends  who  were 
about  liiin  could  induce  him  to  recal.     As  he  refleiMed  upon  the  barbarity 
of  his  children,  his  chagrin  increased  instead  of  diminishing,  and  a  low 
nervous  fever  soon  after  deprived  him  of  life,  which  happened  on  the  6th 
of  July,  in  ihe  fifty-eighth  year  of  his  age  and  thirty-fifth  of  his  reign. 
His  corpse  was  conveyed  to  Fontevraud  by  his  natural  son  Geoffrey, 
who  iiad  ever  behaved  to  him  with  the  tenderness  and  duty  so  fearfully 
wauling  in  the  conduct  of  his  legitimate  children.     While  the  royal 
corpse  lay  in  slate  at  Fontevraud,  Prince  Richard  visited  the  sad  scene, 
and  e.xlilliiied  a  sorrow  sincere  and  passionate  as  it  was  tardy  and  useless. 
Taken  altogether,  the  reign  of  Henry  U.  was  both  a  prosperous  and  a 
brililam  one  ;  and  it  seems  probable  that  had  not  the  cruel  misconduct  of 
his  sons  engaged  him  in  war  when  he  fain  wouhl  have  been  at  peace,  he 
would  have  done  still  more  than  he  did  towards  providing  for  the  internal 
welfare  of  his  kingdom.     What  he  did  towards  that  end,  if  it  appear  of  too 
stern  hiuI  cruel  a  nature  to  us  who  live  in  times  so  much  milder  and  more 
civilized,  si-cins  to  be  but  too  completely  justified  by  what  the  historians 
tell  us  of  the  gross  and  evil  daring  of  the  popnla(;e  of  those  early  days. 
In  the  cities  especially,  where  the  congregating  of  numliers  had  given  in- 
I'reased  daring  to  off^enders,  but  had  not  as  yet  led  to  any  safe  and  sound 
arrangements  of  police,  the  insolent  violence  of  the  populace  attained  to 
a  iiiMglil  of  which  we  can  form  but  a  very  faint  notion.     Street  brawls 
and  street  robberies,  attended  with  violence  always  and  not  unfrequenlly 
with  actual  murder,  were  every-day  occurrences.     IJnrglary  was  not  then 
as  i:  ivv  confined  to  the  darkness   and  security  of  the  nigtil-hours,  but 
even  the  wealthiest  traders,  though  their  shops  were  situated  in  the  most 
public  streets,  had  constant  reason  to  fear  assault  and  robbery  even  at 
noonday,  so  bold  and  strong  were  the  gangs  of  thieves.     A  single  speci- 
men (if  the  doings  of  the  street  robbers  of  those  times  may  not  be  unac- 
ceptable.    The  house  of  a  citizen  of  known  and  large  wealth  wa."  at- 
tacked by  a  band  of  robbers  who  actually  plied  their  wedges  and  axes  so 
efTectiially  as  to  make  a  breach  in  a  sulistantiat  stone  wall.     Just  as, 
Bword  in  hand,  they  were  making  good  their  entrance,  the  citizen  led  on 
hiH  servants  to  resist  them,  and  so  stoutly  defendeil  his  preinis(!s  that  his 
neiiihbours  had  time  to  arm  and  assist  him-     In  the  course  of  the  fight, 
ivlitcli,  though  short,  seem  to  have  been  severe,  one  of  the  robbers  had 


,'.mm 


^ 


?  •  ^4>4'*M* 


234 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


his  light  hand  nut  off.  This  man  was  subsequently  taken  prisaner,  anu 
as  the  loss  lie  had  sustained  rendered  all  denial  of  his  identity  perfecllv 
idle,  he  agreed,  in  order  to  save  his  own  life,  to  give  full  information  of 
ail  who  were  concerned  with  him.  Among  the  accomplices  thus  named 
was  a  very  wealthy  citizen,  who  up  to  that  time  had  been  looked  upon  as 
a  person  "of  the  greatest  probity.  Denying  the  charge,  he  was  tried  by 
the  ordeal  and  convicted.  He  then  offered  tiie  large  sum  of  five  hundred 
marks  in  commutation  of  his  offence ;  but  the  king,  rightly  judging  that 
tlie  rank  and  wealth  of  the  offender  only  made  the  offence  the  more 
shameful  and  unpardonable,  sternly  refused  the  money  and  ordered  the 
citizen  felon  to  be  hanged. 

Unlike  the  other  Norman  princes,  Henry  II.  was  not  so  attached  to 
Ills  game  as  to  hold  the  lives  of  his  subjects  in  utter  contempt  on  its  ac- 
count. He  greatly  moderated  the  forest  laws,  which  under  his  predenes- 
sors  had  been  so  fruitful  a  source  of  mis(!ry  to  the  people,  and  punished 
infringements  upon  them,  not  by  death  or  mutilation,  but  by  fine  or  im- 
prisonment. 

Though  generally  of  a  grave  and  dignified  habit,  this  king  was  not  des- 
titute of  a  certain  dry  humour.  Thus  Giraldus  Cambrensis  relates  that 
the  prior  and  monks  of  the  monastery  of  St.  Swithin  made  grievous  com- 
plaint to  Henry  of  the  rigour  with  which,  as  they  alledged,  they  had 
been  treated  by  the  bishop  of  Wmchester  in  the  ordering  of  their  diet. 
"  We  have  but  ten  dishes  allowed  us  now !"  they  exclaimed.  "  But  ten!" 
said  the  king,  "I  have  but  three!  'Tis  the  fitter  number,  rely  upon  it, 
and  I  desire  that  you  be  confined  to  it  henceforth." 

Henry  was  survived  by  two  legitimate  sons,  Richard  and  John,  and 
three  legitimate  daughters,  Maud,  Eleanor,  and  Joan.  He  also  left  two 
illegitimate  sons,  Richard,  surnamed  Longsword,  and  Geoffrey,  who  be 
came  archbishop  of  York.  These  sons  were  born  to  him  by  Rosamond 
daughter  of  Lord  Clifford.  Of  all  that  romance,  whether  in  its  own 
guise  or  in  th.<t  of  history,  has  said  of  this  lady,  nothing  seems  to  be  true 
save  that  she  was  both  fair  and  frail.  Her  bower  at  Woodstock,  and  the 
pleasant  choice  offered  to  her  by  the  jealous  Queen  Eleanor,  between  the 
dag^rer  and  the  poisoned  chalice,  are  mere  inventions. 


; 


CHAPTER  XXI. 


THE   RKIGIf    OF    RICHARD   I. 


A.  D.  1189. — The  partiality  with  which,  even  down  to  the  present  time, 
the  character  of  Richard  I.  has  been  looked  upon,  is  a  striking  proofliow 
far  men  can  go  in  dispensing  with  other  good  qualities,  in  favr.tir  of  him 
who  is  abundantly  endowed  with  the  mere  animal  quality  of  courage. 
The  shameful  ingratitude,  amounting  to  actual  barbarity,  witt.  which  this 
prince  treated  his  only  too-indulgent  father,  and  even  the  hot-headed  self- 
ishness with  which  he  preferred  warring  abroad  to  beneficially  and  usefully 
ruling  at  home,  and  made  his  realm  a  mere  depot  for  the  men  and  muni- 
tions requisite  to  the  prosecution  of  his  schemes  of  military  ambition,  are 
overlooked  in  consideration  of  his  reckless  daring  and  great  exploits  in 
the  battle-field.  Until  men  are  much  better  taught  than  they  have  ever 
yet  been  as  to  the  real  value  of  courage  and  the  precise  limits  within  which 
Its  exercise  is  deserving  of  the  homage  now  so  indiscriminately  paid  to  it, 
grave  and  thoughtful  writers  will,  we  fear,  labour  but  vj-inly  towards 
causing  the  reality  of  Richard's  character  to  become  visible  tlirougli  the 
false  but  gorgeous  halo  with  which  the  error  of  long  centuries  has  sur- 
rounded it.  With  this  brief  caution  against  too  implicit  a  fiith  in  the  nu- 
existencc  of  virtue  and  courage,  we  proceed  to  the  reign  of  the  most  war 


THE  TREASUHY  OF  HISTORY. 


235 


ijfceofall  of  even  England's  kings,  wliose  equiilly  impetuous  and  enduring 
bravery  obtained  for  him  from  tlie  most  warl  Ite  men  of  a  warlike  age  the 
title  of  "  Cceur  de  Lion,"  "  the  lion  hearted." 

Tlie  first  act  of  Richard's  reign  gave  some  promise  of  a  wise  and  just 
Qiie.  ;  itead  of  taking  into  favour  and  employment  those  who  had  so 
shamefully  aided  him  in  his  undutiful  and  disloyal  conduct,  he  treated 
hem  wiih  marked  disfavour,  and  contrariwise  retained  in  their  employ- 
ments those  ministers  who  had  been  the  faithful  and  zealous  advisers  of 
his  father.  He  released  his  mother,  Queen  Eleanor,  from  the  confinement 
,11  which  she  remained  at  the  death  of  Henry,  and  committed  the  regency 
of  Knglaiid  to  her  till  he  should  arrive  to  govern  it  in  person.  To  his 
brother  John,  too,  he  showed  the  beginning  of  that  favour  which  he  con- 
tinued to  him  throughout  his  reign,  and  uf  which  John  continually  and 
flaiTiiiiily  proved  his  unworthiness.  The  day  of  Richard's  coronation  was 
marked  by  an  event  which  showed  the  intolerance  of  the  age  to  be  fully 
equal  to  and  every  way  worthy  of  its  superstition.  The  Jews,  every- 
where a  proscribed  people,  were,  iiowever,  everywhere  an  industrious 
mid  of  course  a  prosperous  and  wealthy  people.  Being  the  largest  pos- 
sessors of  ready  money,  they  naturally  engrossed  the  invidious,  though 
often  important,  trade  of  money-lending;  and  when  we  consider  the 
usage  which  the  Jews  too  commonly  received  at  the  hands  of  Christians, 
and  add  to  that  the  frequent  losses  they  sustained,  we  need  scarcely  be 
surprised  that  they  sometimes  charged  enormous  interest,  and  treated 
iheir  insolvent  debtors  with  a  rigour  that  almost  frees  Shakspeare  from 
the  charge  of  caricaturing  in  his  terribly  graphic  character  of  Sliylock. 
The  necessities  that  ever  wait  upon  unthrift  made  too  many  of  the  high- 
born and  the  powerful  personally  acquainted  with  the  usurious  propen- 
sities of  the  Israelites ;  and  thus  added  personal  feelings  of  animosity  to 
the  hate  borne  by  the  zealous  CAm^ian*— alas !  what  a  Christianity  was 
theirs !— against  the  Jews.  During  the  reign  of  Henry  H.  the  animositiej 
which  were  nourished  against  the  Jews  were  not  openly  expressed ;  but 
Rit'h'ird,  who  combined  in  his  own  person  much  of  the  evil  as  well  as  of 
the  good  that  distinguished  his  stirring  and  bigoted  time,  had  an  especial 
hatred  to  Jews,  and  he  gave  orders  that  on  the  day  of  his  coronation  they 
should  on  no  account  make  their  appearance  at  the  scene  of  that  cere- 
mony. Some  of  them,  judging  that  their  gold,  at  least,  would  obtain  them 
exception  from  this  rule,  ventured  to  wait  upon  him  with  presents  of  great 
value.  Having  approached  the  banqueting  hall  of  the  king,  they  were 
soon  discovered  by  the  crowd  and  of  course  insulted.  From  words  the 
rabhie  proceeded  to  blows  ;  the  Jews  became  terrified,  fled,  and  were  pur- 
sued ;  and,  either  in  error  or  malignity,  a  report  was  spread  that  the  king 
had  ordered  the  general  destruction  of  the  .lows.  Orders  so  agreeable  at 
once  to  the  bigotry  and  the  licentiousness  of  such  a  populace  as  that  of 
London,  were  believed  without  much  scruple  and  executed  without  any 
remorse.  Not  contented  with  murdering  all  the  Jews  who  were  to  be 
found  in  the  streets,  the  rabble  broke  into  and  first  plundered  and  then 
burned  the  houses  of  the  wealthy  individuals  of  that  persecuted  sect,  who, 
driven  to  desperation,  defended  themselves  bravely  but  iiiefrcctiially. 
From  London  the  fierce  cry  against  the  Jews,  and  the  false  cry  that  llio 
king  had  authorized  their  destruction,  spread  to  the  other  great  to»'ns, 
^vhi'ie  the  unhappy  people  were  equally  plundered  and  slaughtered  us  in 
Loudon.  At  York,  in  addition  to  the  miKders  committed  by  the  popu- 
liieis  a  truly  horrible  tragedy  took  place.  Upwards  of  five  liun- 
dred  of  the  Jews  shut  themselves  up  in  the  castle  with  their  fairilies. 
Finding  that  thoy  could  not  much  longer  dcfiMid  themselves  against  the 
iurin'int('(l  and  blood-staiiuHl  rabble  without,  the  men  of  this  unhappy  and 
persecuted  band  acluully  killed  their  own  wives  :<.nd  children  and  threw 
Iheir  corpses  ovtr  the  walls,  and  then,  setting  fire  to  the  place,  chose 


336 


THE  TKEASURY  OP  HISTORY 


rather  to  perish  in  the  tortures  of  the  flames  than  in  thosfl  which  ttny 
knuw  would  be  adjiidgeil  to  ihein  by  their  enrnged  Hnd  bi/roled  enemiea. 
As  though  tills  hoiribie  triisjedy  liad  not  sufficiently  disgraced  the  nation 
the  geniry  of  Yor]<,  most  of  whom  were  deeply  indeblfd  to  the  unhappy 
Jews>,  added  a  characteristic  trait  of  sordid  dishonesty  to  the  general  horror, 
by  makitig  before  the  altar  of  the  cathedral  a  solemn  burnt  sacrifice  of  the 
bonds  ill  which  they  were  confessed  debtors.  The  detestation  with  which 
we  are  inspired  by  this  whole  affair  almost  makes  us  add  without  reifret 
or  pity,  that  long  after  the  Jews  were  all  either  massacred  or  escapeil,"the 
plundering  of  tlie  rabble  went  on  with  equal  zeal  in  the  houses  of  men 
who  were  not  Jews,  and  who  indignantly  impressed  that  fact  npoii  the 
minds  of  the  plunderers.  Thougli  the  known  hatred  which  the  king  bore 
to  the  Jews  was  doubtless  influential  in  encouraging  the  rabble  to  excess 
on  this  occasion,  it  is  certain  that  he  gave  no  direct  orders  or  encoiif' 
agenient  to  them.  On  the  contrary,  as  soon  as  actual  force  had  restored 
comparative  order  in  the  country,  Richard  commissioned  his  chief  justi- 
ciary, the  celebrated  Glanville,  to  make  the  necessary  inquiries  and  to 
punish  as  many  as  could  be  discovered  of  the  original  instigators  of  these 
detestable  enormities.  Dut  even  partial  inquiry  showed  that  the  rabble 
were,  with  all  their  violence  and  grossness,  by  no  means  the  most  blame- 
worthy party  upon  this  occasion,  and  so  many  powerful  and  wealthy  men 
were  found  to  be  deeply  implicated,  that,  after  the  punishment  of  a  very 
few  persons,  to  vindicate  the  laws  from  the  reproach  of  complete  ineffi- 
ciency, the  inquiry  was  wholly  laid  pside. 

Scarcely  had  Richard  finished  the  ceremony  of  his  coronation  ere  he 
commenced  his  preparations  for  an  expedition  to  Palestine.  Thedistanie 
of  that  country  made  it  impossible  for  him  to  rely  upon  England  to  furnish 
him  from  time  to  time  with  the  requisite  supplies;  his  first  care,  therefore, 
was  to  provide  himself  with  such  an  amtmiit  of  money  as  would  place 
him  above  any  danger  from  want  of  means  to  provision  his  followers. 
His  father  had  left  him  above  a  hundred  thousand  marks— a  very  large 
sum  in  thut  age— and,  to  add  to  that  important  treasure,  the  king  resorted 
to  the  sale  not  only  of  the  manors  and  revenues  of  the  crown,  but  even  of 
many  offices,  the  nature  of  which  rendered  it  especially  important  that 
they  should  be  held  by  pure  hands.  The  office  of  sheiif,  whi(;h  con- 
cerned both  the  administration  of  justice  and  the  crown  revenue,  was  tlms 
sold,  as  was  the  scarce  less  important  office  of  forester;  and  at  length,  as 
if  to  show  that  all  considerations  were  trivial,  in  his  judgment,  when 
compared  to  that  of  forwarding  his  favourite  scheme,  Richard  openly  and 
shamefully  sold  the  high  office  of  chief  justiciary — that  office  upon  which 
the  liberties  and  properties  of  the  whole  nation  were  to  a  very  considerable 
extent  dependant,  to  Hugh  de  Puzas,  bishop  of  Durham,  for  a  thousand 
marks,  this  prelate  being  also,  "for  a  consideration,  invested  for  his  ovn 
life  with  the  earldom  of  Northumberland."  Completely  reckless  how  he 
obtained  money,  and  really  seeming  to  have  no  single  thought  to  bestow 
upon  Ilia  country,  except  as  a  source  of  money,  he  next  sold  hack  to  the 
king  of  Scotland  the  Scottish  fortresses  which  his  wiser  father  had  so 
carefully  guarded,  and  released  William  from  all  sig-'  of  vassalage  beyond 
the  ordinary  homage  for  lands  held  by  him  in  Kii,,iand,  the  price  of  all 
this  advanlage  on  the  one  side  and  disgraceful  sacrifice  on  the  other  being 
ten  thousand  marks. 

Besides  selling  in  this  reckless  way  much  in  which  he  justly  and  le- 
plly  held  only  a  mere  life-interest,  he  wearied  all  ranks  of  his  subjects 
or  loans  or  gifts;  the  distiiiclion  in  words  being,  it  will  easily  be  believed, 
the  only  distinction  between  the  two  ways  of  parting  with  th'-r  money! 
The  utmost  having  been  done  to  raise  money  in  tli(;se  discreditable  ways, 
Richard  next  applied  himself  to  selling  peirmission  to  remain  at  home  to 
those  who,  after  having  taken  the  cross  had,  from  whatever  cause,  be- 


fc 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY 


937 


rome  less  enamoured  of  the  task  of  combining  the  Iiifidnls.  To  dwell  no 
longer  upo»i  this  disgraceful  passage  in  our  history,  Richard,  in  his  anxiety 
to  raise  money  to  aid  him  in  his  merely  selfish  pursuit  of  fame,  showed 
himself  so  reckless  a  salesman  that  his  ministers  ventured  to  remonstrate 
vith  him,  and  he,  shamelessly  exulting  in  his  own  want  of  principle  and 
>rue  pride,  replied,  that  he  would  gladly  sell  his  good  city  of  London, 
could  he  but  find  a  purchaser. 

While  Richard  was  thus  making  such  great  sacrifices,  nominally  for  the 
sake  of  the  Christian  cause  in  Palestine,  but  really  for  the  sake  of  his 
owii  fierce  vanity,  of  that  peculiar  quality  to  which  men  have  slavishly 
agreed  to  give  the  more  sounding  name  of  love  of  glory,  his  life  and  con- 
versiition  were  by  no  means  of  the  most  Christian  paitern,  and  gave  great 
uffence  to  those  crusaders  whose  piety  was  sincere  and  practical,  though 
occasionally  carried  to  the  extreme  of  bigotry  in  feeling  and  of  grimace 
ill  manifestation.  Fulke  of  Neuilly,  a  zealous  and  eloquent  preacher  of 
the  crusade,  preaching  before  Richard,  boidly  assured  him  that  he  had 
three  favourite  most  dangerous  daugliters  of  whom  it  behoved  him  speedily 
to  rid  himself,  namely,  pride,  avarice,  and  voluptuousness.  '•  You  are 
quite  right,"  replied  Richard,  "  and  I  hereby  give  the  first  of  them  to  the 
Templars,  the  second  to  the  Denediclines,  ami  the  third  to  my  prelates." 

Previous  to  departing  for  the  east,  Richard  committed  the  administra- 
tion of  the  government  in  England  to  Hui;h,  bishop  of  Durham,  and  Long- 
'hamp,  bishop  of  Ely ;  but  though  he  at  first  swore  both  his  brother  Prince 

ihii  and  his  natural  brother  UeoflTrey,  archbishop  of  York,  not  even  to 
enter  the  kingdom  during  his  absence,  he  siilisequently  withdrew  that 
politic  prohibition.  Longchamp,  the  bishop  of  Ely,  though  of  mean  birth, 
was  a  man  of  considerable  talent  and  energy ;  and  the  better  to  enable 
him  to  govern  with  effect,  Richard,  who  had  already  made  him  chaiicelloi 
of  the  kingdom,  also  procured  him  to  be  invested  with  the  authority  of 
papal  legate. 

While  Richard  and  Philip  had  been  engaged  in  preparin?  for  their 
eastern  expedition,  the  Emperor  Frederic  had  already  led  from  Oermany 
and  the  neighbouring  countries  of  the  north,  an  army  of  150,000  men,  and 
though  the  force  of  the  Infidels  and  il.e  intrigues  of  the  court  of  the  east- 
ern empire — which  feared  the  western  Christians  nearly  as  much  as  it 
did  the  Infidels  themselves — caused  him  both  great  delay  and  a  consider- 
able loss  of  men,  he  had  already  reached  the  frontiers  of  Syria,  when, 
bathinpf  in  the  Cydnus,  he  was  caused  so  violent  an  illness  by  the  exces- 
sive coldness  of  the  water,  that  he  very  shortly  afterwards  died.  His  son 
Conrad  assumed  the  command  of  the  army,  which,  however,  reached 
Palestine  reduced  to  about  eight  thousand  men,  and  even  of  these  many 
were  in  a  state  of  pitiable  weakness  from  the  diseases  iniMdent  to  the  cli- 
mate and  season  under  which  so  many  of  their  comrades  had  pcrisiied. 

Philip  and  Henry  perceiving  how  mucii  mischief  accrued  from  the 
cutting  off  of  such  immense  bodies  of  men  from  all  cliance  of  sncconi 
from  Europe,  resolved  to  equip  tleets,  not  only  for  the  purpose  of  c  irrying 
over  their  armies  and  such  stores  of  provisions  as  w(»uld  inevitably  be  re- 
quisite, but  also  to  form,  as  it  were,  a  line  of  communication  with  Europe 
wlieil  ■''  for  supply  or  retreat. 

A-D.  1190. — And,  indeed,  when  the  forces  of  Richard  and  Philip  met  on 
the  plains  of  Vezelay,  on  the  frontiers  of  Uurgunily,  men  the  jiMst  san- 
gnine  in  trusting  to  human  prowess  might  have  been  pardoned  for  deem- 
ing that  that  mighty  host  must  be  inviiUMble  by  any  power  that  the  Infidids 
could  muster  against  it.  After  all  the  necessary  and  cautious  weeding  by 
which  the  minor  leaders  had  taken  care,  as  far  as  possible,  to  have  none 
enrolled  among  their  troops  save  those  who  were  strong  of  body  and 
masters  of  their  weapons,  this  force  amounted  to  more  than  a  hundred 
thousand  men,  well  armed,  abundantly  provided  for,  and  animated  to  the 


f  •    r   a;: 


1    .N|,«WI) 


238 


THE  TRKASUllV  OF  H18T0UY. 


Ui\ 


!    it: 


Mini 


highest  possible  pitch  of  zeal  by  the  double  feeling  of  religious  ardour  ans 
military  ambition.  Richard  and  Philip  pledged  both  themselves  aiul  the 
other  leaders  of  this  mighty  host  to  mutual  faith  and  friendship  in  the 
field ;  and  the  two  monarehs  engaged  their  barons  and  prelates  who  re- 
mained at  home,  on  oath,  to  refrain  from  any  infringement  of  the  rcspec- 
live  kingdoms,  and  called  down  interdict  and  excommunication  upon  who- 
soever  should  break  this  solemn  engagement.  This  done,  Philip  marched 
towards  Genoa,  and  Richard  towards  Marseilles,  where,  respectively,  they 
had  rendezvoused  their  fleets.  Though  they  sailed  from  different  ports, 
they  were  both,  and  nearly  at  the  same  time,  tempest-driven  into  the 
harbour  of  Messina,  in  which  port  they  were  detained  during  the  whole 
remainder  of  the  year. 

The  adage  which  represents  a  long  confinement  on  board  ship  as  a  pe 
culiar  test  of  temper  and  touchstone  of  friendship,  applies  equally  to  all 
cases  of  very  close  companionship.  Brought  thus  lonjT  into  daily  con- 
tact, these  young  princes,  who  were  so  well  fitted  to  i.c..e  been  friends 
under  almost  any  other  circumstances,  were  the  more  certain  to  disagree, 
from  their  mutual  possession,  in  a  very  high  degree,  of  a  haughty  deter- 
mination, ambition,  courage,  and  obstinacy;  and  as  Philip  was  as  cool 
and  reserved  as  Richard  was  passionate  to  the  verge  of  frenzy,  and  can- 
did to  the  verge  of  absolute  folly,  their  disagreements  were  pretty  sure  to 
tend  chiefly  to  the  advantage  of  Philip. 

While  residing  at  Messina,  and  settling  some  difference  which  both 
kings,  in  some  sort,  had  with  Tancred,  the  reigning  usurper  of  Sicily, 
Richard,  extremely  jealous  of  the  intentions  of  both  prince  and  people, 
established  himself  in  a  fort  which  commanded  the  harbour.  A  quarrel 
was  the  consequence,  and  Richard's  troops  having  chastised  the  Messinest 
for  an  attack  which  he  rather  guessed  than  had  any  proof  that  they  medi- 
tated, Richard  had  the  English  flag  displayed  in  triumph  on  the  walls  ot 
the  city.  Philip,  who  had  previously  done  all  that  he  could  to  accommo 
date  matters,  justly  enough  considered  this  display  as  being  insulting  to 
him,  and  gave  orders  to  some  of  his  people  to  pull  the  standard  down. 
Richard,  on  the  other  hand,  chose  to  treat  this  order  as  a  personal  insult 
to  him,  and  immediately  sent  word  to  Philip  that  he  had  no  objection  to 
removing  the  standard  himself,  but  that  no  one  else  should  touch  it,  suve 
at  mortal  risk.  Philip,  who  was  too  anxious  for  the  aid  of  Richard  when 
they  should  arrive  in  the  Holy  Land  to  be  willing  to  drive  him  to  extrem- 
ities, accepted  the  proposal  with  some  cordiality  ;  but  the  quarrel,  petty  as 
it  was,  left  the  seeds  of  dislike  in  the  hearts  of  both  princes. 

A.  D.  1191. — Tancr»'d,  the  Sicilian  usurper,  deeming  that  his  own  safety 
would  be  promoted  by  whatever  sowed  discord  between  these  two  power- 
ful princes,  was  gvidty  of  a  deception  which  in  their  mutual  temper  of 
suspicion  might  have  led  even  to  fatal  consequences.  He  showed  to 
Richard  a  letter  which  he  stated  he  had  received  from  the  hands  of  tne 
duke  of  Burgundy.  This  letter,  which  purpoucd  to  be  written  by  Philip, 
required  Tancred  to  cause  his  troops  suddenly  to  fall  upon  liic  !!?"j;lish 
troops,  and  promised  that  the  French  should  aid  him  in  the  destruction  ul 
the  cdinmon  enemy.  Richard,  with  his  usual  fiery  and  unreflecting  tem- 
per, believed  this  clumsy  fiction  without  examination,  and  being  wholly 
unable  to  dissemble  his  feelings,  he  at  once  told  Philip  what  he  was 
charg(?d  withal.  Philip  flatly  denied  the  charge,  branded  the  Sicilian 
nsurpcr  with  his  falsehood,  and  challenged  him  to  support  the  atrocious 
charge  he  had  made  ;  and  as  Tancred  was,  of  course,  wholly  unable  to  do 
so,  Richard  professed  to  be  completely  satisfied.  As  this  attempt  of  Tan- 
cj-ed  and  its  near  approach  to  success  had  warned  each  Philip  and  Uichard 
of  till!  danger  to  wiiich  their  friendship,  so  important  to  both  their  king- 
doms and  to  the  great  cause  in  which  they  were  each  engaged,  was  per- 
petually liable  from  the  arts  of  the  enemies  of  either,  they  agreed  to  have  u 


ill 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


239 


loiemn  treaty,  in  which  every  possible  point  of  difference  should  be  so 
arranged  that  no  future  difficulty  could  arise.  But  this  very  attempt  at 
formalizing  friendship  was  itself  the  cause  of  a  dispute,  which  at  the  outset 
threatened  to  be  a  fatal  one,  inasmuch  as  the  family  honour  of  Philip  was 
fery  much  concerned  in  the  matter. 

It  will  be  remembered  that,  in  his  shameful  opposition  to  his  father, 
Richard  had  constantly  expressed  the  utmost  possible  anxiety  for 
permission  to  espouse  Alice,  daughter  of  Louis,  the  late  king  of 
France,  and  the  sister  of  that  Philip  who  was  now  Richard's  fellow- 
crusader.  Alice,  who  long  resided  in  England,  was  confidently,  though 
perhaps  only  scandalously,  reported  to  have  been  engaged  in  a  criminal 
amour  witli  Richard's  own  father;  and  Richard,  well  knowing  the  cur- 
eiit  report  on  that  head,  was  far  indeed  from  desiring  the  alliance  which, 
iS  a  sure  means  of  annoying  his  father,  he  was  thus  perpetually  de- 
manding. Now  that  he  was  king,  he  not  only  had  no  longer  any  inten- 
lion  of  marrying  Alice,  but  had;  in  fact,  made  proposals  for  the  hand  of 
Berengaria,  daughter  of  the  king  of  Navarre,  and  was  expecting  that 
princess  to  follow  him  under  the  protection  of  his  mother.  Queen  Eleanor. 
Philip,  probably  suspecting  or  knowing  this  new  passion,  formally  re- 
quired that  Richard  should  espouse  Alice,  now  that  there  was  no  lunger 
any  hostile  father  to  oppose  him.  But  Richard  on  this  occasion  gave 
proof  that  he  was  not  actuated  merely  by  his  constitutional  levity,  by 
bringing  forward  proof  so  clear  that  it  carried  conviction  even  to  the  un- 
Hilling  mind  of  Philip,  that  Alice  had  actually  born  a  child  to  Richard's 
father,  the  late  king  of  England.  To  such  a  reason  for  breaking  off  the 
engagement  no  valid  reply  could  be  made ;  and  Philip  departed  for  the 
Holy  Land,  while  Richard  remained  at  Messina  to  await  the  arrival  oi 
his  mother  and  the  princess  Berengaria.  They  soon  nfter  arrived,  and 
Richard,  attended  by  his  bride  and  his  sister,  the  dowager  queen  of  Sicily, 
departed  for  the  Holy  Land ;  Queen  Eleanor  returning  to  England. 

Richard's  fleet  was  n\et  by  s  heavy  storm,  which  drove  part  of  it  upon 
the  isle  of  Cyprus  !ic-  princo  of  which,  Isaac,  a  despot  whose  limited 
means  and  power  >ad  not  prevent  him  from  assuming  all  the  state  and 
tyrannous  bearing  of  an  emperor,  threw  the  wrecked  crews  into  prison, 
instead  of  hospiiaNy  administering  to  their  wants,  and  even  carried  his 
barbarity  so  far  as  lio  prevent  the  princesses,  on  their  peril,  from  being 
sheltered  in  his  port  of  Limisso.  But  the  triumph  of  this  ill-conditioned 
tyrant  was  only  brief.  Richard,  who  soon  after  arrived,  landed  his  troops, 
beat  the  tynnt  before  Limisso,  took  that  place  by  storm,  threw  Isaac 
himself  into  prison,  and  established  new  governors  in  all  the  principal 
places  of  the  island.  A  singular  favour  was  in  the  midst  of  this  severity 
conferred  by  Richard  upon  the  defeated  and  imprisoned  tyrant.  Isaac 
complained  bitterly  of  the  degradation  of  being  loaded,  like  a  vulgar  mal- 
efactor, with  chains  of  iron  ;  his  sense  of  degradation  '"iiig  apparently 
limited  to  the  material  of  his  fetters,  and  not  extendiii  •  the  fact  of  his 
being  fettered  at  all.  With  an  indescribably  droll  courtesy,  Richard  not 
«.,ly;;;i"iittod  the  justice  of  the  complaint,  but  actually  liad  a  set  of  very 
substantial  silver  feiters  made  for  Isaac's  es|)ecial  use  ! 

The  nuptials  of  Ricli.ird  and  Berengaria  were  celebrated  with  great 
pnmp  at  Cyprus,  and  they  again  sti  sail  to.var;!s  P-.<'««tiiif>.  taking  with 
lliem  Isaac's  daughter,  a  beautiful  woman,  who  was  reported  to  have  iiiiule 
"onquest  of  Richard's  heart.  A  strange  companion  to  be  given  to  his 
newly-married  wife  by  a  prince  professing  the  most  cliivalric  feelings  ol 
old  knighthood,  and  especially  bound,  too,  on  the  service  of  religion! 
Richard  and  his  troops  arrived  in  time  to  take  a  distinguised  part  in  the 
long-heleagured  A(!re. 

At  first  the  English  and  French  troops  and  their  kingly  leaders  acted 
most  amicably  together,  alternately  taking  the  duty  of  guarding  the 


940 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HiaTORY. 


trenches  and  mounting  to  the  a'^sHtilt  of  the  place.  But  this  good  ritiim 
between  the  two  princes  would  probably  not  have  endured  very  lonir 
even  had  there  been  no  other  cause  for  their  disagreements  but  the  warlike 
snperiority  of  Kichard,  whose;  headlong  courage  and  great  personal  strength 
made  him  conspicuous  in  every  attack.  But  to  this  latent  and  ever-rank, 
ling  cause  of  quarrel  oiijers  were  speedily  added. 

The  first  dis|)ute  that  arose  between  the  two  kings  to  call  into  open 
ight  the  real  feelings  which  pnlicy  or  eouriesy  had  previously  enabled 
them  to  veil,  originated  in  the  claims  of  Guy  de  Lusignan,  and  C'liMrnde 
marquis  of  Moniterrat,  to  the  Mioresiiowy  tiuin  profitable  title  of  king  of 
Jerusalem.  De  Ln^ignau  sought  and  olitained  the  advocraey  of  Kicliard 
and  Philip  i/wo/uc/ii  was  induced  toifiveihe  most  strenuous  support  to  Con- 
rade.  Nordid  the  evil  rest  vviili  giving  the  two  monarchs  a  causcdf  open 
and  zealous  o|)posiiion  to  each  other.  Their  example  was  naturally  foj. 
lowed  by  the  other  (Christian  leaders.  The  knights  of  the  hospital  of  St. 
.lohii,  the  I'isaiis,  and  Fiemiuiis,  gave  their  voices  and  support  to  ilie  side 
embra(;e(l  by  Richard,  while  the  Templars,  the  (>(!rinans,  and  the  (ieiKiese, 
gav(!  theirs  to  I'liilip;  and  thus,  while  every  circumstance  of  iiiteresl  luid 
duty  demanded  the  most  contial  and  unwavering  unanimity  among  the 
(Christian  princes  and  leaders,  their  camp  was  dividi^d  into  two  fierce  parties, 
almost  as  ready  to  turn  their  arms  up>oi  each   other  as  upon  the  iiiridels. 

The  distressed  condition  to  which  the  infidels  were  already  rcdiieeil, 
However,  did  not  allowofiheir  profiling,  as  they  otherwise  might  havediiiie, 
by  the  Christian  dissensions;  and  they  surrendered  the  long-contested 
city,  stipulating  for  the  spiring  of  their  lives,  and  agreeing,  in  return,  to 
give  up  all  the  Christian  prisoners,  and  the  Irne  (^ross.  The  joy  of  the 
Christian  powers  of  Kiiroiie  at  tins  long-desired  trinmpli  was  so  ra|iiiir(insi 
as  to  make  them  unmindful  of  the  fact,  that,  setting  almost  iiiCrtl'Mi- 
labh;  treasure  wholly  out  of  consideration,  this  result  had  in  the  cinirse 
of  a  few  years  cost  Christendom  at  least  three  hundred  thousand  of  lier 
bravest  lives. 

After  the  surrender  of  Acre,  Philip,  disgusted  |)robal)ly  at  fiiiiling  liim- 
self  (Mst  so  mindi  in  the  shade  in  a  scene  in  which,  and  in  wliicli  onlv, 
Richard  was  so  well  calculated  to  outshine  him,  tlepai1e<l  for  Kurope  (in 
the  ground  that  the  safely  of  his  domiiiimis  would  not  allow  of  his  reiniiiii- 
iiig  to  lake  a  part  in  what  promised  to  be  tin;  very  slow  and  dilficiilt  re- 
ca[itiire  of  Jerusalem,  which  n  was  only  rcasoiiaiile  lo  suppose  would  he 
still  more  obstinatidy  defended  and  more  de.irly  pnrcdiased  than  Acre  hiui 
been.  Hut  though  on  ilie  plea  that  the  weal  of  his  kingdom  and  llie  stale 
of  his  own  health  would  not  allow  of  his  own  loJiirer  presence,  he  yn  irded 
liimstdr  against  the  imputation  id'  being  wholly  indilVcrcnl  to  the  t'hrisii;iii 
cause,  by  leaving  ten  llioiisand  of  Ins  best  troops  lo  Richard,  under  Ilie 
eominaiidof  ilicdukeof  Hiirciiiidy.  And  in  order  to  allay  the  v.'ry  iiaiiiral 
suspicions  of  Richard,  |es|  Ii(>  shonld  make  use  of  his  presence  in  l'lni()|.i' 
to  do  any  wrong  to  the  l'',iiglish  power,  he  sidemiily  made  oalli  lliat  lie 
would,  (Ml  no  pretence,  make  any  alleiiipl  on  tlie  l''iigli>'h  domiiilinis  ihiriii!; 
Ri(  hard's  alisence.  Hut,  so  bglilly  were  oallis  held  even  by  the  liiglily 
born  nil  I  the  eiiliLditeiied  (d'  tli  it  day,  that  sc.ircely  had  Pli.lp  landed  iii 
Italy  ere  he  had  the  iniiiglcl  hardihood  and  meanness  to  ajiply  lo  Pope 
('(destine  V.  til  absolve  Imn  from  Ins  o.ilh.  Tin'  pope,  more  jiisl,  refused 
to  griinl  It  .  but  though  Philip  was  iliiis  prevenled  I'roin  liie  open  luHlility 
whiidl  h  '  liaii  most  dishmionr  tb  \  pi  inned,  lie  ilnl  not  iiesilate  lo  avail  linil- 
*e|f  to  the  III  iMKl  of  every  means  to  work  evil  lo  Richard,  and  opjinr- 
tuiiity  WIS  abiindanlly  allordi'd  hini  by  the  condiiel  i>(  the  iingralifiil  and 
disloyal  .loiiii.  and  Ihe  discord  thai  rciifiicd  aininig  the  Knglisli  iiohihiy, 
iilmosi  wiHioiii  anexceplion  of  any  iioii' 

It  has  .dready  been  iin'iiMone  I  that  Richard  on  Ins  deparinrc  for  tlit! 
floly  Land  had  deleg.ited  the  chief  authority  in  Knghuid  to  ilu^li,  bishop 


THE  THKA8U11Y  OF  HISTORV. 


Ml 


flf  Durham  and  earl  of  Northuniberland,  and  Longchamp,  bishop  of  Ely. 
riie  latter  was  not  only  far  superior  to  liis  colleague  in  point  of  capacity 
and  experience  in  the  arts  of  intrigue,  but  was  also  possessed  of  an  auda- 
cious and  violent  spirit  little  becoming  the  chnrchman.  The  king  had  not 
long  left  Knsiland  ere  the  domineering  spirit  of  Longchamp  began  to  man- 
ifest itself,  not  only  towards  the  nobility  in  general,  but  also  towards  his 
milder  colleague  in  the  goveriuiienl.  Having,  in  addition  to  his  equality 
of  civil  authority,  the  legatine  power,  thei.  so  very  tremeutlous  as  not  easily 
to  be  resisted  even  by  a  powerful  and  wise  king  in  his  own  proper  person, 
Longchamp  could  not  endure  to  treat  the  meeker  biisluip  of  l)urham  as 
anything  more  than  his  first  suhjeri.  At  first  he  manifested  his  feeling  ol 
Buppriority  by  petty  means,  which  were  rather  annoying  thai'  positively 
hostile  or  injurious;  but  finding  himself  unresisted,  he  grew  more  and 
more  violent,  and  at  length  went  to  the  glaringly  inconsistent  length  of 
throwing  his  colleague  in  the  goverimient  into  coiirmemeiu,  and  demand- 
ing of  him  the  surrender  of  the  earldom  of  Northumberland  which  he  had 
p;iid  for  in  solid  cash.  This  took  place  befm-e  the  king  had  departed  from 
Miirsrilles  on  his  way  to  the  east;  and  though  immediately  on  Kichard 
lifaring  of  the  dissension  between  the  two  prelates  upon  whose  wisdom 
and  pcrl'ecl  accord  he  so  mainly  depended  for  the  peace  and  safety  of  his 
dominions,  he  sent  peremptory  orders  for  the  earl-bishop's  release.  Long- 
champ  had  tlie  consummate  assurance  to  refuse  to  obey  the  king's  oom- 
nwnd,  assuring  the  astounded  nobles  that  he  knew  that  the  king's  secret 
wishes  wer(>  directly  opposed  to  his  public  orders  ! 

This  niiscoiKluct  was  followed  up  by  so  much  insolence  towards  the 
iinhilily  in  general,  and  so  many  compliiinls  were  in  consequeiijc  made  to 
Richard,  that  he  appointed  a  numerous  council  of  nobles  wiilumt  whose 
concurrences  I.onucliainp  for  the  future  was  strictly  fornuuien  to  transact 
any  important  public  business.  Hut  his  vast  authority  as  legale,  added  to 
hjsihiriiig  and  peremptory  temper,  deterred  even  those  named  as  his  conn 
cilkirs  from  venturing  to  produce  their  c(Mnmission  to  him,  and  he  ('ontin- 
iicd  to  display  the  magnificence  and  to  exercise  the  power  of  an  absolute 
govcreigii  of  the  reiilm. 

The  great  ahliols  of  the  wealthy  monasteries  complained  that  when  he 
made  a  progress  in  iheir  iieigliboiirliood.  Ins  train  in  a  single  day's  residence 
dcvcMirecl  ilieir  revenue  for  yuars  le  come  :  the  liigli-borii  and  martial  barons 
cnniplaiiied  of  the  more  than  kingly  hauteur  of  this  low-liorn  man;  the 
whole  nation,  in  short,  was  diNCiii'iented,  hut  the  lirsl  open  and  ellieient 
oppiisjtion  was  made  by  one  whoe  jiersoiial  characlerislic  was  certainly 
not  1(10  great  courage — the  [irmce  .John. 

That  the  bishop  and  legate  niis.ised  his  authority,  to  the  insulting  of 
the  hdlality  ami  the  inipoverisment  of  the  naiion,  would  not  ;i  jot  have 
moved  .John,  but  lit;  could  not  einliir"  that  /ir  too,  should  be  thrown  into 
shade  and  contempt  by  this  overhearing  prelate.  The  latter,  wilh  a  want 
of  policy  straiijiely  at  variance  with  bis  luidouhied  ahilily,  imprudently 
allnwed  liiniM'lf  to  hr  guilty  of  personally  ilisobligjug  John,  \\  ho,  upon 
that  HiVroiit,  conceived  an  indignnlion  w  hieh  all  the  disobedience  shown  to 
Ins  hi'olher,  anil  all  the  injury  iiitticied  upon  his  brother's  best  ^iiid  most 
f.iMliful  sub{eels,  liiiil  lieeii  insullieienl  to  iii'oUKe.  lie  suuinioned  a  cotm- 
I'll  (if  prelaies  nnd  nobles  to  meet  Inm  at  Keadiiig.  in  Herksliin',  ami  cited 
liOliirciiaiiip  to  ;ip|ieiir  ihere  to  aeeoiiiit  lor  Ins  comhli't.  A  w;ire  w  hen  it  was 
toil  Idle  (il  the  iliintiei'olis  enemies  he  had  provoked  by  the  waiiliui  abuse 
of  his  aiitlioriiv.  the  prelate,  instead  of  appi'annir  belore  the  eouiieil,  en- 
trriii'lir,!  himself  in  the  Tower  of  Liuiihui.  Hut  the  manner  in  which  he 
had  wielded  his  authority  had  lilt  hiiii  >o  lew  and  such  liikewaiin  Irieiids, 
that  he  soon  louint  that  he  was  not  s.ife  even  in  that  sUonu  lorlieus,  and, 
ilmiliiiHiiig  liim>eir  in  female  Mppaiil,  he  contrived  to  esr:i|ie  to  France 
»li)ic  he  was  .lUre  to  find  u  cordial  reieption  at  the  hanilH  of  l'|iili|),  |ia 
-16 


34S 


THE  TEKASUHY  OF  HISTORY. 


was  now  in  form  deprived  of  the  high  civil  offices  which  by  his  flight  he 
had  virtually  surrendered,  and  the  archbishop  of  Rouen,  who  had  a  high 
reputation  for  both  talent  and  prudence,  was  made  chancellor  and  justicia- 
ry in  his  stead.  As  Longchamp,  however,  held  the  legatine  power,  o( 
which  no  civil  authorities  could  deprive  him,  he  still  had  abundant  means, 
which  he  lost  no  opportunity  of  using,  to  aid  the  insidious  endeavours  of 
Philip  to  disturb  the  peace  of  I'jigland  and  injure  the  absent  Richard. 

A.  D.  1192. — Philip's  neighbourhood  to  Richard's  French  dominions  held 
out  an  opportunity  far  too  templing  to  be  resisted  for  invading  tlutn, 
which  he  was  on  the  point  of  openly  doing  when  he  found  himself  pre- 
vented in  his  treacherous  schemes  by  the  almost,  gencrid  refusal  of  hif 
nobles  to  aid  him  in  so  unjust  an  entfrprise  agiinst  the  territories  of  3 
prince  who  was  gloriously — though  anything  but  prudently— periling  life 
and  limb  in  the  distant  wars  of  the  cross.  I'hilip  was  discouraged,  more- 
over, in  this  part  of  his  dishonorable  plan  by  the  pope,  who,  especially 
constituting  himself  the  guardian  of  the  rights  of  all  princes  engaged  in 
the  crusade,  threatened  IMiilip  with  the  terrors  of  an  iiUerdict,  should  he 
venture  to  persist  in  attacking  the  territority  of  hia  far  worthier  brother- 
sovereign  and  fellow  crusader. 

But  though  obstacles  so  formidable  rendered  it  impossible  for  him  to 

fiersist  in  this  open  course.of  injustice,  save  at  the  hazard  of  destriiclioiito 
liniself,  he  resolved  to  work  secretly  to  the  same  end.  Thoroughly  im. 
dcrstanding  the  dishonourable  character  of  John,  he  made  overtures  to  tl,  it 
base  and  weak  prince ;  offered  him  in  marriage  that  princess  Alice  whose 
blotted  character  had  caused  her  to  be  refused  by  the  usually  imprudent 
and  facile  Richard,  and  gave  him  assurance  of  investiture  in  all  the  French 
possessions  of  Richard,  ui)un  condition  of  his  taking  the  risk  of  invnilaiir 
them.  John,  whose  whole  conduct  through  life  showed  him  to  be  des° 
titute  of  all  feelings  of  faith  or  gratitude,  was  in  no  wise  startled  by  ihe 
atrocity  that  was  proposed  to  iiim.  and  was  in  the  act  of  commeiiclng 
preparations  for  [lutting  it  into  e.\eeution  when  Queen  Kleanor,  more  jeal- 
ous of  till!  kingly  riylits  of  her  absent  son  than  she  had  formerly  slniwed 
herself  of  those  of  her  husliuiut,  interposed  her  own  authority,  and  caused 
the  council  and  nobles  of  Mnglaiid  to  iiiterfiose  theirs,  so  eflcctiially,  tlini 
John's  fears  overcame  even  Ins  cupidity,  and  he  abandoned  a  project  which 
none  bill  a  wholly  debased  mind  would  ever  have  entertained. 

Willie  these  things  were  passing  in  Kiirope,  the  high-spirited  but  unwise 
Piehard  was  gathering  laurels  in  Asia,  and  iincoiiMciou^ly  aecuiniihiliiiir 
upon  his  head  a  terrilde  load  of  future  suffering  ;  and  an  oeeurence 
wliieli  just  now  took  |ilace  in  that  distant  seeiie  was,  with  an  exeera- 
bl(^  ingenuity,  seized  njxiii  by  Philip  to  calumniate  in  Kinope  the  aliscnt 
rival,  each  new  exidoil  of  whom  added  to  the  pangs  of  his  i  ver-aelmn;  envy. 
There  was  111  Asia  a  mountain  luiiiee,  known  to  Puropeaiis  by  the  iiilc 
of  tlie  ''Old  Man  of  the  Mountain,  who  had  olitained  so  alisoliile  a  |Miwir 
over  the  excessively  sii[)erslllious  miiidn  of  his  siilijeeis,  that,  at  a  wcinlor 
H  sign  from  him,  any  0111.' of  them  would  ]iiit  himself  to  death  wiili  ihe 
iinnuirmiinng  and  even  eheerriil  complianeeof  a  man  in  llie  perforiiiaiice 
of  some  high  and  inilefeiisihle  religious  duty.  To  die  at  the  order  of  llicir 
desfiotie  |irinei'  was,  in  the  belief  of  thes(,'  unlettered  and  eredulons  liem^n, 
to  secure  a  certain  anil  instant  introduction  to  the  inefbdile  ileli|i|its  iii 
par.idise  ;  and  to  die  thus  was  eonseijiiently  not  sluiiined  or  dre;ideil  us  an 
evil,  but  eoiirled  as  the  sii|irenie;U  possible  ^ood  fortune.  It  will  readily 
lie  Uliilerslood  that  a  race  of  men  ediicited  to  comiiiit  suicide  at  the  wnril 
of  eoniniaiid,  wotilil  be  found  no  less  docile  !o  their  despot's  orders  in  the 
niatterof  murder.  The  care  with  which  they  were  instrueleil  in  the  art 
of  iliHuuisiiii;  their  designs,  and  the  conleinpt  in  \\hieli  they  held  the 
mmt.ii  I  oiiseipiences  of  tlieir  being  discoveri  il,  rendered  it  certain  iliaili 
lu  give  such  ollcnce  tu  this  terrible  potentate  of  a  petty  territory  ax  iiii^ht 


mauce  him  toe 
raJ,  marquis  01 
genius  for  quar 
Old  .Man  of  the 
mai  hut  most  d 
siihjects,  kiiowi 
have  caused  to 
rounded  by  his 
About  the  aul 
jlighiest  differti 
tain  was  only  tc 
of  -Moniferrat  b 
wliicli  lie  refuse 
old  man's  subjet 
to  put  the  cause 
lake,  the  two  asi 
cruel  tortures,  b 
perforinanee  of  1 
teiulcd   wholly   I 
truinpiU-tongued 
nnirder  of  Conrai 
poiiciit  of  the  I 
'  Miier  of  attack 
uiioiiiid(>d  himsi 
to  he  believed  by 
convert  it  into  an 
ilie  most  valiant  i 
The  valour  and 
nd  hi'illianl  as  th 
,'rang  up  among 
vaii(|iiislied,  neat 
of  battle;  Ascali 
the  victorious  CI 
dissensions  to  w 
Saladiii,  just  as  I. 
ihike  of  iinrgundy 
ly  and  obstinate, 
rope;  the  (lerma 
Ml;  and  Richard 
hut  exert  himself 
till'  as  possible  to 
I'oiicliKled  for  tin 
three  days,  and  tl 
lo  he  held   by  tin 
JTiisalem  witlKui 
iifarly  thi!  last  m 
•  viiiied  at  Dainas 
iinioiiiit  to  lie  iljst 
"f  rejiifioii,  and  I 
""reels,  a  erier  tin 
iifllie  mighty  .Sa. 
_  'I'akiiig  advaiila 
'■"iililand,  to  (ippcis 

"I'-'I'llcflll    Im'oIIii 
3'*  lie  that  he  u,, 
IVaMce,  he  nailed 
III'  took  the  disMiii 
iliscoveieil  to  pass 


THK  TllEASUllY  OF  HISTORY. 


ti43 


inauce  him  to  dispatch  his  emissaries  upon  tlieir  sanguinary  errand.  Con- 
rad, marquis  of  Montferral,  who  seems  to  have  possessed  a  considerable 
genius  for  quarrelhnar,  was  unfortunate  enough  to  give  deep  offence  to  the 
Okl  Man  uf  ^''6  Mountain,  who  immediately  issued  against  him  liis  infor- 
mal I'l't  'f's'  decisive  sentence  of  death.  Two  of  the  old  man's  devoted 
subjects,  known  by  the  name  of  assassins — which  name  tiieir  practices 
have  caused  to  be  applied  to  murderers — rushed  upon  Conrad,  while  sur- 
ruuiuled  by  his  guards,  and  mortally  wounded  him. 

About  the  author  of  this  crime  tiiere  was  not,  and  there  could  not  be,  the 
(li^liiest  differtnce  of  opinion.  The  practice  of  the  Old  Man  of  tlie  Moun- 
tain was  only  too  well  known;  it  was  equally  notorious  that  the  marquis 
of  Moiitfcrrat  had  given  iiim  deep  ofl'ence  by  the  contemptuous  style  iti 
which  lie  refused  to  make  any  satisfaction  for  the  death  of  certain  of  the 
old  man's  subjects  who  had  been  put  to  death  by  the  citizens  of  Tyre  ;  and 
to  put  the  cause  of  Conrad's  death  beyond  all  seeming  possibility  of  mis- 
take, the  two  assassins,  who  were  seized  and  put  to  death  with  the  most 
criii4  tortures,  boasted  during  their  dying  agonies  that  they  died  in  the 
performance  of  their  duly  to  their  prmce.  Hut  the  king  of  France  pre- 
leiuied  wholly  to  disregard  all  the  circumstances  which  thus  spoke 
trumpi't-tongued  to  the  truth,  and  loudly  protested  his  belief  in  the  foul 
murder  of  Conrad  having  been  committed  by  order  of  Richard,  the  former 
'^  poncnt  of  the  marquis  ;  and  aflfecting  to  imagine  that  his  person  was  in 

'  pirer  of  attack  by  assassins,  this  accomplished  hypociite  ostent  iliously 
..jrauiuiiHl  himself  with  a  body-guard.  This  calumny  was  far  too  gross 
to  be  believed  by  any  one  ;  but  it  was  easy  to  secMn  to  believe  it,  and  to 
(•(invert  it  into  an  excuse  for  violating  both  the  rights  and  the  liberties  of 
ilie  most  valiant  of  all  the  crusaders. 
The  valour  and  conduct  of  Richnrd  and  the  other  Christian  leaders,  vast 
ml  bnlliaut  as  they  were,  could  not  counterbalance  the  dissensions  which 
iirani;  u|)  among  them.  An  immense  host  of  Infldels  under  Saladin  was 
vaiKjuished,  nearly  forty  thousand  of  them  remaining  dead  upon  the  field 
of  battle;  Ascalon  was  speedily  afterwards  tak(!n ;  and  Richard  bad  led 
llie  victorious  Christians  within  sight  of  .Jerusalem,  when  the  impolitic 
(lis:<eiisluMS  to  which  we  havt^  alluded  coniiielled  hitn  to  maki;  a  truce  with 
Sala(hii,  just  as  the  perfect  iriuuinh  of  the  cross  seemed  inevitable.  The 
duke  of  iturgmidy,  whom  I'Inlip  liad  left  in  connnand  of  the  French,  open- 
ly and  obsiMiately  declared  his  intention  of  immediately  reluming  to  Ku- 
rojie;  llie  (icrmaii  and  Italian  companies  followed  the  evil  e.\'iini)le  thus 
set;  anil  Richard,  compelled  to  tre.it  by  this  unworthy  d(>f(Ttion,  could 
but  exert  himself  to  obtain  from  the  chivalrous  Saladin,  terms  as  favoura- 
ble as  possible  to  \\w  C^hrisiians.  Hy  the  terms  of  this  treaty,  which  was 
(•(incliiiicd  for  the  f  luciful  period  of  three  ye  irs.  tlir(!e  months,  three  weeks, 
tliice  (lavf,  and  three  hours,  .\ere,  .Io|)pa,  and  nlher  parts  of  I'alestiiie  were 
to  he  held  by  the  Clirisliaiis,  and  Christian  pilgrims  were  to  proceed  to 
Ji-nisalem  without  let  or  molestation.  The  coiichiiliiig  of  this  treaty  was 
nearly  the  last  important  piiiilic  act  of  Naladin,  who  shortly  al'terwards 
iX|)ired  at  Damaacus.  On  Ins  death-bed  he  ordered  legacies  to  a  large 
aiiKiiint  to  be  distributed  aminig  the  poor  of  Damascus,  without  distinction 
of  religion,  and  he  ordered  his  winding-Hlieet  to  be  exposed  in  the  public 
atreets,  a  crier  thi'  while  making  proclamation,  "This  is  all  that  remains 
ofihe  mighty  Saladin,  the  coiupieror  of  the  Fasi  " 

Taking  advantage  of  the  truce,  Hichard  no  .•  letermined  to  return  to 
i')iililaiiil,  to  iip[ioHe  hill  own  iiower  and  authori'  to  the  intrigues  of  hig 
iiniri.itcfiil  hriitber  .lnhn  and  the  unprincipled  ing  of  Franee,  lleiiig 
avvari'  that  he  would  be  exposed  to  great  danger  rIiduIiI  he  venture  through 
rraiiee,  he  sailed  for  the  Adriatic,  and  being  shipwrecked  near  Aipiileia, 
ill'  toiik  the  disguise  of  a  |iilgriin,  in  the  hiipe  thai  it  wntibi  enable  bun  un- 
discuveied  to  {tasit  through  (m  rinany.     Driven  out  of  his  direct  road  bf 


n 


i<.  >;.iFiH'  :i     1 


I  1      1%:.,     ,,  ,:lll 


iU 


THE  TttEASURY  OF  HWTOKY. 


Konio  suspicions  of  the  governor  of  Istria,  he  was  so  imprudently  lavish  o( 
hia  money  during  his  short  slay  at  Vienna  that  his  real  rank  was  discov- 
ered, and  ho  was  thrown  into  prison  by  Leopold,  duke  of  Austria,  wliohad 
•orved  under  and  been  grievously  atfronted  by  him  at  the  siege  of  Acre. 
The  emperor  Henry  VI..  whom  liichard  by  iiis  friendship  with  Taucred 
of  Sicily  had  also  made  his  enemy,  not  only  approved  of  Richard's  arrest 
but  required  the  charge  of  his  person,  and  oiTered  the  duke  of  Austria  a 
considi^ralile  sum  of  money  as  a  reward  for  it. 

A.D.  1 105. — The  gref  of  Richard's  friends  and  the  triumph  of  his  enemies 
were  alike  excited  wlien  the  news  of  his  capture  reached  England;  the 
poNitible  consequencs  being  obvious  to  both  parties.  Queen  Eleanor  spir- 
itedly .'  nianded  the  interference  of  the  pope,  whose  duty  she  very  justly 
averred  it  to  be  to  wield  the  thunders  of  the  church  in  protection  of  the 
chnrch's  bravest  and  most  zealous  champion.  The  pope,  probably  influ- 
ent;<'d  by  some  occult  and  crafty  motive  of  policy,  showed  himself  any- 
ftiinu  riither  than  eager  to  meet  the  urgent  wishes  of  Queen  Eleanor;  but 
iu<  foes  are  usually  far  more  zealous  than  friends,  so  Philip  seized  upon 
tliiN  as  a  favourable  opportunity  to  exert  his  utmost  power  against  the  hi- 
lun  but  still  formidable  Richard,  and  he  exerted  himself  to  this  end  with 
an  ai'tivity  worthy  of  a  better  cause.  To  those  of  ais  own  batons  who 
had  formtaly  refused  to  join  him  in  attacking  the  territories  of  the  absent 
Hii'hard,  he  now  urged  the  alledged  atrocity  of  that  prince  in  causing  the 
iiHMMMsinatiun  of  the  marquis  of  Montferrat;  to  the  emperor  Henry  VI.,  he 
nnidi^  large  offers  either  for  yielding  up  Richard  to  French  custotly,  or  for 
solemnly  engaging  for  his  perpetual  nnprisonment;  and  having  made  a 
nniiritnonial  alliance  with  Denmark,  he  applied  for  permission  and  a  i.ect 
to  I'liforre  the  Danish  claim  to  the  English  crown.  Nor  did  Philip  fail  to 
apply  hiui«iclf  to  Prince  John,  whom  he  well  knew  for  the  most  willing 
and  eager  of  all  the  enemies  of  his  absent  brother.  John  had  an  interview 
with  the  kin(^  of  France,  at  which,  on  condition  of  being  invested  with  his 
brolhcr's  French  territory,  he  consented  to  yield  a  great  portion  of  Nor- 
maiiily  to  Philip;  ana  it  is  with  no  little  appearance  of  probability  afTirined, 
that  he  even  did  homage  to  Philip  for  the  P^ngiish  crown.  Thus  niucli  is 
certain,  Phili|)  invaded  Normandy  and  was  well  served  by  John,  whose 
onlers  enabled  him  to  take  Neufchatel,  Gisors,  and  several  other  forts, 
without  Blriking  a  blow.  The  counties  of  F,u  and  Auinalc  were  speedily 
overrun  by  Philip,  and  he  then  marched  against  Rouen,  loudly  thrcatriiing 
that  he  would  put  the  inhabitants  to  the  sword  without  mercy,  in  the  event 
of  liiH  experiencing  any  resistance.  Ihit  here  Philip  was  at  length  des- 
tiiied  to  receive  a  check.  The  earl  of  Leicester,  who  had  shared  Richard's 
perilH  and  toils  in  Palestine,  w.is  fortunately  at  Rouen,  and  he  took  the 
foinmand  of  the  garrison,  to  wlioin  his  examph!  and  his  renown  gave  new 
eonraiie ;  and  they  fought  so  steadily  and  so  well,  that  Philip,  after  many 
Hcvere  repulseH,  consented  to  a  truce;  the  English  regency  engaging  to 
pay  him  twenty  marks,  and  placing  four  fortresses  in  his  hands  by  way  of 
■(!(  iirilv. 

While  Philip  was  exerting  liimself  in  Normandy  .folin  was  trying  tiie 
effect  of  a  most  audacious  lalsehood  in  England.  Well  knowing  thai  few 
indi'i'd  among  the  barons  would  for  his  sake  conrent  to  set  aside  the  hero 
of  PiileNtine,  John  biddly  tried  how  far  their  credulity  would  go,  and,  pre 
lei  ding  that  he  had  rei'cived  undoulitinl  news  of  the  death  of  his  binlher, 
deiMHiiiled  the  crown  as  his  heir.  He  poHsessed  himself  of  the  iniporiiiiit 
(MiMileN  of  VVinilsor  and  Walliiigford  ;  but  the  lords  jiistici;iries  were  so 
well  coiivinceil  that  Ridiard  still  lived,  that  they  ami  the  barons  by  wiiuin 
they  were  supported  opposed  \\u\  would-bi^  usiiriier  so  gallantly  and  so  ef- 
feeliiiilly,  iha'  lie  was  fain  to  s'le  for  a  Iriice,  and  befure  the  term  of  it  h:id 
»Kjiired  he  took  refiiue  al  tlie  court  of  Pliili|i  of  IViiiiee. 

It  in  ■carcely  possible  to  conceive  u  case  more  hopeless  than  that  of  h( 


THE  TttEASOHY  OF  HISTOKY. 


245 


loyal  prisoner.    His  own  brother  plotting  ngainst  him ;   the  papal  court 
lukewarm  in  his  cause,  if  not  even  possessed  by  a  still  worse  feeling;  al- 
ready in  the  power  of  an  enemy,  and  hourly  expecting  to  be  handed  over 
10  tlie  custody  of  an  enemy  still  more  imbiltered  ;   the  proud  Richard  was 
it  tiie  same  time  subjected  to  every  petty  hardship  and  gallii.?  indignity 
which  might  be  supposed  likely  to  exasperate  his  spirit  and  i  idine  him 
to  uffpf  the  higher  ransom  for  his  release.    Philip  caused  his  ambassadors 
to  renounce  all  protection  to  Richard  as  liis  vassal;   and  w'len  it  was 
hoped  lliat  the  captive's  spirit  was  greatly  broken  by  continued  ill-usage, 
he  was  produced  before  the  imperial  diet  at  the  city  of  Worms,  and  there 
accused  by  the  emperor  of  having  made  alliance  with  Tancred,  the  usurper 
of  Sicily  ;  of  having  at  Cyprus  turned  the  arms  of  the  crusaders  against 
a  Ciirisiian  prince,  those  arm«  which  were  especially  and  solely  devoted 
to  tlie  chastisement  and  quelling  of  the  Infidels;  of  having  grievously 
wronged  and  insulted  Leopold,  duke  of  Austria,  while  that  prince  was 
figliting  for  the  cross  before  Acre ;  of  having  by  his  quarrels  with  the  king 
of  France  injured  the  Christian  cause  m  the  East ;  of  having  plainied  and 
caused  the  murder  of  Conrad,  marquis  of  Moutferrat ;  and,  finally,  of  hav- 
ing concluded  a  truce  with  the  inridel  Saladin,  and  left  Jerusalem  in  his 
hiiiids.    If  Richard's  enemies  calculated  upon  his  suflerings  having  tamed 
his  spirit,  tli^y  were  soon  undeceived ;  if  those  sufferings  were  severe,  so 
was  his  spirit  high.     His  speech,  as  s'linnied  up  by  Hume,  is  c  model  of 
that  best  kind  of  eloquence,  which  springs  from  a  sense  of  riglit,  and  is 
clothed  in  the  brief  and  bitii.g  sentences  of  keen  and  shrewd  coninion- 
scnsc.    "After  premising  tiiat  his  dignity  might  exempt  him  from  answer 
ing  before  any  jurisdiction  except  that  of  heaven,  he  yet  condescended, 
for  tlie  sake  of  Ins  reputation,  to  justify  his  conduct  before  that  great  as- 
sembly.    He  obs"'  ved  that  he  had  no  liand  in  Trancred's  elevation,  and 
only  concluded  a  treaty  with  a  prince  whom  he  found  in  possession  of  the 
throne;   that  the  king,  or  rather  the  tyrant,  of  Cyprus,  had  provoked  his 
indignation  by  ihc  most  ungenerous  and  unjust  proceedings,  and  though 
he  had  chastised  this  aggrc.'ssor,  he  had  not  for  a  moment  retarded  the 
progress  of  his  chief  enterprise  ;  that  if  he  had  at  any  time  been  wanting  in 
civility  to  the  duke  of  Austria,  he  had  already  been  sufWciently  punished  for 
tiial  sally  of  passion,  and  it  better  became  men  who  were  embarked  to 
gctlier  in  so  holy  a  cause  to  forgive  each  others  infirmities,  than  to  pursue 
a  slight  ofTcnce  with  such  unrelenting  vengeance;   that  it  had  sufli.^iently 
appeared  by  the  event  whether  the  king  of  France  or  he  were  the  more 
zealous  for  the  conquest  of  the  Holy  Land,  and  were  more  likely  to  sacri- 
fice private  passions  and  animosities  to  the  great  object;  that  if  the  whole 
tenor  of  his  life  had  not  shown  him  incapable  of  a  base  assassination,  and 
justified  him  from  that  imputation  even  in  the  eyes  of  his  very  enemieSi 
It  \\:\d  in  vain  for  him  at  present  to  make  his  apology  or  to  plead  the  many 
irrefragable  arguments  which  he  could  produce  in  his  own  favour ;  and, 
finally,  however  he  might  regret  the  necessity,  he  was  so  far  from  being 
ashamed  of  his  truce  with  Saladin,  that  he  rather  gloried  in  that  event,  and 
thoufiht  it  extremely  honourable  that,  though  abandoned  by  rll  the  world, 
Bupimrled  only  by  his  own  courage  and  by  the  small  rcmai.is  of  his  na- 
tional troo|)«,  he  could  yet  obtain  such  conditions  from  the  most  powerful 
and  most,  warlike  emperor  that  the  east  liad  ever  yet  prodiK'pd.     After 
thus  deigninii  to  apologize  for  his  conduct,  he  burst  out  into  indignation  at 
llie  cruel  treatment  which  he  had  met  with  ;  that  he,  the  champion  of  Iht; 
'TOSS,  Biill  wearing  that  hoiunirable  badge,  should,  after  expending  the 
lilood  and  treasure'  of  his  subjects  in  the  common  cause  of  ("hrisiciidom, 
()e  intercepted  by  Christian  princes  on  his  return  to  his  own  comiiry,  he 
Ihrowii  into  a  (hingeon,  be  loaded  witli  irons,  be  obliged  to  plead  Ins  cause 
IsIIioiibIi  h<-  were  a  subject  and  a  malefactor,  and,  what  he  still  more  re- 
gretted, be  thereby  prevented  from  making  preparations  for  u  new  crusade 


m 


240 


THE  TnEASUUY  OF  HISTOllY. 


which  he  liad  projected,  iiftcrlhe  expiration  of  ttie  truce,  and  from  redeem- 
ing the  sepulchre  of  Christ  which  had  so  long  been  profaned  by  the  do- 
minion of  the  Infidels." 

The  force  of  Richard's  reas  Miing  and  the  obvious  justice  of  his  coin 
plaints  won  nearly  all  present  to  his  side  ;  the  German  princes  tliemselves 
cried  shame  upon  the  conduct  of  the  emperor,  whom  the  pope  even  threat- 
ened  with  excommunication.  The  emperor,  therefore,  perceived  ihat  it 
would  be  impossible  for  him  to  complete  his  ineffably  base  purpose  ol  ;;iv- 
ing  up  to  Philip  of  France  and  the  false  and  cruel  Prince  John  the  person 
of  Richard  in  exchange  for  sordid  gold ;  and  as  it  seemed  unsafe  even  to 
continue  to  confine  him,  thr-  emperor  consented  to  his  relief  at  a  ransom 
of  150,000  marks  ;  two-thirds  to  be  paid  previous  to  Richard's  release,  and 
sixty-seven  hostages  to  be  at  the  same  time  delivered  to  secure  the  faith- 
ful payment  of  the  remainder.  Henry  at  the  same  time  made  over  to 
Richard  certain  old  but  ill-ascertained  claims  of  the  empire  upon  the  i«ing- 
dom  of  Aries,  including  Provence,  Dauphiny,  Narbonne,  and  some  other 
territory. 

A  hundred  thousand  marks,  equivalent  to  above  two  hundred  thousand 
pounds  of  our  money,  was  a  sum  to  raise  which  required  no  small  exer- 
tion on  the  part  of  Richard's  friends.  The  king's  ransom  was  one  of  the 
cases  for  which  the  feudal  law  made  express  provisiop.  But  as  it  was 
found  that  the  sum  of  twenty  shillings  which  was  levied  upon  each 
knight's  fee  did  not  make  up  the  money  with  the  rapidity  which  friendly 
and  patriotic  zeal  required,  !:reat  individual  exertions  were  made,  the 
clergy  and  nobility  glvitig  larjjf  sums  beyond  what  could  have  fairly  been 
demanded  of  them,  and  the  churches  and  religious  houses  actually  melt- 
ing down  their  plate  to  the  amount  of  30,000  marks.  As  soon  as  the 
money  by  these  extraordinary  exertions  was  got  together.  Queen  Kleaiior, 
accompanied  by  the  archbishop  of  Rouen,  went  to  Mentz  and  there  paid 
it  to  ihe  emperor,  to  whom  she  at  iIk^  same  time  delivered  the  hostages 
for  the  payment  of  the  remainder.  There  was  something:  perfectly  prov- 
idential in  the  haste  made  by  the  friends  of  Richard ;  for  had  there  been 
the  least  delay,  he  would  have  been  siicrificed  to  the  treacherous  policy 
of  the  emperor,  who,  anxious  to  obtain  the  support  of  the  king  of  France 
against  the  threatening  discontent  of  the  German  princes,  was  induced  to 
determine  upon  perpetuating  tlie  captivity  of  Richard,  even  after  the  re- 
lease of  that  prince  <mi  the  payment  of  the  inone^  and  the  delivery  of  the 
specified  number  of  hostages.  The  emperor  had  so  fully  deternnned 
ui)C:;  ''I'o  flagitious  breach  of  faith,  that  he  actually  sent  messentfcrs  to 
arresi  Richard,  who,  however,  had  sailed  and  was  out  of  sight  of  land 
ere  they  reached  Antwerp.  Richard  was  received  most  rapturously  by 
his  faithful  subjects,  and,  as  if  atixious  to  wipe  away  the  staiti  of  incar- 
ceration, he  revived  the  custinn  which  his  fatiier  had  allowed  to  fall  into 
neglect,  of  renewing  the  ccremotiy  of  coronation.  "  Take  care  of  your- 
self," wrote  Philip  to  John,  "  the  devil  has  broken  loose."  The  barons 
in  council  assembled,  however,  were  far  inon;  terrible  to  the  uiiHratefnl 
John  than  his  fiery  yet  placable  brother,  for  they  conliscated  the  whole  of 
John's  Etiglish  properly,  and  took  pos.iessiou  of  all  the  fortresses  that 
were  in  the  hands  of  his  partizans. 

Having  made  some  stay  in  Knglind  to  rest  himself  after  his  many 
fatigues,  and  having  found  his  popularity  proof  even  against  the  some- 
what perilous  test  to  which  he  put  it  by  an  arbitrary  resumption  of  all 
the  L'riiiits  uf  land  which,  previous  to  going  to  the  Kast,  he  had  inaii''  with 
an  improvidence  as  remarkable  as  his  |)reseiit  waul  of  honesty,  Uii'hard 
now  turned  his  attention  to  pnni.'shing  ili(<  wanton  and  per.severiiig  enmity 
of  Philip  of  France.  A  war  ensued,  but  it  was  weakly  coiidncli'd  on 
both  sid<'s,  and  a  truce  was  at  length  inaiie  between  tliein  for  ii  year.  A' 
the  con.niencemenl  of  XUia  war  John  was  on  thr  aide  uf  Philip;  lu,  v 


1 


THE  TREASUIIY  OF  HISTORY. 


947 


f  incap.ibie  of  beiiio;  faithful  even  in  wickedness,  he  took  an  opportunity 
,0  dese'rt,  and  having  secured  the  powerful  intercession  of  Queen  Elea- 
nor, he  ventured  to  throw  himself  at  tiie  feet  of  Richard  and  entreat  his 
pardon,  *'  May  I  as  easily  forget  his  injuries  as  he  will  my  forgiveness !" 
was  the  shrewd  remark  of  Richard  on  forgiving  his  unnatural  brother. 

Tlie  truce  between  England  and  France  being  at  an  end,  the  emperor 
of  Germany  solicited  Richard's  offensive  alliance  against  France,  and 
though  circumstances  occurred  to  prevent  the  treaty  with  the  emperor 
from  being  ratified,  the  mere  proposal  sufficed  to  renew  the  war  between 
Richard  and  Philip;  but  on  this  occasion,  as  before,  the  operations  were 
conducted  most  weakly  and  on  a  very  insignificant  scale,  (a.  d.  1196.) 
After  some  petty  losses  on  each  side  a  peace  was  made;  but  the  kings 
were  too  inimical  to  each  other  to  remain  long  at  rest,  and  in  about  two 
months  hostilities  were  recommenced. 

On  this  occasion  Richard  was  joined  by  the  counts  of  Flanders,  Bou- 
logne, Champagne,  and  'I'oulouse,  and  by  some  other  of  his  fellow-vaL<sals 
of  the  crown  of  Friince;  but  the  alliance  was  thus  productive  of  far  less 
benefit  than  Richard  had  anticipated. 

Tlie  prelates  of  that  day  were  more  frequently  than  became  them 
found  on  the  battle-field.  On  one  occasion  during  this  war  the  bishop  of 
Beanvais,  a  relative  of  the  French  king,  was  taken  prisoner  in  battle,  and 
Richard  loaded  him  with  irons  and  threw  him  into  prison,  as  though  he 
had  been  the  vilest  of  maViactors.  The  pope,  at  the  instance  of  the 
king  of  France  manded  ihe  release  of  the  valiant  bishop,  of  whom  he 
spoke  as  bein-  nis  son."  Richard,  with  a  dry  and  bitter  humour,  of 
which  he  senns  to  have  possessed  no  inconsiderable  share,  sent  to  the 
pope  the  blood-stained  armour  which  the  prelate  had  worn  in  the  battle, 
and  quoted  the  words  of  Jacob's  sons,  "this  have  we  found;  know  now 
wtieilier  it  be  thy  son's  coat  or  no."  How  long  the  alternation  of  weak 
war  and  ill-kept  peace  would  have  ''ontinued  it  is  impossible  to  judge,  for 
the  great  cruelty  which  both  kings  exercised  upon  their  prisoners  indi- 
cated a  feeling  of  malignity  too  deep  to  be  destroyed  by  the  efforts  of 
negotiators;  but  while  such  efforts  were  being  made  by  the  cardinal  St. 
Mary,  the  pope's  legate,  Richard,  who  had  escaped  in  so  many  furious 
conllicts  boll)  in  the  East  and  Europe,  perished  front  the  effect  of  a 
wound  received  in  a  petty  quarrel. 

A.  D.  11!);). — Vidomar,  vis(;ount  of  Limoges,  who  was  a  vassal  of  Ri- 
chard's, found  some  treasure  and  sent  a  consider.ible  share  as  a  present 
to  him;  Richard  demanded  that  all  should  be  given  up  to  him  as  superior 
lord,  and,  on  receiving  a  refusal,  led  some  troops  to  the  siege  of  the  castle 
of  Clialus,  in  which  the  visc'onnt  was  staying.  On  the  approach  of 
Richard  at  the  head  of  a  niunerous  force  of  Drabaneons,  the  garrison 
offered  to  su-render  on  terms,  but  Richard  cruelly  replied  that  he  would 
first  take  the  place  and  tln-n  hang  up  every  man  of  the  garrison.  After 
making  this  reply,  which,  unha|)pily.  was  only  too  charactisristic  of  his 
temper,  Richard,  attendcil  by  one  of  his  captains,  approached  the  walls  to 
rci'onnoitrc,  and  I'.ad  an  arrow  lodged  in  his  shoulder  by  an  archer  named 
Bertraud  de  Courdon.  AltnoNt  at  the  same  moment  Ricnanl  gave  the 
order  for  the  assault,  and  on  the  place  being  taken  he  literally  put  his 
threat  ii\to  execution  upon  Ihe  garrison,  with  the  sole  exception  of  de 
(lourdou,  who  was  only  tein|)orarily  spared  that  he  niisihl  hav(>  the  cruel 
distinction  of  a  slower  imd  more  painful  death.  Richard  was  so  innidi 
mangled  by  the  awkwardness  with  which  the  barbed  arrow  was  drawn 
from  his  wound,  that  niortificatjon  rapidly  set  in,  and  the  nu)iiari'li  felt 
that  his  last  hour  a|.,ir(tai'litMl.  (Causing  de  (Jonnlon  to  be  broui.lit  irto 
his  presence,  he  demandcil  liow  he  had  ever  iiijurcd  him.  "  With  your 
own  hand,"  firmly  replied  the  prisoni^r,  "you  slew  luy  father  and  my  two 
brothers.     Von  also  threatened  to  hang  me  in  cuninion  with  my  fellow 


mm  i 


£48 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY 


Boldiers.  1  am  now  in  your  power,  but  I  shall  be  consoled  under  the 
worst  tortures  that  you  can  cause  to  be  niflicted  upon  me  while  I  can  re 
fleet  that  I  have  been  able  to  rid  the  earth  of  such  a  nuisance."  Kichard 
softened  by  puin  and  the  near  approach  of  death,  ordered  that  the  bold 
archer  should  be  set  at  liberty  and  presented  with  a  considerable  sum  oi 
money ;  but  Marcadee,  the  leader  of  the  Brabangons  in  whose  company 
Kichard  was  wounded,  brutally  had  de  Gourdou  flayed  alive  and  then 
hanged.  Richard's  wound  defied  the  rude  science  of  his  surgeons,  and 
after  considerable  suffering  he  died  on  the  filh  of  April,  1199,  in  the  forty, 
second  year  of  his  age  and  the  tenth  of  his  reign — a  reign  very  brilliant 
as  regards  his  warlike  feats,  but  in  all  the  high  and  really  admirable  qual- 
ities of  a  monarch  very  sadly  deficient.  His  conduct  wa?  in  some  par- 
ticular cases  !.ot  merely  oppressive,  as  regarded  his  ways  of  raising 
money,  but  absolutely  dishonest.  As,  for  instance,  he  twice  in  his  rejun 
gave  orders  that  all  charters  should  be  resealed,  the  parlies  in  each  case 
having,  of  course,  to  pay  the  fees;  and  in  many  cases  taxes  were  inflicted 
upon  particular  parties  without  any  other  authority  than  the  king's  mere 
will.  But  it  was  chiefly  in  the  re-enactment  of  all  the  worst  parts  of  the 
forest  laws,  those  parts  which  inflicted  the  most  cruel  and  disgusting  mu- 
tilations upon  the  ofl'enders.  But  while  this  particular  braiudi  of  law  was 
shamefully  severe,  the  police  of  London  and  other  great  towns-was  in  an 
equally  lax  state.  Robbery  and  violence  itt  the  streets  were  very  com- 
mon ;  and  at  one  time,  in  1196,  a  lawyer  named  Fitzosbert,  surnamed 
Longbeard,  had  acquired  a  vast  and  dangerous  power  over  the  worst  rab- 
ble of  London,  numbering  nearly  fifty  thousand,  who  under  his  orders  for 
some  time  set  the  ill-consolidated  authorities  at  defiance.  When  called 
upon  by  the  chief  justiciary  to  give  an  account  of  his  conduct,  he  attend- 
ed with  so  numerous  a  rabble,  that  the  justiciary  deemed  it  unsafe  to  do 
more  with  him  at  that  time  than  merely  call  upon  him  to  give  hostages 
for  liis  future  good  behaviour.  But  the  justiciary  took  measures  for  keep- 
ing a  watchful  eye  upon  Fitzosbert,  and  at  length  attempted  to  take  him 
into  custody,  on  which  he,  with  his  concubine  and  some  attendants,  took 
refuge  in  Bow  Church,  where  he  defended  himself  very  resolutely,  but 
was  at  length  taken  and  hanged.  So  infatuated  were  the  populace,  liow- 
ever,  that  the  very  gibbet  upon  which  this  man  was  executed  was  stolen, 
and  it  was  pretended  that  pieces  of  it  could  work  miracles  in  curing  the 
diseased.  Though  so  fiery  in  temper,  and  so  excessively  addicted  to 
bloodshed,  Richard  was  by  no  means  destitute  of  a  certain  vein  of  ten- 
derness and  romance.  He  prided  himself  pretty  nearly  as  much  upon  his 
skill  as  a  troubadour  as  upon  his  feats  as  a  warrior,  and  there  are  even 
some  of  his  compositions  extant.  On  the  whole,  however,  we  fear  that 
the  popularity  of  Richard  does  little  credit  either  to  his  contemporaries 
or  his  posterity  as  far  as  good  judgment  is  concerned.  Brilliant  qualities 
he  undoubtedly  had  ;  but  his  cruelty  and  his  dogged  self-will  threw  s 
blemish  over  them  all. 


CHAPTER  XXn. 

THE      R  K  I  G  N      OF      JOHN. 

A.  D.  1199. — When  Richard  went  to  Palestine  he  by  a  formal  will  sei 
aside  the  claim  of  John  to  be  his  successor,  in  favour  of  Arthur  of  Ihit- 
iany,  the  sim  of  their  brother  (leofl'rey.  But  during  Richard's  absence 
John  caused  lh(' pndates  and  nobles  to  swear  fealty  to  hini  in  despite  ol 
that  deed  ;  an<l  Richard,  on  his  return  to  Kiigland,  so  far  from  showing 
any  desire  to  disturb  that  arrangement,  actually  m  his  last  will  con.ili- 
tuttid  John  his  successor,  in  direct  contradiction  to  his  own  former  mid 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


S49 


(nrmnl  dee^.  But  though  John  was  thus  authoritatively  named  as  his 
Droilier's  sucnessor,  many  of  tiie  harons  of  Normandy  thought  the  right 
of  voiiiifr  Arthur  wholly  mdefensible  by  even  tiie  will  of  his  uircle  ;  and 
PliHIp,  who  was  glad  of  any  opportunity  to  injure  the  peace  of  the  En- 
glish territories  in  France,  cheerfully  agreed  to  aid  them  in  the  support 
of  llie  yoinig  prince,  whom  he  sent  to  Paris  to  be  pducated  with  bis  own 
son.  Ji'lin  acted  with  unusual  alertness  and  good  judgment  on  this  occa- 
sion. Sending  his  mother,  Eleanor,  to  secure  the  provinces  of  Guienne 
and  Poictou,  where  she  was  greatly  beloved,  he  himself  proceeded  tc> 
Rouen,  and  having  made  all  the  arrangements  necessary  to  keep  peace  in 
Normiuuly,  he  proceeded  thence  to  England.  Here  he  found  little  or  no 
difficulty  in  causing  his  claim  to  be  preferred  to  that  of  a  mere  boy  ;  a'ld 
haviiiEr  received  the  homage  of  all  the  most  powerful  barons,  he  hastened 
to  France  to  prepare  the  necessary  opposition  to  whatever  exertions 
Philip  might  make  on  behalf  of  young  Arthur. 

A.  D.  1200. — The  actions  between  John  and  Philipwere  of  but  little  impor- 
tance ;  and  the  latter  having  inspired  young  Arthur's  mother  with  the  no- 
tion that  he  sought  to  benefit  himself  rather  than  her  son,  seized  an  oppor- 
liinity  to  withdraw  Arthur  from  the  French  court,  and  placed  him  under 
the  protection  of  John.  Finding  their  mutual  want  of  power  to  obtain  any 
great  and  permanent  advantage  by  war,  the  two  kings  now  made  a  treaty 
ill  which  the  limits  of  their  several  territories  were  laid  down  with  great 
exactitude;  nine  barons  of  each  nation  swore  respectively  to  niuinlain  the 
treaty  in  good  faith,  even  should  it  be  necessary  to  make  war  upon  their 
own  sovereign,  and  still  farther  to  insure  its  due  and  faithful  observance 
John  gave  his  niece,  Blanche  of  Castile,  with  certain  fiefs  of  her  dower, 
to  Prince  Louis,  eldest  son  of  the  Frencli  king.  Being  thus  relieved  from 
all  apparent  danger  on  the  side  of  France,  John,  though  he  had  a  wife 
livinir,  determined  to  gratify  bis  passion  for  Isabella,  heiress  uf  the  count 
of  Aiijouleme,  though  she  was  already  married  to  the  Count  de  la  Marche, 
her  youth  alone  having  hitherto  prevented  the  consummation  of  the  union. 
Jiihn,  reckless  of  the  double  difficulty,  persuaded  Isabella's  father  to  give 
him  his  daughter,  whom  he  espoused  after  having  unceremoniously  di- 
vorced his  lawful  wife. 

A.  D.  l.'Ol. — The  Count  de  la  Marche,  in  the  highest  degree  provoked  at 
this  ll.iijranl  and  insolent  wrong  that  thus  was  done  him,  found  it  no  difli- 
cult  task  to  e.\cite  commotion  in  Poictou  and  Normandy  ;  the  barons  there, 
as  elisewlicre  in  John's  dominion,  being  already  offended  and  disgusted  by 
the  mixture  of  weakness  and  insolence  in  which,  probal)l y,  John  has  never 
been  equalled.  Alarmed  as  well  as  enraged  by  the  disobedience  of  his 
French  barons,  John  determined  to  punish  them  ;  but  on  summoning  the 
chivalry  of  I'^igland  to  cross  the  sea  with  him  for  that  purpose,  he  was 
met  with  a  demand  that,  before  they  crossed  over  to  restore  his  authority 
in  his  transmarine  dominions,  they  should  have  their  privileges  restored 
and  placed  upon  a  secure  footing.  Their  demand  was  not  attended  to  on 
ihe  present  occasion,  but  this  union  of  the  barons  led,  as  we  shall  hereafter 
eee,  tuthe  most  important  consetiueiices.  On  the  present  occasion  John 
contrived  to  break  up  the  coalition  of  the  barons,  some  of  whom  agreed  to 
accompany  him  on  his  expedition,  while  the  rest  wen^  mulcted  two  marks 
on  cai.'h  knight's  fee  as  a  substitute  for  their  personal  attendance. 

The  addition  of  the  force  he  carried  from  England  to  that  which  re- 
mained faithful  to  him  in  Normandy  gave  John  an  ascendancy  which, 
rii,'hily  used,  might  have  8[)ared  him  many  a  subseiiucnt  hour  of  care. 
Hut  it  was  contrary  to  John's  nature  to  make  a  right  use  of  pov.  ei ;  and 
the  inoinent  he  found  himself  safe  from  the  inlliction  of  injustice  he  was 
Seized  with  an  nngovc'rnable  desire  to  inflict  it  upon  t)tliers.  He  advanced 
liaiins  which  III!  knew  to  bo  unjust;  atu' as  disputes  of  the  feudal  kind 
were  chiefly  to  be  settled  by  the  duel,  he  coHstuntly  kept  abcut  liini  skil- 


m 

B'' 

H 

|H:' 

|b| 

^^lii 

m^^ 

[MHm^?  |t 

IfapE'H 

n|^lsSS|  <|: 

V'^^jl 

EhP^x^Sf 

l"il| 

Prm' 

ii  P'i- 

|4i^: 

III 

BH 

'.*  1'.... 


;  ^^!« 


250 


THE  THEASUIIY  01''  HISTORY. 


and  desperate  bravos  whose  business  it  was  to  act  as  his  champiou 
cases  of  iippeal  of  duel.    The  Count  de  la  Marche  and  oilier  hjoh 


ful  ; 

in  cases  oi'  appeal  of  duel.  The  Count  de  la  Marche  and  oilier  hjoii 
spirited  barons  complained  of  t!n;  indignity  offered  to  them  in  thus  opposing 
to  them,  as  fitting  antagonists,  men  whose  low  birth  and  infamous  char- 
acter made  them  unworthy  of  the  notice  of  warriors  of  good  birlli  and 
gentle  breeding,  appealed  to  Philip  as  their  superior  lord,  and  called  upon 
him  to  protect  them  against  the  wantonness  of  John's  tyranny.  Philip 
who  saw  all  the  advantages  which  might  possibly  accrue  to  himself,  af! 
feeled  the  part  of  a  just  lord  ;  and  John,  who  could  not  disavow  Philip's 
authority  without  at  the  same  time  striking  at  his  own,  promised  thai  by 
grantni^  his  barons  an  equitable  judgment  in  his  own  court  he  would  de- 
prive tliem  both  of  the  right  and  the  necessity  of  appealing  to  the  superior 
court  of  Philip.  Again  and  again  his  promises  were  renewed,  but  only  to 
be  broken  ;  Philip,  finding  that  his  sense  of  honour  alone  was  no  seeuriiy, 
demanded  that  liie  castle  of  Boutavant  and  Tilleries  should  be  placed  in 
his  hands  as  security  for  justice  being  done  to  the  barons.  John  was  too 
weak  to  resist  this  demand  ;  but  he  was  also  too  faithless  to  keep  his 
promise,  which  was  broken  just  as  it  would  have  been  had  he  given  no  se- 
curity whatever. 

A.  D.  1203. — Young  Arthurof  Brittany,  who  was  now  springinginto  man- 
hood and  who  had  a  very  decided  taste  for  warfare,  had  by  this  time  seen 
enough  of  the  cruel  and  lyrannous  character  of  his  uncle  to  feel  that  he 
was  not  in  safety  while  living  with  him  ;  he  therefore  made  his  escape  to 
Philip,  who  received  him  wilh  the  utmost  distinction,  knighted  him,  ^'ave 
him  his  daughter  Mary  in  marriage,  and  invested  him  not  only  in  his  he- 
reditary Brittany,  but  also  with  Anjou  and  Maine.  The  French  army  was 
for  a  time  successful  in  every  attempt ;  Tilleries  and  Boutavant,  Moriimar 
and  Lyons,  were  taken  almost  without  difficulty  ;  and  Gournay,  complete- 
ly flooded  by  a  stratagem  of  Philip,  was  abandoned  to  him  by  liie  as- 
tounded garrison.  At  each  new  loss,  John,  timid  in  adversity  as  he  was 
despotic  and  unsparing  in  prosperity,  made  new  endeavours  to  obtain 
peace  ;  but  the  sole  condition  upon  which  Philip  would  now  consent  to 
even  listen  to  his  proposals,  was  his  full  resignation  of  all  his  territory  on 
the  continent  to  Prince  Arihur.  An  accident  at  length  occurred  which 
changed  the  prospects  ofiliat  young  prince,  wilh  fearful  rapidity,  from  the 
utmost  success  to  the  most  complete  ruin.  Well  knowing  how  much  his 
grandmotiier.  Queen  Eleanor,  had  ever  been  opposed  to  his  welfare,  and 
hearing  that  she  was  in  the  fortress  of  Mirabeau,  in  Poicliers,  and  but 
slenderly  attended,  it  occurred  to  him  that  if  he  could  obtain  possession  o( 
her  person  he  would  obtain  the  means  of  exercising  considerable  influence 
upon  his  uncle's  mind,  and  he  accordingly  sat  down  to  besiege  tiie  place, 
the  fortification  of  which  promised  no  very  long  resistance.  John,  tiiough 
at  some  distance  when  informed  of  his  mother's  danger,  hastened  to  her 
assistance  with  a  speed  very  unusual  for  him,  surprized  young  Artiiur's 
camp,  dispersed  his  forces,  and  took  Arthur,  together  with  Count  de  la 
Marche  and  other  distinguished  leaders  of  the  revolted  barons,  prisoners. 
Most  of  the  prisoners  were  for  greater  security  shipped  off  to  England; 
but  Arthur  was  confined  in  the  castle  of  Falaise,  where  he  was  speedily 
admitted  to  the  dangerous  honour  of  an  interciew  with  his  uncle.  John 
reproached  Arthur  less  wilh  the  injustice  of  his  cause  in  general,  than  wilh 
the  folly  of  hii  expecting  to  derive  any  permanent  advantage  from  the 
French  alliance,  which  would  keep  him  at  variance  with  his  own  fiimily, 
merely  to  make  him  a  tool ;  a  view  of  the  case  which  was  none  llie  less 
correct  because  taken  by  a  prince  of  whose  general  cliarai;ter  a  just  man 
finds  it  impo;.<sil)le  to  approve.  Arihur,  brave  and  sanguiiu!,  asserted  that 
his  claim  was  superior  to  that  of  his  uncle,  and  that  not  only  as  regarded 
the  French  territories,  but  as  regarded  Kngland  also;  and  he  called  iipoD 
John  to  listen  to  the  voice  of  justice  and  restore  him  to  his  rights. 


THE  TRUASUHY  OP  HISTORY. 


251 


Historians  differ  as  to  the  way  in  which  John  freed  himselt  from  a  com- 
pplilor  whose  early  boldness  promised  at  no  distant  day  to  give  him  much 
irimble-  We  have  always  donbted  the  exact  accuracy  of  all  the  accounts, 
for  ilie  timidity  and  distrust  which  formed  so  principal  a  part  of  John's 
uiiHiiiiable  character  would  surely  never  have  deserted  him  so  far  on  so 
terribly  serious  an  occasion,  as  would  be  implied  by  his  proceeding  being 
linowii  with  circumstantial  accuracy. 

All  that  seems  to  us  to  be  certain  upon  the  very  painful  subject  is,  that 
after  a  stormy  interview  with  his  uncle  young  Arthur  was  seen  no  more 
for  some  time.  A  report  got  into  very  general  circulation  that  he  had 
been  unfairly  dealt  with.  Such,  it  seems,  was  not  the  case  as  yet.  The 
liiiig,  it  is  affirmed,  had  applied  to  William  de  la  Bray  to  put  the  young 
prince  to  death,  but  he  nobly  replied  that  he  was  a  gentleman,  not  an  as- 
sassin or  a  hangman.  A  less  scrupulous  person  was  at  length  found  and 
sent  to  the  cast[e  of  Falaise  ;  but  he  was  sent  away  by  Hubert  de  Uurgh, 
the  goveniorof  the  fortress,  with  the  assurance  that  he  would  himself  do 
what  was  necessary ; — which  humane  deception  he  followed  up  by  spread- 
ing a  report  of  the  prince's  deatli,  and  even  going  through  the  form  of  his 
funeral.  But  when  the  death  of  the  young  prince  was  thus  auihoritative- 
Iv  asserted,  the  general  ill  character  of  John  caused  him  to  be  universally 
pointed  at  as  the  murderer;  and  Hubert  de  Burgh,  fearing  that  all  Brittany 
would  breax  out  into  revolt  confessed  the  innocent  deception  he  had  prac- 
tised. John  no  sooner  learned  that  his  unfortunate  nephew  still  lived, 
iliiin  he  ordered  his  removal  from  the  custody  of  the  faithful  and  humane 
De  Burgh,  and  had  him  taken  to  the  castle  of  Rouen.  Here  John  visited 
Arthur  in  the  dead  of  night,  and,  though  the  young  prince  is  said  to  have 
knell  to  him  and  prayed  for  his  life,  stabbed  him  with  his  own  hand. 

That  John  was  capable  of  this  extreme  atrocity  we  have  unfortunately 
100  much  reason  to  gather  from  tlie  miiversal  detestation  in  which  he  was 
held  by  his  contemporaries.  But  though  there  is  little  reason  to  doubt  that 
Arthur  perished  by  the  order,  at  least,  if  not  by  the  very  hand,  of  his 
uncle,  we  would  again  direct  the  attention  of  the  reader  to  the  too  great 
particularity  of  this  account,  in  the  first  place,  and  to  a  discrepancy  be- 
tween the  natural  character  of  Arthur  and  that  part  of  the  story  wliich 
represents  him  as  kneeling  in  terror  to  his  uncle.  The  story  savours 
siiniewliat  more  than  it  should  of  a  scene  from  Shakspeare,  whose  dramatic 
genius  it  would  be  idle  to  question,  but  whose  historic  authority  we  should 
be  loth  to  pin  our  faith  upon. 

But  though  it  is  scarcely  probable  that  so  wily  a  person  as  John  would 
allow  the  details  of  his  tyrannous  cruelty  to  be  thus  brought  before  the 
world,  and  though  his  personal  timidity  rendereil  him  as  unlikely  to  have 
undertaken  with  his  own  hand  the  murder  of  Arthur,  as  it  was  that  this 
high-hearted  young  prince  would  show  any  terror,  even  in  the  death  hour, 
the  iniiversal  belief  of  John's  contemporaries  was  that  he,  whether  with  his 
own  hand  or  not,  caused  Arthur's  death  ;  and  loud  and  terrible  was  the  out- 
cry of  the  people  of  Brittany,  to  whom  Arthur  was  as  dear  as  his  wily  and 
crnel  uncle  was  hateful.  Eleanor,  Arthur's  sister,  was  in  the  power  of 
John,  who  kept  her  closely  confined  in  Kngland  ;  but  the  Breons,  resolved 
todo  anything  rather  than  willingly  acknowledge  the  sway  of  John,  chose 
for  their  sovereign  young  Alice  the  daughter  of  Constance  by  her  second 
husband,  Guy  de  Thonars,  to  whom  they  committed  the  affairs  of  the 
(liichy  as  guardian  of  his  dauhhter,  and  they  at  the  same  time  appealed  to 
Philip  as  superior  lord  to  do  justice  upon  John  for  his  violence  to  Arthur, 
who  was  feudatory  to  France.  Philip  summoned  John  to  a[)pear  before 
him.  and,  in  default  of  his  doing  so,  he  was  declared  a  felon  and  sentenced 
to  forfeit  all  scignory  and  fief  in  France  to  his  superior  lord,  Philip. 

No  one  who  has  accurately  read  wlnit  has  already  been  related  of  the 
shrewd,  grasping,  and  somewhat  cunning  character  of  Philip,  can  d(ml»< 


mm 


:^f>.,»##W 


252 


TIIK  TIllCA^URY  OF  IlISTOllY. 


that,  from  the  first,  he  took  up  the  caiisoofjoiiiig  Arthur  loss  with  a  view 
to  the  iKMiefit  of  that  young  prince,  than  in  the  hope  that  the  chapter  of  ;i(. 
cidcnts  vvoiihl  enahle  him.  sooner  or  hiter,  to  deprive  the  Knghsh  crown 
of  some  portion,  if  not  all,  of  its  French  appanages.  And  tlie  appeal  of 
his  Bretons  to  hisjustice,  the  unwise  advantage  afforded  to  him  liy  .(olm's 
default  of  appearance,  and  the  unanimous  sentence  of  tlie  French  ppei-j 
now  seemed  to  give  liim  something  like  a  substantial  and  judicial  right  as 
against  John. 

Tlio  exertions  and  sagaciouspolicy  of  Henry  would  have  evoked  French 
opposition  to  any  such  attempt;  that  skilful  politician  would  have  found 
but  lillle  difficulty  iii  leading  the  French  barons  to  abstain  from  eiideavonr- 
ing  to  add  to  the  authority  of  their  superior  lord,  lest  in  so  doing  ihey 
should  insure  their  own  ruin.  Neither  would  it  have  been  safeloiry 
sudi  a  plan  while  the  lion-hearted  Richard  lived  to  shout  his  fierce  battle 
cry  in  iliat  popular  voice  which  would  have  been  heard  in  hall  and  tower 
and  which  would  nowhere  have  been  unheeded  where  chivalry  siill  abode! 
But  John,  destitute  alike  of  courage,  popularity,  and  of  true  policy,  wiis 
little  likely  to  unravel  or  defeat  a  dexterous  policy  or  long  to  withstand 
actual  force,  hated  as  he  was  even  by  his  own  barons.  The  opportunnv 
was  the  more  templing  to  Philip,  because  those  of  his  great  vassals  who 
would  have  been  the  most  likely  to  oppose  his  aggrandizement  were  either 
absent  or  so  much  enraged  agll'inst  John,  that  their  desire  to  annoy  hint 
and  abridge  the  power  he  had  so  shamefully  abused,  overcame  in  their 
minds  all  tendency  to  a  cooler  and  more  selfish  style  of  reasoning. 

Philip  took  several  of  the  fortresses  situated  beyond  the  Loire,  some  of 
which  he  garrisoned  for  himself,  while  others  he  wholly  destroyed;  and 
his  early  successes  were  followed  up  by  the  surrender  to  him,  by  the  count 
d'Alenson,  of  all  the  places  which  he  had  been  entrusted  to  hold  for  John. 
Elotcd  by  this  success,  and  desirous  to  rest  his  troojis,  Philip  disembodied 
them  for  the  season.  John,  enraged  by  all  that  had  passed  in  this  brief 
campaign,  took  advantage  of  this  too-confident  movement  of  Philip,  and 
sat  down  before  AlenQon  with  a  strong  army.  But  if  Philip  was  capable 
of  committing  a  military  error,  he  was  equally  capable  of  seizing  upon 
the  readiest  means  of  repairing  it.  To  delay  while  he  was  re-collecting 
his  scattered  troops  would  be  to  expose  the  count  to  the  whole  force,  and, 
in  the  case  of  defeat,  to  the  whole  vengeance,  too,  of  John.  But  it  fortu 
nately  happened  that  the  most  einiiient  nobles,  not  only  of  France  but 
also  of  Italy  and  (Jermany,  were  at  this  very  time  assembled  at  a  splendid 
tournament  at  Moret.  Hither  Philip  directed  his  course,  gave  a  vivid 
description  of  the  evil  character  of  John,  of  his  own  disinterested  desire 
to  punish  the  craven  felonry  of  that  prince,  and  of  the  danger  in  which 
the  coimt  de'Alengon  was  placed  by  his  devotion  to  truth  and  chivalry, 
which  had  led  him  to  dare  the  vengeance  of  one  who  was  well  knowi  to 
be  unsparing  after  the  stricken  field,  as  craven  while  the  tide  of  battle  still 
rolled ;  and  he  called  upon  the  assembled  chivalry,  as  they  valued  their 
noble  and  ancient  names,  to  follow  him  to  the  worthy  task  of  aiding  a 
gallant  and  honourable  noble  against  a  dastardly  and  adjudged  felon. 
Such  an  appeal,  made  to  such  hearts,  conld  receive  but  one  answer.  Like 
one  man,  the  assembled  knights  followed  Philip  to  the  plains  of  Alenson, 
resolved,  at  whatever  cost,  to  raise  the  siege.  But  John  saved  them  all 
trouble  on  that  score.  His  conscience  told  him  that  there  were  men  in 
that  brave  host  who,  if  he  should  chance  to  be  niade  prisoner,  would  be 
likely  to  take  fearful  vengeance  for  the  untimely  death  of  /oung  Artliur; 
and  he  would  not  even  await  their  apporach,  but  raised  the  siege  in  such 
haste  that  he  actually  left  all  his  tents  and  baggage  of  every  description 
behind  to  be  ca;)ture(l  by  the  enemy. 

For  some  time  John  ki^pt  his  court  at  Rouen,  showing  ix  other  ferlin? 
than  a  must  ludicrous  confidence  in  his  own  resources  whene'er  he  slioulJ 


jW: 


m 


icr  ft'('liM2 
le  slioulJ 


rm»t0'. 


determine  to 

of  some  new 

them  go  oil ; 

spent  years  ii 

Such  coiidu 

English  provi 

seemed  so  ob 

(liough  he  ha 

would  have  bi 

of  Hhieh  Joli 

pressingly  apf 

aiiliat  anibiti 

make  peace  w 

leiritory.     Bii 

which  he  him 

which  their  o\ 

ofthci.  kinof,  1 

support  aijains 

pope  to  the  ici 

cise.    Encoiir; 

(;i)inplyin(f  wii 

chateau  tiailla 

left  to  defend  I 

A.  n.  ]-'04.- 

Built  partly  up 

neither  labour 

il  was  held  by 

jiable  of  Chest 

Philip,  think 

famine  than  by 

posted  a  part  o 

undertook  its  b 

person  whom  J 

sand  foot  and  I 

Philip's  camp,  ' 

manned,  was  i^ 

sinlllius  throw 

his  part  of  tliii 

aJvaiitagi^  over 

passage,  its  ass 

was  already  dc 

ni);hl,  according 

as  It  was,  Phili 

llicin  both  ()(T  w 

scd  by  dt'fcal,  w 

lie  could  not  lie 

laiit  fortress,  || 

hull  to  do  .so  by 

Iniiii'd  to  (h'fciii 

turn.    Ill'  vMis  i 

whole  (j;irris()n 

sense  ol  ihc  cm 

HTve  his  iiiiisic 

fur  lim  pbii r 

It  II  d.llii'iilt 
"oiihl  indiiccliil 
•  il'lv  of  \\\n  w 
cuiiKI  not  bu  i|{ii 


THE  TREASURY  OF  H.8TORY 


253 


detprmine  to  make  use  of  ihem.  When  informalion  was  brought  to  him 
of  some  new  success  on  the  part  of  tlie  French,  he  would  reply  "Ah  !  let 
them  go  on ;  by  and  by  I  will  just  retake  in  a  single  day  what  they  have 
spent  years  in  taking." 

Sucli  c()iulu(;t  naturally  disgusted  the  brave  barons  of  England  and  the 
English  provinces,  and  weakened  their  desire  to  combat  for  a  prince  who 
seemed  so  obstinately  bent  upon  their  disgrace  and  his  own  ruin.  But 
thouifh  he  had  neglected  those  means  of  defence  of  which  his  brother 
would  have  been  even  too  eager  to  avail  himself,  there  was  one  resource 
of  wliieli  Joim  had  not  neglected  to  avail  himself;  l.e  had  humbly  and 
nressingly  appealed  to  Rome.  Such  appeals  were  always  gladly  received 
atlluit  anibilioiis  court,  and  Philip  received  a  peremptory  command  to 
make  peace  with  John,  and  abstain  from  trenching  any  farther  upon  his 
teiritory'  But  Philip  had  inspired  his  barons  wiili  a  haired  equal  to  that 
which  he  himself  felt  for  John;  and,  regardless  of  any  possible  injury 
wliicli  tlieir  own  authority  might  suffer  from  the  undue  aggrandizement 
oftlici.  king,  they  loudly  assured  him  I'lat  he  should  have  their  cordial 
support  against  all  foes  whosoever,  and  .is  loudly  denied  tlie  right  of  the 
pope  10  the  temporal  authority  whiirh  he  thus  took  upon  himself  to  exer- 
cise. Encouraged  by  this  _;isposition  of  his  barons,  Philip,  instead  ot 
idiiiplying  with  the  orders  of  the  pope,  proceeiled  to  lay  siege  to  the 
cliiiieau  (jiiillard,  which  was  the  most  important  fortress  that  was  now 
Iffi  tu  defend  the  Norman  frontier. 

A.  n.  l'J04.— This  place  was  admirably  strong  both  by  nature  and  by  art. 
Built  partly  upon  an  islet  of  the  Seine  and  partly  upon  an  opposite  crag, 
neither  labour  nor  expense  had  been  sjiared  upon  it,  and  at  this  very  time 
ilHiis  held  by  a  numerous  garrison  commanded  by  Roger  de  Lacy,  eon- 
jlable  of  Chester,  a  leader  of  determined  courage  as  well  as  of  great  skill. 

Philip,  thinking  it  mon?  facile  to  takt;  such  a  place,  ao  garrisoned,  by 
famine  tlian  by  mam  for(;e,  threw  a  bridge  across  the  Seine,  where  he 
posted  a  part  of  his  force,  and  he  himself  at  the  head  of  the  remainder 
undertook  its  blockade  by  land.  The  earl  of  Pembroke,  by  far  the  ablest 
person  whom  John  then  had  about  him,  assembled  a  force  of  four  thou- 
sand foot  and  three  thousand  horse,  with  which  he  pm-posed  to  attack 
Philip's  camp,  while  a  fleet  of  sev(>nty  tlit-bottonjed  craft,  luimeronsly 
manned,  was  simultaneously  to  sail  up  the  Sein(!  and  attack  the  bridge, 
and  thus  throw  relief  into  the  fortress.  The  earl  was  exact  in  performing 
his  part  of  the  attack,  anil  (!ven  at  the  outset  obtained  some  considerable 
siivaiitiige  over  Philip;  but  the  weather  chancing  to  rtMard  the  [Icct  on  its 
pass.ige,  its  assistance  arrived  too  late  for  the  sup|)ort  of  the  earl,  who 
was  already  ilel'eatiid.  Had  tin;  attack  l)een  made  simultaneously  and  by 
ni){lil,acc(M'iiing  to  the  earl's  plan,  it  had  most  prob.ibly  been  suc(!esHful; 
as  It  Has,  Pliilip  was  enabled  to  deal  with  his  assailants  in  detaM,  and  beat 
Ihem  liotli  off  with  very  considerable  loss.  John,  who  was  easily  depres- 
»eJ  liy  defeat,  was  so  much  discouraged  by  the  dl  success  of  the  earl,  that 
he  ciinid  not  be  indnce<l  to  inak<'  any  farther  attempt  to  relieve  this  impor- 
tant fortress,  though  ample  opmirtiiinty  and  iniluccmenis  were  olTered  to 
liimlddoso  by  the  gallant  con<luct  (if  l)c  Lacy,  wlm  for  a  whole  year  con- 
tinued to  di'fciiil  himself,  in  sjiiie  of  great  snlfeniiij  from  want  of  |)rovj- 
»iiin.  He  was  at  length  overpowered  In  a  niglilattack,  and  he  and  liis 
wliule  g,irri»(Ui  made  prisoner...  To  iIk;  credit  of  Phili|),  he  sliowei;  his 
M'ibeiil  the  courage  and  ridclity  with  which  l)c  Lacy  iiiid  c(Mitiiiueil  to 
Jirve  liis  master  even  after  In-  had  been  abandoned  by  liim,  by  giving  him 
for  Ins  place  of  coiilinement  the  whole  extent  of  the  city  of  Paris. 

Il  n  dilliciilt  full;'  to  uiiderstiuid  the  iiiilo|eiic(>  and  incapacilv  which 
■inild  induce  John  to  iieyleci  the  relief  of  chateau  (iailliard,  upon  wliicli  the 
•  ifi'lv  of  his  whole  i\(n'in:iii  territory  depemleil.  Tliis  depeiidaiice  he 
cuuld  not  bu  Ignorant  ofj  uivl  it  was  rapidly  and  perfi.'ctly  illustrated  by  the 


«l 


^54 


THE  TKEASimV  OF  HISTORY. 


successes  which  Philip  obtained  after  its  capture.  Falaise,  Chen,  Con- 
stance, l']vreux,  Bayeiix,  and  other  fortresses  successively  fell  jilio  ||j,' 
hands;  Lupicaire,  a  Brabaiigon  leader,  to  whom  John  had  enlnisied  ijie 
defence  of  the  first-named  place,  deserted  with  all  his  men  to  the  standani 
of  Pliilip,  and  while  tlie  lower  division  of  Normandy  was  thus  overrun  bv 
the  French  under  Philip,  Upper  Normandy  was  entered  by  the  iJri'tons 
under  Ouy  de  Thouars,  who  look  Avranches,  Mont  St.  Michel,  and  the 
other  strong-holds  of  that  part.  Pressed  thus  by  an  active  prince,  who 
was  served  by  njen  of  condui-t  and  courage,  and  abandoned  by  'jolij, 
whose  hasty  and  secret  departure  for  England  might  almost  be  eal.' 
led  a  fliuhl,  the  Normans  had  no  resource  but  to  submit  to  Pliijip,  much  as 
they  disliked  the  idea  of  subjection  to  the  French  goveriunent. 

A.  D.  IMo. — As  there  was  still  a  portion  of  ihc  N(M'mans  who,  thoufh 
abandoried  by  the  king  of  England,  determined  to  defer,  if  not  wliojiy'to 
avoid,  their  submission  to  Phili|),  Kouen,  Argues,  and  Verneuil  confcilcni- 
ted  for  this  purpose.  Philip  iminedialely  advanced  his  troops  agninsi  liie 
first-named  ciiy,  the  iidiabitants  of  which  signalized  their  hatred  of  I'ranoe 
by  forthwith  putting  to  death  every  man  of  ihal  nation  who  was  livinir 
among  them.  The  cruel  are  rarely  brave;  and  the  defence  of  Koimn  bv 
no  means  answered  to  tlu.'  [ironiise  of  desperation  given  by  tliis  trcacher. 
ous  biiichery.  Scarcely  had  the  besiegers  conuuenced  operations  when 
the  bou'gcHl  lost  heart,  and  merely  demanded  a  truce  of  thirty  days  to 
enabh!  iheni  to  obtain  succour  from  their  prince.  Philip,  who  wcllnmier- 
.stood  the  character  of  .loiui.  and  therefore  felt  sure  that  he  who  liaij  aliaii. 
dcned  chateau  (iailliard  was  little  likely  to  show  luore  coiirairi.  jn  (be  |[.g, 
hopeful  case  of  l\oiien,  complied  with  this  demand.  As  I'bilip  liiid  fun;. 
seen,  no  supplies  or  aid  arrived,  and  the  city  was  yielded.  All  the  rest  0/ 
'he  province  ciiually  submitted  lo  Philij),  w"lio  thus  had  the  credit— niucli 
aljaled,  lliiiuiih,  by  the  character  of  his  o|)(ioneiit — of  rininiling  to  rraiict 
this  iiiifMiriant  portion  of  iis  proper  territory  three  centuries  after  rharhj 
the  Slm|ile  had  alienated  it  I",  session  to  the  first  duke,  the  valeiiu  Itubo 
From  .Niirmandy,  Pbihp  caM  extended  I, is  victorious  arms  to  Anion, 
Maine,  Toiiraiiie,  and  a  portion  of  Poictou;  John,  llii;  wiiijc,  iiLstcad  nj 
endeavouring  to  arri'st  the  progress  of  bis  enemy,  was  railing  agiiinsl  Ins 
barons  lor,  what  he  called,  their  desertion  of  him,  and  adding  to  the  iiiilional 
evils  created  by  his  iiididence,  the  mischief  which  he  still  line!  the 
power  to  do;  millclintr  Ids  barons  in  the  seventh  pdrliim  of  all  their  iiiovi'- 
able  property  as  a  punishment  for  this  pretendeil  (dVeiice. 

Not  eiiiitent  with  even  this  impudent  and  excessive  exiorlinii,  John 
next  demaiided  a  sculage  of  two  and  a  half  marks  upon  each  kiilKJit's  \n 
lo  enable  lilin  to  ('(Midiict  an  expedition  into  Normandy;  but  the  inoiicy 
onc(!  received,  the  expedition  was  no  loiter  thought  of !  Sulisii|iiinily 
he  e(dlected  a  fleet,  as  if  fully  determined  lo  Ui  ike  an  attempt  Id  rcrovii 
his  transinaniie  possessions  ;  but  on  s(une  olijecl  ions  belli);  made,  lie  abaii- 
dolled  this  desiirii,  too,  on  the  |ilea  that  he  was  deserted  anil  betriiyed  by 
hisbaruiis;  and  at  leiii,'lh  nuistereil  c(uiraue  eiionirh  to  |ait  lo  stsi,  luii 
speeilily  returned  to  port  without  auiibt  beiiiL',  done  or  atlempled,  ('iii|. 
sideriiig  the  fiery  ti'ni|)er  luid  warlike  habits  of  the  barons,  it  isperfcclly 
astoiiisliing  that  Ibex  so  jmig  endured  the  insults  of  a  king  whose  very 
style  of  liisiiltiiiij  was  so  eluiracleristic  of  Ins  weikness. 

A.  I).  12011. — Am  ally  was  at  length  presented  to  John  in  a  person  from 
whom  III!  had  hut  liitle  riijhl  lo  expect  aid  or  eii('oura>.'eineiii.  liny  dc 
Thouars,  to  whom,  in  right  i>f  his  daughter  Alne,  the  llielniis  had  i'nm. 
initled  ibeir  ixnvernment.  'I'liis  iiitble,  peri'eivini;  the  immense  sttidci 
tnaile  by  Pbilip,  became  alarinrd  for  the  safely  of  ilrilti'.ny,  aiiil  llienrnro 
made  a  pro|io>iiiiiii  to  Jdhii  for  their  JMiution  against  Philip,  ami  .hihii 
accordingly  left  llii^laiid  \\\\\\  a  considerable  f'irce  and  landed  in  snfeiyal 
Kuchelle,  whence  he  marched  tu  An;>eis,  which  he  captured  inul  biiriii'iJ 


Philip  lUMv  rapid; 

by  niakiiig  propo; 

sale,  indeed,  in  p 

any  one  less  debii 

death  itself.     Th 

barons,  under  prei 

pciidi'd,  not  in  ref 

We  have  alread 

men  eonid  so  lonj 

ill  (.'haiacter  as  Jo 

piissible  alio  wane 

the  feiiiial  tenure  1 

ill  idea,  lo  the  Noi 

this  great  power, 

deeessors  and  the 

early  shaken,  evei 

liinji,  llie  ijreat  feu 

the  nii'si  powerful 

hiinseir  with  the  c 

Irani.    Ihit  even  tl 

worn  out  by  the  pe: 

fvpr  ready  lo  sei/( 

iiiiiiiense  leinporal 

which  .lolin  had  so 

wiild  Willi  either  c 

A.i>.  l-'()7.— The 

piiHiT  al  the  nnusi 

hilof  die  opportim 

iinrc  of  ilie  plausibi 

III'  bad  so  far  stretc 

si'iiil  among  them  1 

Cfilcsiaslical  revei 

the  more  obviously 

po|H'.hini  over  the" 

receive  a  like  pr()p( 

iiiilary  coiitritnilioii 

rhains  upon  a  body 

hkely  lo  be  slow  In 

■IS  .lidiii ;  nor  was  ; 

llnlierl,  archbish 

cliiircli,  Caiilcrbiirv 

i'l"!.';  lint  a  imnont 

"I 'be  juniors,  assei 

:!»  Ins  successor  III 

I'livcrtly  nisi'illeil  1 
Home  io  iirociirt!  Il 
Wiiiil  (d  piiidence  . 
iilinosi  as  soiin  ,'is  1, 
was  so  fnr  favonral) 
niiiil.r  proceeding 
the  senior  monks,  a 
had  a  iiitlil  to  iiiilur 
inmiks  Jiilin  left  tin 
Wtrl  the  biNhop  of 
bni  as  Hie  snUV.iga 
ihi'V  ii(i\\ 


eiil  an  „: 
ilic  iminks  of  ('hrisi 
llie  great  ndviintage 


ii 


THE  TREASURY  OF  H.STORY. 


255 


Philip  iio^v  rapidly  approached,  and  John,  beooming  alarmed,  gained  time 
t,V  niitkiiiS  proposals  for  peace,  and  then  covertly  tied  back  to  Kiigland — 
sale,  iiuioeil,  in  person,  but  loaded  with  disgrace  and  contempt,  wliich  to 
a'liv'oiie  li'ss  debased  in  sentiment  would  have  been  far  more  terrible  than 
^^Hili  iisidf.  Thus  all  the  vast  sums  which  John  had  extorlod  from  his 
barons,  iiiiiler  pretence  of  recovering  his  lost  footing  in  Frani'c,  were  ex 
pemlt'il,  not  in  repairing  the  loss,  but  in  adding  disgrace  and  disgust  to  it. 

We  liiive  already  remarked  that  it  was  astonishnig  that  fiery  and  martial 
nioii  ciiuld  so  long  endure  the  doings  of  a  man  so  mean  in  aVt  and  weak 
iiu'liarai'ter  as  Joint ;  and  astonishing  it  certainly  was,  even  tnaking  all 
„,i5sil)le  allowance  for  the  extensive  power  wliich  the  very  nature  of 
the  femlal  tenure  gave  in  reality,  and  the  still  greater  power  w'hich  it  gave 
ill  idi'a,  to  the  Noi-inan  sovereigns.  It  is  to  be  considered,  however,  that 
this  great  power,  wielded  as  it  had  been  by  the  art  of  some  of  John'.s  pre- 
decessors and  the  mHrtial  energy  of  others,  was  not  to  he  cither  easily  or 
earlv  shaken,  even  liy  the  personal  misconduct  of  a  John,  in  whom  the 
kiii;;i  ilic  yrcat  feudal  lord  paramount,  would  still  he  feared  and  obeyed  by 
llu' iiiosi  powerful  of  his  vassals,  after  the  man  John  had  overwhelmed 
hiiiisell' with  the  contempt  and  the  disgust  of  the  meanest  horseboy  in  hia 
Irani,  Ihit  even  the  vast  prestige  of  the  feudal  monarchy  was  at  length 
worn  cut  by  the  personal  misconduct  of  the  weak  monarch;  and  the  church, 
ever  ready  to  seize  upon  opportunity  of  extending  and  consolidating  its 
immense  temporal  power,  wis  the  first  to  encro.ich  upon  Ihi-  authority 
wliiili  .lohn  had  so  oflcu  (n'oved  himself  iinworihy  to  h(d(l,  and  unable  to 
wii'ld  Willi  either  credit  to  himself  or  advantage  lo  his  people. 

A.I).  1'.'(I7. — The  then  pope,  Innocent  III.,  haviiisj  arrived  at  the  papal 
power  at  the  unusually  early  aye  of  thirty-seven,  had  never  been  uiimind- 
liil  of  llic  opportunities  tliai  presented  themselves  to  him.  Taking  advan- 
tairc  ol  llie  plausible  pretext  afforded  to  him  by  the  stale  of  the  Holy  F.and, 
hi' iiiiil  so  far  stretched  his  auiliorily  over  the  clergy  of  ("iiristendom,  as  to 
send  among  them  collectors  with  authority  to  levy  a  furiieih  p.irt  of  all 
pi'clesiastical  revenues  for  the  relief  of  Palestine;  and  to  make  this  li'vy 
the  more  obviously  and  emphatii-illy  an  act  of  authority  ami  [lOwcr  of  the 
|)ii|ii'ili)in  over  itu^  ecclesiastics,  the  .•<:ime  collectors  were  authorized  to 
ri'e(iv(^  a  lik(>  proportion  of  laymen's  revenues,  not  as  a  tax,  but  as  a  vid- 
iiiiliiry  coiilrilnition.  A  pope  thus  rcsidvcd  ami  aiistnie  in  riveting  his 
cliani^  upon  a  bo<ly  so  iiunieroiis  and  so  powerful  as  the  clergy,  was  not 
liliilyK)  lie  slow  in  exercising  Ins  power  ag.inist  80  contemptible  ii  prince 
as.liiliii;  nor  was  an  opporinnily  long  wanting. 

Iliilierl,  arclibislio|i  of  Canlerbury,  dying  in  lOO.'i,  the  monks  of  Phrist- 
ihiircli,  Oanterbnry,  had  the  n<:lit  of  election,  subject  to  the  consent  of  the 
Kiiiir;  liiit  a  minority  of  lliein,  consisting,  too,  almost  without  <  xccplion, 
(II  the  juniors,  assenibled  on  tlw  very  night  of  Hubert's  death,  and  ciceteil 
IS  Ins  successor  their  •■ubprHn',  K''"inald,  who.  having  been  hastily  and 
covertly  insl  died  in  the  arclnepisi  opal  throne,  immediately  set  out  for 
H(Hne  to  procure  the  pope's  confirmation.  Tlw  vanity  of  Iteginald,  or  the 
«aiii  of  |)iiidcnce  of  Ins  friends,  caused  the  atViir  to  reach  the  king's  e;ir« 
alniusl  US  s<n)n  as  the  new  archbishop  hail  comineiiced  his  journey.  John 
was  so  far  favonralily  Mtiiaied,  iliat  Ins  anger  at  this  presiimpiiioni  and  ir- 
ngiiliir  proceeding  of  tlie  junior  monks  <il'  Canterbury  waH  fiillv  shared  by 
the  senior  monks,  and  also  by  the  Miffrag.ins  of  ( "anlcrhnrv.  both  of  whom 
hail  ii  rialil  to  intliience  the  election  dl  their  primate.  Ill  the  hands  of  the 
iiKiiiks  John  left  the  new  eieclnm,  onlv  rccnnimending  that  they  should 
elci'l  ilie  bishop  of  Norwich,  Jchii  de  (iray.  He  was  according  elected, 
but  as  the  sutlr.igans  hail  not  cvmi  m  tins  new  election  been  considered, 
they  now  Kent  an  auciii  lo  Himiic  to  prole*!  against  it,  while  tlii'  kniL'  an  1 
llif  iii'inks  of  ('hrisicliureh  .Miit  twehe  o<  tli.it  order  lo  support  It.  Here 
the  yiMit  udvanl.igc  was  clearly  thrown  into  the  hands  of  the  pope,  f<<r 


SS6 


THE  TREA8U11Y  OF  HISTORY. 


whiln  eadi  of  the  throe  disputing  parties  opposed  the  pretensions  of  tho 
other  two,  all  three  ajrreed  in  acknowledging  the  pope's  authority  to  ie. 
ride  the  question;  and  Innocent  III.  wns  not  the  man  to  allow  liiat  ad- 
vantage to  escape  his  notice.  That  the  election  of  Reginald  had  been 
irregular  and  furtive,  none  but  himself  and  his  immediate  friends  could 
well  deny ;  and  the  authority  of  the  papal  court  easily  overruled  the  pre- 
lennions  of  the  suffragan  bishops,  which,  to  say  the  truth,  were  strongly 
oppofied  to  the  papal  maxims  and  usages.  These  two  points  being  decided 
it  woidd  at  first'  sight  have  seemed  clear  'hat  the  decision  must  be  in  fa. 
votir  of  the  bishop  of  Norwich ;  but  the  pope  decided  that  the  first  election 
being  disputed  as  irregular,  the  decision  of  the  pope  upon  that  eleciion 
tdimild  have  preceded  any  attempt  at  a  new  one ;  that  as  it  had  not  done 
m>,  siii'li  second  election  was  nncanonical  and  null,  and  that,asacori)llar\\ 
henci^forth  tlie  appointment  to  the  primacy  must  remain  in  the  hands  of 
the  pope.  Following  up  this  decision  by  action,  he  commanded  the  monks 
who  had  been  deputed  to  defend  the  election  of  tlie  bishop  of  Norwich  im- 
iiiedial(dy  to  elect  the  cardinal  Langton,  a  man  of  great  talent,  English 
by  birth,  but  infinitely  more  attached  to  the  interests  of  Rome  than  tn 
thoite  of  his  native  land.  All  the  monks  objected  to  this  course,  that  they 
should,  even  looking  only  to  the  jiope's  own  recent  decision,  be  conunit 
ting  a  new  irregularity,  having  neither  the  king's  writ  nor  the  authority 
of  Iheir  convent  to  warrant  tliein  ;  but,  with  the  single  exception  of  Kljas 
de  ilranlefield,  they  succumbed  to  the  pope's  authority,  and  the  election  was 
made  accordingly. 

Iiuiocent  now  followed  up  his  arbitrary  proceedings  by  what  our  hi-Mo- 
rians  call  a  mollifying  letter  and  present  to  John;  but  what  would  certain- 
ly be  called  an  addition  of  mockery  to  injury  in  the  case  of  any  clearer- 
minded  and  higher-hearted  prince,  for  by  way  of  consoling  John  for  the 
precedent  thus  set  of  transferring  to  the  papal  court  one  of  the  moit  valued 
and,  in  many  respects,  important  prerogatives  of  the  English  crown,  Innn. 
cent  sent  linn  him  four  gold  rings  set  with  precious  stones,  and  an  e.vplan- 
rilory  letter  of  no  less  precious  conceits.  '*  He  begged  him,"  says  Hnnie 
in  his  condensed  acc(uint  of  this  ;idinirably  grave  papal  jest,  "to  consider 
NeriiniHly,  the  form  of  the  rings,  their  number,  their  matter,  and  their  col 
our.  Their  form,  being  round,  shadowed  out  eternity,  which  had  neither 
beiriniiiiitt  nor  ending;  and  he  ought  thence  to  learn  his  duly  of  aspiriiii! 
fiiim  einllily  objects  to  hi'avenly,  from  things  t(<in|)oral  to  things  elenial 
'I'lie  nninber,  four,  bring  a  s(|uare,  denoted  stearliness  of  iniiid,  not  lo  he 
f4iibvertid  either  by  adversity  or  by  prosperity,  fived  forever  on  the  firm 
liasiH  of  the  four  cardinal  virtues,  tv  'd,  which  is  the  matter,  heiiij  tlm 
most  preeioiis  of  metals,  signiticil  wisdom,  wiiich  is  the  most  vahiahle  n' 
all  accoiiiplisliiiients,  nnd  justly  preferred  by  Solomon  to  riidies,  power, 
and  all  exterior  atlainmeiits.  The  blue  colour  of  the  siipnhire  represriiied 
failh;  the  u'reen  of  the  emerald,  hope;  the  redness  of  tlie  ruby,  charity: 
and  llie  splendour  of  the  topaz,  good  works." 

Nt;ver,  surely,  were  niyslical  conceils  vended  at  a  higher  price!  Even 
John,  weak  and  tanii-  as  was  his  spiril,  did  imt  consider  four  rings  and  a 
bundle  of  conceils  (pule  an  iideipiate  consideraiion  for  the  more  |irerioii8 
and  Hubsliiiiti.il  jewel  of  which  llie  pope  had  so  iincerenniiiioiisly  deprived 
liiiii,  mid  his  wrath  was  treinendnoii!'.  As  the  nioiiks  of  ('antiilmry 
showed  themselves  willing  lo  iibide  by  the  i  le'-lion  wliiidi  Iheir  I'elloHs  at 
lloine  had  made  in  obedienee  lo  the  pope,  ihe  first  efl'eels  of  his  aiiuer  fill 
njioll  llieill,  lie  despalelicd  lleiny  i\r  Coriilinle  and  Fiilk  '  de  Ciiiilelinie 
two  resold  III  c  kiiinhls  of  Ins  reliniK",  lo  expel  the  prior  and  monks  of  Christ. 
rhnrcli  no!  inily  IVian  their  convenl,  but  iilso  iVoin  Ihe  kinixdoin,  a  diilY 
which  llie  Kinuhls  pcrrorined  ipiiie  literally  at  Ihe  point  of  llie  swuril;  .1 
piece  III  viideiicc  at  oner  partial  ami  childish,  w  Inch  linioceiil  iioined  only 
by  ti  new  letter,  i»  which  hi'  eiirnesily  advised  the  kiiiK  no  longer  loopposo 


THE  THEA8UHY  OF  HISTORY. 


257 


himself  to  God  and  the  cliureti,  nor  longer  to  uphold  that  u  irighteous  cause 
which  liiid  cost  the  martyr  St.  Thomas  of  Canterbury  his  life,  but  at  the 
same  limo  exalted  him  to  an  equality  with  the  highest  saints  in  heaven — 
averv  pl'ii'i ''"usioji  lo  the  possibility  of  Beiikels  being  easily  found  to 
maintain  the  cause  of  Rome  against  a  prince  so  much  meaner  than  he  to 
wiioni  "the  martyr"  Becket  had  done  so  much  evil! 

As  this  sisfnificant  hint  had  not  as  much  effect  us  the  pope  had  antici- 
pated in  reducing  John  to  submission,  Innocent  now  commissioned  the 
bisiiops  of  London,  Worcester,  and  Ely  to  assure  him  that  should  he  per- 
severe Ml  his  disobedience  to  the  Holy  See  an  interdict  should  he  laid  upon 
his  iiiiigdoin ;  and  both  these  and  their  brother  prelates  actually  knelt  to 
him,  and  "'i'li  tears  besought  him  to  avert  a  result  so  fearful,  by  conseiit- 
liig  to  receive  archbishop  Langtun  and  restoring  the  monks  of  Cliristcliurch 
to  ilieir  convent  and  revenue.  But  John,  though  well  aware  how  little  he 
cmilil  d"pend  upon  the  love  of  his  states,  whom  he  did  not  even  dare  to 
assemble  to  support  him  in  an  open  struggle,  was  encouraged  by  the  very 
hiiinilily  of  the  jMisture  assumed  by  the  prelates  not  merely  to  refuse  (tom- 
pliiinei;  with  their  advice,  but  to  couch  his  refusal  in  terms  fully  as  dis- 
gricifiil  to  him  as  they  could  be  offensive  to  tluisc  to  whom  they  were 
addressed.  Not  conlented  with  personally  insulting  the  prelati's,  he  de- 
dared  his  defiance  of  the  pojie  himst.'.f ;  swearnig  "by  Orod's  teeth"  that 
sliuuld  the  pope  lay  an  interdict  upon  his  kingdom,  he  would  send  the 
uiiolc  of  the  iiiiglisli  clergy  to  Rome  for  support  and  take  their  estates 
and  reveiuies  to  his  own  use ;  and  that  if  thenceforth  any  Romans  ven- 
tured into  his  doininiiMis  they  should  lose  their  eyes  and  noses,  .nat  all 
who  looked  upon  them  migiit  know  iIkmu  from  other  and  better  men.  In- 
iioi'Ciil  was  not  to  be  deceived  by  this  vague  and  vulgar  abuse;  lie  well 
knew  the  real  weakness  of  John's  position,  and  (indingthat  half  nurasures 
and  ni.m.igement  would  not  suffice  to  reiluce  him  to  oludience,  he  at  length 
issued  the  tcrtibic  sentence  of  interdict.  As  this  sentence  frctpiently  oc- 
curs in  oar  history,  and  as  it  is  essential  that  readers  should  clearly  and 
ill  detail  understand  the  nature  of  the  decree  by  which  Rome  could  fur  ages 
send  terror  into  the  hearts  of  the  miglitiesl  nations  in  Clinstendom — a 
terror  from  which  neither  rank,  sex,  nor  scarcely  any  siagi;  of  life  was 
Merii|iied — We  paiise  here,  in  the  regular  march  of  our  history,  to  cpioio 
..■:  urief  bill  cleardi^scriiition  of  it  which  we  find  succinctly  given  in  Hume, 
frcMi  the  accounts  sealltn'd  in  many  piijics  of  more  prolix  writers. 

•'Tlie  si'iitence  of  interdict  was  at  tiuil  time  the  greal  instrument  of  ven- 
JOiinee  anil  policy  employed  by  the  cmnt  of  Home  ;  was  denounced  against 
^||verl'ialls  lor  the  lightest  offi'nccs;  and  made  the  yiiilt  of  oi.c  person  in- 
volve the  ruin  of  inillions,  even  in  their  s|)iriinal  and  clcrnal  welfare.  The 
exeeiiiion  of  it  was  caic\ilaied  to  strike  the  senses  in  the  highest  degree 
and  to  opriale  with  irrc.'sistibU;  fiuce  on  the  superstitious  minds  of  the  peo- 
|.|i'.  The  nation  was  suddenly  deprived  of  all  exterior  exercise  of  its  re- 
liL'ioii ;  the  altars  were  despoiled  of  their  ornameiils  ;  the  crosses,  the 
r('li(|i|es,  tlie  images,  the  staiiu's  of  the  saints,  wert;  laid  on  the  ground; 
and,  as  if  the  air  itself  were  profaned  and  might  pollute  llieni  by  its  con- 
iiict,  the  |iriests  care-fully  coveicd  II. .111  up,  even  from  their  own  aiiproacli 
and  veneration.  The  use  of  the  liells  entirely  eeasei'  in  all  the  (•lulrcll(^s, 
Ihe  hells  themselves  wi're  reniovecl  froai  the  steeples,  anil  laid  on  the 
griMind  Willi  the  othi'r  sacred  utensils;  mass  was  celebrated  with  closed 
diiors.  and  none  but  the  priests  were  admitted  to  that  holy  inslltniion;  liie 
laity  partook  of  no  religious  rite,  except  baptism  to  ncwly-lunn  inf  ints 
ami  lli(^  coiiiinui\;i>ii  lo  the  dying;  the  dead  were  not  interred  in  consecra- 
icd  UriMind  .  they  «cre  thrown  into  ditches,  or  buried  in  coininon  fields, 
and  their  ohseiiuics  were  not  attended  with  prayer^,  or  any  liallowi!d  cor- 
reiimnv.  M.irriaiie  was  celebrated  in  Ihe  churchyards;  and,  that  cvijrr 
aetioii  of  life  mitjht  bear  the  marks  of  this  dreadful  situation,  the  peo|>r 
1.-17 


'\  ::f^' 


1: 

\k  - 


^>..j»#H«f< 


t58 


THE  TKEASLllY  OF  HZSTOHY. 


were  prohibited  tlio  use  of  meal  as  in  :.fii  ■. ;  and,  -is  in  tiin'G  of  the  highest 
penance,  were  debarred  from  ai!  pk.i:.\irs  and  Hniert:.iiii  i.ints,  and  were 
forbidden  even  to  salute  each  otier,  ur  so  noich  as  to  ■  ii-.v.  '.heir  beards 
and  give  any  d'  cent  afU  ntion  to  i  wh  pi  r^  •  i  sa,'.  ppai,!  .very  circum,, 
stance  cii  ried  symptoms  of  the  d.epest  distr.  ss,  auJ  yi'  lie  most  iiimie- 
diatc  appreh'iuion  of  <iivjiie  nidigi  iiion  and  vengeance." 

Unwarned  by  even  tin  commeii  ,einent  of  tiiis  state  of  things  inhij 
kinjrdom,  ami  o'^stinately  tlo^nig  his  eyes  against  ilie  contempt  in  which 
ihj  was  hehi  b}  those  lay  barons  upon  whom  lie  must  depend  for  what- 
ever support  he  might  need  against  th'  spiritual  po-  ir.  .Tv  n  now  turned 
his  vengeance  especiuil'.  againr"  tliose  of  tin  (-ni'M  vvho  Vt^ntured  to  pay 
aitcMijon  to  the  interilici.  ii.iul  gtni^rally  against  'if  adherents  of  Arch- 
bisiiup  Langton.  Tiie  prelates  oi  Ihest  clsses  !ii:  sent  into  exile,  and 
the  monks  he  confined  u)  tl  'Tconve.it  with  .  har(  si  (.ossibh;  allowance 
for  llieir  temporal  neci  -  <itRi..  and  in  i'Hth  eas.\-.  lie  niailc  iiiniself  the  re- 
cipi' lu  of  their  revcnu'.s.  {'onc\)bii.!,xe  being  a  common  vice  of  ihe 
clt!igy,  he  seized  upon  that  poini  to  annoy  them  by  tlirowing  their  concu- 
bines into  prison,  whence  he  would  oidy  release  tiieni  upon  payment  Oi 
high  fines;  conduct  which  wi.s  the  more  egregriously  tyrannical,  because 
he  well  knew  that,  in  most  cases,  those  who  were  caili'd  the  coiiciihnies 
of  the  clergy  lived  with  all  Ihe  decency  and  fidelity  of  wives,  and  only 
were  not  wives  in  coiisequehce  of  the  crnel,  unnatural,  and  odious  exer- 
cise of  the  power  of  itoine  to  rompcl  the  c<'lii)a<'y  of  the  clergy. 

Meantime  the  quarrel  bci  wi  en  John  and  the  pope  continued  its  jiivet 
eracy  on  both  sides,  and  las;.  J  for  some  years  :  ihe  people,  who  had  no 
part  in  the  (|uari'el,  being  thus  i  .-posed  to  all  the  evils  and  vcxalions  which 
v/e  have  described,  excepting  in  the  comparativcdy  few  eases  where  the 
threats  or  persuasions  of  John  w.  re  powerful  enough  to  induce  the  clergy 
to  disregard  the  interdict.  With  these  exceptnnis,  upon  which  even  iiie 
laity,  much  as  they  were  injured  '.^y  ibi^  interdiei,  looki'd  wlih  dislike  and 
contempt,  all  the  ehrrry  reinaininsr  in  Kiiglaiid  weie  the  eiieinies  of  John. 
But  Uv,  afTecting  the  uiinost  coiiiemi)t  for  puhlic  (ipinioii,  c|eri<'al  as  lay, 
loadi^l  all  classes  of  Ins  people  with  heavy  imposts  to  defray  the  ex|ieiisL's 
of  Scotch,  Welsh,  and  Irish  expeditions,  in  wliiidi  sut'ci'ss  itself  produced 
him  no  glory,  as  it  proceeded  rather  from  the  weakness  of  lliose  lo  whom 
he  was  opposed  than  from  his  own  valour  or  ciinduct.  As  if  desirous  lo 
irritatt;  his  subjecis  to  the  iitinos!.  he  made  the  vt'ry  diversions  of  liis 
leisure!  hours  eitliiT  insulting  or  injurious  to  them.  His  licentiousness  in- 
sulted their  families  wlu^rever  he  made  his  appearance  ;  and  he  addcij  to 
the  odious  character  of  his  forest  laws  iiy  prolnhitiiig  his  subjects  from 
pursuing  fealh(!red  game,  and  hy  the  purely  spiteful  act  of  caiisiii^f  the 
forest  fences  to  he  reiiioveil,  so  that  the  cultivated  fields  in  the  iiciyliliour- 
hood  were  tram|iled  and  fed  upon  hy  the  vast  herds  of  'leer  wbidi  the  in- 
jured liiisbaiidman  dared  not  destroy. 

A.  n.  12(18. — A  constant  continuance  in  a  course  like  this  could  not  fail 
to  excite  against  the  knit;  the  Iwitred  even  of  thost?  among  his  siibjei's 
who  had  taken  little  or  no  interest  in  Ins  original  >|iiarrel  with  Roiiie, iind 
a  eonsennisness  of  this  halreil.  so  far  from  cansiiig  him  to  retrnee  ImS 
Bte|)s,  only  aronseil  him  to  grosser  and  more  determined  tyranny,  anil  lis 
demanded  from  all  of  his  nobility  wlimn  he  lioooiired  with  his  siis|ii('ion$ 
that  they  should  place  their  nearest  relatives  in  his  hands  as  liosiaiics. 
Aininig  those  of  wlunn  this  insulting  deiuand  was  madi^  was  Williinn  ili' 
l)ravns(;,  whose  lady,  a  wonn-'^  ot  determined  sfiint  and  |ilain  speech,  loiJ 
the  king's  messc'iiger,  that  lor  iier  part  she  would  never  consent  to  emrihi 
,lier  son  in  Ihe  lemds  of  the  man  who  had  iiotinKMisly  mnrderetl  hisowh 
nephew.  The  naron,  lliongh  both  wealthy  ai.d  powerful,  was  sensibli: 
that  there  was  no  safely  for  hiin  alter  such  a  reply  had  been  reiiirMiil  m 
the  kinj;,  and  he  scjught  sbcllcr,  with  Ins  wife  ami  <  liild,  in  u  remote  siiuj. 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


259 


lion  ill  Ireland.  But  Jolin,  like  most  tj'rants,  was  only  too  faitlifuUy  served 
bv  his  spies ;  the  unfortunate  baron  was  discovered,  and  althoujjh  he  con- 
trived to  escape  to  France,  both  his  wife  and  their  child  were  seized  and 
actually  starved  to  death  in  prison. 

Never  was  that  line  of  the  heathen  poet  which  says  that  "the  gods 
(irst  iiiadiien  those  whom  they  wish  to  destroy"  more  vividly  illtislraied 
tliHii  l>y  the  constant  addition  which,  by  tyrannies  of  this  kind,  John  was 
rupiJIy  making  to  the  general  hatred  of  his  people,  at  the  very  time 
when  he  was  aware  that  such  hatred  could  at  any  moment  have  been  al- 
lowed liy  Rome  to  break  out  into  open  rebellion. 

For  ihougli  the  papal  interdict,  with  all  its  severity  upon  the  unolTend- 
iiiff  people,  did  not  release  them  from  their  allegiance  to  the  king  who  bad 
iMlicd  down  that  severity  upon  their  heads,  the  next  step  was  exeommu- 
iiiiMtion,  w iiieh,  as  John  well  knew,  put  an  end  to  allegiance,  and  woidd 
arm  many  a  hand  against  him  that  now  was  bound  by  "  iTiat  diviiuty  which 
dolli  hedge  a  king."  And  yet  this  inexplicable  man,  usually  so  cowardly, 
siill  held  out  atjainst  the  pope,  though  excommunication  was  certain  to 
fall  with  sneh  peculiar  severity  upon  him,  should  he  provoke  the  pope  to 
prononnecit;  and  he  exerted  himself,  alike  in  his  rule  and  in  his  pas- 
lime,  Id  increase  that  very  hate  from  which  much  of  its  peculiar  severity 
would  spring. 

The  patience  of  the  pope  was  at  length  exhausted,  or,  perhaps,  (o  speak 
more  correctly,  his  policy  no  longer  required  delay,  and  the  terrible  sen- 
tPiiceof  excominuuicali(m  was  issued.  But  even  now  there  was  no  formal 
absoiutioM  of  the  people  frou)  their  oiitli  of  allegiance.  Thnl  most  terrible 
step  of  all  the  pope  still  bild  in  reserve,  as  a  last  resource,  bemg  well 
aware  how  powerfid  an  effect  the  ordinary  results  of  exconimuiiication 
were  ealeuhited  to  have  upon  a  king  of  fir  stnmger  nerve  th;in  Jolui  could 
boiisl ;  for  how  could  he  claim  to  be  served  with  zeal  and  fidelity  who 
WHS  thus  disclaimed  and  cut  oflfby  the  church  1 

Scarcely  had  the  pope's  orders  been  obeyed  by  the  bisho[)s  of  London 
Kly,  and  \Vorcester — those  very  prelates  upon  whom  John  hail  formerly 
lu'iiped  insult,  as  coarse  as  undeserved,  and  as  unbecoming  as  impolitic — 
wlicn  a  specimen  was  exhibited  of  its  paralysing  eflTeel  by  (ieoffrey,  arch- 
deacon of  Norwich.  Like  most  of  the  great  cliiirchiuen  of  that  day,  he 
held  a  judicial  situation,  and  bo  was  engaged  ni  its  duties  when  he  re- 
ceiveil  the  news,  upon  wliieli  be  immediately  rose  and  left  the  court, 
observing  that  it  was  loo  perilous  to  continue  to  serve  an  exeommuniifated 
kmg.  This  prompt  abaniloiiment  of  the  archdinicon,  however,  cost  him 
liis  life,  !or  John  threw  bun  into  prison,  had  a  large  leaden  cope  fitted 
li«litly  to  his  head,  and  inllicted  other  severities  upon  him  until  he  literally 
5;\iik  under  lliem.  W  ariied,  [leriiaps,  by  tiiis  severe  example,  oilier  clerical 
dignitaries.  llioMgh  (inile  as  ready  to  aliandmi  llieir  detested  and  dangerous 
kiiiji,  took  care  to  phwe  themselves  beyond  his  reach  in  the  very  act  of 
almiidonnient.  Anioiur  these  was  Hugh  de  Wcdls,  the  chancellor.  Heiiig 
iippiinited  bishop  of  Winchesler,  be  reiiiirsled  leave  from  the  king  to  go 
111  Normandy  to  obiain  coiisecration  from  the  archbisiiop  of  Rouen  ;  but 
ItMve  being  cranled,  Ke  went  mil  thilber,  but  to  I'ontigny,  the  resiilenci! 
of  llie  archbishop  Laiiuton,  to  whom  he  paid  the  formal  submission  diu! 
iViini  a  snfTragaii  to  his  priinale.  'I'lie  freijuency  of  these  desertions 
aiiiniig  linili  the  prelates  and  the  lay  noliilily  at  length  gave  the  king  very 
scriiins  alarm,  and  more  especially  as  he  received  but  too  prolialile  hints 
of  ,1  widely-spre.id  conspiracy  against  him,  in  which  he  knew  not  who 
ainiiiii,'  lliit^e  who  still  remaimnl  ap|)ar<'nlly  faithful  to  him  might  be  en- 
(Tiired.  Now  that  moilerati'  coni'ession  could  no  Lniger  avail  biin  ;  now 
lliat  his  nakedness  and  his  weakness  were  so  eviilent  to  his  foes  that  lliey 
tt'iiiilil  richly  deserve  liis  contemjit  if  they  did  not  provide  bis  violence 
Hilb  an  efTectual  bridle  for  the  future,  even  should  they  chose  to  show 


il!r 


fv^.x^HP* 


3«0 


THK  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


some  noderation  in  dealing  with  him  as  to  the  past ;  now,  in  a  word 
when  he  no  longer  had  it  in  his  power  to  negotiate  to  advantage.  John 
commenced  a  negotiation  with  the  hitherto  exiled  and  dtspised  Lani'ton 
A  meeting  accordingly  took  place  hnuecn  them  at  Dover,  and  Julm  uf! 
fered  to  submit  himself  to  tlie  pope,  to  receive  Langton  as  piiniiite,  tu  re- 
instate the  whole  of  the  exiled  clergy,  and  to  pay  a  certain  sum  in  con,. 
pensation  of  the  rents  which  he  had  confiscated.  But  these  tcrin.s,  wlncli 
John  might  hav(j  commanded  at  the  outset  of  the  dispute,  and  nt  wliich 
in  fact,  he  had  then  manifested  such  childisii  and  unbecdining  rat:c,  «efe 
far  too  favouralde  to  be  allowed  him  now  that  Rome  had  at  once  tils  i^rrot 
and  his  helplessness  to  urge  her  to  severity.  Lauglon  deinaniicij  timt 
instead  of  a  certain  sum  in  the  way  of  compensation  for  the  wruiiirduiig 
to  the  clergy,  John  should  pay  all  that  lie  had  nujiislly  received,  aiid,  .suji 
further,  that  lie  should  make  full  and  complete  .satisfaction  for  ail  injuries 
suffered  by  the  clergy  in  consequence  of  their  exile  and  the  conliscaiioii 
of  their  revenues.  It  was  less,  now,  from  unwillingness  to  make  peace 
with  Rome,  on  even  the  hardest  ti^nis,  than  from  siieer  terror  at  ilie 
thought  of  having  to  collect  again  all  the  vast  sums  he  had  wanionly  dis- 
sipated, and  of  having  still  further  to  find  money  for  damages  wliicli  tliose 
who  had  suffered  them  were,  of  all  men,  the  kast  likely  to  nndcrvalue 
that  John  pronounced  it  impossible  for  him  to  comply  with  Langion's 
demands. 

A.  n.  1212. — The  pope,  who  most  probably  did  not  fully  appreciate  tlic 
extent  of  the  pecuniary  difricnlties  which  caused  John  to  shrink  from 
Langton's  proposal,  now  solenudy  ab.solved  John's  subjects  from  ilicir 
allegiance  to  liim,  and  denounced  excommumcation  upon  all  wliu  .•ilioulj 
venture  to  have  any  commerce  with  him,  at  tin  coiiiicil  board  or  in  the 
festive  hall,  in  |)riv;ite  or  in  [)nblic,  as  a  monarch  or  even  as  an  inilividii;il 
As  even  tiiis  terrible  severity,  by  wliicli  the  nio.-.t  powerful  nun  iniilil  In 
in  an  hour  deprived  of  all  su|)|iort  and  of  all  demonstration  of  alfccloii, 
and  made — so  niucii  more  powerful  were  sup(  r.'^liii.nis  fears  than  i!ie 
urgings  of  either  duty  or  an'((.'lion — desolale  ami  .^iinnnrd  as  the  |iari;iliuf 
tlie  di'seit  or  the  Ileijrcw  leper,  did  not  instantly  force  Jcdni  to  snhnnssioii, 
Innocent  followed  it  up  by  a  solenm  senlcin'<'  t)( (tt/insiiion. 

The  ponliirs  in  that  superstitious  a;!e  were  wiser  in  their  yenera'imi 
than  the  lay  prir.ces  witii  whom  ley  had  to  deal,  and  liiey  well  kin  w 
how  to  make  those  [iriiices  each  Ij  !■  inslriiiiienl  of  the  oilier's  suhjecima, 
Accordingly,  on  this  occasion,  the  pojie,  wiio  widl  iindcrslood  the  aiiiln- 
tious  character  of  the  king  of  I'rance,  and  the  animosity  that  iiuiiualU  (x- 
isted  between  John  and  I'liilip.  [iromised  ilie  latter  not  only  reinissinii  of 
sins,  but  also  the  sovereignty,  as  a  vassal  of  the  popedcnn,  of  .lojm',-,  kiiii,'- 
dom  of  England,  as  the  reward  of  his  inv.idiiig  it  ami  subdiiini;- John. 

Philip  readily  consented  to  comply  wiili  liie  pope's  wishes,  am!  iiavaig 
livied  a  vast  force  and  summoned  all  his  military  vassals  to  aildul  ami 
iild  him,  he  assembled  a  fleet  of  seventeen  liuiidred  siil  on  the  Clla^I  nf 
Normandy  and  Pieardy,  and  pre()ared  for  the  immediate  and  ellVcUial  la 
vasion  of  Kngland. 

Hut  the  papal  court,  as  usual,  was  playing  a  double  and  an  intercsied 
ganu!,  and  was  by  no  means  siiici-re  in  desiring  to  replace  on  the  throne 
of  I'higland  a  despised  and  incapable  monarch,  like  John,  by  a  po|iiil,ir, 
warlike,  and  politic  one  like  I'liilij),  unless,  iinlenl,  the  terror  of  the  I^Mit 
should,  as  was  by  no  means  inobable,  fail  to  reduce  the  forniei  lu 
submission. 

In  this  decidedly  (he  most  serious  of  all  liis  perils  from  witlioni,  J'llin 
displayed  something  like  a  Hash  of  the  liigli  ami  daring  spirit  of  ins  Nnr- 
man  race.  Issnim;  orders  not  only  for  thi!  assembling  of  all  his  mihi  iry 
vassals  at  I)ov('r,  but  also  for  the  irmiiig  anil  [irepiiration  of  every  iii.iii 
ttble  to  bear  uriiis  ilirougliout  the  Kingdom,  he  seemed  •'"'<■>••:. iiii;deiilrct 


THE  TREASURY  Of  HISTORY. 


361 


(0  preserve  his  crown  or  to  die  in  defence  of  it.  But  this  temporary  gleam 
of  niarlial  feeling  name  too  late,  and  was  too  strongly  opposed  by  his 
oraven  conduct  on  former  occasions  to  obtain  him  any  general  sympathy 
among  liis  people.  His  excommunication  and  his  general  unjiopularity 
ilianv'a  (lamp  on  the  spirits  of  even  the  bravest  of  his  subjects,  and  the 
most  zealous  among  the  very  few  friends  whom  his  vices  had  left  him 
trembled  for  the  issue.  Nevertheless,  patriotic  feeling  in  some  and  habits 
of  feudal  obedience  in  others  caused  his  orders  to  be  obeyed  by  an  im- 
TiKiise  miinber,  from  whom  he  selected  for  immediate  service  the  large 
force  of  sixty  thousand. 

Philip,  in  the  meautime,  though  anxious  immediately  to  strike  the  blow 
which  promised  to  give  him  so  vast  a  prize,  was,  as  a  vassal  to  the  pope, 
ind  directly  and  specially  engaged  in  supporting  the  papal  authority, 
obliged  to  be  observant  of  the  directions  of  Pandolf,  the  papal  legate,  to 
whom  tlie  whole  conduct  <jf  the  expedition  was  committed.     Pandolf,  well 
aqiiaiiited  with  the  real  and  occult  views  of  Innocent,  required  no  more 
if  Piiili|i's  aid  after  that  prince  had  prepared  and  displayed  his  force. 
rii;itdoiie,  Pauilolf  summoned  Jolm  to  a  conference  at  Dover.     Pointing, 
on  the  one  hand,  to  the  immense  [jower  and  interested  zeal  of  Philip,  and, 
on  the  other,  to  those  peculiar  drawbacks  upon  the  elRcicnt  action  of  tlie 
Eiijlish  force,  of  which  John  was  already  but  too  sensible,  the  legate, 
iviili  wily  and  emphatic  eloquence,  urged  John,  by  a  speedy  and  complete 
submissioa  to  the  pojie,  to  embrace  the  only  means  of  safety  that  now  re- 
mained open  to  him  ;  excommunir      ii  by  the  pope,  on  the  eve  of  being 
aiiiicked  by  his  miglity  and  vindictiv         al  of  France,  and  secretly  hated 
by  his  own  vassals,  who  were  not  at  nil  unlikely  opeidy  to  desert  him 
upon  the  day  of  battle.     The  statements  of  the  legate  were  true,  and  John, 
who  knew  tiiem  to  be  so,  i)assed  in  an  inst:inl  from  llie  extreme  of  bra- 
vado and  obstinacy  to  an  equally  extreme  iiiul  far  more  disgusting  humil- 
iiv  and  obedience.    John  now  promised  tl' 5  most  entire  submissitsn  to 
ilie  piipe ;  the  a(;knowledgenicntof  I.angtor  as  archbishop  of  Canterbury; 
die  restoration  of  all,  whether  clergy  orl'vmen,  wlioni  he  had  banished 
on  account  of  tli:    long  and  unfortunate  di  sfiute  ;  restitution  of  all  goods 
mil  revenues  that  had  been  confiscated,  aid  full  payment  of  all  damages 
lioiie  by  tlu!  confiscation;  and  an  immcli  ite  payment  of  eight  thousand 
poinids  on  account,  togetlier  with  an  iniuiediate  acceptance  to  his  grace 
Hid  favonr  of  all  wlio  had  suffered  in  tliem  for  adhering  to  the  pope.     To 
ill  llk'se  terms  the  king  swore  agreem  nt,  and  four  of  his  great  barons 
also  swore  to  cause  his  faithful  compliance.     Froiii  tUv.  ins'.ant  tliat  Pan- 
dolf got  the  king  to  agree  to  these  degrading  conditions,  th^  whole  right 
md  merit  of  tiic  quarrel  was  substantially  and  unalterably  assigned  to 
Rome  l)y  the  king's  own  solenui  confession  ;  and  (his  ()oint  Pandolf  was, 
lorubvions  reasons,  anxious  to  secure  prior  to  ruiniing  the  risk  of  stinging 
and  sturiling  even  John's  dastard  spirit  into  desperation.     But  having  thus 
M»de  ilie  king  virtually  confess  that  his  share  in  the  quarrel  was  such  as 
lodisentitii  liim  to  the  support  of  liis  friends  and  subjects,  Pandolf  wholly 
diiiwofTtlic  mask,  ami  showed  John  how  much  more  of  the  bitter  draught 
ofd('!fr;i(lati(jii  he  still  had  to  swallow. 

John  had  sworn  humble  and  conifjlete  obedience  to  the  pope ;  he  was 
now  re(juireil,  as  the  first  convincing  proof  of  that  obctdieni  e,  to  resign  his 
kniploni  lo  the  church  ;  an  act  of  obedience  which  he  was  assured  was 
IIS  innst  effectual  mude  of  protecting  his  kingdom  against  Philip,  who 
would  iKd  dare  to  attack  i'.  when  placed  under  the  innnediate  guardiaaship 
Hid  insiody  of  Rome.  John  hid  now  gone  too  far  to  recede  from  that 
Jeirradation  which  made  him  furi'ver  the  mere  temporal  as  well  as  spiritual 
•nwil  of  haughty  and  overreaching  Rome.  He  therefon!  siihscrilxMl  a 
I'l-Ur,  ni  \>hi('li,  professing  i/  be  under  no  restraint,  he  solemnly  re 
iKj.iii  ('(l  i-ingiand  and  Ireland  to  Pope  Innocent  and  his  apostolic  sue- 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


cesaois,  aiid  agreeci  llieiiceforlh  to  hold  tlu'iii  at  tlio  anmi;i]  rent  of  a  tliou- 
sand  marks,  as  feudatory  of  the  papal  throne  ;  binding  his  successors  as 
well  as  himself  to  the  due  performance  of  this  condition,  on  pain  of  nhso. 
lute  forfeiture  in  '.lie  event  of  impenitent  disobedience.  Even  the  signhio 
of  this  degrading  agreement  was  not  alh.wod  to  terminate  John's'iiicp 
humiliation.  He  was  compelled,  in  open  court,  lo  do  homage;  in  die  usual 
feudal  form  to  Pand  •■  as  the  representative  of  the  pope,  and  at  ihe  same 
time  to  pay  in  advance  a  portion  of  the  tribute,  upon  which  tiie  leoatc 
trampled  in  open  scorn.  And,  so  much  had  John's  niisccndnct  cifgradid 
his  brave  subjects  as  well  as  himself,  that,  with  ihe  single  excepiloii  df 
the  archbishop  of  Dublin,  no  one  present  had  the  spirit  lo  resent  Paiidolfs 
rude  and  impolitic  behaviour. 

After  John  had  submitted  to  all  this  ignominy,  he  was  still  eompcjlpj 
to  feel  himself  dependent  upon  the  very  doubtful  generosity  of  Home;  f,,, 
Pandolf  refused  to  remove  the  interdict  and  excomniunication  till  ihi> 
danuiges  of  the  clergy  should  be  both  estimated  and  paid.  Yet  even  in 
this  terrible  and  galling  state  of  his  fortunes  John  relaxed  not  from  his 
tyramiy  to  his  subjects.  An  enthusiast  or  impostor,  named  Peier  ol 
Ponifret,  a  herniil,  had  in  one  of  his  rhapsodies  prophesied  th  t  the  kiiii- 
would  this  year  lose  his  crown,  a  prophecy  which  had  been  likely  cnuiicih 
to  be  accomplished  iii  any  one  of  many  preceding  years.  This  man,  and 
his  son  as  his  accomplice  or  abettor,  were  tried  as  impostors  ;  and  thiniuh 
the  hermit  stoutly  iramtained  that  the  king's  surrender  to  Rome,  and  ihe 
vassahige  in  which  he  had  now  consenle(i  to  hold  bis  formerly  indopcii 
dent  crown,  verified  the  prophecy,  they  were  both  dragged  at  horses' hi  ijs 
to  the  gallows  and  there  haiiffed 

John,  the  l)nseness  of  whose  temper  made  him  callmis  to  many  reflt'c- 
tions  which  woidd  have  stung  a  prouder  and  more  honourable  'man  al- 
most to  madness,  was,  amid  all  his  degradation,  less  to  be  pitie,!  just  now 
than  the  duped  and  baffled  Philip.  His  rage  on  learning  that  his  expi'n 
sive  display  of  force  had  only  served  tin;  purpose  of  driving  John  into  the 
protection  of  the  pope,  could  sc;ircely  be  kept  within  either  safe  or  drccnt 
bounds.  He  bitterly  complained  .>(  the  insincere  offers  and  promises  by 
\vhi(di  he  had  been  gulled  into  an  outlay  of  sixty  thousand  pounds;  an], 
his  indignation  being  shared  by  his  barons,  he  went  so  far  as  to  declare 
that  not  even  the  pope's  protection  shoi.ld  save  England  from  him.  It 
indeed  seemed  probable,  that  Ik;  would  at  all  risks  have  invaded  Kiijjhnul 
but  for  the  influence  and  intrigue  of  the  earl  of  Flaiulers,  who,  bein;;  in  a 
secret  ronfederacy  with  John,  loudly  protested  again.st  the  intpieiy  ol 
attacking  a  state  that  was  now  becoiue  a  part  of  St.  Peter's  palrimoiiv. 
Shrewdly  judging  that  the  earl  would  follow  tip  his  words  by  correspond- 
ing deeds,  Philip  resolved  to  chastise  him  ;  but  whik;  he  was  engaged  in 
so  doing,  his  fleet  was  atta<'ked  by  John's  natural  brother,  the  earl  of  Salis- 
bury, so  that  Philip  deemed  it  the  wisest  plan  to  lay  aside  his  medi.ated 
attack  upon  England,  at  least  for  the  present. 

John,  as  easily  elated  as  de|)ressed,  was  so  ptifTed  up  by  his  novel  safely 
accompanied  though  it  was  by  so  mueh  ignominy,  that  he  boasted  his  in- 
tention  to  invade  Krance.  Dnt  he  was  met  on  the  part  of  his  barons  with 
colli  and  contemptuous  refusiil  to  take  part  in  Ins  enterprise;  and  when 
in  the  hope  of  shaming  them  into  joining  him,  he  sailed  with  only  liia 
perMiiial  followers  as  far  as  the  island  of  Jersey,  he  had  the  inorlifieaiioi) 
of  liniig  eiMiipelled  to  return,  not  one  of  the  barons  having  so  far  relented 
<8  to  follow  him.  On  his  return  he  threatened  to  chastise  tliein  for  theii 
want  of  obedience  ;  but  here  he  was  met  by  the  archbishop  I/mgloii,  who 
reminded  him  that  he  was  but  the  vassal  of  Rome,  and  threatened  hiir 
with  the  most  signal  inmisliment  if  he  ventired  to  levy  war  upon  any  oi 
his  subjects. 

Rome  removed  the  infliction  upon  John  and  his  kingdom  to  the  full  ai 


[)ropriety  of  th 


THE  TB«:A8URY  OF  HISTORY. 


36,; 


trailuallyas  she  had  laid  thtm  on;  but  in  the  end  the  pope  himself  inter- 
feri'd  to  protect  him  against  tlie  extortion  of  the  clergy,  and  commanded 
ihem  to  take  forty  thousand  marks  instead  of  a  hundred  thousand,  which 
John  had  offered,  and  instead  of  the  infamously  excessive  sum  beyond  that 
which  they  had  rated  their  losses  at. 

In  the  end,  the  king's  submissive  behaviour  and  his  disbursement  o( 
arge  sums  ol^  money  procured  the  interdict  to  be  removed  from  his  king- 
join  i  and  the  prelates  and  superior  clergy  having  received  their  damage!, 
the  inferior  clergy  were  left  to  console  themselves  as  they  best  might 
without  any  repayment  at  all ;  Nicliolas,  bishop  of  Frescati,  who  was 
now  legate  in  England  instead  of  Pandolf,  showing  himself  more  favour- 
able to  John  than  his  predecessors  had  been. 

i,  D  HH.— Not  deterred  by  the  evident  dislike  of  his  barons,  and  their 
determination  never  to  assist  him  when  they  could  make  any  valid  excuse, 
John  now  proceeded  to  Poietou,  and  his  authority  being  still  held  in  re- 
spect there,  he  was  enabled  to  carrv  the  war  into  Philip's  territory.  But 
before  John  had  well  commenced  his  depredations  he  was  routed  by 
Philip's  son,  young  Prince  Louis,  and  fled  in  terror  to  England,  to  engage 
once  .nore  in  his  congenial  task  of  oppressing  his  subjects.  For  this 
ami'uie  pursuit  he  deemed  that  his  submission  to  Rome  had  furnished 
liim  with  full  immunity ;  but  mortifications  of  the  most  severe  description 
were  siill  in  store  for  him.  The  barons,  shocked  out  of  even  their  feudal 
notions  of  submission,  became  clamorous  for  the  practical  and  formal 
establishment  of  the  liberties  and  privileges  which  had  been  promised  to 
them  by  both  Henry  I.  and  Henry  II.  In  their  demands  they  were  much 
backed  and  aided  by  Archbishop  Langton;  less,  it  would  seem  pretty 
clear,  from  any  genuine  patriotism  on  his  part,  than  from  old  detestation 
of  John,  exacerbated  and  festered  by  the  obstinacy  with  which  he  had 
resisted  Langton's  admission  to  the  primacy.  At  a  private  meeting  of 
the  most  zealous  of  the  barons,  Langton  not  only  encouraged  them  by  his 
own  eloquent  advice,  but  also  produced  a  copy  of  the  charter  of  Henry  I., 
which  he  had  rummaged  out  of  some  monastic  crypl,  and  urged  them  to 
make  tiiat  the  guide  and  basis  of  their  demands,  and  to  persevere  until 
those  demands  were  both  fully  and  securely  conceded  to  them.  Perceiv- 
ing the  effect  of  this  conduct,  he  repeated  it  at  another  and  more  numerous 
meeting  of  the  batons  at  St.  Edmund's  Bury  in  Suffolk  ;  and  the  charter, 
supported  by  its  own  vivid  eloquence,  so  wrought  upon  the  barons,  that 
ere  tlioy  separated  they  solemnly  swore  to  be  true  to  each  other,  and 
never  to  cease  to  make  war  upon  their  faithless  and  tyrannical  king  initil 
he  should  grant  their  juit  demands.  This  done  they  separated.  :ifter 
lixing  upon  a  day  for  their  reunion  to  commence  their  open  and,  il  need 
be,  armed  advocacy  of  their  cause. 

A.  D.  1215. — On  the  given  day  they  punctually  met,  and  deinanderi  thoir 
rights,  as  promised  by  his  own  oath  and  as  laid  down  in  thi-  ''h  irter 
of  Henry  I.  Alarmed  at  their  union,  John  promised  that  thtiy  shoiiM  be 
answered  on  the  following  Easter;  and  the  primate  with  the  hiih"pof  Ely 
and  the  earl  of  Pembroke  becoming  surety  for  the  performance  of  the 
kinpi's  words,  the  barons  contentedly  retired  to  tlieir  castles. 

B'lt  John  had  sought  delay,  not  for  the  purpose  of  considering  the  nature 
and  propriety  of  the  demands,  but  for  that  of  finding,  if  possible,  some 
means  by  which  at  once  to  baulk  the  barons  and  to  be  avenged  of  them. 
Having  experieii<'i'ii  to  his  cost  the  power  of  Rome,  he  thought  his  best 
.vay  t(t  baffle  his  nol)les  was  to  conciliate  the  church,  to  which  he  volun- 
tarily made  many  concessions  and  compliments  ;  one  of  the  former  being 
his  voluntary  relinquishment  of  that  right  to  investiture  which  the  pre- 
vious Norman  kings  had  so  stoutly  ballle<l  for,  and  one  of  the  latter,  an 
equally  voluntary  proffer  and  promise  to  lead  an  army  against  the  infideN 
if)  the  Holy  Land ;  and,  to  signify  his  entire  sincerity  upon  this  last  point, 


T' 


w 


!64 


THE  TKISASUHY  OF  H18T011V. 


he  at  once  assumed  the  Cross.  Both  from  Jolin's  urgency  for  his  protec 
tioii  and  from  llie  counter  and  no  less  urKent  instances  of  the  barons,  the 
pope  was  excited  to  much  ahirni  about  Kngland,  for  the  peace  and  pros- 
perity  of  which  li*-  had,  since  .John  basely  became  his  vassal,  coMccived  a 
son  of  paternal  interest.  Kiiowing  fidl  well  how  much  more  difficult  ii 
would  be  to  deal  with  the  power  of  I']ngland  under  the  bold  barons  than 
under  a  despised  and  weak  prince  like  John,  it  was  obviously  to  the  in- 
terest of  InnoL'cnt  to  uphold  the  latter  as  faras  possible  against  the  formeri 
and  lijL!  thrrofore  issued  a  bull,  in  which  he  characterised  the  proceedings 
of  tlie  barons  as  illegal  and  treasonable;  forbade  them,  under  pain  ol 
excommunication,  from  persisting  in  their  demands  ;  and  enjoined  Jolin, 
under  tlie  same  penalty,  not  to  comply  with  them. 

The  primate,  being  in  favour  of  the  barons,  refused  to  give  formal 
publicity  to  this  bull;  and  though  he  was  suspended  for  his  conduct  in 
lliis  respect, the  failure  of  tlie  bull  was  not  the  less  insured;  and  thus  a 
new  proof  was  afforded  how  much  the  pope's  power  depended  upon  the 
extent  and  cordiality  of  the  co-operation  of  the  rest  of  the  church.  But 
though  the  pope  and  the  king  thus  exerted  themselves  to  defeat  the  barons, 
the  latter  succeeded  in  wresting  from  the  king  that  well  known  dcMlara- 
tion  of  rights  and  definition  of  prerogative  known  as  Magna  Chartn,  or  the 
Great  Charter — a  document  which  we  need  not  insert  here,  on  account  ol 
its  general  notoriety.  But  no  charter  or  agreement  could  bind  tlie  king; 
he  introduced  foreign  mercenaries,  besieged  and  took  Rochester  ensile, 
and  barbarously  put  all  but  the  very  highest  of  the  garrison  to  deatli,  and 
then  curried  fire  and  sword  into  the  towns  and  villages  throughout  Eng- 
land. The  barons,  chiefly  from  some  faults  or  omissions  on  their  own 
part,  were  reduced  to  such  straits,  that  they  ventured  in  the  nnpiilrioiic 
and  dangerous  expedient  of  offering  the  crown  of  England  to  Prince  Louis, 
son  of  Philip  of  France. 

A.  D.  121G, — The  prince  accordingly  landed  in  England  with  a  large 
force,  in  spile  of  the  menaces  and  orders  of  the  pope  ;  John  was  deserted 
by  the  foreigners  upon  whom  he  chiefly  depended,  and  who,  though  wil- 
ling enough  to  slaughter  his  English  subjects,  were  naturally  iinwillluffto 
fight  agiiinst  their  own  native  prince,  \lost  of  the  English  nobility  wlio 
had  heretofore  sided  with  John,  now  deserted  him ;  town  after  town,  and 
castle  after  castle,  fell  into  the  hands  of  his  enemies;  and  everything 
seemed  to  threaten  him,  when  a  report,  true  or  false,  got  currency,  that 
Louis  merely  used  the  English  nobles  as  his  tools,  and  would  execute 
them  as  traitors  whenever  his  success  should  be  complete.  This  report 
had  visibly  turned  the  scale  once  more  in  favour  of  John.  Several 
nobles  returned  to  their  allegiance,  and  he  was  rapidly  collecting  power- 
ful forces  to  combat  for  his  kingdom,  when  a  heavy  loss  of  treasure  and 
baggage,  which  occured  as  he  was  passing  towards  Lincoln,  so  nniidi  ag 
gravated  an  illness  under  which  he  already  laboured,  that  lie  expired  at 
Newark,  on  the  17th  of  October,  1210,  in  the  forty  ninth  yeiir  of  his  age, 
and  in  the  eighteenth  of  his  agitated,  mischievous,  and  inglorious  reign. 

It  wiis  in  this  reign  liial  the  citizens  of  London  first  were  privilcj^'d  an- 
nually and  from  their  own  body  to  choose  their  mayor  and  common  ronn- 
eil,  and  to  elect  and  discharge  their  sheriffs  at  pleasure  Of  the  li  «g's 
cliar;icter  no  suinniary  is  needed;  both  as  man  and  as  sovereign  le  is 
but  too  forcibly  depicted  in  the  events  of  which  we  have  giv"  a  briei  bui 
ro'nplete  and  impartial  account. 


m^ 


THE  TUEA3UUY  OF  HISTOHY. 
CHAPTER  XXIIl. 


26a 


THE    REIO.V    OF    IIKNRY    III. 

i.D  1216.— Arthedealhof  John  hia  eldest  son,  Henry,  wa8  only  nine  years 
old ;  but  happily  he  had  m  the  carl  of  Pembroke  a  friend  and  guardian  who 
was  Imlh  able  and  willing  to  prevent  his  infancy  from  being  any  disad 
vimliige  to  him  ;  and  Louis  of  Prance,  who  expected  to  derive  great  bene- 
Si  from  the  death  of  John,  found,  on  the  contrary,  that  very  circumstance 
most  injurious  to  him. 

Immediately  after  the  king's  death,  the  earl  of  Pembroke  took  every 
necessary  precaution  on  behalf  of  the  young  prince.     He  had  him  crowned 
immediiitely  after  the  funeral,  and  caused  him  publicly  to  swear  fealty  to 
the  pope;  measures  most  important  tosvards  insuring  the  enthusiasm  of 
the  people,  on  the  one  hand,  and  the  support  of  Rome,  on  the  other.    Still 
farther  to  increase  the  popularity  of  the  young  king,  the  earl  of  Pembroke, 
BOW  regularly  authorized  with  the  title  of  protector  of  the  realm,  confer- 
red u|)oii  him  by  a  great  council,  issued  in  his  name  a  ii(!w  cliiirtcr,  chiefly 
founded  on  thai  which  John  had  granted  and  broken  throu'^h ;  and  sub- 
sequuiilly  he  added  several  still  more  popular  articles  to  it,  disaforcsting 
much  of  the  vast  quantity  of  land  whicli  had  arbitrarily  been  enclosed  by 
Riclmrd  and  John,  and  substituting  fine  and  imprisonment  for  the  more 
cruel  punishments  which  had  heretofore  been  awarded  for  forest  ofTences. 
While  active  in  taking  tnese  general  measures  to  secure  the  affections 
of  the  people,  the  earl  did  not  omit  to  exert  his  individual  inlluence  to  de- 
tach the  barons  who  had  sided  with  Louis.     He  pointed  out,  with  admira 
Lie  tact,  the  vast  difference  between  fighting  against  a  sovereign  of  mature 
years  who  had  wronged  and  insulted  tlioni,  and  warring  against  an  infant 
prince  of  the  race  of  their  ancient  monarchs,  to  set  up  in  his  place  the  son 
of  the  French  king;  he  dwelt  upon  the  good  measures  which  had  already 
been  effected  by  the  goverinnont  of  the  infant  king,  and  besought  them  to 
take  the  favourable  opportunity  now  offered,  of  abandoning  the  cause  of 
Louis,  whicii  was  unjust  in  itself,  anathematized  by  the  pope,  and  had 
hitherto  been  as  singularly  unfortunate  as  it  was  obviously  unblessed.  The 
character  of  Pembroke  was  so  high  that  his  remonstrances  had  a  great 
effect  on  those  to  whom  they  were  addressed.     Many  barons  forthwith 
abandoned  Louis,  and  carried  over  their  strength  to  their  native  prince ; 
and  many  more,  though  not  yet  quite  prepared  to  go  all  that  length,  enter- 
ed into  a  correspondence  with  Pembroke  which  showed  their  leaning  that 
way.    Louis  added  to  this  leaning  by  the  impolitic  openness  with  which 
he  evinced  his  distrust  of  the  English.    Robert  Fiiz-Walier,  that  power- 
ful noble  under  whom  all  the  barons  of  England  had  thought  it  no  dis- 
grace to  range  themselves  when  they  commenced  the  struggle  with  the 
tyraiuJohn,  applied  to  Louis  for  thegovernmimt  of  the  castle  of  Hertford, 
and  was   refused,  although  he  had  a  personal  claim  upon  the  fortress. 
With  such  an  example  before  their  eyes,  how  could  the  barons  help  feel- 
ing that  he  was,  indeed,  making  mere  tools  of  them? 

Louis  lieing  obliged,  by  the  great  losses  he  had  sustained,  to  go  into 
France  for  reinforcements,  afforded  Ihe  doubtful  an  opportunity  to  return 
to  their  allegiance  and  join  Pembroke,  who  at  length  liid  siege  to  Lincoln 
city,  wliicli  was  garrisoned  by  the  French  under  Count  Perche,  who  in 
their  turn  hemmed  in  and  besieged  the  English  garrison  of  Lincoln  castle. 
\  sally  from  the  castle  was  made  at  the  same  moment  that  Pembroke  and 
liistrn()|)s  mounted  to  the  assault  of  the  town  ;  and  so  complete  was  the 
success  of  the  English  on  this  occasion,  that  the  fate  of  the  kingdom  may 
be  said  to  have  depended  on  the  issue. 

When  Pembroke  obtainiid  ihis  great  advantage  Louis  was  besieging 
Dover  castle,  which  was  as  ably  as  obstinately  defended  by  Hubert  de 
Hurgli;  and  on  hearing  the  tidings  from  Lincoln  he  hastened  to  London, 


t! 


266 


THE  TUKASDRY  OF  HISTORY. 


wlu'rc   the  farther  ill  news  awaited  him  of  the  defeat  and  dispersion  ot  a 
French  fleet  which  was  bringing  him  over  reinforcements. 

These  two  events  caused  new  desertions  of  the  English  barons  to  Pern 
broke;  and  instead  of  entertaining  farther  hope  of  winning  tiie  Eiiglisfi 
crown,  Louis  now  thought  only  of  securing  a  safe  and  speedy  departure 
from  a  kingdom  in  which  he  had  met  with  so  many  misfortunes  ;  he  ac- 
cordingly agreed  to  evacuate  the  kingdom  forthwith,  upon  the  sole  con- 
dition that  neither  in  property  nor  in  liberties  should  those  barons  v,iio 
had  adhered  to  his  cause  be  made  to  suffer  for  that  adherence. 

The  protector  readily  agreed  to  so  easy  a  condition  ;  and  the  civil  war 
being  thus  iiappily  terminated,  Pembroke,  as  regarded  the  lay  barons  who 
had  supported  Louis,  fully  performed  his  pari  of  the  agreement,  not  only 
restoring  them  to  tlicir  possesr-ions,  but  also  taking  every  opportunity  to 
show  that  tlieir  former  conduct  was  not  allowed  to  have  the  slightest  weight 
in  preventing  favour  or  preferment  from  reaching  hem.  For  the  clerical 
rebels  a  far  severer  fate  was  in  store.  As  far  as  regarded  the  merely  civil 
portions  of  their  oiFence  Pembroke  molested  none  of  them  ;  but  (iualo.the 
pope's  legate,  dealt  somewhat  more  sternly  for  the  contempt  and  disohedi- 
ence  with  which,  in  spite  of  the  interdict  and  excommunication,  t'ley  had 
dared  to  continue  to  support  Louis.  In  so  numerous  a  body  of  nie.i  it  was 
obviously  impossible  but  that  there  should  be  degrees  of  guilt;  and  ac- 
cordingly, wliile  some  where  deposed,  others  were  (uily  suspended  ;  some 
were  banished,  but  all,  whatever  their  degree  of  guilt,  had  to  pay  a  fine  to 
the  legate,  to  whom  this  wholesale  ctiastiseineiit  of  the  erring  clerks 
produced  an  immense  mmu. 

The  earl  of  Pembroke,  <()  whom  the  peace  was  so  greatly  owing,  died 
soon  after  its  eoiicliisinn,  and  the  protectorate  passed  into  the  h;in(ls  of 
Huliert  d(!  Durgh,  the  justiciary,  and  I'eter  des  Roches,  liishop  of  Win. 
Chester.  'I'hough  the  former,  who  took  the  chief  part  in  the  govtri\iiuiil, 
was  a  great  and  able  man,  he  had  not  that  personal  reputation  aini)i';r  the 
barons  which  had  been  enjoyed  by  the  earl  of  I'rinbroke,  and  which  had 
chielly  enabled  that  nobleman  to  curb  the  evil  dis|)ositions  which  now 
broke  forth  into  full  and  fell  activity,  insulting  the  royal  authority,  and 
everywhere  pillaging  and  eoercinir  the  people.  Among  the  most  dis 
orderly  of  these  was  the  earl  of  Albi  inarle.  lie  bad  served  lilliler  l,yii:s, 
but  had  (luii'kly  retiirneil  to  his  duty  and  distinguished  himself  in  (ijjliiing 
against  tlie  Ficnch.  His  disorderly  coi;:!'.ict  in  the  north  of  Fiigland  iiiiw 
became  so  notorious  am!  .-o  imschicvoiis,  that  Hubert  d<'  l)ur>;li,  iliimnh 
greatly  averse  to  harsh  measures  agaiii.sl  those  |)owerf\d  nobles  wliiibf 
future  favour  mighi  be  of  such  imp(utant  coiise(|uenee  to  his  jiniiig  king, 

Feized  Ujion  tl asile  of  fJockiiigham,  which  the  earl   had  filled  with  Ins 

lieenticms  soldiery.  The  earl,  su(iported  by  Fawkes  de  Hreiiul6  ami  ether 
warlike  and  turbulent  barons,  rorlilied  the  castle  of  Hilham,  put  IiiiukiK 
upon  Ins  open  defence,  and  seized  upon  the  c;isll(?  of  Foiheringay  ;  ami  u 
seemed  not  unlikely  that  llie  daring  and  injustice  of  this  one  man  would 
again  kindle  the  so  latelv  exilimuislied  llaims  «{  civil  war.  r  ortniii'iiiy. 
Paiid(df,  who  was  now  rest<ired  to  the  Iciraiitiiie  powiT  in  Fnuhinil,  «iis 
[ireseiit  to  tike  a  jiart  on  beh.alf  of  the  coiisliluted  aulhorilies.  He  isMini 
a  sentence  of  excommunication  not  only  against  Albemarle,  but  al>o  :ii 
jjcneral  ti'rins  agaiimt  nil  who  should  adiiere  to  that  noblemairs  caiise ;  am! 
an  (trmy.with  means  of  piiynig  it,  uere  providecl.  The  prompliludi' am! 
vigmir  of  these  measures  so  alarmed  Alhemarli-'s  adherents,  that  licMas 
on  the  instant  deserted  by  the  most  powerful  of  them,  and  saw  nuiliiiiij 
left  hut  to  sue  lor  the  king's  |iardnii,  which  was  not  only  uranled  liiiii  ;i* 
regarded  his  [lersim,  but  he  was  at  the  same  time  restored  to  his  •Uiiili' 
«!state. 

It  was  probably  the  eniifidenee  of  being,  in  the  lant  resoil,  able  In  m- 
«iire  himself  a   like  iin|icditie   ilegree  of  lenity,  that  encourigcd  Fiuvku 


THE  TilEASUllY  OK  HISrOllY. 


867 


rib  Bifiiiuto  to  treat  the  govermneiit  with  ii  most  uiilieardor  insolence  and 
coiiUinpt.  Having  been  raised  from  a h>w  ori|jin  by  Kinjr  John,  whom  he 
(oilinvL'd  in  tiiu  diseri'dilablf  capacity  of  a  nnlitary  "bully,  this  man  carried 
tlie  cimJii-t  and  manners  of  his  original  station  iiUo  tiic  higher  fortune  to 
wliicli  he  had  attained,  and  was  among  the  mo!<t  turbulcMit  and  unman- 
age.ilile  of  all  the  barons. 

To  desire  a  freehold,  and  forcibly  to  expel  the  rightful  owner  and  take 
possi.'ssion,  were  with  him  but  one  and  the  s.ime  thing;  and  for  literal 
roWit^ries  of  this  summary  and  wholesale  description,  no  fewer  than  thir- 
tvfive  v'!rdicts  were  recorded  against  him  at  one  time.  Far  from  being 
ahaslicil  or  alarmed  by  such  a  plurality  of  crime,  Fawkes  marched  a  body 
of  Ins  staiincliest  disorderlies  to  the  court  of  justice  which  was  then  sit- 
till^^  seized  upon  his  bench  the  judge  who  had  ventured  to  deiude  against 
so  pou'iit  an  ort'ender,  and  actually  in'prisoried  that  judicial  dignitary  iu 
Ueiifird  castle.  Having  gone  to  this  extent,  Fawkes  could  have  but  little 
coni|iiii»ction  about  going  still  farther,  and  he  openly  and  iu  form  levied 
war  upon  the  king.  Uul  he  had  now  gone  to  the  full  length  of  his  tether; 
he  was  opposed  so  vigorously  that  his  followers  were  soon  put  to  the 
roiii.  and  lie,  being  taken  prisoner,  was  punished  by  confiscation  and  ban- 
ishiaeiil. 

A.  u.  Vi-i'i. — Tn  tills  year  a  riot  broke  out  in  the  metropolis.  Com- 
mcnciiij;  in  some  pcUly  dispute  that  occurred  during  a  wrestling  match 
liplween  a  portion  of  the  rabble  of  London  and  Westminster,  it  at  lenglli 
rosclo  a  desperate  and  dangerous  tnmnll,  in  ihe  course  of  wliicli  several 
persons  were  muirh  hurl,  and  some  houses  were  plundered  and  demolished. 
These  houses  belonging  to  so  iniporlant  a  person  as  the  abbot  of  West- 
minster, that  cireumslancc;  alone  would  probably  have  eiused  the  riot  to 
be  looked  njion  iu  a  serious  light  at  court.  Hut  it  fariher  app(Nired,  that 
ill  the  course  of  tin;  conllici  (he  combatants  on  either  or  both  sides  had 
been  heard  to  us(!  the  French  war-<'ry  ".Monntjoy  St.  Denis!"  and  the  re- 
cent attempt  by  Louis  upon  the  Fngllsh  crown  caused  Ihe  ns(!  of  this 
Wiir-ery  to  giv(!  lo  an  ordinary  riot  something  of  the  aspect  of  a  political 
and  tr('as(Miah!e  atl(!mpt;  and  Hubert,  the  justiciary,  personally  took  cog« 
iiiziiiiee  of  the  matter.  The  ringleader,  Constanline  Filz-.Vrnulf,  bi  iiaved 
Willi  much  self-possession  and  audacity  when  before  the  jitsliciarv',  and 
Hiis  forthwith  led  out  from  his  presence  and  hanged  ;  wliih;  several  of 
those  whose  guilt  was  confessedly  less  heinous  had  their  fe(!t  ampulateil; 
all  awful  severity  under  any  iiossible  cireninstaiii'cs — how  much  more 
so  when  contrasted  with  the  lenity  shown  to  so  desperate  an  otrender  us 
Fawkes  de  Ureanto ! 

Shortly  after  tins  alFair,  which  was  much  complained  of  as  b(  iiig  roii- 
trary  to  ihe  (treat  Charter,  Hubert  |)n)eured  a  bull  from  the  pope,  pro- 
iioiineliig  the  kiiigof  fuli  age  lo  govern.  \\r  then  resigned  into  the  young 
kind's  liaiuls  the  Tower  e!"  liOiidon  and  Dover  castle,  which  had  been 
eiilniste  1  to  him  ;  and  h'tvini;  by  this  example  aciiuired  the  greater  right 
lo  (leiuand  at  the  hands  of  other  nobles  a  similar  streiiglheniug  of  tlio 
iiuii'li-iiiipaired  power  of  (he  crown,  he  formally  did  so.  lint  the  barons 
of  that  day  were  like  the  rake  of  a  later  dramatist;  they  "could  admire 
virtue,  but  could  not  imitate  it."  All  murmured,  most  reiii«ed  to  comply, 
and  many,  among  whom  were  the  earls  of  (Chester  and  .Mliemarle,  John, 
constable  of  Chester,  Joli;i  de  Lacy,  and  William  do  Conrtel,  absidutely 
met  111  arms  at  Waliham  aiu'i  prepared  ti  march  in  hostile  airay  upon 
London.  Hut  before  they  had  timc^  to  commence  this  actual  levying  of 
civil  war  they  had  tidings  that  the  king  was  prepared  to  outiiiimber  and 
(li'l'ei.t  them.  The>,  therefore,  abaiidoneil  their  design,  and  appi^a"ed  at 
court,  whither  tin  y  were  summoned  lo  answer  for  Iheir  cimdnct.  lint 
thmiyli,  »%  II  inaiter  of  prudence,  they  liad  laid  aside  Ihe  design  of  levyiiiK 
ibsoluio  war  upon  their  soverunj.i,  they  made  no  profcssiuu  of  repeiil- 


268 


THE  TREASURY  OF  H18TOR 


ance.  On  the  contrary,  while  they  eagerly  disavowed  any  personal  hos- 
tility to  the  kini;  liiinself,  they  equally  admitted  that  they  were  hostile  to 
Hubert,  and  that  they  were  still  as  deieriniiied  as  ever  to  iusist  upon  (us 
removal  from  iiis  power  and  authority.  They  were  too  numerous  and 
potent  to  be  subjected  to  the  punisliment  which  their  insolent  sedition 
merited  ;  and  |)iobably  it  was  their  perception  of  that  as  the  real  cause  of 
their  bciu.ir  sulTered  to  retire  unscathe<l  from  court  after  so  open  a  iIccIh- 
ration  of  liieir  hostility  to  Hubert,  that  encouraged  them  very  shortly 
afterwards  to  hold  another  armed  meeting  at  Leicester.  Here  again  they 
det(!rniiiied  tiiat  the  king,  then  resident  at  Northampton,  was  too  strong 
atid  too  well  propanul  to  allow  of  their  seizing  upon  his  person,  which, 
despite  tiieir  former  disclaimer,  it  was  all  along  their  desire  to  do.  Itut, 
as  if  watciiing  for  some  relaxation  of  the  vigilance  of  the  justiciarv,  or 
some  diminution  of  the  royal  forces,  they  kept  together  under  the  prc- 
teiitu!  of  celebrating  Christmas.  As  it  was  (^vid<Mit  thai  misciiief  weiild 
speedily  occur  to  botii  king  and  peopK".  unless  tiiese  l)old  bad  men  were 
stopped  bel'ore  they  had  encouraged  each  other  too  far,  the  arclil>ish(ip  mid 
the  prelates  sternly  remonstrated  with  them,  and  threatened  iheni  with 
innnediate  excomnuinication  as  the  penalty  of  their  longer  delaying  their 
submission  to  the  king  anil  the  (lisbaiiding  of  their  hostile  array.  Most 
of  the  castles  were,  upon  this  thrt;:it,  given  ii|>  to  the  king,  and  we  iniiy 
judgt!  how  neces.-iary  a  ste|)  Hubert  had  taken  (Ui  behalf  of  his  young 
sovereign,  when  we  r(!ad  that  there  were  in  ihigland  at  that  time  no  less 
than  eleven  hunched  and  fifteen  of  ihest^  castles.  When  i;ulien's  jwjit  and 
wise  design  was  fuKilled,  tin;  king  restored  to  that  faithful  subject  and 
servant  the  fortresses  he  had  surrendered,  ami  this  restoration  was  bittcdy 
complain.  ■!  of  by  the  factious  barons,  wliii  chose  not  to  perceive  the  iii). 
mense  diirirence  between  fortresses  held  for  the  king  and  fortres.'-es  held 
against  him. 

Parliament  having  granted  tlie  king  a  fifteenth,  he  was  obliged  to  employ 
it  in  carrying  on  war  against  France,  in  spiles  of  the  disalTected  stale  of 
so  many  of  his  most  powerful  snbiects.  For  lleiiiv  having  demuiuk'd 
the  resiiliition  of  Ins  ancesir.il  Normandy,  Louis  VIII.  was  so  fir  from 
making  that  restit.itlon,  that  hi  inad(!  a  sniideii  altnk  upon  i'nu'teii,  Im<- 
Biegeil  and  took  ICoclielle,  and  shuweil  an  evident  deterunnalioii  todc|iriv(' 
the  Knglisli  of  their  very  small  remaining  continental  ti  rritory.  The 
king  sent  over,  as  his  lienlenanls,  his  brntlier  the  t'arl  of  (>)riiwall,  and 
his  uncle  thi^  earl  of  S;disl)iny,  who  succeeded  in  preventing  any  lnrlhcr 
progress  (III  the  [)art  of  '.oiiis,  and  in  keeping  the  vaKsais  of  (t.isiMiiy 
and  I'oiclou  in  obeiiienciv,  and,  after  two  years'  stay  in  Frame,  iliiiini; 
which  the  military  operations  lunoiiiited  to  iinlliing  higher  than  what  iiiml- 
em  generals  would  term  a  skirmish,  the  earl  of  ('ornwall  returned  tu 
England. 

A.  n.  IJJ7. — Thiuigh  Ricliard,  rail  of  Cornwall,  tieems  to  have  cirtd 
little  ennugli  for  the  ordinary  ends  of  ainbition,  lit!  had  a  greediness  of 
gain  winch  answered  all  llie  purposes  of  aiiibiluiii  in  arraying  him  against 
Ins  brother  a"d  king;  and  a  petty  dis|iiile  which  arose  out  of  the  iMrfH 
({reed  am!  Ins  niijiist  course  of  gratifying  it,  not  only  |iroihiced  lewd  among 
the  brothers,  but  had  well  nigh  involved  the  wlioli!  nation  in  a  civ'!  tvHr, 
and  certainly  wonhl  have  do'  sn  nut  for  the  weak  and  yielding  ctiaracti'i 
of  Henry,  whose  nresnh  '-iveii  tliUH  early  became  manifest  to  both 

Ins  friends  and  his  eiiemie.  > 

Taking  advantage  of  a  disp'ite  whi<'ti  had  occurred  lietweeii  MichimI 
and  <Mie  of  the  barons,  ndative  to  the  possessnm  uf  a  certain  manor,  a 
powerful  confederacy  of  disconten'  l  nobles  was  formed  against  the  kin^', 
who  at  length  yielded  the-  point  through  fear,  and  made  concessions  as 
impolitic  as  they  were  inglorious  to  hit-  as  a  Kovereign.  So  weak  and 
i»liant,  in  fact,  vvus  the  character  uf  Hei    y,  that  it  may  be  doubted  wlictliuf 


THE  TREASURY  OV  HI8T0RT. 


2G9 


he  would  evor  have  reigned  at  all  had  the  care  of  his  minority  fallen  into 
the  liaiids  of  a  less  able  and  upright  man  than  Hubert  (i(!  Uurgli.  And 
it  w:is  no  small  proof  of  his  weakness  that  after  al  the  iniportant  and 
gieadfist  services  vvhieli  he  had  received  from  Dc  Burgh,  that  innusler 
was  dismissed  his  otiice,  deprived  of  his  property,  driven  to  take  sanc- 
uiiiry,  ili'awn  thence  and  committed  lo  close  custody  in  the  castle  of  De- 
vizes, for  no  other  reason  than  that  Ik;  had  been  faithful  to  the  king. 
Oilier  mil  char^re  than  this  there  was  none;  though  several  j)reteni',e9 
were  uigrd  against  liiin,  such  as  the  frivolous  ones  of  his  having  gained 
tin;  kings  fivoiir  and  afleriion  by  iieis  of  enchantment,  and  of  purloining 
fioiii  tlie  royal  treasure  a  gem  winch  had  the  virtue  of  rendering  its 
woanT  invulnerible  !  Hubert  was  at  length  driven  into  exile;  but  re- 
ciilUid  and  taken  into  fivoiir  with  just  as  little  apparent  reason  as  there 
hail  bt'cn  fur  Ins  persecution.  ![e  seems  in  his  adversity  lo  h.ive  at  least 
leariii'd  llie  valuable  lesson  of  the  danger  of  counselling  wiscdy  a  w^ak 
king;  I'lir,  tliongh  he  was  now  personally  as  much  a  fivourite  as  ever,  he 
iii'vi'r  aflcrwards  showed  any  desire  to  resume  his  perilous  auiuorily, 
winch  was  bestowed  at  his  overthrow  upon  I'cKt,  bishop  of  VVinclicster, 
iiii.iiive  of  I'ojcton,  aibiirary  and  violent,  but  without  any  of  lliibcri  de 
lliiriili's  lalent  or  ^Murage,  and  so  litlli'  (itled  for  the  almost  sovereign 
;uiili(iriiy  that  was  entrustcil  to  him,  thai  it  was  mainly  owing  to  his  mis- 
coiidiii't  and  tyranny  as  judiciary,  and  regent  of  tlu'  kingdom  diiniig  an 
ahst'iu'c  of  Kinu  John  in  rranci,'.  iliai  tiie  bannis  bad  been  slung  into 
that  iiu'iiiDrable  coinbinaiiiMi  which  rcsultiul  in  the  great  charter,  ilie  foun- 
daimn  of  (sonstnmional  liberty  in  I'liiglaiid. 

».  n  l-'.'U. — Like  all  weak  persons,  Henry,  while  he  fell  his  own  inca 
■;ai'iiy  for  governing,  was  unwilling  lo  abide  by  the  advice  of  those  who 
woic  woriliy  of  Ins  confidence;  and  feehng  that  his  true  nature  was 
slirewdly  nnderslood  by  bis  own  subjects,  he  inviied  over  a  ureat  nnmbei' 
of  I'oieievins,  in  whom  he  rightly  supposed  ihal  lie  would  find  more 
pliancy  and  less  resiraint.  Upon  ilnne  foreign  sycophants  he  ronferred 
varimis  olFi  cs  of  trust  and  powi  r  whidi  Jie  feand  to  bestow  upon  his 
r.iiLilisli  subjecis.  ('onlideni  in  the  pri'  on  of  the  king,  i  illaied  by  the 
sircain  of  good  rorlune  wbicdi  osuddenl,  ilowed  in  upon  them,  and  either 
■gimraiil  (m-  heedless  of  ihe  hale  and  jeal  eisy  of  which  tlie_-  wi-re  the  oh 
("cts,  iliese  foreign  favonriies,  by  tluir  insolence,  added  lo  the  rancour  of 
tilt'  powerfnl  enemies  by  whom  Ihe  nii  r"  favour  and  profuse  liberality  of 
llic  king  were  of  ilieinselve.  irieicnt  to  surround  ili.'in.  The  barons,  on 
ihcoiher  hand,  tinding  all  in  .i''ei  lokiais  of  llieir  disple;isure  iinallended 
ti>,  al  length  lelnsed  lo  attend  ibeii  p;(rliameniary  diilie>,  ninler  pretence 

iif  rearing  ihe  power  of  ihe  fon  igners  ;  and  when  the  king  i lonslrated 

ami  plainly  ctinmaniled  iheir  Iteiid  nice,  they  replied  that  lliey  winild 
Rtli'ii  I  no  more  until  ihe  king  should  have  dismissed  lb"  I'oiclcvins,  ani' 
lliil  if  he  did  not  speedily  dismiss  ilinse  men,  bulb  ihey  and  be  should  bo 
inviii  from  the  kmgiloin.     Al  h  iigth,  however,  the  barons,  altering  Iheir 

in ill!  proceed  to  parliament,  bin  in  so  warlike  a  uni-e,  ihal  it  w.is  evi- 

li'iil  Ihey  intend  -li  to  overawe  the  king,  and  make  llieir  own  will  serve 
fur  law  both  lo  ban  and  lo  Ihe  kingdom.  And  tins  ib  y  donblless  would 
«|)»i'(lily  Inive  dmu'  with  the  slrony  hind,  had  they  been  opposei'  by  no 
ibler  ani;igonisi  than  Ihe  king.  Hut  Ihe  justiciary,  I'eler  den  Ho. 'bis,  «o 
ibly  enipinyed  their  inlerval  of  irresoliilKMi,  thai  he  deiaidied  from  llieni 
an:  only  Ihe  earls  of  Chester  ami  liincoln,  but  iilso  the  earl  of  rornwa.'l, 
Ml'  king's  broilier,  and  tliiw  ho  mneh  weakened  the  eonfeileraey,  that  it 
^•■^s  broken  np  and  its  leaders  exposeil  to  the  vengeance  of  the  king, 
lliiiiird,  I  earl  mirshil,  lleil  into  Wali-s  and  Iheiiee  lo  Irclind,  where 
ho  WIS  assis«iii;ii(.(| ;  lUliers  of  Ihe  barons  were  forlnnate  enough  to 
escape,  bni  tlicir  estates  were  eonlisealed,  and,  with  the  king's  usn  il  folly 
aiid  profusion,  dislribiiied  uinong  the  already  weallh-gorged  foreigners j 


■^|V|*  „,;,:. 


.iifw# 


270 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


■* 


and  llic  justiciary  publicly  said  that  the  barons  of  England  must  learn  to 
know  themselves  as  inferior  to  those  of  France  ! 

To  what  extent  of  insolent  tyranny  he  who  uttered  such  a  speech  might 
have  proceeded  it  is  not  easy  to  guess ;  but  his  pride  met  wiih  a  sudden 
check,  and  that  from  a  quarter  wiience  he  niigiit  reasonably  have  least 
anticipated  it.  The  church  became  alarmed  for  its  own  int(!resi3  ;  several 
of  the  prelates,  well  knowing  the  general  discciiitent  tiiat  was  spreading 
among  the  people  in  consequence  of  the  insolent  and  tyrannicid  coiuiiict 
of  the  Justiciary,  attcnided  iho  archbishop  of  Canterbury  to  couri,  whi^re  he 
strongly  represented  to  Henry  the  impolicy  as  well  as  injustice  of  the 
course  he  had  pursued  himself  and  allowed  the  jusliitiary  to  pursue  ir.  his 
name;  and,  altributing  all  the  evil  to  the  justiciary,  demanded  his  dis- 
missal on  paiii  (if  an  instant  sentence  of  excomnumication  against  the 
king  himself.  Timid  by  nature,  though  w(dl  enough  inclined  towards 
(jespulism  while  it  could  be  practised  safely,  Henry  was  struck  with 
alarm  at  lUc  threat  of  excommunication,  wiiich  Ik;  rightly  juilgcil  would 
be  satisfactory  to  the  oppressed  people  as  well  as  to  the  barons,  and  he 
couseiitecl  to  the  dismissal  of  I'cter  des  Rociiea.  The  primate  siii'coeded 
him  in  the  task  of  ordering  state  alfairs  ;  and  being  a  man  of  proini  titnde 
as  W(dl  as  of  good  sense,  lie  speedily  restored  content  by  baiiisliiiig  thn 
detested  foreigners  and  reinstating  the  Kiiglish  magnates  in  the  ollices 
from  which  they  had,  as  insultiiigiy  as  unjustly,  bi.'en  banished. 

A. I).  i'SV). — The  inclinations  of  a  weak  jirince,  hoW(!ver,  are  usuallytoo 
strong  lor  the  advice  of  llie  most  prudent  minister,  and  the  coinplainls  of 
the  king's  pri'l'i'ieiice  of  foreigiierM  soon  bi!(;ami;  louder  than  ever. 

Hiiviiig  niiirried  i'',leanor,  (laiighler  of  the  count  of  I'roveiice,  Henry 
surroiiiidcii  luins(df  with  her  counirymen  and  tiiosi!  of  her  inatcnial  uncle, 
the  binhopof  Valence,  who  was  oi'  the  house  of  Savoy.  The  I'roveiijals 
and  Savoyards  now  tasted  if  the  king's  iinliscrimmate  bouiily  as  largely 
as  the  Poiclccins  had.  The  bishop  of  Valence  became  as  potent  ii  per- 
HOiiugc-  as  Peiii-r  d(!s  Ivoclu's  had  been;  another  member  of  the  family  ol 
Peter  was  preseiued  wiih  the  manor  of  liii  hinoiid  and  the  great  wiirdship 
of  the  (Mi'l  of  Wareiine,  uiiil  Uoiiifiiee,  also  of  S  avoy,  was  made  arcliliisliiip 
of  CanterlMiry.  Nnr  were  lUe  men  alone  thus  lorlniiate  ;  to  the  ladies  of 
Savoy  the  king  gave  iti  mam  ige  the  young  and  w,  a|il,y  nobles  who  were 
his  war  Is.  Profusion  like  tins  soon  exhausted  even  the  moini'ch's  ainpln 
means,  .md  :iii  attempt  was  made  to  put  the  kiiiR  in  possession  of  rniidii 
for  farther  liberaliiies,  Uy  (dit;miiiig  an  alisiihitioii  for  him  from  Konu; 
frum  the  o  itli  wlliidl  he  h.id  taken  to  support  Ins  former  granis  to  Ins  lliiir- 
lish  ."iuhjecii'  III  tniih,  it  soon  liei'aine  necessary  either  that  the  king 
iih(>«<<l  obtain  new  funds,  <«•  that  he  slnnild  ;■:,  iiidoii  Ins  system  of  pmfii- 
*ior  for  a  new  claim,  wlneh  had  scmie  show  d  renson,  was  now  inaili'n|um 
hull.  It  will  he  remembered  iliat  Henry's  Uioiher,  Is.ibella,  had  lieiii  liy 
lh<f  violence  of  King  John  taken  from  her  la^^'flll  liiisliand,  the  coniil  ilr  la 
Marciv;  and  to  uiin,  as  soon  afier  Join's  death  as  decency  would  ;illiiw, 
nil*-  h!«t  given  her  hand  in  soeiMid  marnago.  Hy  this  second  ni.iiri:i!{ii 
she  Intd  four  >i>ii".  <)uy,  Willi;im,  <ieo(Trey.  an  I  \yliiier,  whom  she  sent 
over  to  vinit  Heii»\-.  Their  being  foreigners  would  perhaps  h.ive  heeiKiniic 
Niifllct^ot  lo  pr<  t>r<>  for  them  a  eimh  d  reception  ;  but  having  the  additiniiiil 
re.'oiii>iieiidatioii  ■,(  riemg  Ins  h-dflirnihers,  they  were  rapinrmisly  ic- 
ceived  i)v  hiiii,  a-x'  'n-'ciped  w^  ilth  and  dignities  upon  them,  with  ii 
nioHt  entire  uir  ii'icern  a*  lo  Ins  i/«ii  me,ins  and  as  to  the  fei  Iiul's  ;nid 
claims  (if  III*  Hiit>|re|«.  In  ehiireh  i%r  m  wiaie,  I'oringners  we;c  coiHi.nillv 
preferred  to  iihIcvi  <,  and  vrhilc  Henry  was  lavistnng  wealth  and  rivil 
liifiioiira  n|)'«(i  l>i«"  Poieti'viii*.  Savoyard-,  ami  (iaseons.  the  overwlieliniiig 
:n4lo^ticp  of  Hi«m«  liliml  tl»*  ritdiest  cliurcit  bfniertccs  of  Kngiann  wilii 
naNWtv!**  Ii>ilian  inoiiki.  Mid  it  was  ttt  uimi  tmie  proved  to  d(niioiistratiu;i 


THE  TIIE/.3URY  OF  HISTORY. 


271 


that  the  Italian  intruders  into  the  cluirch  were  in  tlie  yearly  receipt  of  a 
revenue  considerably  larger  than  that  of  the  kiwi;  himself! 

Under  such  circumstances  it  was  natural  tii-.a  the  parliament  should 
show  some  unwillingness  to  gtrant  supplies  to  a  king  who  so  ill  knew  how 
to  use  his  funds,  or  that  men  of  all  ranks  should  murmur  against  a  king 
so  eiitinily  destitute  of  patriotic  feeling;  and  the  more  especially,  as  he 
was  thus  lavish  to  foreigners  while  utterly  careless  V:  Hattfir  tlie  English 
witlitliat  martial  enterprise  which  then,  as  long  after,  \.-as  view(;d  by  them 
as  ?'nple  covering  for  many  defects,  personal  and  political.  Wlicnever 
l:e  demanded  supplies  ha  was  obliged  to  listen  to  the  complaints  of  the 
vinlt'iice  done  to  his  faithful  subjects,  of  the  mean  marriages  forced  upon 
those  of  the  liighesl  ranks,  of  the  actual  violence  by  wliii^h  his  table  was 
supplied,  his  person  decorated,  and  his  religious  solemnities  adorned. 

A.D.  1253.— To  all  tiie  complaints  of  this  nature  Henry  listiMied  with 
im|wlience,  and  replied  with  vague  and  general  promises  of  ami-udment; 
at  liMigtIi,  in  1253,  having  exhausted  the  patience  of  iiis  long-enduring 
suliji'cls,  lie  hit  upon  a  new  mode  of  obtaining  funds  from  them,  by  so- 
liciiiiig  a  supply  to  aid  him  in  the  pious  design  of  a  itrusade  against  the 
luliili'Is.  Uut  he  had  nosv  so  often  been  tried  and  found  wanting,  that  the 
parliament  could  not  put  faith  in  this  spiu-ious  profession.  The  clergy, 
too,  \vlii>  rightly  deemed  their  interests  perilled  by  the  infatuated  conduct 
of  tlic  king,  well:  as  much  opposed  to  him  as  the  laity';  and  tlnsy  sent  the 
arcliliisliop  of  (/'auterbiiry,  and  the  bishops  of  Winchester,  .Salisbury,  and 
Carlisle,  to  ri'inonstrate  with  him  ui)on  his  general  extravagamri;,  as  well 
as  n|)iiii  the  irregular  manner  in  which  he  disposed  cf  church  dignities. 
Upon  iliis  ()(M-asi(iii  Henry  displayed  more  than  Uif  usual  spirit.  Availing 
liiinsi'lf  of  the  fact  that  hi!  had  anally  favoured  thi'se  very  personages, 
liiM'eplied,  "  ll  is  true,  I  liarf  hi.  ii  in  error  on  this  point  of  jmpio|)i'r  pro- 
nioliiins;  I  obtruded  you.  my  lord  of  ('anterhiiry,  upon  your  sec;  i  was 
ohliiTi'd  to  eniploy  both  tlireals  and  periiiasioiis,  my  Ion!  of  Winchester, 
to  iiave  you  elfcted ;  and  irregular,  indeed,  was  my  coniluc.I,  my  lords  of 
Sa.isiiiirv  and  Carlisle,  when  from  your  lowly  stations  I  raised  you  to 
yiiiir  present  dianities,"  There  was  miieli  truih  in  this,  but  there  was  no 
apology;  and  the  prelates  slinnvdly  replied,  that  the  question  was  not  of 
errors  past,  but  of  tin;  uvnidi.iiee  of  future  errors. 

Ndiwiilisiandmg  the  fareasm  with  which  the  king  met  the  complaints 
of  till'  predates,  he  promised  so  fairly  for  the  reforniiilioii  of  both  eeelesi- 
asiii'al  and  civil  abuses,  that  the  parliament  at  length  consented  to  giant 
liiia  a  teiilli  of  llii  ccelesjiislieal  heiieliees,  and  a  scutage  of  three  marks 
upon  eaeli  knight's  fee,  oil  eoiidilioii  of  Ills  solemnly  ratifying  111''  great 
rh  irler,  while,  wiih  the  ceremony  of  "  bell,  book,  ind  caiidie,'"  they  cursed 
wliotni  r  slioiilil  henceforth  violate  it.  The  king  jnmeil  iii  the  eereiuouy, 
audililv  iiiid  emphatieally  agreed  in  the  awful  enr^e  invoked  upon  any  vio» 
laiidii  iif  Ins  o.eli— itnd  iminedialidy  afterwiinls  returned  to  his  old  prac- 
lii'cs  lis  though  noiliing  extraordinary  had  occurred  ! 

A.n.  I'.'.'i-*. — ( 'oiiducl  so  infatieiled  on  till  part  of  the  king  iilmosl  septnod 
to  iiiviic  rebellion,  and  atleiigih  templed  one  ambil  ions  and  d  iring  noble  so 
far,  llial  he  determiiied  to  endeavour  to  «iii  the  throne  IVuin  a  king  who 
proved  himself  so  unwcrlliv  <tf  lilling  it  with  dignity  or  honour.  Simon 
de  Miiiitford,  a  son  of  the  great  warrior  of  thai  name,  iiavmi;,  thocLrh  born 
aliniiid,  niheriteil  large  property  in  Kngland,  was  created  earl  of  l.ejecs- 
ter, and  in  the  year  12.18  married  the  ilowaKercoiiiilessof  Prinhroke,  sister 
to  tlio  king.  Tlie  earl  had  been  sotnetiuies  greatly  favoured,  soinetiuieu 
as  fisfiially  di.sgraced  by  the  kiiiu,  bin  being  a  man  of  great  talent  he  ha*! 
t'ontrivcd  always  to  lecover  his  (ooilnu  at  court,  !.■  d.  whelher  in  or  out 
of  f.ivinir  Willi  the  king,  to  be  a  general  favourite  with  llui  people,  who  at 
IIS  first  nmrryiiig  the  king's  sister  had  hatial  and  railed  ag.nust  hnn  for 
ins  fundgii  birtli. 


THE  TRICASOBY  OF  HISTORY. 


Pei'cciviiig  liow  invpteratt'ly  tlio  kit)g-  was  addii'ted  to  liis  tyrannies  luii! 
follips,  this  ai'ifnl  iiiid  able  iiolileinaii  determiiifd  to  put  hnnscif  at  i'm' 
head  of  tlio  popular — or,  more  properly  speaking,  the  baronial  and  fliuiv!! 
— party,  believing  that  Henry  woidd  so  far  provoke  his  enemies  as  to  lusr 
his  throne,  in  whieli  ease  LcMeester  trusted  to  his  own  talents  and  intj 
to  enable   him  to  succeed  to  it.     Accordingly  he  took   up  the  cry 


mm- 


become  as  general  as  it  was  just,  against  the  king's  oppression  nf  tl,, 
people,  and  his  preference  of  foreigners — Leicester  convcnienllv  (iver- 
lo(diiiig  Ins  own  foreisju  birth! — and  sought  every  occasion  ofpuiiinff 
himself  forward  as  ihi!  advocate  of  the  native  barons  and  the  prcliiis! 
When  by  pcrsevrriiig  efforts  in  this  way  be  had,  as  lie  considercil,  sufli. 
ietitly  sirengll.  i!(d  his  own  hands  and  inflamed  tiic  general  n'seiiiiini^is 

/lIlIT 

lling 

iiltil 

alre-.idv  ;il- 


linst  the  k.'U;,  '.i'  took  occasion  of  a  quarrel  with  Henry's  lialf-hn 

1  favour!. c,  William  de  Valence,  to  bring  matters  to  a  crisis.     On 

i  meeting  of  the  most  incensed  and  powerful  of  the  barons,  he  nprcsi 


am 


to  them  all  those  violati(, 
hided,  and  demanded  whc 


f  the  charter  to  which  wc  have 

they  had  so  fir  degeiKTated  from  the  lijuli 


feelings  of  the  barons    vho  had  wrested  the  charier  from  John,  iliat  liny 
were  pi-et)areil,  without  v'ven  a  struggle,  to  see  it  a  mere  dead  leiter  ii  ijn- 


if  ik 


whose  most  sol 


emu  proinises  of  reformation  tln'v  I 


often  expericii  ;ed  to  lie  unworthy  of  belief 

There  wa<  so  imich  of  truth  in  Ijcicester's  harancue,  that  the 


■h  h 


<l  f. 


pnsilion 


lad  occupied  as  a  lavoureM  loreigner  was  oveiiooked,  his  iTcnm. 


niendaiions  were  mad(!  the  rule  of  the  barons'  coikUhM,  and  lliev  -.I'^rm] 
forthwith  to  take  the  governmeiil  of  public   alfaiis  into  their  own 


Thev  were  jnsi  then  summoned  to  nieei  the   king  for  the 


olil 


liaiiijs 
nirpiisp, 


namely,  to  grant  him  supplies,  and  to  his  a-ilonishineiit  be  found  ilicm  a; 
in  '•oinplete  armour.  Alarmed  at  so  iiniisn  il  a  sikIiI  and  at  the  soloiiiii  si- 
lence with  winch  he  was  received,  he  deiii  inded  wheihiT  he  was  to  |(K)k 
upon  llicin  as  bis  enemies  and  himsidf  as  tlwir  prisoner ;  to  whirh  Ihi^u,- 

upon  him  not  as  ihcir  iirj- 


1) 


iirod.  as  snokesman.  re.ilied.  that  the 


111  lli< 


('   lllilS! 


ROI1CI-,  but  as  their  sovereiL'ii ;  tli' ,  i!ii'y  had  mii  him  there 
dnlifnl  ilesire  to  aid  him  wi  h  siip),iM  .■.  that  h(^  mighi,  as  he  wished,  (ix  Ins 
son  upon  ihe  thrniie  of  Sicdy  ;  lint  they  at  the  sinie  time  desired  Lciliiiii 
refiM-iii*  which  the  expeiieucr  of  Ihe  past  plainly  showed  that  he  I'milil 
init  make  iii  Ins  nuu  person,  and  that  llley  llier(l'()r<.'  were  under  the  iii'ccs 
sjly  of  ri'(|iiiriiig  In  in  lo  coiiler  an!  horny  iipnu  those  who  woiiM  siri'iiii"iis 

ly  use  It  for  Ihe  nalioiial  benclil.    T' videni  delenninatioii  of  the  li.iniiis 

ami  the  urcil  and  inslaiit  n I  which  he  had  of  supplies,  left  the  kiiij:  no 


lice  .   he  Iheref'ore  assured  llieni  llial  he  would  shortly  siimi 


lion  aiiiiiiici 


[larlianieiit  fur  the   (declioii  of  persons  In  wndd  lli(!  authority  spukeii  of 


ind  al 


so  lo  srille  ami  diline  thai  aulliorilv  wilhin  precise  liiinls. 


A  pirlianiciil  was  a.-cordiiijly  called,  al  wlin-h  Ihi!  barons  niadc  t'lcii 
appear  nice  with  so  formidable  an  arineil  allcnd.ince,  that  it  was  i|iiiti> 
cl  ir  thai,  whaiever  they  might  propose,  the  king  tiad  no  power  In  iithi 
tn.  m. 

'I'widve  barons  were  sr'leclcil  by  llio  king  and  twrdvo  by  the  [jarliamni!, 
«nd  I'>  Ihe  biidy  thus  formed  an  nnlimii'd  relonniiiu  power  was  givi  m,  ilir 
kiin:  liimself  swearinu:  to  auree  \i>  and  inaiulaMi  whatever  they  shoiihidiiiii 
fit  IM  KcdiT.  Their  inslani  orders  were  most  rea-oiiihle;  that  tlirce  liiin'S 
in  each  vi'ar  the  parliameii!  should  ineel ;  that  on  ihe  next  mecling  iilpif 


laiiV'Ul  I  ii-li 


nhire  or  i  (ninlv  slnnild  scud  f  lur  kiiidhls  to  that 


P'irli 


iiiiii'iii, 


that  sii  ilie  «!spi'ciiil  wauls  and  uinvanees  of  every  part  of  the  kii"jil"iil 
inighi  be  kiii'wn;  thai  the  slierilfs,  oTicers  of  great  power  ami  iiillain  ■ 
»lioull  theniefnrlh  be  aiinii.illy  elected  by  the  cininlies,  and  slioiiii  ,' 
longer  b  ivi-  ilie  jiowcr  lo  line  barons  for  noi  allcndini;  their  coiuls  oriw 
ju-'iiei  Hies'  II  r.  nils  ;  thai  iio  easllcs  should  he  eoinnnlted  to  I  he  ciisi  I'v 
■nil  no  Inns  lo  the  ward-hins  of  foieigners,  that  no  new   forests  or     ,.f 


rt'ii.<!  should  be 

IK)  imiger  be  far 

Thus  far  the  1 

good  of  the  per 

shameful  profus 

destruction  of  t 

native  barons. 

regulations  ahov 

supplies,  he  WHS 

agaiiisi  his  half-t 

these  latter,  that 

l':ur  lives,  and  t 

more  violent  of  t 

to  which  see  Ayl 

ed  and  threatene 

destruction,  agree 

ill  the  persons  of 

his  favour,  the  ba 

and  oilier  chief  n 

ptTboiis  u|)on  who 

virtual  usurpation 

lo  obey  and  execii 

pain  oi'  being  decl 

under  the  pretence 

even  the  powerfii, 

I'lrums  were  not  c: 

A.D.  12(il._So  a 

ed  authority,  that  t 

feileracy.  separated 

encouraged  by  the 

htcoiniiigiiiore  tyrf 

'lial  lie  would  peril 

I'leir  ipforins  to  a  c 

The  spirit  of  the 

llif  crown,  that  Hei 

10  put  a  curb  upon  t 

11  kwew  how  preji 
P"''erofliisenemie 
lo  lioiiie  for  ahsolnl 
"I 'heir  authority— a 
01  tlie  misconduct  of 
I'd  with  the  English 
iiidc|ieiideiice  than 
iMiMins.     Prj,„.(,  |.;^ 
Haul  the  outrageous 
and  the  scrupulous  fill 
III'  had  been  forced  ii 
queiiily  H-^s  very  iuil 
,  A.D.   lj(J2.-Asso 
"•"111  Koine,  he  isbup, 
"""<'  part,  iriily   p;,,, 
i»inty.|\,|,r  baron.s  h, 
I'liii  111  duty  lo  Innis, 
'"•'ii'Valauthoritv  wi 
"^li'iii^-d  all  the  chief 
'"""it  of  th,;  sheriffs  „1 
'fcurcd  himself  he 

f-18 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


27» 


reus  should  be  mude ;  and  that  the  revenues  of  counties  or  hundreds  shoulu 
110  liirijer  be  farmed  out. 

Thus  fur  the  barons  proceeded  most  equitably.  But  bare  equity  and  the 
good  of  the  people  did  not  include  nil  that  the  barons  wanted.  As  the 
shiiineful  profusion  of  the  king  had  heaped  wealth  upon  foreigners,  so  the 
destruction  of  these  foreigners  would  yield  an  abundant  harvest  to  the 
naiive  barons.  Accordingly,  when  the  king,  having  acquiesced  in  the 
regulaiions  abovo-mentioned,  looked  for  the  promised  and  nsucli-needed 
supplies,  lie  was  met  by  loud  outcries  against  foreigners  in  general,  and 
against  his  half-brothers  in  particular.  So  loud  was  tlie  clamour  against 
these  latter,  that  even  the  king's  presence  seemed  insufHcient  to  secure 
l'\ir  lives,  and  they  took  to  flight.  Being  hotly  pursued  by  some  of  the 
more  violent  of  tiie  barons,  they  took  refuge  in  the  palace  of  Winchester, 
to  which  see  Aylmer  had  been  promoted.  Even  here  they  were  surround- 
ed ami  threatened,  and  the  king,  as  the  sole  mode  of  saving  them  from 
destruciion,  agreed  to  banish  tiiein.  Having  thus  nearly  attacked  the  king 
in  the  persons  of  those  who  had  some  reasonable  and  natural  claim  upon 
his  favour,  the  barons  next  proceeded  to  dismiss  the  justiciary,  treasurer, 
and  other  chief  ministers;  and  having  filled  tiiese  important  posts  with 
persons  upon  whom  they  could  iin|)liciily  rely,  they  next  proceeded  to  the 
viriuiil  usurpation  of  the  throne,  by  administering  an  oatii  to  all  liie  lieges 
10  obey  and  execute  all  the  regulations  of  the  twenty-four  barons,  undei 
paiu  uf  beinu  declared  public  enemies ;  and  such  was  the  power  which- 
under  the  preteixceof  the  purest  patriotism,  these  barons  had  usurped,  thai 
even  the  powerful  earl  Warennc  and  Prince  Kdward,  the  heir  to  the 
I'lroiii',  were  not  exempt  from  the  obligation  to  take  this  oatii. 

A.  D.  l'2(il. — So  arrogantly  did  ihe  barons  use  theircxtensive  and  usurp 
cd  authority,  that  the  earl  of  Gloucester,  from  being  a  chief  in  their  con 
federacy,  separated  from  it  to  side  with  tin?  king;  and  Prince  I'Mward, 
ciiMuragi'd  l)y  the  general  murmurs  of  tlu;  people  that  tlie  barons  were 
becoming  more  tyrannous  than  even  a  king  could  be,  threatened  the  barons 
lli;it  lie  would  peril  his  life  in  opposing  them  if  they  did  not  speedily  bring 
tlii'ir  reforms  to  a  close. 

The  spirit  of  the  prince  Rdward  rallied  so  much  favour  to  the  side  of 
llie  crown,  tiuit  Henry  thought  that  he  might  safely  vcnitinu!  to  einlcavour 
input  a  curb  upon  the  exorbit.uit  power  of  the  twenty-four  barons;  hui  as 
likiiew  how  prejudicial  to  his  interests  it  would  be  to  leave  it  in  the 
liiiwer  of  Ills  enemies  to  aci^usc;  hiin  of  pi'ijury,  ho  in  the  first  place  applied 
lu  Rome  for  absolulion  from  the  oath  he  had  made  to  support  me  harmis 
iiiilieir  authority — an  absoluli(m  winch  he  readily  received,  both  berause 
01  the  misconduct  of  lh(!  barons,  and  because  the  pope  was  seriously  nffeiul- 
I'd  with  the  linglish  ch^rgy  for  having  shown  a  greater  tendeniiy  towards 
iinli'peiideiice  than  squared  with  either  the  papal  nilorests  or  the  papal 
miixiins.  Prince  Kdward  refused  to  avail  himself  even  of  this  absolution 
until  the  outrneeous  miscoiKhict  of  the  barons  compelled  him  lo  ilo  so; 
and  Ihe  scrupulous  fidelity  with  winch  he  thus  kept  to  an  ciigagemi'^U  which 
III' Irid  been  forced  into,  procured  hiin  a  general  admiration  which  subse- 
quently was  very  importantly  beneficial  to  hiin. 

A.  D.  12G2. — .\s  soon  as  Henry  received  the  absolulion  he  had  •solicited 
I'iMiii  iioine.  III!  issued  a  proelainatioii,  in  whieh  be  liiiKu'ly,  ami,  for  iliF 
must  part,  truly  painted  the  personal  and  selfish  views  with  whii-h  the 
nvi'iity-ruiir  barons  had  both  sought  an<i  used  their  authoriiy,  ami  declared 
ihni  ill  duly  to  himself  and  Uis  jj-ople  he  should  from  thai  time  forth  use 
his  rcyal  authority  without  its  <liiniiiution  or  parlieipniion  l>y  any  one  ;  he 
i'lwiia;"(l  all  the  chief  oliicers  of  slate  and  of  Ins  own  household,  as  also 
most  of  till!  sheriffs  of  couiiiies  and  governors  of  castles.  Having  thus  far 
'ecured  himself  he  summoned  a  parliament,  which  met  on  the  iweiitv 
1-18 


•  I  ■ 

"^ V'  ^ 'till 


^<.-;-  ■■■',<■' 


ii'^'fW' 


S7* 


Thrt  TllEASUay  OP  HISTOHY 


third  of  April  in  this  year,  and  which,  with  but  five  disseiitin'   votes,  rr-,^ 
firmed  his  resiiinptiou  of  his  authority. 

But  the  siiuke  of  disjifTeetion  wrs  only  "scotched,  not  iiil',  '  "  maiiyol 
the  biirons  still  eornsponded  with  Lficester,  and  ttiat  liaiighty  „()b)e 
tlioiigh  rrsidcnt  i:i  France,  was  busily  employed  in  foiniuM.^g' vl  fnr  Knff! 
land,  which  h';  now  the  more  confidently  hoped  to  reign  over,  li'aiiselns 
powerful  rival  Gloucester  was  dead,  and  (li-lbcrt,  that  nobleman'  so-  and 
successor,  had  given  his  adhesion  to  Leicester. 

While  Leicester  and  his  adherents  were  busily  preparing  to  attack  it.e 
power  of  (he  king,  ihe  Welsh  suddenly  made  an  irrupti  ;u  over  she  border, 
probably  prompted  liy  Leicester.  The  prince  Kdwar;!,  liowi.  er,  n^iulsed 
Llewellyn  and  his  ill-disciplined  troops,  and  then  returned  to  aid  his  father 
against  whom  Leicester  was  now  openly  and  in  great  force  arrayed. 

Leicester  directed  his  attacks  chiefly  against  the  king's  demesnes,  ..nii 
excited  the  zeal  of  his  followers  to  perfect  fury  by  encouraging  them  'o 
spoil  and  plunder  to  their  utmost.  The  bishops  of  Hereford  and  Norwi, ,_ 
were  seized  and  imprisoned,  and  in  spite  of  the  determined  and  able  eon- 
due!  of  Priii.!e  Edward,  the  king's  cause  began  to  wear  an  unpromising 
aspc'.'t.  Tii(?  rabble  of  the  great  towns  were  the  zealous  adlierenta  o? 
Leicester,  whose  cause  and  liberty  to  plunder  they  coupled  ;  and  in  i.oa- 
don,  "<^pecially,  the  very  dregs  of  the  population  were  up  in  arms,  heailcd 
and  euiouraged  by  the  mayor,  a  violent  and  ill-principled  man  iiamn! 
Filz-Kitliard,  by  whom  large  gangs  of  desperadoes  were  encouraged  tu 
[lillage  the  wealthy  and  assail  the  peaceable.  The  season  of  Kaster  was 
espeei  illy  marked  by  these  outrages  in  the  metropolis.  A  cry  was  atlirst 
raised  against  the  Jews;  from  attacking  them  the  mohproceedel  toaitack 
th(!  Lombards,  then  the  chief  bankers  and  money  lenders  ;  and,  as  iisuhI 
in  such  cases,  the  violence  speedily  proceeded  to  be  directed  indiscrimi- 
nati.'ly  igainst  all  who  had  or  were  suspected  of  having  any  tliintj  to  be 
plundered  of.  To  su'di  a  height  did  the  fury  of  the  mob  proceed,  that  the 
queen,  who  was  then  lodging  in  the  Tower,  became  so  seriously  alarmed, 
that  she  left  it  by  water  with  the  intention  of  seeking  safety  at  Windsor. 
lint  as  her  barge  approached  London  Uridge  the  rabble  assailed  hnr,  not 
only  with  the  coarsest  abuse,  'nit  also  with  vollies  of  filth  and  stones,  so 
that  she  was  obliged  to  return  to  the  Tower. 

Prince  F.dwari'  was  unfortunately  made  [irisoner  during  a  parley  at  Ox- 
ford, and  that  event  so  much  weakeniid  the  king's  party,  that  Henry,  find- 
ing Leicester's  party  triumphant  and  insolent  all  over  the  kingdom,  wis 
fain  to  treat  for  pea('e.  Aware  that  they  had  the  upper  hand,  the  rebels 
would  allow  of  no  terms  short  of  the  full  power  formerly  given  tu  the 
twenty-four  barons  bemg  again  entrusted  to  a  like  mnnber,  of  whom  a 
list  was  given  to  the  knig;  and  as  Priiu'e  Fdward  had  shown  great  taleni 
and  daring,  Leicester  stipulated  that  the  treaty  now  made  should  remain 
in  force  during  the  life  of  the  prince  as  well  as  that  of  the  king.  Henry 
hail  no  choice  but  to  submit  ;  the  barons  restoreil  their  own  creatures  lo 
ofilee  in  the  fiu'tri'sses.  Ihe  countii's,  the  state,  ami  the  king's  hoiisphold, 
and  then  smuiTioiied  a  parliament  to  nteet  them  at  Westminster,  and  deter- 
mine npiiii  fuiiiri'  measures  for  the  government  of  Ihe  country. 

Prini'e  I'Muard  lieing  restored  to  liberty  by  this  treaty,  lost  no  time  in 
everting  himself  to  prepare  for  a  new  siriig<rle  against  the  insolent  preten- 
fii(ms  of  Leicester;  but  though  many  powerful  barons  gave  him  theiradhfi- 
sions.  iiicluiling  the  lords  of  the  Scotch  and  Widsh  marches.  Leicester's 
party  w.is  still  too  strong  to  give  tlie  young  prince  hopes  of  success;  and 
the  people  clamouring  loudly  for  peace,  the  prince  and  king  proposed  that 
the  di-ipiite  betiveeu  them  and  the  barons  should  he  rel'erri d  to  the  arbitra- 
lion  (jf  the  kit;;:  (>;"  Fr-'iiice.  That  uori'jht  prince,  on  exannnaiion  of  the 
affair,  (le;'i  led  that  the  king  shmild  be  liilly  restored  to  his  power  and  pre- 
roi,'aliv"S  on  the  one  band:  and  that,  on  the  other  hind,  the  peoiile  wiro 
eiititl'T.  to  al'.  the  bcnelits  of  the  great  chatter.     I'liKirtunately,  tlimi.:li 


THE  TllKASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


27* 


■,\t  Ox- 
jy.  tiilil- 

|ill,  WIS 

rebels 

to  the 

liom  a 
It  f.ileni 
1  reinam 

Henry 
lures  to 
lisplioW, 
111  deter- 

llime  in 
Ipreien- 
lirurihe- 
cesicr's 
s ;  anil 
cil  thai 
larbiir.i- 
li  of  \\v 
liiil  r"'- 

he  wero 


inis  dtcision  was  just,  it  only  loft  the  confencling  parties  precisely  where 
ihev  were  at  the  commencetneut  of  the  quiirrel,  and  stated  in  form  that 
whfch  was  perfectly  noiorious  before,  namely,  that  the  king  had  over- 
streielicd  the  power  to  which  he  was  entitled,  and  that  the  barons  had 
iissunit'd  a  power  to  which  they  were  not  entitled.  Leicester,  to  whose 
personal  views  peace  was  utterly  destructive,  represented  to  his  party, 
timt  ilic  award  of  the  French  king  was  wholly  and  unjustly  on  the  side  of 
Henry;  he  caused  seventeen  <'iljer  barons  lo  join  hiiii  in  a  compact  with 
the  discontented  Londoners,  by  which  tliey  mutually  bound  themscdves 
never  to  make  peace  with  the  kinir  but  with  the  full  and  open  concur- 
rence of  'joth  these  contracting  parties;  and  while  some  of  Leicester's 
friends  rekiiitlled  tne  civ'!  war  in  the  provinces,  he  and  Fitz-Richard  did 
liie  like  in  London  ;  so  at  the  whole  country  once  more  bristled  with 
arms  and  resounded  with  cries  of  war. 

Finding  civil  war  inevitable,  the  king  and  his  brave  son  promptly  made 
llieir  preparations.  In  addition  to  their  military  vassals,  whom  they  sum- 
moned from  all  quarters,  they  were  joined  by  forces  under  Baliol,  lord  of 
(ialldway,  Drus,  lord  of  Annandale,  Jolm  Coinyn,  and  other  uortliern  lead- 
ers of  puwer.  With  this  array  they  commenced  their  proceedmgs  by  lay- 
Mig  siege  to  Northampton,  in  which  was  u  strong  garrison  commanded  by 
snnieof  tlie  principal  bnrons.  This  place  being  speedily  taken  by  assault, 
the  royal  arrny  marched  against  Leicester  and  jN'ottingham,  which  opened 
their  ijiitcs.  Prince  f]dward  now  led  a  detachment  against  the  property 
(if  the  earl  of  Derby,  whose  lands  were  hiid  waste  as  a  puuisiimcnt  of  his 
disloyalty.  Leicester,  in  the  nie, in  while,  taking  care  to  keep  up  a  coni- 
iiinnieaiiou  with  London,  upon  tiie  sup[)ort  of  which  he  greatly  (jepeiided, 
laid  sii'ge.  to  Rochester  castle,  which  was  the  only  strong-hold  in  Kent 
that  still  held  out  for  the  king,  and  which  was  ably  defended  by  Karl 
Warcnne,  its  governor.  The  royal  army,  flushed  with  its  success  else- 
where, now  marched  in  all  haste  to  relieve  this  important  fortress;  and 
Leicester,  hearing  of  their  approach,  and  fearing  lo  be  outnumbered  in  a 
ilisii(hantageous  position,  hastily  raised  the  siege  and  fell  liaek  upon 
London.  From  Loudon  Leicester  sent  proposals  to  Henry,  but  of  so 
iirroirant  and  e.vorbitant  a  characer,  t!iat  he  must  have  been  aware  they 
would  not  be  listened  to;  and,  n  a  stern  ruiswer  being  returned  by  the 
king,  Leicester  publicly  reM(nniced  his  allegiance  mA  marched  the  whole 
forec  he  could  colhu't  towards  Lewes,  in  Sussex,  where  the  royal  army 
lay  ;  the  bisho[)  of  Chiehesli-r  giving  the  reliels  a  formal  and  gcmral  abso- 
Iniion,  and  assuring  them  that  all  who  should  fall  in  lighting  against  the 
king  would  undoubtedly  go  to  heaven. 

Leicester,  though  a  shann-ful  rebel,  was  a  skilful  general,  and  on  this 
neeasion  he  so  idily  conducted  his  march,  that  lie  ahnost  surprised  the 
royalists  in  their  qiuirters ;  but  the  fliort  time  that  elapsed  between  the 
alarm  and  the  arrival  of  the  rebels  sntRced  to  enable  the  active  prince  Kd- 
ward  to  march  the  army  to  the  (iel  '  'u  good  order:  one  division  being  led 
by  himself,  the  Karl  Warremu',  anu  William  de  \alence,  a  second  by  the 
king  of  the  Romans  :nid  his  son  Henry,  and  the  third  forming  a  resi^ve 
tniilcr  the  persoiuil  coinmaiid  o.""  the  king  himself.  The  prince  led  his  di- 
vision against  the  enemy's  vanguard,  which  w  as  composed  of  the  Lon- 
doners, who  fled  at  the  very  fust  chai  .e.  l-'orgetting  that  his  assistance 
mijijit  lie  requii('d  elsewhere,  Priu<-e  .idward  allowed  himstdf  to  be  gov- 
erned entirely  by  his  headlong  rage  against  these  inveterately  disloyal 
men,  and  pursued  them,  with  great  slaughter,  for  nearly  live  miles  fron» 
llie  field  of  battle.  This  iinpeinosily  of  the  prinre  lost  his  fatlwr  the  day ; 
for  I  vicester,  promptly  availing  himself  of  the  prince's  absence,  charged 
so  holly  up(ni  the  remaining  two  divisions  of  the  royali.'its,  that  they  were 
defeated  with  terrilde  loss,  and  both  thi'  king  and  his  brother,  the  king  ol 
the  Hun. aiis,  were  taken  nrisui'i--. :  as  were  Mnis,  (^omyii,  and  all  the 
Host  coiisiilerabli'  leaders  i.o  ./.■   Iiinjf's  side.      Ilarl  Wariiiiie,  lloiih  U'gOvi. 


..i^nf^r*^ 


,0\ 


276 


THE  THEASUBY  OF  HISTORY. 


and  William  de  Valence  esciiped  beyond  sea  ;  but  Prince  Edward,  unab. 
palled  by  the  consequences  of  his  own  imprudence,  kept  his  force  together, 
added  to  it  as  many  as  could  be  rallied  of  the  defeated  divisions,  and  pre- 
sented so  bold  a  front,  that  Leicester  thought  it  more  prudent  to  amuse  him 
with  pretended  desire  to  treat,  than  to  urge  him  to  a  desperate  attack. 
The  earl  accordingly  proposed  terms  ;  and  though  they  were  severe,  and 
Kucli  as  underother  circumstances  the  prince  would  have  laughed  to  scorn, 
a  little  examination  of  the  royal  resources  showed  so  hopek'ss  a  stale  ol 
things,  that  Edward,  despite  his  pride,  was  obliged  to  agree.  These  terms 
were,  that  Prince  Edward  and  Henry  d'AUmaine,  son  of  the  king  of  the 
Romans,  should  surrender  themselves  prisoners  in  exciiange  for  their 
fiilliirs ;  that  six  arbiters  should  be  named  by  the  king  of  France,  that  these 
six  sliouhl  choose  two  others,  also  French,  and  that  one  Englishman  should 
he  iiiiined  by  these  last;  the  council  thus  named  to  have  power  definitely 
to  decide  upon  all  matters  in  dispute  between  Henry  and  his  barons,  In 
coni|(liance  with  these  terms,  Edward  and  his  cousm  yielded  themselves, 
and  were  sent  prisoners  to  Dover  castle ;  but  Leicester,  though  he  iiomi.' 
nally  gave  the  king  his  liberty,  took  care  to  keep  him  completely  in  his 
power,  and  made  use  of  the  royal  name  to  forward  his  own  designs.  Thus 
the  most  loyal  governors  readily  yielded  up  their  iinportant  fortresses  in 
the  king's  name ;  and  when  commanded  by  the  king  to  disarm  and  disband, 
no  loyal  soldier  could  longer  venture  to  keep  the  field.  Leicester  made, 
in  f;ict,  precisely  what  alterations  and  regulations  he  pleased,  takiiiffcare 
to  make  them  all  in  the  king's  name ;  and  so  evidently  considered  himself 
virtually  in  possession  of  the  throne  at  which  he  had  so  daringly  aimed, 
that  he  even  ventured  to  tretit  with  insolent  injustice  the  very  barons  to 
whose  participation  of  his  disloyal  labour  he  owed  so  much  of  its  success. 
II living  confiscated  the  large  possessions  of  some  eighteen  of  the  royalist 
liaroiis,  and  received  the  ransom  of  a  host  of  prisoners,  he  applied  the 
whole  spoil  to  his  own  use,  and  when  his  confederates  demanded  to  share 
wiih  him,  he  coolly  told  them  that  they  already  had  a  sufficiency  in  being 
saf(!  from  the  attainders  and  forfeitures  to  which  they  would  have  been 
exposed  but  for  his  victory. 

As  for  the  reference  to  parties  to  be  named  by  the  king  of  France  and 
his  nominees,  though  the  earl,  in  order  to  hoodwink  Prince  Edward,  laid 
so  iniieh  stress  upon  it  during  their  negotiation,  he  now  took  not  the 
slightest  notice  of  it,  but  summoned  a  parliament,  so  selected  that  he  wcU 
knew  that  his  wishes  would  be  law  to  them.  And,  accordingly,  this  sor- 
Tile  senate  enacted  that  all  acts  of  sovereignty  should  require  the  sanction 
of  a  conni'il  of  nine,  which  council  coulii  be  wholly  or  in  part  chaiiffcd  at 
the  will  of  the  carls  of  Leicester  and  Gloucester,  and  the  bishop  of  Chi- 
chester, or  a  majoriiy  of  these  three.  Now  the  bishop  of  Chichester  being 
the  mere  convenient  tool  of  Leicester,  the  earl  was  in  reality  in  full  power 
over  the  council — in  other  words,  he  was  a  despotic  monarch  in  every 
thing  but  name.  The  queen,  secretly  assisted  by  Louis  of  France,  col- 
lected a  force  together,  with  an  intention  of  invading  England  on  bchall 
of  her  husband,  in  whose  name  the  coast  of  England  was  lined  with  forces 
to  oppose  her;  but  the  queen's  expedition  was  first  delayed  and  then  bro- 
ken up  altogether  by  contrary  winds.  The  papal  court  issued  a  bull  against 
Leicester,  but  he  threatened  to  put  the  legate  to  death  if  he  appeared  with 
it;  and  even  when  the  legate  himself  became  pope  under  the  title  of  Ur- 
ban IV.,  Leicester  still  ventured  to  brave  him,  so  confidently  did  he  rely 
upon  the  dislike  to  Rome  that  was  entertained,  not  only  by  the  people  in 
general,  but  also  by  the  great  body  of  the  English  clergy. 

AD.  12(i5- — Still  desirous  to  govern  with  a  show  of  legality,  Leicester 
summoned  a  new  parliament,  which  more  nearly  resembled  the  existing 
f<»rm  of  that  assembly  than  any  which  had  preceded  it.  Before  this  par 
liamenl  t'je  earl  of  Derby — in  the  kimr's  name — was  accused  -iud  eommit 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


877 


tel-  and  the  earl  of  Gloucester  was  intended  for  the  same  or  a  worse  fate 
bv  his  powerful  and  unscrupulous  colleague,  but  avoided  all  present  collie- 
iy)  with  him  by  retiring  from  pari  iiment  and  the  council.    This  obvious 


quarrel  between  the  earls  gave  great  encouragement  to  the  king's  friends, 
and  tlio  general  voice  now  biL'^in  loudly  to  demand  the  release  of  the  u;ave 

close  prisoner  ever  since  the  battle  o( 
'itioiis  to  release  the  prince,  but  he 


liin  his  reach;  and  they  were 

linst  the  earl  of  Glouce:Uer, 

IS  of  Wales.    While  Leices- 

'.iloucester,  the  latter  nobleman 

;ward,  and  so  to  arrange  matters 

'attendance,"  as  it  was  called. 


prince  Edward  who  had  rem 
Lewos.    Leicester  consen; 
look  care  to  keep  both  him 
obliged  to  accompany  him  > 
who  had  retired  to  his  esiai 
lerlay  at  Hereford,  thrcuteni 
continued  to  comnmnicate  wii 
tiiat  the  young  prince  escaped  from  tli 

but  really  the  confinement,  in  which  he  had  been  kept,  and  was  speedily 
atllie  head  of  a  gallant  army,  which  daily  received  accession,  when  the 
glad  news  of  his  real  liberty  became  generally  known.  Simon  de  Mont- 
forl,  Leicester's  son,  hastened  from  London  with  an  army  to  the  assist- 
ance of  his  father.  Prince  Edward,  having  broken  down  the  bridges  ol 
the  Severn,  turned  away  from  the  earl's  position,  and  fell  suddenly  upon 
Simon  de  Montfort,  who  was  carelessly  encamped  at  Kenilwonh,  put  his 
force  uUcrly  to  the  rout,  and  took  the  earl  of  Oxford  and  several  other 
barons  prisoners.  Leicester,  ignorant  of  this,  had  in  the  meantime  man 
aij'cd  tu  get  his  army  across  the  Severn  in  boats,  and  halted  at  Kvesham, 
in  Worcestershire,  in  daily  expectation  of  the  arrival  of  that  force  which 
had  already  been  put  to  the  rout.  Prince  Edward,  vigilant  himself  and 
well  served  by  his  scouts,  dexterously  availed  himself  of  the  earl's  mis 
apprehension  of  the  slate  of  affiiirs,  and  haviing  sent  part  of  his  army  on 
iis  march  towards  the  earl,  liearing  De  Monifort's  banners  and  otherwise 
provided  for  representing  his  routed  force,  he  with  the  main  body  of  his 
army  took  anotlier  route,  so  as  to  fall  upon  the  earl  in  a  differeut  quarter- 
and  so  completely  was  the  deception  successful,  that  when  Leicester  at 
lengtli  discovered  the  real  state  of  the  case,  he  exclaimed..  "Now  have  1 
taught  tiiem  to  war  to  some  purpose !  May  the  Lord  have  mercy  on  out 
souls,  for  our  bodies  belong  to  Prince  Edward!"  But  there  was  not  much 
time  for  rellection ;  Edward  led  his  troops  to  the  attack  vigorously  and  in 
excellent  order;  Leicester's  troops,  on  the  other  hand,  were  dispirited  by 
their  bad  position  and  suffering  much  from  sickness ;  and  victory  speedily 
declared  for  the  prince.  In  the  heat  of  the  battle  Leicester  was  struck 
down  and  immediately  dispatched  though  he  demanded  quarter,  and  his 
whole  force  was  routed,  upwards  of  a  hundred  of  the  principal  leaders  and 
kniifhts  being  taken  prisoners.  The  king  himself  was  on  the  point  of  los- 
ing his  life.  The  earl  had  cruelly  placed  him  in  the  very  front  of  t!ie  bat- 
tle, and  a  knight  who  had  already  wounded  him  was  about  to  repeat  his 
blow,  when  Ilenrv  saved  himself  by  exclaimina,  "I  ain  Henry  of  Win- 
chester, your  king." 

The  victory  of  Evesham  re-established  the  kin;j's  authority  ;  and  to  the 
great  credit  of  the  royal  party,  no  blood  disgraced  that  victory.  Not  a 
single  capital  punishmont  took  place ;  the  family  of  Leicester  alone  was 
attainted  to  full  etTect ;  for  though  many  other  rebellious  families  were 
formally  attainted,  their  sentences  were  reversed  on  payment  of  sums, 
trilling  indeed  wl.en  the  heinousness  of  the  offence  they  had  eumniitted  is 
considered. 

Tlie  kingdom  being  thus  restored  to  peace  and  released  from  all  danger 
from  tiie  turbulent  Leicester,  Prince  Edward  departed  for  the  Holy  Land, 
where  he  so  greatly  distinguished  himself,  that  the  Infidels  at  length  em- 
ployed an  assassin  to  destroy  him  ;  but  though  severely  and  ♦•  en  danger- 
ously wounded,  the  prince  fortunately  escaped  with  life,  and  Ins  assailant 
was  put  to  death  on  the  spot. 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-S) 


1.0 


I.I 


1.25 


li. 


140 


2.5 


2.2 


2.0 


1.4 


ll"4 


/ 


Photographic 

Sciences 
Corporation 


33  WIST  MAIN  STRUT 

WHSTIR.N.Y    14580 

(716)  •73-4S03 


il78 


THK  TllKASUaV  OP  HI8TOIIY. 


A.D.  1272. — Lest  Gloucester  should  imitate  iiis  late  rival  in  rebellion 
Kdward  took  that  powerful  nobleman  with  him  to  the  East ;  but  his  own 
absence  was  very  injurious  to  the  public  peace  in  Kiigland.  No  one  pre- 
sumptuous and  even  powerful  baron,  indeed,  dared  to  dispute  the  crown 
with  his  royal  master,  but  there  was  a  general  tendency  to  disorder  among 
both  barons  and  people ;  and  the  rabble  of  the  great  towns,  and  especially 
of  London,  became  daily  iiiore  openly  violent  and  licentious.  Henry  was 
little  able  to  contend  against  such  a  state  of  things.  Naturally  irresolute, 
he  was  now  worn  out  with  years,  and  with  infirmities  even  beyond  those 
incident  to  age.  Perhaps,  too,  the  disorder  of  his  kingdom  aggravated  his 
sufferings ;  he  perpetually  expressed  his  wish  for  the  return  of  his  son, 
and  lamented  his  own  helplessness,  and  at  length  breathed  his  last  on  the 
16th  of  November,  1272,  aged  sixty-four ;  having  reigned  fifty  years,  with 
little  ease  and  with  little  credit,  being  obviously,  from  his  youth  upwards, 
rather  fitted  for  a  private  than  for  a  public  station. 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 


THE  REION  OF  EDWARD  I. 


A.  D.  1273. — Prince  Edward  was  already  as  far  as  Sicily  on  his  way 
b«)nic  when  be  received  tidings  of  the  death  of  his  father.  He  at  the  same 
time  heard  of  the  death  of  his  own  infant  so.  John;  and  when  it  was  ob- 
served to  him  that  the  former  loss  seemed  to  affect  him  the  most  puinfully 
he  replied  that  the  loss  of  his  son  might  be  supplied,  but  that  of  his  fatliei 
was  niKil  and  irreparable. 

Hearing  that  all  was  peaceable  in  England  he  did  not  hasten  home,  but 
passed  nearly  twelve  months  in  France.  Being  at  Chalons,  in  Burgundy, 
lie  and  some  of  his  knights  engaged  in  a  tournament  with  the  Burgundiao 
chivalry,  and  so  fierce  was  the  spirit  of  rivalry  that  the  sport  became 
changed  into  earnest;  blood  was  spilt  on  both  sides,  and  so  much  damage 
was  dune  before  the  fray  could  be  terminated,  that  the  engiigcment  of  this 
day,  though  commenced  merely  in  sport  and  good  faith,  was  seriously 
termed  the  little  battle  of  (/IimIoiis. 

A.  n.  1274. — After  visiting  Paris,  where  he  did  homage  to  Philip  the 
Hardy,  then  king  of  France,  for  the  territory  which  he  held  in  that  king- 
dom, he  went  to  Guienne  to  put  uii  end  to  some  disorders  that  existed 
there,  and  at  length  arrived  in  London,  where  he  was  joyfully  received 
by  his  people.  He  was  crowned  at  Westminster,  and  immediately  turned 
his  attention  to  the  regulating  of  his  kingdom,  with  an  especial  view  to 
avoiding  those  disputes  which  had  caused  so  much  evil  during  the  lifeol 
his  father,  and  to  putting  an  end  to  the  bold  practices  of  malefactors  by 
whom  the  country  was  at  once  mmth  injured  and  disgraced. 

Making  the  great  charter  ihe  standard  of  his  own  duty  towards  the 
baroii",  he  insisted  upon  the  same  standard  of  conduct  towards  their  vas- 
sals and  inferiors,  a  course  to  which  they  were  by  no  means  inclined. 

A-  p.  1275. — Having  summoned  a  parliament  to  meet  him  in  Friiruary, 
127A,  he  Ciiiised  several  valuable  laws  to  he  pasged,  weeded  the  magistracy 
of  those  who  lay  under  the  imputation  of  either  negligence  or  corruption, 
and  took  measures  for  putting  a  check  alike  upon  the  robU .  ics  committed 
by  the  great,  under  the  (colour  of  justice  and  authority,  and  upon  thoit 
whicli,  ill  the  >  ose  state  into  which  the  kingdom  had  fallen  (luring  the 
dote  of  the  late  rei^ii,  were  so  openly  and  daringly  connnitlid  un  the 
highways,  that  men  of  substance  could  only  safely  travel  under  escurt  or 
in  great  companies.  For  the  suppression  of  this  latter  class  of  crimes  llit 
king  showed  a  ficirce  and  determined  spirit,  wlii(di  might  almost  he  judged 
to  have  been  over  severe  if  wo  did  not  take  into  consideration  tlie  dcs 


^^  .Ai- 


THE  TRKASrjRY  OF  HrSTORY. 


279 


perate  extent  to  which  the  evil  had  arrived.  The  ordinary  Judges  were 
iiitiiuidiited,  the  ordinary  police  was  weak  and  ill-organized,  and  the  king 
tiiererorc  established  a  commission  whi-ih  whs  appointed  to  traverse  the 
country,  taking  cognizance  of  every  description  of  evil  doing,  from  tho 
pettiest  to  the  most  heinous,  and  inflicting  condign  and  prompt  punish- 
ment upon  the  offenders.  The  old  Saxon  mode  of  commuting  other  punish- 
ments fur  a  pecuniary  fine  was  applied  by  this  commission  to  minor  of- 
fences, and  a  large  sum  was  thus  raised,  of  which  the  king's  treasury  stood 
much  in  need.  But  the  zeal  of  this  commission — and  perhaps  some  con 
sideration  of  the  state  of  the  royal  treasury— caused  the  fines  to  be  ter- 
ribly severe  in  proportion  to  the  offences.  There  was,  also,  too  great  a 
readiness  to  commit  upon  slight  testimony ;  the  prisons  were  filled,  but 
not  with  the  guilty  alone  ;  the  vuffian  bands,  who  hud  so  long  and  so  mis- 
chievously infested  the  kingdom,  were  broken  up,  indeed,  but  peaceable 
subjects  and  honest  men  were  much  harrassed  and  wronged  at  (he  same 
time.  The  king  himself  was  so  satisfied  of  the  danger  ofentrustiiigsuch 
extensive  powers  to  subjects,  that  when  this  commission  had  finished  its 
labours  it  was  annulled,  and  never  afterwards  called  into  activity. 

Though  Edward  showed  a  real  and  creditable  desire  to  preserve  his 
subjects,  of  all  ranks,  from  being  preyed  upon,  by  each  other,  truth  com- 
pels us  to  confess  that  he  laid  no  similar  restraint  upon  himself.  Having 
made  what  profit  he  could  by  putting  down  the  thieves  and  other  offenders 
in  general,  Edward  now  turned  for  a  fresh  supply  to  that  thrifty  but  perse- 
cited  people,  the  Jews.  The  counterfeiting  of  coin  had  recently  been 
carried  on  to  a  most  injurious  extent,  and  the  Jews  being  chiefly  engaged 
ill  trafficking  in  money,  this  mischievous  adulteration  was  very  positively, 
though  rather  hastily,  laid  to  their  charge.  A  general  persecution  of  the 
unhappy  people  commenced,  of  the  fierceness  and  extent  of  which  some 
judgment  may  be  formed  from  the  fact,  that  two  hundred  and  eighty  ol 
them  were  hanged  in  London  alone.  While  death  was  inflicted  upon  many 
in  all  parts  of  the  kingdom,  tho  houses  and  lands  of  still  more  were  seized 
upon  and  sold.  The  king,  indeed,  with  a  delicacy  which  did  not  always 
characterise  him  in  money  matters,  seized  in  the  first  instance  only  upon 
one  half  of  the  proceeds  of  these  confiscations,  the  other  being  set  apart  as 
a  fund  for  the  Jews  who  should  deem  fit  to  be  converted  to  Christianity; 
but  80  few  Jews  availed  themselves  of  the  temptation  thus  held  out  to 
them,  that  the  fund  was  in  reality  as  much  in  the  king's  possession  i^  j 
(hough  no  such  provision  had  been  made.  It  had  been  well  for  Kdward  s 
character  if  this  severity  had  been  exercised  against  the  Jews  only  for  the 
crime  wilh  which  they  were  charged ;  but,  urged  probably  still  more  by 
lux  want  of  money  than  by  the  bigoted  haired  to  this  race  which  he  had 
felt  from  his  earliest  youth,  Edward  shortly  after  commenced  a  persecu- 
lion  against  the  whole  of  the  Jews  in  England ;  not  as  coiners  or  as  men 
concerned  in  any  other  crimes,  but  simply  as  being  Jews.  The  constant 
(axes  paid  by  these  people,  and  the  frequent  arbitrary  levies  of  large  sums 
upon  them,  made  them  in  reality  one  of  tho  most  valuable  classes  of  Ed- 
ward's subjects  ;  for  whether  their  superior  wealth  was  obtained  by  great- 
er industry  and  frugality  than  others  possestied,  or  by  greater  in<4enuily 
and  huarilussness  in  extortion,  certain  it  is  th.it  it  was  very  largely  shared 
wilh  their  sovereign.  Uut  the  slow  process  of  taillages  and  forced  loans 
did  not  suit  Edward's  purposes  or  wants ;  and  he  suddenly  issued  an  order 
for  tho  aiinultaneous  banisiuiientof  (he  whole  of  the  obnoxious  race,  and 
for  their  deprivation  of  the  whole  of  their  property,  with  the  exception  of 
so  much  as  was  requsile  to  curry  thcni  abroad.  Upwards  of  fifiecii  thou- 
•and  Jews  were  at  t>nce  seized  and  uluiuliired,  under  this  most  inexiMisably 
'yraiiiious  decree;  and  as  tho  plundered  victims  left  (he  couiUry,  many  o( 
(hem  were  robbed  at  the  sea-ports  of  the  miserable  pittance  wliiih  tlic 
iiing's  cupidity  Itud  iparcd  theiu,  and  suiue  woru  inurdsred  and  thrown 
into  (he  >-e*. 


2fln 


THK  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


While  taking  this  cruel  and  dishonest  means  of  replenishing  his  trea. 
sury,  Edwiiid  had  at  least  the  negative  merit  of  frugally  expending  wiiai 
he  nad  unfairly  acquired. 

Aided  by  parliainenl  with  a  grant  of  the  fifteenth  of  all  moveables,  hv 
the  pope  with  a  tenth  of  the  ciuirch  revenues  for  three  years,  and  by'ih'o 
merchants  with  an  export  tax  of  half  a  mark  on  each  sack  of  wool  hiu!  a 
whole  mark  on  every  three  hundred  skins,  he  still  was  cramped  in  means- 
and  as  he  was  conscious  tliat  during  the  late  long  and  weak  reign  many 
encroachments  had  been  unfairly  made  upon  tiie  royal  demesnes,  he  issued 
a  connnission  to  inquire  iiUo  all  such  encroachments,  and  also  lo  devise 
and  seek  the  best  and  most  speedy  ways  of  nnproving  the  various  briiiielics 
of  the  revenue.  Tlie  commission,  not  always  able  to  draw  the  line  between 
doubtful  acquisitions  and  hereditary  possessions  of  midoubted  rightfuhiess 
pu.shed  their  inquiries  so  far  that  tiiey  gave  great  offence  to  some  nf  ihe 
nobility.  Among  others  tliey  applied  to  tlie  Earl  Warenne,  who  so  brave- 
ly supported  the  crown  against  the  ambition  of  Leicester  during  tlie  late 
reign,  for  the  title  deeds  of  his  possessions  ;  but  the  indignant  earl  drew 
his  sword  and  said,  that  as  his  ancestors  had  ac^quired  it  by  the  swori  so 
he  would  keep  it,  and  that  he  held  it  by  the  same  right  that  Edward  heW 
his  crown.  This  incident  and  the  general  dis(;ontint  of  the  nobles  deter- 
mined the  king  to  limit  the  commission  for  the  future  to  cases  of  unduubt- 
ed  trespass  and  encroachment. 

A.D.  127(5. — Not  even  pecuniary  necessities  and  the  exertion  necessary 
to  supply  them  could  prevent  Edward's  active  and  warlike  spirit  from 
seeking  employment  in  the  field.  Against  Llewellyn,  prince  of  Wales, 
Edward  had  great  cause  of  anger.  He  had  been  a  zealous  partizan  of 
Leicester;  and  though  he  had  bfnii  pardnned,  in  common  with  the  oilier 
barons,  yet  there  had  always  been  something  of  jealousy  towards  him  in 
the  mind  of  Edward,  wlii(d>  j(>aloiisy  was  now  fanned  into  a  flame  by 
Llewellyn  refusing  to  trust  liimself  in  Englaiu'  '-^  do  homage  to  Edward, 
unless  the  khig's  eldest  son  and  some  nobles  rtinto  the  hands  of  the 

Welsh  as  hostages,  and  unless  lilewellyn's  c  daughter  of  the  earlo) 

LeicestiT,  who  had  i>een  captured  on  her  way  ,t,  ./ales  and  was  detained 
at  Edward's  court,  were  rehiased. 

A.  D.  1277. — Edward  was  not  sorry  to  hi'ar  demands,  his  refusal  to  com- 
ply with  which  w^(utld  give  him  the  excuse  he  wished  for,  to  march  iulo 
\Val(!s.  Ho  accordingly  gavi;  Llewellyn  no  other  answer  than  a  renewal 
of  his  Older  to  hi'ii  to  come  a.i '  do  iiumagc,  and  an  offer  of  a  personal  safe 
conduct. 

Eilward  was  both  aided  and  urged  into  his  invasion  of  Wales  by  David 
and  Roderick,  brothers  of  Llewellyn,  who  having  been  despoiled  of  their 
inheritance  by  that  prince,  had  now  sought  shelter  and  taken  service  with 
his  most  formidable  enemy. 

When  the  English  approached  Wales,  Llewellyn  and  his  people  relired 
to  the  mountain  fastnesses  of  Snowdown,  judging  that  he  could  maintaia 
against  Edward  that  desultory  warfare  which  had  harrassed  ami  fired  out 
the  Saxon  and  Norman  invaders  of  an  earlier  day.  Ihil  instead  of  expus- 
ing  his  fontcs  to  being  harrassed  and  beaten  in  detail,  Edward  );uarili'ii 
every  pass  which  led  to  the  inaccessable  retreats  of  the  enemy,  and  then 
coolly  waited  until  sheer  hunger  should  dispose  tliein  either  to  Irciit  orlo 
fight.  Nor  was  it  long  in  occurring;  brave  as  Llew(dlyii  wiis,  lie  saw 
himself  so  coinplet(dy  heinuKul  in  that  he  was  iiualjle  lo  strike  a  bluw, 
and  h''  was  compelled  to  submit  lo  ttii'  terms  dictatcil  to  him  by  Kdwanl. 
And  severe  those  terms  wen; ;  Llewellyn  was  to  pay  .'JO,nO()/  by  way  »( 
exjienses  of  the  war  ;  to  clo  homagi'  to  the  king  ;  to  allow  all  the  tKiiimn 
of  Wales,  save  fotu'  fif  those  neart'si  to  Snowdown,  to  swear  feiiliy  la  I"''!- 
ward;  to  yi"ld  lo  the  lOnglish  crown  tin-  wlxde  of  tli((  country  hclwcrn 
lliu  rivvT  Conway  and  the  county  uf  Cheshire ;  to  settle  u  thuu«aiid  iiurki 


*"-    .:^ 


Gahl  VaHLnne  iil»»niiin(i   ih»    hill    in  \\u  Ksiuti 


p 


per  year  on 

give  ten  lios 

articles  hav 

of  fifty  thou 

love  of  moil 

gave  lip  so  I 

possible  by 

But  their 

with  peace. 

the  noble  an 

glish,  on  the 

bloodless  an 

marches,  to- 

a  general  sp 

lelf  to  the  in 

get  his  perse 

opposing  the 

their  country 

Luke  de  Tei 

tacked  as  he 

most  extrava 

by  Mortimer, 

two  thousand 

eignty,  exerti 

miineVons  lo  i 

been  struck  i 

of  Llewellyn. 

among  the  m< 

betrayed  to  E 

by  the  Englis 

as  a  traitor— 1 

of  a  brighter  i 

The  death  i 

opposition  on 

and  English  o 

the  principalii 

born  at  Caern 

A.  D.  1286.- 

isted  betweei 

dued,  that  Kd 

differences  wl 

Philip' the  Fii 

Edward  was 

nearly  three  y 

disorders  and 

by  lawless  bar 

were  beforo  th 

The  d'-putp 

dom  gave  Kdw 

'elf,  to  inlerff 

lie  made  larcri-rj 

but  to  its  aciii 

*.  D.  1Q93._ 

WHS  agreed  tha 

of  Scoiiund  w. 

to  hIiovv  Htlwar 

''"ill?  Scotland 

J»  thouirh  he  i 


'^W 
'■'/■m'' 


THE  TRKASUllY  OV  HISTORY. 


S8\ 


per  year  on  his  brother  Roderick  and  half  that  sum  upon  David;  and  to 
give  ten  hostages  for  his  future  good  and  peaceable  behaviour.  All  the 
articles  having  been  duly  performed,  with  the  exception  of  the  large  sum 
of  fifty  thousand  pounds,  Kdward  forgave  that;  and  considering  his  great 
love  of  money,  or  rather  his  great  need  of  it,  we  may  suppose  that  he 
gave  up  so  large  a  sum  cnly  because  the  payment  of  it  was  rendered  im- 
possible by  the  excessive  poverty  of  the  country. 

But  the  imperfect  subjection  of  a  country  like  Wales  could  not  co-exist 
with  peace.  The  Welsh,  impetuous,  proud  and  courageous,  remembered 
the  noble  and  obstinate  defences  their  land  had  formerly  made  ;  the  En- 
glish, on  the  other  hand,  referred  in  tones  of  insolence  and  taunting  to  the 
bloodless  and  undisputed  conquest  they  had  now  made.  The  lords  of  the 
marches,  too,  connived  at  or  encouraged  many  insults  and  depredations ; 
a  general  spirit  prevailed  among  the  Welsh  that  preferred  destruction  it- 
jelf  to  the  insults  they  had  to  endure,  and  this  spirit  caused  David  to  for- 
get his  personal  wrongs,  and  to  join  hand  and  heart  with  his  brother  in 
opposing  the  Knglish.  The  Welsh  flew  to  arms,  and  Edward  entered 
their  country  with  an  army  which  seemed  to  leave  them  but  little  hope. 
Luke  de  Tenay,  commanding  a  detachment  of  Kdward's  troops,  was  at- 
tacked as  he  passed  the  .Menai,  and  his  defeat  inspired  the  Welsh  with  the 
most  e.\lravagant  hopes;  but  Llewellyn  was  shcrrtly  afterwards  surprised 
by  Mortimer,  defeated,  and  killed  in  the  action,  together  with  upwards  of 
two  thousand  of  his  men.  David  who  now  succeeded  to  the  Welsh  sover- 
eignty, exerted  himself,  but  in  vain,  to  collect  another  army  sufficiently 
mime'ronsio  allow  of  his  facing  Edward  in  the  open  field.  Terror  had 
been  struck  into  the  inmost  heart  of  the  people  by  the  defeat  and  death 
of  Llewellyn.  David  with  a  few  followers  was  obliged  to  seek  shelter 
among  the  most  difficult  fastnesses  of  his  native  hills,  and  he  was  at  length 
betrayed  to  Edward  and  sent  in  chains  to  Shrewsbury,  wliere  he  was  tried 
by  the  English  peers,  and  condemned  to  be  hanged,  drawn,  and  quartered, 
as  a  traitor — a  sentence  so  disgraceful  to  Edward,  that  not  even  his  deeds 
of  a  brighter  and  nobler  character  can  wash  off  the  stain  of  it. 

The  death  of  Llewellyn  and  David  put  an  end  to  all  hope  of  successful 
opposition  on  the  part  of  the  Welsh,  who  fully  submitted  ;  English  laws 
and  English  officers  were  permanently  established,  and  Edward  conferred 
the  principality  upon  his  eldest  surviving  son,  the  prince  Edward,  who  was 
born  at  Caernarvon. 

A.  D.  1286. — Though,  as  was  inevitable,  some  national  rancours  still  ex 
isted  between  the  two  people,  the  Welsh  were  now  so  completely  sub- 
dued, that  Edward  found  himself  at  liberty  to  go  abroad  to  interfere  in  the 
differences  which  had  arisen  between  Alphonso,  king  of  Arragon,  and 
Philip  the  Fair,  of  France,  who  disputed  the  kingdom  of  Sicily.  VVhile 
Edward  was  engaged  in  settling  this  dispute,  which  occupied  him  for 
nearly  three  years,  his  absence  from  England  had  given  rise  to  numerous 
disorders  and  mischiefs.  The  administration  of  justice  was  openly  defied 
by  lawless  bands ;  and  robberies  had  become  nearly  as  conmion  as  they 
were  before  the  severe  examples  made  at  the  beginning  of  his  reign. 

The  disputes  which  existed  in  Scotland  about  the  crown  of  that  king- 
dom  gave  Kdward  an  opportunity,  of  which  he  was  not  slow  to  avail  him 
self,  to  inferfere  in  the  affairs  of  that  nation ;  and  at  every  interference 
lie  made  larger  and  more  obvious  claims,  not  to  the  mere  fealty  of  its  king 
but  to  its  actual  sovereignty. 

A.  D.  1202. — The  two  principal  competitors  were  Baliol  and  Bruce.  It 
was  asireod  that  Edward  should  arbitrate  between  them,  and  the  castles 
of  Scotland  wore  put  into  his  hands.  This  demand,  alone,  would  go  fat 
to  show  Hdward's  real  intr ntion.^  ;  yet,  while  ho  was  fully  bent  upon  sub 
'luing  Scotland  to  hi"*  own  rule,  he  put  the  dispute  upon  the  true  footing. 
as  though  he  meant  to  act  Justly,  in  the  following  question  to  the  cotn- 


,-)f^:  ,.-i;;f 


363 


THE  TUEASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


missionera  appointed  to  report  to  hiin  otk  the  case,  and  to  the  principal 
legists  of  Kurope.  Has  a  person  descended  from  an  elder  sister,  but  far- 
ther  removed  by  one  degree,  the  preference  as  to  succession  to  a  kingdom 
to  one  descended  from  a  younger  sister,  but  one  degree  nearer  to  the 
common  stock  ?  This  question  was  answered  him  in  the  affirmative;  and 
Baliol,  being  in  the  first  category,  was  pronounced  by  Edward  to  be  the 
rightful  sovereign ;  a  decision  which  so  much  enraged  Bruce  thai  he  joined 
himself  to  Lord  Hastings,  who  was  another  claimant,  but  only  for  a  por- 
tion of  the  kingdom,  which  he  maintained  to  be  divisible. 

A.  D.  1293. — John  Baliol  having  taken  the  oath  of  fealty  to  Edward  as 
his  feudal  superior,  was  put  into  possession  both  of  his  throne  and  the 
ortresses  of  the  kingdom.  But  having  thus  far  acted  with  apparent  good 
faith,  Edward  now  began  to  exercise  his  feudal  authority  in  so  vexatious 
a  manner,  that  it  was  quite  evident  that  he  desired  either  to  cause  Baliol 
to  throw  up  his  sovereignty  in  disgust,  or  to  burst  out  into  "some  sudden 
flood  of  mutiny,"  such  as  would  by  the  feudal  usages  cause  the  forfeiture 
of  his  fief.  He  gave  every  encouragement  to  appeals  to  his  authority  from 
that  of  the  Scottish  king,  harassed  Baliol  by  repeated  summonses  to  Lon' 
don  upon  matters  comparatively  trivial,  and  instead  of  allowing  him  to 
answer  by  his  procurator,  compelled  him  to  appear  personally  at  the  bar 
of  the  English  parliament.  Such  treatment  could  not  fail  to  urge  even 
the  quiet  temper  of  Baliol  into  anger,  and  he  at  length  returned  into  Scot- 
land with  the  full  determination  to  abide  the  chances  of  a  war  rather  than 
continue  to  endure  such  insults.  In  this  determination  he  was  encour- 
aged by  a  dispute  in  which  Edward  was  now  involved  in  another  quarter. 

It  will  readily  be  understood  that  in  an  age  in  which  robbery  and  vio- 
lence were  so  common  on  land,  piracy  and  violence  were  no  less  common 
upon  the  sea;  and  both  French  and  English  sailors  were  but  too  ready 
to  engage  in  contests,  without  care  as  to  the  possible  consequences  to  their 
respective  countries.  It  chanced  that  a  Norman  and  an  English  vessel 
met  off  Bayonne,  and  both  sending  a  boat  ashore  for  water  the  parlies 
quarrelled  at  the  spring.  From  words  they  proceeded  to  blows,  and  one 
of  the  Normans  having  drawn  a  knife,  an  Englishman  closed  with  him; 
both  fell,  and  the  Norman  died  on  the  spot ;  the  English  alledging  that  tie 
•ccidentally  fell  upon  his  own  knife,  the  Normans  loudly  aflirming  that  he 
was  stabbed.  The  Normans  complained  to  King  Philip,  who  bade  them 
avenge  themselves  without  troubling  him.  The  words,  if  lightly  spoken, 
were  taken  in  all  seriousness;  the  Normans  seized  upon  an  l]nglish  ship, 
hanged  some  of  the  crew  side  by  side  with  an  equal  number  of  dogs,aiid 
dismissed  the  rest  of  the  ship's  company,  tauntingly  assuring  them  that 
they  had  now  satisfactorily  avenged  the  Norman  sailor  who  was  killed  at 
Bayonne. 

When  this  intelligence  reached  the  mariners  of  the  Cinque  ports 
they  retaliated  upon  French  vessels,  and  thus  an  actual  war  wiis  soon 
raging  between  the  two  nations  without  a  formal  declaration  of  hostility 
having  been  made  or  sanctioned  by  cither  sovereign.  As  the  quarrel  pro- 
ceeded it  grew  more  md  more  savage ;  seamen  of  other  nations  look  part 
in  it,  the  Irish  and  Dutch  joining  the  English,  the  Genoese  and  Flemish 
joining  the  French.  At  length  an  incident  in  this  singular  war  rendered 
It  impossible  for  Edward  and  Philip  any  longer  to  remain  mere  speetators 
of  it.  A  Norman  fleet,  numbering  two  hundred  vessels,  sailed  sontiiward 
for  a  cargo  of  wine,  and  to  convey  a  considerable  military  force ;  and  this 
powerful  fleet  seized  on  every  English  ship  it  met  with,  plundered  the  uonds, 
and  hanged  the  seamen.  This  news  more  than  ever  enraged  the  English 
sailors,  who  got  together  a  well-manned  fleet  of  sLxty  sail,  and  went  in 
quest  of  the  Normans,  whom  they  met  with  and  defeated,  taking  or  sink- 
ing most  of  the  vessels;  and  these  being  closely  stowfd  with  ntilitiiry, 
and  the  English  giving  no  quarter,  it  was  asserted  that  the  Norman  lust 


John,  and  other  n 


THK  T11EA8URY  OF  HISTORY. 


283 


was  not  less  than  firteeii  thousand  men;  an  enurmous  loss  at  any  time, 
but  especially  so  in  an  age  when  battles  which  altered  the  destinies  of  em- 
pires were  frequently  decided  at  a  far  less  expense  of  life. 

Philip  now  demanded  redress  from  Edward,  who  coldly  replied  that  the 
English  courts  were  open  to  any  Frenchman  who  had  complaints  to  make ; 
aiiiftheu  he  offered  to  refer  the  whole  quarrel  to  the  pope,  or  to  any  cardi- 
nals whom  himself  and  Philip  miglit  agree  upon.  But  the  parlies  most 
concerned  in  the  quarrel  were  by  this  time  too  much  enraged  to  hold  their 
hands  on  account  of  negotiations;  and  Philip,  finding  that  the  violence  was 
in  no  wise  discountenanced  by  Edward,  summoned  him,  as  duke  of  Gui- 
enne  and  vassal  of  France,  to  appear  in  his  liege  lord's  court  at  Paris  and 
answer  for  the  offences  his  subjects  had  committed. 

A.  D.  1394 — The  king  instructed  John  St.  John  to  put  Guienne  into  a 
stale  of  defence,  and  at  the  same  time  endeavoured  to  ward  off  attack  from 
it  by  sending  his  brother,  the  earl  of  Lancaster,  to  Paris  to  mediate  with 
Philip.  The  earl  of  Lanciister  having  married  the  queen  of  Navarre, 
mother  of  Jane,  the  queen  of  France,  the  latter  oflered  him  her  aid  in 
accommodating  the  dispute ;  and  the  queen-dowager  of  France  joined  her, 
in  all  apparent  good  faith.  But  the  two  princesses  were  acting  most 
insidiously.  They  assured  the  earl  that  if  Edward  would  give  Philip 
siezin  or  possession  of  Guienne,  to  heal  the  wound  his  honour  had  receiv- 
ed  from  his  sub-vassals  of  that  province,  Philip  would  at  once  be  satisfied 
and  immediately  restore  it.  To  this  Edward  agreed,  and  gave  up  the 
province  as  soon  as  his  citation  to  Paris  was  withdrawn  ;  but  the  moment 
he  had  done  so,  he  was  again  cited,  and,  on  his  non-appearance,  con- 
demned to  forfeit  Guienne.  The  trick  thus  played  by  Philip  was  so  pre- 
cisely similar  to  that  which  Edward  had  him.self  planned  for  Scotland, 
that  It  i.s  truly  wonderful  how  so  astute  a  prince  could  ever  have  fallen 
hlindfolil  into  such  an  uncovered  pit. 

A.  D.  1295. — Edward  sent  an  army  to  Guienne,  under  the  command  of 
hisnepiiew,  John  de  Bretagne,  earl  of  Richmond,  together  with  John  St 
John,  and  other  officers  of  known  courage  and  ability ;  and  as  his  projecti 
upon  Si;()iland  did  not  enable  him  to  spare  so  many  regular  soldiers  ai 
were  needed,  he  on  this  occasion  opened  all  the  gaols  of  Engla'id  and 
added  the  most  desperateoftlieirtenants  to  the  force  he  sent  over  to  France. 

VViiiie  a  variety  of  petty  actions  were  carried  on  in  France,  Philip  en- 
deavoured to  cause  a  diversion  in  liis  favour  by  entering  into  an  alliance 
with  John  Baliol,  king  of  Scotland ;  and  he,  smarting  under  the  insults  of 
Rdwiini  and  longing  for  revenge,  eagerly  entered  in'o  this  alliance,  and 
siriMigthened  it  by  stipulating  a  marriage  between  his  own  son  and  the 
daughter  of  Charles  de  Valois. 

A.  D.  1296. — Conscious  how  deep  was  the  ofTencehe  had  given  to  Baliol, 
Bdward  had  too  carefully  watched  him  to  be  unaware  of  his  alliance  with 
France;  and  having  now  obtained  considerable  supplies  from  his  parlia- 
ment, which  was  more  popularly  composed  than  heretofore,  he  prepared 
(0  chastise  Scotland  on  the  slightest  occasion.  In  the  hope,  therefore,  of 
creating  one,  he  sent  a  haughty  message  desiring  Baliol,  as  his  vassal,  to 
send  him  forces  to  aid  him  in  his  war  with  France.  He  ne.vt  demanded 
that  the  castles  of  Berwick,  Roxburgh,  and  Jedburgh  should  be  placed  in 
His  hands  during  the  French  war,  as  security  for  the  Scottish  fidelity  ;  and 
then  summoned  Baliol  to  appear  before  the  English  parliament  at  New- 
castle. Baliol,  faithful  to  his  own  purpose  and  to  the  treaty  that  he  had 
made  with  Philip,  complied  with  none  of  these  demands ;  and  Edward 
liaving  (hiis  received  the  ostensible  ofTence  which  he  desired,  advanced 
upon  Scotland  with  an  army  of  thirty  thousand  foot  and  four  thousand 
horse. 

riie  military  skill  of  Baliol  being  held  in  no  very  high  esteem  in 
Scotland,  a  council  of  twelve  of  the  most  eminent  nobles  was  appointed 


e84 


THE  T11EA8URY  OF  HISTORY. 


to  advise  and  assist  him — in  other  words  to  act,  for  the  ume,  at  leiist,  aa 
"  viceroys  over  him." 

Under  the  management  of  this  council  vigorous  preparations  were  made 
to  oppose  Edward.  An  army  of  forty  thousand  foot  and  about  five  iiiiiul. 
red  horse  marched,  after  a  vain  and  not  very  wisely  planned  altempi  upon 
Carlisle,  to  defend  the  southeastern  provinces  threatened  with  Edward's 
first  attacks.  Already,  however,  divisions  began  to  appear  in  the  Scottish 
councils ;  and  the  Bruces,  the  earls  of  March  and  Angus,  and  other  eminent 
Scots,  saw  so  much  danger  to  their  country  from  such  a  divided  host  at- 
tempting to  defend  it  against  so  powerful  a  monarch,  that  they  look  the 
opportunity  to  make  an  early  submisson  to  him.  Edward  had  crossed  the 
Tweed  at  Coldstream  without  experiencing  any  opposition  of  either  word 
or  deed :  but  here  he  received  a  magniloquent  letter  from  Baliol,  who,  hav. 
ing  obtained  from  Pope  Celestine  an  absolution  of  both  himself  and  his  na- 
tion from  the  oath  they  had  taken,  now  solemnly  renounced  the  homage 
he  had  done,  and  defied  Edward. 

Little  regarding  mere  words,  Edward  had  from  the  first  moment  of  com- 
mencing his  enterprise  been  intent  upon  deeds.  Berwick  had  been  taken 
by  assault,  seven  thousand  of  the  garrison  put  to  the  sword,  and  Sir  VVil- 
liam  Douglas,  the  governor,  made  prisoner ;  and  now  twelve  thousand  men 
under  the  command  of  the  veteran  earl  Wareinie,  were  despatched  against 
Dunbar,  which  was  garrisoned  by  the  very  best  of  Scotland's  nobility  and 
gentry.  Alarmed  lest  Dunbar  should  be  taken,  and  their  whole  country 
thus  be  laid  open  to  the  English,  the  Scots  marched  an  immense  army  to 
the  relief  of  that  place ;  but  the  earl  Warenne,  though  his  numbers  were 
BO  inferior,  attacked  them  so  vigorously  that  they  fled  with  a  loss  of  twenty 
thousand  men ;  and  Edward  with  his  main  army  coming  up  on  the  follow- 
ing day,  the  garrison  perceived  that  further  resistance  was  hopeless,  and 
surrendered  at  discretion.  The  castles  of  Roxburgh,  Edinburgh,  and  Stir- 
ling now  surrendered  to  Edward  in  rapid  succession;  and  all  the  southern 
parts  of  Scotland  being  subdued,  Edward  sent  detachments  of  Irish  and 
Welsh,  skilled  in  mountain  warfare,  to  follow  the  fugitives  lo  their  reces- 
ses aniidst  the  mountains  and  islets  of  the  north. 

But  the  rapid  successes  which  already  attended  the  arms  of  Edward  had 
completely  astounded  the  Scots,  and  put  them  into  a  state  of  depression 
proportioned  to  the  confidence  they  had  formerly  felt  of  seeing  the  inva- 
der beaten  back.  Their  heavy  losses  and  the  dissensions  among  their 
leaders  rendered  it  impossible  for  them  to  get  together  anything  like  an 
imposing  force;  and  Baliol  himself  put  the  crowning  stroke  to  his  coun- 
try's calamity  by  hastening,  ere  the  resources  of  his  people  could  be  fully 
ascertained,  to  make  his  submission  once  more  to  that  invader  to  whom 
he  had  but  lately  sent  so  loud  and  so  gratuitous  a  defiance.  He  nol 
merely  apologized  in  the  most  humble  terms  for  his  breach  of  fealty  tohij 
liege  lord,  but  mad  a  solemn  and  final  surrender  of  his  crown;  and  Ed- 
ward, having  received  the  homage  of  the  king,  marched  northward  only 
to  be  received  with  like  humility  by  the  people,  not  a  man  of  whom  ap- 
proached him  but  to  pay  him  homage  or  tender  him  service.  Having  thus, 
to  all  outward  appearance,  at  least,  reduced  Scotland  to  the  most  perfect 
obedience,  Edward  marched  his  army  south  and  returned  to  England  car- 
rying with  him  the  celebrated  inauguration-stone  of  the  Scots,  to  which 
there  was  a  superstition  attached,  that  wherever  this  stone  should  be,  there 
should  be  the  government  of  Scotland.  Considering  the  great  power 
which  such  legends  had  at  that  time,  Edward  was  not  to  blame,  perhaps, 
for  this  capture  ;  but  the  same  cannot  be  said  of  his  wanton  order  forthe 
destruction  of  the  national  records. 

Baliol,  though  his  weak  character  must  havevery  effectually  placed  him 
beyond  the  fear  or  suspicion  of  Edward,  was  confined  in  the  Tower  of 
London  for  two  years,  at  the  end  of  which  time  he  was  allowed  to  rrtire 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY 


3eA 


10  France,  where  he  remained  during  the  rest  of  his  life  in  that  privatp 
station  for  whicii  his  limited  talents  and  his  timid  temper  best  fitted  him 
The  government  of  Scotland  was  entrusted  to  Earl  VVarenne,  who,  both 
from  policy  and  predilection,  took  care  that  Englishmen  were  preferred 
to  all  offices  of  profit  and  influence. 

In  Guienne  Edward's  arms  had  been  less  successful ;  his  brother  the 
earl  of  Lancaster  had  at  first  obtained  some  advantages ;  but,  he  dying, 
the  earl  of  Lincoln,  who  succeeded  to  the  command,  was  not  able  to  make 
any  progress.  Edward's  success  in  Wales  and  Scotland,  had,  however, 
made  liiin  more  than  ever  impatient  of  failure ;  and  he  now  projected  such 
a  confederacy  against  the  king  of  France  as,  he  imagined,  could  not  fail 
to  wrest  Guienne  from  him.  In  pursuance  of  this  plan,  he  gave  his  daugh- 
ter, the  princess  Elizabeth,  to  John,  earl  of  Holland ;  and  at  the  same  time 
stipulated  to  pay  to  Guy,  earl  of  Flanders,  the  snm  of  75,000/.  as  his  sub- 
sidy for  joining  him  in  the  invasion  of  the  territory  of  their  common  enemy, 
Philip  of  France.  Edward's  plan,  a  very  feasible  one,  was  lo  assemble 
all  his  allies  and  march  against  Philip's  own  capital,  when  Philip  would 
most  probably  be  glad  to  remove  the  threatened  danger  from  himself  by 
giving  up  Guienne.  As  a  large  sum  of  money  was  requisite  to  carry  out 
the  king's  designs  he  applied  to  parliament,  who  granted  him — the  barons 
and  knights — a  twelfth  of  all  moveables,  and  the  boroughs  an  eighth.  But 
if  tiie  king  laid  an  unfair  proportion  of  his  charges  upon  the  boroughs,  he 
proposed  still  more  unfairly  to  tax  the  clergy,  from  whom  he  demanded 
a  fifth  of  their  moveables.  Pope  Boniface  VIII.  on  mounting  the  papal 
throne  had  issued  a  bull  forbidding  the  princes  of  all  Christian  nations  to 
tax  the  clergy  without  the  express  consent  of  Rome,  and  equally  forbid- 
ding the  clergy  to  pay  any  tax  unless  so  sanctioned ;  and  the  English 
clergy  gladly  sheltered  themselves  under  that  bull,  now  that  the  king  pro- 
posed to  burden  them  so  shamefully  out  of  all  proportion  to  his  charges 
upon  other  orders  of  his  subjects.  Though  Edward  was  much  enraged  at 
the  tacit  opposition  of  the  clergy,  he  did  not  instantly  proceed  to  any  vio- 
lence, but  caused  all  the  barns  of  the  clergy  lo  be  locked  up  and  prohibited 
ail  payment  of  rent  to  them.  Having  given  thus  much  intimation  of  his 
determination  to  persist  in  his  demand,  he  appointed  a  new  synod  to  con 
fer  with  him  upon  its  reasonableness ;  but  Robert  de  Winchelsey,  arch 
bishop  of  Canterbury,  who  had  suggested  to  Boniface  that  bull  of  whicl 
the  clergy  were  now  availing  theniselv*!s,  plainly  told  the  king  that  tha 
clergy  owed  obedience  to  both  a  temporal  and  a  spiritual  sovereign,  and 
that  the  obedience  due  to  the  former  would  l^.-.r  no  comparison  as  to  im- 
portance with  that  which  was  due  to  the  lialcr  •  and  that  consequently  it 
was  impossible  that  they  could  pay  a  tax  demanded  by  the  king  when  they 
were  expfessly  forbidden  to  pay  it  by  the  pope. 

A.D.  1297. — Really  in  need  of  money,  and  at  the  same  time  equally  de 
sirous  of  avoiding  an  open  quarrel  with  the  pope  on  the  one  hand,  and  of 
making  any  concessions  to  obtain  a  relaxation  of  his  bull  on  the  other, 
Edward  coolly  replied  that  they  wlio  would  not  support  the  civil  power 
could  not  fairly  expect  to  be  protected  by  it.  He  accordingly  gave  orders 
to  all  his  judges  to  consider  the  clergy  as  wholly  out  of  his  protection. 
He,  of  course,  was  obeyed  to  the  letter.  If  any  one  had  a  suit  against  a 
clerk  the  plalntifT  whs  sure  of  success,  whatever  the  merits  of  his  case, 
for  neither  the  defendant  nor  his  witness  could  he  heard ;  on  the  other 
hand,  no  matter  how  grossly  a  clerk  might  have  been  wronged  in  matters 
not  cognizable  by  the  ecclesiastical  courts,  all  redress  was  refused  him  at 
Ihe  very  threshold  of  those  courts  whose  doors  were  thrown  open  to  thp 
meanest  layman  in  the  land. 

Of  such  a  stale  of  things  the  people,  already  sufficiently  prone  to  plun- 
ioT.  were  not  slow  to  avail  themselves  ;  and  to  be  a  clerk  and  to  be  plun- 
dered and  insullbd  were  preltly  nearly  one  and  the  same  thing.    The  rent." 


iise 


THK  TRE/.'JRY  OF  HISTORY. 


Iioth  in  money  and  in  kind  were  cut  off  from  the  convents ;  and  if  ini> 
monks,  in  peril  of  being  starved  at  home,  rode  forth  in  seach  of  subsis 
tence,  robbers,  emboldened  by  the  king's  rule,  if  not  actually  prompted  by 
his  secret  orders,  robbed  them  pitilessly  of  money,  apparel  and  horses, 
and  sent  tliem  back  to  their  convents  still  poorer  and  in  a  worse  plight 
than  they  had  left  them.  The  archbishop  of  Canterbury  issued  a  general 
excommunication  against  all  who  took  part  in  these  shameful  proccedingsj 
but  it  was  little  attended  to,  and  had  no  effect  in  cliecking  the  spohation 
of  the  clergy,  upon  which  the  king  looked  with  the  utmost  indifference, 
or,  rather,  with  the  double  satisfaction  arising  from  feeling  that  the  losses 
of  the  clergy  would  at  length  induce  them  to  submit,  even  in  despite  of 
their  veneration  for  the  papal  commands,  and  that  the  people  were  thus 
gradually  accustoming  themselves  to  look  with  less  awe  upon  the  papal 
power.  Whether,  in  wishing  the  latter  consummation,  Edward  wished 
wisely  for  his  successors  we  need  not  now  stay  to  discuss ;  in  anticipating 
the  former  consummation  he  most  assuredly  was  quite  correct;  for  the 
clergy  soon  began  to  grow  weary  of  u  passive  struggle  in  which  they  were 
being  tortured  imperceptibly  and  incessantly,  without  either  the  dignity  ol 
martyrdom  or  the  hope  of  its  reward.  The  northern  province  of  York  had 
from  the  first  paid  the  fifth  demanded  by  the  king,  not  in  any  preference 
of  his  orders  to  those  of  the  pope,  nor,  certainly,  with  any  peculiar  and 
personal  predilection  for  being  taxed  beyond  theirability,  but  because  their 
proximity  to  Scotland  gave  tliem  a  fearful  personal  interest  in  the  ability 
of  the  king  to  have  sutlicient  force  at  his  command.  The  bishops  of  Sal. 
isbury  and  Kly,  and  some  others,  next  came  in  and  offered  not  indeed  lit- 
erally to  disobey  the  pope  by  paying  the  fifth  directly  to  Edward,  but  to 
deposit  equivalent  sums  in  certain  appointed  places  whence  they  could  be 
taken  by  the  king's  collectors.  Those  who  could  not  command  ready 
money  for  this  sort  of  commutation  of  the  king's  demand  privily  entered 
into  recognizances  for  the  payment  at  a  future  time,  and  thus  eitlier  di- 
rectly or  indirectly,  mediately  or  immediately,  the  whole  of  the  clergy 
paid  the  king's  exorbitant  demand,  though  reason  warranted  them  in  a  re- 
sistance which  had  the  formal  sanction,  nay  the  express  command,  of  their 
spiritual  sovereign.  In  this  we  see  a  memorable  instance  of  tlie  same 
power  applied  to  different  itien;  the  power  that  would  have  crushed  the 
weak  Jolin,  however  just  his  cause,  was  now,  with  a  bold  and  triumphant 
contempt,  set  at  naught  by  the  intrepid  and  politic  Edward,  thoiigli  it  op. 
posed  him  in  a  demand  which  was  both  shameful  in  its  extent  and  illegal 
even  in  the  manner  of  its  imposition. 

Dut  with  all  this  assistance,  the  supplies  which  Edward  obtained  still 
fell  far  short  of  his  necessities,  and  the  manner  in  which  he  contrived  to 
make  up  the  difference  was  characterized  by  tlie  injustice  which  was  the 
one  great  blot  upon  what  would  otherwise  have  been  a  truly  glorious  reign. 
Though  the  merchants  had  ever  shown  great  willingness  to  assist  liim,  he 
now  arbitrarily  fixed  a  limit  to  the  exportation  of  wool,  and  as  arbitrarily 
levied  a  duty  of  forty  shillings  on  each  sack,  being  something  more  than 
a  third  of  its  full  value !  Nor  did  his  injustice  stop  here ;  this,  indeed,  was 
the  least  of  it;  for  he  immediately  afterwards  seized  all  the  wool  that  re- 
mained in  the  kingdom,  and  all  the  leather,  and  sold  them  for  his  own  ben- 
efit. The  sheriffs  of  each  county  were  empowered  to  seize  for  Iiiin  two 
thousand  quarters  of  wheat  and  two  thousand  of  oats.  Cattle  and  other 
requisites  were  seized  in  the  same  wholesale  and  unceremonious  fashion; 
and  though  these  seizures  were  made  under  promise  to  pay.  the  sufTerers 
naturally  placed  little  reliance  upon  such  pnjinioe  made  under  such  cir- 
cumstances. In  the  recruiting  of  his  army  Kdward  acted  quite  as  arbi 
Irarily  as  in  provisionmg  it;  compelling  every  proprietor  of  land  to  pay 
Jlie  yearly  value  of  twenty  poimds,  either  to  serve  in  person  or  find  a  proxy 
even  though  his  land  were  not  held  by  military  tenure.     Notwithstandiii{ 


w 


TllK  TRKASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


367 


ihe  great  popularity  of  Edward,  and  the  terror  of  his  power,  he  could  not 
under  such  circumstances  of  provocation  prevent  the  people  from  murmur- 
ing; nor  were  the  murmurs  confined  to  the  poorer  sort  or  those  who  were 
personally  suflerers  from  the  king's  arbitrary  conduct,  but  the  highest  no- 
bles also  felt  the  outrage  that  was  committed  upon  the  general  principle 
of  liberty.  Of  this  feeling  Edward  was  made  aware  as  soon  as  he  had 
completed  his  preparations.  He  divided  his  forces  into  two  armies,  in- 
lendiiig  to  assail  France  on  the  side  of  Flanders  with  one  of  them,  and  to 
send  the  other  to  assail  it  on  tlie  side  of  Gascony.  But  when  everything 
was  ready  and  the  troops  actually  assembled  on  tlie  sea  coast,  Roger  Bigod, 
carl  of  Norfolk  and  marshal  of  England,  and  Bohun,  earl  of  Hereford  and 
constable  of  England,  to  whom  he  intended  to  entrust  the  Gascon  portion 
of  his  expedition,  refused  to  take  charge  of  it,  on  the  plea  that  by  their 
offices  they  were  only  bound  to  attend  upon  his  person  during  his  wars. 
Liille  used  to  be  thwarted,  the  king  was  greatly  enraged  at  this  refusal, 
and  in  the  high  words  that  passed  upon  the  occasion  he  exclaimed  to  the 
carl  of  Herelord, "  By  God,  Sir  Earl,  you  shall  either  go  or  hang ;"  to  which 
Hereford  coolly  replied,  "  By  God,  Sir  King,  I  will  neitlier  go  nor  hang ;" 
and  he  immediately  left  the  expedition,  taking  with  him  above  thirty  other 
powerful  barons  and  their  numerous  followers. 

Finding  himself  thus  considerably  weakened  in*  actual  numbers,  and 
Btill  mure  so  by  the  moral  effect  this  dispute  had  upon  men's  minds,  Ed- 
ward now  gave  up  the  Gascon  portion  of  his  expedition  ;  but  the  opposi- 
lion  was  not  yet  at  an  end,  for  the  two  earls  now  refused  to  perform  their 
duty  on  the  ground  that  their  ancestors  had  never  served  in  Flanders. 
Not  knowing  how  far  the  same  spirit  might  have  spread,  Edward  feared 
to  proceed  to  extremities,  aggravated  and  annoying  as  this  disobedience 
was,  but  contented  himself  with  appointing  Geoffrey  de  Geyneville  and 
Thomas  de  Berkeley  to  act  for  the  recusant  officers  on  the  present  occa- 
sion; for  as  the  offices  of  marshal  and  constable  were  hereditary,  he 
conld  only  have  deprived  the  offenders  of  them  by  she  extreme  moiMiirr 
of  altainder.  He  farther  followed  up  this  (;onciliatory  policy  by  taking 
the  primate  into  favour  again,  in  hope  of  thus  securing  tlie  interest  of  the 
church;  and  he  assembled  a  great  meeting  of  tlie  nobles  in  Westminster 
Hall,  to  whom  he  addressed  a  speech  in  apology  for  what  they  might 
kern  e.vceptionable  in  his  conduct.  He  pointed  out  how  strongly  the 
iiouour  of  the  crown  and  the  nation  demanded  the  warlike  measures  he 
proposed  to  take,  and  how  impossible  it  was  to  take  those  measures  wilh- 
m  money ;  he  at  the  same  time  protested,  that  should  he  ever  return  he 
ivould  take  care  that  every  man  should  be  reimbursed,  and  that  wherever 
diere  was  a  wrong  in  his  kingdom  that  wrong  should  be  redressed.  At 
die  same  time  that  he  made  these  promises  and  assured  his  hearers  that 
ihey  might  rely  upon  his  fulfilment  of  them,  he  strongly  urged  them  to 
lay  aside  all  animosities  among  themselves,  and  only  strive  with  each 
other  who  should  do  most  towards  preserving  the  peace  and  upholding 
the  credit  of  Ihe  nation,  to  bo  faithful  to  him  during  his  absence,  and,  in 
the  event  of  his  falling  in  battle,  to  be  faithful  to  his  son. 

Though  there  was  something  extremely  touching  in  the  politic  pleading 
of  the  king,  coming  as  it  did  from  a  man  usually  so  fierce  and  resolute, 
his  arbitrary  conduct  had  injured  too  widely,  and  stung  too  deeply,  to 
admit  of  Words,  however  paihetic,  winning  him  back  the  friendship  of  his 
people;  mid  just  as  he  was  embarking  at  Winchelsea,  a  remonstrance 
which  Ilereford  and  Norfolk  had  framed  was  presented  to  him  in  their 
names  and  in  those  of  other  considerable  barons.  In  this  remonstrance, 
strongly  though  courteously  worded,  complaint  was  generally  made  of 
Ills  recent  ^system  of  government,  and  especially  of  his  perpetual  and 
ll;igrant  violation  of  the  great  charter  ai^d  of  the'charter  of  the  forests, 
»nil  his  arbitrary  taxation  and  seizuiei,  and  they  demanded  redress  of 


•I' 


L'8.-! 


THE  TREASUIIY  OF  HISTORY. 


thesu  great  and  manifest  grievances.  The  circumstances  under  which 
this  memorial  was  delivered  to  the  king  furnished  him  with  an  excuse  o( 
which  lie  was  by  no  means  sorry  to  avail  himself,  seeing  that  he  could 
neither  deny  the  grievances  nor  find  the  means  of  redressing  iliein ;  and 
he  briefly  replied,  that  he  could  not  decide  upon  matters  of  such  high  im. 
poriance  while  at  a  distance  from  his  council  and  in  all  the  bustle  of  em 
barkatiun. 

But  the  two  Paris  and  their  partizans  were  resolved  that  the  king's  em 
barkation  should  rather  serve  than  injure  llieir  cause ;  and  when  the  priiicj 
of  Wales  and  the  government  summoned  them  to  meet  in  parliaineiu  tliey 
did  so  with  a  perfect  army  of  attendants,  horse  and  foot,  and  would  not 
even  enter  the  city  until  the  guardianship  of  the  gates  was  given  up  to 
them.  The  council  hesitated  to  trust  so  much  to  men  who  had  assumed 
so  hostile  an  ..ttitude  ;  but  the  archbishop  of  Canterbury,  who  sided  with 
the  earls,  overruled  all  objections  and  argued  away  all  doubts ;  the  gntps 
were  given  into  tiie  custody  of  the  malcontents,  and  thus  both  the  prince 
and  the  parliament  were  virtually  nut  into  their  power. 

That  power,  however,  they  used  with  an  honourable  moderation,  de- 
manding only  tliat  the  two  charters  should  be  solemnly  confirnieJ  by  the 
king  and  duly  observed  for  the  time  to  come;  that  a  clause  shoijd  be 
added  to  the  great  charter,  securing  the  people  from  being  taxed  wiihoiit 
the  consent  of  parliament;  and  that  liiey  who  had  refused  to  attend  the 
king  to  Flandi'rs  sliould  be  held  harmless  on  that  account  and  received 
into  the  king's  favour.  Hoth  the  prince  of  Wales  and  his  council  agreed 
to  thcs"  really  just  and  moderate  terms;  but  when  they  were  submitted 
to  Edward,  in  Flanders,  he  at  first  obJHctcd  to  agree  to  them,  and  even 
after  three  days'  delibenition  he  was  oidy  with  difliculty  persuaded  li 
do  -SO. 

The  various  impediments  which  the  kinj  had  met  with  in  Knglaml 
caused  him  to  reach  Flanders  too  late  in  the  season  for  any  0|iriatl(insij| 
importance;  and  enabled  Philip  to  enter  the  Low  Countries  hefure  his 
arrival,  and  make  himself  master,  in  suicession,  of  Lisle,  St.  Oiners, 
Conrirai,  anil  yi)re8.  The  appearance  of  Kdward  with  an  Kiijjiish  iirmy 
of  fifty  thousand  men  put  an  end  to  this  march  of  prosperity ;  and  Pliili|i 
not  only  was  coiniii.'llcd  to  retreat  on  France,  hut  had  every  rciison  to  fi';ir 
thai  he  should  be  early  invaded  there.  Kdward,  however,  besides  being 
anxious  for  liiiHlaiid,  expos(!il  as  it  was  to  the  hostilities  of  the  Scots,  wa^ 
(lisa|)poiiiteil  of  a  considerable  force  for  the  aid  of  which  he  hiid  paid  a 
hiyh  prii'c  to  Adolpli,  king  of  the  Romans;  and  both  nionarchs  bcin^ 
thus  dispose<l  to  at  least  temporary  |)eace,  they  agreed  to  a  truce  of  two 
years,  and  to  submit  their  (iiiarrcl  to  the  judgment  of  the  pope. 

A.  D.  12!)H. — Though  boili  K<lward  and  I'hilip  expressly  niaintainfJ 
that  they  referred  their  quarrel  to  the  pope,  not  as  admittiiiu  the  panal 
right  to  interfere  in  the  temporal  affairs  of  nations,  but  as  rcNpecting  Ins 
personal  wisdom  and  justice,  lie  was  too  anxious  to  he  seen  by  the  wnrM 
in  tli<!  charm  ter  of  mediator  between  two  such  nowerful  princes,  to  mskr 
any  ex'-eotion  to  the  terms  upon  which  his  mediation  was  aceepled.  Ilf 
examined  ilieir  dilTerences,  ami  proposed  that  a  permanent  peace  shoiiM 
b(!  made  by  them  im  the  following  terms,  viz. ;  that  Kdward,  who  «.i» 
now  a  widower,  should  espouse  Margaret,  sister  of  Philip,  and  that  llie 
priiicf!  of  Wales  should  espouse  Isabella,  daughter  of  Philip,  and  llial 
(Juieniie  shtinld  be  restored  to  Kiigland.  Philip  wished  to  include  llif 
Scots  in  his  peace  with  Ivlward,  but  the  latter  was  too  inveterate  agaiiifi 
Scotland  to  listen  to  that  proposal,  and  afti'r  some  discussion  the  peacf 
was  made— I'liilip  abandoning  the  Scots,  and  Kdward  in  turn  aliandoniiiS 
the  Kleiniiigs.  So  careless  of  their  allies  are  even  tin;  greatest  iiionarclii 
v.hei.  their  own  iiiterests  call  for  the  sacril'ice  of  those  allies! 

It  IS  hut  scliloin  that  projects  of  c(Mi(|ui'st  will  bear  scrutiny  ;  itill  tnorf 


THE  TRKASUaV  OF  HISTORY. 


288 


ler  which 
excuse  ol 
lie  could 
liem;  and 
1  high  iiU' 
itlc  of  em 

king's  em 

Ihe  princj 
aineiit  iliey 

would  not 
jiveu  up  to 
iid  jissunied 
)  sided  with 
i;  itie  gates 
1  the  prince 

Inration,  de- 
ruieJ  by  the 
le  shoiid  be 
iixed  without 
,0  vilti'nd  the 
mill  received 
(luneil  iijirceil 
ere  suhmittcd 
Jill,  and  even 
persuaded  1" 

;h  in  England 
LT  oprralions  "\ 
rics  hefi>re  liis 
(.,  St.  Omrt>. 
English  nrmy 
ly  ;  illld  Plnlil> 
rc'.isoii  to  fi'^if 
,  besides  beiiiR 
the  Scots,  wa? 
he  hiid  paid  a 
onarchs  bcnii; 
:i  truce  o(  Uvn 

,ly  niaintaineJ 
tiiiR  the  papid 
r^.^\)|'(■tin|;  '"' 
„  by  the  «'0»W 
inces,  to  makf 
m-eepted.  1 ' 
ncnce  shoulit 
•aril,  wiw  «,»' 


I",, 
lull 


■11,  "I"'  

luid  that  die 

lulip,  a"'>  >V' 
to  iiicUide  Uif 
[rttTiile  aganiil 
gi.ni  the  pewf 
hni  nhandoiniiS 
[iilest  i\umurch« 

liuy 


,  still  moK 


,p|(jom  that  they  merit  praise.  But  certainly,  looking  merely  at  the  geo- 
graphical relations  of  England  and  Scotland,  it  is  impossible  to  deny  that 
the  latter  seems  intended  by  nature  to  belong  to  the  former  whenever 
!iny  considerable  progress  should  be  made  in  civilization.  That  Scotland 
should  long  and  fiercely  strugjjle  for  independence  was  natural,  and  ex- 
cites our  admiration  and  sympathy ;  but,  on  turning  from  sentiment  to 
•eason,  we  cannot  but  approve  of  the  English  determination  to  annex  as 
'■fiends  and  fellow-subjects  a  people  so  commandingly  situated  to  be  mis- 
•hievous  and  costly  as  enemies.  It  is  probable  tlial  Scotland  would 
never  have  made  a  struggle  after  the  too  prudent  submission  of  .lohn 
Bahid,  had  the  English  rule  been  wisely  managed.  But  Eiirl  Warenne 
was  obliged  by  failing  health  to  retire  from  the  bleak  climate  of  Scot- 
land ;  and  Oriuesby  and  Cressingham,  who  wore  then  left  in  possession 
of  full  authority,  used,  or  rather  abused  it  in  such  wise  as  to  arouse  to 
hate  and  indignation  all  high-spirited  Scots,  of  -vhatever  rank,  and  of 
whatever  moderation  in  their  former  temper  tovards  England.  Their 
shameful  and  perpetual  oppressions,  in  fact,  excited  so  general  a  feeling 
of  hostility.,  that  orly  a  leader  had  been  for  some  time  wanting  to  pro- 
duce an  armed  revflt  8Jid  such  n  leader  at  length  appeared  in  the  per- 
son of  the  afterwards  famous  William  VVallacr. 

William  Wallace,  a  gentleman  of  moderate  fortuue,  but  of  an  ancient 
and  honourable  family  in  the  west  of  Scotland,  though  his  cfTorts  on  be- 
half of  his  country  deserve  at  least  a  part  of  the  enthusiastic  praise 
whii'h  his  countrymen  bestow  upon  him,  would  probably  have  died  un 
known,  and  without  one  patriotic  struggle,  but  for  that  which  often  leads 
10  patriotic  eflforts— a  private  quarrel.  Having,  like  too  many  of  his  fcl- 
Inv-couutrymen,  been  grossly  insulted  by  an  English  oflicer,  Wallace 
killed  him  ou  the  spot.  Under  so  tyraimous  a  rule  as  tlial  of  the  English 
in  Scotland,  such  a  deed  left  the  doer  of  it  but  little  mercy  to  hope ;  and 
Wallace  betook  himself  to  the  woods,  resolved,  as  his  life  was  already 
forfeit  to  the  law,  to  sell  it  as  dearly  as  possible,  and  to  do  away  with 
whatever  obloquy  might  attach  to  his  first  act  of  violence  by  mi.xing  up 
for  the  future  his  own  cause  with  that  of  his  country.  Of  singular  bodily 
ii  well  as  mental  powers,  anil  having  a  perfct-t  aC(iuaintanco  with  every 
morass  and  ini)untain  path,  the  suddenness  with  wiiich  Wallace,  with 
Hie  small  band  of  outlaws  he  at  first  collected  round  him,  fell  iinon  the 
Knglish  oppressors,  and  the  invarialih-  fai'ility  and  safety  with  wliicli  he 
made  good  his  retreat,  soon  made  him  looked  up  to  by  men  who  longed 
for  the  deliverance  of  their  country,  and  cared  not  if  they  owed  it  even 
til  a  hand  guilty  of  (hdilierate  murder.  The  followers  of  Wallace  thus 
speeilily  became  more  and  more  numerous,  and  from  the  mere  outlaw's 
band  E;rew  at  length  to  Ihe  patriot's  army. 

Hverv  new  success  with  which  Wallace  struck  terror  into  the  hearts 
(if  the  fcujjlish  iiicreas(ul  Ihe  admiration  of  bis  countrymen;  but  thongl' 
ilie  number  of  his  adherents  was  [lerpetuallv  on  the  increase,  for  a  lon^ 
lime  he  was  not  Joined  by  any  men  of  rank  and  consequence  snfHcieiit 
to  Hlamp  his  exertions  with  a  national  character.  But  this  great  diiriculty 
ivasat  length  removed  from  his  path,  \fter  a  variety  of  minor  successes 
he  prepared  his  followers  to  attack  Scone,  which  was  held  by  the  hated 
Hni;li«';  justiciary,  Ormesby;  and  that  tyrannical  person  being  informi-d 
by  his  spies  of  the  deadly  intentions  of  Wallace  towards  him,  was  so 
liirmed,  that  he  precipitately  departed  into  Englimd:  and  his  example 
iviif  closely  followed  by  all  the  immediate  accomplices  and  tools  of  liis 
I'nii'liy  ami  tyranny. 

The  ji.iiiie  llight  of  Ormesby  added  greatly  In  the  efTect  whicli  llio  cour- 
se ami  ciindiii't  of  Wallace  had  already  produced  upon  the  minds  of  his 
fcllowcduiitrymen  ;  and  even  the  great,  who  hitherto  had  deemed  it  pni- 
Jeiii  10  keep  aloof  from  iiini,  now  ihowed  him  both  sympathy  and  coiifl 


290 


THi.  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


dence.  Sir  William  Douglas  openly  joined  him,  and  Robert  Bruce  secreliy 
encouraged  him;  the  smaller  gentry  and  the  people  nt  *  large  gjve  him 
the  full  confidence  and  support  of  which  the  efforts  he  had  already  made 
proved  him  capable  of  profitinif;  and  so  general  was  the  Scottish  move- 
ment,  that  in  a  short  time  the  English  government  was  virtually  at  an  end 
in  Scotland.  The  more  sanguine  among  the  Scots  already  began  to  hope 
tliat  their  country's  independence,  was  completely  re-established,  bui  the 
wiser  and  more  experienced  judged  that  England  would  not  thus  easily 
part  with  a  conquest  so  desirable  and,  perhaps,  even  essential  to  her  own 
national  safety;  and  their  judgment  was  soon  justified  by  the  appearance 
of  Karl  Warenne  at  Irvine,  in  Annandale,  with  an  army  of  upwards  of  fortv 
thousand  men ;  a  force  which,  if  prudently  used  under  the  existing  cir- 
cumstances, must  on  the  instant  have  undone  all  that  Wallace  had  as  ye* 
done  for  the  enfranchisement  of  his  country.  For  the  mere  appearance  of 
so  vast  and  well  appoiuted  an  army,  under  the  command  of  a  leader  of  the 
known  valour  and  ability  of  Wareime,  struck  such  terror  into  niaiiy  of  tlie 
Scottish  nobles  who  had  joined  Wallace,  that  they  hastened  to  submit  to 
Warenne,  and  to  save  their  persons  and  property  by  renewing  the  oath  ol 
fealty  to  Edward ;  wli  ;  many  who  were  secretly  in  correspondence  with 
Wallace,  and  among  lis  most  zealous  friends,  were  compelled,  thoiijli 
sorely  against  their  w  11,  to  join  the  I'^ngiish.  Wallace,  being  then  tliiis 
weakened,  a  prudent  jse  of  the  vast  English  force  was  all  that  was  re- 
quired to  have  insurtd  success;  and  had  Warenne  acted  solely  iipiin  Ins 
own  judgment,  success  most  certainly  would  have  been  his.  But  Cres- 
singham,  Ow  treasurer,  whose  oppr(!ssions  had  only  been  second  to  tiiose 
of  Ormesby,  was  so  transported  by  personal  rage,  and  had  so  much  inilu' 
ence  over  Warenne,  as  to  mislead  even  that  veteran  commander  into  an 
error  as  glaring  as  in  its  conseciuence  it  was  mischievous. 

Urged  by  ('rcssingliam,  Warenne,  who  had  advanced  to  Camhnskeii. 
neth,  on  the  banks  of  tlu;  Forth,  resolved  to  assail  Waliare,  who  had  iiiosl 
skilfully  and  strongly  posted  himself  on  tiie  opposite  hank.     Sir  liifliarii 
Lundy,  a  nitiv(!  Scotchman,  but  sincerely  and  zealously  attached  to  the 
Eiiulisli  cause,  in  vain  pointed  out  to  Warenne  the  disadvaiitajjes  niiikr 
which  ho  was  about  to  make  the  attack.     The  order  was  given,  and  ilit 
English  began  their  march  over  the  bridge  which  crossed  the  river  ai  thai 
point.    Wallace  allowed  the  leading  divisions  to  reach  his  side  of  the  river, 
out  before  they  could  fully  form  in  ordi^r  of  ballli!  he  gave  the  word,  Ins 
troops  rushed  upon  the  English  in  overwiielmiiijij;  fonv,  and  in  an  wrrir 
bly  short  lime  the  battle  betMine  a  mere  rout,  tlie   I'higlisli  llyins;  in  eviry 
direction,  and  thousands  of  them  l)eing  put  to  the  sword  or  (Irowiiediii 
Iheir  vain  endeavours  to  escape  from  their  enraged  enemies,    (.'rensinj 
ham,  who  behaved  with  much  gallantry  during  the  short  but  inurderoiiii 
coiiflicl,  was  among  the  number  of  the  English  slain ;  and  so  iiiviimie  j 
and  men'ilcss  was  th(!  Iiaire(l  with  which  Ins  tyranny  had  inspirel ilir 
Scots,  that  Ihcy  actually  Hayed  his  corpse  and  had  Ins  skin  taniii'il  aiilcmi- 
verted  into  girths  and  belts.     The   grc^at  loss  sustained   by  ihe  Kii^listi 
upon  the  field,  and  the  comidete  panic   into  wiiicli  the  survivors  v-tt 
thrown,  left  Warenne  no   alternative  l)Ut  to  retreat  into  EiiLdand.    Tiif 
castles  of  Uerwick  and  Koxburgh  wer<!  spei'dily  taken,  and  ScciiUiid  «i* 
'lerself  free;  oiico  more,  and  loudly  haili^d  Wallace  as  her  dehveivr.    Tie 
title  of  regent  was  Ix^stowcl  upon  him  by  aci-lamation  :  and  hmli  fnin 
jeing  tdated  by  his  almost  marvellous  success,  and  from  the  almidiiii' liiii' 
ine  which  [)revailc(l  in  ScotKud,  he  was  now  milneed  to  carry  the  «ar  I 
into  England,     lie  accoidiiigly  nvrelied  his  troops  across  the  hiirder,:iiiil 
xpreading  them  over  llie  northern  .  juniies,  pliimlered  and  dcstntyeii  wiili- 
out  mercy,  till  .it  length  having  penetr.'^ed  as  far  as  the  hishiiprKknf  Dm- 
liain,  he  obtamiMl  enurmous  booty,  witu  which  he  returned  in  iriuMi|)Mo| 
Hcullaiid. 


Tlie  new 
Flanders,  \ 
He  was  ihi 
liic  loss  of 
greatly  oflTe 
zeal  Im  iio\ 
to  regain  hif 
by  restoring 
wliieh  his  f<i 
for  exact  in 
eoniinodiiies 
leading  the  it 
others,  that  ( 
the  nobles  he 
fessions  of  Ii 
ingratiated  hi 
preparations  I 
enabled  to  ina 
Theinagiiiti 
only  advantag 
very  moment 
and  ilisinleresi 
lace  had  done 
tioii  and digpai 
'he  son  of  a  pri 
rei'ent  gave  dee 
self  more  worti 
Rerof  ihedivid 
disinterestedly 
only  the  coin  in 
otbercoiiimaiid 
ofHadenochaiii 
tlie  Scottish  for 
Kach  of  ihoSco 
army,  while  a  t 
In  I'  himself.     '| 
"nervals  I  eiwci 
aiiil  as  iJK;  |.;i|„| 
"ii'  Ncoiiish  ;„7m 
ifcni-ed  to  etch 

Kdwiird,  1)1  ;ir 
"irce  ilivisinh 
nwniTil  the  altn 
Jfized  with  a  (Mil 
r'Ht'lish  bolls  and 
li''chai-g,.  „fi|„ 
Ibim  ohijiineil. 
""'  ''."nglish,  in 

P'".  lliat  II I 

"'«lli  routed,  w 

'■'"|''"'alion  r,it,.,| 

'•^'•'i  ill  iliis  ail 

"''''  '"  k'cp  his   ,|| 

J'v-r  tWroiMnii, 
""■"•k  of  the  Eii^l 
'^'1  iiilerview  h, 
''"•I'lle  his  o«  n  III 
'»■'«  then  serviii.r , 


d 


THE  TREASUIIY  OF  HISTORY 


291 


Camhusken- 
■111)  hrtd  most 
I  Sir  llichsr: 

■(Ml,  ami  lilt 

■ivcr  -.11  iliai 

of  llif  river, 
lie  worii.his 
;in  ilUTi'li- 

im  III  t'vm 
Iriiwiwil  111 
Crensiii? 
,\i  nmr.iiTow 

jllVYllTlK 

iiisjiirfl  liif 

IIV'll  ,llli  l''"!' 

till'  F.iigli'ii 
rviviirs  «''rf 
i(;\imi    The 

;,M>il:iiiil  1<f 

^\  \),iili  friim  1 

;l\)H(llull'  I'll"' 

urry  ilie  «■« 
,.  burilfr.iw;^ 
giriiyt'il  wiih- 

iprii'k  "f  ""'■ 
mirmiiHiii'''| 


Tlie  news  of  this  great  triumph  of  the  Scots  reached  Edward  while  in 
Flanders,  where,  fortunately,  he  had  just  completed  a  truce  with  France. 
He  was  thus  at  liberty  to  hasten  to  England  and  endeavour  to  retrieve 
the  loss  of  his  most  valued  conquest.  Sensilile  that  his  past  conduct  had 
greatly  offended  as  well  as  alarmed  his  people,  of  whose  utmost  aid  ani 
zeal  lit)  now  stood  in  so  much  need,  his  first  care  was  to  exert  every  art 
(0  regain  his  lost  popularity.  To  the  citizens  of  Loudon  he  paid  his  court 
bv  restoring  to  them  the  privelege  of  electing  their  own  magistrates,  ol 
wliii'h  his  father  had  deprived  them  ;  and  he  gave  ostentatious  direi-tioiis 
for  exact  inquiry  to  be  made  as  to  the  value  of  corn,  cattle,  and  other 
cDininodilies,  which  a  short  time  before  he  had  ordered  to  be  seized  ;  thus 
leiulitig  the  more  sanguine  among  the  sufferers  to  believe,  and  persuading 
others,  that  he  intended  to  pay  for  tiie  goods  thus  violently  obtained.  To 
tlie  nobles  he  equally  endeavoured  to  recommend  himself  by  solemn  pro- 
fessions  of  his  determination  to  observe  the  charters  ;  and  having  thus 
iiigriUiiited  himself  with  all  orders  of  men,  he  made  extensive  levies  and 
preparations  for  the  re-conquest  of  Scotland,  against  which  he  was  soon 
en;ibled  to  inarch  with  aii  army  of  nearly  a  hundred  thousand  men. 

Tlie  magnitude  and  excellent  equipment  of  Kdward's  forcf  were  not  his 
only  advantages  ;  dissensions  were  rife  and  fierce  among  the  Scots  at  the 
Yery  moineiit  when  it  was  obvious  that  nothing  but'°the  most  unanimous 
and  disinterested  zeal  could  give  them  even  a  chance  of  success.  Wal- 
lace had  done  wonders  in  raising  his  country  from  the  extreme  degrada- 
tion anddi'spair  in  which  he;  had  found  her;  but  then  VVallaiut  was  mily 
the  son  of  a  private  gentleman,  and  his  elevation  to  the  importiint  post  of 
rPilont  gave  deep  offence  to  llie  proud  nobility,  each  of  wlunn  deemed  him- 
si'if  more  worthy  than  the  other.  I'orcfiviiig  buih  the  cause  and  the  dan- 
cer of  tliu  divided  spirit,  VVallai^e  showed  himself  truly  noble  in  soul,  by 
disinterestedly  resigning  the  authority  he  had  so  well  won,  and  retaining 
only  the  coniinaiid  of  his  immediiili;  followers,  who  would  have  obeyed  no 
otlier  commander;  and  the  chief  authority  was  divided  between  Cuiniiiin 
of  liadcniicliMiid  the  steward  of  Badenocli,  who  agreed  in  coiicciitraliiignll 
the  Scottish  forces  at  Falkirk,  there  to  awaii  the  attack  of  the  Eii^'lish. 
Kiicii  of  the  .Scottish  cominaiidcrs-iii-ciiicf  headed  a  great  division  of  their 
Briiiv,  while  a  third  liivisiiui  was  under  the  immediate  conimand  of  VVal- 
JiKc  hims(>lf.  The  pikeineii  formed  the  front  of  each  division,  md  the 
intervals  Lctween  the  three  were  ()Ci'Ut)ied  liy  strong  bodies  of  archers; 
ami  as  the  Kiiglish  had  a  vast  snperiiu'ity  in  cavalry,  the  whole  front  of 
the  Scottish  posiiiitn  was  protected  as  well  ;is  possilile  by  stakes  strongly 
jpcnred  to  ei.ch  other  by  ropes. 

Kdwani,  oi  arriving  in  front  of  his  enemy  formed  his  army,  also,  into 
three  (livisinhi.  His  archers,  probably  tlie  most  skilfil  in  the  wmid,  eoin- 
iiiciii'cil  the  attack,  and  so  galled  the  Si-oiijsh  bowmen,  that  they  were 
ni'ized  with  a  panic  and  tleil  rrtiin  the  (itdd.  'I'he  fearful  shower  of  the 
Kiiuhsli  bolts  and  arrows  was  now  turned  upon  the  >Scoitisli  pikeiiK'ii,  and 
theclianje  (if  the  Knulish  pikemen  and  cavalry  fidlowed  up  the  advantage 
thus  (ibtaiiicd.  The  Scots  fought  bravely  and  well,  but  the  superiority  ol 
the  Kiiyiish,  ill  discipline  and  cipiipnieiits  as  widl  as  in  numbers,  was  so 
prcat,  tlial  tlie  niiiiost  elforls  of  the  Scoti'b  were  ill  vain,  and  they  were  at 
iiMiitli  roiiti'il,  with  a  loss  of  ten  tl)i)usaiid  men,  but  which  the  po|)nlar 
laiiiciitalion  rateil  as  high  as  (Ifty  thousand. 

Kveii  in  this  app  illiiiii  scene  of  ('(uil'iisioii  and  slaughter,  Wallace  eonlrj. 
Veil  ui  keep  his  division  unbroken,  and  to  lead  it  in  good  order  behind  the 
rner  Carnm,  lininir  the  hank  of  that  river  in  sindi  wise  as  lo  render  the 
iiitiickof  the  Kiiglisli  highly  perihnis,  if  not  actually  impraeticahle. 

.\'i  interview  here  look  place  between  Wallace  and  voiiiig  llriice,  wlio, 
lis|iile  his  own  high  birth  and  not  weak  elai'ii  upon  the  Scottish  royalty 
«;is  then  servuig  in  Kdwiird's  army      The  account  given  by  the  Scottish 


■  1^  t' 


0 


i 


I'H 


,,K,MW' 


292 


THB  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


historians  of  this  interview  is  so  precise  as  to  be  somewhat  suspicious, 
especially  as  authors  quite  as  eredible  affirm  that  Bruce  was  not  theinvjili 
the  English  army,  or  even  in  that  part  of  the  country.  If,  however,  tlu 
interview  took  place,  the  subsequent  conduct  of  Bruce  shows,  that,  30  far 
from  succeeding  in  his  endeavour  to  induce  Wallace  to  struggle  no  longei 
tor  his  coinitry's  independence,  he  was  himself  converted  by  the  greai 
hero  into  a  nobler  way  of  thinking. 

A.  D.  1299. — While  Wallace  still  remained  unconquered  and  in  some 
force,  Kdward  felt  that  his  iriumph  was  not  complete ;  but  after  havnig 
subjected  tlie  south  of  Scotland,  Edward  was  obliged,  by  sheer  want  of 
provisions,  to  march  his  troops  back  into  England  and  to  leave  the  north 
of  Scotland  still  unconquered. 

A.  D.  1300. — The  Scotch  having  in  vain  applied  for  aid  to  Philip  ol 
France,  now  betook  themselves  to  the  mediation  of  Rome  ;  and  Boniface 
wrote  on  their  behalf  a  long  and  justly-argued  letter  to  Edward,  in  wliich 
he  strongly  put  forward  all  the  solid  arguments  that  existed  against  his 
equally  unjust  and  arrogant  claim  to  Scotland.  But  as  the  ambition  of 
Boniface  was  fully  equal  to  his  ability,  he  weakened  the  justice  of  his 
opposition  to  the  arrogant  claim  of  Edward,  by  putting  forward  an  equally 
arrogant  and  unfounded  one  on  the  part  of  Kome,  to  which  he  asserted 
Scotland  to  have  by  right  appertained  from  the  most  remote  antiquity. 

Tlu!  real  claim  of  Edward  was  plainly  founded  upon  the  riglit  of  the 
strongest;  his  only  justification  was  to  be  found  in  the  geographical  con- 
nection of  Scotland  and  England.  But,  in  replying  to  the  letter  of  the 
pope,  Edward  advanced  arguments  which  were  quite  as  remarkable  for 
grave  and  absurd  assurance  as  even  the  claim  of  the  pope  himself.  Com- 
mencing with  Brutus  the  Trojan,  Edward  cited  and  assumed  liistoriial 
sayings  and  doings  down  to  the  time  of  Henry  II.  in  support  of  his  claim; 
but  carefully  leaving  out  everything  that  told  for  Scotland,  though  he 
commenced  his  elahoi'iite  docinncnt  by  a  solenni  iippeal  to  the  Almighty 
to  witness  iiis  sincerity  and  good  faith !  It  is  still  more  extnionlinary  that 
Edward's  pretensions  were  backed  by  no  fewer  than  a  hiindred  and  four 
barons,  who,  to  his  defence  of  his  claims,  added,  tliat  though  they  had 
condescended  to  justify  them  to  Boniface,  they  by  no  means  ackiiowl. 
edged  his  right  to  judge,  and  that  if  their  sovereign  were  willing  to  give 
up  the  |)rerogative9  whi(!h  they  were  determined  at  all  hazards  and  all 
sacrifices  to  uphold,  they  for  their  parts  would  in  nowise  allow  him  to 
do  so. 

A.  n.  1303. — While  Edward  was  thus  endeavouring  to  gi-cto  a  politic 
and  tempting  usurp:ttion  the  character  of  a  just  and  aiii'ieiit  claim,  the 
Scots,  relieved  from  his  innneiliale  ami  fatal  activity,  were  exerting  thcia 
8elv(!s  for  another  effort  in  behalf  of  their  n:itional  independence.  .Inliii 
Cummin  was  made  regent,  an<l  he  did  not  content  liiinself  with  keeping 
a  force  together  in  the  norlli,  but  made  frequent  iiuuirsions  upon  thi'  sub- 
dued southern  provinces.  John  do  Segrave,  whom  Edward  hail  left  ;i< 
Ins  n'presentative  in  Scotland,  at  lengili  led  out  his  ariiiy  to  oppose  il.i 
Scotch,  and  a  long  and  Kanguinary  action  took  [)lace  at  Rosliii,  near  F.iliii 
burgh,  in  which  the  Engli.sli  were  completely  defeated,  and  llU'  wlioh'  "I 
thesiiulliern  provinces  freed  from  them  by  the  regent. 

Edward,  to  his  infinite  indignation,  now  perceived  that  he  had  not  to 
complete,  merely,  but  aclnally  reeommenee  the  coiKinest  of  this  liravc  ptn- 
pie,  and  he  made  pre|)aralion  for  so  doing  with  his  accustomed  vigour  ml 
activity.  Assembling  naval  as  well  as  milit;iry  forces,  he  enterni  Scni. 
land  with  a  large  army,  which  his  navy,  sailing  along  the  coast,  jint  oiilul 
all  (liinger  as  reganh'd  want  of  provisions.  Tin;  superiority  which  iliif 
arrangement  gave  to  I'Mward  rendered  the  resistance  of  the  Scotch  ?■• 
hopeless  as  it  was  gallant.  Place  aftiT  places  was  taken,  the  chieriaiM'^  i 
succession  yielded  iu  despair,  and  Cummin  himself  and  his  niusl  zi  > 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


393 


ous  friends  at  length  submitted.  But  though  Edward  l.ad  marched  triuni- 
ohaiitly  from  one  end  of  the  country  to  the  other,  and  had  received  the 
«ubinissionof  the  ablest  and  the  bravest,  his  conquest  was  still  incomplete, 
for  \Vallace  was  yet  at  liberty  and  was  still  undaunted. 

A.D.  1304  5. — Edward  on  many  occasions  during  his  busy  reign  display- 
ed great  talents,  but  his  really  clear  judgment  was  usually  vanquished  when 
It  became  opposed  by  his  love  of  arbitrary  rule.  He  had  now  doiin 
enough  to  display  his  power,  and  his  truest  policy  would  have  been  to  en- 
deavour to  reconcile  the  existing  generation  of  Scots  to  their  loss  of  real 
ndepeiidence  by  flattering  them  with  as  much  as  possible  of  the  appear- 
iiice  of  it,  by  governing  them  by  their  own  laws,  and  by  indulging  them 
111  their  national  customs,  until,  habituated  to  rule  and  influenced  by  the 
propensity  of  imitation,  which  is  everywhere  so  strong,  they  should 
gradually  assimihite  themselves  in  those  respects  to  their  conquerors.  But 
t'liis  slow  though  sure  process  did  not  accord  with  his  passionate  disposi- 
tion; and  he  not  only  made  sweeping  alterations  in  the  Scottish  laws,  but 
still  more  deeply  wounded  the  national  pride  by  the  malignant  zeal  with 
which  he  destroyed  all  their  most  precious  records,  and  most  valued  monu- 
ments. 

By  this  injudicious  cruelty  he  powerfully  excited  the  hatred  of  the  Scots, 
and  that  hatred  was  now  pushed  to  its  utmost  exces"S  by  what  even  an 
English  historian  can  only  term  the  murder  of  the  brave  but  unforliinalo 
Wallace.  Resolved  never  to  despair  of  his  country,  nor  to  cease  his 
exertions  for  her  but  when  heshonkl  cease  to  live,  Wallace  sought  shelter 
in  the  mountain  fastnesses,  (confiding  the  secret  of  his  retreat  to  only  a 
few  upon  whom  he  thought  he  could  implicitly  rely,  and  watched  eagerly 
and  hopefully  for  some  opportunity  of  again  rousing  Scotland  to  resist- 
ance. Hut  the  anxiety  of  Edward  to  get  into  his  power  this  most  formi- 
ilable  enemy  to  him,  because  most  devoted  friend  to  his  native  land,  led  him 
to  hold  out  the  promise  of  such  reward  and  favour  to  whomsoever  would 
put  Wallace  into  his  power,  that  a  traitor  was  found  even  among  the  mere 
handful  of  Scots  to  whom  the  power  of  being  tlius  treacherous  was  "^on- 
lined.  The  man  to  whose  name  this  eternal  infamy  attaches  was  Sir.Iolm 
Monleitli,  an  intimate  and  confidential  friend  of  Wallace.  This  dastardly 
md  treacherous  imblemaii  revealed  the  place  of  the  patriotic  chieftain's 
Mielter,  and  he  was  siezed,  loaded  with  irons,  and  sent  to  London.  Dis- 
'.iiiguisiii'd  as  Edward  himself  was  for  courage,  the  almost  romantic  bravery 
md  devotion  of  Wallace  might  have  been  expected  to  have  excited  his 
ulmiration.  It  is  scarcely  possible  to  read  this  portion  of  our  history 
«itlinut,  for  Edward's  own  sake,  feeling  shocked  and  disappointed  at  the 
nikniglitly  want  of  g(!nerosity  he  displayed.  Had  he  kept  Wallace  even 
1  close  prisoner,  though  the  wrong  doer  would  still  have  been  exercising 
:'if  unjust  right  of  the  strongest,  Edward  had  been  excusable,  as  it  was 
quite  obvious  that  so  long  as  Wallace  was  at  liberty  the  conquest  of  Scot- 
hind  was  not  s(!cure  for  a  single  day.  Hut  the  courage  and  perseveronce 
which  (Might  to  have  secured  Edward's  sympathy,  only  excited  his  im- 
placable hiitred;  and  the  mifortunale  Scottish  patriot,  after  the  mere  mock- 
ery of  a  trial  for  tn^ason  and  rebellion  against  that  power  to  which  he  had 
iifvcr  made  sutimission,  was  publicly  beheaded  on  Towerhill. 

If  Kdwnid  hoped  by  this  shameful  severity  to  put  an  end  to  the  Scottish 
"Opcs  and  ilctcnniiialion,  he  was  signally  mistaken  ;  the  dying  resentment 
of  the  iM'opIc  was  aroused  ;  even  those  who  had  been  foremost  in  envying 
the  fiiiprcmiicy  of  Wallace  now  joined  in  deploring  his  fate,  and  the  gcn- 
"ral  mind  was  put  into  the  most  favourable  slatt!  for  insuring  welcinno 
uiil  (!ii|iii()rt  to  the  next  cltampion  of  independence,  who  soon  presented 
nimsclf  Ml  t!;c  person  of  Robert  Uruco. 

AD  )30(). — Robert  nriice,  grandson  of  the  opponent  of  Haliol,  was  now, 
liv  the  decease  of  bo.h  his  grandfallier  and  father,  the  inheritor  of,  at  the 


n 


'M4 


THE  TRKASUttY  OF  HISTORY. 


least,  a  plausible  claim  to  the  Scotiisli  crown,  iiiid  had  therefore  a  jm ^ 
soiial  as  well  as  a  patriotic  iiiotivt'  for  o[)posiiitr  the  tyranny  of  Kdward 
Thoiigli  he  was  himself  personally  well  treated,  though,  indeed,  he  was 
viewed  less  as  a  prisoner  at  hirgc  than  a  favoured  iv.itive  noh|p,  Uruce 
conid  not  butifeel  disgust  and  indigniitioii  at  the  numerous  cruellies  of  Kd. 
ward,  crown  ^1  as  they  were  by  ihe  damning  injustice  of  the  nuirder  of 
Wallace;  an.i  after  iviiig  long  pondered  the  sidijecl,  he  determined  to 
succeed  to  tli  ii  hero  m  his  task,  even  at  the  risk  of  succeeding  also  to  liis 
vi(dcnt  end.  This  determination  Uruce  confided  to  his  intimate  friend 
John  (-ummi't,  who  iipproved  of  his  design  and  encouraged  him  in  it.' 
Whether  Cu'umin  from  the  first  listened  only  to  betray,  or  whether  lie  at 
first  entered  sincerely  into  the  views  of  Druce,  and  only  l)etriiypd  tlipin 
from  horror  at  the  magnitude  of  the  danger,  does  not  clearly  appear.  But 
certain  it  is  that,  from  whatever  motives,  he  did  reveal  the  sentiments  and 
intentions  of  Uruce  to  the  king. 

Kdward,  though  little  prone  to  sparing,  knew  how  to  dissemble ;  and 
being  desirous  of  getting  into  his  power  the  three  brothers  of  liruce,  who 
were  slill  at  liberty  in  Scotland,  and  fearing  to  alarm  them  ere  he  could  do 
so,  should  he  taki;  any  decisive  measure  against  Robert,  he  for  the  prig. 
eiil  contented  himself  with  putting  his  every  act  and  word  uiiilerthe  most 
severe  siu'veillance  of  persons  practised  in  that  most  contemptible  species 
of  employntent.  This  pcdicy,  intended  to  make  the  ruin  of  Robert  Bruce 
more  ceriaiu  and  complete,  proved  his  safety;  for  an  I'-iiglish  nobleman 
who  was  privy  to  Kdward's  dc^sign  put  Biuce  on  his  g\iard  in  time.  The 
friendly  nobleman  in  ipiesiimi,  bemg  aware  how  closely  Uruce  was  watched 
could  not  venture  lo  warn  him  |)ersonally  ;oid  in  plain  terms  of  the  danger 
which  beset  him,  but  sent  him  by  a  sure  hand  a  pair  of  sj)nrs  and  a  puisn 
of  money.  The  -agacity  of  liruce  rightly  interpreted  the  meaninj;  of  ijiis 
double  present,  .'id  he  inslantly  set  off' for  Aimandale,  and  arrived  iliere 
safely  ;  having  t;"<en  the  precaution  to  have  his  horse  shod  backward,  so 
that  (  veil  had  a  (  'irsuit  been  commenced,  the  pursuers  would  speedily  iiave 
been  thrown  oni 

Migl)  as  Uruc'  ranked  in  the  Scottish  nobility,  he  had  hitherto  been 
looked  upon  as  i-hoJly  lost  to  Si'otland  ;  as  the  mere  minion  of  the  En- 
glish king;  Icssui  ptiims  about  the  land  to  which  he  owed  hisbirlh  thaiitiiilnit 
in  which  he  livec  a  life  ofsi)lendid  slavery.  It  was,  tluTcfore,  with  noli;- 
tic  surprise,  and  <  erhaps  in  some  cases  even  with  suspicion,  that  tiic  ScdI- 
tisli  nobility  ihei.  assembled  at  Dmnfries  .''aw  him  suddi'iiiy  njjpear  bcfuro 
them,  with  the  a\  owed  determination  of  following  up  the  mighty  elVorts  m 
Wallace,  and  of  I'berating  his  trampled  country  or  nobly  perishing  in  tin 
attcnijjt.  The  e;  upuMice  and  spirit  with  which  Uruce  declared  his  inteii- 
tioiis  and  exhort(d  the  assembled  nobles  to  join  him  in  his  (^fforls,  musiil 
their  spirits  to  tht  highest  enthusiasm,  and  they  at  once  declared  their  in- 
tention to  follow  'he  noble  Bruce  even  to  death.  To  this  enthusiasm  and 
assent  there  was  out  one  exception  : — Cummin,  who  had  already  hclraynl 
th(!  designs  of  Ui'jce  to  Ihe  king,  now  endeavoured  to  introduce  (hsconl 
into  the  council,  y  dwelling  with  great  earnestness  upon  the  little  proba- 
biliiy  that  existed  )f  their  being  successful  against  the  triMuendous  power 
of  Kiigland,  jMid  u  ion  the  still  smaller  probal)ilily  of  Kdward  showiiijfiiny 
mercy  to  them,  sh  )uld  tliey  fall  into  his  hands  after  insulting  him  by  anew 
breach  of  their  oaui  and  fealty. 

The  iliscoiirse  o  ('ummiii  had  the  greater  weiglit  because  he  was  held 
to  he  a  trills  patriot  ;  and  Bruce  clearly  perceived  that  this  man,  who  l::iil 
80  nearly  betrayt  d  him  lo  certain  iiii|irisomnent  and  very  probable  ex- 
ecution, had  so  sli'ing  a  hold  on  the  minds  of  the  nobles,  that  they  wotill 
most  lik(dy  follow  bis  advitre,  until  the  arrival  of  Hdward  with  an  over- 
whi'lming  power  would  render  exertion  useless.  Kuraged  at  srch  an  op' 
pusilioii  being  addi-d  to  the  treachery  of  which  he  was  aware  thai  (.'nni 


THE  TREABUHY  OF  HISTORY. 


29& 


rain  had  already  been  guilty,  Bruce,  when  the  meeting  of  the  nobles  was 
adjourned  to  another  day,  followed  Cummin  as  far  as  the  monastery  of 
the  Grey  Friars,  in  the  cloister  of  which  he  went  up  to  him  and  ran  him 
through  the  body.  Bruce  imagined  that  he  hud  killed  the  traitor,  but  on 
being  asked  by  a  friend  and  confidant,  named  Fuzpatrick,  whether  he  had 
done' so,  he  replied, '*  I  believe  so."  "  Believe'."  exclaimed  Fitzpatrick, 
"  and  is  that  a  thing  to  leave  to  chance  1  I  will  secure  him  1"  So  saying 
the  fierce  knight  went  back  to  the  spot  where  Cummin  lay,  and  stabbed 
him  through  the  heart.  This  brutal  violence,  which  in  our  more  enlight- 
ened  day  we  cannot  even  read  of  without  horror  and  disgust,  was  then 
deemed  a  matter  not  of  shame  but  of  triumph  and  boasting,  and  the  mur- 
derer Fitzpatrick  actually  took  for  his  crest  a  hand  and  bloody  dagger, 
and  the  words  "  I  will  secure  him!"  for  his  motto. 

The  murder  of  Edward's  spy — and  murder  it  assuredly  was,  however 
base  the  character  of  the  victim — left  the  assembled  nobles,  and  Bruce  es- 
pecially, no  choice  as  to  their  future  course;  they  must  either  shake 
off  the  power  of  Edward,  or  perish  beneath  Edward's  aroused  ven- 
geance. Bruce  in  this  emergency  proved  himself  well  adapted  for  the 
lofty  and  perilous  mission  to  which  he  had  devoted  himself  He  flew 
from  one  part  of  the  country  to  the  other,  everywhere  raising  armed  par- 
tisans, and  sending  them  against  the  most  important^  towns  and  castles 
lliat  ventured  to  hold  out  for  Edward;  and  by  this  activity  he  not  only 
obtained  strong-holds  in  every  direction,  but  organized  and  concentrated 
a  force  so  considerable,  that  he  was  able  to  declare  Scotland  indep(!ndent, 
and  to  have  himself  crowned  as  her  king  in  the  abbey  of  Scone,  the  arch- 
bishop of  St.  Andrew's  officiating.  Bruce,  though  both  policy  and  ambi- 
tion led  him  to  be  crowned,  did  not  suffer  mere  ceremonial  to  occupy 
mncii  of  tlie  time  for  which  he  had  so  much  more  important  a  use,  but 
busily  pursued  the  English  until  they  were  all  driven  from  the  kingdom, 
save  tiiose  who  found  shelter  in  the  comparatively  few  fortresses  that 
still  hold  out  for  Edward. 

A.  D.  1307. — Edward,  who  seemed  as  enthusiastic  in  his  desire  to  con- 
quer Scotland  as  the  Scots  were  in  their  desire  to  live  free  from  his  yoke, 
received  the  tidings  of  this  defeat  of  his  purpose  only  as  a  summons  to  ad- 
vance to  the  conquest  yet  once  more;  and,  while  making  his  own  ar- 
rangements, he  sent  forward  a  large  advance  force  under  Sir  Aylmer  de 
Valence,  who  fell  suddenly  upon  Bruce,  in  Perthshire,  and  put  him  com- 
pletely to  the  rout.  Bruce  himself,  with  a  mere  handful  of  personal 
friends,  took  shelter  in  tiie  western  isles ;  Sir  Simon  Fraser,  Sir  Chris- 
toplier  Seton,  and  the  earl  of  .Vthol  were  less  fortunate ;  being  taken  pris- 
oners, F.dward  ordered  their  immediate  execution,  as  rebels  and  traiiors. 
.Similar  severity  was  shown  in  the  treatment  of  other  prisoners,  and  Ed- 
ward now  in  person  commenced  his  march  against  Scotland,  vowing  ven- 
geance upon  the  whole  of  the  nation  for  the  trouble  and  disappointment 
to  which  it  had  exposed  him.  But  a  mightier  than  Edward  was  now  at  hand 
to  render  farther  cruelty  or  injustice  impracticable.  He  was  already  ar- 
rived as  far  on  his  journey  of  vengeance  as  Cumberland,  when  he  was  sud- 
denly siezed  with  illness,  and  died  on  the  7th  of  .Inly,  1307,  in  the  thirty- 
fifili  year  of  his  reign  and  the  sixty-ninth  of  his  age. 

Warlike,  politic,  and  so  espcuiially  attentive  to  amending  and  consolida- 
ting tiie  laws  of  his  comitry  that  the  title  of  the  English  Justinian  was 
notiiuiio  unjustly  bi^stoweil  upon  him,  Edward  yet  was  rather  a  great 
than  ii  good  nionarcl);  better  calculated  to  excite  the  pride  of  his  suiiji'ds 
than  to  deserve  tlnsir  love.  Self-will,  a  necessary  ingredient,  perhaps,  to 
A  ecrtain  exteitt,  of  eviiry  great  character,  was  in  him  carricil  to  an  excess, 
and  madi;  him  ])ass  from  a  becoming  pride  to  arrogance,  and  front  just 
command  to  tinprini-ipled  extortion  anil  unsparing  despotism.  With  less 
of  arro;jaiice  he  would  have  been  in  every  wbv  a  better  king ;  vet,  such  i* 


,.$>4V* 


L'96 


THE  TllEASIJHY  OF  HISTORV. 


the  temper  of  all  uncultivated  people,  the  tyrannies  of  this  splendid  and 
warlike  tyrant  were  patiently,  almost  affectionately,  borne  by  the  aatioii 
who  revolted  at  the  far  less  extensive  and  daring  tyrannies  of  John. 


CHAPTER  XXV. 


THE  REIGN  OF  EDWARD  II. 


A.  D.  1307. — The  dyinar  commands  of  Edward  I.  to  his  son  and  siicces 
eor  were,  that  he  should  follow  up  the  enterprise  against  Scolland,  and 
never  desist  until  that  nation  should  be  completely  subdued.  An  abun- 
dantly sufficient  force  was  ready  for  the  young  king  Edward  II. ;  and  as 
Bruce  had  by  this  time  rallied  forces  round  him,  and  inflicted  a  rather 
important  defeat  upon  Sir  Aylmerde  Valence,  tiie  English  people,  too  fond 
of  glory  to  pay  any  scrupulous  attention  to  the  justice  of  the  cause  in 
which  it  was  to  be  acquired,  hoped  to  see  Edward  II.,  at  the  very  com- 
mencement of  his  reign,  imitating  the  vigorous  conduct  of  his  martial 
father;  and  they  were  not  a  little  disgusted  when  Edward, after  niarchinw 
some  short  distance  over  the  border,  gave  up  the  enterprise,  not  from  any 
consideration  of  its  injustice,  but  in  sheer  indolence,  and  returned  into 
England  and  disbanded  that  army  upon  the  formation  of  which  his  father 
had  bestowed  so  much  exertion  and  care.  Hitherto  the  character  of  thij 
prince  had  been  held  in  esteem  by  the  English  people,  who,  with  Iheir 
accustomed  generosity,  took  the  absence  of  any  positive  vice  as  an  indi- 
cation of  virtue  and  talent,  which  only  needed  opportunity  to  manifest  them- 
selves. But  this  first  act  of  his  reign,  while  it  disgusted  the  people  in  gen- 
eral, at  the  same  time  convinced  the  turbulent  and  bold  nobles  that  they 
niiglit  now  with  safety  put  forward  even  unjust  claims  upon  a  king  who 
bade  fair  to  sacrifice  all  other  considerations  to  a  low  and  contemptible 
love  of  his  personal  ease.  The  barons,  who  had  not  been  wholly  kept 
from  showing  tlieir  pride  even  by  the  stern  and  determined  hand  of  fJd- 
ward  I.,  were  not  likely  to  remain  quiet  under  a  weaker  rule;  and  the 
preposterous  folly  of  the  now  king  was  not  long  ere  it  furnislied  them 
with  sufficiently  reasonable  cause  of  complaint. 

The  weak  intellect  of  Edward  II.  caused  him  to  lean  with  a  child-like 
dependency  upon  favourites:  but  with  this  difference,  that  the  defwudcncy 
which  is  touciiing  and  beautiful  in  a  child,  is  contemptible  in  a  man,  and 
must  to  the  rough  and  warlike  barons  have  been  especially  disgusting 
The  first  favourite  upon  whom  Edward  bestowed  his  unmeasured  confi 
deuce  and  favour  was  Piers  Gaveston,  a  Gascon,  whose  father's  knightly 
service  in  the  wars  of  the  late  king  had  introduced  the  son  to  the  esiiib- 
lishment  of  the  present  king  while  prince  of  Wales  The  elegant  though 
frivolous  accomplishments  of  which  Gaveston  was  master,  and  the  pains 
whicli  he  look  to  display  and  employ  tlicm  in  the  amusement  of  the  weiik- 
minded  young  |U-ince  whom  he  served,  obtained  for  Gaveston,  even  during 
the  lifetime  of  Edward  I.,  so  alarming  an  influence  over  the  mind  of  the 
heir-apparent,  that  the  stern  monandi,  who  had  little  taste  for  childish  pur- 
suits,  banished  Gaveston  not  only  from  the  court,  but  from  the  realm  alto- 
gether, and  exacted  the  most  positive  promise  from  the  prince  never  on 
any  account  to  recall  him. 

His  own  interests  an<l  his  promise  to  his  deceased  father  were  utterly 
forgotten  by  the  young  Edward  in  his  anxiety  again  to  enjoy  tlie  company 
Bf  bis  aceoniplish(!(l  favourite,  and  having  astoiuided  his  rugged  barons  hy 
disbanding  his  army,  lie  eoniiileted  tlnnr  wondering  in<lignat]on  by  hastily 
sending  for  (Javeston.  IJefore  the  favourite  coidd  even  reach  Kni.'l;ind 
the  yoinig  king  confi^rred  u|)on  him  tlie  ricli  earldom  of  Cornwall  which 
had  lately  escheated  to  the  crown  by  the  death  of  Edmoud,  son  of  the  king 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


297 


of  the  Romans.  In  thus  bestowing  upon  an  obscure  favourite  the  rich 
possessions  and  lieere  title  that  had  so  recently  sufficed  a  prince  of  the 
blood  royal,  Edward  had  only  commenced  his  career  of  liberality ;  wealth 
and  honours  flowed  in  upon  the  fortunate  young  man,  whom  Ldwald  at 
length  allied  to  the  throne  itself  by  giving  him  for  his  wife,  his  own  neice 
the  sister  of  the  earl  of  Gloucester. 

The  folly  of  the  king  was  in  nowise  excused  or  kept  in  the  back  ground 
by  the  favourite.  Instead  of  endeavouring  to  disarm  the  anger  and  envy 
of  the  barons  by  at  least  an  affectation  of  humility,  Gaveston  received 
each  new  favour  as  though  it  were  merely  the  guerdon  and  the  due  of  his 
eminent  merit ;  in  equipage  he  surpassed  the  highest  men  in  the  realm, 
and  he  took  delight  in  showing  the  wisest  and  most  powerful  that  he, 
relying  only  upon  the  king's  personal  favour,  had  in  reality  a  power  and 
influence  superior  to  all  that  could  be  won  by  wisdom  in  the  council  or 
v;ilour  ill  the  field.  Witty,  he  made  the  noliles  his  butt  in  the  court  con- 
versation ;  accomplished,  he  took  every  opportunity  to  mortify  them  by 
some  dexterous  slight  in  the  tilt  yard  or  at  tha  tourney ;  and  the  insolence 
of  the  favourite  thus  completed  the  hatred  which  the  folly  of  the  king  had 
first  aroused. 

Soon  after  his  accession  to  the  throne  Edward  had  to  visit  France,  in 
order  to  do  homage  to  Philip  for  Guienne,  and  also  to  (JSpouse  that  mon- 
arch's daughter  Isabella,  to  whom  he  had  a  long  time  been  betrothed ;  and 
on  iiis  departure  ho  gave  a  new  proof  of  his  infatuated  afTeclion  for  Gav- 
eston, by  not  only  preferring  him  to  all  the  English  nobles  for  the  honour- 
able and  important  office  of  guardian  of  the  realm,  but  also  giving  him  in 
ihat  capacity  more  than  usually  extensive  powers. 

When  Edward  brought  his  young  queon  to  Engliuid  he  introduced  Gav- 
eston to  her,  and  showed  so  anxious  an  interest  in  the  favourite's  welfare, 
that  Isabella,  who  was  both  shrewd  in  observation  and  imperious  in  tem- 
per, instantly  conceived  a  mortal  hatred  for  the  man  who  evidently  pos- 
sessed so  much  power  over  a  mind  which  she  deemed  that  she  alone  had 
aright  to  beguile  or  to  rule.  Gaveston,  though  too  quick  of  perception  to 
be  unaware  of  the  queen's  feeling,  was  not  wise  enough  to  aim  at  concili- 
ating her,  but  aggravated  her  already  deadly  emnity  by  affronts,  which 
were  doubly  injurious  as  being  offered  to  a  queen  by  the  mere  creature 
and  million  of  her  husband ;  a  prosperous  and  inflated  adventurer,  whom 
abreatii  had  made  and  whom  a  breath  could  just  as  easily  destroy. 

A.  D.  1308. — Enraged  that  such  a  person  should  both  share  her  husband's 
confidence  and  openly  deride  or  defy  her  own  influence,  Isabella  gave 
every  encouragement  to  the  nobles  wlioin  she  perceived  to  be  inimical 
(0  Gaveston  ;  and  it  was  with  her  sainuion,  if  not  actually  at  her  sugges- 
tion, that  a  confederacy  was  formed  for  the  express  purpose  of  expelling 
the  insolent  favourite  from  the  court.  At  the  liead  of  this  confederacy 
was  the  king's  own  cousin,  Thomas,  earl  of  Lancaster.  First  priiiec  ol 
the  blood,  he  was  also  possessed  of  both  greater  wealth  and  greater  powei 
than  any  other  subject  in  the  realm ;  and  it  was  probably  less  from  anj 
patriotic  feeling  than  from  vexation  at  seeing  his  private  influence  witi 
the  king  surpassed  by  that  of  an  upstart  favourite,  that  he  now  so  strenu 
oiisly  opposed  him.  This  powerful  noble  assembled  around  hiin  all  fhos* 
barons  who  were  inimical  to  Gaveston,  and  tliey  entered  into  an  agree- 
ment, which  they  solemnized  by  an  oath,  never  to  break  up  their  confed- 
eracy until  Gaveston  should  be  expelled  from  the  kingdom.  From  thig 
umler-curreiit  of  opposition  many  open  disturbances  arose  in  the  kingdom, 
and  tiiere  were  evident  symptoms  of  a  rear  approacli  to  actual  civil  war. 
At  length  a  parliament  was  summoned  to  meet  at  Westminster,  which 
Lancaster  and  his  •.•ssociates  attended  with  so  great  a  force,  that  they  were 
;ilile  to  dictate  their  own  terms  to  the  king.  Gaveston  was  accordingly 
luaished,  being  at  the  same  time  sworn  never  to  return,  and  the  prehiies 


V9tl 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


threatening  him  with  excoinniunication  should  lie  venture  to  do  so 
Though  Edward  could  not  prevent  tliis  sentence  being  passed  upon  his 
minion,  he  contrived  to  deprive  it  of  its  sting.  Instead  of  sending  (raves- 
ton  home  to  his  own  country,  he  conferred  upon  him  the  office  of  lord 
ieutenant  of  Ireland,  went  with  him  on  his  way  thither  as  far  as  Bristol 
and  made  him  a  parting  gift  of  some  valuable  lands. 

During  his  residence  in  Ireland,  Gaveston  displayed  both  courage  and 
cond^lct  in  putting  down  rebellion,  and  probably  was  far  happier  in  his 
post  than  while  mingling  in  the  inane  gaities  of  the  English  court.  But 
Edward  was  absolutely  wretched  at  the  loss  of  his  favourite.  Compara- 
tivfi  peace  was  restored  by  that  person's  absence,  but  peace  itself  to  the 
weak  king  seemed  valueless  until  Gaveston  should  return  to  grace  if.  In 
order  to  pave  the  way  for  the  restoration  for  which  he  was  so  anxious 
(he  king  endeavoured  to  gratify  the  most  powerful  of  the  barons.  The 
office  of  hereditary  high  steward  was  given  to  Lancastar,  and  gifts  and 
grants  were  profusely  lavished  upon  the  earls  VVarenne  and  Lincoln. 
Wlien  by  these  means  Edward  had,  as  he  thought,  sufficiently  mollified 
Gaveslon's  enemies,  lie  applied  to  the  pope  for  a  dispensation  for  the 
favourite,  recalled  liiin  from  Ireland,  and  hastened  to  Chester  to  meet  him 
at  his  landing.  As  the  absence  of  Gaveston  had  in  a  great  measure  caused 
his  insolence  to  bo  forgotten,  the  barons,  willing  to  oblige  the  king,  con 
sented  to  the  favourite's  re-estabhshment  at  court. 

Had  Gaveston  been  taught  by  the  past  to  enjoy  his  good  fortune  unob- 
trusively and  inoffensively,  all  might  now  have  been  well  with  him.  But 
the  doting  folly  of  his  master  was  fully  equalled  by  his  own  incurable 
insolence  and  presumption,  and  he  had  not  long  been  restored  to  his  for- 
mer slation,  ere  his  misconduct  aroused  the  barons  to  even  more  than  their 
former  hale  and  indignation. 

At  first  they  silently  indicated  their  anger  by  refraining  from  their  atten- 
dance in  parliament ;  but  perceiving  that  no  alteration  was  made  in  the 
profusion  of  the  king  or  the  insolence  of  Gaveston,  they  attended  parlia- 
ment, indeed,  but  did  so,  in  contempt  of  an  especial  law  to  tlie  contrary, 
witli  a  force  powerful  enough  to  enable  them  once  more  to  dictate  to  the 
king,  to  wiioni,  in  tlie  form  of  a  petition,  they  presented  their  demand 
that  lie  hlionld  delei:ate  his  authority  to  certain  barons  and  prelates,  who, 
until  Ihf!  following  Michaelmas,  siiould  have  power  to  regulate  both  the 
kingd(Mii  and  llic  kiny's  household  ;  tliat  the  regulations  thus  luade  should 
become  perpetual  law  ;  and  that  the  barons  and  prelates  in  question  should 
further  be  empowered  to  fi)rm  associations  for  securing  the  observance  of 
those  regulations.  In  brief  terms,  this  petition  did  really  create  an  im^ie- 
rium  in  iinperio;  and  the  defjradalion  of  the  royal  authority  was  not  a  jot 
the  less  complete  because  the  petitioners  professed  to  receive  the  vast 
powers  lh(!y  demamied  solely  from  the  free  grace  of  the  king,  and  prom- 
ised thai  this  concession  siinuld  not  be  drawn  into  a  precedent,  and  that 
the  powers  demanded  slioidd  diaermine  at  the  appointed  time. 

A.D.  1311.  — Many  of  the  regulations  made  under  the  extraordinary 
powers  thus  usurped  by  the  barons  deserve  all  praise,  inasmuch  as  they 
tended  to  provide  for  the  security  of  the  people  at  large  and  the  reguliir 
admiiiisiralion  of  justice.  IJnt  the  main  object  of  the  barons  was  to  rid 
themselves  of  Gaveston,  who  was  accordingly  again  banished,  and  it  wns 
It  the  s;inie  lime  orilanied  that  should  he  ever  again  returri  he  should  he 
coMsidrred  :ind  treated  as  a  public  enemy. 

To  all  other  tilierations  Edward  was  wholly  indifferent;  but  the  haiiisli- 
ment  of  (laveston  filled  him  with  rage  and  grief.  He  therefore  retired  to 
York,  and,  gathering  forces  about  him,  openly  invited  Gaveston  back 
from  Fland(M-s,  while  he  dei-lared  that  he  liad  been  tyraimously  and  ille- 
gidly  banished,  and  re-establisli(;d  liim  in  all  his  former  pomp  and  power, 
file  instdenl  and  haughty  nature  of  Gaveston  was  now  so  well  known  to 


THE  TIIEASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


S99 


the  barons,  that  they  full  ihey  must  either  wholly  crush  him  or  prepare  to 
bucrusiied  by  hiui;  Lancaster  accordingly  summoned  around  him  a  for- 
iiijilablc  confederacy,  at  the  head  of  which  were  Guy,  earl  of  Warwick, 
Bulmii,  earl  of  Hereford,  and  Aynier  de  Valence,  earl  of  Pembroke. 
Hobert  de  Winchelsea,  arciibishop  of  Canterbury,  broujjht  the  whole  of 
the  clergy  to  tiie  aid  of  this  mighty  confederacy;  and  so  geni'ral  whs  the 
disgust  caused  by  the  king's  absurd  and  ruinous  folly,  that  Earl  Warenne, 
suluiig  faithful,  now  openly  declared  against  him. 

L.uicaster  led  the  army  of  the  confederacy  to  York,  but  the  king 
„neaped  tlience  to  Teignmouth,  whence  he  embarked  for  Scarborough 
castle.  Here  he  left  the  favourite,  while  he  himself  returned  lo  York, 
to  endeavour  to  raise  an  army  sufficiently  numerous  to  admit  of  his  meet- 
ing the  barons  in  the  field. 

Ill  the  meantime  Giiveston  was  far  less  secure  than  Edward  had  sup- 
piiseil.  The  castle  of  Scarborough  was  very  strong,  but  it  was  iiisutli- 
lieiitiy  garrisoned,  and  still  more  insufficiently  provisioned  ;  and,  Pembroke 
in'iiig  sent  to  besiege  it,  Gaveston  found  himself  compelled  to  capitulate 
He  did  so  on  condition  that  he  should  remain  in  the  custody  of  Pembroke 
diiiiiigiwo  months,  which  time  should  be  employed  in  endeavours  to  bring 
abiiiit  an  acconnnodation  between  the  king  and  thebarq^ns;  tliat  should 
sui;h  endeavours  fail,  the  castle  should  be  restored  unimpaired  to  Gave- 
ston; and  that  Henry  Piercy  and  the  earl  of  Pembroke  should  with  all 
their  lands  guarantee  the  due  performance  of  these  articles. 

On  the  surrender  of  Gaveston,  the  earl  of  Pembroke  treated  his  prisoner 
with  all  civdity,  and  conducted  him  to  Dedington  castle,  near  Uanbury, 
where,  on  pretext  of  business,  he  left  him  with  only  a  very  weak  guard. 
Scarcely  had  Pembroke  departed,  when  Guy,  earl  of  Warwick,  who  had 
from  the  first  exhibited  a  most  furious  zeal  against  Gaveston,  aitacked 
the  castle,  which  was  readily  surrendered  to  iiiin  by  the  feeble  and  proba- 
bly luOred  garrison.  Gaveston  was  now  hurried  away  to  Warwick  cas- 
tle, where  Warwick,  Hereford,  Arundel,  and  Lancaster,  after  a  very  sum- 
mary ceremony,  ordered  him  to  be  beheaded,  in  contempt  alike  of  the 
terms  granted  to  him  by  Pembroke,  and  of  the  general  laws  of  the  land. 

When  Edward  first  heard  of  the  death  of  his  favourite,  his  rage  seemed 
unappeasable  and  his  grief  inconsolable.  But  he  was  too  weak-minded 
to  he  dangerous  ;  and  even  wiiile  he  was  threatening  the  utter  extermina- 
tion of  the  barons,  they  reconciled  themselves  to  him  by  the  politic  and 
empty  form  <)f  feigning  to  regret  tiie  deed  that  was  irrevocable,  and  prof- 
fernig  to  asK  upon  their  knees  pardon  for  tiie  offence.  Tiie  quarrel  be- 
tween the  king  and  <he  barons  was,  for  the  present  at  least,  patched  up; 
and  the  people  lijoped  from  this  reunion  of  sucii  powerful  interests  some 
signal  vindication  of  the  national  honour,  especially  as  regardeil  Scotland, 
where  Bruce  had  for  some  time  been  both  bravely  and  successfully  exert- 
ing iiimself.  Of  the  hill  country  he  had  made  himself  entirely  master, 
and  liience  he  had  carried  destruction  upon  the  Cunnnins  in  the  north 
lowlands.  Seconded  by  his  brother  Edward  Bruce  and  by  the  renowned 
Sir  James  Douglas,  Robert  was  continually  a(diieving  some  new  conquest ; 
and  the  nuinificence  with  which  he  bestowed  upon  the  nobility  llie  spoils 
lie  took,  greatly  tended  to  secure  him  that  confidence,  for  want  of  which 
alone  the  murdered  Wallace  had  failed  in  his  patriotic  efforts.  With  the 
sxcepiion  of  a  few  fortresses  he  had  subdued  the  whole  kingdom ;  and 
Edward,  by  the  distractions  of  England,  had  been  forced  to  consent  to  a 
trii"(',  which  Bruce  wisely  employed  in  consolidating  his  power  and  ii; 
employing  it  to  the  reformation  of  the  numerous  abuses  which  wat  and 
license  had  necessarily  introduced. 

A.D.  1314. — The  truce,  ill  observed  from  the  beginning,  at  length  came 
loan  end,  and  Edward  now  assembled  a  vast  army  with  tlie  design  of  a 
ouee  crushing  Bruce,  and  finally  subduinn-  that  kingdom  which  had  givi;a 


■  f/.iM4ri.«>- 


300 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


80  much  trouble  to  his  politic  and  warlike  father.  Besides  assembling  an 
the  military  force  of  England,  he  called  over  some  of  his  powerful  vassale 
of  Giiscony,  and  to  the  mighty  army  thus  formed  he  added  a  huge  disor. 
derly  force  of  Irish  and  Welsh,  eager  for  plunder  and  peculiarly  well  fiitej 
for  the  irregular  warfare  of  a  mountain  land.  With  this  various  force 
amounting  to  at  least  a  hundred  thousand  men,  he  marched  into  Scodand' 

Robert  Bruce,  with  an  army  of  only  thirty  thousand  men,  awaited  the 
approach  of  his  enemies  at  Bannockburn,  near  Stirling.  On  his  right 
flank  rose  a  hill,  on  his  left  stretched  a  morass,  and  in  his  front  was  a  rivu- 
let, along  the  bank  of  which  he  caused  sharpened  slakes  to  be  set  in  pits 
wiiich  were  then  liglitly  covered  with  turfs. 

Towards  evening  the  English  appeared  in  sight,  and  their  advanced 
guard  of  cavalry  was  fiercely  charged  by  a  similar  body  of  Scots  led  by 
Bruce  in  person.  The  fight  was  short  but  sanguinary,  and  the  English 
were  put  to  flight  upon  their  main  body ;  one  of  their  bravest  gentlemen 
Henry  de  Bohun,  being  cleft  to  the  chin  by  the  battle-axe  of  Bruce. 

The  combat  proceeded  no  further  that  night,  but  very  early  op  the  fo]. 
.owing  morning  the  English  army  was  led  An  by  Edward.  The  left  wing 
of  the  cavalry  was  entrusted  to  the  command  of  the  earl  of  Gloucester, 
Edward's  nephew,  whose  youthful  ardour  led  to  a  terrible  calamity. 
Disdaining  all  caution,  he  led  on  his  force  at  full  charge,  and  rider  and 
horse  were  speedily  plunging  among  the  staked  pits  which  Bruce  had  pre- 
pared for  just  such  an  emergency.  The  young  earl  himself  was  slain  at  the 
very  outset,  the  greater  number  of  his  men  were  utterly  disordered  and 
helpless,  and  before  they  could  recover  and  form  in  a  line  of  i)attle,  they 
were  so  fiercely  charged  by  the  Scottish  cavalry,  under  Sir  James  Doug- 
las, that  they  were  fairly  drivfii  off  the  field.  As  the  hopes  of  Edward 
and  the  anxiety  of  Bruce  had  chiefly  referred  to  the  English  superiority 
in  cavalry,  this  event  had  a  proportionate  effect  upon  the  spirits  of  both 
armies ;  and  the  alarm  of  the  Faglish  was  now  changed  into  a  perfect 
panic  by  the  success  of  the  following  simple  stratagem.  Just  as  tiie  Eng- 
lish cavalry  were  in  full  retreat  from  the  field,  the  heights  on  the  left 
were  tlironged  with  what  seemed  to  be  a  second  Scotch  army,  but  what 
really  was  a  mere  mob  of  peasants  whom  Bruce  had  caused  to  appear 
there  with  music  playing  and  banners  flying.  At  sight  of  this  new  ene- 
my— as  this  mere  rabble  was  deemed — the  English  on  the  instant  lost  all 
heart,  threw  down  their  arms,  and  betook  themselves  from  the  field  in  the 
utmost  disorder.  The  Scots  pursued  them,  and  the  road  all  the  way  to 
Berwick,  upwards  of  ninety  miles,  was  covered  with  the  dead  and  dying. 
Besides  an  immense  booty  which  was  taken  on  the  field  and  during  the 
pursuit,  the  victors  were  enriched  with  the  ransoms  of  upwards  of  four 
hundred  gentlemen  of  note,  who  were  taken,  in  addition  t  >  a  peri'ect  host 
of  meaner  prisoners,  to  all  of  whom  Bruce  behaved  I'l  ;;'  ■  inii'.mity 
and  courtesy  of  a  true  hero. 

Determined  to  follow  up  his  success,  Robert  Bruce,  >  oPuu  ,  >!  •.  jjd 
recall  his  troops  from  the  pursuit  and  slaughter,  led  t.i.ai  o,,  /  iht  i  irder 
and  plundered  the  north  of  England  without  opposition ;  and  still  farther 
to  annoy  the  English  government,  he  sent  his  brother  Edward  to  Ireland 
with  four  thousand  troops. 

Lancaster  and  the  malcontent  barons  who  had  declined  to  accompany 
Edward  upon  his  Scottish  expedition,  no  sooner  beheld  him  return  beaten 
ii.d  dejpcted,  than  they  took  advantage  of  his  situation  to  renew  their 
c'*'  ,.''mand  for  the  cstablisiunent  of  their  ordinances.  The  king  was  in 
;:;:uat!'  I  to  resis'  jnch  formidable  domestic  enemies;  a  perfectly  new 
inlriist;;;  v.as  formea  with  Lancaster  at  its  head,  and  great  preparations 
M"r.'  iiavle  to  resis  -iic  thicntened  hostilities  of  the  now  once  more  indc 
pei'tli-it  Scotland.  But  though  Lancaster  showed  much  apparent  zeal 
agui.'At  the  Scuts,  and  was  actually  at  the  head  of  the  army  destined 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


301 


10  oppose  them,  it  was  strongly  suspected  that  he  was  secretly  favourable 
(0  them  and  actually  held  a  private  correspondence  with  Bruce,  judging 
(hilt  while  the  kingdom  was  thus  threatened  from  without  he  could  the 
more  easily  ffovern  the  king. 

lathe  meantime  Kdwurd,  truly  incapable  of  self  reliance,  had  select- 
ed a  successor  to  Gyvt'ston  in  the  splendid  but  dangerous  honour  of  his 
favour  and  r  ui.J'-Mce.  This  person  was  Hugh  le  Despenser,  more  com- 
monly li'liu'  S;  '\;  -ir,  V  iio  to  all  the  eloquent  accomplishments  and  per- 
son.-l ,  tres  of  Gave&ion,  added  no  small  portion  of  the  presumption  and 
in-,f)leii(<i  which  had  consigned  that  adventurer  to  an  untimely  grave 
The  eK;'  r !:  :  n.  or  was  also  very  high  in  the  king's  favour,  and  as  he  pos 
V  =sed  great  ii!  jderation  as  well  as  great  experience  and  ability,  he  might 
jHi  iliiy  have  saved  both  his  son  and  the  king  from  many  misfortunes, 
li'J  they  not  been  self-doomed  beyond  the  reach  of  advice  or  warning. 

A.  D.  13'21. — Any  favourite  of  the  king  would,  ipso  facto,  have  been  dis- 
liked by  the  barons ;  but  the  insolence  of  young  Spenser  speedily  made 
him  the  oi)ject  of  as  deadly  a  hate  as  that  which  had  ruined  Gaveston. 

To  insolence  Spenser  added  cupidity.  He  had  married  a  niece  of  the 
king,  who  was  also  a  oo-heiress  of  the  young  earl  of  Gloucester  who  fell 
al  Bannockburn,  and  had  thus  acquired  considerable  property  on  tlie 
Welsh  borders,  which  he  was  so  anxious  to  extend  that-he  became  in 
solved  in  hot  dispute  with  two  neighbouring  barons,  Aubrey  and  Amnion, 
towards  whom  common  report  made  him  guilty  of  great  dishonesty  and 
oppression. 

In  the  same  neighbourhood  he  got  into  a  still  more  serious  dispute  re- 
specting the  barony  of  Govver.  This  barony  came,  by  inheritance,  into 
ilie  possession  of  John  de  Mowbray,  who  imprudently  entered  upon  pos- 
session without  complying  with  the  feudal  duty  of  taking  seizin  and  livery 
from  the  crown.  Spenser  being  very  desirous  to  possess  this  property, 
persuaded  the  king  to  take  advantage  of  De  Mowbray's  merely  technical 
laches,  declare  the  barony  escheated,  and  then  bestow  it  upon  him.  This 
was  done,  and  the  flagrant  injustice  of  the  case  excited  such  general  and 
lively  indignation,  that  the  chief  nobility,  including  the  earls  of  Lancaster 
and  Hereford,  Audley,  Ammori,  Roger  de  Mortimer,  Roger  de  Clifford, 
and  other  barons,  flew  to  arms  and  declared  open  war  both  against  the 
favourite  and  the  king  himself. 

As  the  barons  had  long  been  nursing  a  sullen  and  deep  discontent,  they 
iiad  already  made  preparations ;  they  accordingly  appeared  at  the  head 
of  a  powerful  force,  and  sent  a  message  to  Edward,  demanding  the  instant 
dismissal  of  Spencer,  and  threatening,  should  that  be  refused,  to  take  his 
punishment  into  their  own  hands.  Both  the  Spensers  were  absent  on  the 
kin^r's  business,  and  Edward  replied  to  the  message  of  his  barons,  that 
he  could  not,  without  gross  and  manifest  breach  of  his  coronation  oath, 
co'ideuui  tlie  absent,  against  whom,  moreover,  there  was  no  formal  charge 

The  barons  probably  expected  some  such  answer ;  and  they  scarcely 
waited  to  receive  it  ere  they  marched  their  forces,  devastated  and  plun- 
dered the  estates  of  both  the  Spensers,  and  then  proceeded  to  London  and 
tendered  to  the  parliament,  v\  hich  was  then  sitting,  a  complicated  charge 
against  both  father  and  son.  The  parliament,  without  obtaining  or  de- 
manding a  single  one  of  the  many  articles  of  this  charge,  sentenced  both 
the  Spencers  to  confiscation  of  goods  and  to  perpetual  exile. 

This  done,  they  went  through  the  mockery  of  soliciting  and  obtaining 
from  the  king  an  indemnity  fi»r  tin  ir  pri)ceedings,  which  they  thus  plainly 
confessed  to  have  been  delib<  rately  illegal,  and  then  disbanded  their  troops 
and  retired,  in  haughty  conlidence  of  security  from  any  attempt  at  ven- 
geance on  the  part  of  the  weak  king,  each  to  his  own  I'slate. 

So  weak  and  indolent  was  the  natur<^  of  Edward,  that  it  is  probable 


i'l 


m.. 


M 


I  • ; 


SOS 


THl':  TllKASURY  OF  IIISTOIIY. 


that  he  would  have  loft  the  b:irons  to  the  uiulisturbed  enjoyment  oi  then 
triuiii])!!,  but  for  an  insult  which  had  been  offered  to  his  queen.  Hcrina. 
jesty  being  belated  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Leeds  castle,  was  denied  ii 
night's  .»-lieller  there  by  ihe  lord  Hadlesmere,  to  whom  it  belonged,  and  oi> 
lier  attendants  reuiouslratiug,  a  fray  arose,  in  whieli  several  of  them  were 
Wouuiled  and  two  or  three  killed. 

In  addition  to  the  fact  that  tiie  refusal  of  a  night's  lodging  was  diur. 
lisli,  and  in  the  case  of  a  lady  doubly  so,  the  queen  had  ever  conducted 
herself  so  as  to  win  tlic  respect  of  the  baronage,  especially  iti  her  synip;;. 
thy  with  their  hatred  of  both  Gaveston  and  the  younger  Spenser;  n\\i 
every  one,  therefore,  agreed  in  blaming  the  uncivil  conduct  of  Lord  Bud- 
esincre.  Taking  advantage  of  this  temper,  which  promised  hiiu  an  eiisv 
victory,  Kdward  assenibled  an  army  and  took  vcngeanee  on  Hadlesmere 
without  any  one  interfering  to  sav(!  the  offender. 

Thus  far  successful,  the  king  now  communicated  with  his  friends  in  all 
parts  of  the  country,  and  instead  of  disbanditig  liis  force  on  the  accom. 
[)lishuient  of  the  object  for  which  alone  he  had  ostensibly  asscnibltd  ii 
lie  issued  a  manifesto  recalling  the  two  Spensers,  and  de>laring their seiN 
tence  unjust  and  contrary  to  the  laws  of  the  land. 

A.  I).  13-J'J. — 'I'his  open  declaration  he  instantly  followed  up  Iv '  innreliinn 
bis  troops  to  Ihe  Welsh  marches,  wher<;  tlie  possessions  ol  his  nidsi  eon'. 
Bideral)le  enemies  were  situated.  As  his  approaeli  was  sudden  and  unex- 
pected he  met  with  no  resistance ;  and  several  of  the  barons  were  selznl 
and  their  castles  taken  possession  of  by  the  king,  lint  Lancaster,  tin 
very  life  auj  soul  of  the  king's  oppmienls,  was  still  at  liberty  ;  ami,  assent. 
bliiig  an  army,  luaiiri  w  olVthe  mask  be  had  so  long  worn,  ,uid  avowed 
his  long-suspected  conneriion  with  iScolland.  Ueiiig  joined  l)y  l!ie  ciirl 
of  llerefiird.  and  having  the  promise  of  a  reinforcement  fnn  i' Seytlaiul 
under  the  command  of  Sir  .fames  Douglas  and  the  earl  of  Murray,  I.an 
caster  marched  against  the  king,  who  had  :-,o  well  emphyed  his  liinelliin 
he  was  now  at  the  head  of  an  army  of  thirty  thousand  men.  The  hos- 
tile forces  met  at  IJurton  and  Trent,  and  Lancaster,  who  had  no  irreat  nnl- 
itary  genius,  and  who  was  even  suspected  of  being  but  indifferently  en- 
dowed with  personal  coiirai;e,  failing  in  his  atteiii|)ts  at  defending  the  pas- 
sages of  Ihe  river  reiicated  norihward.  in  the  hope  of  beiii!.' jniiied  and 
suppinted  by  llii'  promised  rcinforceiiieiils  from  Scotland.  TIkhijjIi  hollv 
pur>iieil  by  the  royal  I'luces,  hi'  retreated  in  safely  ami  in  perfect  (irderas 
far  as  Iturougbbriiige,  where  his  farllu'r  progress  waso|ip.)sed  by  adivisnin 
of  the  royal  army,  under  Sir  .Andrew  llariday.  Lancaster  altein|ile(|  |(, 
cut  his  way  tlir(Uii;li  tins  force,  but  was  so  stoutly  opposed  iliat  Ins  troops 
weri"  thrown  into  the  inmost  ilisorder;  the  earl  of  Hereford  was  slaiii.aiid 
Laiieasier  liiinsidf  was  liken  prisinier  and  drat^^ed  to  the  preseiiee  of  Ins 
offeinlcd  sovereign-  The  weak-miudeil  are  nsn.illy  vindictive;  ainlevia 
liad  lldwarri  not  been  so,  the  temper  of  the  limes  \Miuld  have  niadeii 
uiiliki  l\  that  a  king  so  oll'eiided  should  show  any  mercy  Itiit  there  «:i> 
a  petty  lualigmly  in  Ivlward's  Irealmeiit  of  Laiica-.ler  highly  (lisjjri.'iiiii 
to  his  own  character.  The  r<'cently  iiowerful  noble  was  mounted  upon  , 
mnry  hack,  without  saddle  or  brliile,  his  head  was  covered  wiilialimi' 
and  111  I  Ills  plight  lii^  was  e.nrried  to  Ins  own  e.istle  of  I'onlelVaci  ami  llnri 
beheaded. 

Hadle^iMere  and  upw.irds  of  Iweuly  more  <i(  the  leaders  of  iliis  rcvnl' 
>v<  ic  le^jally  Hied  and  executed  .  a  ^real  iiiiiiiber  were  condeiiiiii  I  lo  lla 
minor  penallies  of  lorfeiiiire  and  iiiiprisiniincut ;  ami  a  still  gieaicr  iiiini- 
ner  wen  rciriuiiale  eiiouyli  to  make  their  escape  beyond  seas.  Su  Aiidn  « 
llariday,  lo  whom  ihe  kiiiu's  liuccess  w.is  mainly  owiii)j,  was  r.iinnl  in 
lo  the  e.irldoin  of  Carllsh  ,  .iiid  received  :\  goodly  share  ol  the  iiiiiin '"ii> 
forfeited  (>>tales  which  the  kiwj,  bail  lo  disliiliiilr  auiiniu  |ii>  friends.  Il.n! 
llua  dixtribul:on  been  made  with  anything  like  jiidgmeiit,  it  li,u!  alTunlfJ 


THE  THEASUIIY  OF  lIIdTOIlY. 


303 


Ihii  king  a  splendid  opportunity  of  increasing  tlie  number  of  his  friends 
and  of  quickening  and  confirming  their  zeal.  But  the  kinj?  and  his  favour- 
ite were  untaught  by  the  past ;  and  to  the  younger  Spenser  fell  the  lion's 
shan;  of  these  rich  forfeitures ;  a  partiality  which  naturally  disgusted  the 
true  friends  of  the  crown. 

To  the  enemies  whom  Spenser's  cupidity  thus  made  even  among  his 
own  party,  other  and  scarcely  less  formidable  ones  were  added  in  the 
pprsoiis  of  the  relations  of  tlie  attainted  owners  of  t'le  property  he  thus 
grasped  at;  and  his  insolence  of  demeanour,  whicli  fully  kept  pace  with 
his  increase  in  wealth,  formed  a  widely-spread,  though  as  yet  concealed, 
party  tiiat  was  passionately  and  determinedly  bent  upon  his  destruction. 

A  fruitless  attempt  which  Edward  now  made  to  recover  his  lost  power 
iiiSfotlaud  convinced  even  him  that,  in  the  existing  temper  of  his  people, 
success  in  that  quarter  would  be  unattainable;  and  after  making  an  in- 
glurious  retreat  he  signed  a  truce  for  thirteen  years. 

A.  D.  13-M. — If  this  truce  was  sea.sonable  to  King  Rolicrt  nrncc — forking 
he  was,  though  not  formally  acknowledged  as  such  by  Knglaiid— it  was 
110  less  so  to  Kdward ;  for,  in  addition  to  the  discontent  that  existed 
anions'  his  own  subjects,  he  was  just  now  engaged  in  a  dispute  of  no  small 
importance  with  the  king  of  France.  Charles  the  Fair  found  or  feigned 
siinie  reason  to  complain  of  the  conduct  of  Kdward's  minist(!rsin  (Jiiieime 
and  showed  a  determination  to  avenge  himself  by  the  contiscalidn  of  all 
Edwaid's  foreign  territory ;  and  an  embassy  Scut  by  Fdward,  with  his 
brotiier  tiie  earl  of  Kent  at  its  head,  had  failed  to  pacify  the  king  of 
France. 

Edward's  queen,  Isabcdla,  had  long  learned  to  hold  him  in  contempt, 
but  on  the  present  occasion  she  seemed  to  sympathize  with  his  vexation 
aiii  per|)l('xilv,  and  ollVrcd  to  go  personally  to  the  court  of  France  and 
enileavour  to  arrange  ail  matters  in  dispute. 

Ill  this  voluntary  oflice  of  nicdiiilion  Isabella  made  some  progress  ;  but 
wlii'ii  all  the  main  points  in  tiui  dis[iiile  were  disposed  (if,  Charles,  (|nile  in 
accordance  with  feudal  law,  demanded  that  Fdward  in  person  should  ap- 
pear lit  I'aris  and  do  homage  for  his  French  possessions.  Had  he  alone 
been  coiii'eriKMJ,  this  requisition  could  not  have  caused  him  an  hour's  de- 
lay or  a  luiinile's  perplexity  ;  not  so,  bound  up  ns  his  interests  were  with 
those  of  Spenser.  That  insolent  million  well  knew  that  lii^  had  given  the 
dce|)est  otl'iiice  to  the  pride  of  Isabcdla  ;  he  well  knew  her  to  lie  both 
bidd  and  malignaiil,  and  he  fe.ired  that  if  he  ventnied  to  attend  the  kitr^  to 
I'aris,  Isabella  would  exert  her  [lower  thertMo  bis  desirui'tiim  ;  sviiile  on 
'.iKMiihiir  hand,  should  \w  remain  liidiind  lie  wonbl  lie  scarcely  able  to  de- 
fend  liiaiseir  in  '):"  kinu's  absence,  while  his  iiilluence  over  that  weak 
priiin  would  im  si  i  robably  be  won  away  by  smne  new  lavonritc.  Is, ibid- 
la,  who  probal:ly  pinelrateil  the  caiisc  ihal  deliyed  Iiit  liusbaiid's  jour- 
ney, now  pui|)Os(Nl  ;bal,  instead  of  Ivlward  procei'diiii:  to  France  in  per- 
son, 111-  slionid  si'ii  I  Ins  son,  young  l''dw;ird,  at  thai  tune  lliirteen  years  of 
ii!;e,  to  (Id  hoiiiagc  fur  ('iiieiiiic,  and  resign  that  dieniiiioii  to  lilin.  Until 
Spenser  and  the  king  gladly  embriiccd  this  expedient ;  the  young  |irineo 
was  si'iii  over  to  France;  and  Isaliidla,  having  now  oiilanied  the  custody 
of  tile  licirlo  the  crown,  threw  aside  all  ili^ginsc,  (leclarint!  her  del'st.ition 
of  Spenser  and  iier  determinatMni  to  have  hiin  binislied  from  tlo  pri  3<'nc(! 
and  iiilliienei'  he  had  so  ptM'iiieionsly  abused  ;  a  deidaration  which  made 
Isaliella  very  popular  in  Ijiglaiid,  where  the  hatred  to  Spenser  urew  i|i  ep. 
er  and  nunc  virnhail  every  <lay.  A  great  ninnber  of  the  adlieieiiis  </(  thp 
lliiliirliiiiate  l.aiicasler,  who  had  esiMped  from  Fiiulainl  when  tlieii  leader 
was  ilereaied  and  |iul  to  death,  were  at  tins  tune  in  Fr.ince  ;  and  as 
they,  eiiually  with  the  ipieni,  detested  Sp^n^er,  their  services  weic  nat- 
nrall)  tendered  to  her.  Foremost  aininig  tlieiii  was  Koger  Mnrliiin'r. 
Tiii.i  youiit;  man  had  been  a  puwerftil  and  wealthy  Imroii  in  iha   \V«!«h 


^.1 


mm 


ly  .i^<i»e 


304 


THE  TllEASUllY  OF  HI8T0HV. 


';i 


maiches,  but  having  been  condemned  for  high  treason,  his  life  was  spapd 
on  condition  of  iiis  remaining  a  prisoner  for  hfe  in  the  Tower  of  London. 
Aided  by  friends,  he  had  been  fortunate  enough  to  escape  to  France,  aiiti 
having  in  tlio  first  instance  been  introduced  to  Isabella  only  in  tiie  cluir- 
acter  of  a  political  partizun,  his  handsome  person,  accomplishments,  and 
wit  soon  obtained  him  a  more  tender  and  more  criminal  favour.  Having 
thus  fallen  away  from  her  duty  to  her  husband,  she  was  easily  inducfid  lo 
include  liini  in  the  enmity  slie  had  hitherto  professed  to  continc  to  \\\i 
minion.  A^  Isabella  henceforth  lived  in  the  most  unconcealed  intimacy 
with  Mortimer,  and  as  their  mutual  correspondence  with  the  most  disaf- 
fected barons  in  England  was  made  known  to  the  king,  he  became  iilarin- 
cd,  and  sent  a  peremptory  message  requiring  her  not  only  to  return  to 
England,  but  also  to  bring  the  young  prince  home  with  her.  To  this  mes- 
sage Isabella  as  peremptorily  replied,  ll.at  neither  she  nor  her  son  would 
ever  again  set  foot  in  England  until  Spenser  should  be  definitively  le- 
moved. 

Edward's  situation  was  now  truly  terrible.  At  home  secret  conspira- 
cies were  formed  against  him  ;  abroad  a  force  was  rapidly  preparing  to 
nvadc  him;  the  minion  for  whom  he  had  encounlered  so  many  enmities 
;ould  do  but  little  to  aid  him  ;  and  his  own  wife  and  child,  those  near  and 
irecious  connexions  upon  whom  he  ought  to  have  been  able  to  rely  in  the 
>vorst  of  circumstances,  were  at  the  very  head  of  the  array  that  threuten- 
cd  his  crown,  if  not  his  person.  The  king  of  France  entered  warmly  into 
the  cause  of  the  queen  ;  and  Edward's  own  brother,  the  earl  of  Kent,  beini' 
induced  to  believe  that  the  sob;  intention  of  Isabella  was  to  procure  the 
banisinnent  of  Spenser,  joined  the  queen  as  did  the  earls  of  Leicester  and 
Norfolk.  Nor  was  the  ctiniity  of  the  clerical  order  wanting  to  the  formid- 
able array  against  Edward. 

A.  1).  i;iJ().— With  all  these  elements  prepared  for  the  destruction  of 
the  unhappy  Edward,  it  was  clear  that  nothing  was  wanted  lowiinis  the 
connni'iicemi.'nt  of  a  civil  war  but  the  appearance  of  the  queen  at  the 
head  of  an  invading  force.  This  iq)pearance  Isabella  was  very  willlnirto 
make;  but  some  delay  was  caused  by  the  decent  unwillingness  ol'  the 
king  of  I'rance  to  have  an  expedition,  luaded  by  the  wife  and  s(ui,  sail 
from  any  of  his  jjorts  against  tiie  husband  and  father.  Determined  iii 
her  pmpose,  Isabella  removed  this  obstacle  to  its  accomplislinieni,  by 
belriilhnij4  young  Edward  to  I'liilippa,  daugiiter  of  the  count  of  Ibdhnid 
and  llainault.  Having  thus  allied  herself  with  this  priiuie,  Isalielht  wari 
8[)i'('ild\  I'ualiled  lo  collect  a  force  of  upwards  of  tiiree  thousand  men;  ami 
witii  tins  for('<'  she  sadcd  from  Dort,  and  landed  safely  and  iniiJiiposeil 
U()Oii  till'  (  uast  of  SutTolk.  Here  she  was  joined  by  the  earls  of  Nmfdlk 
and  l.eii  ester,  ami  the  bishiips  of  F.ly,  Hereford,  and  Lincoln,  who  brdiiuhl 
toiler  aid  all  their  vass;ils;  and  Uobert  ih  Watteville,  who  was  sent 
do«  II  Id  Siillolk  at  the  head  of  a  force  to  oppose  her,  actually  dtseili'l 
to  her  Willi  tlie  whole  of  his  troops.  As  she  jirogressed  her  forces  were 
still  fariher  oicreased,  men  of  siibstHiiee,  Ihinkiiig  that  they  rati  iiii  riS'k 
in  siiiint;  wlili  he  heir  to  the  crown,  and  the  common  sort  beiin;  iiiliired 
by  llic  yi'iieral  professions  of  justice  and  love  of  liberty,  of  wliicli  ls;i- 
bella  took  care  to  be  abundantly  liberal  in  her  proclamations. 

On  bearing  thai  bis  i|uei'n  ImiI  landed  and  was  advancing  agiiiiisi  liiiii 
ill  f<n'i'e,  l-!il\\  aril's  first  einieavour  was  to  raise  the  Londoners  in  lll!^  ile- 
finer,  nglitly  jniliiing  that  if  he  could  ilo  that,  he  would  siill  have  a  cliaiiie 
of  oblainiiitj  reasonablt!  terniH.  lint  Ins  alteinpl  met  with  no  success;  hit 
eiitn  ilM's  and  ininaces  alike  were  listeneil  to  in  a  sullen  silence,  and  he 
de|i:iili(l  to  make  a  similar  alteiiipt  in  the  west. 

'riie  kiiiLi's  ilepailine  was  the  signal  for  a  general  inBiirrectlnii  ill  Lon- 
don. Wraith,  il  may  be  easily  Mi|i|)osed,  was  the  chief  oii/ir  ii|?aiii''l 
Mhieli  the  M\hiirg('nt  populace  levelled  it  ra^je ;  the  next  h' niiius  eriiiie 


THE  TREilSURY  OP  HISTORY. 


30ft 


.'as  gpai  \i 
f  London, 
ranee, and 
the  cliar- 
iients,  and 
■.    H;ivin-4 
induced  lo 
itinc  tu  Ilia 
1  intimacy 
most  disaf. 
amc  alarm- 
3  return  to 
'o  this  mcs- 
r  son  would 
nitivcly  re- 

ii  conspira- 
preparing  to 
my  enmities 
ose  near  and 

0  rely  in  the 
liat  threaten- 
warmly  into 

if  Kent,  being 
)  jirocurc  the 
'jeicestcr  and 
lothe  furmid- 

Icstruction  o( 

1  towards  the 
1  queen  at  the 

:ry  willing  lo 
Uuess  of  the 
iiiul  son,  sad 
)etfrinined  \n 
ii>hnienl,  bv 
i)f  Holhnul 
iiliella  was 
ind  iiieu;  ami 

111    UnO|l|H)!<l'll 

..  of  Nurfiilk 
who  bronnlit 

llO    was   MMll 

ullv  deserli'i 
.  forces  were 
y  ran  no  risk 
icinif  ;dhircd 
lof  winch  Ua- 

jr  ;ilt:nii>*t  hlMl 

icrs  in  hi>  de- 
[mve  a  chancr 
I)  .sueeesit,  \m 
lleiice,  and  lu' 

[('(ion  ni  1.011- 
iirtmr  a^alll^l 
1|.  iiious  erinw 


:\t 


MS  that  of  being  passively  loyal  to  the  fugitive  monarth.  Robbery  and 
murder  were  conimitled  wholesale  and  in  the  broad  light  of  day;  and 
amoiiif  the  victims  was  the  bishop  of  Exeter.  Tliis  prelate,  who  was  as 
remarkable  for  kindly  disposition  as  fur  talent  and  loyalty,  was  seized  as 
he  passed  along  the  street,  beheaded,  and  his  body  thrown  lnu>  the  'I'haines. 
The  rioters,  or  rather  the  rebels,  now  by  a  stratagem  obtained  possession 
of  the  Tower,  and  then  entered  into  a  formal  association  and  covenant, 
by  which  they  bound  themselves  to  put  to  death  all  who  should  dare  to 
oppose  the  designs  and  desires  of  the  queen. 

The  advanced  f^uard  of  the  vindictive  and  treacherous  Isabella  passed 
through  London  in  pursuit  of  the  king,  and  consisted  of  a  body  of  Kn* 
glish  and  Hollanders,  the  latter  commanded  by  John  de  Hainanit,  and  the 
former,  Iwrribile  diclu,  by  the  king's  own  brother,  the  earl  of  Kent.  Ar- 
rived at  Uristol,  the  unfortunate  king  was  disappointed  of  the  aid  and 
support  he  expected  to  find  there;  and  his  furious  pursuers  being  but 
a  short  distance  in  his  rear,  he  hastily  departed  for  Wales,  leaving  the 
elder  Spenser,  who  had  been  some  time  before  creatrd  earl  of  Wmches- 
ter,  to  defend  Bristol  castle,  of  which  he  was  governor.  The  faithless 
giirrison  mutinied  against  the  venerable  earl,  who  was  then  nearly  ninety 
years  of  age,  and  delivered  him  into  the  hands  of  the  queen's  partizans, 
by  whom,  without  even  the  mockery  of  a  trial,  he  was  hanged.  Nor  did 
the  brutality  of  his  enemies  end  even  here  ;  he  wras  scarcely  dead  ere  ho 
WKl  taken  from  the  gibbet,  and  his  body  cut  up  and  thrown  to  the  dogs, 
Ills  head  being  stuck  upon  a  pole  and  exhibited  to  the  populace. 

.\flcr  equally  ineffectual  attempts  to  escape  and  to  raise  siiHii'ieut  force 
for  his  defence  in  field  or  fortress,  the  unfortunale  king  w;is  discovered 
among  the  mountains  of  Wales,  and  iinpris(nit'd  in  Kcnilworlh  castle,  in 
llie  custoiiy  of  the  earl  of  Leicester.  Tin;  younger  Spenser  about  the 
siinie  time  was  taken,  and  he  speedily  met  with  the  fearful  fate  of  his 
I'ailier,  a  fate  which  even  in  the  case  of  this  arrogant  mininn,  whatever 
Ins  faults  or  crimes,  was  illegally  and  brnlally  indicted.  The  earl  of 
Arundel  was  also  put  lo  death  by  the  dominant  jiariy,  though  iln^  utmost 
malice  could  alledge  nothing  against  him,  save  ilial  he  had  maintained 
lil'i  loyalty  unshiiken  and  uncorrnpted  amid  the  >lianu'less  disloyally  and 
disitraceful  success  of  the  majority  of  the  Kimli  di  baronage. 

Ualikick,  the  chancellor,  who,  as  being  the  most  active  as  well  as  the 
ablest  of  the  king's  advisers,  was  especially  hated  by  the  populace,  and 
who,  moreover,  was  detested  by  Isabella,  could  not  so  safely  be  put  to 
driiih  by  the  direct  tyranny  of  the  barons  ;  for  he  being  a  priest,  his  death 
would  have  been  offensive  to  Rome.  Hut  the  liarons,  w'(dl  knowing  the 
P'lWir  and  Icinpcr  of  the  London  mob,  sent  tiic  iiiilia{i|iy  man  to  I  he  bishop 
of  Hereford's  palace  in  lanidoii.  As  had  been  furcsicii.  Ins  sleinlcr  guard 
was  overpowered,  and  after  he  had  been  fniillv  maltreated  by  the  mob 
lie  was  thrown  into  Newgate,  where  ho  shortly  afterwards  died  of  his 
wuunils  or  of  |)oi>(oii. 

A.D.  1UJ7. — Having,  by  this  long  series  of  illegal  and  erne!  deeds,  given 
iliiiMdaiii  iiiliinatioii  of  the  fat(;  that  would  await  ihosc  who  shimld  dare 
III  oppose  her  measures,  Isabella  now  summoned  a  |)arliamciit  to  meet  her 
It  Westiiniisler,  and  a  lonu  and  formal  charue  was  presented  lo  it  against 
ihi'  king,  Tlioiiiih  the  charge  was  laboiircd  wiih  lln?  ulinosi  ingenuity, 
iiiil  iilnioiisly  iii-pired  by  the  dci'pest  maliginlv,  it  did  not  from  bcgimiing 
M  I'lid  colli. III!  a  Miiiile  accnsatimi  upon  which  the  meanest  of  Ins  subjects 
iiiild  lastly  have  In  en  |Miiiished,  howt^vcr  slii.'hily.  cither  in  piir--c  or  per* 
viii.  The  worst  ihit  was  iillcdgcd  ;iir.iliisi  him  was  a  nmsi  pil'alile  want 
of  talent,  unless,  lodeed,  wc  may  condescend  lo  notice  thai   iiiusi  siranitfl 

fliirue  iig.niist  a  sovereign,  that  he  h  id  inipris d  Miinlry  hannis  and 

aril  lies  who  had  been   convii'tcd  of  treason.     A   more  alisiird   charge  it 
*ould  have  been  scarcely  possible  to  frame  j  but  if  such  u  charge  had 
Vol,.  I 'JO 


%t,:^'| 


306 


THE  TREASURY  C  P  HISTORY. 


oeen  presented  to  that  scandalous  parliament,  the  unhappy  king  would 
still  have  been  pronounced  guilty,  for  tliey  who  sat  in  judgment  upon  him 
could  only  confess  his  innocence  by  confessing  their  own  treason  and  in- 
justice. 

At  the  very  commencement  of  these  disgraceful  proceedings,  the  young 
prince  of  Wales  had  been  named  as  regent;  he  was  now  pronounced  lo 
be  king  in  the  room  of  his  father,  whose  deposition  was  declared  in  the 
same  breath.  But,  as  if  to  show  more  fully  how  conscious  they  were  o( 
the  injustice  and  illegality  of  their  conduct,  these  malignant  and  servile 
nobles  sent  a  deputation  to  Edward,  in  his  dungeon,  to  demand  his  resia. 
nation  after  they  had  pronounced  him  justly  deposed,  " 

Entirely  helpless  in  the  hands  of  his  enemies,  whose  past  conduct  suf. 
ficiently  warned  him  against  trusting  to  their  justice  or  compassion,  the 
unhappy  king  gave  the  resignation  required;  and  Isabella,  now  wholly 
triumphant,  lived  in  the  most  open  and  shameless  adultery  with  her  ac- 
complice, Mortimer. 

The  part  which  Leicester  had  taken  in  this  most  disgusting  revolution 
had  procured  him  the  earldom  of  Lancaster ;  but  not  even  this  valued 
and  coveted  title  could  reconcile  him,  conspirator  and  traitor  though  he 
was,  to  the  odious  task  of  adding  personal  ill  usage  to  the  many  miseries 
under  which  his  royal  captive  was  already  suffering.  The  honourable 
and  gentle  treatment  which  Lancaster  bestowed  upon  the  king  filled  the 
guilty  Isabella  and  her  paramour  with  fears  lest  th(!  earl  should  at  length 
be  moved  to  some  more  decisive  manifestation  of  his  good  feclinir;  and 
the  royal  prisoner  was  now  taken  from  Kenilworth,  ;md  committed  to  the 
custody  of  Lord  Herkeley,  Mallravcrs,  and  (iournay,  each  of  whom 
guarded  Irm  an  alternate  moiitli.  Tin;  Lord  llcrkcdey,  like  the  carl  o( 
Lancaster,  had  too  much  of  true  nobility  to  add  to  the  miseries  of  his 
his  prisoner,  but  when  he  passed  to  the  hands  of  the  other  two  slate  jail- 
ers they  added  personal  ill-trcatm(.'nt  to  his  other  woi!s.  Everytliingthat 
could  irritate  first  and  then  (inally  prostrate?  the  spirit  of  the  niihappy 
king  was  put  in  practice;  and  when  at  length  they  despaired  of  brcaknii; 
down  his  constitution  with  siiflicieiit  rapidity  by  these  indiriTt  means, 
they  broki!  tlirough  all  restraint  and  put  him  to  (icath.  We  sliiill  not  de- 
8crii)e  witli  the  minuteness  of  some  of  our  historians  tlie  barbarous  ami 
disgusting  process  by  which  tiie  riiiriaii  keepers  [lerpetralcd  their  dialioi 
ieal  act.  .Suffice  it  to  say,  tiiat  a  red-hot  iron  had  lieen  forcibly  iniroihicd 
into  the  bowels  of  the  uniiappy  siillerer;  and  thoiigti  the  body  exhihjtpd 
no  outward  marks  of  violence,  the  horrid  deed  was  discovered  to  idl  ihc 
guards  and  attendants  by  the  screams  witii  which  the  agonized  lini'lillcd 
the  castle. 

It  IS  as  well  to  state  here  what  became  of  these  most  dctcstalile  and 
ferocious  wretches.  Tiie  public  iiidigiialioii  was  so  strong  against  thcni, 
that,  even  before  the  inipndent  guilt  of  Isabella  caused  her  downfall,  Ihnr 
lives  were  in  danger,  and  when  that  event  at  leiiglli  took  jilaee  they  were 
obliged  to  lly  the  country,  tioiiriiay  was  selzeil  at  (>iiieiinc  anil  si'iil  id 
England,  hut  was  beheaded  on  the  way,  probably  at  the  stiL'ni'shiHi  (if 
?ome  of  the  instigators  of  his  riillianly  crime,  who  feared  lest  he  shonld 
■livul^e  their  concern  in  it.  Maltravers  lived  for  some  years  on  llici'on- 
tineiit,  imil  at  lenutli,  (Ui  the  strength  of  some  services  to  his  victim's  son 
and  siiccesMur,  ventured  to  approach  him  and  sue  for  pardon,  wliich.  U' 
the  eternal  distrruce  of  Edward  III.,  was  granted. 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


307 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 


THE    REIGN    OF    EDWARD    111. 


g  revolulioii 
tliis  valued 
If  though  he 
any  miseries 
B  lionourable 
iiig  filled  the 
luld  at  length 
fooling;  ;\nd 
imiiteiliolhe 
,ch  of  whom 
e  the  carl  ol 
lisories  of  his 
two  slate  jail- 
iVerytliing  that 
tlie  uniiappy 
I  of  hrrakiuj; 
direct  means, 
sliall  not  de- 
harbaroHs  and 
llicir  (lialiol- 
,)ly  introdiici'd 
lody  cxhihili'il 
(•red  to  all  ihu 
.zed  lii-'lilloil 


4,  D.  1327. — When  Isabella  and  her  paramour  had  consummated  then 
aideuus  guilt  by  the  murder  of  the  unoffending  Edward  II.,  the  earl  of 
Lancaster  was  appointed  guardian  of  the  person  of  the  young  king,  and 
the  general  government  of  the  kingdom  was  committed  to  a  council  of 
regency,  consisting  of  the  primate  and  the  archbishop  of  York,  the 
bishops  of  Worcester,  Winchester,  and  Hereford,  the  earls  of  Norfolk, 
Kent,  and  Surrey,  and  the  h)rds  Wake,  Ingham,  Piercy,  and  Ross. 

The  first  care  of  the  dominant  party  was  to  procure  a  formal  parlia- 
mentary indemnity  for  (heir  violent  proceedings ;  their  next,  to  remove 
all  stigma  from  the  leaders  and  head  of  the  Lancastrian  party,  and  to 
heap  all  possible  odium  and  disqualification  upon  the  adherents  of  the 
Spensers. 

Disgusted  as  the  people  were  by  the  gross  misconduct  of  Isabella,  her 
power  was  as  yet  too  formidable  to  be  opposed,  and  the  first  disturbance 
of  the  young  king's  reign  came  from  the  Scots.  Though  Robert  Bruce, 
by  his  advanced  age  and  feeble  health,  was  no  longer  able  to  take  an  ac- 
tive personal  part  in  the  field,  as  had  been  his  wont,  his  brave  and  saga- 
cious spirit  still  animated  and  instructed  the  councils  of  his  people. 
Feeling  certain  that  England  would  never  give  him  peace  should  its  do- 
mestic affairs  be  so  completely  and  calmly  settled  as  to  enable  it  advan- 
tageously to  make  war  upon  him,  ho  resolved  to  anticipate  its  hostility 
while  it  was  labouring  under  the  disadvantages  which  are  ever  insep- 
arable from  the  minority  of  a  king  and  the  plurality  of  the  regency.  Hav- 
ing made  an  unsuccessful  attempt  upon  Durham  castle,  he  gave  the  com- 
mand of  twenty-five  thousand  men  to  Lord  Douglas  and  the  earl  of  Mur- 
ray, with  orders  to  cross  the  border  and  devastate  as  well  as  plunder  the 
northern  Englisli  counties.  The  English  regency,  sincerely  desirous  of 
avoiding  war,  at  least  for  that  time,  with  so  diflicult  and  obstinate  an 
enemy  as  Scotland,  made  some  attempts  at  maintaining  iioace,  but,  find- 
mg  those  attempts  unsuccessful,  assembled  an  army  of  sixty  thousand 
men,  exclusive  of  a  strong  body  of  highly-disciplined  foreign  cavalry 
under  John  d(!  I  luinaiilt ;  and  the  young  prince  himself  led  this  formida- 
ble force  to  Durham  in  search  of  the  invaders.  But  tlic  diHiculty  of  find- 
Mig  so  active  and  desultory  an  enemy  was  only  inferior  to  that  of  con- 
qnenng  him  when  found.  Lightly  armed,  mounted  on  small,  swift  horses, 
so  hardy  that  every  common  supplied  them  with  abundant  food,  and  easily 
subsisted  themselves,  these  northern  soldiers  passed  with  incredible  celer- 
ity from  place  to  place,  plundering,  destroying,  and  disappearing  wilh  iiii- 
paralleleil  rapidity,  and  suddenly  reappearing  in  some  direction  (juite  dif- 
ferciii  to  that  in  which  they  had  been  seen  to  take  their  dep.irtiire. 

On  no  occasion  was  their  desultory  activity  more  remarkable  or  more 
annoying  than  on  present.  Edward  lollowed  them  from  place  to  place, 
now  liarrassing  his  troops  with  a  forced  march  by  liiricult  roads  to  the 
matli,  and  now  still  more  dispiriting  them  by  leading  ihem  to  retrace  their 
steps  aijain  ;  but  though  he  everywiiere  found  that  the  Scots  had  Incn  ill 
ilic  places  where  he  sought  tlicm,  and  had  left  fearful  marks  of  their  tem- 
poi.iry  slay,  he  every  when.'  fouiul  that  they  had  made  good  their  retreat  j 
aiui  io  this  harrassing  and  annoying  waste  of  activity  he  was  for  some 
time  exposed,  in  spite  of  his  having  offered  the  then  very  spleni'^d  reward 
of  a  liiiiidred  pounds  per  annum  for  life  to  any  one  who  would  give  him 
such  Information  as  would  enable  him  to  come  iiji  with  the  enemy.  At 
iPiigtIi  he  received  information  of  the  exact  locality  of  the  enemy,  and  wa« 
enabled  to  como  up  with  them,  or  rather  to  be  tunlalizcd  with  the  sight  ol 


I 


».  kJM«*' 


908 


THE  TKEASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


them  ;  for  they  had  taken  up  so  strong  a  position  on  the  southern  bank  oi 
the  river  Wear,  that  even  Edward,  young  as  he  was  and  burning  for  the 
3onibat,  was  obliged  to  confess  that  it  would  be  a  wanton  exposure  of  his 
orave  iroops  I'  cidrtain  destruction  were  he  to  ailen)pi  lo  cross  the  river 
while  the  fue  niamtanied  so  admirably  chosen  a  position.  Naturally  brave 
Edward  was  doubly  annoyed  at  this  new  difficiiity  on  account  of  his  pre.' 
vious  vain  reseavdies ;  and  in  the  excess  of  his  enthusiasm  he  sent  a  for 
inal  challenge  to  ihe  Scots,  lo  abandon  their  extraneous  advantHges,  and 
meet  his  army,  man  to  man  and  foot  to  foot,  in  the  open  field.  The  gen- 
erous absurdities  of  chivalry  rendered  this  ch-  llenge  less  irregular  and 
laughable  than  it  would  now  be ;  and  Lord  Douglas,  himself  of  a  most  fiery 
and  chivalric  sj)irit,  would  fain  have  taken  Edward  at  his  word,  but 
he  was  restrained  by  the  graver  though  not  less  courageous  earl  of  Mur- 
ray, y.iio  drily  assured  EUward  that  he  was  the  very  last  person  from 
whom  the  Scots  would  liks  lo  take  advice  as  to  their  operations. 

The  Scots  and  Edward  maintained  their  respective  positions  for  several 
lays;  and  when  the  foinier  at  length  moved  higher  up  the  river,  they  did  so 
Dy  so  unexpected  and  rapid  a  movement,  that  they  were  again  securely  pust- 
sd  bi^lbie  Edward  had  any  chance  of  attacking  them.     The  high  courage 
of  the  youthful  monarch  led  him  to  desire  to  attack  the  enemy,  no  natter 
at  what  risk  or  disadvantage  ;  but  as  often  as  he  proposed  to  do  so  he  was 
overruled  by  Mortimer,  who  assumed  an  almost  despotic  authority  over 
him.     While  both  armies  t!ius  lay  in  grim  and  watchful,  though  inactive 
hostility,  an  aH'air  took  place  which  had  well  nigh  changed  the  fortunes  of 
of  England.     Lord  Douglas,  audaciou.s  and  enterprising,  had  not  merely 
continued  to  take  an  accurate  survey  of  every  portion  of  Edward's  eii- 
campnieiil,  but  also  to  obtain  the  password  and  countersign  ;  and  in  iht 
dead  of  night  he  suddenly  led  two  hundred  of  his  most  resolute  followers 
into  the  very  heart  of  the  English  camp.     His  intention  was  either  to  cap 
turenr  slay  the  king,  and  he  advaii'^ed  immediately  to  the  royal  tent.    Ed. 
ward's  chamberhiiii  and  his  chaplain  gallantly  devoted  themselves  tu  the 
safety  of  their  royal  master,  who  after  rtghling  hand  to  hand  with  his  as- 
sailants, succeeilt'd  in  escaping.     The  chamberlain  and  the  chaplain  were 
both  iiiil'ortiinatciy  killed  ;  but  the  stout  resistance  they  made  not  only  eiia. 
bled  IJdward  to  escape,  but  also  aroused  so  general  an  alarm,  that  Lord 
Douglas,  baulked  in  his  main  design,  was  happy  lo  be  able  to  fight  liisw.iy 
back  to  Ills  own  camp,  in  doing  which  he  lost  nisirly  the  whole  of  his  de- 
termined liiile   band.     The  Scots  now  hastily  broke  up  their  camp  and 
retrealed  in  good  order  lo  their  ow  n  country  ;  and  when  Edward,  iiu  lun- 
ger lobe  resir. lined  by    Mortimer,  reaciieil  the  spot  which  the  Scots  had 
otrciipied,  he  foiiiiil  no  human  being  there  save   ms.  English  prisoners, 
who.se  legs  the  Scots  had  broken  to  prevent  them  from  carrying  any  in- 
tclligeiii'i'  In  the  I'higlish  camp,     'i'liough  the  high  spirit  and  warlike  tem- 
per which  Ivlwaid  had  displayed  during  this  l)rief  and  bootless  cainpaiijii 
made  liiin  very  popular,  the  |)iil)lii'  mind  was  justly  very  di.-isaiislieil  hiiIi 
the  absolute  nullity  of  result  from  so  exteiisiv(!  and  costly  an  expediiioii; 
and  .^lorlimei,  to  wlunn  all  the  errors  coiuinitied  were   naturally  allnhii' 
ted,  became  dally  more  and  more  disliked.     So  puffed  up  and  iiisoii'iil  was 
he  reiidired  by  Ins  disgraceful  coniieciion  Willi  Isabella,  that  Ins  geiicral 
want  (if  popiilarily  seemed  to  give  Inin  iieitlicr  aiiiioyaiiee  nor  alarm.    Yel 
was  ihere  a  eireuin.siaiiee  in  Ins  position  winch  a  wise  man  would  have 
striven  lo  alter.  T!i(nigli  he  had  n.snrped  an  even  more  than  royal  |)ower, and 
settlt'd  till'  iiinst  iMipinlaiit  putilic  alVairs  witlioiii  deigning  to  consult  ciiliei 
thoyonii'.'  king  or  any  of  the  blood  royal ;  lli>in<;h  he  by  Ins  merewoiil  had 
gone  so  iMr  as  III  setllc  npini  the  adiilleroiis  Is.ibella  iitMrly  the  whole  ol 
iiie  royal  revenue  ;  yet  in  fiu'ining  the  eoinicil  of  the  regency  he  h.iil  re- 
lied so  niiii'li  on  Ins  power  that  he  reserved  no  olhce  or  .seat  therein  foi 
niinttelf.     Tins  was  a  grave  error,     lie  must  have  been  ill  jud^ins  indceil 


if? 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


309 


if  he  imagmed  that  tlie  mere  absence  of  iioininal  power  would  procure  a 
characier  for  moderation  for  a  man  whose  authority  actually  superseded 
that  of  ihe  whole  council. 

A.  p.]  328. — To  all  the  other  offences  committed  by  Mortimer  he  now 
added  the  very  serious  one  of  wounding  the  pride  of  the  nation.  War 
upon  Scotland,  and  the  most  strenuous  attenipts  to  reduce  that  nation 
mice  more  to  the  condition  of  a  conquered  province,  were  universally 
popular  objects  in  England.  But  Mortimer,  aware  ihal  he  was  daily  be- 
coming more  and  more  hated,  concluded  a  peace  with  Robert  Brui;e, -fear- 
ing that  the  continuance  of  a  foreign  war  would  put  it  out  of  his  power 
to  keep  his  domestic  enemies  in  check.  He  stipulated  that  David,  son 
iiid  heir  of  Robert  Bruce,  should  marry  the  princess  .lauo,  sister  of  the 
young  king  Edward  ;  that  England  shmild  give  up  all  claim  to  the  hom- 
age of  Scotland,  and  recognise  that  country  as  being  wholly  independent, 
and  that,  in  return,  Robert  Bruce  should  pay  30,000  marks,  by  way  of  ex- 
tienses. 

This  treaty  was  excessively  unpopular;  and  Mortimer,  conscious  of  this, 
now  began  to  fear  that  the  close  friendship  and  unanimity  that  existed 
among  the  three  royal  princes,  Kent,  Norfolk,  and  Lancaster,  boded  him  no 
gocd.  He  accordingly,  when  summoning  them  to  attend  parliament,  took 
upon  himself  to  forbid  them,  in  the  king's  name,  frem  being  attended  by  an 
armed  force.  Whatever  had  been  their  previous  intentions,  the  ihree 
princes  paid  implicit  obedience  to  this  order ;  but,  to  their  astonishment, 
lliey,  on  reaching  Salisbury,  where  the  parliament  was  to  meet,  found  (hat 
Mortimer  and  his  friends  were  attended  by  an  armed  force.  Naturally 
alarmed  at  this,  the  earls  retreated  and  raised  a  force  strong  enough  to 
chase  Mortimer  from  the  kingdom.  They  advanced  for  the  purpose  of 
doing  so,  but  unfortunately  the  earls  who  had  hitherto  been  so  closely 
united  now  quarrelled,  Kent  and  Norfolk  declined  to  follow  up  the  enter- 
prise, and  Lancaster,  loo  weak  to  carry  it  out  by  himself,  was  compelled 
to  make  his  submission  to  the  insolent  Mortimer. 

A.  D.  1329. — But  though,  at  the  intercession  of  the  prelates,  Mortimer 
I'onsciitcd  to  overlook  the  past,  and  bore  himself  towards  the  princes  as 
though  the  whole  quarrel  were  forgotten  as  well  as  forgiven,  he  deter- 
mined to  make  a  victim  of  one  of  thein,  in  order  to  strike  terror  into  the 
snrvivors.  Accordingly,  his  emmissaries  were  instructed  to  deceive  the 
f\\r\  uf  Kent  into  the  belief  that  King  Edward  II.  had  not  been  put  to  death, 
but  was  still  secretly  imprisoned.  The  carl,  who  had  suffefcd  much  from 
remorseful  remembrance  of  the  part  he  had  taken  against  his  unhappy 
brotlicr,  eagerly  fell  into  the  snare,  aud  entered  into  an  undertaking  for 
setting  the  imprisoned  king  at  liberty,  and  replacing  him  upon  the  tiirone. 
The  deception  was  kept  up  until  the  earl  had  committed  himself  siifiicient- 
ly  for  the  purpose  of  his  ruthless  enemy,  when  he  was  seized,  aijcused 
before  parliament,  and  condemned  to  death  and  forfeiture;  while  Morti- 
mer and  the  execrable  Isabella  hastened  his  execution,  so  that  the  young 
Kdward  had  no  o[)portunity  to  interpose. 

A.  D.  1330- — Though  the  corrupt  and  debased  parliament  so  readily  lent 
itself  to  the  designs  of  Mortimer,  the  feiMing  of  the  commonality  was  very 
ilifTcrent  indeed,  and  it  was  quite  evening  before  any  one  could  he  foimd 
to  behead  the  betrayed  and  unfortunate  prince,  who  during  the  day  which 
intervened  between  his  sentence  and  execution  must  have  been  loriured 
indeed  with  thoughts  of  the  unholy  zeal  with  which  he  liiid  served  the  royal 
adulteress,  to  whose  rage,  as  much  as  lo  that  of  her  paramour,  he  wus 
now  sacrificed. 

Perceiving  that  the  sympathy  of  the  people  wa.s  less  courageous  than 
ileep  and  tender,  Mortimer  now  threw  Lancaster  and  numerous  otiier 
nolijcs  in  prison,  on  the  charge  of  having  been  eoiicerned  in  the  eonspi- 
ra.y  of  Kent.    Any  evidence,  however  slight,  suHieed  lo  insure  convic- 


.f5(('.,  . 


nt 


'  -.|^f-- ' 


.»#^*' 


310 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


Ill 
i 


5   * 


Vion;  and  as  forfeiture  was  invariably  a  part  of  the  sentence,  Mortimer  had 
abundant  means  of  enriching  himself  and  his  adherents;  and  how  little 
scruple  he  made  about  availing  himself  of  this  opportunity  may  be  judged 
from  the  fact,  that  the  whole  of  the  large  possessions  of  the  earl  of  Kent 
were  seized  for  Geoffrey,  younger  son  of  Mortimer ;  though  this  laller  per- 
son was  himself  already  in  possession  of  the  greater  portion  of  the  vast 
wealth  of  the  two  Spensers  and  their  adherents.  The  cupidity  and  in- 
solence of  Mortimer  at  length  produced  their  natural  consequence;  a  de- 
testation  so  general  and  so  fierce,  that  nothing  was  wanting  to  his  des- 
truction but  for  some  one  to  be  bold  enough  to  make  the  first  attack  upon 
him ;  and  fortunately,  that  person  was  found  in  the  ynung  king  himself. 
Most  fortunate  it  assuredly  was  that  Mortimer,  in  his  insolence  and  pride 
of  place,  had  overlooked  the  necessity  of  so  treating  the  king  while  yet» 
minor,  as  to  secure  his  favour  and  support  when  he  should  at  length  aitai. 
his  majority. 

Edward  was  of  far  too  high  and  generous  a  nature  to  have  been  other- 
wise than  deeply  stung  by  the  petty  insults  and  galling  restraints  imposed 
upon  him  by  Mortimer;  and  now  that  he  was  in  his  eighteenth  year  he 
determined,  at  the  least,  to  make  an  effort  at  obtaining  the  independence 
for  which  he  had  so  long  sighed  ;  he  therefore  communicated  his  wishes 
to  the  Lord  Montacute,  who  engaged  his  friends  the  Lords  Clifford  and 
Molins,  Sir  John  Nevil,  Sir  Edward  Bohun,  and  others,  to  join  him  in  a 
bold  attempt  at  delivering  both  king  and  people  from  the  tyranny  of  Mor- 
timer. 

Queen  Isabella  and  her  paramour  Mortimer  at  this  time  resided  in  Not- 
tinghani  casH'  :  and  so  jealously  did  they  guard  themselves,  that  even  the 
king  was  oi  ■  allowed  to  have  a  few  attendants  with  him  when  he  lodged 
th'  re,  and  the  keys  of  the  outward  gates  were  delivered  to  tiie  queen  her- 
self every  evenmg.  Lord  Montacute,  however,  armed  with  the  kind's 
authority,  had  no  difficulty  in  pnxniring  the  concurrence  of  Sir  VVjjliain 
Eland,  the  governor,  who  let  tlie  king's  party  enter  by  a  subterraneous 
passage  which  had  long  lain  forgotten  and  choked  up  with  rubbish.  So 
quietly  was  everything  done,  tliat  the  armed  men  reached  the  qneen's 
apartment  and  seized  upon  Mortimer  before  he  could  prepare  to  make 
resistance.  Isabella  implored  them  to  "spare  her  gentle  Mortimer;"  bm 
the  paramour'.s  doom  was  sealed  beyond  the  power  of  her  entreaties  to 
alter  it.  A  parliament  was  immediately  summoned,  and  was  found  iis 
supple  and  facile  an  instrument  fur  his  ruin  as  it  had  been  for  doing  his 
pleasure.  He  was  accused  of  having  usurped  regal  power,  of  having  pro- 
cured the  death  of  King  Edward  II.,  of  having  dissipated  the  royal  trea- 
sure, and  of  having  obtained  exorbitant  grants,  of  secreting  two-thirds  of 
the  30,000  niarks  paid  by  Scotland,  and  a  variety  of  similar  misdemean- 
ours. The  thoroughly  servile  parliament  in  its  eagerness  to  cnnc'einn 
could  not  legally  convict  even  this  most  (uitrageous  criminal.  Kvidence 
was  not  called  to  a  single  point,  though  every  point  might  have  been 
proved  by  a  perfect  cloud  of  witnesses;  but  this  j)arliameiit  cdiivjciod 
Mortimer  and  sentenced  him  to  the  gibbet  and  forfeiture,  not  upon  lesii- 
moiiy.  but  upon  what  tiiey  called  the  notoriety  of  the  facts  !  A.  loose  sys- 
tem of  condemning  men,  which  none  but  tyrants  or  their  tools  would  ever 
tolerate,  even  could  no  other  evidence  be  found.  Though  at  the  period  of 
the  conviction  of  Mortimer  uien  were  too  nnich  irritated  against  him  lo 
look  to  strict  justi(!e,  scarcely  twenty  years  had  passed  ere  his  illrg;illy 
attainted  rank  wa.s  restored  to  his  son,  upon  the  right  and  honourable  priii- 
r-iplc  that,  however  detestable  and  however  inoridly  undeniable  the  giiill 
of  the  elder  Mortimer,  his  conviction  had  been  the  result  not  of  evidence, 
but  of  mere  rtimmir  iind  assumption.  SiuKui  de  Here.sford  and  some  others 
of  the  mere  satcliiles  of  Mortnucr  were  execiit(?(l,  and  the  vilesi  eriiniiul 
of  all.  the  adulteress  Isabella,  was  coiilined  lor  the  remainder  of  I'er  lifo 


n 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


311 


I 


to  her  castle  of  Risings.  The  king  allewed  her  four  hundred  a  year  for 
her  support,  and  he  paid  her  one  or  two  formal  visits  every  year;  but  hav- 
ing oiii'e  deprived  her  of  the  influence  of  which  she  had  made  so  bad  and 
base  a  use,  he  took  care  that  she  should  never  again  have  an  opportunity 
of  regaining  it. 

As  soDii  as  Edward  had  wrested  from  the  usurping  hands  of  Mortiraei 
the  royal  power,  he  showed  himself  well  worthy  of  it  by  the  manner  in 
whicli  he  used  it.  He  not  only  exhorted  his  judges  and  other  great  offi- 
cers to  execute  justice,  and  to  put  a  stop  to  the  open  depredations  and 
armed  bands  of  robbers  by  which  the  country  was  now  more  than  ever 
infested  and  disgraced,  but  he  personally  exerted  himself  in  that  good 
work,  and  showed  both  courage  and  conduct  in  that  important  task. 

A.  D.  1332. — Soon  after  the  completion  of  the  treaty  between  England 
and  Scotland,  as  related  under  tlie  head  of  the  year  1338,  the  great  Robert 
Bruce,  worn  out  even  more  by  infirmities  and  toil  than  by  years,  termina- 
ted liis  life ;  and  his  son  and  heir,  David  Bruce,  being  as  yet  a  minor,  the 
regciK'y  was  left  to  Randolph,  earl  of  Murray,  the  constant  sharer  of  Rob- 
ert's perils.  In  this  treaty  it  was  agreed,  that  all  Scots  who  inherited 
jroperty  in  England,  and  all  Englishmen  who  iniierited  property  in  Scot- 
land, should  be  restored  to  possession  as  free  and  secure  as  though  no 
war  had  taken  place  between  the  two  countries.  This  part  of  the  treaty 
had  been  faithfully  performed  by  England,  but  Robert  Bruce,  and,  subse- 
quenlly,  the  regent  Murray  had  contrived  to  refuse  the  restoration  of  con- 
siderable properties  in  Scotland,  either  from  actual  dirticultyof  wresting 
them  from  the  Scottish  holders,  or  from  a  |)olitic  doubt  of  the  expediency 
of  so  far  strengthening  an  enen^y — which  they  judged  England  must 
always  ill  reality  be — by  admitting  so  many  Englishmen  to  wealth  and 
consequent  power  in  the  very  heart  of  the  kingdom.  Whatever  the  mo- 
tive by  which  Bruce  and  Murray  were  actuated  in  this  matter,  their  denial 
or  delay  of  the  stipulated  restoration  gave  great  oflTence  to  the  numerous 
English  of  high  rank  who  had  a  personal  interest  in  it.  Many  who  were 
thus  situated  were  men  of  great  wealth  and  influence;  and  their  power 
became  more  than  ever  formidable  when  they  were  able  to  command  the 
alliance  of  Edward  Baliol.  He  was  the  son  of  that  John  Baliol  who  had 
briclly  worn  the  Scottish  crown;  and  he,  like  his  father,  settled  in  France, 
with  the  determination  of  leading  a  private  life  rather  than  risk  all  comfort 
for  the  mere  chance  of  grasping  a  precarious  and  anxious  power.  This 
resolution,  though  consonant  with  the  soundest  philosophy,  was  not  cal- 
culated to  procure  him  much  worldly  estimation;  and  his  really  strong 
claim  to  the  Scottish  royally  procuredhim  so  little  consideration  in  Francis 
that  for  some  infraction  of  the  law  he  was  thrown  into  gaol,  as  though 
he  bad  been  the  meanest  private  person.  In  this  situation  he  was  discov- 
ered by  Lord  Beaumont,  an  English  baron,  who  laid  claim  to  the  Scotch 
earldom  of  Buithan.  Deauinont  without  loss  of  time  procured  IViliol's  re- 
lease and  carried  him  over  to  Enghiiid,  where  he  placed  him,  nominally 
at  least,  at  the  head  of  the  confederation  which  already  had  meditated  the 
invasion  of  Scotland. 

Kill!!  Edward  secretly  aided  Baliol  and  the  English  barons  in  preparing 
for  tbeir  enterprise,  though  he  would  not  bi;  persuaded  to  give  them  any 
opeiieiii'onragenu'iit,  as  he  had  bound  himself  to  pay  20,000  pounds  to  the 
pope,  should  he,  P^dward,  commit  any  hostilities  upon  Scotland  within  a 
certain  period  which  had  not  yet  expired ;  moreover,  the  young  king  Da- 
vid, still  a  minor,  was  actually  married  to  Edward's  sister  Jane,  though 
the  marriage  was  not  yet  consummated ;  and  the  world  would  scarcely  fail 
to  censure  Edward  sliouid  he,  under  such  circnmstinices,  cause  a  renewal 
of  war  between  the  two  countries.  Under  these  circumstances,  eager  "' 
Edward  might  be  lo  aid  his  nobles  in  their  enmity  to  Scotl;ind,  he  deter- 
mined to  confine  himstdf  to  secret  proceedings  on  their  behalf;  and.  thui 


'^..mmm 


312 


THE  TRKASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


aided,  lh«ir  nominal  leader,  Baliol,  was  speedily  at  the  head  of  a  force  of 
two  thousand  five  hundred  men,  commanded  by  the  Lord  Beaumonl  be. 
fore  mentioned,  Umfreville,  earl  of  Angus,  the  lords  Talhot,  .Mowbray  and 
other  eminent  barons  interested  in  the  adventure.  As  such  a  force  tituld 
not  be  so  secretly  raised  as  wholly  to  have  escaped  the  notice  of  the  Scot. 
tish  regent,  who  would  naturally  expect  to  be  attacked  by  the  Knjrlisi, 
border,  Baliol  and  his  friends  einbrirked  at  Ravenspur  and  landed  their 
force  on  the  coast  of  Fife.  The  former  regent,  Mur.ay,  was  dead;  and 
his  successor,  Donald,  earl  of  Mar,  was  far  inferior  to  him  in  warlike  ex- 
perience and  ability.  Nevertheless,  the  English  were  promptly  and  vig. 
orously  opposed  the  moment  they  landed  ;  and  though  they  succeeded  in 
beatinu'  back  their  undisciplined  opponents,  time  was  thus  afforded  lo.Mar 
to  collect  a  very  large  army,  which  some  historians  reckon  as  high  as  forty 
thousand  men. 

The  hostile  forces  came  insight  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  river  Erne; 
and  Baliol,  crossing  that  river  in  the  night,  attacked  the  unwield;  I'orceof 
the  Scots  so  vigorously  and  unexpectedly,  that  he  drove  them  iVoin  the 
field  with  considerable  slaughter,  their  numbers  being  a  disn  ivaMiHge  to 
them  amid  the  confusion.  But  as  daylight  approached,  the  Scots  re.so  ved 
once  more  to  try  their  fortune  against  an  enemy  whose  inferior  niimbers 
made  it  disgraceful  to  yield  to ;  but  they  were  charged  while  strag. 
gling  over  some  broken  and  diflicnit  ground,  and  so  complete  was  ihe 
rout  that  ensued,  that  while  the  Knglish  los»  scarcely  fifty  men,  the  Scdts 
lost  twelve  thousand,  including  the  earls  ol  \thol  and  Mcnteiih.  the  lord 
Hay  of  Errol,  constable  of  Scotland,  the  lords  Keith  and  Lindsey,  and  the 
earl  of  Carricik,  a  natural  son  of  Robert  Bruce. 

Baliol  followed  up  this  victory  by  taking  Prt\h.  Here  he  was  block- 
aded by  sea,  and  besieged  on  the  land  by  an  arr-y  o(  forty  thousand  Scuis, 
under  the  earl  of  March  and  Sir  Archibald  Don",  las;  but  the  English  ships 
dispersed  Ihe  blockading  squadron ;  and  as  Baliol  was  tints  enabled  to  com- 
mand an  abundant  supply  of  provisions,  the  besieging  Scots  were  shorty 
obliged  to  retire  from  that  very  approach  to  famine  by  which  they  had  an- 
ticipated reducing  him;  and  the  initioti  being  in  effect  subdued,  for  the 
present  at  least,  Baliol  was  solemnly  crowned  at  Scone  on  the  7th  of  Sep. 
tember.  So  little  chance  did  there  now  appear  to  be  of  a  change  of  for- 
tune in  favour  of  David  Bruce,  that  he  and  his  betrothed  wife  departed  for 
Fratice;  and  their  hitherto  zealous  partizans  sued  Baliol  for  a  truce,  that 
his  title  might  be  fairly  examined  and  decided  upon  by  the  Scottish  par- 
liament. 

A.  D.  1333.— Baliol's  prosperity  was  as  fleeting  as  it  had  been  sudden. 
Having  owed  all  his  success  to  the  presence  of  his  English  supporters,  he 
was  no  sooner  obliged  to  allow  them  to  depart,  from  want  of  means  to 
support  them,  than  Sir  Archibald  Douglas  and  others  of  the  friends  o( 
Bruce  fell  upon  Baliol  and  his  slender  attendance,  slew  Baliol's  brother 
Tohn,  and  drove  hi  in  self  back  to  England  in  the  most  complete  dcsiitnlion. 
Baliol  had  previously  to  this  reverse  proposed  to  Edward  that  his  sister 
Jane  should  be  divorced  from  David  Bruce,  in  which  event  Biliol  would 
marry  her  and  also  do  homage  to  Edward  for  Scotland  ;  thus  reslorinn^  lo 
England  that  superiority  which  the  minion  Mortimer  had  given  up  during 
Edward's  minority.  As  Edward  now  began  to  despair  of  Baliol's  success 
by  any  other  means,  he  resolved  to  interfere  opeidy,  r\nd  having  olitained 
a  considerable  grant  from  parliament  for  that  purpose — which  graiil  was 
accoinpan.ed  by  a  very  blunt,  though  very  reasonable  desire,  that  he  thenec 
forth  "  would  live  on  his  own  reveinie  and  not  grieve  his  subjects  wiili 
illegal  taxes" — he  led  a  considerable  army  to  Berwick,  where  a  powerful 
garrisoti  was  commanded  by  Sir  William  Keith.  The  plan  of  the  Seot- 
(ish  leaders  was.  that  Keith  should  obstinately  defend  Berwick,  ami  while 
he  thus  engaged  the  attention  of  Edwiird,  Douglas  shouV  lead  u  nuineroui 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


313 


enemy  over  the  border,  and  carry  the  horrors  and  losses  of  war  into  the 
enemy's  own  country.  But  Edward's  army  was  so  well  disciplined  and 
60  wtll  provided,  thiit  berore  Douglas  could  inarch  into  Northumberland 
his  plan  of  operations  was  changed,  by  the  information  of  Sir  William 
Keith  being  reduced  to  such  extremity,  that  he  had  engageu  to  surrender 
Berwick  should  no  relief  Tench  him  within  a  few  days.  Douglas  marched 
to  llie  relief  of  that  important  place,  and  in  a  general  action  ttiat  ensued  the 
Si'Ots  were  utterly  defeated,  with  a  loss  of  nearly  thirty  thousand  men. 
The  English  loss  was  certainly  very  trifling;  yet  we  cannot  without  con- 
sideriihle  hesitation  adopt  the  accounts  which  concur  in  assuring  us  that 
the  tutal  English  loss  amounted  to  thirteen  soldiers,  one  esquire,  and  one 
kiiiilht;  a  loss  which  can  only  be  imagined  by  considering  that  battle  to 
have  been  little  better  than  a  disorderly  flight  on  the  one  part  and  a  mur- 
derous pursuit  on  the  other. 

As  the  result  of  this  battle,  Scotland  was  again  apparently  submissive 
to  Baliol.  He  was  acknowledged  as  king  by  tlie  Scottish  parliament,  and 
he  and  many  of  the  Scottish  nobles  did  homage  to  Kdward,  who  then  re- 
turned to  England,  leaving  a  detachment  to  support  Baliol.  As  long  as 
this  detachment  remained  Baliol  was  most  submissively,  not  to  say  ser- 
vilely obeyed  by  the  Scots,  even  when  he  stung  their  national  pride  full 
deeply  by  ceding  in  perpetuity  to  England,  Berwicfcv  Dunbar,  Roxburgh, 
Edinburgh,  and  the  whole  of  the  south-eastern  counties  of  Scotland.  But 
as  soon  as  Baliol,  considering  himself  safe,  and  perhaps  being  seriously 
inconvenienced  by  the  expense  of  keeping  them,  sent  away  his  English 
mercenaries,  the  Scots  again  rose  agninsl  him,  and  after  a  variety  ot 
struiiu'ies  between  him  and  Sir  Andrew  Murray,  who  acted  as  regent  in 
behalf  of  the  absent  David  Bruce,  Baliol  was  once  more  chased  from  all 
thai  he  fondly  imagined  he  had  permanently  conquered  for  himself  or 
England. 

A.  D.  1.135. — Edward  again  marched  to  chastise  and  subject  the  Scots, 
who  abandoned  or  destroyed  their  homes  and  sought  shelter  in  their 
mountain  fastnesses,  but  only  to  return  again  the  moment  that  he  had 
retired.  In  this  obstinately  patriotic  course  the  Scots  were  greatly  en- 
couraged by  Edward's  position  with  regard  to  France.  He  had  for  years 
laid  an  unfounded  claim  to  the  sovereignly  of  that  country,  and  though 
he  had  on  one  occasion  in  the  most  distinct  terms  recognised  Philip's 
right,  and  done  homage  to  him  for  his  lands  there  held,  the  encourage- 
ment of  Robert  d'Artois  and  the  concurrence  of  Edward's  father-in-law, 
the  count  of  Hainault,  the  duke  of  Brabant,  the  archbishop  of  Cologne, 
and  several  other  sovereign  princes,  had  induced  Edward  to  persevere  in 
a  claim  which  was  opposed  to  common  sense,  and  plainly  contradict- 
ed by  his  own  deliberate  act  and  deed,  and  thus  laid  tlie  foundation  of 
a  mutual  hatred  which  has  only  completely  subsided  within  the  memory 
of  men  w  >  as  yet  are  but  young.  He  pretended  that  he  ought  to  suc- 
ceed in  ri^'ht  of  his  mother  Isabella,  though  Isabella  herself  was  legally 
and  formally  excluded  from  succeeding;  he  was  thus  guilty  of  the  special 
absurdity  of  claiming  to  inherit  from  a  woman  a  crown  to  which  a  woman 
could  not  succeed — and  he  could  only  support  that  special  absurdity  upon 
agencriil  principle— that  of  the  natural  right  of  women  to  succeed  being 
wholly  indefeasible  by  special  regulation;  and  in  that  case  each  of  the 
three  last  kings  liad  left  daughters  whose  right  upon  that  general  prin- 
ciple would  take  precedence  to  his!  And  yet  such  a  monstrous  absurdity 
of  assumption  found  friends,  and  caused  rivers  of  the  best  blood  of  both 
nations  to  be  shed  in  fierce  conflict ! 

To  all  his  other  abettors  in  this  really  ridiculous  as  well  as  unjust  claim, 
was  now  adde.l  the  well  known  Flemish  demagogue  James  d'Areleveldt, 
a  brewer  of  Ghent,  who  had  reached  to  so  despotic  a  power  over  his  fel- 
ow-cilizens,  that,  after  exciting  theui  to  furious  resistance  against  Mieii 


m 


»'•  «*-i!' 


314 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


legitimate  sovereigns,  he  himseircould  fill  all  the  other  towns  of  Flanden 
with  his  adroit  and  unprincipled  spies,  and  could  put  down  all  cimnce  of 
opposition  in  Ghent  itself  b)'  the  simple  process  of  ordering  the  opponent 
to  be  butchered — and  he  was  butchered  without  remorse  or  delay.  To 
this  demagogue  Edward  had  no  diffl(!ulty  in  recommending  himself;  for 
with  the  servility  that  ever  accompanies  the  ambition  of  such  men,  the 
demagogue,  who  detested  his  natural  superiors,  was  in  a  perfect  flutter  of 
gratified  vanity  at  being  solicited  by  a  powerful  foreign  monarch,  and  in- 
vited Edward  to  make  the  Low  Countries  his  'vantage  point  against 
France  ;  suggesting  to  him  that,  to  prevent  the  Flemings  from  having  any 
scruple  about  aiding  him,  he  should  claim  their  aid,  as  rightful  king  of 
France,  in  dethroning  the  usurper,  Philip  of  Valois ;  that  usurper,  to 
whom,  both  personally  and  by  a  formal  written  deed,  he  had  done  homage 
and  owned  fealty ! 

The  king  of  France  was  greatly  aided  by  the  influence  of  the  pope,  who 
at  this  time  resided  at  Avignon,  and  was  to  a  considerable  extent  de- 
pendent  upon  Philip ;  the  king  of  Navarre,  the  duke  of  Brittany,  the  king 
of  Bohemia,  the  bishop  of  Liege,  and  numerous  other  powerful  allies 
tendered  their  aid  to  Philip,  as  being  really  interested  for  him ;  while  Ed- 
ward's allies,  looking  only  to  what  they  could  get  of  the  large  sums  he  had 
wrung  from  his  people  for  this  unjustifiable  enterprise,  were  slow  and  cold 
in  theirs. 

A.  D.  1339. — After  much  difficulty  in  keeping  his  hopeful  allies  even  ap. 
parently  to  their  faith,  and  after  having  his  pretensions  to  the  crown  ol 
France  very  accurately  pronounced  upon  by  two  of  those  allies,  the  count 
of  Namur  and  the  count  of  Hainault — who  succeeded  his  father  and  Ed- 
ward's father-in-law  in  the  interval  between  the  old  count  joining  in 
Edward's  scheme  and  the  actual  commencement  of  operations — the  two 
counts  in  question  abandoning  Edward  solely  on  the  plea  that  Philip  was 
their  liesre  lord,  against  whom  they  as  vassals  could  not  fight,  Edward  en- 
camped near  Capelle  with  an  army  of  nearly  50,000,  the  majority  of  whom 
were  foreign  mercenaries.  Philip  advanced  towards  the  same  spot  with 
nearly  a  hundred  thousand  of  his  own  subjects ;  but,  after  simply  gazing 
at  each  other  for  a  few  days,  these  mighty  armies  separated  without  a 
blow,  Edward  marching  his  mercenaries  back  into  Flanders  and  there 
disbanding  them.  In  this  hitherto  bloodless  and  unproductive  contest  Ed- 
ward had  not  only  expended  all  the  large  sum  granted  by  his  people,  and 
pawned  everything  of  value  that  he  could  pawn,  even  to  the  jewels  of  his 
queen,  but  he  had  also  contracted  debts  to  the  frightful  amount  of  .£300,000, 
and  probably  it  was  the  very  vastness  of  the  sacrifice  he  had  made  that 
determined  him  to  persevere  in  a  demand,  of  the  injustice  of  which  he 
must  have  been  C()ns<;ious  from  the  very  outset.  Aware  that  he  had  un- 
mercifully pressed  upon  the  means  of  his  subjects,  and  finding  that  they 
were  daily  growing  more  and  more  impatient  of  his  demands,  Edward 
now  retnrncMl  to  England  and  offered  his  parliament  a  full  and  new  con- 
firmation of  the  two  charters  and  of  the  privileges  of  boroughs,  a  pardon 
for  old  debts  and  trespasses,  and  a  reform  of  certain  abuses  in  the  common 
law.  The  first  of  these  the  king  ought  to  have  been  ashamed  to  confess 
to  be  ne(;essary.  Put  public  spirit  and  the  control  of  parliament  over  the 
royal  expenditure  were  as  yet  only  in  their  infancy,  and  the  whole  con- 
cessions were  deemed  so  valuable,  that  the  parliament  in  return  granted 
the  king— from  the  barons  and  knights,  the  ninth  sheep,  fleece,  and  lamb 
from  their  estates  for  two  years ;  from  the  burgesses,  a  ninth  of  the/ 
whole  m<)veaI)l(S  at  their  real  value ;  and  from  the  whole  parliament,  a 
duty  of  forty  shillings  on,  1st.,  each  three  hundred  wool  fells,  and  2d., 
each  last  of  leather,  also  for  two  years.  It  was  expressly  stated  that  this 
grant  was  not  to  \w.  drawn  into  a  precedent;  but  as  the  king's  iie<'essiliea 
were  great,  it  was  additionally  determined  that  twenty  thousand  sucks  ol 


■"rZ  TXEASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


315 


wwi  should  immedn»e'y  b^  put  at  his  disposal,  the  value  to  be  deducted 
from  the  ninths  whirh  would  of  necessity  come  in  more  slowly.  While 
the  padiiiinenl  of  Knglund  acted  thus  liberally  in  forwarding  Edward's 
design  upon  France,  tney  made  a  formal  declaration  that  they  aided  him 
askmgof  England,  and  not  as  king  of  France,  and  that  in  the  event  oi 
his  conquering  the  latter  country,  the  former  must  ever  remain  wholly 
distinct  from  and  independent  of  the  latter.  But  had  Edward  been  suc- 
cessful it  certainly  would  not  have  been  this  bare  and  idle  protest  that 
would  have  prevented  so  resolute  and  self-willed  a  monarch  from  remov- 
jiiT  tlie  seat  of  government  to  France,  and  making  England  a  mere  pro- 
vince and  treasury. 

A,  D.  1340. — Philip  kept  a  watchful  eye  upon  the  English  movements , 
and  when  Edward  at  length  sailed  with  a  fleet  of  two  hundred  and  forty 
vessels,  he  was  eiiconntered  off  Sluys  by  a  French  fleet  of  nearly  four  hun- 
dred vessels,  carrying  forty  thousand  men.  The  inferior  force  of  the 
English  was  at  the  very  outset  fully  compensated  for  by  the  skill  of  tlieir 
nav'il  conimmiders,  who  got  the  weather-gage  of  the  enemy,  and  the  ad- 
vantage of  fighting  with  the  sun  to  their  backs;  while  the  action  taking 
place  so  near  Flandirs,  the  Flemings  hastened  out  to  join  the  English,  and 
the  result  of  the  obRtinate  and  sanguinary  action  was  the  total  defeat  of 
the  French,  with  the  loss  of  two  hundred  and  thirty  vessels  and  thirty 
thousand  men,  including  two  of  their  admirals. 

Edward,  whowe  loss  had  been  comparatively  trifling,  now  marched  to 
the  frontiers  of  France  with  an  army  a  hundred  thousand  strong,  his 
•ecent  tri'mph  having  caused  a  host  of  foreigners  to  join  him  on  his  land- 
11".  Rol>ert  d'Artois,  in  the  hope  of  corroborating  the  success  of  Edward, 
a°d  «ie!io  to  St.  Omers.  But  though  his  force  numbered  50,000  men,  it 
*as  chiefly  composed  of  a  mere  rabble  of  artifi(rers,  so  little  experienced 
m  war  or  in  love  with  its  perils,  that  a  sally  of  the  garrison  put  the  whole 
of  this  doughty  army  to  flight,  to  the  great  annoyance  of  its  really  able  and 
Dravc  commander. 

Edward's  subsequent  operations  were  by  no  means  so  successful.  He 
creatly  distressed  Tournay,  indeed,  and  he  suff"ered  no  very  great  advan- 
[■,[«e  even  in  tiie  way  of  manoeuvre  to  be  gained  by  the  French ;  but  every 
day  brought  some  new  proof  that  his  very  allies  were  at  heart  hostile  to 
his  purpose,  and  only  supported  him  in  their  own  greediness  of  gain;  while, 
on  ihe  other  hand,  supplies  arrived  so  slowly  from  England,  that  he  was 
utterly  unable  to  meet  the  clamorous  demands  of  his  creditors.  A  long 
truce,  therefore,  was  very  gladly  agreed  to  by  him,  and  he  hastily  and  by 
absolute  stealth  returned  to  England.  Annoyed  at  his  want  of  success, 
and  attributing  it  chiefly  to  the  slowness  with  which  supplies  had  reached 
him,  Edward  iio  sooner  arrived  in  England  than  he  began  to  vent  his  anger 
upon  his  principal  officers;  and  he  with  great  impolicy  siiowed  especial 
rage  in  the  case  of  Stratford,  archbishop  oi"  Canterbury,  upon  wlnnn  had 
devolved  the  difliiiult  and  not  very  pleasant  task  of  realising  the  taxes 
granted  by  the  parliament.  It  was  in  vain  to  urge  to  Edward  that  the 
ninth  sheaf,  lainb,  and  fleece,  being  unusual  taxes,  were  necessarily  col- 
lected with  unusual  slowness  ;  he  was  enraged  at  his  own  ill  suci^ess,  and 
was  determined  to  vent  it  upon  his  olRcers;  Sir  John  St.  Paul,  keeper  of 
the  privy  seal.  Sir  .lohn  Stoner,  chief  justice,  the  Mayor  of  London,  and 
Ihe  bishops  of  Chichester  and  Liti;litield,  were  imprisoned  ;  and  the  arch- 
bishop of  Canterbury  only  escaped  the  like  indignity  by  chancing  to  be 
absent  from  London  on  Edward's  arrival. 

A.  n.  1.341. — Archbishop  Stratford,  who  really  seems  only  to  have  failed 
in  his  duty  from  the  novel  and  ditficiilt  nature  of  it,  was  not  of  a  temper 
lo  quiiil  before  the  unjust  anger  even  of  so  powerful  and  passionate  a 
oriiice  as  Edward;  ami  on  learning  to  what  lengths  the  king  liud  gone 
n'ilb  tlic  other  great  officers  of  state,  the  archbishop  issued  a  geiifial  se  i- 


i  '*  'till*/ 


■••1 


'.»•*#»» 


316 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HiaTORY 


tenee  of  excomnniiiiciuion  agiiinst  all  who  sliould  assail  the  clergy  eiihei 
in  person  or  properly,  iiirriiige  the  privileges  secured  lo  them  by  tha 
ecelesiasiiciil  ciiiioiis  and  hy  ihe  great  charter,  or  accuse  a  preiuie  ol 
treason  or  any  other  crime  lo  bring  him  under  the  king's  displeasure. 
Nor  (lid  the  bold  and  somewhat  arrogant  archbishop  slop  even  jiere 
After  having  thus  generally  aimed  al  llie  king's  conduct,  and  after  liaviiiij 
taken  care  to  employ  the  <-Ii'rgy  in  painting  that  conduct  in  the  darkest 
cohnns  lo  the  people,  Stratford  |ier>onally  addressiid  a  letter  lo  ilie  king 
in  which  he  asserted  the  superiority  of  the  clerical  to  the  civd  power' 
reminded  him  that  the  priesthood  were  answerable  at  tlie  divine  tribimai 
as  well  for  kings  as  for  subjects,  and  were  the  spiritual  fathers  of  the 
former  as  of  the  lailer,  and  were  therefore  manifestly  and  fully  eaiitled 
both  to  <liri'ct  them  to  right  cimducl  and  to  (^ensure  them  for  iraiiagres. 
sions.  This  bold  and  imlimiled  assertion  of  superiority  was  in  no  vvise 
calculated  lo  soothe  Edward's  irritatiim,  and  he  marked  his  sense  of  Strat- 
ford's conduct  by  sciuling  him  no  summons  to  attend  the  parlianicat.  But 
the  archbishop,  attended  by  a  mmu^rous  and  imposing  train  of  peers 
spiritual  and  temporal,  presented  Inmself,  crosier  in  hand  and  in  full  p()i|. 
lilicals,  and  demanded  aihuissiou.  for  two  days  the  king  refused  lo  adult 
him;  hut  al  Icnath,  fearing  iIk;  consequences  o(  loo  complete  a  breach 
with  the  ecclesiastical  power,  he  not  only  pernnited  bin)  to  take  his  seat 
in  parliament,  but  also  restored  liim  to  his  former  high  office. 

The  ma.\ini  of  the  Knglish  parliament  sei^ns  at  that  time  to  have  been, 
that  the  necessity  of  the  king  should  be  made  the  advantage  of  the  sub- 
jt;cl.  'I'lie  close  restrictions  \vh  cli  had  been  laiil  upon  Hciny  III.  and 
Kdwaril  II.  were  now,  as  far  as  was  deemed  safe,  made  the  basis  of  the 
parliament's  demands  upon  Kdaard  III.  for  concessions  to  be  granted  by 
lum  III  return  for  a  grant  of  twenty  thousand  sacks  of  wool.  Kthvaid  was 
so  pressed  by  his  creililors,  ihat  he  was  obliged  to  comply  with  llie  terms, 
hard  as  they  were ;  but  as  soon  as  his  necessities  became  suiiieuhal 
mitigated  he  revoked  all  that  he  deemed  olfensive,  allcdging  that  lie  was 
advised  to  do  so  by  anme  of  his  barons,  and  that  in  originally  iiiakiiig  suih 
concessions  he  had  aissciiMcil  d\n\  had  made  timm  with  a  sfcnY  protest 
A  most  dislioiie>t  |ilea  in  itself,  and  o\w  which,  it  is  obvious,  would, if 
allowed,  render  all  the  most  solemn  public  engagements  mere  deceptions 
and  mockeries. 

A.  n.  1.31J. — Dissensions  in  Hritlany  led  to  a  state  of  affairs  wliicli  re- 
vived Kilward's  expiring  hope  of  conquering  France.  He  accordingly 
siMit  a  strong  fleet  and  army  thither  to  liie  aid  of  iIk!  countess  of  .Miiuiil- 
fort,  who  ivas  besieged  by  (Miarles  of  Hlois.  Robert  d'Artois,  who  coin- 
manded  this  force,  fought  a  successful  action  with  the  Krench,  and  landed 
his  troops  in  llriltany.  lit*  laid  siege  to  Valines  and  took  it,  but  uliurtljr 
afterwards  died  of  a  wound  received  at  the  retaking  of  that  plucefcya 
party  of  Hrelon  nobles  of  the  factiim  of  (^liarles.  Deprived  of  the  services 
of  Kobert,  upon  whose  ability  and  valour  Kdward  had  great  rcliaiife,  he 
now  determined  to  proceed  in  person  to  the  aid  of  the  l■oullte^s,  The 
truce  lieiween  Kngland  and  Trance  had  expired,  and  the  war  uas  openly 
and  avowedly  to  he  carried  on  between  these  two  powers,  which  for  some 
lime  had  really  been  breaking  their  truce  in  tln!  character  of  parli»;inslo 
(he  respective  competitors  for  the  duchy  of  Drillany.  Having  laiiilcd 
near  Valines  with  an  aririy  of  twelve  tlioiisand  men,  Kdward,  aii.xiuus  la 
make  somo  important  impression,  and  griMlly  overrating  his  iiicansut 
doing  so.  simultaiKHiiisly  commenced  three  sieges  :  of  Valines,  of  Ken- 
lies,  .Old  of  Nanti^s.  As  might  have  been  expected,  but  little  pi'(igri'N>i  \\,i.« 
made  by  a  Niiiall  force  thus  divideil.  Kvcn  the  chief  siege,  ol'  Vaniifi, 
that  was  conducted  by  Kilwanl  in  person,  was  ii  failure;  and  Milvanl  \\u 
at  leiiuih  obliged  to  concentrati^  all  his  troops  in  that  iieighlioiirlioiid,  on 
itccoiMii  of  the  a|iproacli  of  I'hilip'ii  eldest  sun,  (he  duke  of  Noriiiandf 


THE  TREASURY  0!!"  HISTORY. 


317 


with  an  arniy  of  thirty  tlioiisand  fool  and  four  thousand  horse.  Kdwiird 
itrnngly  entrenched  himself;  bui  he  soon  becnnie  so  distressed  for  pru- 
visions,  wiiile  his  antagonists,  both  of  the  fortress  and  the  arniy.  were 
well  and  fully  supplied,  that  he  was  glad  to  enter  into  a  truee  of  ilnee 
years,  and  consent  to  Vannes  remaining  in  the  hands  of  the  pope's  legate, 
who  negotiated  the  truce,  and  all  the  other  strongholds  of  Brittany  hi  re- 
main in  the  hands  of  those  who  then  held  them.  Edward  returned  to 
England,  and  though  he  had  made  a  truee  for  the  long  term  of  three  years, 
it  is  quite  clear  from  his  conduct  that  he  merely  did  so  to  extricate  him- 
self »nd  his  followers  from  actual  capture.  He  made  complaints  of  a  vir- 
tual breach  of  the  treaty  by  the  punishnii;nt  of  certain  Breton  nobles  who 
were  partisans  of  England;  and  the  parliament,  adopting  his  views, 
granted  hii.i  a  fiOeetith  from  the  counties,  and  a  tenth  from  the  bcirouglis 
for  two  years,  to  which  the  clergy  adiled  a  tenth  for  three  years.  Henry 
earl  of  i)erby,  son  of  the  earl  of  Lancaster  and  cousin  of  the  king  was 
now  sent  with  a  force  into  Guienne  ;  and  havini!  bitaten  ofT  ail  a^'sailants 
fiomlliHt  province,  he  followed  the  count  of  Lisle,  the  FrtMieh  general,  to 
Bergerac,  beat  him  from  his  entrenchments,  and  took  the  place.  He 
afterwards  subjected  a  great  part  of  Feriiford  ;  ami  the  count  of  Lisle, 
having  re-coUeeted  and  reinforced  his  troops,  attempted  to  recapture  .Au- 
beroclie,  when  the  earl,  at  the  head  of  1,(100  horse,  surprised  him,  com- 
Dlfitely  muted  his  force,  and  took  him  pri.soner. 

A.  D.  134.5. — After  this  the  earl  madt^  a  must  rapid  series  of  coiKjuests 
on  tlie  side  of  Guienne,  partly  owing  to  the  gen(  ral  discontent  of  ilie 
French  at  some  new  taxes,  especially  on<!  on  salt,  which  Philip's  neces- 
sities had  compelled  him  to  lay  upon  his  peojile. 

A, n.  i:!l'>. — As  soon  as  Philip's  finances  became  in  biller  order,  vast 
preparations  were  made  by  the  Krench  to  change!  the  aspect  of  atr.in-s.  A 
very  siiiendid  army  was  led  towards  (luwuni!  by  the  dukes  itf  Norniiindy 
and  lliirgnndy,  and  otiiers  of  the  chief  nobles  of  Krance  ;  anil  the  e;irl  of 
Perliy  found  his  force  so  inadeiiUiite,  that  hi'  was  ccnnpelled  stricily  to 
I'untiiii'  his  movements  to  the  ilelensive.  The  Ptencii  army,  there  Core, 
was  left  full  opportunity  to  lay  sii^ge  to  AiiijcMili'ine,  nnd  tlu'y  invested  it 
soclost'ly,  that  Lord  Norwich,  tin  g.iilaiil  Kiiglisli  governor,  was  rediieed 
til  the  must  pninfnl  extremities.  Despairing  of  relief  and  unwilling  to  siir- 
ri'iiiliT  himself  and  troops  as  p'^isoners,  be  had  recourse  to  a  noi  very 
cri'ilitalile  stratagem,  wliicli,  moreover,  was  only  snceessfiil  in  eoiise- 
jueiire  of  the  rigid  honour  of  the  duke  of  NormMndy.  Desiring  a  coiil'cr- 
eine  witli  that  noble  leader.  Lord  Norwich  proposed  ai-essation  of  .inns 
forthc  following  day,  wliieli.  as  being  the  feast  of  the  Virgin,  he  prolessed 
1  dislike  to  desecriitiiig.  'The  eessiitiiiii  of  anus  being  agreed  to.  Lord 
XnrvMcii  marched  his  troops  tliroiigb  the  belenmiered  city,  ami,  as  be 
«ish('il  to  pass  tbrongli  the  French  lines,  Kent  a  messenger  to  reiiiind  ilie 
linkt'  of  the  existing  truce.  "  /  ft  Ihr  ^nvirnur  /un  tnitwillnl  »i',"'  was  the 
iiiililc  reply  of  the  (liike,  who  allowed  the  Knglish  to  pass  witliont  aiiiioy- 
anee,  mill  eoiitented  himsidf  with  obtaining  possession  ol'the  |)l;iie. 

While  these  and  minor  triiiisactions  were  p.is>ing  in  l'"r,inee,  IMwiird 
had  been  engnged  in  Kiiglainl  in  preiiariiiL'  a  s|ilenillil  expeiblnin  wiih 
wliii'li  lie  and  !iis  son  the  prinee  of  Wales,  now  about  fifteen  yi'iirs  of  iige, 
at  It'iijiili  set  sail  from  Sonthainpton.  The  origin;il  destiniitioii  of  iliis  ex- 
iu'ditinii,  which  amounted  to  iieiirly  n  llious:iiid  s  iil,  ums  (inieiiiie;  but 
rinilriry  winds  jtrevailing  for  some  iinie,  I'Mw.ird  listened  to  the  mhiee  of 
I'liiffiey  irihireourl,  and  resolved  to  nnike  a  descent  upon  Norm. iiidy,  the 
rich  liijiis  of  which  would  supply  Ins  army,  while  the  very  proxnnily  to 
the  capital  wcnild  render  any  iin|)ri'ssioii  inaile  there  of  proporiioiinie  nn- 
niiriiiicc.  This  determiniiiion  ni.ide  l'!i|\v;ir.l  speedily  diseuiliirk  iit  La 
lfi>j:iii>,  with  four  llionsand  Knubsli  men  at  .inns  :iiid  ten  tlionsaiid  arcliers, 
lugctluT  with  leu  thousand  Welsh  ami  six  ihous.ind  Irish  mhintiy,  whO| 


319 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTOAY 


if  not  very  imporlant  in  actual  line  of  battle,  were  admirably  adapted  m 
quality  of  foragers  and  scouts,  to  be  serviceable  to  their  own  fcrce  and 
most  mischievous  to  the  enemy. 

Having  destroyed  the  shipping  in  La  Hoguc,  Cherbourg,  and  Carflcur 
Edward,  who  on  landing  had  knighted  his  son  Edward  and  some  of  the 
young  nobility,  dispersed  all  his  lighter  and  more  disorderly  troops  all 
over  the  country,  with  orders  to  plunder  and  destroy,  without  other  res. 
triction  tlian  that  they  should  return  to  their  camp  by  night.  Tlie  cffeci 
of  this  order  was  to  spread  the  utmost  consternation  not  only  all  over  the 
province,  but  even  to  Paris  itself;  and  as  Caen  seemed  most  likely  to  bo 
the  next  object  of  Edward's  enterprise,  the  Count  d'Eu,  constable  of  France, 
and  the  count  of  Tancarville  were  dispatched  with  an  army  to  its  derenw. 
As  had  been  foreseen,  Edward  could  not  resist  tiie  temptation  to  atiiick 
so  rich  a  place ;  and  the  inhabitants,  encouraged  by  the  presence  of  rei;. 
ular  troops,  joined  them  in  advancing  against  the  English.  But  the  zeal 
of  these  civilians  gave  way  at  the  very  first  shock  of  battle,  the  troops 
were  swept  along  with  them,  both  the  counts  were  taken  prisoners,  and 
the  conquering  troops  entered  and  plundered  the  city  with  every  circum- 
stance of  rage  and  violence.  The  uniiappy  people  sought  to  procnuij. 
nate  their  doom  by  barricading  their  houses  and  assailing  the  Englisli  with 
missiles  from  the  witidows  and  house-tops,  and  the  soldiers,  enraged  at 
this  more  insulting  than  injurious  opposition,  set  fire  to  two  or  three 
houses  in  various  parts  of  the  town.  Hut  Edward,  alarmed  lest  the  spoil 
should  thus  be  lost,  stopped  tlie  violence  of  his  troops,  and,  having  niadc 
the  iiihal)itants  give  up  their  vain  resistance,  allowecl  his  soldiers  to  plim. 
der  th(^  jilace  in  an  orderly  and  deliberate  way  for  three  days,  reserving 
to  liimself  all  jewels,  plate,  silk,  and  fine  linen  and  woolen  cloths.  TIkw, 
together  with  three  hundred  of  the'  most  considerable  citizens  of  Caen, 
he  sent  over  to  England. 

Edward  now  marched  towards  Houeii,  where  he  expected  to  liavcii 
similar  profital)le  triumph ;  but  finding  the  bridge  over  tlie  Seine  lirokin 
down,  and  the  king  of  I'rani'c^  in  {X'rsoii  awaiting  him  with  an  army,  he 
marched  towards  Paris,  plundering  and  eominitling  the  most  waiitiii'i  di' 
struelion  on  the  road.  He  had  intended  to  pass  the  .Seine  at  I'oissy,  but 
found  the  opjiosite  bank  of  the  river  lined  with  the  French  troops,  am! 
that  and  all  the  neighlioiiring  bridg<'s  broken  down.  Ity  a  skilful  mi;i- 
na'iivre  he  drew  the  rreneh  from  I'oissy,  returned  thitlu-r,  repaired  tln' 
bridge  with  wonderful  rapidity,  passed  over  with  his  whole  army,  and 
having  thus  disengaged  himself  from  danger,  set  out  by  hasty  marches 
frnin  I'laiiders.  His  vanguard  cut  to  pieces  the  citizens  of  Amieiis,  who 
attempted  to  arrest  their  inarch;  but  when  the  English  reacliml  tlic 
Soinm<<  they  foiiml  tlieinselvcis  as  ill  situated  as  ever,  all  the  liridijos  he 
iiig  either  hnikeii  down  or  closely  guarded,  (iiiided  by  a  |)ea.<aiit,  Kihvar! 
fiiiiiid  a  lord  at  Abbeville,  led  Ins  army  over  sword  in  hanil,  ami  put  ><> 
tliglil  the  <i|);i()siiig  I'Veiieh  under  (ioileinar  ile  Fayi',  the  main  liody  of  thf 
{•'reiieli,  uiidir  their  king,  being  only  preventeil  from  following  KdwarJ 
iKToss  the  ford  by  the  rising  of  the  tide. 

.\fier  (his  iianow  escape,  Edward,  unwilling  to  cxpocc  himself  to  the 
enemy's  siipi'rior  cavalry  force  in  the  open  |il;iiiisof  I'ieardy,  haltiMl  upim 
a  gentle  ascent  iii'ar  the  village  of  Cresey,  in  a  position  very  fivoiiruMe 
for  his  iiwa  ting  the  approach  of  tlie  Kreiieh.  H.iving  disjiosed  liis  army 
in  three  lines,  he  intreiii'hed  his  flimks.  and  there  being  a  wood  in  lii!<r(.ir, 
in  that  he  placed  his  baguage.  Ilis  tirst  and  second  lines  he  eomiiiitlnl 
to  the  youiitf  pniiee  of  Wales,  with  the  earls  of  Warwick,  Oxford,  Arun- 
del, iind  Northampton,  and  lln!  lords  Chandos,  Ilolliind,  Willoiiglihy,  Id'^'. 
and  other  eminent  le;iders  ;  while  the  third  line,  under  his  own  iiiiiM'tihite 
command,  he  kept  back  us  ii  corps  </«  reitrve,  uithcr  to  Huppurt  tlic  funnel 


V' 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


319 


icclcd  til  Imvc  a 
I!  Seine  hrokcii 
illi  an  iiriiiv,  !ir 


jffo  if  beaten  back,  or  to  improve  any  impression  that  they  might  make 
upon  the  enemy. 

In  adililioii  to  the  care  with  which  Edward  hud  secured  his  flanks  and 
rear,  he  placed  in  his  front  some  cannon,  then  newly  invented  and  never 
before  used  to  any  extent  in  actual  battle.  His  opponent,  though  he  also 
possessed  cannon,  had,  it  should  seem,  left  them  behind  in  his  hasty  and 
fiirioiis  march  from  Abbeville. 

Philip's  army  amounted  to  a  hundred  and  twenty  thousand  men ;  but 
(he  superiority  of  the  English  archers,  and  the  inefficiency  of  the  bow- 
slrinjs  of  the  archers  on  the  French  side,  from  their  not  having  been  se- 
cured against  rain,  caused  the  very  first  charge  to  be  injurious  to  this  vast 
and  tumultuous  host.  Young  Edward  no  sooner  perceived  the  confusion 
that  tonk  place  in  the  crowded  ranks  of  his  enemy,  than  he  led  his  line 
steadily  into  the  melee,  and  so  furious  was  the  combat,  that  the  earl  of 
Warwick,  alarmed  lest  the  gallant  young  prince  should  be  overpowered, 
sent  10  the  king,  who  surveyed  the  battle  from  a  neighbouring  hill,  and  in- 
treiited  him  to  send  a  reinforcement.  Learning  that  the  prince  was  not 
wounded,  the  king  said  in  reply  to  Warwick's  message,  "  Return  to  my 
son,  and  tell  him  that  I  reserve  the  honour  of  the  day  to  him  ;  I  am  coiili- 
deiil  that  he  will  show  himself  worthy  of  the  honour  of  knighthood  whii-h 
1  so  lately  conferred  upon  him.  He  will  be  able  to  repel  the  enemy  with- 
out my  assistance." 

Tne  king  of  France,  far  from  inactive,  did  his  utmost  to  sustain  the  first 
line  by  that  which  was  under  his  own  command.  Ilul  the  first  disadvan- 
taije  could  not  be  remedied,  and  the  slaughter  momentarily  became  greater. 
Philip  had  already  had  one  horse  killed  under  liiin,  anil,  bein^  re-monnted, 
was  again  rushing  into  the  thickest  of  the  fight,  when  John  of  Hainault 
seized  the  bridle  and  literally  dragged  him  from  the  field.  The  battle  was 
iiowchiiiged  into  a  complete  rout,  and  the  v;;nquished  French  were  pursued 
and  slaiiglitered  until  nightfall.  When  the  king  received  his  gallant  son, 
ni'  rushed  into  his  arms,  exclaiming,  "  My  brave  son,  persevere  in  your 
honourable  course.  You  are  my  son  indeed,  for  valiantly  have  you  uc- 
(luiitpd  yourself  to-day.     You  have  shown  yourself  worthy  of  em[)ire." 

The  loss  to  the  French  on  this  most  fatal  occasion  amounted  to  190(i 
kiiiehts,  1400  gentlemen,  4000  men-at-arms,  and  about  ."iO.OOO  men  of  infe- 
rior rank.  Among  tlie  slain  of  superior  rank,  were  the  dukes  of  Lorraine 
and  Hmirbon,  the  earls  of  Flanders,  Hlois.  and  Vamlemont,  and  the  kings 
of  Miijoiva  and  lioheinin.  The  latter  king,  though  very  old  and  cpiite 
bhnd,  would  not  b(!  dissuaded  from  taking  a  personal  part  in  the  battle,  hut 
had  \m  bridle  f istened  to  tlioso  of  two  attendants,  and  was  thus,  by  his 
own  order,  or  at  least  by  his  own  act,  led  to  perish  in  the  thickest  of  the 
li?ht.  His  crest  and  motto  were  a  triple  ostri.  h  plume  and  the  words  Ich 
iirii,  1  nerve,  which  were  adopted  by  the  j)rinei'  of  Wales,  and  have  been 
home  liy  ,ill  his  snceessors,  in  memory  of  this    'lost  decisive  battle. 

Of  this  battle  we  may  remark  as  of  a  former  one,  that  it  seems  to  have 
hei'ii  rather  a  chase  murderously  followi^d  up ;  for  while  the  French  lost  so 
'ittful  a  number  of  all  lank.^.'the  English  lost  only  three  knights,  r)np 
PKiinire,  and  a  fe\t  common  soldiers 

('icit  as  Edward's  victory  was,  hv  clearly  perceived  that  fur  llie  present 
many  clrciiinstaiices  warned  him  to  limit  his  amlnlion  to  ca|)turiiig  some 
place  tliiit  would  ;it  all  times  alTord  him  a  ready  entrance  into  France  ;  and 
accorihiiirly,  after  employing  a  few  days  in  burying  the  deail  and  resting 
his  army,  be  presi'iiled  liimsidf  before  Calais. 

Jdliii  (le  Viciine,  knight  of  Hiirmimly,  roinmanded  this  important  garri- 
«oii ;  nil  lioiioiir  wliieli  he  owed  to  Ins  very  high  repntaiinn  ;ui'l  experience, 
flu  was  well  supplied  with  means  of  di-feiice;  and  Ivlward  at  the  very 
'"it«it(ictcriniiiei|  not  to  attempt  assault,  lint  to  starve  Ibis  iinportaiil  aar- 
fwoa  into  submission.      He  accordingly  inlrenelicd  the  wholo  city  and 


'■^:yH 


^i-^'^'i,fi- 


380 


THE  "REASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


formed  liis  camp,  causing  his  soldiers  to  raise  thatched  huts  for  their  pro 
tection  from  the  severity  of  the  weather  duriiijf  tiie  winter.  De  Vienne 
judging  what  was  Edward's  design,  sent  all  the  superfluous  hands  dut  o 
the  city,  and,  to  the  honour  of  Kdward  be  it  said,  he  not  only  let  the  help. 
less  people  pass  through  his  lines,  but  even  supplied  them  with  niouey  to 
aid  them  in  seeking  some  other  place  of  refuge. 

During  twelve  months  Edward  was  engaged  in  the  siege  of  Calais,  and 
the  earl  of  Derby  was  during  that  period  carrying  on  war  in  Gnieiine 
Poicters,  and  the  southern  provinces  of  France.  Charles  of  Blois  at  the 
same  time  invaded  Brittany,  and  laid  siege  to  the  castle  of  Rochelie  de 
Rien,  wliere  he  was  attacked  and  taken  prisoner  by  the  countess  of  Mont- 
fort.  While  she  and  her  rival  and  antagonist,  the  wife  of  Charles  de  Blois 
were  displaying  their  courage  and  talents  In  France,  King  Edward's  queen! 
Philippa,  was  still  more  importantly  exerting  herself  in  England.  The 
Scots  had  a  few  years  before  recalled  their  king,  David  Bruce,  and  ihouirh 
they  could  not  greatly  rely  upon  his  talentor  prowess,  they  were  encour- 
aged by  the  engagement  of  Edward  in  France  to  make  an  irruption  into  the 
noriiiern  English  counties,  to  which  they  were  strongly  urged  by  tht?  king 
of  France,  who  in  all  his  truces  with  Edward  had  shown  great  regard  fi.r 
the  safety  and  welfare  of  Scotland.  With  an  army  of  50,000  men  David 
Bruce  broke  into  Northnmberland,  and  ravaged  and  devastated  the  coun- 
try as  far  south  as  the  city  of  Dniham.  Pliilippa,  doubly  indignant  that 
such  an  outrage  should  be  committed  during  the  absence  of  her  husband, 
got  together  an  army  of  only  about  12,000  mtMi,  which  she  placed  under 
the  command  of  Lord  Piercy,  and  accompanied  it  and  him  to  Neville's 
Cross,  near  Durham.  Here  site  addressed  the  troops  in  a  very  spirited 
speech,  and  could  scarcely  be  persuaded  to  retire  even  when  the  battle 
actually  commenced.  The  result  was  proportionate  to  the  gallantry  ol 
the  attempt.  The  Scots  were  coniphaely  routed,  with  a  Iocs  of  from  fifteen 
to  twenty  thous>anil  killed,  among  whom  wt^re  Keith,  the  earl  marshal,  and 
Sir  Thomas  Charteris,  the  chancellor;  and  amimg  a  vast  number  of  pris- 
oners were  David  Bruce  himself,  the  earls  of  Fife,  Sutherland,  Mouleiih 
and  Carrick,  the  lord  Douglas,  and  many  nobles  of  less  note. 

Q  ..'en  Philippa,  after  lodging  her  important  prisoners  in  the  Tower  of 
London,  was  herself  the  bearer  of  the  news  to  Edward,  who  was  Mill  be- 
fore Calais,  where  she  was  received  with  all  the  applaii.-ie  and  adiiuration 
due  to  her  gallant  and  mure  than  womaidy  devotion  under  circuaisianoes 
80  dillicult. 

A.  D.  1317. — John  de  Vienne  in  his  defence  of  Calais  had  well  justified 
his  sovereign's  choice  of  him.  Bnt  as  Philip  had  in  vain  endeavoured  to 
relieve  hnn,  aiul  actual  famine  had  begun  its  drendful  work  upon  the 
garrison,  Dc;  Vienne  iU)W  offi-red  to  surrendi-r,  on  condition  that  the  lives 
and  liberties  of  his  brave  fellows  should  he  spared.  Bnt  Edw.ird  was  so 
irritated  by  the  very  gallantry  v,'hich,  as  De  Vienne  very  perlineiitly  ar- 
gued, he  would  have  expected  from  any  one  of  his  nwn  knights  under  sim- 
ilar circumstances,  that  he  at  first  would  hear  of  imthintt  shoit  of  the 
whole  garrison  surrendering  at  di><cretioii ;  bet  he  w;is  at  |eiii;ili  persua- 
ded to  alter  Ins  terms,  though  even  then  he  reqiiiri'd  that  the  keys  of  the 
platie  should  be  delivered  to  liim  by  six  ol'tlie  prin('i|iil  <'iiizen»,  bart'liCrideil, 
and  with  ropes  upon  their  nel•k^<,  ami  iha',  as  the  firico  of  the  safety  of 
the  garris(Mi,  these  six  men  .should  be  at  his  absolute  disposal  for  either 
life  or  death. 

To  send  six  men  to  what  seemed  certain  destruction  could  not  fail  lobe 
a  terrifying  proposition.  The  whide  g.irrisoii  wa>  in  dismay  ,  lull  Kiisiace 
St.  Pierre  iio'ily  voliinteenMl ;  Ins  example  was  followed  by  five  other  pa 
tr'ot^,  and  the  six  Inavo  nu'ti  appeared  in  the  prescribed  form  lii-forf  Kd 
wanl,  tvlio  only  spared  their  lives— e'en  after  tins  ioucliiii(j  proof  of  tlieit 
pxcidleni'c — at  till!  entreaties  madi!  t>  him  upon  her  knees  by  his  qiieeD 
I  liihppu. 


>:'!>■ 


for  iheir  pro 
De  Vieime 

hands  out  a 
y  lei  the  help- 
/ith  niuiiey  to 

jf  Calais,  and 
r  ill  Giiieiine, 
jf  Blois  at  the 
f  Rochelle  de 
mess  of  Mont- 
iHrlesde  Ulois, 
:1  ward's  queen, 
'liiglaiid.  The 
t;e,  and  though 

were  encour- 
-iiptioii  into  the 
;ed  by  thv  king 
real  regard  fir 
UOO  men  David 
,alt'd  llie  coun- 

indignant  that 
■)(  ht-r  hnsband, 
le  placed  undei 
iiii  tu  Neville's 

a  very  spirited 
vhen  the  battle 
llie  gallantry  01 
9(>f  fromfificen 
irl  marshal,  and 
[\iiinher  of  pris- 
■laud,  Monteilh 

the  Tower  o( 
ho  was  si  ill  be- 
and  admiration 
r  circuiiisiaiices 

id  well  justified 
endeavoured  10 
work  upon  the 
iliat  the  live* 
Iw.ird  was  so 
pcrlineiiilyar- 
ghis  under  sini- 
short  of  llie 
It'iigtli  persiw- 
he  keys  of  the 
ns,  liari'luMdi:i!, 
f  the  safety  of 
)sul  fur  either 


iir 


did  not  fiiil  to  be 
y  ;  hill  Kiislatc 


,y  five  oilier  p^ 
■(irin  lii'fore  Kil 
\H  proof  of  llii'it 
es  by  Iiii  qiiftn 


H\\, 


vmiM* 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


321 


On  takinof  possession  of  Calais,  Edward  adopted  a  plan  far  more  politic 
than  any  inhuman  execution  of  brave  men  could  have  been ;  for,  consid- 
ering that  every  Frencliuinn  must  needs  be  an  enemy  to  him,  he  cleared 
this  important  key  to  France  of  all  its  native  inhabitants,  and  made  it  a 
complete  English  colony. 

A.  D.  1349.— Kven  this  politic  measure,  and  a  truce  which  now  existed 
between  France  and  England,  had  well  nigh  failed  to  preserve  to  Edward 
this  only  valuable  fruit  of  all  his  expense  of  blood  and  treasure.  He  en- 
trusted the  governorship  of  Calais  to  a  native  of  Paris,  who  had  the  repu- 
tation of  bravery,  but  who  was  utterly  unrestrained  by  any  feeling  of  fidel- 
ity; and  this  man  volunteered  to  deliver  his  important  trust  to  Geoffrey 
de  Chanii,  the  commander  of  the  nearest  French  troops,  on  payment  of 
twenty  thousand  crowns.  The  traitor  was  himself  betrayed  by  Ins  secre- 
tary, who  despatched  tidings  of  the  intended  treachery  in  lime  t(»  enable 
Edward,  with  Sir  Walter  Manny  and  the  prince  of  Wales,  to  reach  Calais 
with  a  thousand  men.  The  governor  was  secured  and  taxed  with  hia 
crime;  and  easily  consented  as  the  price  of  his  pardon,  to  lead  the  French 
into  the  ambush  prepared  for  them  by  Edward.  The  French  appeared 
anil  were  attacked  and  conquered.  Edward  himself  fought  as  a  mere  pri- 
vate ^reiitUMiien,  and  was  twice  felled  to  the  earth  by  his  gallant  antagonist. 
Sir  KiBtace  de  Ribaumont,  who  at  length  surrendered- to  him.  Those  of 
the  Frem-h  officers  who  were  captured  were  treated  with  much  distinc- 
tion by  Kdward  and  his  heroic  son  ;  and  the  king  not  only  gave  Eustace 
de  Itihauinont  his  liberty  without  ransom,  but  also  presented  him  with  a 
handsome  chaplct  of  pearls,  which  he  desired  him  to  wear  in  memory  of 
having  proved  the  stoutest  knight  with  whom  the  king  of  England  had  ever 
been  personally  engaged. 

Kdwani,  partly  in  commemoration  of  his  toils  in  France  and  partly  to 
elevate  the  warlike  spirit  among  his  nobles,  shortly  afterwards  esliibiished 
theordi'rof  the  Garter;  an  order  which,  being  to  this  very  day  limited 
to  twenty  five  persons  beside  the  sovereign,  is  one  of  the  proudest  and 
most  envied  rewards  of  eminent  merit. 

A.  D.  1319. — This  year  deserves  especial  remark  from  the  awful  pesti- 
lence which,  arising  in  the  East,  swept  with  tierce  and  destroying  power 
ihrouirh  EiigUiiiil,  as  lhrnu<>;h  all  the  rest  of  Europe,  carrying  off  on  an  ave- 
rage a  full  tliird  of  the  population  of  every  country  in  which  it  made  its 
appeariuire. 

A.  D.  1350. — The  miseries  inflicted  by  the  pestilence  upon  both  France 
and  Knglaiid  tended  to  prolong  the  (cessation  of  arms  between  them  ;  but 
Charles,  king  of  Navarre,  surnamed,  very  appropriately,  tlie  Bad,  caused 
much  bloodshed  and  disiurbance  in  France  ;  and  Edward,  at  length  wea- 
ried Willi  peace,  allied  himself  with  the  French  malcontents,  and  sent  an 
anny  under  the  heroic  prince  of  Wales — who  was  now  generally  known 
by  the  title  of  the  Black  Prince,  from  the  colour  of  his  armour — to  make 
an  Inenrsiun  on  the  side  of  Guienne,  while  he  himself  broke  in  on  the  side 
of  Calais. 

Each  of  these  incursions  was  produc^live  of  great  loss  to  the  French, 
and  of  niiinci'ous  prisoners  and  much  spoil  to  the  English,  but  led  to  no 
jfoneralor  decisive  (Migagcment :  and  before  any  such  could  be  brought  on, 
Kdwani  was  culled  over  to  En<>land  to  prepare  for  a  throatiMU'd  invasion 
by  the  Scots,  who  had  surprised  Herwick,  and  had  gatliiTed  an  army  there 
ready  to  fall  upon  the  north  of  England.  IJut  at  Edward's  approach  they 
retired  to  the  mountains,  and  he  marched  without  encounu^riiig  an  enemy 
from  Uerxvick  to  Edinburgh,  plunderiiinand  bnriiinu  at  every  step.  Ualiol 
attendeil  Edward  on  this  occasion,  .iiid  was  either  so  disgusted  with  the 
niin  which  he  saw  intlictcd,  or  so  utterly  hopeless  of  ever  ehtablishing 
himself  ii|)()ii  the  Scottish  thrmic,  that  he  made  a  final  and  formal  lesigna- 
tion  of  Ills  nriHciisions,  in  evniinnvc  fi"*  a  pension  of  two  thousand  pounds 
I.— 21 


if.  I  '  ! 


'M 


«<?' 
b 


^§^w*v: 


1-,'2 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


A.  D.  1356. — The  prince  of  Wak a  in  the  meantime  had  penetrated  into 
the  very  heart  of  France,  and  committed  incredible  havoc.  Having  only 
.in  army  of  12,000  men,  most  of  whom  were  foreign  mercenaries,  lie  wag 
anxious  to  march  into  Normandy,  and  form  a  junction  with  the  king  of  Na- 
varre and  the  English  force  that  was  assisting  that  monarch,  under  the 
command  of  the  earl  of  Lancaster  ;  but  every  bridge  being  broken  down 
and  every  pass  guarded,  he  next  directed  his  march  towards  Guienne, 
John,  king  of  France,  who  had  succeeded  Philip  of  Valois,  though  a  mild 
and  just  prince  was  a  very  brave  man ;  and,  being  enraged  by  the  destruc- 
tion wrought  by  the  young  prince,  he  got  together  an  army  of  nearly 
00,000  men,  with  which  he  overtook  the  Black  Prince  at  Maupertuis,  near 
Poitiers ;  and  the  prince  having  done  all  that  lay  in  his  power  to  prevent 
himself  from  being  compelled  to  fight  at  a  disadvantage,  now  exerted  him- 
self no  less  to  avoid  defeat  even  while  so  fighting. 

With  so  great  a  superiority  of  force,  the  French  king,  by  merely  sur- 
rounding the  English,  might  without  any  risk  have  starved  tliein  into 
submission  ;  but  both  .lohn  and  his  principal  nobles  were  so  eager  to  close 
with  and  totally  destroy  so  daring  and  mischievous  an  enemy,  thit  they 
overlooked  all  the  cooler  suggestions  of  prudence.  Even  this  hot  haste 
would  perhaps  have  proved  fatal  to  the  English  ;  but,  fortunately  for  them, 
though  John  had  no  patience  to  surround  his  enemy  and  starve  him  into 
submission,  he  did  allow  his  impetuosity  to  be  just  suflicieiUly  checked 
to  aflford  that  enemy  time  to  make  the  very  best  of  his  situation,  bad  as  it 
really  was. 

The  French  had  already  drawn  up  in  order  of  battle,  and  were  prepar- 
ing for  that  furious  and  instant  onset  which,  next  to  patient  hemming  in  of 
the  English,  would  have  been  their  most  certain  means  of  success,  when 
King  John  suffered  himsef  to  be  delayed  to  enable  the  cardinal  of  Peri- 
gord  to  endeavour  to  bring  the  English  to  terms  without  farther  blood- 
shed. The  humane  endeavour  of  the  cardinal  was  not  ill  received  by  the 
Black  Prince,  who  was  fully  sensible  of  the  disadvantageous  position 
which  ho  occupied,  and  who  frankly  confessed  his  willingness  to  make 
any  terms  not  inconsistent  with  honuor ;  and  offered  to  purchase  an  unas- 
sailed  retreat  by,  1st,  the  cession  of  all  the  conquests  he  had  made  during 
this  and  the  preceding  campaign,  and  2dly,  pledging  himself  not  lo  serve 
against  France  for  seven  years  from  that  date.  Happy  would  it  have 
been  for  John  had  he  been  contented  with  these  protleriid  advantages. 
But  he  imagined  that  the  fate  of  the  English  was  now  absolutely  at  his 
disposal,  and  he  demanded  the  surrender  of  Calais,  together  with  Prince 
Edward  and  a  hundred  of  his  knights  as  prisoners;  terms  which  Edward 
mdignantly  refused. 

By  the  time  that  the  negotiation  was  terminated  the  day  was  too  far 
spent  to  allow  the  commencement  of  action,  and  Edward  thus  gniiuid  the 
inestimable  advantage  of  having  the  whole  night  at  his  disposal  to  siipiigth- 
en  his  post  and  alter  the  disposition  of  his  forces.  Besides  greaily  adding 
to  the  extent  and  strength  of  his  iiitrcncliinents,  he  caused  the  caplal  de 
Uuche,  with  three  hundred  archers  and  the  like  numbei'  of  ineii-at-arms, 
to  make  a  circuit  and  lie  in  ambush  ready  to  seize  the  first  favoiirahlc  op- 
portunity of  falling  suddenly  on  the  flank  or  rear  of  the  enemy.  The 
main  body  of  his  troops  the  prince  had  under  his  own  command  ;  the  van 
he  entrusted  to  the  earl  of  Warwick  ;  the  rear  to  the  earls  of  Salisbury  and 
Suffolk  ;  aiid  even  the  chief  subdivisions  were  headed,  for  the  most  pat, 
by  warriors  of  scarcely  inferior  fame  and  experience. 

The  king  of  France  also  drew  out  his  army  in  threo  divisions;  the  fii''l 
3f  which  was  commanded  liy  his  brother  the  duke  of  Orlef  ns,  the  second 
oy  the  dauphin  and  two  of  John's  younger  sons,  and  the  third  by  J:>lin  hi  P- 
self,  who  was  accompanied  by  his  fourth  son,  Phili[«,  ;heti  (uilj  fui'rie  )l 
yeara  old 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


3aj 


The  compaiative  weakness  of  the  English  army  was  compensated  by 
Its  position,  which  only  allowed  of  the  enemy  approaching  it  along  a  nar- 
row latie  flank«:d  by  thick  hedges.  A  strong  advanced  guard  of  the 
French,  led  by  marshals  ClermontandAndrcheu,  commenced  the  engage- 
ment by  inarching  along  this  lane  to  open  a  passage  for  the  main  army. 
This  detachment  was  dreadfully  galled  and  thinned  by  the  English  arch- 
ers, will)  from  behind  the  hedges  poured  in  their  deadly  arrows  with- 
out being  exposed  to  the  risk  of  retaliation.  But,  in  spite  of  the  terrible 
slaughter,  this  gallant  advanced  guard  pushed  steadily  forward,  and  the 
survivors  arrived  at  the  end  of  the  lane  and  bravely  charged  upon  a  strong 
body  of  the  English  which  awaited  them  under  the  command  of  the  prince 
in  person.  But  the  contest  was  short  as  it  was  furious ;  the  head  of  this 
brave  and  devoted  column  was  crushed  even  before  its  rear  could  fairly 
emnrge  from  the  lane.  Of  the  two  marshals,  one  was  taken  prisoner  and 
the  other  slain  on  the  spot,  and  the  rear  of  the  beaten  column  retreated  in 
disorder  upon  its  own  army,  galled  at  every  step  by  the  ambnshed  arch- 
ers. At  the  very  instant  that  the  hurried  return  of  their  beaten  friends 
threw  the  French  army  into  confusion,  iltc  captal  de  Buche  and  his  de- 
tachment made  a  well-timed  and  desperate  charge  upon  the  French 
flank,  so  close  to  the  dauphin,  that  the  nobles  who  had  the  charge  of  that 
young  prince  became  alarmed  for  his  safety,  and  hurried  him  from  the 
field. 

The  flight  of  the  dauphin  and  his  immediate  attendants  was  a  signal  for 
that  of  the  whole  division  ;  the  duke  of  Orleans  and  his  division  followed 
the  example ;  and  the  vigilant  and  gallant  Lord  Chandos  seized  upon  the 
important  instant,  and  called  to  Prince  Edward  to  charge  with  all  his 
chivalry  upon  the  only  remaining  division  of  the  French,  which  was  under 
the  immediate  command  of  John  himself.  Feeling  that  all  depended  upon 
this  one  effort,  John  fought  nobly.  The  three  generals  who  commanded 
'he  German  auxiliaries  of  his  army  fell  within  sight  of  him ;  young  Philip, 
rtiiose  sword  was  wielded  with  a  hero's  spirit  in  defence  of  his  father,  was 
wounded  ;  and  the  king  himself  was  several  times  only  saved  from  death 
by  the  desire  of  his  immediate  assailants  to  make  him  prisoner;  yet  still 
he  shouted  the  war-cry  and  brandished  his  blade  as  bravely  as  though  his 
cause  had  been  truly  triumphant.  Even  when  he  svas  sinking  with  fatigue 
he  demanded  that  the  prince  in  person  should  receive  his  sword;  but  at 
length,  overwhelmed  by  numbers,  and  being  informed  that  the  prince  was 
too  far  off  to  be  broughit  to  the  spot,  he  threw  down  his  gauntlet,  and  he 
and  his  gallant  boy  were  taken  prisoners  by  Sir  Dennis  de  Morbec,  a 
knight  of  Arras,  who  had  fled  from  his  country  on  being  charged  with 
murder. 

The  gallant  spirit  which  .Tohn  had  displayed  ought  to  have  protected 
him  from  further  ill ;  but  some  English  soldiers  rescued  him  from  de 
i>iorbec,  in  hope  of  being  rewarded  as  his  actual  captors  ;  and  some  Gas- 
cons, actuated  by  the  same  motives,  endeavoured  to  wrest  him  from  the 
English  ;  so  high,  indeed,  ran  the  dispute,  that  some  on  both  sides  loudly 
tlireatened  rather  to  slay  him  tlian  to  part  with  him  living  to  their  oppo- 
nents, when,  fortimately,  the  carl  of  Warwick,  dispatched  by  the  prince  of 
Wales,  arrived  upon  tne  spot  and  conducted  him  in  safety  to  the  royal  tent. 

Prince  Edward's  courage  and  conduct  in  the  field  were  not  more  credit- 
able to  him  than  the  striking  yet  perfectly  unaffected  humanity  with  which 
he  nowtreated  his  vanqnishedenemy.  Hereceived  him  at  his  tent,  and  con- 
ducted himself  as  an  inferior  wailing  upon  a  superior  ;  earnestly  and  truly 
ascribed  his  victory  less  to  skill  than  the  fortune  of  war,  and  wailed  be- 
hind the  royal  prisoner's  chair  during  the  banquet  with  which  he  was 
served.  The  example  of  the  prince  was  followed  by  his  army  ;  all  the 
prisoners  were  released,  and  at  such  moderate  ransoms  as  did  not  presp 
upon  them  individually,  though  their  great  number  made  the  English  so' 
diers  wealthy. 


f    I 


I    ,.«i<KJ''' 


334 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


Edward  now  made  a  trune  with  the  French  for  two  years,  and  condiint- 
ed  Jolin  to  to  I^undon,  treating  him  not  as  a  captive  but  as  a  monarch- 
taking  care  himself  to  appear,  alii^e  as  to  horse  and  attire,  as  a  person 
of  interior  station. 

King  Edward  showed  his  approval  of  his  son's  modest  and  delicate  con. 
duct  by  closely  imitating  it;  advancing  to  Southwark  to  meet  John  on 
his  landing  there,  and  in  every  sense  treating  him  not  as  a  captive  but  a* 
a  monarch  and  voluntary  visitor. 

Edward  had  now  two  kings  his  prisoners  in  London.  But  the  contin- 
ued captivity  of  David  Uruce  had  proved  less  injurious  to  Scotland  than 
Edward  had  anticipated,  the  power  of  that  country  being  ably  and  inde- 
fatigalily  directed  by  David's  heir  and  nephew,  Robert  Stuart.  Edward 
therefore  restored  David  to  liberty  at  a  ransom  of  100,000  marks.  f(ir  the 
payment  of  which  the  sons  of  his  principal  nobles  became  hostages. 

A.  D.  1358. — Though  the  very  virtues  of  John,  king  of  France,  were  cal- 
culated to  encourage  disobedience  to  him  in  so  turbulent  and  ill-regulated 
an  age,  and  in  a  country  so  often  convulsed  as  France  was  by  being  made 
the  theatre  of  war,  yet  his  absence  was  early  and  visibly  productive  tifjn- 
jury  and  disturbance  to  his  kingdom.  If  his  goodness  had  been  some- 
times imposed  upon  and  his  kindness  still  more  frequently  abused,  yet 
as  it  was  well  known  that  he  had  both  wisdom  and  courage,  his  pres- 
ence had  kept  the  ill-disposed  within  certain  bounds.  The  dauphin,  upon 
whom  the  ditiicult  task  now  lay  of  ruling  during  the  imprisonment  of  his 
father,  was  brave  and  of  good  capacity  ;  but  he  had  one  fatal  defect,  in  it- 
self su(Ticiei\t  to  incapacitate  him  for  fully  supplying  his  father's  place;  he 
was  only  eighteen  years  of  age.  How  far  that  circumstance  weakened 
his  authority  appeared  on  the  very  first  occitsion  of  his  assembling  the 
states.  Though  his  father  was  now  made  captive  in  defending  the  kingdom 
the  yonn^  daiiphin  no  sooner  demanded  the  supplies  which  his  father's  cap 
tivity  and  the  situation  of  the  kingdom  rendered  so  necessary,  than  he  wm 
met  not  by  a  generous  vote  of  sympathy,  confidence,  and  assistance,  but 
by  a  harsh  and  eager  demand  for  the  limitation  of  the  royal  authority,  foi 
redress  of  certain  alledged  grievances,  ami  for  the  liberation  of  the  kingol 
Navarre,  who  had  been  so  mischievous  to  France  even  while  John  was  at 
liberty  to  oppose  him,  and  whose  liberation  now  might  rationally  be  ex- 
pected to  be  productive  of  the  very  worst  consequences.  'J'his  ungener- 
ous conduct  of  the  stales  did  not  lack  imitators.  Marcel,  provost  of  the 
merchants,  tht;  first  and  most  influential  magistrate  of  Paris,  instead  of 
using  the  weight  of  his  authority  to  aid  the  dauphin,  actually  constituted 
himself  the  ringleader  of  the  rabble,  and  encouraged  them  in  the  most  in- 
solent and  unlawful  conduct.  The  dauphin,  thus  situated,  found  that  he 
was  less  the  ruler  than  the  prisoner  of  these  ungrateful  men,  who  carried 
their  brutal  disrespect  so  far  as  to  murder  in  his  presence  the  marshals 
de  Clermont  and  dc  Conflans.  As  usual,  the  indulgence  of  ill-dlsposi 
tions  increased  their  strength  :  all  the  other  friends  and  ministers  of  the 
dauphin  were  threatened  with  the  fate  of  the  murdered  marshals,  and  he 
at  length  seized  an  opportunity  to  escape.  The  frantic  demagogues  of 
Paris  now  openly  levied  war  against  the  dauphin,  and  it  is  scarcely  neces- 
sary to  add  that  their  example  was  speedily  followed  by  every  large  town 
in  the  kingdom.  Those  of  the  nobles  who  deented  it  time  to'exert  them- 
selves  in  support  of  the  royal  authority  were  taunted  with  their  flight  from 
the  battle  of  Maiipertuis,  or  as  it  was  generally  termed,  of  Poitiers;  the 
king  of  Navarre  was  liberated  from  prison  by  aid  of  the  disaffected, 
and  the  whole  kingdom  was  the  prey  of  the  most  horrible  disorders. 

The  dauphin,  rather  by  his  judgment  than  by  his  military  talents,  re- 
duced the  country  at  length  to  something  like  order.  Edward  in  the 
meantime  had  practised  so  successfully,  and,  we  may  add,  so  ungcn- 
nrously,  upon  the  captive  John,  as  tu  induce  him  to  sign  a  treaty  which 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY 


32ft 


ipas  so  niani '  stiy  and  unfiiirly  injurious  to  France,  tliat  the  dauphin  re- 
fused to  be  bouiid  by  it.  (a.  n.  1359-60.)  War  consequently  whs  re- 
commenced by  Edward  ;  but  tiiougb  liie  English  armies  traversed  France 
from  end  to  end,  and  committed  the  most  disgraceful  ravages,  Edward's 
success  was  so  disproportionate,  and  his  advantages  constantly  proved  so 
fleeting,  that  even  the  duke  of  Lancaster,  his  own  near  relative  and  zeal- 
ous as  well  as  able  general,  remonstrated  with  him  upon  his  absurd  obsti- 
Diicy  in  insisting  upon  terms  so  extreme,  that  they  were  calculated  rather 
to  induce  desperation  than  to  incline  to  submission. 

Tliese  remonstrances,  backed  as  they  were  by  the  whole  circumstances 
of  the  case,  at  length  led  Edward  to  incline  to  more  reasonable  terms. 
By  way  of  salvo  to  his  dignity,  or  pride,  he  professed  to  have  made  a 
vow  during  an  awful  tempest  which  threatened  the  destruction  of  his 
army,  and  in  obedience  to  this  his  alledged  vow  he  now  concluded  peace 
on  the  following  footing,  viz.:  that  Knig  John  should  be  restored  to  lib- 
erty at  a  ransom  of  three  millions  of  golden  crowns :  that  Edward  should 
for  himself  and  his  successors  renounce  all  claim  to  the  crown  of  France, 
and  to  his  ancestral  provinces,  Anjou,  Touraine,  Maine,  and  Normandy; 
and  should  in  exchange  receive  other  specified  districts  in  that  direction, 
with  Calais,  Guisnes,  Montreuil,  and  Pontliieu,  on  the  other  side  of  France, 
in  full  and  independent  sovereignty;  together  with  suildry  other  stipula- 
tions. John  was  accordingly  restored  to  liberty ;  and  as  he  had  been  per- 
sonally well  treated  in  Ei!';land,  and,  besides,  was  at  all  times  greatly  in- 
clined to  sincerity,  he  seems  to  have  exerted  himself  (o  the  utmost  to 
cause  the  treaty  to  be  duly  fulfilled.  But  tlie  people  in  the  neighborhood  * 
of  Giiienne  were  obstinately  bent  against  living  under  the  English  do- 
minion; and  some  other  difficulties  arose  which  induced  John  to  return 
to  England  in  the  hope  of  adjusting  matters,  when  he  sickened  and  died, 
1.  D.  1363, 

A.  D.  1364. — Charles  the  dauphin,  who  succeeded  to  the  throne  of 
France,  devoted  his  first  efforts  to  settling  all  disturbances  in  his  own 
realm,  and  ridding  it  of  the  numerous  "/ree  companions"  who,  soldiers  in 
time  of  war  and  robbers  in  time  of  peace,  were  one  of  tue  principal 
causes  of  all  the  disorder  that  reigned ;  and  he  was  prudent  enough  to 
cause  them  to  flock  to  that  Spanish  war  in  which  the  Black  Prince  most 
imprudently  took  part. 

Having  got  rid  of  this  dangerous  set  of  men,  and  having  with  secret 
gladness  beheld  the  Black  Prince  ruining  himself  alike  in  health  and  for- 
tune in  the  same  war  which  drafted  so  many  desperate  ruffians  from 
France,  Charles,  in  the  very  face  of  his  father's  treaty,  assumed  a  feudal 
power  to  which  he  had  no  just  claim.  Edward  recommenced  war;  but 
liiough  France  once  more  was  extensively  ravaged,  a  truce  was  at  length 
agreed  upon,  when  the  varied  events  of  war,  consisting  rather  of  the 
skirmishes  of  freebooters  than  of  the  great  strife  of  armies,  had  left  Ed- 
ward scarce  a  foot  of  ground  in  France,  save  Calais,  Bourdeaux,  and 
Bayonne. 

A.  D.  1376.— Edward  the  Black  Prince,  feeble  in  health,  had  for  some 
lime  past  been  visibly  hastening,  to  the  grave.  His  warlike  prowess  and 
his  unsullied  virtue— unsullied  save  by  that  warlike  fury  which  all  man- 
kind are  prone  to  rate  as  virtue — made  his  condition  the  source  of  a  very 
Jeep  and  universal  interest  in  England,  which  was  greatly  heightened  by 
the  unpopularity  of  the  duke  of  Lancaster,  who,  it  was  feared,  would 
take  advantage  of  the  minority  of  Richard,  son  and  heir  of  the  Black 
Prince,  to  usurp  the  ihrone.  This  general  interest  grew  daily  more  deep 
and  p.iinfid,  and  the  Black  Prince,  amid  the  sorrow  of  the  whole  nation, 
expired  on  the  8th  of  June,  in  the  very  prime  of  manhood,  a(;ed  only 
forty-six.    The  king,  who  was  visibly  afH-'cted  by  the  loss  of  his  son. 


1 


^  1 

'  *  mi 

..■*!!!«'•*■ 


3Cfi 


THE  THEASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


5i: 


lived  only  a  year  longer,  dying  on  the  2l3t  of  Juno,  1377  in  the  Slst  yeai 
of  his  reign,  and  in  the  CSth  of  his  age. 

Tlie  sense  of  power  is  usually  more  induential  on  men's  judgment 
than  the  sense  of  right;  and  tho'iigli  his  wars  both  with  Sijoilaiid  and 
France  chiefly  originated  in  tyrannous  self-will,  the  splendour  of  lils  war- 
like talents  and  the  vigour  of  his  character  made  him  beloved  and  ad- 
mired by  his  people  .1  iring  his  life,  and  still  make  tiie  English  hislorian 
love  to  linger  over  liis  reign-  His  very  injustice  to  foreign  people  keoi 
sedition  and  its  fearful  evils  afar  from  his  own  sutijccts ;  and  if  he  was 
himself  but  too  burdensome  in  the  way  of  taxation,  he  at  least  kept  a 
firm  hand  over  his  nobles,  and  did  much  towards  advancing  and  establish- 
ing tiie  right  of  the  people  at  large  to  be  unmolested  in  their  private  life, 
and  to  have  their  interests  considered  and  their  reasonable  demands  at- 
tended to.  It  has,  indeed,  been  generally  admitted  that  he  was  one  ul 
the  best  and  most  illustrious  kings  that  ever  sat  on  the  Englisli  throne, 
and  that  his  faults  were  greatly  outweighed  by  his  heroic  virtues  and 
amiable  qualities.  On  the  whole,  the  reign  of  Edward  III.,  as  it  was  one 
of  the  longest,  so  was  it  also  one  of  the  brightest  in  England's  history. 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 


THE    RKIGN    OF    RICHARD    II. 


A.  D.  1377. — Edward  HI.  was  suc(;eeded  by  Richard  II.,  son  of  the 
Black  Prince.  The  new  king  was  but  little  more  than  eleven  years  old; 
but  he  had  three  uncles,  the  dukes  of  Lancaster,  York,  and  Gloucester, 
whose  authority,  aided  by  the  habits  of  obedience  which  the  firm  ride  of 
tlie  late  king  had  established,  seemed  to  promise  at  the  least  an  undis 
turbed  minority. 

The  very  commmencement  of  this  reign  proved  how  much  Edward  III. 
had  raised  the  views  and  added  to  the  importance  of  the  commons  in 
parliament,  the  deliberative  business  of  which  had  now  so  much  increased, 
iliat  they  found  it  necessary  to  choose  a  speaker,  both  to  be  their  organ 
of  communication  and  to  keep  due  order  and  gravity  in  their  debates, 
The  choice,  however,  showed  but  little  gratitude  to  the  late  king,  for  il 
fell  upon  Peter  de  la  Mare,  a  man  who  had  distinguished  himself  by  op- 
position to  the  late  king's  ministers,  and  had  bi'cn  imprisoned  for  a  vio- 
lent attack  on  Alice  Pierce  (or  Perrers,)  who.  as  the  king's  mistress,  iiad 
become  so  unpopular  in  consequence  of  thr  influence  she  was  supposed 
to  have  upon  his  measures,  that  he  was  obliged  to  part  with  her  lu  ap- 
pease the  popular  clamour. 

Though  the  choice  of  this  person  for  speaker  did  not  indicate  anyia- 
•ention  on  the  part  of  the  coininoiis  towards  loo  submissive  a  conduct, 
they  did  not  immediately  show  any  desire  unduly  to  interfere  in  the  gov- 
erinnent,  but  confined  themselves  to  petitioning  the  lords  that  a  council 
of  nine,  composed  of  trustworthy  and  virtuous  men,  should  be  appointed 
Jo  conduct  the  public  business,  and  to  supi'rintend  tlie  life  and  eihicatlon 
of  the  young  king  during  his  minority.  The  former  part  of  the  petition 
was  answered  by  the  appointment  ol  the  bishops  of  London,  Carlisle,  and 
Salisbury,  the  earls  of  March  and  Stafford,  and  sirs  Richard  dt;  SlalTord, 
Henry  le  Scrope,  John  Devcreux,  and  Hugh  Seagrave,  who  were  em- 
powered to  conduct  the  public  business  for  one  year.  With  respect  to 
the  latter  portion  of  tlie  petition,  the  lords  declined  interfering  with  it, 
reasonably  thinking  that  to  intcrrere  in  the  young  prince's  private  life 
and  education,  unless  his  royal  uncles  proved  careless  or  inimical,  wouU 
De  neither  delicate  nor  just. 

Of  the  tlree  uncles,  the  duke  of  Lancaster  was  certainly  by  far  lb« 


THE  TREASUav  OP  HlflTOB^. 


327 


:h  Edward  111. 


rtbiest,  ami  probably  not  iho  least  ambitious ;  and  ihougd  there  was  no 
one  to  whom  any  authority  was  ostensibly  or  formally  given  to  control 
iho  council,  Lancaster  seonis  lo  have  been  the  actual  rejrent  who  for  some 
years  not  only  governed,  but,  by  his  irresistible  though  secret  inlluence 
even  appoinied  the  council. 

As  is  usual  with  popular  and  numerous  assemblies,  the  commons,  on 
finding  their  interference  complied  with  instead  of  being  resented,  be- 
came anxious  and  somewhat  impatient  to  push  it  still  farther.  Scarcely 
had  the  greater,  and  also  the  most  important  part,  of  their  first  petition 
been  acted  upon  ere  they  presented  another,  in  which  they  prayed  the 
king  and  his  council  to  take  measures  to  prevent  the  barons  from  confed- 
erating together  to  uphold  each  other  and  their  followers  in  violent  and 
unlawful  deeds.  A  civil  answer  was  given  to  this  petition ;  but  though 
the  answer  was  couched  in  those  general  terms  which  really  bind  the 
parties  using  them  to  no  particular  course,  it  speedily  called  forth  another 
petition  of  a  far  more  ambitious  nature,  and  calculated  to  add  at  one  step 
must  prodigiously  to  the  influence  of  the  commons,  who  now  prayed  that 
during  the  minority  of  the  king  all  the  great  officers  should  be  appointed 
by  parliament— clearly  meaning  that  the  mere  appointment  by  tlie  lords 
should  thenceforth  be  of  no  validity  unless  it  were  confirmed  by  the 
comiuons.  This  petition  did  not  meet  with  so  favourable  a  reception; 
the  lords  still  retained  to  themselves  the  power  of  appointing  to  tiie  great 
offices  of  state,  and  the  commons  took  part  in  the  appointments  only  by 
tacit  aequiescence. 

Previous  to  this  parliament  being  dissolved  the  commons  gave  another 
proof  of  their  consciousness  of  their  own  growing  importance,  by  repre- 
senting the  necessity  as  well  as  propriety  of  their  being  annually  assem- 
bled, and  by  appointing  two  of  their  number  to  receive  and  disburse  two- 
fifteenths  and  iwotenlhs  which  had  been  voted  to  the  king. 

A.  D.  1381. — Though  the  war  with  Franrc  luok  forth  from  time  to 
time,  in  spite  of  the  prudent  conduct  oi'  liarles,  who  most  justly  was 
called  The  Wise,  the  military  operations  were  not  such  as  to  demand  de- 
•.ail.  But  if  unproductive  of  glory  <ii  tcmtory,  the  war  was  not  the  less 
lestruc'tiv(!  of  treasure;  anci  on  tin  parli  Mnent  meeting  in  1380,  it  was 
found  requisite,  in  order  lo  provide  lui-  the  pressing  and  indispensable 
necessities  of  the  government,  ti>  iinpot-^'  a  poll-tax  of  three  groats  upon 
every  person,  male  and  female,  w  iv>  was  more  than  fifteen  years  nf  age. 

There  was  no  foreign  count ry  with  which  England  had  so  close  and 
continued  an  intercourse  as  with  Flanders,  which  greatly  depended  on 
England  for  its  supply  of  the  wool  necessary  for  its  manufactures.  The 
spirit  nf  independence  that  had  arisen  among  the  Flemish  peasants,  as 
exemplified  in  the  brutalities  which  they  had  committed  upon  their  nat- 
ural and  lawful  rulers,  and  the  servility  with  which  they  had  submitted  to 
the  utmost  tyranny  at  the  hands  of  a  br(!wcr,  now  began  to  communicate 
itself  to  the  lower  order  in  England.  Then,  as  iu  far  more  modern  limes, 
there  were  uo.v.ugGgucs  -.vlv^  sought  to  recommend  themselves  to  the 
credulous  people,  and  to  prey  upon  ilicn  by  the  loud  inculcation  of  an 
equably  among  mankind,  which  no  man,  not  ucc:d?illy  inferior  lo  all  the 
.•est  of  his  race  in  the  quality  of  intelligence,  can  failto  see  is  but  par- 
tially true  in  the  abstract,  and  wholly  false  by  force  of  circumstances 
which  are  at  once  inevitable  and  perfectly  independent  of  the  form  of 
government  and  even  of  the  good  or  bad  adminislrulion  of  the  laws. 
Among  the  demagogues  who  just  at  this  period  raised  their  voices  to  de- 
ceive and  plunder  the  mulliUKle,  was  one  John  Ball,  a  degraded  priest, 
but  a  man  by  no  means  destitute  of  ability.  To  such  a  man  the  imposi- 
doii  of  a  tax  which  was  both  excessive  Vind  cruel  in  the  then  stale  of 
lalMur  and  its  wages,  was  a  perfect  godsend;  and  the  opportunity  it  af- 
forded him  of  giving  vent  to  exciting  and  plausible  declamation,  was  no! 


328 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY 


■•■n 


diminished  by  the  bitter  and  impolitic  mockery  of  a  recommendation  from 
the  euuiicii,  that  when  this  new  poll-tax  should  be  found  to  press  too  se- 
verely on  the  poor,  the  wealthy  should  relieve  them  by  increasing  their 
own  contribution. 

It  is  not  easy  to  imagine  any  circumstances  under  which  so  excessive 
a  demand  upon  a  sufferiny^  population  could  have  failed  to  cause  discon- 
tent and  sedition  ;  but  when  to  the  excess  of  the  tax  the  excit(;d  temper  ol 
the  people  and  the  a(Mivity  of  their  dcluders,  the  demagogues,  was  added 
an  insolent  brutality  on  the  part  of  the  collectors,  there  could  be  little 
doubt  of  the  occurrence  of  great  and  extended  mischief. 

The  tax  in  question  was  farmed  out  to  the  tax-gatherers  of  the  various 
districts,  who  thus  had  a  personal  interest  in  the  performance  of  their  in- 
vidious duty,  whic-h  was  certainly  not  likely  to  make  them  less  urgent  oi 
less  insolent  Kvery  where  the  tax  raised  complaims  both  lomi  and  deep, 
and  every  poor  man  was  anxious  to  avail  himself  of  any  possible  niisrep^ 
reseiitaiioii  is  to  the  age  of  the  children  for  whom  he  was  charged.  The 
blacksmith  of  a  village  in  I'^ssex  having  paid  for  the  rest  of  his  familv, 
refused  tr  do  so  for  a  daughter  whom,  whether  truly  or  falsely  does  not 
appear,  lie  stoutly  averred  to  be  under  the  prescribed  age;  and  llie  tax- 
gatherer,  a  low  brutal  fellow,  offered  a  violent  indecency  to  the  irjrl  in 
pr<iof  of  his  right  to  the  demand.  The  father,  poor,  irritated  at  iIk;  loss  of 
tli(!  money  lie  had  already  paid,  and  doubly  indignant  at  the  outrage  thus 
offered  to  his  child,  raised  the  ponderous  hammer  he  had  just  been  using 
in  his  hiiMiiess,  and  dashed  th<!  riiflian's  brains  oni  on  the  spot.  Uiulern 
state  of  less  violent  excitement  the  bystantlers  would  probably  have  been 
sliocke<l  at  the  smith's  fatal  violence;  but  as  it  was, the  murder  '.uued  like 
a  talisman  upon  the  hilluTto  supjiressed  raire  of  the  people,  and  in  a  few 
hours  a  vast  multitude,  armed  with  every  description  of  rude  weapon,  was 
gathered  together,  with  the  avowed  inleniion  of  taking  vengeance  on  Iheir 
tyrants  and  of  putting  an  end  to  their  oppression.  From  Kssex  llie  flame 
spread  to  all  the  ailioiiiing  counties  ;  and  so  sudden  and  so  rapid  wasilic 
gathering,  that  before  the  astounded  government  could  even  deterinine 'in 
what  emirse  to  follow,  upwards  <pf  a  hundred  thousand  despi'rale  men  had 
assembled  oil  Hlaekhealli,  under  the  command  of  Wat  Tyler,  the  hiaek- 
cniitli,  aiirl  several  oiher  ringleaders  who  bore  the  assumed  naiiies  of  Ihib 
Carler,  .lack  Straw,  and  the  like.  The  king's  mother,  the  widow  of  tl:e 
heroic  lllack  Prince,  m  returning  from  a  pilgrimage  to  <'anterlmry,  h;id 
to  pass  lliron^h  thisdesperale  and  dissolute  innliitudc;  and  such  was  theiriii. 
discriminate  rage,  that  she,  to  whom  they  owed  8o  mu(di  respect,  was  lakcn 
from  her  vehicle,  insulted  with  the  familiar  salutes  of  drunken  clownsi,  and 
her  aitendants  were  tri  aied  with  equal  insult  and  slill  greater  VKilcnce 
\t  length,  probably  at  the  intercession  of  smne  of  the  least  debuscil  uf  thr 
leaders,  she  was  allowed  to  proceed  on  her  journey. 

'I'lie  king  in  the  meantime  had  been  eondiicted  for  safely  to  the  Towei 
of  Ijondon,  and  tlu*  rebels  now  sent  to  demand  a  conference  willi  Inni. 
He  (lailed  down  the  river  in  a  barge  to  comply  with  their  reipiisi,  but  as 
he  approaci.ed  the  shore  the  mob  showed  such  evident  iiicliualioii  tiihniii! 
violence,  that  he  was  compelled  to  return  to  the  fortress. 

In  London  the  diworder  was  by  this  lime  at  its  height.  Thi^  low  ribbll 
of  the  city,  always  in  that  age  ripe  lor  mischief,  had  joined  the  riolri^fnim 
the  country;  ware-hinises  and  |irivale  houses  were  broken  opi  ii,  .iiid  iiul 
meridy  pill  iged,  but  the  contents  burned  orotlii'rwnii'  ihslruved  »lii  ii  llii'V 
'•oiild  not  be  earned  away  ;  and  llie  Savoy  palace,  the  properly  of  Ihediile 
of  lialicaster.  winch  liml  so  long  lieeii  the  abode  of  tin?  king  of  I'r.HK c,  \\,i* 
in  waiilon  inisi  lilef  cimiplelelv  rediiceil  to  ashes.  Ascribing  their  siilTt'r. 
iiigs  to  the  ruber  and  better  nislrnctcd  classes,  the  mob  not  iinrrly  inid. 
Ire.ited,  Iml  in  very  many  i';t«es  even  nnudered,  itiu'h  geiitleinvu  a«  wert 


w^ 

-M 

■nil 

''I 

ral' 

UHCk 

f 

1 

l! 

H- 

1 

ilil 

til 

anfortiinntr 
Ireaied  witi 
The  king 
End,  wlirru 
siirruiiinli'ij 
reriied  in  tl 
tolls  and  iiii 
holiliiigs,  ill! 
cundiliuii  to 
llifi  above  w 
was  llius  sei 
Hut  the  di 
rebels,  liead( 
meniitlnic  bi 
cellor  and  ar 
with  some  ol 
sing  tjiroiij^li 
phicc.     The 
now  only  six 
vioiisjy  lit'i  li 
whole  of  tlie 
Flushed  uitji 
Biichnieiiacin 
llie  then  iniiyi 
that  he  strii'cl 
A  fierce  yell 
leader;  but  b 
rode  steadily 
command  wliii 
cvcliiinied,  "A 
that  ye  have  l 
be  my  peo|)|e' 
lurpri-ic  lii.i  ci 
ihem,  the  kin 
joined  by  an 
maud  Ins  (It! 
'iMirjre  lliein 
"lis  b.nid  as  p 
Mile  Kud,  111,(1 

While  liie 
Iry  111  all  pa 
I'li'ir  reiaiiicrs 
"MiMmo  tiiei. 
anil  the  rlnn, 
uiilit  fi)rili(.  St 
"f  exei'iitioii, 
"haviuj;  beei 
Imd  banded  in 
Suiiiary  and 

Siivcreiy;n  »ii 
Kiiiiard  did  .. 
"'»!  brijjhi  pro 
A.  n.  Kt-*.'),- 
when  till'  ;iii| 
IM-  and  clicrk 
Iwd  Nrolj.ind 
My  of  |.'ivi„, 

">  'he  niiiunt,! 


THE  TREASUllY  OF  HISTORY. 


329 


anfortundtn  enough  to  fall  into  their  hands ;  and  lawyers,  especially,  were 
treated  witliout  mercy. 

The  king  at  length  left  the  Tower  .ind  proceeded  to  a  field  near  Mile 
End,  where  one  of  the  main  bodies  of  the  rioters  had  assembled.  They 
surrouiiilril  him  with  peremptory  demands  for  a  general  pardon  for  all  con- 
cerned in  the  insurrection,  the  instant  abolition  of  all  villeinage,  and  of 
tolls  and  imposts  in  all  markets,  tojrelher  with  a  fixed  money  rent  of  land- 
holdings,  instead  of  personal  service.  The  government  was  as  yel  in  no 
coudilion  to  proceed  to  forcible  measures  ;  and,  consequently,  charters  to 
the  above  were  hastily  drawn  out  and  delivered,  and  this  body  of  rioters 
was  thus  sent  |)eaceably  away. 

Hut  ilic  danger  was  as  yet  only  partially  past.  A  larger  body  of  the 
rebels,  headed  by  Wat  Tyler  and  other  leading  insurrectionists,  had  in  the 
meHUlimc  broken  into  the  Tower  and  put.  to  death  Simon  Sudbury,  chan- 
cellor anil  archbishop  of  Canterbury,  and  Sir  Itobert  Hales  the  treasurer, 
with  some  other  persons  of  High  rank,  though  of  less  note  ;  and  were  pas- 
sing through  Sinithfield  just  as  the  king  ami  his  attendants  entered  that 
place.  The  king  wi'li  a  spirit  and  temper  far  beyond  his  years,  for  be  was 
now  only  sixteen.  ■  "^r"i'  into  conference  with  Wat  Tyler,  who  had  pre- 
vionsly  lift  his  1..;  'i  .  .  \  orderto  rush  on  at  a  given  signal,  murder  the 
whole  of  the  royal  •      and  make  the  young  moitarcli  their  prisoner. 

FInslied  with  his  I  >i  hitherto  unchecked  triumph,  Wat  Tyler  made 

such  menacing  gestures  as  he  spoke  to  the  king,  that  Williatn  Walsworth, 
tlie  then  mayor  of  Loudon,  was  so  provoked  out  of  all  sense  of  the  daM;ior, 
that  lie  struck  the  ruffian  to  the  ground,  and  he  was  speedily  dispatched. 
A  fierce  yt  II  from  the  rebels  prodaiinwl  their  rage  at  the  loss  of  their 
leader;  but  bofero  tin  luld  rush  upon  the  royal  party,  young  Richard 
rode  steadily  tip  to  II  .,  and  in  that  calm  lone  of  high  conlidence  and 
coinaiand  which  has  so  great  an  influence  over  even  the  most  violent  men, 
exclaimed,  "  My  good  people !  What  moans  this  disorder  ?  Are  ye  angry 
ihai  ye  have  lost  your  leader  1  1  am  your  king!  follow  me  !  I  myself  will 
be  my  people's  leader!"  Without  giving  them  time  to  recover  from  the 
surpriic  his  coolness  and  the  majesty  of  bis  air  and  appearanc(;  had  eausod 
lliciii,  the  king  led  the  way  into  the  neiglibourii.g  fields,  where  he  was 
ionied  by  an  armed  force  under  Sir  Rolierl  Knolles.  (Cautioning  Sir  Rob- 
ert and  Ins  other  friends  to  allow  nothing  short  of  the  most  vital  necessity 
lourgeilii'iii  into  violence,  the  king  after  a  short  conference,  dismissed 
this  bind  as  peaceably  and  as  well  satisfi((d  as  he  had  the  former  one  at 
Mile  Fiiid,  and  t)y  means  of  giving  them  similar  charters. 

While  liie  king  had  thus  skilfully  been  leinporising,  th"  nobility  and  gen- 
try ill  all  parts  of  the  country  li;id  been  actively  asMcmbling  and  arming 
Iheir  reiainers  ;  in  a  few  days  Richard  was  able  to  lake  the  field  at  the  head 
of  40,0110  men  ;  the  rioters  dared  no  longer  to  appear  openly  and  in  force; 
iml  tlip  iliiriers,  whiidi,  reasonable  as  iliey  now  seem,  were  not  merely 
unlit  for  the  state  of  the  country  at  tint  time,  but  actually  impriiciicable 
of  exi'i'iilidii,  were  formally  revoked,  not  only  upon  that  ground,  but  also 
Mliaviiii;  been  extorted  while  the  king  was  under  eoiistraint  of  men  who 
bail  b.iinlcd  logeiher  to  miinler  all  the  higher  ranks  and  bring  about  a  gaii- 
Suinary  and  sweeping  revolution.  It  is  scarcely  possible  to  iiingiite  •< 
siivcreiun  so  youni>  giving  more  clear  proof  of  conrage  ill.  I  ability  t''  i 
Rii'liard  ilid  oil  this  sad  oecasioii;  but  his  later  years  by  no  incHiis  fulfillc 
llie  brijilil  promise  thus  given  by  hi<i  boyhood. 

*.  n.  i:t->.V — Scarcely  was  peace  restored  after  this  alarming  revolt, 
when  till'  aliunde  of  the  Scots  n  iidered  it  absoliilidy  necessary  to  clias- 
tiM'  and  check  them.  Accordingly  tlie  king  with  a  mimerons  army  en- 
l«ri'd  Siotliiid  by  llerwick.  Hut  the  Scots,  who  bad  a  strong  auxiliary 
boily  (if  Kreiirh  cavalry,  had  already  secured  all  their  moveable  property 
ID  the  niouiitaniif,  mid,  luuviiig  their  huuies  to  be  burned,  they  unierud 


»^\ 


I 


I  .1. 


I'li 


J  THE  TRKASUHY  OF  HISTORY. 

Enjrland,  dispersed  lliemselves  in  large  marauding  parlies  throughout  Cum 
bcriaiid,  VVL'sliiiorelaiid,  and  Laiicasliirc.  and  returned  laden  with  booty 
without  having  met  with  any  show  of  resistanee. 

The  Knglisli  army  under  Ilieliard  had  in  the  meantime  marched  unop- 
posed to  Kdinburgh,  burning  all  the  towns  and  villages  on  tiieir  way- 
Perth,  Dundee,  and  a  vast  number  of  other  phu-es  in  the  l.owlanils,  were 
treated  in  the  same  manner.  But  when  news  readied  the  army  of  the 
successful  inroad  cf  .lie  Scots  upon  the  northern  counties  of  lOniflani],  the 
true  nature  of  Richard,  his  frivolity,  and  his  detcrnnned  preference  c( 
pleasure  to  action,  only  lor  clearly  appeared  ;  for  he  positively  refused  'o 
make  any  attemiit  at  cuttiiig  off  the  retreat  of  the  spoil-laden  enemy,  ami 
immednitely  led  his  army  home. 

A.  D.  1386. — The  French  had  aided  the  Scots  chiefly,  if  not  solely,  wiih 
a  view  to  annoy  the  English;  and  Flanders  being  now  at  peace  with 
France,  a  large  fleet  and  army  assembled  in  the  Flemish  ])ort  <if  iSiuys  fui 
the  invasion  of  Ei. gland.  The  fleet  actually  sailed,  but  was  scarcely  out 
of  port  when  it  encounttu'cd  a  terrible  storm,  which  dispersed  it  and  de- 
stroyed many  of  the  largest  shi|)s.  The  lOnglish  men-of-war  attacked  aii'' 
took  the  remainder,  and  thus,  for  the  present  at  least,  this  new  dangerwa& 
averted. 

Uul  thonglithis  expedition  had  completely  failed,  it  turned  the  attention 
of  the  nati(Mi,  as  well  as  the  king  and  council,  towards  those  circiniisum- 
ces  which  made  it  ordy  too  certain  that  a  similar  attempt  would  be  aiaile 
at  no  great  distance  of  time.  Tin;  disturbances  which  had  so  recently 
agitated  England  from  one  end  to  the  other  could  not  fail  to  act  as  an  in- 
vitalion  to  foreign  enemies  ;  and,  to  mak(!  the  matter  still  worse,  the  hcsl 
of  th(!  English  soldiery,  to  a  very  great  number,  were  at  this  time  in  Spain, 
8upp(irting  tin;  duke  of  LancMster  in  the  claim  he  had  long  laid  to  the 
crown  of  Castde.  Perhaps  the  alarm  which  called  attention  to  tlii;se  eii' 
cumslaiH'es  mainly  served  to  avert  the  danger;  at  all  events,  it  speedily 
ajijicared  that  the  [)iace  of  England  was  in  greater  danger  from  English 
men  than  from  foreigners. 

We  have  already  had  occasion,  vmder  the  reign  of  Edward  I!.,  t )  poiiii 
out  the  piopensiiy  of  weak-minded  prnii'i  *  to  the  adoption  of  favoiinti's, 
to  whose  inicrrsts  they  delight  in  sucriticing  all  other  (jonsiderations,  iii. 
eluding  their  own  dignity  and  ev(Mi  their  own  personal  safely.  Rleliiird 
wiui  had  shown  so  much  frivolity  in  'lis  Scotch  expedition,  now  ff^ve  a 
new  proof  of  iiis  weakness  of  mind  by  adopting  a  successor  to  liie  Spen- 
Hcrs  and  the  (lavestons  of  an  earlier  day. 

Robert  de  Vere,  earl  of  Oxford,  of  noble  birth,  agreeahh;  manners,  iiiid 
ffreat  accoinplislinn'iiis,  but  extremely  dissoliiti!  and  no  less  vain  and  am 
bilious,  ma(l(!  his  eomp.niy  so  agre(;ab!e  to  Richard,  that  tin  yoiiiii;  nniii- 
arch  seeiiK'd  scarcely  able  to  exist  but  m  his  presence.  In  proof  of  his 
attachment  to  him,  the  king  made  him  inar(|uis  of  Dnidiii — tli.'  title  bi'iiig 
then  (h'st  used  in  England — created  him  by  patent  vice-king  of  Irilaiui  f'l 
life,  and  evinced  Ins  preference  for  him  by  various  other  marks  of  roya! 
favour. 

As  is  uniformly  the  case  with  nuch  favouritism,  tlio  favourite's  riipacily 
and  insolence  kept  ''ull  pice  with  the  king's  fully  ;  tlu^  mai'(|iiis  of  I)ii!>hN 
becanii!  the  virtual  king;  all  favours  were  obtainable  ihrouu'li  his  iiileic^l 
justice  Itself  searc(dy  obtaiiiahli'  without  it  ;  and  the  man|iiis  and  lii!.:;il 
ellites  became  ai  once  the  plague  and  the  <leleslali(m  of  the  whole  iiobilily, 
but  inon'  esjii'cially  of  the  king's  uncles,  \iho  saw  tin!  iiilluiiiic  whicli 
they  oiiglit  to  have  nossesst  d,  and  much  that  ought  to  iiavc  been  rcfiisrJ 
even  to  them,  transterrcd  to  a  man  of  eomparailvc  obscuiity.  TIm'  nun- 
isters,  Ihongli  they,  it  is  ijiiite  clear,  could  have  little  power  to  currt'ci 
their  master's  peculiar  folly,  sliareil  tlie  sovereign's  disgrace,  and  tli' 
who.c  kingdom  soon  rang  with  coinphiints  and  tiireatenings, 


THK  TllEAaUHY  OH   HISTORY. 


331 


lout  Cum 
iili  booty 

lied  unop- 
.liuir  way. 
iiiiils,  were 
luiy  of  ihe 
nirlaiiii,  llie 
il'ereiice  ol 
I  refused".) 
jiieiny,  ami 

solely,  will) 
peaee  wilh 
of  Sluys  foi 
iC-.ireely  out 
d  it  and  de- 
itl;iekedai\'' 
;  danger  wai 

the  allcntiou 
■  eireuiiislaH- 
luld  be  maile 
i  81)  recently 
I  act  as  an  in- 
(irsc,  llie  best 
time  in  Spain, 
nir  laid  to  the 
n  to  these  eir 
Its,  it  speedilj 
from  Knglisli 

rdll.,  »-'Pf'"" 
1  of  favonrilcs, 
iiderations,  iU' 
ciy.  RiebarJ. 
11,  now  ijave  a 
or  10  the  Spell- 

manners,  anil 
ss  vain  and  am 
li(  yonng  "!<•"■ 
11  nroof  of  hi: 
lUi,'  title  bi'ins 
,r  „f  IrclaiuK'i 
niarlib  of  royi 

ourite's  rapafi')' 


;\r(|ins 


of  Diilil 


„1,  liis  niteu'-l 

iii>  and  111"  •* 
.  whole  iiobiWV' 

intluwK''  wliic.i 

ivc  liei'ii  "■'"*'''' 

irity.     "H"'  """; 
Mivv.T  toeorrici 

i.irra.r,  and  Hi' 


The  first  rush  oftheloiig-brevviiig  tempust  showed  itself  in  a  ficroo  attack 
upon  Michael  de  la  Pole,  earl  of  Siiflbik,  the  chancellor.  Tlioiigh  he  was 
originally  only  the  son  of  a  merdiant,  he  had  won  a  high  and  well-deserved 
celebrity  by  his  valour  and  conduct  during  the  wars  of  the  late  king,  and 
had  since  shown  very  splendid  civil  ability.  Ho  was  supposed  to  be  the 
chief  confidential  friend  of  the  king  and  of  De  Vere,  who  was  now,  from 
the  inarquisate  of  Dublin  raised  to  the  dukedom  of  Irela'id  ;  and  Ihe  duke 
of  Gloucester  consequently  singled  him  out  for  persecution,  (iloucester, 
wlio  was  both  able  and  ambitious,  had  secured  a  most  potent  sway  over 
both  tlie  lords  and  commons,  and  he  now  induced  the  latter  to  impeach  the 
earl  of  SufTolk  before  the  former;  a  power  and  mode  of  proceeding  which 
the  commons  had  possessed  themselves  of  towards  the  close  of  the  reign 
ofl'Mward  III. 

The  impeachment  of  the  most  eminent  of  his  ministers  naturally  alarmed 
the  king  for  himself  and  his  favourite;  and  he  retired  to  the  royal  palace 
at  Ellliam,  to  be  out  of  immediate  danger,  and  to  deliberate  upon  his  future 
course.  Rightly  judging  that  while  the  king  was  thus  comparatively 
rcitiiiveJ  from  da.iger  and  annoyance  they  would  have  liule  chance  of 
bringing  him  to  compliance  wilh  their  wishes,  the  parliament  sent  to  in- 
funn  hiin  that  unless  he  immediately  returned  they  would  dissolve  with- 
oiil  miking  an  attempt  at  preparation  for  the  French  invasion  with  which 
the  nation  was  at  thai  time  threatened.  And  lest  this  threat  should  fail 
to lonipel  the  king  to  compliance,  they  called  for  the  production  of  the 
parliamentary  record  of  the  depoiiition  of  Kdwaid  II.  This  hint  was  too 
inielligible  to  be  disregarded,  and  the  king  at  once  consented  to  return,  on 
llie  soli!  cimdition  that,  beyond  the  impeaclimnnt  already  coinnienced 
against  the  earl  of  SufTolk,  no  attack  shoui  I  lie  made  upon  his  ministers; 
astipulation  which,  most  jirobably,  he  chiefly  made  with  a  view  to  the 
sifety  of  the  duke  of  Ireland. 

The  charges  against  .Suffolk  were  directed  almost  .wholly  against  his 
pecuniary  transact  ions,  llf  was  accused,  for  instance,  of  having  ex- 
chimjjcd  a  perpetual  annuity,  which  he  had  fairly  inherited,  for  lands  of  equal 
value,  with  llii!  king;  of  having  purchased  a  forfeited  crown  annuity  ol 
lil'iy  pounds  and  induced  tin;  king  to  recognise  it  as  being  valid ;  uu>l  ol 
having  olitaini'd  a  grant  of  500/.  per  annum  lo  support  his  dignity  on  his 
bciiijfer<'ati'(i  c.irl  of  Suffolk.  The  first  of  thiise  charges,  it  is  clear,  could 
only  hive  been  made  by  men  who  were  sadly  at  a  loss  for  some  weapon 
wlili  wliu'h  to  assail  iheir  enemy;  the  second  was  ill-supported  ;  and  the 
thiril  iiroceciled  wilh  a  very  ill-grace  from  Gloucester,  who,  though  a-i 
wcillliy  as  Suffolk  was  poor,  was  himself  in  re(;eipt  of  just  double  the 
amount  by  way  of  pension !  When  to  this  we  add  that,  as  to  ihi;  first 
cliarjre,  it  was  positively  pmvcd  that  Suffolk  had  made  no  sort  of  pnndiase, 
honest  or  (lisnoncsl,  Iroin  thi;  crown  during  his  enjuymciit  of  onice,  the 
reader  would  be  greatly  surjirised  at  learning  that  he  was  convicted  and 
seiiieiK'cd  lo  lose  his  ofllcc — if  it  were  possible  for  tint  reader  to  have  no- 
liccil  till'  events  of  history  even  thus  far  wilhout  liNirniiig  that  when  pow- 
erful men  hate  deeply,  tlicy  do  not  require  cither  very  important  charges 
or  very  clear  evidence  loimluce  ihcni  to  (^onviiil  the  parly  hated. 

This  triumph  of  tl;e  aiilifavourile  party  cinholdencd  lliein  to  fly  at  a 
higher  (inarry.  They  kept  the  letlcrofttieir  agrcetiient  with  the  king,  and 
inaile  mi  further  attack  n|)on  his  ministers ;  but  at  once  proceeded  to  .iirike 
alius  own  authority  by  appoiiuinjr  a  conMi'il  of  fourleiii,  to  which  the 
wienign  autluM-ity  was  in  be  translVrrcid  for  a  year,  the  council  in  ques- 
lioiiiiiiiHisting,  wiili  tlu!  .single  exception  of  the  airhliishoit  of  York,  of  the 
personal  friends  and  |iarlizaiis  of  the  duke  of  (iloiicesli'r ;  and  thus  Rich- 
aid  II.,  whose  boyliodd  had  promised  .•io  vignroiis  and  sjilciidid  a  reign, 
WIS  at  llie  early  age  (if  twenty-live  vniually  deposed,  and  a  mere  puppet 
«iid  p'liunur  in  the  liandu  of  his  uuumius.     No  cliunce  of  present  resist* 


';.!:;  k.*i' 


l^Hflfi 


.Wi> 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


!i 


^il 


»•  off  ed  itself,  and  the  unfortunate  and  weak  king  signed  the  corDtnii. 
'  ...■•h  in  rcjility  uncrowned  him,  increasing  raiiier  than  diminishing 
iiie  _,.c)a:iure  and  triumph  of  his  enemies  by  an  impo'cnt  protest  whicli  he 
made  at  the  end  of  the  session  of  parliament,  to  the  effect  that  nothing  in 
the  commission  he  had  signed  was  to  be  iield  to  impair  the  prerogHtives 
of  the  crown. 

K.  D.  1387. — The  pampered  favourite  and  his  supporters,  as  thoy  Imdso 
greatly  profited  by  the  king's  weak  misuse  of  hi*  power,  did  nut  fail  to  do 
their  utmnst  to  stimulate  his  anger  and  to  induce  him  to  make  some  effort 
to  recover  his  lost  authority,  in  which,  in  troth,  they  were  far  more  inier- 
ested  than  he  was. 

Estranged  as  the  lords  seemed,  he  resolved  to  endeavour  to  mflu. 
ence  the  shiTilfs  to  return  a  commons'  house  calculated  for  his  purpose; 
but  here  he  found  himself  completely  anticipated  by  the  fact  that  most  of 
the  sheriffs  and  magistrates  were  the  partizans  of  Gloucester,  and  actually 
owed  their  appointments  to  his  favour. 

Baffled  in  this  quarter,  he  now  tried  what  use  he  could  make  of  theau. 
thority  of  the  Judges.  Having  met.  at  Nottingham,  Tresilian,  chief  justice 
of  the  King's  Bench,  and  several  of  the  other  most  eminent  judges,  he  pro. 
posed  to  I  hem  certain  queries,  to  which,  in  substance,  they  replied,  "ihM 
the  commission  was  derogatory  to  the  prerogative  and  royalty  of  the  king, 
and  that  those  who  urged  it  or  advised  the  royal  compliance  with  it  were 
punishable  with  death;  that  tliose  whi>  compelled  'iimwere  guilty  of  irea- 
8011 ;  that  all  \#ho  persevered  in  maititaining  it  were  no  less  guilty;  that 
the  king  had  the  right  to  dissolve  the  parliament  at  his  pleasure;  that  the 
parliament  while  sitting  must  give  its  first  attention  to  the  business  of  ihe 
king;  and  that  without  the  king's  consent  the  parliament  had  no  right  to 
impeach  his  niinislers  or  judges." 

Hicliard  did  not  consider  when  he  took  this  step  that  even  the  fa- 
vourable opinions  of  judges,  are  only  opinions,  and  of  little  weiulit  when 
opposed  to  usurped  power,  iirmed  force,  and  an  iron  energy.  Moreover, 
he  could  sc;ir(;ely  hope  lo  keep  his  conference  and  the  opinions  of  the 
judges  a  sccrta;  ;ind  if  he  conld  do  so  of  what  avtiil  could  be  the  liller! 
And  would  not  this  step  sharpen  the  activity  of  his  enemies  by  le;i(liiig 
them  to  fear  that  it  was  but  the  prelude  and  foundation  of  a  far  iiinre  deci- 
ded step  ?  It  actually  had  that  efTect ;  for  as  soon  as  the  king  re  turned  to 
London,  (ilnucesttr's  parly  appeared  with  an  overwhelniing  force  at  High- 
gate,  whence  ihey  sent  a  litpnlalion  to  demand  that  those  who  had  given 
him  fala(!  and  perilous  counsel  shunhl  be  delivered  up  to  them  as  traitors 
alike  lo  the  king  and  kinir<lom  ;  and  they  speedily  followed  up  this  message 
by  appearing  armed  and  ii tended  in  his  presence,  and  accusing  of  having 
given  such  counsel  tlie  archbishop  of  York,  the  duke  of  Iiel.Mid,  Iheearl 
of  Suffolk,  .Sir  Robert  'I'rcsilian,  and  Sir  Nich(das  Urembre,  as  piililie  ene- 
mies. Tills  accusation  the  lords  offered  to  maintain  by  duel,  and  in  token 
of  their  willingness  to  do  so  they  actually  threw  down  their  guuiitleis, 

The  (hike  of  Ireland,  ;it  the  first  appearance  of  this  new  and  iirgciildan- 
^er,  ri'tired  into  Cheshiri!  to  levy  troops  to  aid  the  king;  but  lie  wa?  met 
by  (Jloucesler,  as  he  hastened  to  join  Uichard.  and  totally  dcfealed.  This 
defeat  deprived  him  of  all  chance  of  being  of  use  to  his  friend  and  master, 
and  he  escaped  to  the  Low  Countries,  where  be  remained  in  exile  and 
comparative  obscurity  until  his  death,  which  occurred  not  many  years 
afterwards. 

A.  D.  1388. — Ilendered  bolder  and  more  eager  than  ever  by  this  defeat 
of  the  dnke  of  Ireland,  the  lords  now  entered  liondon  at  the  head  of  an 
army  of  10,000  men ;  and  the  king  being  entir'-ly  in  their  power,  was 
obliged  to  summon  a  parliament  which  he  well  knew  would  hi>  a  mere 
pa^8ive  instrument  in  the  h.iiids  of  his  rebellious  lords.  Hefore  tins  pirkcJ 
ind  slavish  parliament  an  accusation  was  now  made  against  tlie  five  per- 


(onages  who  had  : 
ported  by  five  of  t| 
tester,  uncle  to  thi 
Derby,  sun  of  thee 
tvick,  and  the  earl  i 
^»  if  the  conibi 
been  insufficient  to 
es  in  lliL-  case,  actn 

ii)gs"tohveaiiddi 

all  opposition  with 

i!ie  only  one  of  the 

thirly-iiine  charges 

He  had  tlie  niocker 

absent  were  not  evei 

vent  them  from  bei 

also  Sir  Hobert  Tre 

ecuied ;  and  here  it 

lords  and  their  pari 

cliican,.  and  violence 

oilier  judges  who  ha 

ciMideiniied  to  death 

HwmpofHolt,  Sir / 

burv  were  condemned 

1  he  execution,  ort( 

made  a  very  great  an 

king;  for  he  was  higl 

onus  personal  charac 

lie  lamented  niack  Pi 

•««'«llas  Kdward  JII 

Preseni  king  during  his 

"lelioiiour  of  the  Bad 

lion  /n  the  glowing  pH 

against  liiin  and  the  vj 

gw  Here  supported,  ai] 
»5'ch  would  have  evcj 
f  «"cy  he  had  walcliJ 
'■•■rmiiiationofhis.ul 
'"■'*i»ir»  wife,  whose f 
^""■'If  title  of  the  Go,l 
•^'"'■cesicr,  and  i,,  thatf 
'""ffl'l.  Ilie  lif,..  of  ,1,1 

*l''r  liad  doon.ed   tl| 
wrdiiiffly.  ■ 

'*s  I/'  conscious  of 
fead  reiribuiion,  the 

"  ly  his  novcr  recovM-l 
;  .  "  heihcr  from  .he  [ 
""""g  Iheinselves  or 
r..f '";  '--ming  „l 
tli"/^"'-  llic-  nValcl 

'thenceforth  ho  wot] 


THE  TKKASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


333 


jonages  w)io  had  already  been  denounced  ;  and  this  accusation  was  sup- 
ported by  five  of  the  most  [jowerful  men  in  Kiigiand,  viz  ,  the  duke  of  Olou- 
cester,  uncle  to  the  king  whom  he  was  endeiivouiing  to  ruin,  the  earl  of 
Derby,  sun  of  the  duke  of  Lancaster,  the  earl  of  Arundel,  the  carl  of  War- 
»ici(,  and  the  earl  of  Nottinyrham,  marshal  of  England. 

As  if  the  combined  and  formidable  power  of  these  great  nobles  had 
been  iiisiiiricient  to  crush  the  accused,  the  servile  parliament,  though  judg- 
es ill  llie  case,  actually  pledged  themselves  at  the  outset  of  the  pioceed- 
iiigs  "10  live  and  die  with  the  lords  appellant,  and  to  defend  tiiem  against 
all  opposition  with  their  lives  and  fortunes!"  Sir  Nicholas  Brembre  was 
the  only  one  of  the  five  accused  persons  who  was  present  to  hear  the 
thirly-iiiiie  charges  made  against  him  and  the  other  four  persons  accused. 
He  had  the  mockery,  and  but  the  mockery,  of  a  trial;  the  others  beinj 
absent  were  not  even  noticed  in  the  way  of  evidence;  but  that  did  not  pre- 
vent lliein  from  being  found  guilty  of  high  treason.  Sir  Nicholas  and 
also  Sir  Robert  Tresilian,  who  was  apprehended  after  tlie  trial,  were  ex- 
ecuted; and  here  it  might  have  been  supposed  that  even  these  rancorous 
lords  and  their  parliamentary  tools  would  have  halted  in  their  career  of 
chicani'  and  violence  ;  but  far  other  was  their  actual  conduct.  All  the 
oihir  judges  who  had  agreed  to  the  opinions  given  at  Nottingham  were 
ciinilcmned  to  death,  but  afterwards  banished  to  Ireland;  a*id  Lord  Beau- 
chainpof  Holt,  Sir  James  Berners,  Sir  Simon  Bu.iey.  and  Sir  .lolin  Salis- 
bury were  condemned,  and,  with  the  exception  of  the  last-n.mied,  executed. 

The  execution,  or  to  speak  more  truly,  the  irdcr  of  S  ir  Simon  Biirley, 
made  a  very  great  and  painful  sensation  ev  imong  the  enemies  of  the 
king;  for  lie  was  highly  and  almost  univeiojily  popular,  both  on  account 
of  his  personal  charairler  and  from  his  having  from  the  earliest  infancy  of 
the  lamented  Black  Prince  been  the  constant  attendant  of  that  hero,  who, 
as  well  as  Kdvvard  IIL,  had  coi.currcd  in  appointing  him  governor  of  the 
preseii!  king  during  his  youth.  But  the  gallantry  which  had  procured  him 
iheluMioiir  of  the  garter,  and  the  imperishable  fame  of  a  laudatory  men- 
tion In  till!  glowing  pages  of  Froissart,  the  beygarly  nature  of  the  charges 
against  liiin  and  the  very  insufficient  evidence  by  which  even  those  char- 
ges were  supported,  and'lhe  singularity  of  his  case  from  the  cir(;nmstances 
which  would  have  excused  a  far  nu)re  implicit  devotion  to  the  kini;  whose 
infancy  he  had  watched,  were  all  as  udihing  when  opposed  to  thi;  fierce 
dilerniiiiation  of  his  and  his  sovereign's  implacable  enemies.  Nay  more, 
the  killer's  wife,  whose  virtue:,  had  obtained  her  from  the  people  t!ie  atToc- 
lionitf  title  of  the  Good  (lueen  Anne,  actually  fell  upon  lier  knees  before 
(iloMcestir,  and  in  that  posture  for  three  hours  besouglit,  and  vainly  be- 
sought, the  lift;  of  the  tniforiunate  Hurley.  The  siern  enemies  of  his 
niHslcr  luid  doonied  the  faithful  knight  to  die,  and  he  was  executed  ac- 
cordingly. 

As  if  conscious  of  their  enormous  villany,  atid  already  beginning  to 
iiCMl  rciribuiion,  the  parliament  (•(ut  duded  this  memoralily  evil  session 
by  an  act,  providing  for  a  general  oath  to  npliold  and  maintain  all  the  nets 
of  forfeiture  and  attainder  which  had  previously  been  passed  during  the 
iessi(Mi. 

A.  D.  I.IPD. — The  violence  with  which  the  king  had  been  treated,  and 
the  (leoriidation  to  which  he  had  been  reduced,  seemed  to  thrcnten  not 
uiily  his  ri(!ver  recovuiiig  his  authority,  hut  even  his  actual  dcsiruction. 
Bui.  whether  from  slieir  weariness  of  their  struggle,  from  disa;;reement8 
•uioiig  ilii'insclves.or  from  sonu;  fear  of  the  interference  of  the  commons, 
Mwdiiily  heconiing  more  powerful  and  more  ready  to  use  their  power, 
llie  chiefs  of  the  nnilcontents  were  so  little  able  or  inclined  to  opjiose 
"irliani,  that  he,  beinu  now  in  his  twenty-third  year,  venlu'cd  to  say  in 
open  eoiiiieil  that  he  Imd  fidly  arrived  at  an  age  to  govern  for  himself,  and 
that  henceforth  he  would  govern  both  the  kingdom  and  his  own  house 


ft", 
.*-| 


liilH! 


i<H0' 


J34 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


hold;  and  no  one  of  all  his  lately  fierce  and  overbearing  opponents  ven- 
tured to  jjainsay  him.  The  ease  wilii  which  the  king  regained  his  au. 
thority  e:in  only  be  aeconnted  for,  as  it  seems  to  us,  by  supposing  thai 
circumstances,  no  account  of  which  has  come  down  to  as,  rendeied  tiie 
king's  enemies  afraid  of  opposing  him. 

From  whatever  cause,  however,  it  is  certain  that  the  king  suddenly  re. 
gained  his  lost  power.  His  first  act  was  to  remove  Fitzalhin,  arclibishop 
of  Canterbury,  from  the  office  of  chancellor,  and  to  replace  him  by  the 
celebrated  William  of  Wykehaui,  bishop  of  Winchester.  Procccdinir  jn 
the  obviously  wise  policy  of  substituting  friends  for  foes  in  the  hiirirof- 
fices  of  slate,  the  king  dismissed  die  bishop  of  Hereford  from  beinu 
treasurer,  and  the  earl  of  Arundel  from  being  admiral.  The  earl  of  Wiir"- 
wick  and  the  duke  of  Gloucester  were  removed  from  the  council;  and 
even  this  evident  sign  of  the  king's  determination  to  deprive  his  enemies 
of  the  power  to  injure  him  called  forth  little  complaint  and  no  opposiiion. 

To  tiie  policy  of  what  he  did,  the  king  in  what  he  left  undone  added  a 
still  higher  wisdom,  which  his  former  infatuation  gave  but  little  promise 
of.  He  did  not  show  the  slifflitest  desire  to  recall  the  duke  of  Ireland; 
and  while  he  took  care  to  purge  the  high  ofRces  of  state,  he  did  not  by 
any  part  of  his  demeanour  leave  any  room  to  doubt  that  he  was  heartily 
and  completely  reconciled  to  the  still  powerful  uncles  wiio  had  caused 
him  so  much  misery.  Nay,  more,  as  if  determined  to  remove  all  daiiiiei 
of  the  revival  of  past  animosities,  he  of  his  own  motion  issued  a  prociii- 
mation  confiriiiing  the  parliamentary  p;irdon  of  all  oft'ences,  and,  still  more 
completely  to  ingratiate  himself  with  the  lax-burdencd  people,  Ik;  volun- 
tarily declined  levying  some  subsidies  which  had  been  granted  to  him  by 
the  parliament. 

Partly  as  a  consequence  of  these  really  wise  and  humane  measures 
and  pavily,  perhaps,  owing  to  the  return  from  Spain  of  the  duke  of  Lan- 
caster, Uicliird's  ifovernment  for  the  ncxteight  years  went  on  sosinoollily 
and  so  prosperously,  that  not  a  siiigh-  dispute  occurred  of  coiiscquci  ce 
enoiijjh  to  be  related.  Lancaster,  between  whom  and  Richard  tlHiviiiid 
nev'  iicen  any  quarrel — uidess  we  may  interpret  the  p.ist  coiuluct  of  ihe 
dukci's  son  as  the  indicatioii  of  one — was  (xiwerful  enough  to  i-.ucpliis 
Brothers  in  check,  .lud  was  at  Ihe  same  lime  of  a  more  mild  and  peace- 
loving  temper.  And,  accordingly,  the  duke  was  extremely  useful  to 
Richard,  who  in  turii  took  every  opportunity  of  favouring  and  gratifying 
nis  uncle,  to  whom  at  one  time  he  even  ccdiil  (JiiieiiiK',  tiioiigh.  I'rmn  llie 
discontent  and  annoyance  express(>(l  by  the  (Jascons,  Iticharil  was  shintly 
aflerwiirds  obliged  to  revokt?  his  grant.  Tiie  king  still  mure  strongly 
testified  his  preference  of  Lancaster  on  occasion  of  a  (lifl'erciicc  wliicii 
sprang  ii|)  i)ctw('en  the  duke  and  his  two  brothers.  On  the  diMtli  of  tiie 
Spanish  princess,  on  ;i(!ooniit  of  whom  Lancaster  had  enterliiincd  such 
high  but  vain  hopes,  and  expended  so  much  time  and  inoiiey,  tlicilnke 
married  Catharine  .Swainforrl,  by  whom  he  had  previously  had  children, 
and  who  was  the  daughter  of  a  [irivate  Hainaull  knight  (d"uo  great  wcihli. 
Lancaster's  two  lirotliers  loudly  exclaimed  iigainst  this  malili,  whu'h 
they,  not  wholly  without  reason,  declareil  to  be  derogatory  to  the  hminiir 
of  the  royal  family.  Hut  Uiidiard  stepped  in  to  the  supiioitof  his  iiiiclc, 
and  ciinsed  the  parliament  to  pass  ;in  act  legiliinaiizing  the  lady's  idiildn'n 
born  heforr  marriage,  and  he  at  the  same  time  created  the;  ehlest  of  iliein 
earl  of  Somerset. 

\VI.  le  ihese  domestic  events  were  passing,  occasional  war  li.iil  siill 
been  going  on  both  with  F''rance  atid  Scotland;  hut  in  each  iiisiaine  ilif 
actual  (iglitinir  was  both  feeble  and  uufre(|ucnt.  This  was  especially  lli( 
rase  tis  to  l-'ranee  ;  wliile  the  most  ini|i'>rtant  baMie  on  liie  Srniiish  «M' 
was  tliat  of  Olterbourne,  in  which  the  young  I'ien-y,  snriiaiin'd  II  irry 
Hotspur,  from  his  impetuous  temper,  was  taken  prisoner,  and  I)iii)i!lti 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


335 


Killed;  but  fliis  really  was  less  a  national  battle  than  a  comba    arising 
out  of  a  private  quarrcl  and  individual  animosity. 

A.  D.  1390.— The  insurrections  of  the  Irish  having  become  so  frequent 
us  to  excite  some  fear  for  the  safety  of  that  conquest,  the  king  went 
ihither  in  person;  and  the  courage  and  coniluet  he  displayed  in  reducing 
the  rebels  to  obedience  did  much  towards  redeeming  his  character  in  the 
liidgmeiit  of  his  people.  A  still  farther  hope  was  raised  of  the  tranquillity 
:iiid  respectability  of  the  remainder  of  this  reign  by  a  truce  of  twenty- 
live  yenrs  which  was  now  made  between  France  and  Euglaiid.  To  ren- 
,lcrtliis  truce  the  more  solid,  Richard,  who  ere  this  had  buried  the  "Good 
Queen  Anne,"  was  affianced  to  Isabella,  the  dautthter  of  the  king  of 
France,  llien  only  seven  years  old.  It  seems  probable  that  Richard,  still 
feeling  insecure  in  the  peaccfuhiess  of  his  uncles  and  the  barons  gen- 
erally, sought  by  this  alliance  not  only  to  strengthen  the  truce  between 
Ihe  two  nations,  but  also  to  obtain  from  it  additional  security  against  any 
domesiic  attacks  upon  his  authority. 

But  tlioniih  he  thus  far  gave  proofs  of  judgment,  there  were  other  parts 
of  his  conduct  which  were  altogether  as  impolitic  and  degrading.  Unsta- 
ble, inconsistent,  wildly  extravagant,  and  openly  dissolute,  the  king  effec- 
tually prevented  his  popularity  frojn  becoming  confirmed.  Having  shown 
so  mueli  wisdom  in  refraining  from  recalling  the  duke  of  Ireland — and 
pcrliaps  even  that  arose  loss  from  wisdom  than  from  satiety  of  his  former 
miuion— lie  now  selected  as  his  favourites,  to  almost  an  equally  offensive 
exient,  his  half  brothers  Ihe  earls  of  Kent  and  Huntingdon,  to  whom  he 
iooonipli'tcly  committed  the  patronage  of  the  kingdom  as  to  render  hiin- 
sflf,  in  that  respect  at  least,  little  more  than  their  mere  tool.  This,  with 
his  indolence,  ex(!essive  extravagance,  indulgence  at  the  tiible,  and  othei 
dissolule  pleasures,  not  only  prevented  his  growing  popularity  from  evei 
oeiug  confirmed,  but  even  caused  a  revival  of  the  former  complaints  and 
aiiiraosiiies. 

A.  !)•  131)7.— What  rendered  this  impolitic  conduct  the  more  surely  and 
entirely  destructive  to  Richard,  was  the  profoundly  artful  manner  in  which 
his  clncf  and  most  implacable  enemy,  the  duke  of  ( iloucester,  availed  him- 
self of  it,  Instead  of  endeavouring  to  vie  with  Richard's  favourites  and 
to  invite  a  share  of  his  ivirtialily,  the  duke  almost  retired  from  the  nourt ; 
appenring  there  cily  on  the  public  occasions  which  would  have  caused 
his  absence  to  have  been  ill  rcniaiked  on,  and  devoting  all  the  rest  of  his 
lime  to  cnltivtiting  the  popular  favour  by  every  art  of  which  he  was  mas- 
ter, When  obliged  to  offer  his  opinion  in  council,  he  took  ctiro  to  give 
the  most  powerful  reasons  he  could  cominaud  for  his  opposition  to  the 
iiie-.isnres  of  die  king.  As  the  truce  and  nUiaiice  which  Richard  had  con- 
cliuleil  uilli  France  were  almost  universally  unpopular,  Gloui.'cslcr,  to  all 
ir'irs  of  incn  who  had  approach  to  him,  affected  tlu!  nlinost  pers-onal  sor- 
row imd  patriotic!  indignation  that  Richard  had  so  completely  and  shanie- 
iiilly  (Icjjencrtitcd  from  the  liiijh  anti-fjallican  spirit  of  his  icnowiied  and 
"iirlike  1,'ranil father,  who  looked  upon  the  French  as  Ihe  natural  foes  of 
KiiL'land,  and  n|ion  l''raiiee  :is  the  treasnrehoiise  of  Knglaiid's  high-born 
iliUMlry  and  lusty  yeomen.  To  fall  in  with  the  interested  opinions  of 
iw II  IS  tiic  surest  possible  way  to  obtain  their  favour;  and  iIk^  more  un- 
popiiliir  liiidnird  liecame,  the  more  openly  and  earnestly  did  llie  people. 
Hill  mm-e  especially  the  military,  (leidan?  that  the  duki^  of  (tlouitester's 
piitrjdiisni  was  Ihe  real  cause  of  his  want  of  favour  at  court ;  and  that  his 
"isdnin  and  coiiiisid  alone  eotild  ever  restore  lh(>  honour  ami  prosperity 
'( ilie  iiutiiMi  whose  true  interests  h(!  so  well  understood  and  so  disinter' 
*Mly  advocated. 

Tlim  (iloiiccsicr  for  a  long  time  had  liarbonred  tlie  most  treasonable 
Ifsimis  agiinst   Richard  is  (iuil(!  certain  fnnn  even  his  own  confession 
'iiJ  Richard,  urijed  by  iIk-  advice  not  only  of  his  favourites,  but  also  bv 


nii 


li'f? 


\^ll 


f 

f'i 

i 

II 

336- 


THB  TIIEASUHY  Of  lllaTiiRY. 


f 


iiic  king  of  France,  suddenly  caused  Glouuusier  lo  be  arrested  and  con 
veyed  U»  Ciilais,  while  at  the  same  time  liis  friends  the  earls  of  Aruiidei 
imd  Warwick  weie  seized  and  thrown  into  prison.  As  botii  ilie  dukes  of 
Lancaster  and  York  and  tiieir  eldest  sons  approved  of  and  supported  the 
king's  s'iddeniy  adopted  course,  the  friends  of  the  imprisoned  nobles  saw 
that  resistance  would  only  serve  to  involve  themselves  in  ruin.  The 
king,  1(10,  by  influencing  the  sheriffs,  caused  a  parliament  lu  be  assem- 
bled, which  was  so  completely  suhservient  to  his  wishes,  thai  ii  not  only 
annulled  the  eoniniission  which  had  so  extensively  trenched  upon  the 
royal  authority,  and  declared  it  high  treason  to  attempt  the  renewal  of  a 
like  commission,  but  even  went  so  far  as  to  revoke  the  general  pardon 
that  Richard  had  voluntarily  confirmed  after  he  regained  his  authority, and 
to  revoke  it,  in  the  face  of  that  fact,  upon  the  ground  of  its  having  beei 
extorted  by  force  and  never  freely  ratified  by  the  king  ! 

The  duke  of  Gloucester,  the'earls  of  Arundel  and  Warwick,  and  the 
archbishop  of  Canterbury  were  now  impeached  by  the  commons.  Arun- 
del  was  executed,  Warwick  banished  for  life  lo  the  Isle  of  Man,  and  the 
archbishop  was  deprived  of  his  lemporalilies  and  banished  the  kingdom. 
That  they  all  really  were  cognizant  of  and  concerned  in  Gloucester's  mnri) 
recent  treasonable  projects  there  can  be  no  mural  doubt;  and  yet,  legally, 
these  men  were  all  unjustly  condemned,  for  they  were  condemned  not 
for  any  recent  treason,  but  for  that  old  rebellion  which  the  king  had  par 
doned  voluntarily  and  while  under  no  restraint.  The  chief  pariizHiis  of 
Gloucester  being  thus  disposed  of,  the  governer  of  Calais  was  ordered  lo 
bring  the  duke  himself  over  for  trial;  but  to  this  order  he  relumed  wnrd 
that  the  duke  had  suddenly  died  of  apoplexy.  When  it  is  considered  ihat 
this  sudden  death  of  the  duke  happened  so 'conveniently  for  releasing  the 
kiuQ  from  the  unpleasant,  practiiral  dilemma  of  either  setting  at  liberty  a 
powerful  and  most  implacable  foe,  or  incurring  the  odium  which  could 
not  but  attach  to  the  act  of  putting  to  death  so  near  a  relation,  it  is  diffi- 
cnlt  to  withhold  belief  from  the  popular  rumour  which  was  very  rife  at 
the  time,  and  still  more  so  during  the  next  king's  reign,  that  the  duke  was, 
in  fact,  smothered  in  his  bed,  in  obedience  to  a  secret  order  of  his  king 
and  nephew. 

Ere  the  parliament  was  dismissed,  very  extensive  creations  and  pro- 
motions took  place  in  the  peerage,  of  course  among  those  who  Iiad  been 
most  useful  and  zealous  in  aiding  the  recent  royal  severity:  and  at  the 
very  close  of  this  busy  and  discreditable  session  the  king  gave  a  singu- 
larly striking,  though  practically  unimportant,  proof  of  his  inconsistency; 
he  exacted  an  oath  from  the  parliament  perpetually  to  maintain  the  acts 
they  had  passed — one  of  those  very  acts  being  in  direct  and  shameful  vio 
lation  of  a  precisely  similar  oath  which  had  been  subsequently  sanctioned 
by  the  king's  free  and  solemn  ratification! 

A.  D.  1398. — When  the  parliament  met  at  Shrewsbury,  in  January,  1393, 
the  king  again  manifested  his  anxiety  for  the  security  of  the  recent  ads, 
by  causing  both  the  lords  and  commons  to  swear,  upon  the  cross  uf  Can- 
terbury, that  lliey  would  maintain  them.  Still  ill  at  ease  on  this  point, 
he  shortly  afterwards  obtained  the  additional  security,  as  he  deemed  it, 
of  a  bull  from  the  pope,  ordaining  'he  permanence  of  these  acts.  At  the 
same  time,  as  if  to  show  the  folly  i>f  swearing  to  the  perpetuation  of  ads, 
the  parliainent  reversed  the  attainders,  not  only  of  Tresiiian  and  the  other 
"udges,  for  the  secret  opinions  they  had  given  to  the  king  at  Nottingham, 
)Ut  also  of  the  Spensera,  father  and  son,  who  were  attainted  in  the  reign 
of  Edward  II. 

Though  the  enmity  towards  Gloucester  of  the  nobles  who  had  soz?al 
ously  aided  in  the  destruction  of  that  prince  had  united  them  in  appurcnily 
•iidissolublf  friendship  whil"  the  duke  lived,  animosities  and  hearthurnin,'i 
■oon  sprang  up  among  them  when  this  common  bond  of  union  was  n 


'^ 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


337 


moved.  The  duke  of  Hereford  in  his  place  in  parliament  solemnly  ac- 
cused the  duke  of  Norfolk  of  having  slandered  the  king,  by  imputing  to 
him  the  intention  of  destroying  some  of  the  highest  of  the  nobility ;  Nor- 
folk gave  Hereford  the  lie,  and  demanded  the  trial  by  duel.  The  challenge 
was  allowed  and  accepted ;  and  as  the  parliament  was  now  separating, 
md  legislative  authority  might  yet  be  rendered  necessary  by  the  result  of 
this  due),  a  singular  and  somewhat  hazardous  expedient  was  n^sorted  to; 
Ihatof  delegating  the  full  powers  of  the  parliament  to  a  committee  of 
twelve  lords  and  six  of  the  commons. 

The  lists  for  the  duel  were  fixed  at  Coventry,  the  king  in  person  was 
to  witness  the  combat,  and  the  whole  chivalry  of  Knglaml  w.is  split  into 
two  parties,  siding  with  the  respective  champions.  But  on  the  day  of 
duel  the  king  forbade  the  combat,  banishing  Norfolk  for  ten  years  and 
Hereford  for  life. 

The  great  inconsistency  of  Richard  makes  it  difficult  to  write  his  reign. 
By  the  act  we  have  just  recorded  he  showed  sound  and  humane  policy; 
vet  in  the  very  next  year  we  find  him  cominilting  a  most  waiilon  and 
jespoiic  wrong;  as  though  he  would  balance  the  prudence  of  putting  an 
tnd  to  one  source  of  strife  among  his  nobles  by  taking  the  earliest  possi- 
.le  opportunity  to  open  another  ! 

A.  D.  1399. — The  duke  of  Lancaster  dying,  his  son  applied  to  be  put 
into  possession  of  the  estate  and  authority  of  liis  father,  as  secured  by  the 
king's  own  patent.  But  Richard,  jealous  of  Unit  succession,  caused  the 
[ommittee  to  which  the  authority  of  parliament  iiad  been  so  strangely  de- 
egated,  to  authorize  him  to  revoke  that  patent,  iind  to  try  aii<l  coiuleinn 
Lancaster's  own  attorney  for  having  done  his  duty  to  his  employer !  This 
ifioiislrous  tyranny  was  not  carried  to  ihe  length  of  aclualiy  pulling  the 
.tlorney  to  death,  in  pursuance  to  the  sentence,  but  that  extreme  rigour 
i,as  only  commuted  to  banishment! 

The  tyranny  of  this  strange  act  was  indisputable  and  detestable;  but 
7  no  means  more  strange  and  unaccoiiiitablu  tliaii  its  singular  impolicy, 
il  would  have  been  impiissii.le  to  name  a  noble  tlieii  living  who  was  more 
/enerally  and  universally  popular  than  Htiii-y,  the  new  duke  of  Lancaster, 
lie  had  served  with  great  credit  against  the  Infidels  in  Lithuania;  he  was 
'iOsely  connected  by  blood  with  many  of  tlie  most  powerful  of  the  nobil- 
.ty,  and  by  friendship  with  still  more ;  and  his  own  popularity,  and  tiie 
cetestation  into  which  the  king  had  now  fallen,  caused  the  great  majority 
■i!  the  nation  not  only  to  take  an  indignant  interest  in  the  flagrant  wrong 
'lone  to  the  duke,  but  also  to  h0|)e  llnit  the  vastness  of  his  wrongs  would 
induce  him  to  become  the  avenger  of  theirs. 

Notwithstanding  the  mere  irritating  and  driving  out  of  the  country  a 
.nan  who,  alike  by  birth,  popularity,  and  talents,  whs  so  well  calculated 
to  wrest  from  him  his  tottering  tiiione,  the  iiiiatiiated  Richard  now  left 
England,  as  though  for  tiie  express  purpose  of  inviting  and  facilitating 
some  attempt  likely  to  consummate  his  probable  ruin !  His  cousin,  and 
tlie  presumptive  heir  to  the  throne,  Roger,  earl  of  March,  ha^'ing  been 
slain  ill  a  skirmish  with  the  Irisii  kern,  Riciiard  went  over  to  Ireland  in 
person  to  avenge  his  deceased  relative.  The  promptitude  of  the  duke  of 
Lancaster  was  fully  equal  to  the  infatuation  of  Richard.  Kmbaiking  at 
Nantes  with  a  retinue  only  sixty  in  number,  the  duke  lauded  at  Ravenspur 
in  Yorkshire,  and  was  joined  by  the  earls  of  Northumberland  and  West- 
moruiaiid.  In  the  presence  of  these  two  potent  nobles,  and  of  tiie  arch- 
liishop  (if  Canterbury  and  that  prelate's  nephew,  the  young  earl  of  Arun- 
fli'i,  both  of  whom  had  bee.i  his  companions  from  Nantes,  the  duke 
solemnly  made  oath  that  he  had  returned  to  the  country  with  no  other 
pnrpose  than  that  of  recovering  his  duchy  that  had  been  so  tyrannically 
withheld  from  him.  Having  thus  taken  '»he  best  means  to  appease  the 
fears  of  ilie  kinjf's  few  friends,  and  of  I'-c  numerous  lovers  of  peace  whom 


JilfT'tyif'', 


M<lM>*^ ' 


338 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORy 


I,?" 


i 


the  dread  of  a  civil  war,  as  a  consequence  of  his  aiming  at  tlie  throne 
would  otherwise  have  rendered  hostile  to  him,  the  duke  invited  not  only 
all  his  own  friends,  but  all  in  England  who  were  true  lovers  of  justice,  to 
aid  and  upliold  him  in  this  incontestably  just  and  reasonable  design;  and 
his  appeal,  partly  from  personal  affection  to  him,  but  chiefly  from  general 
and  intense  detestation  of  the  absent  king,  was  so  eagerly  and  speedily 
answered,  that,  in  a  very  few  days,  he  who  had  so  lately  left  Nantes  with 
a  slender  retinue  of  only  sixty  persons  was  at  the  head  of  an  army  of  as 
many  thousands,  zealous  in  his  cause,  and  beyond  expression  anxious  to 
take  signal  vengeance  for  the  numerous  tyrannies  of  Richard. 

On  leaving  England  for  the  purpose  of  chastising  the  Irish  rebels,  Rich 
hrd  gave  the  important  office  of  guardian  of  the  realm  to  the  rjiikeol 
Vork.  This  prince  did  not  possess  the  talents  requisite  in  the  dangerous 
crisis  which  had  now  arisen ;  moreover,  he  was  too  closely  connected 
with  the  duke  of  Lancaster  to  allow  of  his  exertingthe  sincere  and  ex 
.leme  rigour  by  which  alone  the  advances  of  that  injured  but  no  less  am- 
bitious noble  could  be  kept  in  check  ;  and  those  frieiuls  of  the  king  whose 
power  and  zeal  might  have  kept  York  to  his  fidelity,  and  supphed  \\\i 
want  of  ability,  had  accompanied  Richard  to  Ireland.  Everything,  there- 
fore, seemed  to  favour  the  duke  of  Lancaster,  should  ambition  leid  him 
to  attempt  something  beyond  the  mere  recovery  of  his  duchy. 

The  duke  of  York,  however,  did  not  at  the  outset  show  any  want  of 
will  to  defend  the  king's  rights.  He  ordi'red  all  the  forces  that  could  be 
collected  to  meet  him  at  St.  Alban's ;  but  after  all  exertion  had  been  made. 
he  found  himself  at  the  head  of  no  more  tliaii  forty  thousand  men ;  and 
these  far  from  zealous  in  the  royal  cause.  Just  as  he  made  this  discovery 
of  his  twofold  weakness,  he  received  a  message  in  which  the  duke  of  Lan- 
caster begged  him  not  to  oppose  his  recovery  of  his  inheritance,  to  which 
he  still  Willi  consumniate  hypocrisy  aff'cctc^d  to  limit  his  demands  and 
wishes.  York  confessed  that  ho  could  not  think  of  opposing  his  nephew 
in  so  reasonable  and  just  a  design,  and  York's  declaration  was  receiveJ 
with  a  joy  and  applause  which  augurcjd  but  ill  for  the  interests  of  tiie  ab- 
sent king.  Lancaster,  still  preteiuliiig  to  desire  only  the  recovery  of  his 
right,  now  hastened  to  Bristol,  where  some  of  the  ministers  had  taken  re- 
fuge, and,  having  speedily  made  himself  master  of  the  place,  gave  t!io  lii> 
to  all  his  professions  of  moderation  by  sen<liiig  to  instant  execution  the 
earl  of  Wiltshire,  Sir  .lolin  Uussy,  and  Sir  Heiu-y  Green. 

Intelligence  of  Lancaster's  proceedings  had  by  this  time  reached  Kirh- 
ard,  who  hastened  from  Ireland  with  an  army  of  IL'0,000  men,  and  huidcc 
at  Milford  Haven.  Against  the  force  by  which  Lancaster  had  by  this 
time  surrounded  himself,  the  whole  of  Richard's  army  woidd  have  iiVailrd 
but  little :  but  before  he  could  attempt  anything,  above  two-thirds  of  even 
that  small  army  had  deserted  him,  and  he  found  himself  con\pelled  to 
steal  away  from  the  faithful  remnant  of  his  force  and  take  shelter  in  ihf 
Isle  of  Anglesey,  whence  he  probably  intended  to  embark  for  France. 
there  to  await  some  change  of  affairs  which  might  enable  him  to  exert 
himself  with  at  least  some  hope  of  success. 

Lancaster,  as  politic  as  he  was  ambitious,  saw  at  a  glance  how  much 
mischief  and  disturbance  might  jjossibly  accrue  to  him  from  Hichard  ob- 
taining the  support  and  shelirr  of  France  or  even  of  Ireland,  and  deter- 
mined to  possess  himself  of  the  unhappy  king's  person  previous  to  wholly 
throwing  off  the  thin  mask  he  still  wore  of  moderation  and  loyalty.  He, 
thercfori!,  sent  the  earl  of  Northumberland  to  Richard,  ostensibly  for  the 
purpose  of  assuring  him  of  Lani;aster's  loyal  feeling  and  mo(h'rate  aim; 
and  NorthumbiM'land,  as  instructed,  took  the  opportunity  to  seize  upon 
Richard,  whom  he  conveyed  to  Flint  castle,  where  Lancaster  anxiously 
awaited  his  precious  prize.  Tlie  unfortunate  Richard  was  now  conveyed 
to  London,  in)minally  under  the  protection,  but  really  as  the  prisoner,  o' 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


339 


Lancaster,  who  throughout  the  journey  was  every  where  received  with 
the  submission  and  acclamations  that  uf  rij^ht  belonged  to  his  sovereign. 
The  Londoners,  especially,  showed  unbounded  affection  to  the  duke ;  and 
some  writers  even  affirm  that  they,  by  their  recorder,  advised  Lancaster 
10  put  Richard  to  death.  However  atrocious  this  advice,  the  spirit  of  tiiat 
ige  was  such  as  by  no  means  to  make  it  impossible  that  it  was  given. 
Hut  Lancaster  had  deeper  thoughts,  and  had  no  intention  of  letting  his 
whole  designs  be  visible,  or  at  least  declared,  until  ho  could  do  so  with 
perfect  safety  from  having  the  chief  authorities  of  the  nation  compromised 
by  his  acts.  Instead,  therefore,  of  violently  putting  an  end  to  the  captive 
king,  he  made  use  of  the  royal  name  to  sanction  his  own  measures. 
Richard,  helpless  and  a  prisoner,  was  compelled  to  summon  a  parliament ; 
mi  before  this  parliament  thirty-three  articles  of  accusation  were  laid 
against  the  king.  Most  of  the  nobles  who  were  friendly  to  Richard  had 
secured  their  own  safety  by  flight ;  and  as  Lancaster  was  at  once  powerful 
and  popular,  we  may  fairly  believe  that  Richard  was  as  ill  provided  with 
friends  in  the  commons  as  in  the  lords.  But  the  bishop  of  Carlisle,  in  the 
latter  house,  nobly  redeemed  the  national  character  by  the  ability  and 
lirmness  with  which  he  showed,  at  once,  the  insufHciency  of  the  charges 
made  against  Richard,  and  the  unconstitutional  and  irregular  nature  of  the 
treatment  bestowed  upon  him.  He  argued,  that  even  those  of  the  charges 
against  Richard  which  might  fairly  be  admitted  to  be  true,  were  rather 
evidence  of  youth  and  want  of  judgment  than  of  tyranny ;  and  that  the 
ileposition  of  Edward  H.,  besides  that  it  was  no  otherwise  a  precedent 
than  as  it  was  a  successful  act  of  violence,  was  still  further  no  precedent 
m  this  case,  because  on  the  deposition  of  Edward  the  succession  was  kept 
inviolate,  his  son  being  placed  upon  the  throne ;  while  the  duke  of  Lan- 
caster, whom  it  was  now  proposed  to  substitute  for  Richard,  could  only 
mount  the  throne,  even  after  Richard's  deposition,  by  violating  the  rights 
of  the  children  of  his  father's  elder  brother,  Lionel,  duke  of  Clarence,  upon 
ivhoin  the  crown  had  been  solemnly  entailed  by  the  parliament. 

The  spirited  and  just  conduct  of  the  able  prelate,  however  honourable 
'0  himself,  and  however  precious  as,  pro  tanto,  rescuing  the  national  char- 
acter from  the  charge  of  being  utterly  lost  to  all  sense  of  right,  was  of  no 
service  to  the  unhappy  Richard.  The  bishop  was  heard  by  the  parliament 
as  though  he  had  given  utterance  to  something  of  incredible  folly  and  in- 
justice; the  charges  were  voted  to  be  proven  against  Richard;  and  the 
hike  of  Lancaster,  now  wholly  triumphant,  immediately  had  the  bishop  of 
Lincoln  arrested  and  sent  prisoner  to  St.  Alban's  abbey,  there  to  acquire 
imore  subservient  understanding  of  the  principles  of  constitutional  law. 

Richard  being  in  due  form  deposed,  the  duke  of  Lancaster,  who  had  so 
rpcnntly  made  oath  that  he  sought  only  the  recovery  of  his  duchy — of 
nhichit  is  beyond  all  question  that  he  had  been  most  wrongfully  deprived, 
now  came  forward,  crossed  himself  in  the  forehead  and  breast  with  mi;  i. 
<etming  devotion,  and  said,  "In  the  name  of  the  Father,  tlio  .Son,  and  tlie 
Holy  Cliost,  I,  Henry  of  Lancaster,  challenge  this  realm  of  England,  and 
the  crown,  and  all  the  members  and  appurtenances  also,  that  i  am  des- 
feiidod  by  right  lino  of  the  blood,  coming  from  the  good  king  Henry  the 
Third,  and  through  that  right  that  God  of  his  grace  hath  sent  me,  with 
help  of  kin  and  of  my  friends,  to  recover  it ;  the  which  realm  was  on  point 
of  being  undone  by  default  of  governance  and  undoing  of  the  good  laws." 

The  right  to  which  the  duke  of  Lancaster  here  pretends  requires  a  few, 
and  but  a  few,  words  of  explanation.  "  There  was,"  says  Hume,  "  a  silly 
story  received  among  the  lowest  of  the  vulgar,  that  Edmond,  carl  of  I,an- 
'■aster,  son  of  Hniry  the  Third,  was  really  the  dder  brother  of  Edward  ; 
!)nt  tliiit  by  reason  of  some  deformity  in  his  person  he  had  been  posti)oned 
111  the  succession,  and  his  younger  brother  imposed  upon  the  nation  in  his 
"""''     As  the  present  duke  of  Lancaster  inherited  from  Edmond,  by  hi/ 


"lead. 


i 


=11 


ji 


II 

M 


i»«t# 


SAO 


THE  TKEASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


[14 

V 


I 


mother,  this  genealogy  made  him  the  true  heir  of  the  monarchy,  and  it  j, 
therefore  insinuated  in  his  speech,  but  the  absurdity  was  too  gross  tu  be 
openly  avowed  either  by  him  or  the  parliament." 

But  if  too  gross  for  formal  parliamentary  use,  it  could  scarcely  be  too 
^ross  for  imposing  upon  the  changeful,  ignorant,  and  turbulent  rabble  and 
Henry  of  Lancaster  was  far  too  accomplished  a  demagogue  to  overloolt 
the  usefulness  of  a  falsehood  on  account  of  its  grossness. 

The  deposition  of  Richard  rendered  it  necessary  that  the  parliameni 
should  be  dissolved ;  but  in  six  days  after  that  took  place  a  new  parliiimeiit 
was  called  by  his  usurping  successor.  This  parliament  ga.e  a  new  prool 
of  the  absurdity  of  swearing  the  parliament  and  people  to  the  pcrpptiiiiy 
of  laws;  all  the  laws  of  Richard's  former  parliament,  which  had  not  only 
been  sworn  to  but  also  confirmed  by  a  papal  bull,  being  now  abrogated  at 
one  fell  swoop!  And  to  make  the  lesson  still  more  striking  and  stih  more 
disgusting,  all  the  acts  of  Gloucester's  parliament  which  had  been  so  sol- 
emnly  abrogated,  were  now  as  solemnly  confirmed !  For  accusing  Glou- 
cester, Warwick,  and  Arundel,  many  peers  had  been  promoted;  they  were 
now  on  that  account  degraded  !  The  recent  practice  had  made  appeals  in 
parliament  the  rightful  and  solemn  way  of  bringing  high  offenders  tojiii- 
tice ;  such  appeals  were  now  abolished  in  favour  of  common  law  indict- 
ments. How  could  peaceai)lc  and  steady  conduct  be  expected  from  a  peo- 
ple whose  laws  were  thus  perpetually  subjected  to  chance  and  change,  to 
the  rise  of  this  or  to  the  fall  of  that  party  1 

Henry  of  Lancaster,  by  due  course  of  violence  and  fraud,  of  hyprocrisy 
and  of  perjury,  having  usurped  the  crown,  the  disposal  of  the  persinof 
the  lute  king  naturally  became  a  question  of  some  interest;  and  the  carl 
of  Northumberlimd,  who  had  wf.Uni  so  treacherous  a  part,  was  deputed  to 
ask  the  advice  of  the  peers  upon  that  point,  and  to  inform  them  that  ihc 
king  had  resolved  to  spare  Itichard's  life.  The  peers  were  unanimously 
of  opniion  that  Kichard  should  be  confined  in  some  secure  fortress,  anil 
prevented  from  having  any  communication  with  his  friends.  Poii'efract 
cast!'  was  accordingly  fixed  upon  as  the  deposed  king's  prison,  and  wra 
he  speedily  died  at  the  early  age  of  tinrly-four-  That  he  was  murdend 
no  historian  denies;  hut  while  some  say  that  he  was  opeidy  allacked  by 
assassms  who  were  admitted  to  his  a|iartments,  and  that  before  lie  was 
dispatched  he  killed  one  of  his  assailants  and  nearly  overpowered  the  rest; 
others  say,  that  he  was  starved  to  death,  and  that  his  stnnig  coiisliluiioii 
inlli('te<l  upon  him  the  unspeakable  misery  of  living  for  a  fortnight  afiir 
his  inhuman  gaolers  had  ceased  to  siip|)ly  him  with  any  food ;  and  ihis 
latter  aci-ount  is  more  lik(  !y  to  be  the  correet  one,  as  his  body,  when 
exposed  to  puldic  view,  exliitnied  no  marks  of  violence  upon  it.  Whatever 
his  fault,  it  is  impossible  to  deny  th.il  he  was  nn>.st  unjustly  Irealcil  hylln' 
usurper  Henry,  and  vi'ry  liastly  abandoned  by  both  houses  and  parliameni; 
and  his  fate  furnishes  a  new  proof  tliat  tlie  smallest  tyraiiiiii's  of  a  wi'ik 
sovereign,  in  a  mile  ami  iinletiered  aye,  will  provoke  the  most  i<angiiiiiiry 
vengeance  at  the  hands  of  the  very  same  men  who  will  patiently  ;iii'! 
basely  put  up  with  tlie  greatest  and  most  insulting  tyrannies  at  (.ic  Irindi 
of  a  kintf  who  has  either  wisdom  or  courage. 

Apart  from  tlie   sediiioii  anil  violence  of  which  we  have  already  given 
a  detailed  accoinit,  the   reiirii  of  the  deposed   and  miirdered  Rich  ird  ImI 

but  one  rircuinsl.iiice  worthy  of  es| lal  remark;  the  coininenceineiil  in 

Dnulaiid  of  llie  relorm  of  llie  chiinii.  .lolin  Wickliffe,  a  secular  pne)'l  I'l 
Oxford,  ami  siiliseipienlly  rector  of  laitterwortli,  in  Leicestershire,  hem: 
a  mail  of  yrcat  learning  and  jni'iy,  and  lienig  nnalile  by  the  inosi  earefiil 
Btildy  of  the  scriptures  to  find  any  jiHlilieatioii  of  llie  doelrinc  nt  ill*"  ri'il 
nreHcnce,  the  siipreiiiicv  of  {{oiiie,  or  llie  merit  of  vows  of  ciiihaey.  Ml 
himself  bound  to  mak"pnldii'  his  opinion  mi  these  pinnts,  aiii' tnin  iiiii'im 
"  that  tl  e  scriptures  wen*  »'  e  •olo  rule  of  faith;  tliut  the  ( liuieli  wind* 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


341 


pendant  on  the  state  and  should  be  reformed  by  it ;  that  the  cleigy  ought 
•,o  possess  no  estates ;  that  the  begging  friars  were  a  nuisance  and  ought 
not  to  be  supported ;  tiiat  the  numerous  ceremonies  of  the  church  were 
hurtful  to  true  piety ;  that  oaths  were  unlawful,  that  dominion  was  found- 
ed ill  gr;»ce,  that  everything  was  subject  to  fate  and  destiny,  and  tiiat  all 
men  were  predestined  to  eternal  salvation  or  reprobation." 

It  will  be  perceived  from  this  summary  that  Wiciiliffe  in  some  particu- 
lars iveiit  beyond  the  reformers  of  the  sixteenth  century ;  but  drawing 
his  opinions  from  the  scriptures  and  the  writings  of  the  fathers,  he,  in  the 
iimin,  agrees  with  the  more  modern  reformers  who  also  sought  truth  in 
ihat  same  true  source.  Pope  Gregorj'  XI.  issued  a  bull  for  the  trial  of 
Wiciiliffe  as  to  the  soundness  of  liis  opinions.  The  duke  of  Lancaster, 
who  then,  in  consequence  of  Richard's  minority,  governed  ihe  king.Jom, 
not  only  protected  Wickliffe,  but  appeared  in  court  with  him,  and  ordered 
that  lie  sliould  be  allowed  to  sit  while  being  exiiinined  b\  Courlrnay, 
bishop  of  London,  to  whom  the  pope's  bull  was  (iii(;cted.  'I'iie  populace 
at  this  time  were  much  against  Wickliffe,  and  wo'ild  probably  have  pro- 
cei'ili'd  to  commit  actual  violence  upon  both  him  and  his  great  protector 
hut  for  the  interference  of  the  bishop.  But  Wickliffe's  opinions  being, 
fur  the  most  part,  'rue,  and  being  maintained  by  an  extremely  earnest  as 
well  as  learned  and  pious  man,  soon  made  so  much  progress,  that  the  uni- 
veisiiy  of  Oxford  neglccte<l  to  act  upon  a  second  bull  which  the  pope 
directed  against  the  intrepid  reformer;  and  even  Ihe  populace  learned  to 
H'e  so  much  soundness  in  his  arguments,  that  when  he  was  summoned 
belori'a  synod  at  Lambeth,  they  broke  into  the  palace  and  so  alarmed  the 
preliios  who  were  opposed  to  him,  that  he  was  dismissed  without  censure. 
Uii  !<iil)sequent  occasions  he  was  troubled  for  his  opinions,  but  thou^rh  he 
showed  none  of  the  stern  and  headlong  courage  of  Luther  in  a  later  age, 
hi'  did  that  which  paved  the  way  for  it;  being  sutTicicntly  tinctured  with 
ihiit  tMilhusiasm  necessary  to  unmnsk  imposture,  he  gained  the  approba- 
lioii  of  liunest  men  ;  while  he  so  skilfully  explained  and  temporized,  tliut  he 
livid  pr(>s()erously  and  died  in  peace  at  his  rectory,  in  the  year  1385;  hav- 
III;'  SL't  the  example  of  deep  and  right  thinking  upon  the  important  subjects 
ul°  rtdigion,  but  leaving  it  to  a  later  generation  to  withstand  the  tyrannous 
assumptions  of  Rome  even  to  the  stake  and  the  axe,  the  torture  and  the 
iiiiiddi'iiing  gloom  of  the  dungt-on.  The  impunity  of  Wickliffe  and  his 
fiMitiMuporary  dist^iples  must  not,  however,  bo  wholly  set  down  to  the  ac- 
ciiuiit  ')f  his  and  tln'ir  prudent  temporizing  and  skilful  explanation.  These, 
iiiih'tid,  under  all  the  circumstances  greatly  served  them,  but  would  have 
ulii-riy  failed  to  do  so  but  that  as  yet  there  was  no  law  l)y  which  llin  se- 
I'ul.tr  arm  could  be  made  to  punish  the  heterodox  ;  and  Uoino,  partly  from 
III  r  own  schisms  and  partly  from  thi*  static  of  Kiigland,  was  just  at  this 
\\m<:  ill  no  condition  to  take  those  sweeping  and  stern  measures  which 
either  in  an  <'arlifr  or  later  ajre,  with  the  greater  favour  of  the  civil  ruler, 
she  winild  have  proved  herself  abundantly  willing  lo  take.  That  tin-  jjowi.'r 
mill  i)|)|)ortuinty,  rather  tlian  the  will,  were  waniing  on  the  part  of  Home 
til  .suppress  Ihe  Lollards— as  Wickliffe's  disciples  were  called — rests  not 
inrri'ly  upon  speculation.  I'roof  of  that  fact  is  alforded  by  an  act  whicli 
aluml  lour  years  before  the  death  of  Wnikliffe  the  clergy  surrenlitioiisly 
gilt  enrolled,  thmigh  it  never  hail  the  cmisent  oi"  llu-  coinmons,  by  which 
an  all  slierlffs  were  bound  lo  appridieiid  all  preachers  of  heresy  and  their 
bliittors.  The  fraud  was  discovered  and  coinplained  of  in  thi'  coininons 
liiiniii;  the  next  sesHion  ;  aiiJ  the  clergy  were  tlius  deterred  from  in.ikinu 
iiiiiiiedi  lie  use  of  their  new  and  ill  actiiiired  powc,  though  Ihey  coulnv« 
lu  prevent  the  formal  rcpjal  of  the  smuggUvl  art 


iiig 
I'M 


ifii 


.^•Klit 


349 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII. 


TUB    REION   OF    HENRY    IV. 


a 


I 


A.D.  1399. — HowEVEB  Henry  IV.  miglit  gloss  over  tlie  matter  to  the  servile 
coniinoiis  or  to  the  profoundly  ignorant  rabble,  ho  could  not  but  be  perfect- 
ly aware  that  he  had  no  hereditary  right ;  that  his  "  rijfht,"  in  f;ict,  was 
merely  the  right  of  a  usurper  who  had  paved  the  way  to  the  throne  by  the 
grossest  hypoerisy.  And  lie  must  have  constantly  been  tortiirerl  with 
doubts  and  anxieties,  lest  the  ambition  of  some  new  usurper  should  be 
sanctioned  as  his  own  had  been,  by  what  artful  demagogues  facelioiish' 
call  the  "voice  of  the  people,"  or  It^st  some  combination  of  the  barons 
should  pluck  the  stolen  diadem  from  his  brow,  to  place  it  on  thai  of  the 
heir  of  the  house  of  Mortimer,  whom  parliament  had  formerly  declared 
the  heir  to  the  crown.  But  Henry  could  lessen  these  cares  and  fears  by 
retlecting  that  he  had  possession,  and  that  possession  was  not  so  easily  tn 
be  wrested  from  liim  by  a  future  usurper,  as  it  had  been  by  himself  from 
the  weak  and  unskilled  arm  of  Richard  ;  while,  even  should  tiie  parlu^ 
mentary  decision  iri  favour  of  the  true  heir  be  brou|i;ht  into  play,  it  was  not 
so  dilHcult  or  uncommon  a  thinsilo  alter  the  most  solemn  acts,  even  wIkmi 
passeil  amid  oaths  and  supporie(l  by  a  luill  ■  Moreover,  as  to  tiic  diirieuitv 
that  might  irise  from  the  true  heir,  Hiniry  probably  placed  his  chief  reli'- 
ance  here — that  heir,  then  only  seven  years  old,  and  his  younger  brother, 
were  in  II<'nry's  own  custody  in  the  royal  eastle  of  Windsor. 

A.n.  i  100. — Had  Henry  been  previously  ignorant  o*"  the  turbulent  char- 
acter of  his  barons,  his  very  first  parliament  had  funnshed  him  willi  abun- 
diint  information  upon  that  score.  (Scarcely  had  the  peers  assembled 
when  disputes  ran  so  liigh  among  tluMU,  that  not  only  was  very  "  uiipar- 
liamentary"  language!  I)andi»'d  about  among  then,  even  to  the  exteiil  ol 
giving  each  other  the  lie  direct,  and  as  direi'tly  cIm  TUig  cacli  oilier  wiili 
trtMson,  but  this  language  was  supported  by  the  throwing  down,  upon  the 
floor  of  the  house,  of  no  fewer  than  forty  gauntlets  in  token  of  their 
awiiers  relldine^s  to  maintain  their  words  in  mortal  combat.  For  the 
present  the  king  had  iniliience  enough  among  tliose  doughty  peers  to  pn- 
vent  them  from  coming  into  actual  personal  collision.  Diit  he  was  imi 
able  to  pi'i'veiii  their  (jiiarr*-l  from  stilt  rankling  in  their  hearts,  still  le» 
was  he  alile  to  overpow(M'  the  strong  feeling  of  hatred  which  some  ni 
them  cheris!ie  I  .i<;.iinst  his  own  power  and  person. 

\V('  spoke,  :i  liiile  whili^  since,  oftlie  degrcdation  by  Henry's  pariiameiit 
:)f  ceriain  peers  who  had  been  raist^l  by  Richard's  parliament,  on  account  of 
the  part  they  took  at  the  time  of  the  rebellion  of  the  duke  of  (ildueeslir 
The  ea'  's  of  Rutl.md,  Kent,  and  Hniitingdon,  aiicl  the  Ijord  Spenoer,  who 
were  thus  degraded,  respectively  from  tlu!  titles  of  Albemarle,  .Surrey, 
Kx'tiT,  ami  (Iloiicester,  the  three  first  being  dukedoms  and  the  hiiirih  an 
sarldiMii,  iiiiw  I'litertMl  into  a  conspiracy  to  seizin  the  king  at  Windsor:  and 
his  lieposition,  if  not  his  death,  must  iiifalliliy  have  fcdiowed  hail  they  siii' 
eeedcd  in  the  first  jiart  of  their  design.  Tiie  earl  of  Salisbury  and  liu 
liOrd  liiimley  joined  in  this  conspinicv ,  and  the  measines  were  so  (vell 
taken  til, It  lieiiry's  mm  would  have  liiii  nuu'ally  certain,  but  tliiit  Kill- 
land,  from  coin|iuneti(in  or  kdiiih  less  rredil,'il>le  motive,  gave  the  kin;' 
timely  notice  ^md  hi!  suddenly  withdrew  fnini  Windsor,  where  lie  » n 
living  comparativ(dy  unprotected,  and  rcaehcil  l.ondoii  in  private  jihl  a? 
the  conspirators  arrived  at  Windsor  with  a  p:irl\  of  five  hundii'd  eavaliy. 
Hefore  the  ballli'd  conspirators  cdiild  lecovcr  from  tlicir  surprise  the  kinv 
posieil  liioiscit  at  Kiiigsii)ii-oii-Th  lines,  Willi  cavalry  mid  inlaiilry,  chiel!) 
Hupplied  tiy  the  city  of  Lomloii,  to  the  numlicr  of  twinly  ihotisaiiil.  'I'lif 
cunspu'.tlois  had  HO  eiitu'i'ly  depended  upon  the   efVect  of  surjinDiiitf  lli*' 


li! 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


343 


King  and  making  use  of  the  possession  of  his  person  that  they  now  saw 
that  they  had  lost  all  in  losing  aim,  and  they  betook  themselves  to  their 
respective  counties  to  raise  their  friends  and  dependants.  But  the  king 
had  now  all  the  advantage  of  being  already  in  force,  and  strong  detach- 
ments of  his  friends  pursued  the  fugitives  so  hotly  that  they  had  not  the 
chance  of  making  any  combined  resistance.  The  earls  of  Kent  and  Salis- 
bury were  seized  at  Cirencester,  in  Gloucestershire,  by  the  inhabitants  of 
that  place,  and  were  beheaded  on  the  following  day ;  Spencer  and  Lumley 
were  similarly  disposed  of  by  the  men  of  Bristol;  and  the  earls  of  Hunt- 
ingdon, Sir  Thomas  Blount,  Sir  Benedict  Sely,  and  several  others  who 
were  made  prisoners  were  subsequently  put  to  tleatii  by  Henry's  own  or- 
der. It  S'ves  us  a  positive  loathing  for  tiie  morality  of  that  age  when  we 
readtliiiton  the  quartered  bodies  of  those  persons  being  brought  to  Lon- 
don, the  mangled  and  senseless  remains  were  insulted  by  the  loud  and 
(iisgustins;  joy,  not  only  of  immense  numbers  of  the  rabble  of  the  turbu- 
h>iit  inelropoiis,  but  also  by  thirty-two  mitred  abbots  andeiglileen  bishops, 
who  thus  set  an  example  which — iian  we  doubt  it! — was  only  too  faith- 
fully followed  by  the  inferior  clergy.  But  the  most  disgusting  as  well  as 
the  niost  horrible  i)art  of  this  sad  siorv  still  remains  to  be  told.  In  this 
trulv  dcjinuling  procession  the  earl  of  Jutland  made  a  conspiciiDus  fiirure, 
not  niiTciy  as  being  son  and  heirof  thedukeof  York,as  hiiving  aided  in  the 
miirdenif  his  uncle,  the  duke  of  (llouccsler,  as  having  descrtcil  from  Hich- 
;iriilo  llciiry,  and  having  conspired  against  the  latter  and  belrayed  to  him 
llie  wrciclitil  men  whose  remains  were  now  bt'iiig  'orutally  paraded  before 
the  eyes  of  the  rabble;  these  distinctions  wiirc  not  enough  for  bis  evil 
anil)iiioii,  and  lest  he  should  lie  overlooked  in  tiic  bloody  procession,  he 
carried  ii|ion  a  poh;  the  ghastly  bead  of  one  of  tliose  victims  whom  he  had 
(iisi  seduced  and  conspired  with,  and  tlicn  betrayed — and  that  victim  was 
the  Lord  Spencer,  his  own  brother-in-law!  Surely  ibis  nran  had  succes- 
hilly  aimed  at  the  sublimity  of  infamy  ! 

A. n.  1101. — Politic  in  everythinu:,  and  resolute  to  make  ovcrytliing  as 
far  lis  possible  siibservient  to  bis  safety  and  inlcrcst,  Henry,  who  in 
his  yoiitli  ami  while  as  yet  a  sulijecl  bad  bvvn,  as  his  fallwr  had,  a  favour- 
er of  the  Lollards,  now  iiided  in  tiiiiir  oppressimi,  in  onler  to  conciliate  the 
fstalilislied  clergy.  And  to  all  the  other  evil  (•haract<uistics  of  this  reign 
IS  lo  lie  ailded  that  of  the  originating  in  England  of  civil  penal  laws 
auaiiist  the  undflinable  crime  of  hert'sy. 

LolLirdisin,  appealim,'  to  the  simple  common  sense  of  the  multitude,  had 
hythis  tune  become  very  widely  (iisseminated  in  England  ;  and  the  clergy, 
lo  oppose  the  iKadini;  armimenis  of  the  detested  liert  tics,  and  unpossessed 
of  tlic  power  lo  silence  those  whom  tliey  could  not  confute,  hmdly 
ih'iiKindi'd  the  aid  of  the  civil  power.  Aiixioiis  to  serve  a  vast  and  jww- 
orfiil  liody  of  men  who  in  any  jjreiit  cinerdeney  would  he  ho  well  able  to 
sirve  liiin,  Henry  engaged  thi'  piirliament  to  jmss  a  bill,  which  provided 
thtt  ;ill  relapsed  heretics  who  slionld  refuse  to  abjure  their  errors  id"  faith 
when  siiiiiiiiiiiied  hrforc  the  bishop  and  his  commissioners,  should  be  de- 
livered  ovcrlo  the  civil  authorities,  who  sliuidd  publicly  commit  tlieni  to 
the  flames.  An  atrocious  use  of  the  king's  power;  but  every  way  worthy 
of  the  atoiious  hypocrisy  and  violence  by  which  that  power  had  been 
ai'qilirni. 

\Vli.  >\  this  act  was  passed  with  all  the  due  forms,  the  clergy  speedily 
ullbnli'ii  proof  that  lliey  did  not  inlend  lo  allow  it  to  remain  ;t  dead  letter. 
Wijjiiiin  Saiiire,  a  elei'ifyman  of  liimdon,  was  rondeinned  as  a  relapsed 
heretic  by  llie  convoralion  of  ('anterbnry.aiid  beinc  coiniiiilted  to  the  chas- 
lisemi'iil  of  the  eivil  power,  the  kiui;  iHsiied  his  wnl,.iiidlbe  wrelelied  man 
HUH  liuriieil  to  death.  tJreat  as  all  the  oilier  crimes  of  Henry  were,  they 
fall  into  comparative  nisiKnilieiince  in  comparison  of  this  :  that  he  was 
the  lir^t,  xincf  Ihr  diirk  anil  rrurl  .iiiiirrtiti/innn/  thf  Driiidii,  who  iti.igutlrj  and 


I  ' 


i   * 


344 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


' 


'  ,i; 


horrified  the  inhabit ;  ■<  of  En!;land  with  the  awful  sight  of  a  feUnwereat^,t 
yielding  up  his  brerth  amid  the  ineffable  torturts  of  the  sacrificial  flames. 

While  Henry,  (  msnoiis  of  the  badness  of  his  title,  was  thusendciivour- 
mg,  by  tl'.c  most  atroi  jus  sacrifiees  to  expedieney,  to  strensthen  liim. 
self  in  England,  !>',  as  far  as  possible,  avoided  the  necessity  "of  makino 
any  consideiable  exertion  elsewhere.  But  even  his  consummate  art  could 
not  wholly  preserve  him  from  the  cares  of  war. 

The  kinjf  of  France  had  too  many  causes  of  anxiety  in  his  own  kinc 
dom  to  admit  of  his  making,  as  bmh  he  and  his  friends  were  anxious  To 
make,  a  descent  nptm  Kngland,  and  he  was  obliged  to  content  himself  with 
getting  his  daughter  safely  out  of  the  hands  of  Henry.  Hut  the  fiaswms 
among  whom  Richard  was  born,  and  who,  in  spite  of  his  numerous  and 
glaring  faults,  were  passionately  attached  to  his  memory,  refused  to 
swear  allegiance  to  his  murderer ;  and  had  the  king  of  France  been  able 
to  send  an  army  to  their  support,  they  would,  beyond  all  doubt,  Imve  mailn 
an  obstinat.  resistance.  But  Charles's  own  situation  rendering  liini  uii- 
able  to  assist  M  em,  the  earl  of  Worcester,  at  the  head  of  an  Kiiffjish 
army,  found  no  difliculty  in  bringing  them  to  obedience  ;  ami  they  wore 
the  less  inclined  to  make  any  new  attempt  at  shaking  off  Htiiry's  yoke, 
because  he  was  in  communion  with  the  pope  of  Rome,  whose  zealous  par- 
tizans  they  were  ;  while  France  was  in  communion  with  the  anti-pope, 
then  resident  of  Avignon. 

A  sturdier  and  more  formidable  opponent  ofthe  nsurperwas  found  near 
home.  Owain  (tlendwyr,  the  powerful  chieftain  of  Wales,  a  lineal  de- 
pcendant  of  the  ancient  princes  of  that  country,  and  greatly  belovcti  on  thai 
account  as  well  as  for  his  remarkable  personiil  courage,  gave  deep  of- 
fence to  Henry  by  the  firm  attachment  which  he  displayed  to  the  memory 
of  the  murdered  Richard.  Lord  (iray,  of  Ruthyn,  a  confidential  and  iiii- 
scrupulous  friend  of  Henry,  had  a  large  possession  in  the  Welsh  niarcli- 
<'s  ;  and  well  knowing  that  he  should  please  Henry — perhaps  even  per- 
sonally iiistii;;Ued  !)y  him— he  forcibly  entered  (Jlendwyr's  territory,  and 
expelled  him  and  his  followers.  The  personal  fame  and  the  anliijiie  dt- 
scent  of  (ilendwyr  enabled  him  easily  and  speedily  to  collect  a  sufficient 
force  to  oust  the  intruders,  and  Henry,  as  probably  had  been  agrccil, 
sent  assistance  to  I^ord  (iray,  whence  a  long  and  sanguinary  wareiisucil. 

Tilt!  Welsh  chieftain  no  longer  combaled  merely  his  personal  enemy, 
but  made  war  without  disliiictnm  unoii  all  the  Knglish  subjects  in  his 
neighbourhood,  and  among  them  upon  the  earl  of  Marche.  Sir  Ivliiiuiid 
Moitimir,  unide  of  that  n(il)leniaii,  assembled  the  family  n  ii'.i  lers  ami  eii- 
deav(Mire(l  to  make  head  against  (ilendwyr,  but  was  defeated,  and  hotli  he 
and  the  young  earl,  who,  though  only  a  youth,  would  go  to  the  field,  were 
taken  prisoners. 

Detesting  the  fannly  of  .^lortinier  in  all  its  brandies,  Henry  not  only 
took  no  steps  towards  obtanniig  the  release  of  the  young  e;irl,  hut  even 
refused  in  grint  the  earin  -Jt  inirealies  ofthe  earl  of  Northumlicrland  to  be 
permillcd  to  do  so,  althou;ili  llie  earl  had  so  mainly  contributed  to  lieiiry'i 
own  elevation,  and  was,  hi  sides,  very  nearly  related  to  the  young  captive, 
But  in  p'lint  of  in^iratitude,  as  ni  point  of  hypocrisy.  Henry  stopped  at  no 
half  ine.isures  ;  and  havnig  thus  shown  Ins  sense  ofthe  earl's  past  scrvji'e 
he  very  shortly  afterwards  made  a  inw  service  the  actual  ground  of  new 
and  even  more  directly  insulting  ingratitude. 

'J'lie  Scots,  tempted  by  the  oeeasioii  of  so  recent  and  flngrant  nn  uiur- 
patior  of  ihe  crown,  made  inciirsiinis  into  tlie  norlliern  counties  of  Knj. 
lanil,  and  Henry,  iilteuded  by  the  most  warlike  of  his  tiolilcs,  iiianhid 
in  such  I'orce  to  I'ldinlnirgli,  that  the  Scots,  niiatdeat  that  moment  priiuent- 
ly  to  give  liitn  battle,  retired  to  the  inountains,  as  was  ever  their  cusliiin 
when  lliey  eoiilij  not  tight,  yet  would  not  resist.  In  this  dileinina,  "idia 
f<t«  winch  he  tould  neither  provoke  into  the  field  or  terrify  into  it  forinaUiul 


I  A 


ft! 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


340 


nsincere  submission,  Henry  issued  a  formnl  and  pompons  summons  to 
Riihcrt  HI.  locome  to  him  and  do  homage  for  liis  orown,  and  marched 
home  and  disbanded  his  army. 

J.  D.  HOa. — Delivered  from  the  immediate  preseijce  of  their  enemy,  the 
S.dis  exerted  themselves  so  well  (hat  Lord  Douglas  was  now  able  to  le:id  an 
iriiy  of  twelve  thousand  men,  officered  by  all  (he  beads  of  the  nobility, 
iitii  Hiighmd,  where  the  usual  devastation  and  plunder  marked  their  pre's- 
incp.  The  eiirl  of  Northumberland  and  his  gallant  son  collected  a  force 
.,i.l  (iiertook  the  Scots  at  Holmedon,  as  they  were  returning  home  laden 
wiiiilmotv.  In  the  battle  which  ensued  the  Scots  were  completely  rout- 
(il.  vii^t  luimbers  of  them  were  slain  or  taken  prisoners,  and  among  the 
I  ,ii(  r  wore  Lord  Douglas  himself,  the  earl  of  Fife,  son  of  the  duke  of  Al- 
luiiv  iiiid  nephew  of  the  king  of  Scotland,  and  the  earls  of  Angus,  Mur- 
iiv.aiiil  Orkney. 

Ill  tliiit  age  the  ransom  of  prisoners  was  a  most  important  part  of  the 
piDtlt  of  the  warrior,  whether  officer  or  private.  The  noble  who  went  to 
,11  for  his  sovereign  not  only  ran  the  ordinary  risks  of  the  fight,  but  also, 
il  i;ikiMi  prisoner,  had  to  purchase  his  own  release,  often  at  a  sum  so  vast 
isioiMiluil  comparative  poverty  upon  his  family  for  generations.  Under 
-iili  L'ircumstances  to  interfere  with  him  as  to  the  ransom  of  his  prison- 
,  s,  when  he  was  favoured  by  the  fortune  of  war,  was  as  scandalous  a 
iiii  acli  of  faith  as  any  other  and  more  obvious  invasion'of  his  poperty  ; 

I  111  iliis  breach  of  faith,  with  the  added  infamy  of  extreme  ingratitude, 
: 111  Ihiny  now  commit,  by  sending  a  peremptory  message  to  the  Pcrcies 
1)1  to  ransom  their  prisoners  on  any  terms ;  the  desire  of  the  politic  ty- 

iiiii  hcing  to  make  the  contimied  imprisonment  of  those  noblemen  a 
!i(  HIS  of  procuring  advantageous  terms  from  the  kingdom  of  which  they 
MIC  the  pride  and  ornament. 

\.  1).  1403.— Henry  had  probably  reckoned  on  the  continued  faith  of  the 
iirl  of  Northumberland,  under  any  circumstances  of  provocation,  from  the 
iii|ii'iMci|)!cd  absence  of  all  scruple  which  that  nobleman  had  shown  in  aid- 
':i;i|ii!<  usurpation.  But  the  eiirl,  besides  that  he  himself  smarted  under 
ilii'  iiiiiigled  insult  and  injury,  was  still  farther  prompted  to  vengeance  by 
IIS  son  the  younger  Percy,  better  known  as  Harry  Hotspur,  and  it  was 
li  trriniiicd  between  thee  itvt  an  ittempt  should  be  made  to  hurl  the  un- 
^nitcfiil  usurper  from  tl.c  'liront!  to  which  they  had  so  mainly  contributed 
;ii  raise  him.    Kntering  into  a  correspondence  with  Glendwyr,  they  agreed 

II  join  him  in  his  op|  uMltion  to  Henry,  and,  still  farther  to  strenirthen 
ihiiiiselves,  gave  Lord  Douglas  his  liberty,  and  engaged  that  warlike  no- 
;li'  lo  join  them  with  all  the  Scottish  force  that  they  could  connnand. 
rill  ir  own  military  retainers  and  friends  wert  not  a  weak  army  ;  and  so 
lispolic  was  the  power  of  the  earl's  family,  and,  at  the  same  time,  so  im- 
jiluit  and  undying  was  the  attachment  of  its  followers,  tliat  the  very  men 
«liii  liiid  formerly  followed  the  earl  for  the  purpose  of  placing  Henry  on 
"i"  ilirono,  now  followed  for  the  purpose  of  deposing-  him. 

All  the  preparations  being  made,  the  etirl's  army  was  ready  for  action 
«li('ii  it  was  deprived  of  its  h-ader  by  a  sudden  illness  w  liich  disabled 
III'  carl  from  moving.  Hut  young  Henry  Percy  had  the  confidence  of  his 
iiiiops  in  a  degree  not  inferior  to  that  in  which  it  was  enjoyed  by  the  earl 
'iiiii'<t'lf,  and  he  marched  towards  Shrewsbury,  wlu^rc  he  was  to  be  joined 
liy  lilt'uilwyr. 

Ilciiry,  w  bo,  wl.uiever  liis  crimes,  was  both  brave  and  able,  had  just  col- 
I'rteij  a  I'orce  with  a  view  to  repelling  or  cliastisiiip  the  Scots,  and  by  liur- 
ii'il  inarches  ho  contrived  to  reach  Shrewsbury  before  Gli  ndwyr  arrived 
In  the  Hiipiiort  of  Percy. 

Il  was  obviously  the  king's  true  policy  to  force  Percy  to  an  engagement 
lipfnre  his  expected  allies  eoiild  arrive,  and  tlui  fierce  and  impaliciil  lem- 
piTuf  Henry  Hotspur  adnnraily  seconded  the  king's  wish. 


■r  'I 


J  ijij'  I 


346 


T'iB  TEBASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


H 


M> 


As  if  fearful  lest  an}'  motive  should  induce  the  king  to  de*  ,'ine  i\<;.  (,;Uant 
trial  of  thci-  nrength,  Hotspur  issued  a  manifr«to,  in  winch  he  i r-  j 
every  topic  that  was  caJculated  to  goad  trc  king's  conscier.  r  (Jt  ton  .'^'ikj 
lis  pride  and  lower  his  character,  .'n  the  words  of  Hume,  '  He  reuoun. 
i;ed  his  aliegiance,  set  him  at  defiance,  uid  in  the  name  of  1  '.i  father  and 
uncle  as  well  as  in  his  ouii,  he  enumcniied  all  the  grievances  jf  which  he 
pretended  the  nation  had  rc:i.bon  to  I'omvhiin.  Ho  ujaTaided  hirn  wiih 
tlie  perjury  of  whicli  he  bad  I  ten  guilty,  vvhen,  on  landing  at  Ravenspur, 
lie  had  sworn  upon  the  gospels,  before  thti  earl  of  Northumber^'id,  tlwt 
.le  Iiad  no  other  intention  than  to  recover  the  du'.i' y  of  Lai^'.-aster,  and  tha. 
he  would  over  remain  a  faithfti!  subject  to  King  liichai  J.  Ho  aggravated 
ills  guilt  ill  firs!  uethroning  and  then  murdering  tir^t  prince,  and  'n  ..rur; 
iiig  !iip  title  of  the  house  of  Mortimer,  to  whom,  H,>th  by  hneal  su 
i-er.^ioii  and  by  declarations  of  parliament,  the  hroii",  when  ■•.rant  U 
IN  'iiard's  demise,  did  of  right  belong.  He  complained  of  his  c.twA  pohcv 
ii  .  i'cwiniY  fh(j  young  '  arl  of  Marche,  whom  he  ought  to  regard  as  liis 
sover.iyii,  ti.  veraiiii  ;> 'apiive  in  the  hands  of  his  enemies,  and  in  even 
refusit  ;  'o  ali  liis"  friends  permission  to  treat  for  his  ran-^om.  He  charged 
him  ai,  u  .  viih  ptM  iury  in  loading  the  nation  with  heavy  taxes,  after  Imv- 
iiig  sworn  that,  without  the  utmost  necessity,  he  would  never  lay  any  ini- 
ixisifioiis  upon  them  ;  and  he  reproached  him  with  th(,  arts  employed  in 
procuriMfr  favourable  elections  into  parliament;  arts  v  hich  he  himself  jiad 
liplbrc  Imputed  as  a  crime  to  Riciiard,  and  which  he  iiad  made  one  chief 
reason  of  that  prince's  arraignment  and  deposition." 

'I'lie  truths  here  collected  tell  very  heavily  against  Uie  character  of 
Henry  ;  but  the  reader  must  not  omit  to  notice  that  in  most  of  the  crimes 
here  laid  to  his  charge  the  earl  of  Northumberland  had  bi'cn  his  zealous 
accomplice,  and  by  his  overgrown  power  had  mainly  enabled  i  lim  to  do  those 
very  things  which  he  now  charged  against  him  as  crimes,  and  which  he 
so  eliargcd  only  because  of  their  bitter  personal  feud.  So  rarely,  so  very 
rarely,  do  even  the  most  patriotic  enterprises  lake  their  rise  solely  in  pa. 
triolic  and  pure  feelings. 

On  the  following  morning  the  embattled  hosts  attacked  each  other,  and 
rarely  upon  English  ground  has  so  sanguinary  an  action  taken  place. 
nouglas  and  young  Percy,  who  had  so  often  and  so  bravely  opposed  eaiii 
other,  now  that  they  fought  in  the  same  ranks  seemed  to  strive  to  outvie 
each  other  in  deeds  of  daring  and  self  exposure.  Henry,  on  his  side,  with 
whom  was  the  young  prince  of  Wales,  who  now  ''  fleshed  his  maiden 
sword,"  proved  himself  worthy  of  the  usurped  crown  as  far  as  valour  ai;d 
conduct  were  concerned.  Yet,  though  he  repeatedly  charged  where  ilie 
battle  was  the  fiercest  and  the  slaughter  the  most  terrible,  he  even  on  tin- 
occasion  sliowed  that  he  never  allowed  courage  to  leave  policy  altogeilier 
behind.  Feeling  sure  that  the  hostile  leaders  would  not  fail  to  direct  llieit 
especial  exertions  to  slaying  him  or  making  him  prisoner,  he  caused  sev 
eral  of  his  oiFicers  to  be  dressed  and  armed  in  the  royal  guise;  :ind  Ihis 
policy  at  once  proved  the  correctness  of  his  jiulgment,  and,  in  all  hnnian 
I)r(il)al)ility,  saved  his  life,  for  several  of  the  seeming  kings  paid  'ilh  their 
lives  for  their  temporary  disguise;  the  fierce  Douglas  roaming  tlirouijhtli.' 
field,  and  slaying  each  that  bore  the  royal  semblance  who  had  the  inisl'nr- 
tune  to  come  within  the  sweep  of  his  trenchant  and  unsparing  blade.  The 
slaughter  was  tremendous,  but  ilie  victory  w;is  on  the  side  of  the  knn;, 
the  troops  of  Percy  falling  into  complete  and  irremedialilc  disorder  throimi 
that  gallant,  iliough  too  inipetiions  leader  being  sli.in  Dj  sonic  uniiistni- 
guislied  h;in().  About  four  thousand  siddii.-rs  pensheil  on  the  side  of  I'er 
I'V,  and  al)o\  half  that  number  on  the  sidi;  of  the  king,  while,  nielndmi! 
lli(!  loss  nf  IkiiIi  armies,  considerably  mor"  than  two  thousand  nobles  ani! 
ftemlei,.  'M  were  slam.  The  earls  of  Worcester  and  Douglas  were  taken; 
the  latter  was  treated  with    ill  the  respi'ct  atul  kindnegs  diu-  tu  a  t'.istiri- 


THE  TREA8UIIY  OF  HISTORY. 


34' 


.  nished  prisoner  of  war,  but  the  former,  together  with  Sir  Richard  Vernoi 
;,.  5  beheaded  at  Shrewsbury. 

he  earl  of  Northumberhmd,  who  by  this  time  had  recovered  from  his 
i/.iiess,  had  raised  a  small  force  and  was  advancing  to  the  aid  of  his  gallant 
son,  when  he  was  shocked  and  astounded  by  the  disastrous  tidings  from 
Shrewsbury.  Perceiving  the  impossibility,  with  all  the  force  he  could  then 
comiiiand,  of  at  that  time  making  head  against  the  king,  he  dismissed  all 
his  followers,  except  the  retinue  usual  to  men  of  his  rank,  proceeded  to 
.  -1:,  and  presented  himself  to  the  king,  to  whom  he  boldly  affirmed  that 
I.  s  sole  intention  was  to  endeavour,  by  mediating  between  lii.s  son  and 
the  king,  to  prevent  the  effusion  of  blood  which  now  unhappily  had  taken 
pLu'e,  Henry,  whose  policy  it  was  to  evade  war  by  every  means  in  his 
|)Ower,  pretended  to  be  deceived,  and  a  formal  pardon  was  given  to  the  earl. 

A.  D.  I'lOO. — But  the  earl  of  Northumberland  knew  mankind  in  general, 
and  Henry  in  particular,  far  too  well  to  suppose  that  there  was  any  reality 
Ml  this  very  facile  forgiveness;  and  he  was  confirmed  in  his  own  enmity 
not  only  by  the  loss  of  his  brave  son,  but  also  by  the  conviction  that  be  had 
been  too  iniquitously  useful,  and  was  too  dangerously  powerful,  to  allow  of 
his  ever  being  safe  from  Henry,  should  circumstances  allow  o(  that  priitce 
iirtniii  upon  his  real  feelings.  He  now  did  what,  had  lie  done  it  previous  to 
Ihf  biitlle  of  Slirewsbury,  would  most  probably  have  given  him  a  complete 
m\  comparatively  easy  victory  over  Henry.  The  earl  8f  Nottingham, 
son  of  the  duke  of  Norfolk,  and  the  archbishop  of  York,  brother  of  that 
piiil  of  Wiltshire  whom  ITenry,  while  still  duke  of  Lancaster,  had  beheaded 
;U  Dristol,  had  never  ceased"  to  hate  Henry.  Whether  from  their  own 
haclvwardiiess  or  from  some  unaccountable  oversight  on  the  part  of  the 
I'lri'ii's,  these  two  powerful  personages  had  taken  no  part  against  the  king 
at  Slirewsbury,  but  they  now  very  readily  agreed  to  join  with  Northum- 
hirhiiid  in  a  \ww  attempt  to  dethrone  the  usurper;  but,  as  though  the  want 
of  jiKJijment  on  the  part  of  the  foes  of  Henry  were  always  to  stand  him  in 
;is  nuieh  stead  as  even  his  own  profoundly  artful  policy,  Nottingham  and 
till'  archbishop  took  up  arms  before  Northumberland  had  completed  his 
|in'parations  for  joining  them.  They  issued  a  manifesto,  in  wliich  they 
iltsiMiitcd,  though  in  temperate  terms,  upon  Henry's  usurpations,  and  de- 
nwiuled  not  only  that  sundry  public  grievances  should  bo  redressed,  but 
lilso  that  the  right  line  of  succession  should  be  restored.  The  earl  of 
Wostiiioreland,  who  commanded  the  king's  forces  in  tlicir  neighbourhood, 
fimliiii;  himself  too  weak  to  allow  of  his  prudently  engaging  them,  had  re- 
I'lnirse  to  a  stratagem  so  obvious  th.tthe  could  only  have  resorted  to  it  on 
ilic  assumption  that  he  had  to  do  with  very  simple  persons,  and  one  that 
111  pniving  successful  showed  that  assumption  to  be  very  correct. 

Westmoreland. desired  a  conference  with  Xottinghain  and  the  archbish 
o|i,  listened  with  admirable  gravity  to  all  the  complaints  they  had  to  make, 
liigEcd  them  to  suggest  remedies,  cordially  assented  to  the  pro|)riety  of 
;dl  thai  they  |)roposed,  and  closed  the  conference,  by  undertaking  on  the 
I'ir!  of  the  king,  that  everything  should  be  arranged  lo  their  entire  satis- 
fariKiii.  It  might  be  supposed  that  men  of  their  rank,  men,  too,  who  had 
entcreii  upon  so  perilous  an  undertaking,  woidil  have  had  iheirsuspii'ions 
aroused  by  tli(!  very  facility  of  the  iissent  to  their  terms  ;  and  it  is  diffieidt, 
(Veil  with  the  well-iiutlienticated  aceoiuit  before  us,  to  believe  that  so  far 
from  that  being  the  case,  they  actually  suspected  nothnig  when  Wesl- 
moii'iaiiil  |)roposei|  thai,  iiS  all  their  terms  had  been  agreed  to,  and  there 
was  nil  longer  any  feud  between  Iheiii  and  his  royal  master,  both  armies 
^hiMiid  he  ilisbaiided,  tliat  the  country  might  be  relieved  from  the  very 
ureal  liiinhi'ii  of  having  two  siu'li  large  and  expensive  bodies  to  support, 
liai  the  eai'l  and  ilie  ar'bbisliop,  like  the  doomed  men  l()ld  of  in  tales  of 
iili'lieral'l,  nisheil  upon  their  ruin  with  closed  eyes.  They  disbanded  their 
uriiiy.  nnil  Westinareland  pretended  to  disband  his  •  but  the  instant  that 


m 


;;;iT 


348 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


his  opponents  were  utterly  powerless,  Westmoreland's  secret  orders  can 
ed  his  forces  together  again  iis  if  by  nirigic,  and  Noitingliam  and  the  arpi,. 
bishop  were  made  prisoners,  and  sent  to  the  king,  who  was  at  iliitmo. 
ment  making  forced  marches  towards  Iheni,  in  tlie  expeotati(ni  ni  linvino 
to  oppose  tiiem  in  the  field.  The  earl  of  Nottingham  and  tlie  archbishop 
were  both  condemned  and  huh  executed  ;  a  new  proof,  as  regards  the 
archbishop,  of  the  very  limited  extent  to  whii^h  Rome  cuuld  at  this  lime 
exert  its  formerly  great  power  in  England. 

The  earl  of  Northumberland,  cm  learning  this  new  calamity,  which  wiis 
chiefly  attributable  to  the  double  folly  of  his  friends  in  revolting  before  lie 
could  join  them,  and  in  listening  to  deceptions  by  which  even  cliildrcn 
ought  not  to  have  been  imposed  upon,  escaped  into  Scotland,  auci)iii[i;iiij(.(i 
by  lord  Bardolph;  and  Henry  revenged  himself  upon  them  by  seizing  ;ii:d 
dismantling;  all  their  fortresses.  This  done,  Henry  marched  ai'-iinsi 
(ilendwyr,  over  whom  the  prince  of  Wales  had  obtained  some  advan- 
tages ;  but  though  (tlendwyr  was  not  in  force  to  meet  his  enemies  in  the 
field,  his  nionntain  fastnesses  and  the  incorruptible  fidelity  of  iiis  friemls 
enabled  him  to  escape  from  being  captured. 

A.  D.  1407. — The  earl  of  Northumberland  and  Lord  Bardolph.  more  m 
veterate  than  ever  against  Henry,  since  ho  had  dismantled  tlieir  castles, 
entered  the  north  of  England  with  but  a  slender  retinue,  in  the  hope  that 
sympathy  with  them  and  hatred  of  the  king  would  cause  the  people  to 
flock  to  their  standard.  Hut  if  Henry's  crimes  had  made  him  hated,  Ins 
success  had  made  him  feared  ;  tlx!  attempt  was  unsuccessful.  :ii)d  the 
sheriff  of  York,  Sir  Thomas  Hokeby,  having  got  together  a  force,  sml. 
deuly  attacked  the  outlawed  nobles,  both  of  whom  perished  in  the  h;iitle, 
To  complete  Henry's  good  fortune  and  wludly  free  him  from  his  domestic 
enemies,  the  formidable  Gleudwyr  soon  after  died. 

Fortune  served  Henry  in  Scotland  as  it  already  had  served  him  in  Kng. 
land.  Robert  HI.,  a  mild  and  inctipahle  sovereign,  allowed  his  hnitlier, 
the  duke  of  Albany,  completely  to  usurp  his  luithoriiy  ;  Albany,  tyraniiiial 
and  ambitious,  thrinv  his  idder  nephew,  David,  the  heir  appiiret'it  to  the 
throne,  into  prison,  where  (le  was  starved  to  death.  Robert's  yoinigesi 
son,  James,  who  alone  now  stood  between  Albany  ami  that  ihroiie  for 
which  he  had  already  committed  so  awful  a  crime,  was  sent  by  bis  aliirm- 
ed  father  for  saO  ty  to  France,  but  the  vessel  in  which  he  Su  Id  was  rap- 
tured by  the  Enj..ish,  and  the  prince  was  carried  to  London.  There  was 
at  the  time  a  truce  between  England  and  Scotland,  not  withstaiKhnmvhich 
Henry  would  not  part  with  his  young  prisoner;  and  this  virtnaliossol 
his  only  remaining  child  ccuniiletely  broke  the  heart  of  the  niifintiiiiate 
Robert,  who  shortly  afterwards  died.  Henry  now  had  a  most  stringent 
power  over  Albany,  who  governed  Seotlaml  as  regent ;  for  he  miild  emi- 
tiriue  the  duke  in  that  high  ofTiee  by  detaining  young  James,  wiiiie,  upon 
the  slightest  breach  of  peace  on  the  dukti's  sidiN  Henry  could  at  nnce 
ruin  him  and  gain  the  friendship  of  the  Scots  by  restoring  them  their 
rightful  king. 

In  the  wars  which  occurred  among  the  French  factions  durintr  the  latiti 
part  ot  this  reign  Henry  look  but  little  part,  and  nothing  that  iiis  troups 
did  in  that  country  was  of  sulhcieiit  importance  to  merit  any  detailed 
mt'Ution. 

It  must  not  be  supposed  that  the  kinir,  though  outwardly  lliiis  pronpor- 
ons,  eiijoyed  his  usurjied  dignity  wiihiMit  any  drawbacks.  His  iiienliil 
sutrerings  art!  described  to  liavi'  been  tremendous ;  the  greatest  siieeess 
could  not  fortify  his  mind  tigainst  a  harrowing  dread  of  future  misforiinn', 
and  even  wh  le  he  ^vas  preparing  for  new  crimes  by  which  to  support  his 
throne,  he  wos  haunted  by  remorse  for  the  old  ones  by  wliieb  lie  had 
Hcquired  it.  This  |.erpetiial  misery  at  length  wholly  deprived  iiiaiof  his 
reason,  and  h<  died  the  victim  of  crime  and  remorse,  a  worn  out  luaa, 


THE  THKA8IJRY  OF  HISTORY. 


34» 


*.|iile  yet  as  to  age  only  in  the  very  prime  of  life,  on  the  20tli  fif  March, 
1413,  ill  the  thirteenth  year  of  hisreign  ami  lu  llie  forty-sixth  of  his  age. 

Of  this  reign  little  ne(!d  be  said  in  the  way  of  snininary.  Ill  acquired 
as  was  Henry's  authority,  he  bhowed  himself  si>  able  to  wield  it,  that  had 
lie  been  a  legitimate  sovereign  his  reign  woulJ  undoubtedly  iia'.  been  one 
of  ihe  most  glorious  in  tnir  lustory. 

The  parliament,  profiting  by  the  defect  of  ilie  king's  title,  made  con- 
siderable advances  in  authority  in  this  reign:  but  ihongh  Henry  was 
politic  enough  to  yield  in  matters  of  lilile  iiioini'iil,  he  also  knew  how  to 
refuse  when  refusal  was  necessary  to  prcvtMii  encroaehinenl  from  going 
furllier.  Thus  on  one  occasion  he  dismissed  four  (lersons  from  his  liouse- 
Lolil,  iiieludiiig  his  ('onfcssor,  at  the  demand  of  the  commons ;  while  on 
Miollier,  he  replied  to  the  demand  of  the  ciimmoiis  for  greater  lenity  to 
the  Lollards,  by  ordering  a  Lollard  to  be  burned  before  the  close  of  the 
sessiua ! 


CHAPTER  XXIX. 


THK    RV.U-.S    OF    HKMIV    V. 


A.D.  1413. — TnouoH  the  iiad  title  of  Henry  IV., and  the  care  with  wliich 
his  f.ilhei's  jealous  suspicious  diiriiig  Ihe  lailer  years  oP'  !  reign  had 
causRit  him  to  exclude  his  scm  from  any  ^sll  in;  in  the  civ ,,  vernment 
secmeil  to  give  the  young  prince  but  lilile  o()portimily  of  easny  scemliiig 
llie  lliroiie,  he  had  the  very  great  adv  uilnge  of  beiiijf  popular.  The 
fdUiiilff  and  eoiidnct  which  he  hail  sliouii  lu  miliiary  airairs,  so  far  as  his 
f;illii'rli  III  allowed  him  ti  act  In  tlieiii,  an  I  a  ccriaiii  chivalric  and  f.iulamic 
geiienisily,  had  not  only  caused  the  people  to  set  at  least  a  full  i  alue 
iipiiii  whal  he  did  of  guoil,  hut  also  to  excuse,  as  the  mere  "  Mas  i  and 
oulbreak  of  a  fiery  miinl,'"  irregulariljis  whirli  would  have  exi-iliH  their 
iiiiniist  iuilignation  against  a  piiiice  of  :uore  sullen  and  less  gi  icrous 
ipiiiper. 

Looked  n|iiiii  with  jealousy  by  his  father,  a'ld  discouriged,  or  rather 
preveiilC'l,  from  mixing  willi  the  si.itiisiiii'ji  of  tlie  day  and  sharij..,'  in  the 
I'ares  of  g'lverninent,  ili(!  menurial  l('m|i"r  of  ihe  young  prmci  c;msed 
liiiii  to  seek  pleasure  and  com[)aniouslii[)  ou'  of  his  proper  splu-r  ,  and  to 
nuke  himself  talked  of  among  his  fnlure  subjects  for  many  frolics,  which 
ill  any  other  person  would  have  been  treated  as  crimes  of  no  ordinary 
ma;riiiiMde.  Me  not  mily  ri"ted  and  drank  wiih  iiieii  of  bad  n^piite  and 
bniken  foitune,  but  it  is  even  said  llui  ou  more!  than  one  oec:ision  he 
jiiineil  lliein  in  laying  llu^  wealthy  pi.ssenger  under  coutrihutioii  ou  the 
liiL'liway.  Sliakspeare.  who  in  tins  as  in  many  oilier  eases  has  painted 
faillifiilly,  in  ikes  F.ilstalF  e.\e|aiin  In  this  y<.iiiiu'  (innce — '' iiob  me  the 
I'X'heipier,  Hal!"  bill  the  prince,  if  Instoria'is  speak  the  trnili,  took  the 
lilierly  to  rob  the  subject  (.-re  his  eoiii  eoul  I  liiid  lis  way  to  ihe  exchequer. 
Siii'li  a  course  was  but  ill  a  lapied  to  reeoncile  the  nation  lo  the  bel  tiih; 
ti|iiiii  u'liji'li  Henry  V.  iimv  aseende  I  Ihe  ihro.i".  or  lo  give  tlteiii  liopu  that 
Ihe  laws  would  be  well  admiiiisiered  un  ler  his  governineiii.  lint  as  his 
generous  and  giy  naliire  hid  reconeiled  iheni  to  the  faults  of  ihe  youth- 
ful |iriiiee,  so  IMW,  yoili'.'  as  he  still  wh-<,  ihe  wis  loin  and  propriely  of  his 
Very  first  act  gavt;  thcnn  reason  to  think  lioiw|"ully  of  him  as  their  king. 

(ill  one  of  the  many  occasions  in  whieii  I'riiiC"  Heiiry's  lurbnleiit  com 
panioiis  had  disturbed  Ihe  public  peaee,  ceit.iiii  of  iliem  were  indicted  for 
.heir  luiseoiidiiet,  and  the  I'riiiee  Meiny  aileuded  their  trial  in  the  court 
of  Kiiij;'.s  lieueli.  I'lreeivi'ig  that  'hi'  hu'd  chief- jnsii.  * ,  (taseoiifue,  was 
iml  (iveraiveil  by  thi!  presence  of  the  heir  apparent,  Priiici-  Henry  was 
gniUv  o(  .MMiii^  iiilerriiplioii,  for  w'lie'i  the  chief  justiee  at  once  ordered 
liiin  lo  be  laken  to  prison.     It  may  be   doubled   whether  some  of  Ihf 


350 


THE  THEASURY  OF  HISTOEY. 


"  courage"  and  "  uprightness"  which  historians  so  emphatically  ati/ibutfi 
to  the  lord  f  hief-justice,  on  account  of  this  affi'ir,  did  not  originate  in  the 
knowledge  that  the  king  would  be  rather  plea-jnd  than  angry  at  any  mor- 
tification  inflicted  upon  the  popular  heir  appj  rent.  At  all  events,  how. 
ever,  .ve  must  admit  that  Gascoigne  at  least  showed  that  he  did  not  cal 
cula:e,  as  many  more  eminent  men  have  done,  the  future  consequences 
of  Wis  present  performance  of  his  duty. 

On  the  accession  of  Henry  V.,  Gascoigne  waited  upon  him  with  every 
expectation  of  receiving  the  plainest  discouragement;  but  tliekjiiff, so 
far  from  showing  himself  offended  at  the  past,  made  it  the  especial'sub. 
ject  of  his  commendation,  and  exhorted  the  chief-justice  to  continue  still 
»o  administer  the  laws  faithfully  and  fearlessly,  without  reference  to  the 
rank  of  the  offender.  To  the  grave  and  wise  ministers  who  had  ablv 
served  his  father  the  young  king  gave  a  like  gracious  reception ;  and 
sending  for  the  former  companions  of  his  dissolute  youth,  he  made  them 
liberal  presents,  assured  them  of  his  intention  wholly  to  reform  his  way 
of  life,  and  forbade  their  ever  again  approaching  his  presence,  until  thev 
should  have  followed  his  present  example,  as  they  had  participated  and 
encouraged  his  former  vice. 

Most  men  were  greatly  surprised  at  this  wise  conduct,  and  all  were 
jrladi'  ned  by  it ;  and  probably  none  were  more  completely  in  either  oi 
these  categories  than  the  ministers  who,  at  the  very  time  that  they 
imagined  they  were  earning  the  prince's  bitter  enmity  by  their  discour- 
agement of  his  youthful  levities,  were,  in  fact,  securing  both  his  esteoin 
and  his  confidence. 

Henry's  prudence  and  justice  were  not  manifested  merely  in  ihnii  mak- 
ing amends  for  his  own  early  follies.  Deeply  conscious  that  his  father 
had  wrongfully  acquired  that  throne  which  he  himself  had  too  much  am- 
bition to  give  up,  he  endeavoured,  in  all  but  giving  it  up,  to  do  all  thai  he 
could  towards  repairing  the  wrongs  committed  by  his  father.  He  caused 
the  memory  of  the  murdered  Richard  to  be  honoured  with  the  most 
solemn  and  splendid  obsequies  that  could  have  been  bestowed  upon  ;i 
potent  sovereign  newly  deceased,  and  he  set  at  liberty  the  young  earlol 
Marche,  of  whom  his  father  had  been  so  extremely  jealous,  and  showed 
him  every  kindness.  The  young  rarl,  who  was  of  an  extremely  mild 
temper  and  who  seemed  to  have  had  no  particle  of  ambition,  appeared 
fully  sensible  of  Henry's  kindncs-;,  and  hot  only  would  never  make  any 
attempt  to  disturb  his  government,  l)ut  showed  himself  strongly  and  sin- 
cerely attached  to  his  person.  As  if  anxious  to  leave  no  token  exisliii" 
of  the  sad  tinnults  of  the  lust  reign,  Henry  also  restored  the  Percy  family 
to  their  honours  and  property  ;  and  by  this  and  numerous  other  acts  indi- 
cative of  his  (lelcrmiiiation  to  forget  all  i)arty  distinctions,  ca.ised  all 
parties  to  he  loo  much  delighted  with  liis  use  of  power  to  have  cither 
leisure  or  inclination  In  inquire  iiow  he  bcame  possessed  of  it. 

But  party  spirit  could  not  be  wholly  eradicated  from  the  popular  heart 
even  by  the  personal  exhorliitions  and  example  of  the  king  himself.  The 
horrible  punishments  which  in  the  recent  reign  were  fo"*  the  first  time  in 
Knj/laiul  inflicted  upon  hcjrelics,  thoii;^!!  it  mijrlit  have  awed  many  wlui 
would  oiiierwise  have  coiUinr 'd  to  be  Lollards,  far  more  certainly  made 
many  such,  who,  but  fur  this  terrible  advertisement,  would  liavt;  gone  lu 
their  graves  in  ignorance  of  llu;  very  (  xist(>nc(!  of  Lollaniism.  The  pub- 
lic attention  was  roused  anu  fixed  by  these  brutal  executions ;  discnssioii 
iiid  inquiry  I'ullowed,  and  by  degrees  the  country  became  divided  into  two 
parties,  the  friends  of  Rome  and  the  Lollards  ;  and  if  the  latter  were  by 
far  inferior  to  the  foriniu-  in  number,  they  were  already  sullicicutly  num- 
erous to  catise  great  amioyance  to  the  clergy  and  some  anxiety  even  to 
the  civil  i>"-,  cc 

By  fa  -  the  most  eminent  man  among  the  liUUards  at  tills  time  was  Lord 


I  ! 


THE  TREA8UEY  OF  HISTOUY. 


361 


Cobham,  who,  both  under  that  title  and  as  Sir  John  Oldcastle,  had  done 
uood  service  to  the  nation,  and  had  been  honoured  with  the  notice  and 
approbation  of  both  the  late  and  the  present  king.  The  very  excellence 
of  iiis  character  and  the  extent  of  his  abilities  made  his  sectarianism  the 
more  offensive  to  the  church  ;  and  as  it  was  deemed  that  the  increasing 
number  of  the  Lollards  required  to  be  checked  by  some  especially  striking 
example,  Lord  Cobham  was  selected  as  the  victim,  and  the  archbishop  of 
Canterbury,  Arundel,  applied  to  Henry  for  permission  lo  indict  Cobham. 

Henry,  who  seems  to  huve  been  better  aware  than  the  bigoted  arch- 
bishop of 'he  real  eflfects  of  persecution  in  matters  of  faith,  was  extremely 
unwilling  to  consent  to  a  prosecution  which,  he  judged,  would  but  loo 
surely  end  in  Cobham's  destruction ;  and  the  archbisliop  was  forbidden  to 
taiie  any  steps  until  Henry  himself  should  have  endeavoured,  by  force  of 
argument  alone,  to  lead  Cobham  back  to  the  church  from  wiiich  he  had 
de°parted.  Henry  accordingly  sent  for  Lord  Cobham  to  court,  and  en- 
deavoured to  convince  him  of  his  error;  but  Cobham  was  fully  equal  to 
Henry  in  the  use  of  intellectual  weapons,  and  was  not,  upon  so  important 
atopic,  at  all  inclined  to  sacrifi''e  truth  to  complaisance  and  etiquette. 
Finding  it  in  vain  to  endeavou'  to  convert  this  unfortunate  nobleman, 
Henry,  with  seemingly  sincere  r  ;gret,  was  obliged  to  give  the  clergy  their 
required  permission  to  indict  him.  The  archbishop,  assisted  Ijy  the  bishops 
of  London,  Winchester,  and  St.  David's,  proceeded  against  him,  and  he 
was  condemned  to  be  burned.  He  was  sent  to  the  Tower,  and  a  day  was 
appointed  for  his  execution,  but  before  that  day  arrived  he  managed  to 
escape  from  his  gaolers.  Naturally  of  a  fierce  and  somewhat  haughty 
•jinit,  the  treatment  he  had  received  and  the  danger  from  which  he  had 
60  narrowly  escaped  excitni  him  to  so  high  a  pitch  of  anger  and  resolu- 
lion,  that  I.J  determined  to  aim  at  a  general  revolution  of  the  kingdom. 
And  accordingly,  from  the  obscure  retreat  in  which  he  found  shelter,  he 
issued  orders  to  the  Lollards  upon  whom  he  could  most  depend,  to  join 
him  upon  a  certain  day,  tliat  tliey  might  in  the  first  place  seize  upon  the 
person  of  the  king,  who  was  at  that  time  lodging  in  the  palace  of  Ellham, 
in  Kent,  and  then  take  summary  vengeance  upon  the  chiefs  of  their  per- 
secutors. 

\.  D.  1414. — As  Cobham  was  very  highly  esteemed  among  the  Lollards, 
ami  as  they  wen;  not  only  very  numerous  but  also  included  a  great  num- 
ber of  wealthy  and  respectable  persons,  the  king,  who  was  informed  of 
ivliat  was  in  contemplation,  deemed  it  necessary  not  only  to  guard  him- 
self an;ainst  the  intended  sur[>rise,  but  also  to  prepare  to  resist  open  insur- 
reetion.  He  accordingly  removed  to  the  palace  at  Westminster,  and  pre- 
pared himself  for  whatever  force  Cobliani  might  be  able  to  bring.  Even 
now  Cobham  had  ample  opportunity  to  abandon  his  design,  which  became 
liopeless  from  the  moment  it  became  known,  and  to  es(;ape  from  the  king- 
;lom.  Ihit  he  seems  to  have  been  of  a  temper  which  difliculty  and  danger 
might  enrage  but  could  not  intimidate,  ai\d  he  assembled  all  the  forces  he 
could  raise  in  the  fields  of  St.  Giles.  Being  made  acquainted  with  the 
cippoiiited  time  as  well  :'s  place  of  meeting,  the  king  caused  the  gates  of 
ilic  city  to  be  closed,  to  [I'-event  the  discontented  from  getting  an  increase 
lotheir  numbers  from  '!'■  t  quarter;  he  then  went,  well  attended,  lo  St. 
Kill's,  and  seized  those  of  the  leaders  who  had  already  arrived,  while  the 
military,  skilfully  stationed,  jirn.'sted  all  who  were  found  hastening  to  the 
spot.  It  appeared  that,  as  is  usual  in  such  cases,  the  greater  number  of 
llie  prisoners  knew  little  or  nothing  of  the  real  (lesigns  of  their  leaders, 
though  of  the  criminal  and  treasonable  desi>rns  of  the  latter  there  remained 
r.o  shadow  of  doubt.  Those  who  were  pinved  to  have  treasonable  dc- 
sijus  were  executed,  but  by  far  the  greater  number  were  pardoned.  Ue 
whom  the  clergy  were  the  most  anxious  to  punish,  and  who,  indeed,  was 
now  not  nmch  less  obnoxious  lo  the  civil  Hum  to  the  ecclesiastical  autho 


mK0 


362 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


I 


y 


lii 


rity,  the  Lord  Cobtiam  himself,  was  lortmiale  enough  to  escape.  But 
eenteiice  was  proiioiiiiced  ayraiiist  h\ii\,  par  cuniumace^  as  a  traitor  and  a 
relapsed  and  incorrif;ililt!  Iieieiic;  and  being  apprehended  about  foiirytMrs 
afterwards,  he  was  Iiangod  fur  iiis  partieipation  in  treason  against  ihe 
king,  and  liis  body  was  burned  in  pur.suaiiee  of  tiie  sentenee  passed  a'luuist 
him  for  lieresy. 

Tiie  severity  with  which  the  leaders  in  tliiserude  and  ill-plaiuiecl  revolt 
were  treated,  and  the  advantage  winch  'lie  cireu.nslances  of  it  gavt- ilm 
clergy,  in  being  able  to  connect  heresy  and  treaso'i  ms  offences  eouplit)  hy 
necesfity  and  naturally  springnig  tliH  one  from  tlu  other,  had  a  vi-iy  seii- 
sible  effect  in  checking  the  progress  of  Lollardy  ;  but  not  so  much  on  nc. 
count  of  the  terror  attacluul  to  the  punishmeiil,  as  the  disgrace  and  Cim- 
tempt  which  seemed  everywhere  to  attach  to  the  crime.  Very  wisely 
the  clergy  and  ihe  civil  authorities  appeared  at  this  lime  to  treat  the  Luj. 
lards,  associated  as  they  had  confessedly  been  with  the  civil  disturhaiicc? 
of  Uobhain,  not  so  much  as  heretics  as  partly  heretics  and  panly  Umse 
fellows  who  were  desirous  of  causing  public  dislurbance  for  the  hciiur 
Hccomplishment  of  their  own  i)rivate  ends;  a  mode  of  trcalmg  tla;  ucise 
the  best  possible  for  making  it  intolerable  in  the  eyes  of  all  decent  priijiie, 
and  for  depriving  such  people  of  all  curiosity  as  to  iis  doctrinal  peciiji.ir. 
ities.  Happy  had  it  been  for  mankind  if  ridicule  had  ever  been  the  sub- 
stitute for  perseitution  !  'I'rutli,  indeeil,  woiiUl  ov(!rcoine  the  former  as  it 
has  the  latter;  but  what  pangs  would  have  been  spared  to  some  of  the 
combatants— what  dark  and  undying  infamy  to  others!  Nor  was  it 
merely  among  the  unreflecting  midiitiide,  and  those  who,  simply  wiili  re- 
ference to  their  worldly  possession.^,  were  unwilling  to  countenance  Ihuse 
whose  opiiiimis  and  practices  were  likely  to  disturb  the  puhlic  peace  mid 
put  wealth  in  peril,  that  the  exploded  plot  of  Cobham  raused  a  disuisie 
for  Lollardism.  Tlie  parliament  met  just  after  the  dispersion  of  tJobliaiii's 
adherents,  and  one  of  its  first  acts  was  hn-elled  against  heretics.  This 
act  provided  that  all  persons  who  were  (ronvicted  of  Lollardy  should  imi 
only  be  capitally  punished,  as  was  provided  for  by  the  fiunier  aii,  but 
should  also  forfeit  all  their  lands  and  goods  whatever  to  the  kiiiji;  and 
that  the  chancellor,  treasurer,  the  justices  of  the  [leace,  and  chief  innjfis- 
trates  of  all  cities  and  boroughs,  shoiilil  be  sworn  to  use  their  uiinust 
pains  and  diligence  in  the  e.\iir|)ation  of  heresy. 

That  the  Lollards  wen;  feared  and  detested,  less  on  account  of  their 
religious  heresy  than  as  civil  disturbers,  appears  from  ihcctniirast  buirtci'ii 
the  act  thus  providing,  and  the  subsequent  coolness  with  which  the  s;i  w 
parliament,  on  the  king  demanding  a  supply,  begged  him,  instead  of  piini  ;' 
them  to  the  task  of  imposing  a  tax  upon  the  people,  to  take  posse.isnii,  il 
the  ecclesiastical  revenues  and  convert  tliiun  to  the  use  of  the  cnmii, 
The  renewal  of  this  profiosiiiim,  which  had  formerly  been  made  to  liiniVs 
father,  threw  the  clergy  into  ala'-m.  To  turn  the  king's  aUenlioii  from  ihe 
proposed  wholesale  spoliation  id'  the  church,  they  endeavouied  at  on>;('  lu 
supply  his  more  pressing  and  immediate  wants,  and  to  conciliate  liis  per- 
sonal favour,  by  voluntarily  conferring  upon  him  the  valuable  alien  piiurifs 
which  were  de()endent  ujion  chief  abbeys  in  Normandy,  and  had  hcen  lie- 
queathed  to  those  abbeys  while  Kngland  and  Normaiiiiy  were  siill  nmlcJ 
under  the  crown  of  England.  Siill  fiirllier  to  turn  the  attention  of  the 
king  from  a  proposal  which  was  so  ,  vegiiHiit  with  alarm  and  danger  in  ;lie 
clergy,  Chichely,  the  then  archbishop  of  (^'anterbury,  endeavoured  to  eiP 
gage  the  king  in  a  war  with  France. 

A.  D.  141.5. — In  this  design  of  the  archbishop — a  design,  be  it  parenllie- 
tically  said,  which  was  much  more  politic  than  either  humane  or  Christian 
—  he  was  considerably  aided  by  the  dying  iiijunelions  of  Henry  IV.,  «lio 
had  warned  his  son,  if  he  could  at  all  plausibly  engage  the  Knylish  [vnple 
in  war,  never  to  allow  them  to  reniani  at  peace,  which  would  iiifailibl) 


THE  THEASUttY  OP  HISTORY. 


35« 


turn  their  inclinations  towards  domestic  dissensions.  The  kingdom  of 
France  had  now  for  a  long  time  been  plunged  in  the  utmost  confusion  and 
discord,  and  the  various  parties  had  been  guilty  of  cruelties  and  outrages, 
disgraceful  not  merely  to  themselves  but  even  to  our  common  nature. 
The  state  of  that  kingdom  was  consequently  at  this  time  such  as  to  iiold 
out  advantages  to  Henry,  which  were  well  calculated  to  give  force  to  tiie 
advice  of  Chiciiely  and  the  dying  request  of  Henry  Iv.  Hut  just  as 
Henry,  who  did  not  want  for  either  ambition  or  a  warlike  spirit,  wa.s  pre- 
paring and  meditating  an  attack  upon  the  neighbouring  and  rival  kingdom, 
his  iitiention  was  for  the  moment  arrested  by  the  discovery  of  a  dangerous 
aidexleusive  conspiracy  at  home. 

As  we  have  already  said,  the  young  earl  of  Marche  was  so  sensible  of 
the  i(indness  shown  to  him  by  the  present  king  at  the  commencement  of 
his  reign,  that  he  seemed  to  have  no  desire  ever  to  give  any  disturbance 
to  his  government.  But  tlie  earl's  sister  was  married  to  the  earl  of  Cam- 
bridge, second  son  to  the  deceased  duke  of  York,  and  he  thus,  not  unna- 
turaFly,  became  anxiously  concerned  for  the  rights  and  interests  of  a 
family  with  which  he  had  himself  become  so  intimately  connected. — 
Deeming  it  possible  to  recover  the  crown  for  that  family,  he  took  pains  to 
acquire  partizans,  and  addressed  himself,  among  others,  to  Lord  Scrope 
of  Masham,  and  to  Sir  Thomas  Grey  of  Heaton.  Whether  from  treachery 
or  from  want  of  sufficient  caution  on  the  part  of  tiie  earl  of  Cambridge, 
the  conspiracy  became  known  to  the  king  before  it  had  gone  beyond  the 
mere  preliminaries ;  but  tiie  conspirators  upon  being  seized  made  such 
ample  disclosures  of  their  ultimate  designs,  as  both  enabled  the  king  to 
order  their  trial,  and  fully  warranted  him  in  so  doing.  They  were  in  the 
first  instance  tried  by  a  jury  of  commoners,  and  condemned  upon  the  tes- 
timony of  the  constable  of  Southampton  castle,  who  swore  that  the  pris- 
oners had  confessed  their  guilt  to  him ;  but  they  afterwards  pleaded,  and 
were  allowed  their  privilege  as  peers.  But  though  Henry  had  iiitherto 
sliown  so  much  inclination  to  moderation,  he  on  this  occasion  evinced 
no  desire  to  depart  from  the  arbitrary  practices  of  the  kings  of  that  age. 
icourt  of  eighteen  barons  was  summoned  and  presided  over  by  the  duke 
of  Clarence ;  before  this  court  the  single  testimony  that  had  been  given 
before  the  common  jury  was  read,  and  without  further  evidence  or  nearer 
approach  to  even  the  form  of  a  trial,  these  two  prisoners,  one  of  them  a 
prince  of  the  blood,  were  condemned  to  deatii  without  being  heard  in 
iheir  own  defence,  or  even  being  produced  in  court,  and  were  executed 
accordinffly ! 

This  ill-digosted  and  unsuccessful  attempt  of  his  brother-in-law  put  the 
young  earl  of  Marche  in  considerable  peril.  As  it  was,  nommally,  on  his 
account  that  the  war  was  to  have  been  levied  against  the  king,  lie  was 
accused  of  having  at  least  consented  to  the  conspiracy ;  but  the  constant 
aiiachment  he  iiad  shown  to  Henry  had  probably  gained  him  a  strong 
personal  interest  with  that  monarcii,  wiio  freed  him  from  all  further  peril 
oiiaccouiit  of  this  aflFair  by  giving  iiim  a  general  pardon  for  all  offences. 

As  soon  as  the  excitement  consequent  upon  this  conspiracy  had  soino- 
ivhal  passed  away,  Henry  again  turned  his  attention  towards  France. 

The  duke  of  Burgundy,  who  had  been  expelled  from  France  by  a  com- 
filiation  of  the  usually  jarring  powers  of  that  country,  iiad  been  in  su(!h 
correspondence  with  Henry,  that  the  latter  prince  felt  quite  secure  of  the 
iiike's  aid  whenever  an  Knglisii  army  should  appear  to  claim  it;  and 
ilierefore,  witho'it  making  any  precise  arrangements  with  the  duke,  and 
indeed  without  rvcM  coming  to  any  positive  agreement  with  iiim,  Henry, 
on  the  14th  of  August  in  this  year,  put  to  sea  and  landed  safely  in  i\or- 
Jiaiidy,  with  about  twenty-four  thousand  infantry,  chiefly  consisting  ol 
ircliers,  and  six  thousand  men-at-arms. 

Harfleur  had  for  its  governor  D'E.«touteville,  under  whose  commaii 
Vol.  I.— 23 


ti 


\!^  . 


1 


,^^p»ii»iM^ 


M4 


THE  TREASUUY  OF  HISTORY. 


i 


were  De  Guitri,  De  Gaucourt,  and  other  eminent  French  soldiers.    Henrv 
laid  immediate  siege  to  the  place,  but  was  so  stoutly  and  successfully  rZ 
sisted,  that,  between  the  excessive  fatigue  and  the  more  than  usual  heat 
of  the  weather,  his  men  suffered  dreadfully,  and  were  alarmiiii;ly  thinned 
by  f(!ver  and  other  sicknessei.     But,  in  spite  of  all  losses  and  discourage- 
ments, Henry  gallantly  persevered;  and  the  French  were  so  mucli  strait! 
ened,  that  they  were  obliged  to  promise  that  if  no  relief  were  afforded 
them  by  the  Kith  of  September,  they  would  evacuate  the  place.    No  sions 
of  relief  appearing  on  that  day,  the  English  were  admitted;  but  so  much 
was  the  army  thinned,  and  in  so  sickly  a  condition  were  the  majority  of 
the  survivors,  that  Ilcury,  far  from  having  any  enoouragcment  to  follow 
up  this  success  by  some  new  enterprise,  was  advised  by  all  iibout  him  lo 
turn  his  attention  to  gelling  the  skeleton  of  bis  army  in  safety  bark  to 
England.     Even  this  wns  no  easy  or  safe  matter.     On  his  first  landing  hi- 
had  so  little  anticipated  the  havoc  which  fatigue  and  sickness  had  niailc 
in  his  army,  that  lie  had  incautiously  dismissed  his  transports;  and  ho 
now  lay  uiulcr  the  necessity  of*marching  by  land  to  Calais,  ere  lio  nmV, 
place  bis  troops  out  of  danger,  and  that,  too,  in  the  face  of  an  arinv  m' 
fourteen  thousand  meu-at-arins  and  forty  thousand  foot,  asscmhleil  m 
Normandy  under  the  command  of  tlu;  constable  D'Albret.    Tlu;  Fremdi 
force  so  tremendously  outnumbering  that  of  Henry,  he  very  prudenilv 
offered  to  sacrifice  bis  recent  conquest  of  llartlcur,  at  the  pike  of  biini; 
allowed  to  jiass  unmolested  (o  Calais  ;  but  the  rrencli,  coiifidiMit  .;i  ihti'r 
6U|)('riority,  rejected  bis  proposal.     Henry,  tbertfore,  in  order  equally  lo 
avoid  (lisciiurageinentlo  bis  own  troops  and  eiicnuragtMnctit  to  tin;  i'u-v.'A. 
retreated   by  easy  marches  to  the  Komiiie,  where  he^  hoped  to  p.iss  ijn 
fcrd  at  niamiuet.iirne.as  Ivhvanl  bad  escapi'd  from  Pliilip  di;  Valuis  under 
very  similar  circuinstanccs;  but  he  found  that  the  French  had  taken  tlic 
prceaiition  to  render  tbi'  ford  im|iassable,  besides  lining  ihe  opposjic  hmk 
with  a  strong  iiody  of  troops,  and  he  was  iilijiyed  to  seek  a  jiassiigc  liiijirr 
U|i  the   river.     Scarcely  anything  conld  exceed  the  distress  of  llii;r\'s 
present  situation.     His  troojis  wen^  fast  pcrisbiiig  with  coiiliiuial  f.iiiiii,. 
and  the  prevalent  sickness  ;  be  c  uild  proi'iire  no  provisions,  owiii;;  lu  iin' 
activity  of  the  French;  and  every  when!  he  fi)iiiid  biinself  coufronieil  liy 
ninni'roiis  eneniics,  ready  lo  f;dl  npoji  hini  llic  insianl  lie  slionld  erossim' 
river.     Hut  under  all  Ibes'!  circuinst;inces   Henry  preserved  his  fdiiri^'i 
and  pre«cnce  of  mind;  and  a  fold  near  Si,  (inenlin   being  but  sliiidtrlv 
guarded,  hi'  surprised  llie  ciieiny  Ibi're,  and  led  bis  unny  ovrr  in  safiiy. 

Henry  now  hastened  towiirds  Calais,  but  In  passing  t'le  little  river  uf 
Ternoi ;,  at  Illan;;!,  be  had  the  inorlificitiiiii  to  perceive  the  in.iin  lioh nf 
the  i'rcmdi  driiwn  up  ;iiid  a\\  ailing  niiii  in  ttir  extensive  plains  of  \.ri:i- 
court.  To  reacli  Calais  willioiil  an  aitinn  was  now  evidently  iiii|)osMli|'', 
the  French  were  lo  the  F,iii,'lisli  as  four  to  one,  bcsidf's  beiiiir  fne  fnm 
8i(  kiirss,  and  alinndaiilly  su|pplied  witii  provisions;  in  a  word,  iliinyui- 
now  in  fully  as  dangerinis  a  position  as  that  of  Fdvvard  ill  Crcsi; ,  or  ii' 
lirrnie  Ulack  l'niic(!  at  I'oitiers.  Situated  as  tbcv  bad  bein,  he  resoKiJ 
to  imitate  llieir  i)lan  of  battle,  ;nid  be  awaited  the  ;illack  of  the  eneiiiy  'ii. 
a  narrow  land  closely  Canked  by  a  wood  on  eillier  side.  Willi  iliiir  il- 
vantage  in  miie'icrs  ;iiid  faeiliiies  of  obtaiiiiiio  provisions,  the  Vuir 
ongbl  rlearlj  <  have  reinanird  (d)stinalily  on  the  (IrfeiiMve,  until  K' 
,l')iii>lisli  sliinild  oy  al)solule  famine  lir  oliliui'd  t,i  ;i(|vance  from  ihi'ir  h\"m- 
abh'  position;  a  position  wlncli,  lo  .1  vers  gn  at  extent,  gave  the  ;i'h  111 
tat;e  to  till'  side  having  the  smalbr  niiiiil)ir  of  men  to  niiomuvre.  |1„; 
till  ir  vrry  superiority  III  ninnlirrs  deprived  Ibe  Freiieb  (d' all  (iniiluM' 
niid  they  pressed  forward  as  if  to  ciiisli  llie  Eniilidi  by  their  iiH're  Wl•;^!• 
'I'lic  irounled  cridiers  and  iiien-alnnns  rushed  111  erowded  r  inks  ii(0' '  • 
Fiiitbsli,  who.  defended  by  iiilisadoes,  and  free  liniii  tile  crdwdmi!  «ii 
•iiiburruBMud  (he  uclioiis  and  dislraetcd  tbe  alteuliou  of  tli«' riieiiiy.  i>i 


K 


THE  TREASURY  0J<'  HISTORY. 


35S 


Idiers.    Henry 
iUccessfuUy  re- 
than  usual  heal 
■mindly  thinned 
and  discourage- 
so  much  strait- 
f  were  afforded 
luce.    No  signs 
d ;  but  so  much 
the  majority  of 
[ement  lu  follow 
all  iilioul  him  to 
II  sufety  hack  to 
>s  first  landing  lii' 
:kiu;ss  had  inuili' 
uisports;  and  lie 
lais,  ere  he  ('(lulil 
ce  of  an  army  of 
i)t,  assemWed  ni 
ri-l.     Tlie  Freni'li 
10  very  prudently 
he  prue  of  boniL' 
coufuli'iU  ,a  ihtir 
1  order  equally  lu 
lent  to  the  i"ifi;;''i, 
liopcd  to  pass  llic 
lip  i\i;  Valuis  under 
ich  liad  taken  the 
'  the  opposite  li;ink 
'k  a  passage  liia;!"'! 
islrt'ss  of  lli'iiry's 
li  coiitiuual  fatimif 
iioiis,  owing  to  ii,i 
isclf  confronted  by 
..  should  cross  tiif 
served  Ills  coura;;i 
(•ins  I'Ut  slenderly 
liver  in  safely. 
Vic  little  river  nf 
(.  the  in.iin  holy  (if 
■(■  plains  of  Ai"!' 
Iciilly  iiii|io!'mWi'. 
cs  lii'liia  tree  ti;ilTl 
I  wold,  llciiry  Wi- 
lli Cress;',  01  Hi' 
lieeii,  he  resohcJ 
,if  the  enemy  "ii 
With  tlii'it  'l; 
isioiis,  the  rrn'i' 
.,  ;eiiMve,  until  111- 
.,.  froio  their  lav"iii- 
W,  sjave  the  aiH  m- 
1,1  in!iii»'uvre.    lU 
,  (.f  all  priid'"'' 
V  Iheir  mere  ^^vl^^ 
,,|f(l  ranks  iijO''- 
111,,  crovvdim;  «"' 
„f  ilie  enemy.  ^'•^■ 


them  Nvitli  ii  deadly  and  incessant  shower  of  shafts  and  bolts.  The  heavy 
land,  reiide  ed  still  more  ditficult  and  tenacluns  by  recent  rain,  was  highly 
disadvantageous  to  the  French  cavalry,  who  were  soon  still  farther  in- 
commoded in  their  movements  by  the  innumerable  dead  and  dying  men 
and  horses  with  which  the  P^nglisli  archers  strewed  the  narrow  ground 
When  the  disorder  of  the  enemy  was  at  its  height,  Henry  ga»'e  orders 
10 the  English  to  advance  with  their  pikes  and  battle-axes;  and  the  men- 
li-arins  following  them,  tiie  confn.sed  and  pent-up  multitudt^  fell  in 
crowds,  without  even  the  possibility  of  resistance.  The  panic  of  the 
enemy  speedily  led  to  a  general  rout,  with  thu  sole  exception  of  the 
French  rear-guard,  which  still  maintained  itself  in  line  of  battle  upon 
the  open  plain  This  also  was  .speedily  cut  to  pieces;  and  just  a.s  the  ac- 
iioii  closed  completely  in  favour  of  the  Mnglish,  an  incident  occurred 
which  .used  the  loss  of  the  French  to  be  far  more  numerous  in  killed 
than  it  oilierwise  would  have  heeii.  A  mob  of  a  few  peasants,  led  on  by 
some  gentlemen  in  Picanly,  had  fallen  upon  the  unarmed  followers  of 
die  English  tamp  with  the  design  of  seizing  upon  the  bagajage  ;  and  the 
alarm  and  outcry  thus  caused  leading  Henry  t(»  imagine  that  his  numer- 
ous prisoners  were  dangerous,  he  hastily  gave  ordiirs   for  them  to  he  put 

10  the  sword;  upon   whudi  a  terrible  slaughter  of  these  inihappy   men 
took  place  hefore  he  discovijriKl  his  mistake,  and  revoked  an  order  so 
sanguinary  and  so  contrary  to  the  laws  of  war- 
In  this  short  but  most  decisive  action  the   French  lost  ten  thousand 

killed,  of  whom  eight  thousmd  were  cavalry,  ami  fourteen  Ihoiis.ind 
pnsoncrs;  the  former  iiicluiled  the  constalile  d'.VIhret,  the  count  of  Nev- 
ers,  the  duke  of  [Iraliant.  the  duke  of  .VleiKj'iiii,  the  duke  of  li.iri't',  the 
euiMit  of  Vaudeinoiji,  and  the  count  of  .Marie  ;  while  among  the  jinsoiiers 
were  the  duke  of  llourbon,  the  duke  of  Orleans,  iiie  maresciial  Hoiicicaut, 
and  the  counts  d'Kii,  Veiidomc,  aii.l  Hichemonl.  Tlu!  Fiiglish  loss,  though 
tonsiJeralile,  was  small  compared  to  that  of  the  enemy,  and  the  chief 
Kiigli^huiaii  of  note  that  was  slain  was  tlu;  dnki.'  of  York.  As  if  I'ully 
salisliiil  Willi  his  victory,  and  intent  only  on  regaining  his  native  land, 
Henry  iniincdiately  eoiitiiined  his  march  to  (lalais,  wh.'iuM!  he  emliarked 
Hiili  his  prisoners  for  F.iiglaiid;  and  he  ^  ven  uiaiiled  the  French  a  truce 
for  two  years,  without  insislin^r  upon  any  corresponding  concussion  oii 
llieir  pari. 

A.  B.  IIH. — The  intestine  disputes  of  France  still  continuiMl  to  rasfe 
most  furiously;  not  only  were  the  i!uke  of  llnrgiiiidy  ami  the  I'rcnc'i 
I'oint  fiercely  warrint;  upon  each  oihee.  hut  coniiiiiicd  fciiils,  scarcely  leHs 
violent,  and  no  less  bitter,  r.igeil  among  the  various  niemhcrs  of  the  royal 
family.  This  stale  of  ihiiigs  eiieiMir.igcd  Henry  to  make  a  new  and 
stronger  aitcinpi  u|ioii  i'^rancc;  ami  he  landeil  ni  Normainly  at  tlie  head 
of  an  army  »( tweii,y-liv('  tlionsaii  I  men,  wiiliunt  eiieoimiciiiig  lh>'  sli^ht- 
e^i  opposition,  lie  took  Faliiisc  ;  Ijvreiix  ind  < 'aeii  immediately  Mirren- 
(lired  Ui  hiin.  and  I'oiit  dr   r\rclii'  (jiiickly  afterwards  ii|ieiieil   its   gates. 

11  nnig  siilidiied  all  Lower  .S'ormaiidy,  and  rei'eiveil  from  Mngland  a  re- 
liifoi'ccineiit  of  ril'ieen  thonsanl  men,  lleiiry  proceeiled  to  lay  siege  to 
Itouen.  While  thus  eiigai>e(|  he  was  visited  by  lli"  cardinal  des  risiiiH, 
who  tried  to  persuaile  him  to  alford  a  chance  of  peac(>  to  France  by  mod 
eMiiiig  Ills  pretensions  lint  llciiry,  bent  upon  ulilaining  the  sovenunty 
of  tli.ii  kingilmn,  and  well  aware  of  (he  advanliiue  Iih  derived,  not  (uily 
frmn  liis  own  strength,  htit  also  from  the  dissensions  of  the  Freiudi, 
eaiiiily  rcpheil,  "Do  yon  not  perceive  that  (Jod  has  led  me  as  hy  tliu 
hand'  France  has  no  sovereign'  I  have  jiisi  pretensnms  to  that  kinit- 
lioin :  everything  here  is  in  the  niniost  cinil'iisKm,  and  no  one  lliinkM  of 
r>'si.<linH  me.  Can  I  have  a  more  sensiiiie  proof  that  die  lleniH  who  di*:- 
l>'>M  s  of  enipireM  hax  deteniiined  to  put  the  crown  uf  Krunee  upon  my 
leiidr' 


;i'M 


I, 


35C 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


m 


m 


^' 


But  wliile  Henry  expressed  this  confidence,  and  made  every  effort  and 
preparation  to  carry  his  designs  into  execution  by  force,  he  iit  the  b,ni;e 
time  carried  on  negotiations  for  a  peaceful  settlement,  on  the  uiie  ha;i'(i 
with  tlie  queen  and  duke  of  Burgundy— who  had  tiie  semhhnice,  at  Itast 
of  the  only  legal  authority  in  tiie  kingdom,  inasmuch  us  they  jmj  ^^^^ 
custody  of  the  king's  person — and  with  the  dauphin,  on  the  oilier  liaml 
who  had  all  the  popular  favour  on  his  side,  and  was,  besides,  the  undoubi' 
ed  heir  to  the  monarchy- 
It  is  unnecessary  here,  indeed  it  would  be  out  of  place,  to  do  more  llian 
merely  to  allude  to  the  distractions  of  which  France  was  now  and  fui  a 
long  time  had  been  the  prey.  Suffice  it  to  say,  that  the  disputes  of  ihi 
rival  parties  were  so  wholly  and  intensely  selli;sh,  tiiat  either  uf  tliein,  hm 
especially  the  queen's  party,  seems  to  have  considored  the  intert'sis  ui 
the  nation  as  nothing  in  comparison  with  even  temporary  personal  einnh,. 
inents.  Taking  advantage  of  this  temper  of  the  antagonist  jiarlies,  llcnrv 
offered  to  make  peace  with  them  on  the  croiidiiion  of  their  giving  iiim  ii|', 
princess  (Catharine  in  marriage,  and  with  her,  in  full  sovereignty,  Xnr- 
inandy  and  all  the  provinces  whii'li  were  ceded  to  Kdward  ill.  by  iIk 
treaty  of  Bretigni ;  and  these  terms,  so  obviously  injurious  to  the  pown 
of  France,  were  agreed  to. 

A.  n.  141!). — While  Henry  was  attending  to  some  minor  circninstancps 
the  ailjustment  of  which  alone  was  waited  for  ere  the  treaty  above  .,<■■ 
scribed  should  be  carried  into  effetl,  the  duke  of  Hnrgiindy,  who  lia! 
been  carrying  on  a  secret  negotiation  with  the;  dauphiii,  formed  a  trcaiv 
with  that  prince,  by  which  it  was  agreed  between  them  that  they  shuiil'l 
divide  the  royal  aniliority  as  long  as  King  ''liarles  should  survive,  ainl 
that  they  should  join  liieir  elVoris  to  e.\p<'l  all  intruders  frinn  the  kiinjilmn 
An  interview  was  .ippoiiited  to  take  place  between  them ;  but  as  the  iluki 
of  Burgundy  had,  by  his  own  avowal,  been  the  assassin  of  the  late  ihik' 
of  Orltiaiis,  and  haii  thus  by  his  own  act  sani'tioned  any  triaclicroiis  a! 
tempt  lliat  might  lie  made  upon  his  life,  and  had  at  tlii^  same  lime  )i|\(i, 
everyoiw  reason  to  refuse  to  put  any  eoi  lideiice  in  his  hoiioiir,  tlic  iiws', 
ininnle  precautions  were  taken  to  guard  igainst  treachery  <>ii  eiilicr  si.li- 
Hut  all  these  precautions  were  taken  in  vain.  Several  of  llic  retainirs  n' 
the  daiipliin,  who  had  also  been  altached  to  the  late  duke  of  Orleans,  mi;. 
denly  a'lacked  Hnriiiiinly  with  their  drawn  sworils,  anil  ile.Mjiatchcil  hm. 
betore  any  of  his  frienils  coiilil  inlerlere  to  save  him. 

This  murder  created  so  much  rage  and  eonfusioii  in  Francn,  mid  al, 
parlies,  though  from  widely  ditreri'iit  motives,  were  so  iniic'i  excite  I  !.\ 
it,  that  all  iliiMiglit  or  care  for  preserving  the  nation  from  foia  i^ii  iluin: 
nation  was  lost  sight  of;  the  views  of  lleiiry  were  thus  most  iiii|iiiit mi!' 
forwarded,  through  an  accident  arisiiiL!  out  of  iliai  very  iiitervavv  hy  »liii, 
It  was  intended  wholly  to  destroy  Ins  cliancef'  of  success. 

BesidwH  the  advantage  which  Henry  derived  from  the  new  slate  uh<', 
fusion  and  tnrtnoil  intc  which  France  was  llirown  by  this  event,  liedaiiii^ 
from  It  an  extremely  powerful  ali\  in  the  person  of  the  new  duke  ehlui 
giiiilv.  who,  stipulating  only  for  veiiueaiice  nii')ii  the  iniirilen  r«  nl  li- 
father,  and  the  iii.irriage  of  Ins  sister  vMth  the  diik.  of  llcilt'nrd,  aKrei.lii 
i4!nd  llenrv  whatever  aid  lie  might  reipnre.  wilhont  innuiry  or  care  as  u 
the  evil  it  might  eventnalh  entail  npoii  the  nation,  llenry  hail  a'r'ah 
made  iiiiiiiense  progress  in  arms.  Kinieii,  though  'unst  gallantl'  -  \t  M 
by  a  garrison  ol  four  llious.md  men,  who  were  zea  'sly  inden  ■)  (lltctii 
th(M:sand  of  III'"  citizi'iis,  had  at  leiuiih  been  taken,  .-i  bad  I'oiitoise  m' 
(jisors  Willi  less  diftienll\  and  so  closely  did  he  hreaten  i'arl^  ii-il! 
that  Ihe  court  had  removed  in  alarm  lo  Tro\es. 

A.  n.  I'l'.") — \N  hen  ilie  negotiations  lieiween  the  Duke  of  Ihiruiiii 
and  Henry  lind  arrived  at  IIiIk  [loiiit,  Henry,  iiccompiuieil  by  Ins  liretlur 
(lit)  Uuhe  of  Ciurt'liee  and  Uloucesler,  jnoeeeded  (u  I'royes  lo  liiiii.i    ■■ 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


367 


fcatv,  nomiii.iily  with  Clmrles,  but  in  reality  with  the  duke  of  Biirgiiady ; 
■)!■  the  unhappy  Charles  was  in  so  completely  imbecile  a  condition,  that 
,e  was  at  best  but  a  mere  puppet  in  the  hands  of  whoever  had  for  the 
•line  the  charge  of  his  person. 
The  chief  provisions  of  this  treaty,  in  vvhich  the  honour  and  interests 
ifthe  nation  were  accounted  as  nothing,  were  as  follows  ;  Henry  was  to 
jirry  tltc  princess  Catharine ;  Charles  was  to  enjoy  the  title  and  dignity 
if  king  (luring  his  life,  but  Henry  was  to  be  his  heir,  and  was  also  to  be 
titiusted  with  the  immediate  administration  of  the  affairs  of  the  i<ingdom, 
iliichwas  to  pass  to  his  heirs  in  common  with  England,  with  which  king- 
dom it  was  to  be  united  under  him,  though  each  kingdom  should  internally 
clam  its  own  customs,  privileges,  and  usages  ;  all  the  French  princes, 
ifors,  communities,  and  vassals  were  to  swear  to  obey  Henry  as  regent, 
y indue  time  adhere  to  his  succession  as  king;  Henry  was  to  unite 
nih  Charles  and  the  duke  of  Burgimdy  in  chasing  the  dauphin  from  the 
<i:iiTdoni ;  anJ  no  one  of  the  members  of  tiiis  tripartite  league  was  to  make 
pace  with  him,  except  with  the  consent  of  the  f»ther  two.  A  treaty  more 
•I'imlaious  to  all  parlies  it  would  be  difficult  to  imagine.  Even  as  re- 
:iriled  Hngland,  Henry  was  king  only  by  succession  to  an  usurper;  and 
lis  claim  to  France,  even  on  that  ground  alone  would  have  been  scouted 
V  the  duke  of  Duigundy,  had  patriotism  not  been  entirely  banislied  from 
*  breast  l)y  passion  and  personal  interest. 

lint  interest,  and  interest  alone,  was  attended  to  by  the  parties  concerned 

I  this  very  singular  treaty,  which  was  drawn,  signed,  and  ratified  wiili  as 

iiile  scruple  on  the  side    of  Burgundy,  as  though  there  liad  been  no  other 

'hjcct  in  view  th.in  the  mere  gratification  and  aggraiidizement  of  fleiiry. 

\fi\vdays  aficrtiie  signing  of  the  treaty,  this  prince  esponsed  the  prin- 

i<s  r.itiiarinc,  and  with  hcrand  her  father  proceeded  to  Paris.     Possess- 

lofthc  capital,  he  had  but  little  dillicully  in  procuring  from  the  |)arlia!nent 

i;i|  ilie  three  cstat<'s  a  full  ami  formal  ratilication  of  that  treaty,  in  every 

iicof  wlncli  their  degradation  was  visibly  written. 

Thi'daupliin  now  assmncd  the  slyleofre^Miitof  the  kingdom,  appealed  to 

lOii  to  witness  the  justice  of  his  cause,  and  prepared  to  del'e  nd  it  in  arms, 

mil  Henry  proceeded  to  oppose  liini.     He   first  laid  siege  to  Sens,  which 

ificra  very  slight  resistance  surrendered  to  him,  and  Montereau  wassub- 

'ued  with  110  less  ease.     H(!nry  now  proceeded  to  Mchiii.hiil  here  tic  met 

iiih  a  stouter  resistanc(^  the  governor,  Barbasaii,  repelling  every  effort 

' could  make  for  above  four  months;  and  even  at  the  end  of  that  time 

:lif  brave  governor  was  only  induced  lo  treat  for  surrrcniler  by  the  abso- 

iiii'Slati' of  faiiiiiie  to  which  the  garrison  was  reduced.     Henry  was  now 

iliiigeJtii  visit  England  for  the  purpose  of  oblaiiiing  both  men  and  money, 

i'lil  (hiring  his  absence  he  left  his  uncle  the  duke  of  Exeli-r  in  the  post  of 

.iv.rnor  iif  Paris. 

By  iliis  time  the  Englisli,  however  much  they   were  daz/led  and  flat- 

rill  by  the  talents  and  success  of  their  king,  seem  to  have  begun  to  take 

iidhiiit;  lik<'  a  correct  view  of  the  possible  altiinate  coiiseipnncc  to  them 

.il  III  llicir  posterity,  of  'he  proposed  union  of  the  two  crowns  ;  ami  th(» 

irliaia.'iit  voted  him  a  sul>siiiy  of  mily  a  fiftecntli.  which  would  have  been 

;.  iiiadcipiate  lo  Ins  necessilies,  Imt   that  the  Frencli  territory  he  hio 

■iii|ii('rcil  served  for  till' mainleminec  of  his  troops.     Having  got  tn^ethcr, 

iiih  till' Riilisniy  thus  voted  lo  liini,  a  new  uriny  of  i  \enty-foiir  tlioiisaiid 

ri'liori,  anil  four  thousand   cavalry,  he   embarke,!  at  Dover  ami   safidy 

I  ifliiMJ  Pans,  where  everything  had  reinaiimd  in  perfe(  t  trauqnilliiy  under 

■•  (t'lvcriiiMcnt  .if  Ins  uncle. 

Hill  during  Ihc  absence  of  Henry  the  Eiiglisli  bad   •"ceived  a  very  so- 

I'fc  chock  111  \iijou.      '   Scotch  brnr  ide  of  seven  tlioi:^  oid  incn  had  Imij 

•'M  li;  iKe  dauphin's  service,  sent  Ibilbcr  liy  the  rcgciil  of  Ncollanil.    Men. 

iiid  taken  the  young  kiiiijof  .Scotland,  who  h.ui  so  long  been  in  captivny, 


<>i^«if*lK 


4 
i 


4 


f  ''A 

l,«. 

w 

.1      *',  ' 

ru 


^■^'. 


r 


^i.         'I 


'111 


H 


I 


«."i»* 


f 


358 


THE  TllEASUllY  OF  HldTOilY. 


to  France,  and  caused  him  to  issue  orders  for  all  Scots  to  leave  the  dau. 
phin's  service.  Uut  ihe  e;irl  of  Buchaii,  who  comiiianiifil  the  Scoti?,  rt- 
plied,  ihiU  his  kine;  while  in  ciiplivity  could  not  issue  orders— at  all  evVm, 

Udisciplined 


could  not  expect  him   to   ol)cy  the 


I'his  ifiillant  and   \v< 


body  of  troops  now  ciicouniercd  the  Knglish  detiiclinient  under  ilii 


mar 


id  of  the  duke  of  Clarence.     Thai  prince  was  slam  in  the  action  b 


Scottish  kni'^ht  nam(   '  Allan  Swinlou  ;  the  earls  of  SonitrNti,  Hunt 


t'  ivtm- 


;i 


and  IJorset  «'ere  taken  prisoniTs,  and  tli 


ilisli  were 


llli'(|{M|, 


c<mi[ilelely  nnit,  d, 


to  the  great  joy  of  the  dauphin,  who  rewarded  the  earl  of  Ducimn  with 
ofjlce  of  constahle. 

Henry's   return,  however,  soon  daai|)('d  the  new-born  joy  of  the  daii- 
hill,  who  was  besieging  Chartres,  wlnlher  Henry  inarched,  and 


ei'Mliii 


lUII 


led  iiiin  to  raise  the  siege  without  a  struggle.  From  Charlies  lli'mv 
marched  to  Drcnix,  which  also  surrendered  without  resistance,  and  t! 
proceeded  to  lay  siege  to  Meaiix,  the  garrison  of  which  had  greatly 
noyed  the  Parisians.  Mere  the  English  were  resisted  with  greiil  sikli 
anil  cmirage  for  eight  months,  by  the  governor  V'aurus.  At  theeinl  ufih.i 
time  the  plac(!  was  taken  and  il  was   proliaiily   in  n'ality  on  aceouiitof  iIk 


obr.tHiatia  resistance  that  he  li, 


t  with,  hut  professedly  for  tl 


le  cruelly 
Well  as 


which  Vauriis  had  un(toub;idly  shown  to  his  pri.'ioners,  Knglisli  as 
Biirguiidian,  that  Henry  ordered  him  to  be  hanged  upon  the  same  jjilibii 
n[)on  wliich  he  tiad  caused  mi  many  br.ive  nii'ii  to  be  <'xecuted. 

riie  capture   of   Meaiix   led   to  the  snireiuler  of  tdlier  places  in  il.r 


liei"-|iliiMirliood  that  until  then  had  nhslinalely  held  out 


the  d; 


iipliin, 


unable  to  resist  the  united   power  nf  the   Knulish  and  Iturguivlians,  \\;i< 
driven  hevond  the  Loire,  and  eompi  lied  to  abandon  nearly  all  the  noitli 


prn  I 
1 


irovinces 


while  the  son  id'  «lioni   Henry's  (lueen  was  just  now 


ivereil  was  as  en 
king  of  both  nations. 


ibusiasticallv  liailed  at  Pans  as  at  Limdon,  as  the  fuUin 


Singularlv  bandsoine  and  vigorous  in  person,  and  having  not  yet  iic;irh 


Tt'.ii 


bed  middle 


He 


.fgl 


eiiry  might  have  been  rxpecleil  to  have  very 


iniiiv 


)rv  and  triunipb 


Vei  before  liiiii.     IJnl  he  \i  as  alHieti'd  with 


fistula,  a  disease  with  which  llie  rude  surgery  "f  that  ,ige  knew  nut  limv 


to 


id 


the  powerful  and  aiiibiti'iiis,  the  envied  and  .-iure 


king  found  biinsclf  hurrying  tu  the  gr.ivi'  by  the  r.<piil  progre.-is  of  .<  is 
ease,  from  wlinli  in  our  own  time  the  poorest  peafant  wouM  he  reliivi  I 
ConseiDiis  of  liis  appro  iching  end,  he  gave  a  i.ew  (iroof  o.  "  tlic  liiliui 
passion  sliimLr  m  deat''."  Sending  for  h\*  brother,  tlie  duke  of  liedl'iiri; 
tbf  earl  of  Warwick,  and  some  other  ii'i'di  iiieii  who  stiMid  lugliinli- 
enl'eui,  he  with  great  ealmness  deliveri  I  to  Iti*-!!!  his  last  will  n*  y 
nfl'eneii  both  Ihe  kmgdom  .■ind  his  fainilx.  Pror»-#sing  to  view  lii<  ,r,< 
proaehing  deaiii  ■vitfuiut  any   ither  regrei  tli.iii  that  which  arow  I'l      ' 


e.ivuiu  bis  gn 


at  ol 


)|ect  iiieomp 


■le,  11, 


d    lliem   tli.it  ihi'V  I'ciili! 


fail  of  Ktiecess  by  tiie  exertion  of  their  known  jirudt and  valour,    i 

appiMiiled  Hedforil  regent  of  France,  his  yonnsrer  brotbi  . ,  the  duke  of  Hi 
(•ester,  ri-iient  of  I'.nglaiid,  and  to  Ihe  ear!  of  \Varwi'-k  he  eoiniiiilii-s  I 
govirnineirt  ami  proterliou  of  lim  infant  -<>ii      Me  .<i  the  same  liincui' 

ive  fr«iMliiiii 


urgently  eii/»ined  these  friends  un  no  eiMifideratmit  •'  a 
the  Fre'iieb  I*!**''*'*  Iiikeii  ai  .XgiifHirt.  until  ns  Hon  (►lunild  beof  an;i';i 
Boveri.  for  liuHwlf,  c.irefnily  in  preserve  ihe  friendw^iip  of  the  diiki 
lliiriinndy  ,  to  exert  every  ine.nis  to  seeun  the  throne  of  Fratu''-  Im'i' 
inf.intking;  .iiid,  failing  snreess  in  that  pirlicnliir,  !>»"»■  r  to  rmke  |" 
with  France  miles'^  on  ('ondilion  of  the  pemiimeiit  oinf  tdfion  of  .Norm 
dy  to  tl rovMi  of  KllKland 


Apart  Iroin  hi"  .iiii^mIkxi,  and  the  violent  injustie*-  «hwb  nereksuft 


Ivrr 


nulled  from  it,  tbis  |iriiie.  w»f  m  ver\  iiifoiv  reMieetsd*  ^ervinjf 
popiil.irily  which  through<iv»  liis  life  In  .■.i|i.\  ( 4  m  Kn({iaiid.  n 
110  b  ss  eiijoved  ill  Fraiiei'   jubseiiueo 


m.irrittlr  with  tU-  \>v.i 


A.  D.  1422.— Wi 
lliat  the  usurpatic 
power  of  the  pari 
10  wiiicli  that  pov 
ilie  instructions  g 
proceeded  to  niak 
iliaii  with  those  oi 
(loin  and  the  youi 
They  altogethei 
piiinted  the  duke  ( 
(iloucesler,  to  act 
placino'  a  peculiar 
(Til  purposes  it  mi 


THE  TllEASUIlY  OF  HISTOttY. 


350 


uaiharine.  His  civil  rule  was  firm  and  productive  of  excellent  order 
wiiliout  being  harshly  severe  ;  and  in  the  uniform  ]<indness  and  conlidence 
which  he  bestowed  upon  the  earl  of  Marche,  who  beyond  all  question  had 
the  preferable  title  to  the  crown,  betokened  no  eonimon  magnanimity. 
Henry,  who  died  in  1422,  aged  only  thirty-four,  left  but  one  ciiild,  young 
Heiiry,  then  only  nine  months  old ;  and  the  queen  Catharine,  rather  soon- 
er after  the  death  of  her  husband  than  was  strictly  becoming,  gave  her 
jiandin  second  marriage  to  Sir  Owen  Tudor,  a  private  gentleman,  who, 
however,  claimed  to  be  descended  from  the  ancient  Welsh  princes ;  to 
him  Bhe  bore  two  sons,  the  elder  of  whom  was  created  earl  of  Richmond, 
ihe  younger  earl  of  Pembroke  ;  and  the  earl  of  Richmond  subsequently 
became  king  of  England,  as  we  shall  hereafter  have  to  relate. 


CHAPTlill  XXX. 


THE    REIGN    OF    HENRY    VI. 


A.  D.  1422. — Wb  had  occasion  to  remark,  under  the  head  of  Henry  IV., 
that  the  usurpation  of  that  prince  gave  a  great  and  manifest  impetus  to  tiic 
power  of  the  parliament.  A  new  proof  was  now  affurded  of  the  extent 
to  wliiehthat  power  had  increased.  Scarcely  any  attenti'vi  was  paid  to 
the  instructions  given  by  Henry  V.on  hisdoatli  bed;  jMid  the  ""parliiiment 
proceeded  to  make  arrangements  in  accordance  rather  vvitli  its  own  views 
than  with  those  of  the  deceased  monaicii,  with  respect  to  butii  the  king- 
dom niid  tiie  young  king. 

They  altogether  set  aside,  as  to  the  former,  the  title  of  regent,  and  a], 
pointed  the  duke  of  Bedford,  and,  during  any  absence  of  Ins,  the  duke  of 
(iioiicester,  to  act  as  proicetor  or  guardian  of  llie  kingdom;  evidently 
placni<(  a  pecidiar  Vidue  on  tliis  disimctiori  of  terms,  tlioiigii  (o  all  practi- 
cnl  purposes  it  necessarily  was  a  men;  distiiietlon  witlunit  a  dilTiMcnco. 
They  showed,  iiowever,  a  more  practical  juilgnu'nt  in  preventing,  or, 
at  the  least,  in  anticipating,  any  undue  stretch  of  authority  on  the  part  of 
either  of  the  royal  personages,  by  appointing  a  (.'ouiicil  whose  advice  and 
approbation  were  necessary  to  the  legalising  of  all  iini)i)rt<iiil  measures. 
They  next  procei^ded  to  show  an  equal  disregard  to  the  wislii  s  ol  tlir 
deceased  nioiiarch,  as  related  to  tin!  custody  and  goveriiiaeiit  of  liis  infant 
Jon,  wlicn  they  committed  luni  to  the  care  of  Henry  lleaufnrt,  hisla  (>  of 
Winchester,  a  natural  but  legitimalt  son  of  Joliii  of  (Tiimt,  duke  of  Lan- 
caster; an  arrangement  which  at  lea!>t  had  this  recoiniiiendalioii,  lliat  the 
ireh'  In  ()uest>on  could  set  up  i.o  family  pretension  to  the  itowii,  and 
liai    llierefore,  no  inducement  to  act  unfairly  liy  Ins  infant  charge. 

Til 'duke  of  Uedford,  long  renowned  lor  eipia!  prudence  and  v. dour, 
imiiU'diaUdy  turned  his  attention  to  l''raiii-c,  wiiliout  ni.tking  the  ulijjlilesl 
aiti'in|jt  to  alter  the  deterininatioii  of  piirliainent,  which  .i  less  disinterest- 
'.'(land  noble-spirited  man  would  very  probably  have  interpreted  as  u  jier 
miiml  afl'ront. 

(.'Iiwrles,  the  late  dauphin,  had  now  assumed,  as  he  was  justly  entitled 
III,  ihe  title  of  king  of  Krancc;  and,  being  shut  out  by  the  Iviglisli 
fri'in  Khi'ims,  ihc  ancient  and  especial  placid  of  coronation  of  Ihe  kings  nf 
Fr.iiice,  he  caused  liiinself  to  be  crowned  at  Poitiers.  This  prince ,  tlioiigli 
iinly  twenty  years  of  age,  was  vj'ry  p<i|mlar  with  iniiltitiide.>  of  ihc  l''nii(li 
*>  wi  II  for  the  many  virtues  of  Ins  |)rivale  char.ictcr,  as  for  Ihe  ureal  and 
prri'iiciuus  abilities  he  had  sliown  in  must  dillicult  jihases  of  Ins  public 
itfiirs. 

No  one  kiiPW  better  tliaii  the  duke  of  Bedford  that,  excluded  though  l!ie 
du|ihiii  was  from  his  riuhtfiil  succession,  b)'  the  iinnaiur.il  and  unpalnniii 
*r\  01  Ins  imbecile   father,  his  own  ^ibililic*  would  be  sirongly  aided  by 


hi 


X 


t 


*mf 


m  .' 


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THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


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a  nata!;il  ana  inevitable  revulsion  of  feeling  oil  the  part  of  those  Frenchmen 
who  had  hitherto  shown  themselves  fast  friends  to  England.  He  ihert.- 
fore  strictly  obeyed  the  dying  injunction  of  Henry  as  to  a  sedulous  culij. 
vation  of  the  friendship  of  the  duke  of  Burgundy,  wiiose  persoiwl  quarrel 
with  Charles  Ir.id  so  mainly  aided  the  success  of  the  I'higlisli  cause  thus 
far,  and  whose  support  would  henceforth  be  s-o  vitally  important  to  iheir 
maintaining  their  ground  in  France.     Bedford,  therefore,  hastened  lo  ful- 


fill- 

prill- 

egeiicy 


fil  his  part  in  the  treaty  of  Troyes,  by  espousing  Philip's  sister,  tiie 
cess  of  Arras;  and  he  even  olfered  his  new  brother-in-law  tin 
of  France,  wliich  Philip,  for  not  very  obvious  reasons,  declined,  tluiuirii 
as  lie  was  far  from  being  unambitious,  he  could  scarcely  have  overlook 
ed  tiiai  the  regency,  during  the  minority  of  young  Henr\  and  llieconilim 
ed  success  ol  llie  Fnglisli,  would  be  nearly  equivalent  '.(  he  actual  sov 
eieignty,  and  might  by  some  very  slight  cir(ninisla'".'e,  actually  load  to  ii 

'["lie  duke  of  Bedford  next  turned  his  attention  to  securing  tjie  fricmi! 
ship  of  the  duke  of  Brittany,  who,  whether  as  friend  or  foe,  was  i.o\i  jn 
imp<utaiice,  as  regarded  the  English  power,  to  Bnrgunily  himself,  y^q 
duke  of  Driltany  iiad  already  given  in  his  adhesion  to  the  treaty  of  Tiuyes- 
but  as  Bedford  knew  how  much  that  ;^rinc:e  was  governed  by" Ins  brother' 
the  count  of  Uiciiemont,  he  skilfully  sought  to  fix  the  frieidsliip  oi 
that  haughty  and  not  very  strictly  honourable  persoii.  llichenioiit  was 
among  the  hitfh  personages  wlio  were  made  prisoi  (;;s  at  Agiiicouit,  bin 
had  been  treated  with  great  kindness  in  England,  and  even  allowed  by 
Henry  V.  to  visit  Brittany,  on  his  jiarole  of  honour,  to  return  at  a  given 
time.  Btfiiie  the  time  arrived  the  death  of  Henry  ociLared,  and  liiehe- 
nioiit,  contrary  to  all  the  usages  and  maxims  of  chivalry,  aflVctcd  to  be- 
lieve that  as  his  [lande  had  been  given  [lersoiuiUy  to  Henry  V.,  Iiis  liunout 
was  in  nowise  engaged  to  maintain  it  towards  that  prince's  successor. 
His  plea  was  as  iricgiilar  as  it  was  meanly  false ;  but  as-  IJi  clford  bad  ob- 
viously IK)  niiaiis  of  cdinpelling  Uicdiemont  to  a  more  honourable  LOiirse 
of  conduet,  VMllmut  involving  himself  in  n  v(Ty  mischievous  disagrccnieiit 
v;il,i  the  duke  of  nriltany,  he  very  wisely  made  a  virtue  of  iiecessily,  and 
not  only  overlookeil  the  count's  mis(;oiidui't,  but  even  obtained  forliiiuthe 
liMiid  of  the  willow  of  the  deceased  dauphin  Louis,  the  sister  of  I'liiiipul 
Burgundy. 

Having  tliiis  both  pcditically  and  personally  allied  himself  with  iliepo 
teiii  dukes  of  Hurguiiiiy  and  Brittany,  Bedford  now  directed  his  atlciitiou 
to  Si'otlaiid.  The  duke  of  Albany,  who,  as  regent  of  Scotland,  had  so 
eonsidcrably  aiiied  the  dau|)liin,  now  King  ('li.irles,  by  sending  liiin  hirge 
bodies  of  veter:in  Scotcli  troops,  was  lie.id,  and  bis  ollice  and  powei 
had  be.n  assumed  by  Ins  so'i  Murdae.  'I'liis  nobleman  had  ncitlii  rlhuiHl- 
eilt:  iiiir  tin  I'liijrgy  .d'lns  latbir,  and  lie  was  (piite  unable  to  limit,  as  the 
duke  ol  Albany  hail  done,  any  enterprises  to  w  l.icli  the  tinlnileiii  m;b|i , 
of  Scotland  inigb'  think  proper  to  turn  their  Mltention.  'I'lii^  iiislaiiily 
becanii'  evideui  from  il.e  siiddeii  and  v.isl  iicrease  of  thi!  niiiiil  rr  of  Scut 
tisli  iHiiiles  will)  hastened  tn  oiler  tin  ir  s\  '.ids  to  Charles  of  France;  aiui 
the  pieriiiig  gl  nice  of  Bidford  discerned  the  strong  |irob;ibility  of  the 
Scots,  at  111)  distant  ilay.  doing  ('liarles  tlie  -^till  more  elTeeiicd  service  nl 
distiaiMing  the  attention  and  dividing  the  I'orce  of  his  English  eneiiiics,  1 1 
making  formidable  and  freipient  nu'ur8ions  upon  the  nortltern  eouiilics  ui 
Knulanii. 

As  the  readiest  and  surest  w.iy  of  meeting  this  portion  of  liin  diiriiiil'iies, 
Bedford  induced  liic  llnylisli  governiiieiit  to  re>-l(H'e  In  liberty  tie  ScdIIisIi 
kiiif;.  yiiiniu  .l.imes,  on  the  payment  of  a  ransom  of  forty  thousand  p:Miiiil!<. 
Thif  vniing  prince  wan  bad  re.-.ide(l  in  l')iii>laiid  from  his  earlv  luiyhood, 
and  had  there  rei-eived  ilie  v<ry  b<'St  education  wliiidi  the  scliolaHii.'  stale 
of  llial  agi'  woiihl  atliinl  even  In  princes.  Ii.id  iinbibed  ini.cb  of  the  HiiKlii'li 
ri'i.'liiii>s  anil  laste.i ;  and  during;  the  whole  of  his  short  reiyii — (lie  wiiNiuur- 


Mdof  Kuclian.flu 


THE  TREASUilY  OF  HISTORY. 


361 


ierei  in  1437  by  the  earl  of  Athol) — whatever  might  be  the  extent  of  the 
'caning  he  was  alledged  to  have  towards  France,  he  never  once  gave  the 
Riiglish  cause  to  regret  their  generosity  or  to  throw  blame  on  the  policy 
if  Bedford,  to  which  the  young  king  owed  his  freedom  and  the  enjoyment 
of  his  throne. 

Even  while  engaged  in  these  wise  political  precautions,  the  duke  of 
Pedford  strenuously  exerted  himself  in  those  military  movements  and  op- 
erations which  were  indispensable  to  the  ultimate  success  of  the  measures 
he  contemplated. 

King  Charles  in  person,  and  all  the  forces  under  his  own  immediate 
leading,  had  long  since  been  driven  into  the  southern  provinces  beyond 
[ho  Loire.  But  there  were  many  of  his  attached  partizans  still  possessed 
of  fortresses  in  the  northern  provinces,  an  j  even  in  the  neighbourhood  ol 
Paris.  Against  these  fortresses,  therefore,  the  duke  of  Bedford  deemed 
!  necessary  to  exert  himself,  before  proceeding  to  deal  witii  the  main 
<irength  of  Charles.  Dorsay,  Noyellc,  and  Rue  in  Picardy,  were  be- 
qeged  and  taken ;  and  Pont  sur  Seine,  Vertus,  and  Montaigne,  soon  after 
;VII  into  the  Knglish  power.  These  successes  were  followed  up  by  still 
more  brilliant  and  important  ones  ;  till  at  length  the  constable  of  Scotland, 
uith  many  of  the  French  nobles,  were  taken  prisoners,  and  Bedford's 
army  occupied  La  Charite  and  other  towns  upon  the  Loire. 

Every  new  success  of  the  English  by  which  they  were  brought  nearei 
■9  his  soutlicrn  provinces,  made  Charles  tiie  more  painfully  anxious  for 
the  preservation  of  the  fmv  strongholds  which  he  still  held  in  those  of  the 
north,  where  they  could  so  greatly  annoy  and  impede  their  inimical  neigh- 
hours.  One  of  these,  Yvri  in  Normandy,  had  for  three  months  held  out 
asiiinst  the  utmost  eflbrts  of  its  besiegers,  inider  the  personal  conimand 
offiedford  himself;  but  the  gallant  governor  at  length  found  himself  re- 
duced to  3uch  straits  that  he  agreed  to  surrender  unless  relief  should 
reach  him  by  a  <ienain  day.  Information  of  this  threatened  loss  of  Yvri 
iiosdonp'"  reached  Charles  than  he  sent  adetachment  of  fourteen  thousand 
men  to  its  relief,  one  half  of  the  detachment  being  Scots  and  the  oilier 
half  Kri'iicli.  The  chief  command  of  this  delai'lnneiit  was  given  to  the 
carl  of  Itucliaii,  the  titular  constable  of  P'rance,  who  made  the;  utmost  elTorts 
;o  perform  his  mission  siieeessfiilly,  but  had  the  mortifKMtion  to  find  that 
ihe  place  had  been  already  surrendered  ere  he  couhl  arrive,  lie  iolved  not 
'.0  rcl'irn  from  so  long  a  march  without  having  at  least  attempted  some 
inipoiiant  enterprise,  and,  turning  to  the  left,  ho  marched  rapidly  to  Ver- 
neuil  and  prepared  to  besiege  that  place,  which  was  delivered  up  to  him 
!iy  the  citizens,  in  spite  of  all  the  o|)|)osilion  that  could  be  made  by  the 
garrison. 

it  had  been  well  had  Ruchan  contented  himself  with  this  suci'css.  Hut, 
tmouraged  hy  it,  he  called  a  council  of  war  to  consult  whether  he  should 
ii'iw  make  good  his  retreat,  with  Ihe  glory  he  had  so  easily  and  elieaply 
iqiiired,  or  await  the  coming  up  of  tlie  duke  of  Hedfonl.  'fhongh  ilie  lor- 
iiier|il;iM  was  strongly  anil  well  urged  by  the  gravn  ;ind  more  politic  of 
his nilii'ors,  the  latter  one  was  so  agreeable  to  Buelian's  own  desire  to  en- 
gage ilie  enemy  at  any  risk,  that  he  liiially  adopted  it,  ami  it  was  not  loinr 
r»'  his  army  was  coiifronled  with  that  of  Ileilford.  The  nuinhers  were 
Mlt'raLdy  eipial ;  and  Buchan  drawing  up  his  men  in  rxcelleni  ordiT  under 
liie  wali.s  of  Verneuil,  deternnned  in  that  ;idvantageous  position  to  await 
hfcliiirge  of  the  enemy.  Thi.<  pnileiii  precaution,  in  a  situ.-itinii  whicii 
ireiitiT  prudence  would  wholly  iiaM-  priserved  hiin  from,  was  ileliated  hy 
'hi' iinpetiioiis  rashness  of  the  i-isconnt  of  Narbcmiie.  who  led  bis  men  so 
'  immsly  to  the  charge,  that  for  an  in-  lain  the  Knglish  archers  were  Ix^ateii 
nmitlie  line  of  palisadoes,  behind  wliich,  aeconling  to  ilieir  usual  ens- 
">'n,  they  hud  stationed  tliein  selves.  Qti; -kly  neoveriiig  themselves. 
|"^"ever,  and  forming  behind  ami  among  their  baggage,  thej  poured  their 


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arrows  so  thickly  and  with  such  deadly  precision,  that  Narbonne'g  moii 
fell  fiist  around  him  and  were  soon  thrown  into  confusion.  Thp  nwiii 
body  of  llie  coui^jtable's  army,  animated  out  of  all  sense  of  stciidv  disci- 
pline by  (lie  dasliing  but  most  imprudent  hariro  of  this  division,  riished  lo 
Narbonne's  support,  and  necessardj'  partook  with  his  men  tiio  siauThtcr 
and  the  panic  caused  by  the  Ei  ,.''sh  archers;  whi'e  ih«  duke  of  Be(ff()rd, 
perceivinirtiie  confusion  of  the  oucmy,  seized  upon  tlic  favourable  momniu' 
and  ciiargcd  them  at  tlic  head  of  the  main  body  of  his  men-at-arms.  The 
P^-ench  ranks  (juickly  liroke  under  this  .i^'orous  attack,  and  the  rcui*  in  a 
few  miinites  l)ecame  general.  Though  Bedford's  victory  was  comiili'te 
it  was  as  lie  considered,  so  dearly  purchased  by  the  loss  of  sixiroi,  hiiii- 
dred  of  the  English  to  al)out  two  thousand  of  the  French,  that  lie  would 
not  allow  any  rejoicings  for  a  victory  which  had  c'st  the  English  a  luss 
so  nearly  proportioned  to  that  of  the  enemy.  IJut  the  loss  of  the  French 
could  not  fairly  be  estimated  by  a  mere  statement  of  numbers.  It  was 
unusually  great  among  the  leaders;  Uuchau  liimself,  the  carl  of  DoiKrias 
and  his  son,  the  counts  D'Aumale,  De  'ronn(re,  and  De  Ventpdoiir,  -.viili 
many  other  nobles,  were  among  the  shiin;  ■■lud  the  duke  D'Alencon,  the 
marshal  de  la  Fayette,  and  the  lords  Gauconit  anci  Mortemar  aaioiig;  tlie 
prisoners.  On  the  foUowiiig  day  Verneuil, ',a>ing  no  hope  of  relief,  sur- 
rendered 10  Uedford. 

Nothing  could  appear  more  desperate  tlian  ll'.e  case  of  the  French  king. 
He  had  in  this  fatal  battle  lost  the  braves!  of  his  leaders;  his  partizans 
had  no  longer  even  a  cbanet'  of  making  any  head  against  the  English  in 
the  provinces  north  of  the  I^oire;  and  he  was  so  far  from  possessing  the 
necessary  means  of  recruiting  his  army  and  en'icing  other  gallant  men  to 
embrace  Ins  (les|)erate  cmise,  that  he  actually  had  not  even  the  means  of 
paying  for  tin;  sui)port  of  his  nMinne,  though  he  carefully  ab.stained  from 
indulging  many  ol  the  frivolous  and  expensiv(!  shadows  of  royalty,  whili; 
he  was  still  uncertain  of  the  issue  of  his  contest  for  its  substance.  Bui 
just  as  he  himself,  as  well  as  both  his  friends  and  his  foes,  begini  to  deem 
his  cause  neiirly  lost,  a  most  unexpcM-teil  incident  occurred  to  save  li  m. 

.lacqueline,  countess  of  Holland  and  llainanit,  liad,  from  the  politic  mo- 
tives wlui'li  so  K(Mierally  diMermined  |)rincely  marriages,  espini.std  I'le 
duke  of  Hurgundy's  consm-serinan,  .lohn,  duke  of  Drabant.  The  bride- 
groom was  a  nirre  boy  of  fifteen  ;  Uie  lady  was  nnicli  older,  and  of  a  mas- 
culine ami  ardent  tenijier.  The  sickly  and  weak-minded  boy-liusliand 
soon  bee  one  the  detestation  of  his  vigorous  and  high-spinled  wife, 
and  she  ap[)lied  to  Konie  to  anuid  the  uiu'4ual  and  unsnitabk'  uiarriagi'. 
Beinjr  well  ;iw;ire  that,  venal  as  |{oine  was,  much  diflicully  awaited  froii 
the  puuiii'iil  op[ii)iriti(Ui  wbieli  would  be  made  to  her  design  by  the  duke 
of  IJuiiiundy,  and  benig  fearful  that  be  would  even  go  lo  the  extreme  o( 
putliny  her  under  |)ersonal  restraint,  she  made  her  escape  to  England. anil 
solicited  the  aid  and  inoteclimi  of  the  duke  of  (Jloucesler.  The  iicrso.ial 
beauty  '^f  the  countess  .liu-queliue,  together  with  (he  lemi)lalion  of  her  in- 
lierittMl  wealth  and  sovereignly,  stimulated  the  love  ind  aini)ilion  olCiluii- 
cester  so  far,  that,  without  even  waitiiijr  the  result  of  an  api)licaiii)n  to 
kiMiiie,  be  made  a  contract  of  marriage  with  lu'r,  and  commenced  an  at- 
tentpi  to  wrest  her  territories  from  the  duke  of  llrabi  at. 

Till  duke  of  Hurgundv  was  doubly  annoyed  ami  disgusted  by  lliis  jjro- 
ceedinii  of  ( Jlouccsier  ;  lor  while  ii  ver\  serionsl}'  tre::"bed  upoi)  Ins  fam- 
ily i)o\ur  and  uea'lb.  It  wave  but  iin  unpromising  eavnest  of  the  condiiCt 
to  be  txpeeted  froii/  the  Eii(tlisli,  when,  baviiiir  fully  t  slablislied  tliemscUn 
in  France,  they  sliouhl  no  ioiiyer,  from  not  needing  tlie  duke's  alliame 
tind  support,  have  an  iiUt  rested  motive  for  [nitting  any  limits  t'l  liicir 
perftoiinl  amlntion  or  eupidity.  Actuated  by  these  feeliny;s,  he  lud  luily 
couiiHcileil  his  cousin  to  resisiaiiue,  but  exerted  hin.sidf  to  iiiduci'  tiio 


more  powerPil  of 
ivilh  a  coiisidera'' 
Too  exclusive! 
He.i.dit  to  polii-.;- 
lii.'^  |)Lirpes6  ;  and 
llini  and  the  duke 
GiiMicester,  in  t 
panied  the  warlik( 
led  falsehood   <)  P 
updii  a  retraciion, 
The  grave  and  p 
of  fJloucttter's  im 
10  ihc  English  povi 
laiisi'  of  the  right 
employed  in  his  o\ 
ioiisly  expi.'cling  fi 
could  nut  but  weal 
duke  of  Uurgundy 
Having  endeavourt 
ford  now  saw  hims 
lory  at  Verneuil,  ai 
there  to  repair  the  ; 
lieadstnnig  temper 
-Vor  was  it  (;ii  ;i(.'i 
Bedford  was  at  this 
Winchester,  as  we 
cusius  of  the  young 
lies,  bill  also  becau: 
duce  hill)  to  behave 
great  personal  ainbi 
mid  required  from  t 
than  his  office  of  c 
inaiidiiig,  or  the  coii 
Betuecn  the  pre! 
ambitions  and  fiery 
should  take  place  ui 
pririizans  in  tlie  miii 
great  authority  of  It 
wholly  succeed  in  s 
menl,  before  which 
loan  apparent  reco 
ililferences  should  b 
While  Itedford  ha 
qufirrel,  the  duke  of 
as  lo  have  procured 
beUvuen  the  countei 
bade  iheir  marriage 
moved  by  death.  "  'I 
atwl  in  his  adventur 
love,  finding  so  insii 
liis  fullire  success, 
giving  Ins  hand  to  a 
hi"  mistress. 

Soon  after,  ihe  du 

her  territory,  was  ol 

<he  di('  without  issii 

with  the  duke's  COM. 

This  lerinination 


THK  TREASURY  OF  HISTJttr 


3(i3 


more  pouerf'i'  of  Jr.'  ';'!ii;i(,-'s  sr'ijecls  to  oppose  hr.,  <iih'  niiirclietl  himself 
ivjili  a  L'Oiisidcni!'!*.    'uly  of  !iis  iroo|.s  lo  support  ihcin  in  doing  so. 

Too  exflusivel}  ^..gHUP,]  wi  h  hi?  personal  designs  to  give  their  due 
weiilit  I'l  poll'  -:^  ci.iisidcnilions,  Gloucester  would  not  be  diverted  from 
lij^  Jnirpese  :  and  a  (jii  urel  iit  onee  political  and  pcTSoniil  thus  engaged 
him  anil  tile  dnke  of  Ij:i;  gundy  in  war  in  tin;  Low  Countries. 

(iloiicester,  in  the  loarse  of  the  angry  (rorrespoiuieuee  whieh  aceom- 
paiiied  tliu  warhkc  coiiiest  between  liin)  inid  the  dnke  of  Burgundy,  itnpu- 
!ed  falsehood  'i  Piiili|),  in  terms  so  insultingly  direct,  that  Philip  nisisted 
uniiii  a  retrai'^ion,  ;  \\  ptrsonal  challenges  now  passed  between  tlieni. 

'("lie  grive  and  politic  Bedford  was  vexed  to  the  soul  at  the  consequences 
of  (iloucester's  imprudence;  consequences  as  disastrous  and  li:i'eatening 
lotlie  English  power  in  Fia  ice.  as  they  were  fortunate  and  hopefu  lO  the 
(ause  of  the  rightful  king  of  France.  For,  in  the  first  place,  Gloi.  tester 
employed  in  his  own  qunrrel  ,hc  troops  which  Beford  had  been  so  aiix 
imijly'expecting  from  Kngland,  and,  in  the  next  place,  this  occurrence 
could  not  but  weaken,  if  it  did  not  wholly  alienate,  the  friendship  of  the 
duke  (if  Burgundy,  to  which  the  Knglish  cause  was  so  much  indebted. 
Hiuiiig  endeavoured,  but  in  vain,  to  mediate  between  the  angry  dukes,  Bed- 
ford now  saw  himself  obliged  to  abstain  from  following  up  his  signal  vic- 
tory at  Veriieuil,  and  to  hasten  to  Fngland,  to  endeavour  oy  his  presence 
there  to  repair  the  already  very  miscnievous  consequences  of  his  brother's 
he;idslroiig  temper  and  personal  ambition. 

.S'or  "as  it  on  ac-counl  of  Oluticester's  folly  alone  that  the  presence  of 
Ijedfoid  was  at  this  jun(!lure  much  needed  in  England.  The  bishop  of 
Wiiiclicstor,  as  we  mentioned  before,  had  been  selected  by  parliamen'  as 
cusius  of  the  young  king's  person  not  only  on  account  of  his  groat  abdi- 
ties,  but  also  because  his  family  had  no  claim  to  the  throne  that  could  in- 
duee  him  to  behave  unfairly  to  his  young  charge.  But  this  prelate  had 
great  personal  ambition.  He  was  of  an  arbitrary  and  |)ereinplory  temper 
and  requiriid  from  the  council  a  far  greater  share  of  authority  in  the  state 
than  his  office  of  custos  of  the  king's  person  could  warrant  him  iti  de 
maiidiiig,  or  the  couuimI  in  granting. 

Between  the  prelate,  thus  peremptory  and  ambitious,  and  tlu?  equal!;- 
ambitious  and  fiery  Gloucester,  it  was  inevitable  that  an  open  qiiarr  ■ 
should  take  place  under  such  cin-uinstances ;  and  as  each  of  them  had  h, 
parlizans  in  the  ministry,  it  was  not  without  some  difRcully  that  even  the 
great  authority  of  Bedford  composinl  tin;  existing  dilTcrences  ;  nor  did  he 
wliully  succeed  in  so  doing  until  he  had  invoked  the  authority  of  parlia- 
ment, before  which  assembly  the  two  disputants  were  compelled  to  come 
to  an  apparent  reconciliation,  and  to  promise  that  thenceforth  all  their 
iliffereiices  should  be  buried  in  oblivion. 

Willie  Bedford  had  been  busy  in  adjusting  this  untoward  and  unseemly 
qiiiirrid,  the  duke  of  Burgundy  had  so  well  employi!d  his  credit  at  Home, 
as  to  have  i)rocured  a  bull  which  not  only  annulled  the  marriage  contract 
between  the  countess  Jacqueline  and  the  duke  of  Gloucester,  but  also  foi- 
bade  their  marriage  even  in  the  event  of  the  duke  of  Brabant  being  re- 
moved by  death.  The  duke  of  Gloucester,  who  had  all  along  been  actu- 
ated in  his  adventurous  suit  far  more  by  ambition  and  cupulity  lli;m  by 
love,  finding  so  insuperable  an  obstacle  interposed  between  him  and  even 
bis  future  success,  very  soon  consoled  himself  for  his  disappoMitnient  by 
giving  his  hand  to  a.  lady  who  had  for  a  considerable  time  been  known  as 
hiH  unstress. 

Noon  after,  the  duke  of  Brabant  died  ;  and  his  widow  in  order  to  recover 

lior  territory,  was  obliged  to  declare  the  duke  of  Burgundy  her  heir  should 

she  liii!  without  issue,  and  to  engage  not  to  take  a  second  husband  unless 

Willi  the  duke's  cimsent. 

This  teriniiiatioti  of  the  affbir  prevented  the  itnmfdiate  hostility  upon 


it  I     OiVfT     " 


lf»0l 


llP«f 


364 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


•■•■•■ 

m 
t  ill 


'fj: 


the  part  of  Burgundy,  of  which  Bedford  at  first  had  been  very  juutiy  gn 
prehensive ;  but  all  the  circumstances  of  the  quarrel  were  calculated  greatly 
to  weaken  the  duke  of  Burgundy  in  his  attachment  to  the  Euglisli,  froni 
wliom  he  could  no  longer  expect,  in  the  event  of  their  coniplere  success 
to  receive  much  better  treatment  than  that  which  on  the  part  of  Kins 
Charles  had  aroused  the  duke  to  such  fierce  enmity ;  and  ultimately  this 
quarrel  did  alienate  the  duke  from  his  unnatural  and,  on  the  whole,  very 
impolitic  alliance  with  the  English. 

The  duke  of  Brittany,  whose  alliance  Bedford  valued  only  second  to  that 
of  Burgundy,  was  very  effectually  detached  from  the  English  side  by  the 
gift  to  his  brother,  the  count  of  Kichemont,  of  the  office  of  constable  ol 
France,  vacant  by  the  death  of  Buchan;  and  this  loss  must  have  been  the 
more  mortifying  to  Bedford,  because  he  could  not  be  unaware  that  it  was 
mainly  owing  to  the  impolitic  pertinacity  with  which  he  had  refused  to 
gratify  the  passion  of  the  count  of  Richemont  for  military  command.  But 
the  loss,  however  caused  or  however  much  lamented,  was  wholly  irre. 
trievable ;  for  whatever  there  was  of  personal  and  selfish  in  the  duke's 
motive  for  changing  his  party,  the  change  was  permanent,  and  he  ever  af- 
ter remained  faithful  to  King  Charles. 

The  cooled  zeal  of  one  ally  and  the  total  loss  of  another,  and  the  favour 
able  moral  effect  which  these  things  and  eight  months  of  comparative  quiet 
had  produced  upon  the  partizans  of  king  Charles,  were  sufficient  to  cause 
anxiety  to  the  sagacious  duke  of  Bedford  wlien  he  returned  to  France. 

The  French  garrison  of  Montargis  was  besieged  by  the  earl  of  Warwiclc 
and  an  army  of  three  thousand  men,  and  was  so  reduced  as  to  be  on  the 
very  point  of  surrendering,  when  the  Bastard  of  Orleans,  afterwards  so 
famous  uh  tcf  'i's  title  of  duke  of  Dunois,  marclicd  with  only  sixteen  liun- 
dred  nifsi  *"  Montargis,  and  compelled  Warwick,  in  spite  of  his  superior 
numb'.';  >.  *'■■  Mv.  c  the  seige. 

Th:  i.  <i  aim  of  tlie  duke  of  Bedford  was  to  bring  back  to  his  alliance 
the  ;U',.^o  ijf  L';'ittany.  Sensible  that  that  prince  had  chiefly  been  guided 
in  his  c!i..:r^'(  ')f  alliance  by  the  count  of  Ilicliemont,  and  would,  tlierefure, 
most  probabiy  allow  his  own  obvious  interest  to  induce  him  to  diange 
sides  once  more,  Bedford  secretly  concentrated  several  detaclnncnis  of 
English  upon  the  frontiers  of  Brittany,  and  invaded  that  province  so  sud- 
denly, that  the  duke  had  no  chance  of  resistance,  but  saw  himself  obliged 
to  consent  to  give  up  the  Frencli  alliance  and  adhere  to  the  treaty  of 
Troyes,  to  acknowledge  the  duke  of  Bedford  as  regent  of  France  and  to 
pledge  himself  to  do  homage  to  the  young  king  Henry  for  his  duchy. 

Having  thus  freed  himself  frcun  a  dangerous  enemy  in  his  rear,  Dodford 
prepared  for  an  enterprise,  the  success  of  which  would  pretty  conspleiclv 
insure  the  entire  success  of  the  Knglish  cause — the  siege  of  the  city  of 
Orleans,  which  was  so  situated  between  the  northern  and  southern  prov- 
inces as  to  open  a  way  to  the  <  ntrance  of  either  by  its  possessor.  Ai 
Bedford,  having  been  so  suci;essml  in  expelling  Charles  from  the  northern 
provinces,  was  about  to  attack  him  in  the  south,  the  possession  of  Orleans 
was  evidently  of  the  greatest  importance  to  him. 

The  conduct  of  the  attack  upon  Orleans  was  entrusted  to  the  carl  of 
•Salisbury,  a  distinguished  soldier,  who  had  just  brought  a  reinforcement 
of  six  thousand  men  from  England.  Tin;  earl,  quite  rightly,  no  doubt, 
confined  himself  to  the  task  of  taking  several  places  in  the  vicinity  of  Or- 
eans,  which,  though  they  were  but  small,  might  prove  of  very  serious  in- 
convenience to  hii-i  wher.i  engaged  in  the  contem|)lated  siege.  Tiieso 
preliminary  measures  of  the  earl,  however  conformable  to  the  rules  of 
war,  and  however  indispensable  under  the  particular  ciri;umsiances,  were 
lit  the  least  thus  far  unfortunate,  that  they  at  once  disclosed  to  King 
r^harles  the  main  design  of  the  English,  and  gave  him  time  and  opportuiii* 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


365 


w  to  throw  in  such  stores  of  provisions  and  reinforcements  of  men  an 
might  enable  the  garrison  to  msiive  an  effectual  resistance. 

The  lord  of  Gaucour,  an  officer  of  equal  conduct,  valour,  and  experience, 
was  made  governor,  and  many  other  veteran  officers  threw  tlwniselves 
into  the  place  to  aid  him  in  its  defence  ;  the  troops  they  *jad  to  command 
were  veterans  in  every  sense  of  the  word,  and  even  the  very  citizens,  in- 
stead of  bcinuf  likely  to  disturb  their  defenders  by  idle  fear^,  were  iv  ■  sr 
aceusiomcd  to  war  that  they  promised  to  be  of  very  important  ser 

Having  noniplcted  his  preliminary  operations,  the  earl  of  Salisb 
proaehed  Orleans  with  an  army  of  ten  thousand  men,  and  all 
looked  with  anxiety  for  the  result  of  a  siege  which  was  likely  to 
completely  derisive  as  to  the  future  fate  of  France,  and  where, 
quently,  i'  behoved  Charles  to  make  his  utmost  and  final  effort. 

Having  too  small  a  force  for  the  eomplete  investment  of  a  city  whii'h, 
apart  from  its  great  e.\tent,  had  the  advantage  of  a  bridge  over  the  Loire, 
tlicftarlof  Salisbury  proceeded  to  attack  the  southern  side,  towards  Sd- 
logiie ;  but  as  he  was  attacking  the  fortifications  which  defended  the  bridge, 
he" was  killed  by  a  cannon  shot  while  in  the  very  act  of  reconnoitering  the 
enemy.  The  command  of  the  Knglish  now  fell  upon  the  earl  of  Suffolk, 
and  he,  receiving  at  the  same  time  a  large  reinforcement  of  both  English 
and  BurgiMidians,  departed  from  Salisbury's  plan  of  partial  operations,  led 
his  main  force  across  tlie  river,  and  thus  invested  tin;  city  on  the  other 
side,  The  winter  having  now  commenced,  the  severity  of  the*  weather 
remleied  it  impracticable  to  throw  up  intrenchments  completely  around ; 
ijut  by  eonstruciing  redoubts  at  convenient  distances,  Suffolk  was  at  once 
able  to  lodge  his  soldiers  safely,  and  to  distress  the  enemy  by  preventing 
any  supplies  beiiig  conveyed  to  them  ;  leaving  the  task  of  connecting  the 
redoubts  by  a  series  of  trenches  until  the  arrival  of  spring.  It  thus  ap- 
pears "that  Suffolk  trusted  rather  to  famine  than  to  force  ;  to  confining  the 
enemy  strictly  within  their  walls,  than  to  hazarding  his  cause  by  splendid 
storming  f,'ats,  which  were  certain  to  cost  him  many  of  his  bravest  men, 
and  were  not  likely  to  be  soon  successful ;  for  ihougli  he  had  a  train  of 
artillery,  the  engineering  art  was  as  yet  far  too  imperfeot  to  allow  of  its 
making  any  speedy  impression  upon  so  strong  a  fortress.  The  attempts 
of  tin;  friends  of  the  besieged  to  throw  in  supplies,  ami  of  the  Knglish  to 
prevent  them,  gave  rise  to  many  splendid  but  partial  engagements,  in 
which  both  parties  displ  lyed  great  gallantry  and  "iiterprise.  So  persever- 
ing, indeed,  were  the  French,  that  upon  some  occasions  they  succeeded 
in  throwing  in  supplies,  in  defiance  of  all  ihe  vigilance  and  courage  by 
whifli  they  were  opposed ;  but  the  convoys  that  were  thus  fortunate  could 
but  in  a  very  inconsiderable  degree  assist  a  garrison  so  numerous,  and  it 
was  evident  to  all  military  observers  that  Suffolk's  cautious  policy  bade 
fair  to  he  successful,  and  that,  however  slowly,  the  English  were  steadily 
andconsiantly  advancing  nearer  to  the  accomplishment  of  their  important 
designs. 

A.  D.  1429. — While  Suffolk  was  thus  engaged  in  starving  the  enemy 
within  Ihe  walls,  he  was  himself  in  no  smtiU  danger  of  being  placed  in  the 
same  predicament.  There  were,  it  is  true,  neither  intrenchments  nor 
redoubts  behind  him,  but  there  were  numerous  and  indefatigable  parties 
of  French  ravagers,  who  completely  denuded  of  provisions  all  the  neigh- 
bouring districts  from  which  he  might  otherwise  have  procured  supplies; 
ami  from  his  small  force  he  could  not,  without  groat  danger  to  his  main 
design,  detach  any  considerable  nimiber  to  keep  the  French  ravagers  in 
check,  .lust  as  Suff(jlk's  men  began  to  be  seriously  distressed  for  provi- 
sions, a  very  great  convoy  of  stores  of  every  description  arrived  to  theii 
re'.k'f,  under  the  i'i)inniand  of  Sir  .John  Fastolff;',  with  an  escort  of  two 
thousainl  five  hundred  men;  but  ere  it  could  re.ich  Suff(dk'o  camp  it  was 
budJenly  .iltacked  by  nearly  double  that  number  of  French  and  Scotch, 


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THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTOR 


ander  the  command  of  Dunois  and  the  count  of  Clermont.  Fastolffe  en- 
deavoured to  counterbalance  his  inferiority  in  men  by  drawing  them  up 
behind  the  wagons,  but  tiie  enemy  brought  a  small  battery  of  cannon  to 
bear  upon  him,  which  very  effectually  dislodged  and  disordered  the  En- 
glish. The  affair  now  seemed  to  be  secure  on  the  French  side,  as  a  steady 
piirseverance  but  for  a  few  minutes  in  their  first  proceedings  would  have 
made  it.  But  the  fierce  and  undisciplined  impetuosity  of  a  part  of  the 
Scotch  troops  caused  them  to  break  their  line  and  rush  in  upon  the  Eii- 
glish ;  a  general  action  ensued,  and  ended  in  the  retreat  of  the  French, 
who  lost  five  hundred  in  killed,  besides  a  great  number  of  wounded,  and 
among  the  latter  was  Dunois  himself.  The  convoy  that  was  thus  saved 
to  the  English  was  of  immense  importance,  and  owing  to  a  part  of  it  be- 
ing herrings  for  the  food  of  the  soldiers  during  Lent,  the  affair  commonly 
went  by  the  name  of  the  "  Battle  of  the  Herrings." 

The  relief  thus  afforded  to  the  English  enabled  them  daily  to  press  mo/e 
closely  upon  the  important  city  ;  and  Charles,  now  wholly  despairing  of 
rescuing  it  by  force  of  arms,  caused  the  duke  of  Orleans,  who  was  siill  a 
prisoner  in  England,  to  propose  to  Gloucester  and  the  council,  that  this 
city  and  all  its  territory  should  be  allowed  to  remain  neutral  during  the 
whole  remainder  of  the  war,  and,  as  the  best  security  for  neutrality,  be 
placed  in  the  keeping  of  the  duke  of  Burgundy.  That  prince  readily 
grasped  at  the  proposal,  and  went  to  Paris  to  urge  it  upon  the  duke  of 
Bedford,  who,  however,  replied,  that  he  had  no  noti<m  of  beating  the 
bushes  that  others  might  secure  the  game  ;  and  Burgundy,  deeply  offended 
both  at  the  refusal  and  the  manner  in  which  it  was  made,  immediately 
departed  and  withdrew  all  those  of  his  men  who  were  concerned  in  the 
investment  of  Orleans.  Foili'd  as  well  in  negotiation  as  in  arms,  Chiirles 
now  wholly  despaired  of  rescuing  Orleans,  when  an  incident  occurred  to 
save  it  and  to  give  new  hopes  to  his  cause,  so  marvellous,  that  it  reads 
more  like  the  invention  of  a  romancer's  fancy  than  the  sober  relation  ol 
the  matter-of-fact  historian. 

Long  as  Orleans  had  been  invested,  and  intimately  connected  as  its  fate 
seemed  with  that  of  the  whole  nation,  it  is  not  to  be  wondered  at  that  the 
siege  was  talked  of  in  all  parts  of  France,  and  speculated  upon  even  by 
persons  little  cognizant  of  public  affairs.  Among  the  thousands  whose 
minds  were  strongly  agitated  by  the  frequent  and  various  news  from 
Orleans,  was  Joan  d'Arc,  the  maid  servant  of  a  country  inn  at  Domrcmi, 
near  Vaucouleurs.  Though  of  the  lowest  order  of  menial  servants,  this 
young  woman,  now  twenty-seven  years  of  age,  was  of  blameless  life  and 
maimers.  Well  formed  and  active,  her  simple  living  and  her  hard  work 
preserved  her  naturally  healthy  constitution;  and  as  she  was  accustomed 
to  ride  her  master's  horses  to  their  watering  ()liico,  and  to  do  other  work 
which  ill  m(»st  households  would  fall  to  the  share  of  men,  she  was  iiiiasu- 
ally  hardy  and  of  a  somewhat  masculine  habit,  though,  as  has  been  siiiil 
of  perfectly  blameless  life  and  uninurked  by  any  eccentricity  of  maniiei 
or  eoniluct. 

This  young  woman  paid  so  much  attention  to  what  she  heard  resprct- 
iiig  the  siege  of  Orleans  and  the  distress  and  peril  of  her  rightful  sov 
ereign,  that  by  <legree8  she  accustomed  herself  to  make  them  the  snle 
sulijects  of  her  thoughts ;  and  her  sanguine  and  untutored  mind  at  length 
became  so  much  iiifiained  by  sympathy  with  the  king,  and  by  a  |)assi(iiialfi 
desire  to  aid  liim,  that  her  reveries  and  aspirations  seemi'd  to  jissunie  the 
aspect  of  actual  visions  from  above,  and  she  iinagini^d  hc^rsi  J  ainhlily 
called  upon  by  soiii"  supernatural  power  to  exert  her.ielf  in  her  sovereiKii'i 
behalf.  This  delubion  lieennie  ijaily  stronger,  anil  at  length,  naturally 
courageous,  and  rendered  still  more  so  by  heriiiiagined  visions,  she  over- 
loi'ki'd  all  the  vast  difficulties  wliich  inust  tiav<!  Ii.'en  evident  to  even  lici 
liK  Npenenced  miiul,  and  prcsenieil  heiijiK  to  haddricnurt,  the  governor 'j( 


THE  TaEASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


367 


Vaucouleurs,  related  to  him  all  her  fancied  experiences,  and  besought  him 
to  listen  to  the  voice  of  heaven  and  to  aid  her  in  fulfilling  its  decrees. 
After  some  hesitation,  the  governor,  whether  really  believing  all  that  Joan 
affirmed  of  her  visions,  or  only  considering  her  a  visionary  of  whose  de 
lusions  a  profitable  use  might  be  made  by  the  king's  friends,  furnished 
her  with  some  attendants  and  sent  her  to  Chinon,  where  Charles  and  his 
scanty  court  then  resided. 

Where  so  much  is  undeniably  true  in  a  tale  of  which  so  much  must  of 
necessity  be  false,  it  is  no  easy  matter  to  separate  the  true  from  the  wholly 
false  or  the  greatly  exaggerated.  We,  therefore,  shall  simply  relate  what 
passed  and  is  said  to  have  passed,  contenting  ourselves  with  this  single 
caiition  to  the  reader — to  conceive  that,  from  very  many  motives,  cvimi 
the  best  men  then  living  about  the  French  king's  court  were  liable  to  be 
seduced  into  credulity  on  the  one  hand  and  exaggeration  on  the  other,  and 
that,  consequently,  the  wise  plan  in  reading  what  follows  will  be  to  reject 
altogether  all  that  assumes  to  be  miraculous,  and  to  credit  only  what,  how- 
ever extraordinary,  is  perfectly  natural,  and  especially  under  the  extraor- 
dinary state  of  affairs  at  thai  time. 

When  Joan  was  introduced  to  the  king  she  at  once  singled  him  out  from 
among  the  courtiers  by  whom  he  was  surrounded,  although  it  was  at- 
tempted to  baffle  heron  this  point  by  the  king's  assumption  of  a  plain  dress, 
totally  destitute  of  all  marks  or  ornaments  that  could  discover  hi.s  rank  to 
her.  Repeating  to  him  what  she  had  already  told  to  Baudricourt,  she 
assured  him,  in  the  name  of  heaven,  that  she  would  compel  the  English 
to  raise  the  siege  of  Orleans,  and  would  safely  conduct  him  to  Rhcinis, 
that,  like  his  ancestors,  he  might  be  crowned  there.  The  king  expressed 
some  doubts  of  the  genuineness  of  her  mi.ision,  and,  very  pertinently,  de- 
manded some  unequivocal  and  convincing  proof  of  her  supernal  inspira- 
tion; upon  which,  all  the  attendants  save  the  king's  confidential  friends 
being  withdrawn,  she  told  him  a  secret  which,  from  its  very  nature,  he 
had  every  reason  to  believe  that  by  natural  means  no  one  in  the  world 
could  know  ;  and  s  le,  at  the  same  time,  described  and  demanded  to  be 
armed  with  a  certain  sword  which  was  deposited  in  the  chnrcli  of  St. 
Catharine  of  Kierbois,  and  of  which,  though  it  was  certain  that  she  never 
could  have  seen  it,  she  described  the  various  marks  with  great  exacfness. 
Though  greatly  staggered,  the  king  was  even  yet  unconvinced  ;  and  a  (.-on- 
clave  of  d()(;tors  and  theologians  was  assembled,  to  inquire  into  and  report 
upon  Joan's  alleilged  mission.  The  rejiort  of  these  learned  |)i'!-..iiis  was 
decidedly  in  favour  of  the  damsel's  truth,  and  she  was  tiien  ri  >sfiy  inter- 
rogated by  the  parliament  which  was  sitting  at  I'oitlers,  and  iiere  again  it 
was  decided  that  her  mission  was  genuine. 

If  the  king  and  his  advisers  first  sinuilatei'  doubt  and  scrupulosity,  only 
to  increase  the  effect  upon  the  vulgar  of  llieir  subsciiueiit  and  .seemingly 
reluetaiu  belief,  the  device  had  all  the  success  tliey  could  have  desired. 
Kver  i)ron(!  to  belief  in  the  marvellous,  the  people  who  had  lately  been  in 
the  deepest  desjiair  now  s|ioke  in  aci'ents  not  merely  of  hope  but  of  con- 
viction, that  heaven  had  miraculously  inspired  a  maidcn-clianipioii,  hv 
whose  instructions  the  king  would  ho  enabled  to  triumph  over  all  his  difn- 
culiies  and  lo  expel  all  his  enemi'^s. 

Hut  it  was  not  mirelyasan  adviser  that  Joan  believed  herself  instructed 
to  aid  her  kiiijr.  In  her  former  servile  occupation  she  had  leariuMl  to 
manage  a  horse  with  ease,  and  she  was  now  mounted  on  a  warsleed, 
armed,  "cap  i\  pie,"  and  paraded  before  the  people.  Her  aniinaied  coun- 
lenance,  her  Vi  iilli,  and,  above  all,  her  graceful  ami  fearless  t  ijuilation, 
which  seemed  so  marvellous  and  yet  iniglil  have  been  so  easily  accounted 
(or,  confirmed  all  tlie  favourable  impressions  which  had  been  foriiuMl  of 
her;  and  the  miilliinde  loudly  avered  that  any  enterprise  he^uh'd  by  her 
duisi  needs  be  successful.     With  these  fond  prepossessions  in  her  favour 


^ 


368  THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTOKi. 

she  set  out  for  Blois  to  head  the  escort  of  a  convoy  abou  to  be  sent  u. 
the  relief  of  Orleans. 

The  escort  in  question  consisted  of  an  army  of  ten  thousand  men  undej 
the  command  of  St.  Severe,  who  now  had  orders  to  consider  himself 
second  in  command  to  Joan  d'Arc ;  though  probably  with  a  secret  reser- 
vation not  to  allow  her  supernatural  fancies  to  militate  against  any  of  the 
precautions  commanded  by  the  laws  of  mortal  warfare.  Joan  ordered 
every  man  in  the  army  to  confess  himself  before  marching,  and  all  women 
of  bad  life  and  character  to  be  prohibited  from  following  the  army,  which 
last  order  had  at  least  the  recommendation  of  removing  a  nuisance  which 
sadly  militated  against  good  discipline.  At  the  head  of  the  troops,  car- 
rying in  her  hand  a  consecrated  banner,  upon  which  was  embroidered  a 
representation  of  the  Supreme  Being  grasping  the  earth,  Joan  led  the  way 
to  Orleans,  and  on  approaching  it  she  demanded  that  Orleans  should  be 
entered  on  the  side  of  the  Beausse  ;  but  Dunois,  who  well  knew  that  the 
English  were  strongest  there,  so  far  interfered  with  her  prophetic  power 
as  to  cause  the  other  side  of  the  river  to  be  taken  where  the  Knglish  were 
weaker.  The  garrison  made  a  sally  on  the  side  of  the  Beausse,  and  the 
convoy  was  safely  taken  across  the  river  in  boats,  and  was  accompanied 
by  the  Maid  of  Orleans,  whose  appearance,  under  such  circumstances, 
arrayed  in  knightly  garb  and  solemnly  waving  her  consecrated  banner, 
caused  the  soldiers  and  citizens  to  welcome  her  as  being  indeed  an  in- 
spired and  glorious  prophetess,  under  whose  orders  they  could  not  fail  of 
success ;  and  as  another  convoy  shortly  afterwards  arrived,  even  Dunois 
was  so  far  converted  to  the  general  belief,  as  to  allow  it,  in  obedience  to 
Joan's  orders,  to  approach  by  the  side  of  the  Beausse.  This  convoy, 
too,  entered  safely,  together  with  its  escort,  not  even  an  attempt  being 
made  on  the  part  of  the  besiegers  to  cut  it  off. 

Yet  a  few  days  before  Joan's  first  arrival  at  Orleans,  when  sh  ^  had  sent 
a  letter  to  Bedford,  threatening  him  with  the  divine  anger  shouUl  he  ven- 
ture to  resist  the  cause  which  she  was  sent  to  aid,  the  veteran  duke  treated 
the  matter  as  the  ravings  of  a  maniac,  or  as  a  most  shallow  trick,  the  mere 
resorting  to  which  was  sufficient  to  siiow  the  plete  desperation  to 

which  Charles  was  driven.     But  the  age  was  sn:  ious,  and  the  natural 

success  which  had  merely  accompanied  the  pi  .ons  of  Joan  was  by 

the  ignorant  soldiers  and  by  their  (us  to  superstition)  scarcely  less  igno- 
rant oflicers,  taken  to  have  been  caused  by  it,  and  to  be,  therefore,  a  sure 
proof  of  her  supernatural  mission  and  an  inlallible  augury  of  its  success. 
Gloom  and  terror  were  in  the  hearts  and  u|)on  the  countenances  of  tlie 
English  soldiery,  and  Suffolk  most  unwisely  allowed  these  feelings  full 
leisure  lo  e.tert  themselves  by  lu-ving  his  men  unemployed  in  any  uulilary 
attempt ;  their  inactivity  thus  serving  to  augment  their  despondency,  wliile 
it  increased  the  confidence  and  exultation  of  the  garrison. 

Whether  merely  obeying  the  |)romptiiig8  of  a  naturally  brave  and  active 
spirit,  worked  into  a  state  of  high  enthusiasm  by  the  events  in  whi'h  siio 
had  taken  so  conspicuous  a  part,  or  from  the  politic  promptings  of  Dunois 
and  the  other  Freur.h  commanders,  Joan  now  exclaimed  that  the  garrisuii 
ouglit  no  longer  to  be  kept  on  the  defensive  ;  that  the  brave  men  who  had 
been  so  longcompulsoriiy  idle  and  pent  up  wilhiii  their  beleagured  walls 
should  he  led  forth  to  attack  the  redoubts  of  tlie  enemy,  and  that  site  wan 
coniinissioned  by  Heaven  to  promise  them  certain  success.  An  attack 
was  aci'orilingly  made  upon  are(loui)t  and  was  coin|)letely  successful,  the 
defenders  being  killed  or  taken  prisoners  to  a  man.  This  sueecss  gave 
new  ainination  to  the  French,  and  the  forts  on  the  other  side  of  the  river 
were  next  attacked.  On  one  occasion  tlie  French  were  repulsed,  and 
Joan  received  an  arrow  in  her  neck  ;  liui  she  led  hack  the  French  to  tin; 
charge,  and  they  overcame  the  fort  from  which  for  a  moment  they  hiul 
fled,  and  the  heroine— fur  such  she  was,  apart  from  her  supernulural  pre- 


THE  TEEASUaV  OF  HISTORY. 


3(>9 


tensions — plucked  the  arrow  from  the  wound  with  her  own  hands,  &nd 
■carcely  stayed  to  have  the  wound  dressed  ere  she  returned  to  the  self- 
imposed  duty  into  which  she  so  zealously  entered. 

Such  was  the  effect  of  Joan's  deeds  and  pretensions,  that  the  English 
lost  redoubt  after  redoubt,  besides  having  upwards  of  six  thousand  men 
either  killed  or  wounded  in  these  most  desperate  though  only  partial  con- 
tests. It  was  in  vain  that  the  English  commandei ;,  finding  it  completely 
useless  to  endeavour  to  convince  their  men  that  Jr  an's  deeds  were  natural, 
laboured  to  persuade  them  that  she  was  aided  wut  by  Heaven,  but  by  the 
powers  of  darkness ;  for  it  was  impossible  to  persuade  the  men  that  those 
powers  were  not,  for  the  time  at  least,  too  strong  to  be  combated  with 
any  possibility  of  success.  Fearing,  therefore,  that  the  most  extensive 
disaster,  even  a  total  destruction  of  his  army,  might  result  from  his  keep- 
ing men  so  thoroughly  and  incurably  disheartened,  before  a  place  defended 
by  men  whose  natural  courage  was  indescribably  heightened  by  their  be- 
lief that  they  were  supernaturally  assisted,  the  earl  of  Suffolk  prudently, 
but  most  reluctantly,  resolved  to  raise  the  siege,  and  he  commenced  his 
retreat  from  before  Orleans  with  all  the  deliberate  calmness  which  the 
deep-seated  terror  of  his  men  would  allow  him  to  exhibit.  He  himself 
with  the  principal  part  of  his  army  retired  to  Jergeau,  whither  Joan  fol- 
lowed him  at  the  head  of  an  army  six  thousand  strong.  For  ten  days  the 
place  was  gallantly  attacked  and  as  gallantly  defended.  At  the  end  of 
that  time  orders  for  the  assault  were  given,  and  Joan  herself  descended 
into  the  foss6  and  led  the  attack.  Here  she  was  struck  to  the  ground  by 
a  stone,  but  almost  immediately  recovered  herself,  and  fought  with  her 
accustomed  courage  until  the  assault  was  completely  successful.  Suffolk 
was  himself  taken  prisoner  by  a  French  officer  named  Renaud,  and  on  this 
occasion  a  singular  specimen  was  given  of  the  nice  punctilios  uf  chivalry. 
When  Suffolk,  complcf  ly  overpowered,  was  about  to  give  up  his  sword, 
he  demanded  whether  his  successful  opponent  were  a  kniglit.  Renaud 
was  obliged  to  confess  that  he  had  not  yet  attained  to  that  distinction, 
thougii  he  could  boast  of  being  a  gentleman.  Then  I  knight  you,  said 
SiiD'olk,  and  he  bestowed  upon  Renaud  the  knigiitly  accolade  with  the 
very  sword  which  an  instant  afterwards  was  delivered  to  him  as  the  captor 
of  tlic  man  to  whom  he  owed  his  knighthood ! 

Willie  these  things  were  passing  at  Jergeau,  the  remainder  of  the  En- 
glish army  under  FastolfTe,  Talbot,  and  Scales,  was  making  a  somewhat 
disorderly  retreat  before  a  strong  body  of  French ;  and  the  vanguard  of 
the  latter  overtook  the  rear  cf  the  former  near  the  village  of  Patay.  So 
completely  dismayed  were  the  English,  and  so  confident  the  French,  that 
the  batlle  had  no  sooner  commenced  than  it  became  converted  into  a 
nu^rc  rout,  in  which  upwards  of  two  thousand  of  the  En^.r|ish  were  killed, 
and  a  vast  number,  including  both  Scales  and  Talbot,  taken  prisoners.  So 
great  and  so  universal  was  the  panic  of  the  English  at  this  period,  that 
i''as!uin°e,  who  had  often  been  present  in  the  most  disastrous  scenes  ol 
war,  actually  set  the  example  of  flight  to  his  astounded  troops,  uiul  wiis 
8ul)sc'(iuently  punished  for  it  by  being  degraded  from  the  order  of  the 
garter,  which  iiad  been  bestowed  upon  him  as  the  appropriate  reward  ol 
a  long  life  and  gallant  conduct.  So  blighting  a  power  has  superstition 
even  u|)(in  minds  accustomed  to  treat  mortal  and  tangible  dangers  with 
indifference ! 

During  this  period  King  Charles  had  kept  remote  from  the  actual  llieatn 
of  war,  though  \w  had  actively  and  cfnciently  busied  liiniscif  in  funii.shinie 
upplies  and  sending  directions  to  the  actual  coininnnilers  of  his  troops  in 
the  fiehl.  Hut  now  that  Joan  had  so  completely  redeemed  her  pledge  as 
to  the  raising  of  llie  siege  of  Orleans,  and  now  that  the  prestige  of  her 
lupi'rnatiiral  niissioii  had  so  completely  gained  tlie  asceiidtiiu'y  over  the 
minds  of  all  conditions  of  mc  i,  he  felt  neither  surprise  nor  reluctanci 
I.— J  J 


iil' 


970 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORIT. 


when  she  urgently  solicited  him  to  set  out  for  Rheims,  and  confidcnti-;  -e- 
peated  her  assurances  that  he  should  without  delay  be  crowned  in' that 
city.  True  it  was  that  Rheims  could  only  be  reached  by  a  very  long 
march  through  a  country  in  which  the  enemy  was  in  great  force,  and  in 
which,  of  course,  every  advantageous  position  was  carefully  occupied  by 
them.  But  the  army  was  confident  of  success  so  long  as  Joan  marched 
at  its  head;  and  Charles  could  not  refuse  to  accompany  the  heroine, 
without  tacitly  confessing  that  he  had  less  faith  in  her  mission,  or  was 
himself  possessed  of  less  personal  courage,  than  the  lowest  pikeman  in 
his  army.  Either  of  these  suppositions  would  necessarily  be  fatal  to  hit 
cause ;  and  he  accordingly  set  out  for  Rheims,  accompanied  by  Joan  and 
an  army  of  twelve  thousand  men. 

Instead  of  meeting  with  the  opposition  he  had  anticipated,  Charlet 
marched  as  peacefully  along  as  though  no  enemy  had  been  in  the  neigh 
bourhood.  Troyes  and  Chalons  successively  opened  their  gates  to  him ; 
and  before  he  reached  Rheims,  where  he  might  reasonably  have  expected 
that  the  English  would  muster  their  utmost  force  to  prevent  a  coronation, 
of  which  they  could  not  but  judge  the  probable  influence  on  the  minds  o' 
the  French,  he  was  met  by  a  peaceable  and  humble  deputation  which  pre- 
sented him  with  the  keys. 

And  in  Rheims,  in  the  especial  and  antique  coronation-place  of  his 
fathers,  Charles  was  crowned,  as  the  maid  of  Orleans  had  prophesied  that 
he  would  be ;  and  he  was  anointed  with  the  holy  oil  which  was  said  to 
have  been  brought  from  Heaven  by  a  pigeon  at  the  coronation  of  Clovis ; 
and  the  lately  obscure  and  menial  of  the  village  mn  waved  over  iiis  head 
the  consecrated  banner  before  which  his  foes  had  so  often  fled ;  and  while 
the  glad  multitude  shouted  in  triumphant  joy,  she  to  whom  so  much  of 
this  triumph  was  owing  fell  at  his  feet  and  bathed  them  with  tears  of  joy. 


CHAPTER  XXXI. 

THE    REION    OF   HENRV    VI.    (cONTIKUED.) 

The  coronation  of  Charles  in  the  city  of  Rheims  was  doubly  calculated 
to  raise  the  spirits  and  quicken  the  loyal  attachment  of  his  subjects.  For 
while,  Hs  the  established  coronation-place  of  the  kings  of  France,  Hiioiins 
alone  seemed  to  them  to  be  capable  of  giving  sanctity  and  efl'ect  to  llie 
solemnity,  tlio  truly  surprising  difficulties  that  had  been  surmounteci  by 
him  in  obtaining  possession  of  that  city,  under  the  auspices  of  the  Maid  of 
Orleans,  seemed  to  all  ranks  of  men,  in  that  superstitious  ago,  to  bo  so 
many  dear  and  undeniable  evidences  that  the  cause  of  Charles  w;is  in- 
deed miraculously  espoused  by  heaven.  On  turning  his  attention  to  oi)- 
tainlng  possession  of  the  neighbouring  garrisons,  Charles  reaped  the  full 
benefit  of  this  popular  judgment ;  Laon,  Soissona,  Cliateau-Thiery,  Pro- 
vins,  and  niuneroiis  otiicr  towns  opening  their  gates  to  him  at  the  first 
aiiinnions.  This  f'lnling  spread  far  and  wide,  and  Charles,  who  so  lately 
■aw  himself  upon  the  very  point  of  being  wholly  expelled  from  his  country, 
had  now  tiio  satisfuclion  of  seeing  the  favour  of  the  whole  nation  rapidly 
and  warmly  inclinincr  to  his  rause. 

Hcdford  in  this  (liflicult  crisis  showed  liimself  calm,  provident,  and  reso- 
lute iis  ever  he  had  t)een  during  the  greiitewt  prosperity  of  the  Kn^iish 
arms.  Pereeivini;  that  the  Frenoli,  and  espcciiilly  the  fickle  and  turhii- 
lent  popiiliice  of  V:\r\n,  were  wavering,  he  judiciously  mixed  curbin[r  and 
iiululgcnce,  at  once  ini|)r('ssing  them  with  a  painful  sense  of  the  diingnr 
otf  iiisiirrertion,  and  diiniiiishing  as  far  as  kiiiiliiess  could  diminish,  tlicir 
evidently  stronir  tlesire  for  one.  Conscious,  too,  that  KiirKiindy  whh 
deeply  offended, and  that  his  open  enmity  would  just  at  this  juncture  hr 


THE  TEEASURY  OP  HISTOEY. 


371 


Ciliated 
For 
lihcims 
to  the 
('(1  by 
aid  of 
bo  80 
as  in- 
to ob- 
thc  full 
Fro. 
first 
itfly 
oiintry, 
[ipidly 

1(1  rcso- 
Kiii;li>^!i 
tiirlni- 
ug  mid 
(liingrr 
I.  their 
y  WUH 
luro  br 


absolutely  fatal  to  the  English  cause,  Bedford  skilfully  endeavoured  to 
win  him  back  to  good  humour  and  to  confirm  him  in  his  alliance. 

But  there  was  in  Bedford's  situation  another  element  of  trouble,  against 
which  he  found  it  still  more  difHcult  to  contend.  The  conquest  of  France 
had  lost  much  of  its  popularity  in  the  judgment  of  the  English.  As  re- 
garded the  mere  multitude,  this  probably  arose  simply  from  its  having 
lost  its  novelty ;  but  thinking  men  both  in  and  out  of  parliament  had  begun 
to  count  the  cost  against  the  profit ;  and  not  a  few  of  them  had  even  begun 
to  anticipate  not  profit  but  actual  injury  to  England  from  the  conquest  of 
France.  These  feelings  were  so  general  and  so  strong,  that  while  the 
parliament  steadily  refused  supplies  of  money  to  Bedford,  a  corresponding 
disinclination  was  shown  by  men  to  enlist  in  the  reinforcements  which  he 
so  much  needed.  Brave  as  they  were,  the  English  soldiers  of  that  day 
desired  gold  as  well  as  glory ;  and  they  got  a  notion  that  neither  the  one 
nor  the  other  was  to  be  obtained  by  warring  against  the  king  of  France, 
who,  even  by  the  statements  of  the  English  commanders  themselves, 
owed  far  more  of  his  recent  and  marvellous  successes  lo  the  hellish  arts 
of  the  Maid  of  Orleans  than  to  mortal  skill  and  prowess. 

Just  as  the  duke  of  Bedford  was  in  the  utmost  want  of  reinforcements, 
it  most  opportunely  chanced  that  the  bishop  (now  cardinal)  of  Winchester 
landed  at  Calais  on  his  way  to  Bohemia,  whither  he  was  leading  an  army 
of  five  thousand  men  to  combat  against  the  Hussites.  This  force  the  car- 
dinal was  induced  to  yield  to  the  more  pressing  need  of  Bedford,  who  was 
thus  enabled  to  follow  the  footsteps  and  thwart  the  designs  of  Charles, 
though  not  to  hazard  a  general  action.  But  in  spite  of  this  aid  to  Bedford, 
and  in  spite  of  all  the  skill  and  firmness  of  that  general,  Charles  made 
himself  master  of  Compeigne,  Beauvais,  Senlis,  Sens,  Laval,  St.  Denis, 
and  numerous  places  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Paris.  To  this  amount  of 
success,  however,  the  Fabian  policy  ot  Bedford  confined  the  king  of 
France,  whose  forces  being  chiefly  volunteers,  fighting  at  their  own  ex- 
pense, were  now  obliged  to  be  disbanded,  and  Charles  himself  retired  to 
Bourges. 

A.  D.  1430. — Attributing  the  advantage  which  Charles  had  evidently  de- 
rived from  his  coronation  rather  to  the  splendour  of  the  ceremony  than 
to  the  real  cause  of  its  locality,  Bedford  now  determined  that  his  own 
yoinig  prince  should  be  crowned  king  of  France,  and  he  was  accordingly 
brought  to  Paris,  and  crowned  and  anointed  there  with  all  the  pomp  and 
splendour  that  could  be  commanded.  The  splendid  ceremony  was  much 
admired  by  the  Parisian  populace,  and  all  the  crown  vassals  who  lived 
ill  the  territory  that  was  actually  in  the  hands  of  the  English  duly  appeared 
and  did  homage  to  the  young  king  ;  but  to  an  observant  eye  it  was  very 
evident  that  this  ceremony  created  none  of  the  passionate  enthusiasm 
which  had  marked  that  of  Charles  at  Rheims. 

Hitherto  we  have  seen  the  maid  of  Orleans  only  in  one  long  brilliant 
and  unbroken  career  of  prosperity;  but  the  time  now  ai)proached  for  that 
sad  a'.id  total  reverse  which  must,  from  the  very  first,  have  been  anticipa- 
ted by  all  men  who  had  sense  enough  to  discredit  alike  the  representation 
of  her  miraculous  support  that  was  given  by  her  friends,  and  of  her  dia- 
bolical commerce  that  was  given  by  her  enemies.  It  would  seem  that 
she  herself  began  to  have  misgivi-igs  as  to  the  nature  of  her  inspiration  : 
as  it  was  quite  natural  that  she  should  have  as  the  novelties  of  military 


splendour  grew  stale  to  her  eye,  and  her  judgment  became  more  and  more 
alive  to  the  real  dilTirulties  of  the  military  achievements  which  must  lie 
performed  by  her  royal  master,  before  ho  could  become  king  of  France  in 
deed  as  wcfl  as  by  right.  From  such  niisKivings  it  probably  arose  that, 
having  iiovv  performed  her  two  great  and  at  first  discredited  promises,  of 
raising  the  siege  of  Orleans  and  of  causing  tJharles  lo  be  crowned  at 
Rheims,  she  now  urgently  desired  to  be  allowed  to  return  to  her  original 


t72 


THE  XaKASURY  OF  HI3T0RY 


abscurity,  and  to  the  occupations  and  apparel  of  her  sex.  But  Dunois  wai 
too  well  aware  of  the  influeneeof  her  supposed  sanctity  upon  the  soldiers, 
not  to  be  very  anxious  to  keep  her  among  them  ;  and  he  so  strongly  urged 
ner  to  remain,  and  aid  in  the  crowning  of  her  prophetic  and  great  career 
by  the  total  expulsion  of  the  enemies  of  her  sovereign,  that  she,  in  a  most 
evil  hour  for  herself,  was  worked  upon  to  consent.  As  the  best  service 
that  it  was  at  the  instant  in  her  power  to  do,  she  threw  herself  into  Ccim- 
peigne,  which  the  duke  of  Burgundy  and  the  earls  of  Arundel  and  Suffolk 
were  at  that  time  hotly  besieging.  Her  appearance  was  hailed  by  the  be- 
sieged with  a  perfect  rapture  of  joy ;  she  had  proved  her  miraculous 
power  by  such  splendid  and  unbroken  success,  that  every  man  among 
them  now  believed  himself  invincible  and  the  victory  secure ;  and  the 
news  of  her  arrival  undoubtedly  imbued  with  very  opposite  feelings  not  a 
few  of  the  brave  hearts  in  the  English  camp.  But  the  joy  of  the  one  party 
and  the  gloom  of  the  other  were  alike  short-lived  and  unfounded.  On  the 
very  day  alter  that  on  which  she  arrived  in  the  garrison  she  led  forth  a 
sally,  and  twice  drove  the  Burgundians,  under  John  of  Luxembourg,  from 
their  intrenchments.  But  the  Burgundians  were  so  quickly  and  so  numer- 
ously reinforced,  that  Joan  ordered  a  retreat,  and  in  the  disorder  she  was 
separated  from  her  party  and  taken  prisoner,  after  having  defended  her- 
self with  a  valour  and  address  which  would  have  done  no  discredit  to  the 
bravest  knight  among  her  Burgundian  captors. 

This  event  was  so  unexpected,  that  the  popular  humour  of  the  times 
attributed  it  to  the  treachery  of  the  French  officers,  who,  said  the  rumour, 
were  so  weary  of  hearing  themselves  depreciated  by  the  attributing  of 
every  suci;ess  to  Joan,  that  they  purposely  abandoned  her  to  the  enemy. 
But  besides  that  there  is  not  a  shadow  of  proof  of  this  charge  of  treach- 
ery, which  several  historians  have  somewhat  too  hastily  adopted,  the  fair 
presumption  is  entirely  against  it.  On  the  one  hand,  we  cannot  imagine 
that  the  private  envy  of  the  French  officers  would  thus  outweigh  alike 
their  ardour  for  the  cause  in  which  they  fought  and  their  sense  of  their 
own  safety,  which  dspended  so  mainly  upon  that  triumph  which  the  in- 
spiring effect  of  Joan's  presence  among  their  men  was  more  than  anything 
else  likely  to  insure.  On  the  other  hand,  what  more  likely,  than  that  a 
woman,  in  spite  of  the  best  efforts  of  her  friends,  should  be  taken  prisoner 
in  such  a  scone  of  confusion?  How  many  thousands  of  men  had  been, 
in  thflt  very  war,  taken  prisoners  in  similar  scenes,  without  any  surmise 
of  treachery. 

A  n.  1431. — It  is  always  painful  to  have  to  speak  of  some  one  enormous 
and  indelible  stain  upon  a  character  otherwise  fair  and  admirable.  The 
historian  irresistibly  iind  almost  unconsciously  finds  his  sympathies 
awakened  on  behalf  of  the  great  characters  whose  deeds  he  describes.  It 
is  impossible  to  write  about  the  wise  and  valorous  course  of  the  great 
duke  of  Bedford  without  a  feeling  of  intense  admiration;  proportionally 
paiiitnl  it  needs  must  be  to  have  to  describe  him  as  being  guilty  of  most 
debased  and  brutal  cruelty.  Aware  how  much  the  success  of  Joan  had 
teiwlcd  to  throw  disaster  and  discredit  upon  his  arms,  Bedford  imagined 
th;it  to  have  her  in  his  power  was  to  secure  his  future  success,  and  he  paid 
a  considerable  sum  for  her  to  John  of  Luxembourg. 

It  is  diffii'ult  in  our  age,  when  superstition  is  so  completely  deprived  of 
its  delusive  but  terrible  power,  to  imagine  that  such  a  man  as  Bedford 
could  seriously  and  in  good  faith  give  any  credit  to  the  absurd  stories  that 
were  related  of  the  demoniac  nature  of  Joan's  powers.  But  it  would  he 
rash  lo  deny  the  possibility  of  that  belief,  liowever  absurd ;  for  few  indeed 
were  the  men  who  in  that  age  were  frefj  from  the  stupefying  and  degrad- 
iii^^  iiilliKMice  of  superstition.  Apart  from  her  alledged  dealings  with  the 
priiici'  of  tlif  powers  of  darkness,  there  was  nothing  in  the  earcer  of  Joan 
vhich  snouid  have  excluded  her  from  the  privileges  of  an  honourable  pri» 


THE  TEEASUttY  OF  HISTOEY. 


373 


enormous 
.ble.  The 
ympathies 
ribes.  U 
the  great 
)Ortionally 
of  most 
Joan  had 
imagined 
md  he  paid 


oner.  In  her  interference  in  the  deadly  business  of  war  she,  it  is  true,  de- 
parted from  the  ordinary  usages  of  her  sex ;  but,  except  in  wearing  armour 
and  in  daring  the  actual  dangers  of  the  fight,  she  even  in  this  respect  only 
followed  the  example  left  to  her  by  the  countess  of  Mountfort  and  by  Phi- 
(ippa,  queen  of  King  Edward  of  England.  The  gallant  and  tender  feeling 
towards  the  sex,  which  chivalry  made  so  much  boast  of,  ought  to  have  led 
Bedford  on  this  account  to  have  treated  her  with  even  more  indulgence  than 
he  would  have  shown  to  an  equally  celebrated  prisoner  of  the  other  sex ; 
and  the  more  attentively  we  notice  all  the  rest  of  Bedford's  condu<n,  the 
more  difficult  shall  we  find  it  to  believe  that  he  could  have  been  guilty  of 
the  baseness  and  cruelty  of  which  we  have  to  speak,  unless  under  the  in- 
fluence of  a  degrading  and  most  powerful  impression  of  superstition.  It 
is,  we  repeat,  very  difficult  for  us,  living  in  an  age  not  only  free  from  su- 
perstition but  tending  very  strongly  and  very  perilously  towards  the  con- 
trary extreme,  to  imagine  such  a  man  as  Bedford  so  much  deluded ;  but 
Btill  more  difficult  is  it  to  suppose  that  any  less  powerful  influence  could 
have  made  so  honourable  a  man  guilty  of  a  vile  and  dastardly  cruelty. 

Joan,  being  delivered  into  the  power  of  Bedford,  was  loaded  with  chains 
and  thrown  into  a  dungeon ;  and  the  bishop  of  Beauvais,  on  the  plea  that 
she  was  captured  within  his  diocese,  petitioned  Bedford  that  she  might  be 
delivered  over  to  the  ecclesiastical  power,  to  be  tried  on  the  charges  of 
impiety,  sorcery,  idolatry  and  magic ;  and  his  petition  was  seconded  by  the 
university  of  Paris.  To  the  eternal  infamy  of  Bedford,  this  petition  was 
complied  with ;  and,  loaded  with  irons,  the  high-hearted  and  admirable, 
however  deluded,  woman  was  taken  before  her  judges  at  Rouen,  only  one 
of  them,  the  cardinal  of  Winchester,  being  an  Englishman.  She  defended 
herself  with  courage  and  with  a  cogency  of  reply  equal  to  what  might  be 
expected  from  a  man  who,  to  good  early  training,  should  add  the  practice 
and  experience  of  a  long  life.  She  boldly  avowed  the  great  aim  and  end 
of  all  her  public  acts  had  been  to  rid  her  country  of  its  enemies,  the  En- 
glish. When  taunted  with  having  endeavoured  to  escape  by  throwing 
herself  from  a  tower,  she  frankly  confessed  that  she  would  repeat  that  at- 
tempt if  she  had  the  opportunity ;  and  when  asked  why  she  put  trust  in  a 
standard  which  had  been  consecrated  by  magical  incantations,  and  why 
she  carried  it  at  the  coronation  of  Charles,  she  replied  that  she  trusted 
not  in  the  standard  but  in  the  Supreme  Being  whose  image  it  bore,  ^iid 
that  the  person  who  had  shared  the  danger  of  Charles's  enterprise  .  a' 
a  just  right  also  to  share  its  glory.  The  horrors  of  solitary  confinement, 
and  repeated  exposure  to  the  taunts  and  insults  of  her  persecutors,  at 
length  broke  down  even  the  fine  proud  spirit  of  Joan ;  and,  in  order  to  put 
an  end  to  so  much  torture,  she  at  length  confessed  that  what  she  had  been 
in  the  habit  of  mistaking  for  visions  from  heaven,  must  needs  be  mere 
illusions,  as  they  were  condemned  by  the  church ;  and  she  promised  that 
she  would  no  longer  allow  them  to  influence  her  mind.  This  confession 
temporarily  saved  her  just  as  she  was  about  to  be  delivered  over  to  the 
secular  arm ;  and,  instead  of  being  forthwith  sentenced  to  the  stake,  she 
was  sentenced  to  the  comparatively  mild,  though  still  shamefully  unjust, 
punishment  of  perpetual  imprisonment,  with  no  other  diet  than  bread  and 
water. 

Here,  at  all  events,  one  might  have  supposed  that  the  cruel  rage  of 
Joan's  enemies  would  have  stopped ;  for  while  her  imprisonment  rendereJ 
it  impossible  that  she  should  personally  do  any  farther  damage  to  the  En- 
glish cause,  her  very  detention  and  confession  naturally  tended  to  dis- 
abuse her  warmest  partizans  of  all  further  belief  in  her  alledged  supernal 
ural  inspiration.  But  even  now  that  she  was  a  captive,  and  wholly  pow- 
erless to  injure  them,  her  enemies  were  not  satiated.  Judging,  with  a 
malignant  ingenuity,  that  the  ordinary  habiliments  of  her  sex,  to  whicl- 
since  her  capture  she  had  constantly  beer,  confined,  were  less  agreeable 


374 


THE  TaEASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


to  her  than  the  male  and  martial  attire  in  which  she  had  achieved  so  ma- 
ny wonders  and  extorted  so  much  homage,  they  caused  a  suit  of  male 
attire  and  appropriate  armour  to  be  placed  within  her  reach.  As  had  been 
anticipated,  so  many  associations  were  awakened  in  her  mind  by  thu 
dress,  that  the  temptation  to  put  it  on  was  quite  irresistible.  As  soon  as 
she  had  donned  the  dress  her  enemies  rushed  in  upon  her ;  this  mere  and 
very  harmless  vanity  was  interpreted  into  a  relapse  into  heresy,  and  she 
was  delivered  over  to  the  flames  in  the  market-place  of  Rouen,  though 
the  sole  crime  she  had  committed  was  that  she  had  loved  her  country,  and 
served  it. 

A.  D.  1432. — The  brutal  injustice  inflicted  upon  Joan  whom  the  nobler 
delusions  of  Greece  and  Rome  would  have  deified  and  worshipped,  by  no 
means  produced  the  striking  benefit  to  the  English  cause  that  had  been 
anticipated.  The  cause  of  Charles  was  from  rational  reflections  daily 
becoming  more  popular,  and  the  cruelty  of  the  English  served  rather  to 
confirm  than  to  diminish  that  tendency ;  while  a  series  of  successes  on 
the  part  of  the  French  followed  as  a  matter  of  course. 

The  death  of  the  duchess  of  Bedford  very  much  weakened  the  attach- 
ment of  her  brother,  the  duke  of  Burgundy,  both  to  Bedford  personally 
and  in  general  to  the  English  cause ;  and  the  coolness  which  followed  this 
event  was  still  farther  increased  when  Bedford  very  shortly  afterwards 
espoused  Jacqueline  of  Luxembourg.  Philip,  not  without  reason,  com- 
plained that  there  was  a  want  of  decent  regard  to  his  sister's  memory  ex- 
hibited in  so  hasty  a  contract  of  a  new  marriage,  and  that  a  personal 
afl'ront  was  ofTered  to  himself  by  this  matrimonial  alliance  without  any 
intimation  of  it  being  given  to  him. 

Sensible  how  serious  an  injury  the  continued  coolness  between  these 
princes  must  inflict  upon  the  English  cause,  the  cardinal  of  Winchester 
offered  himself  as  a  mediator  between  them,  and  a  meeting  was  appointed 
at  St.  Omer's.  Both  Bedford  and  Burgundy  went  to  that  town,  wliich  was 
in  the  dominions  of  the  latter ;  and  Bedford  expected  that,  as  he  had  thus 
far  waved  etiquette,  the  duke  of  Burgundy  would  pay  him  the  first  visit. 
Philip  declined  doing  so;  and  upon  this  idle  piece  of  mere  cerer'nony  they 
both,  without  a  single  inrerview,  left  a  town  to  which  they  both  professed 
to  have  gone  with  the  sole  intent  of  meeting  and  becoming  recoiu-iied. 
So  great  is  the  effect  of  idle  custom  upon  even  the  wise  and  the  powerful! 

This  new  cnuse  of  discontent  to  tiie  duke  of  Burgundy  happened  the 
more  untowardly,  because  it  greatly  tended  to  confirm  him  in  iiis  inclina- 
tion to  a  reconciliation  with  King  Charles.  That  prince  and  his  friends 
had  made  all  possible  apology  to  the  duke  on  account  of  the  murder  of  the 
late  duke  his  father  ;  and  as  a  desire  for  the  revenge  of  that  murder  had 
been  Philip's  chief  reason  for  allying  himself  with  England,  the  more  that 
reason  became  diminished,  the  more  Burgundy  inclined  to  reflect  upon 
the  impolicy  of  his  aiding  to  place  foes  and  foreigners  upon  the  throne 
which,  failing  in  the  L'lder  French  branches,  might  descend  to  his  own  pos- 
terity. 

A.  D.  1435. — These  reflections,  and  the  constant  urging  of  the  most  emi- 
nent men  in  Europe,  including  his  brother-in-law,  the  duke  of  Bourbon 
and  the  count  de  Richemont,  so  far  prevailed  with  Burgundy,  that  he  con- 
sented to  attend  a  congress  appointed  to  meet  at  Arras,  at  which  it  was 
proposed  that  deputies  from  the  pope  and  the  council  of  Balse  should 
mediate  between  King  Charles  and  the  English.  The  duke  of  Burgundy, 
the  duke  of  Bourbon,  the  count  of  Richemont,  the  cardinal  of  VVincliis- 
ter,  the  bishops  of  Norwich  and  St.  David's,  and  the  earls  of  Suffolk  and 
Huntiiigd(m,  with  several  other  eminent  persons,  met  accordingly  at 
Arras  ;ind  had  conferences  in  the  abbey  of  St.  Vaasl.  On  the  part  of 
France  the  ambassadors  oflered  the  cession  of  Guienne  and  Norman- 
dy, not  in  free  sovereignty,  but  only  as  feudal  fiefs :  on  the  part  of  Fng 


1. 


THE  TEBASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


375 


kand,  whose  prior  claim  was  upon  the  whole  of  France  as  rightful  pos- 
session and  free  sovereignty,  this  offer  seemed  so  small  as  to  be  wholly 
unworthy  of  any  detailed  counter-offer;  and  though  the  mediators  de- 
clared the  original  claim  of  England  preposterously  unjust,  the  cardinal 
of  Winchester  and  the  other  English  authorities  departed  without  any  de- 
tailed explanation  of  their  wishes,  but  obviously  dissatisfied  and  inclined  to 
persevere  in  their  original  design.  Tlie  negotiation  as  between  France 
and  England  being  thus  abruptly  brought  to  an  end,  the  reconciliation  of 
Charles  and  the  duke  of  Burgundy  alone  remained  to  be  attempted  by  the 
mediators.  As  the  provocation  originally  given  to  Burgundy  was  very 
great,  and  as  the  present  importance  of  his  friendship  to  Charles  was  con- 
fessedly of  great  value,  so  were  his  demands  numerous  and  weighty. 
Besides  several  other  considerable  territories,  Charles  ceded  all  the 
towns  of  Picardy  situated  between  the  Low  Countries  and  the  Somme, 
all  of  which,  as  well  as  the  proper  dominions  of  the  duke,  were  to  be  held 
by  him  during  his  life,  without  his  either  doing  homage  or  swearing  fealty  to 
Charles,  who,  in  pledge  of  his  sincerity  in  the  making  of  this  treaty,  solemn- 
ly released  his  subjects  from  all  allegiance  to  him  should  he  ever  violate  it. 

Willing  to  break  with  England  with  all  due  regard  to  the  externals  of 
civility,  the  duke  of  Burgundy  sent  a  herald  to  London  to  notify  and 
apologize  for  this  treaty,  which  was  directly  opposed  to  that  of  Troyes, 
of  which  he  had  so  long  been  the  zealous  ^nd  powerful  defender.  His 
messenger  was  very  coldly  listened  to  by  the  English  council,  and  point- 
edly insulted  by  having  lodgings  assigned  to  him  in  the  house  of  a  mean 
tradesman.  The  populace,  too,  were  encouraged  to  insult  the  subjects 
of  Philip  who  chanced  to  be  visiting  or  resident  in  London ;  and,  with  the 
usual  cruel  willingness  of  the  mob  to  show  their  hatred  of  foreigners,  they 
in  some  cases  carried  their  violence  to  the  extent  of  murder. 

This  conduct  was  as  impolitic  as  it  was  disgraceful,  for  it  not  only 
sharpened  Philip's  new  zeal  for  France,  but  also  furnished  him  with  that 
plea  which  he  needed,  not  only  for  the  world  but  also  for  his  own  con- 
science, for  his  sudden  and  complete  abandonment  of  his  alliance  with  the 
English.  Almost  at  the  same  time  that  England  was  deprived  of  the  powerful 
support  of  Burgundy,  she  experienced  two  other  very  heavy  losses,  the  duke 
of  Bedford  dying  of  disease  a  few  days  after  he  had  tidings  of  the  treaty 
of  Arras,  and  the  earl  of  Arundel  dying  of  wounds  received  in  a  battle 
where  he,  with  three  thousand  men,  was  totally  defeated  by  Xaintrailles  at 
the  head  of  only  six  hundred. 

A.  D.  1436. — As  in  private  so  in  public  affairs,  misfortunes  ever  come  in 
shoals.  Just  as  England  requircr'  the  most  active  and  most  disinterested 
exertions  on  the  part  of  those  lii  whom  Bedford's  death  had  left  tne  direc- 
tion of  affairs,  the  dissensions  which  had  long  existed  between  the  cardinal 
of  Winchester  and  the  duke  of  Gloucester  grew  so  violent,  that  in  their 
personal  quarrel  the  foreign  interests  of  the  king  and  kingdom  seemed 
to  be  lor  the  time,  at  least,  entirely  lost  sight  of.  A  regent  of  France  was 
appointed,  indeed,  as  successor  to  Bedford,  in  the  person  of  the  duke  oi 
York,  son  of  that  earl  of  Cambridge  who  was  executed  early  in  the  pre- 
ceding reign ;  but  owing  to  the  dissensions  above-mentioned,  his  commis- 
sion was  left  unsealed  for  seven  months  after  his  appointment,  and  the 
English  in  France  were,  of  course,  during  that  long  and  critical  period 
f  irtually  left  without  a  governor.  The  consequence,  as  might  have  been 
anticipated,  was,  that  when  he  at  length  was  enabled  to  proceed  to  iiis  post, 
Paris  was  lost ;  the  inhabitants,  who  had  all  along,  even  by  Bedford,  been 
only  with  difficulty  prevented  from  rising  in  favour  of  Charles,  having 
seized  this  favourable  opportunity  to  do  so  ;  and  Lord  Willougliby,  with 
fifteen  hundred  men,  after  a  brave  attempt  first  to  preserve  tiie  city  and 
then  to  maintain  themselves  in  the  Bastile,  was  at  length  reduced  to  such 
distress,  that  he  was  glad  to  capitulate  on  permission  to  withdraw  hin 
troops  into  Normandy. 


(1 


S76 


THE  TREASrjRY  OF  HI6T0EY. 


If 


Resolved  that  his  enmity  to  England  should  not  long  be  without  ou^ 
ward  demonstrations,  the  duke  or  Burgundy  raised  an  immense  but  hetero- 
geneous  and  ill-disoiplined  army  in  the  Low  Countries,  and  proceeded  to 
invest  Calais,  which  was  now  the  most  important  territory  the  English 
had  in  France.  The  duke  of  Gloucester,  as  soon  as  the  tidings  reairhed 
England,  raised  an  army  and  sent  a  personal  defiance  to  the  dul(o  of  Bur- 
gundy, whom  he  challenged  to  remain  before  Calais  until  the  weather 
would  permit  the  English  to  face  him  there. 

Partly  from  the  evident  terror  which  Gloucester's  high  tone  struck  into 
the  Flemings,  and  partly  from  the  decided  ill  success  which  attended  two 
or  three  partial  attempts  which  Burgundy  had  already  made  upon  Calais, 
that  prince,  instead  of  waiting  for  Gloucester's  arrival,  raised  the  siege 
and  retreated. 

A.  D.  1440. — For  five  years  the  war  was  confined  to  petty  enterprises  ot 
surprising  convoys  and  taking  and  re-taking  towns.  But  though  these 
enterprises  had  none  of  the  brilliancy  of  more  regular  and  sustained  war, 
they  were  to  the  utmost  degree  mischievous  to  both  the  contending  par- 
ties and  the  unfortunate  inhabitants.  More  blood  was  shed  in  these  name- 
less and  indecisive  rencontres  than  would  have  sufficed  for  a  Cressy  or  ar 
Agincourt ;  and  the  continual  presence  of  numerous  and  ruthless  spoilers 
rendered  the  husbandman  both  unable  and  unwilling  to  sow  for  that  har- 
vest which  it  was  so  improbable  that  he  would  ever  be  permitted  to  reap. 
To  such  a  warfare  both  the  contending  parties  at  length  showed  them- 
selves willing  to  put  an  end,  and  a  treaty  was  commenced  for  that  pur- 
pose. France,  as  before,  offered  to  cede  Normandy,  Guienne,  and  Calais 
to  England  as  feudal  fiefs ;  England,  on  the  other  hand,  demanded  the 
cession  of  all  the  provinces  which  had  once  been  annexed  to  England,  in- 
cluding the  final  cession  of  Calais,  without  any  feudal  burden  or  observ- 
ances whatever.  The  treaty  was  consequently  broken  off,  and  the  war 
was  still  carried  on  in  the  same  petty  but  destructive  manner;  though  a 
truce  was  made  as  between  England  and  the  duke  of  Burgundy. 

For  a  long  time  after  the  battle  of  Agincourt,  England  had  possessed  a 
great  advantage  in  all  affairs  with  France,  from  the  captivity  of  the  royal 
princes,  five  in  number,  who  were  made  prisoners  at  that  battle.  Death 
had  now  very  materially  diminished  this  advantage ;  only  the  duke  of  Or- 
leans surviving  out  of  the  whole  five.  This  prince  now  offered  the  large 
ransom  of  fifty-four  thousand  nobles,  and  his  proposal — like  all  public  ques- 
tions at  this  period — was  made  matter  of  factious  dispute  between  the 
partizans  of  the  cardinal  of  Winchester  and  those  of  the  duke  of  Glouces- 
ter. The  latter  urged  the  rejection  of  the  proposal  of  Orleans,  on  the 
ground  that  the  late  king  had  on  his  death-bed  advised  that  no  one  of  the 
French  princes  should  on  any  account  be  released,  until  his  son  should  be 
of  age  to  govern  the  kingdom  in  his  own  person.  The  cardinal,  on  the 
other  hand,  expatiated  on  the  largeness  of  the  offered  ransom,  and  drew 
the  attention  of  the  council  to  the  remarkable  and  unquestionable  fact, 
that  the  sum  offered  was,  in  truth,  very  nearly  equal  to  two-thirds  of  all 
the  extraordinary  supplies  which  the  parliament  had  granted  for  the  pub- 
lic service  during  the  current  seven  years.  To  this  solid  argument  of  pe- 
cuniary matter-of-fact  he  added  the  plausible  argument  or  speculation, 
that  the  liberation  of  Orleans,  far  from  being  advantageous  to  the  French 
cause,  would  be  of  direct  and  signal  injury  to  it,  by  giving  to  the  French 
malcontents,  whom  Charles  already  had  much  difficulty  in  keeping  down, 
an  ambitious  and  prominent  as  well  as  capable  leader. 

The  arguments  of  the  cardinal  certainly  seem  to  deserve  more  weight 
than  the  wishes  of  a  deceased  king,  who,  however  politic,  could  when 
giving  his  advice  have  formed  no  notion  of  the  numerous  changes  of  cir- 
'jumstances  which  had  since  taken  place,  and  which,  most  probably 
would  have  caused  him  very  considerably  to  modify  his  opinion.    It  was 


THE  TREASUllY  OF  HISTORY. 


377 


weight 
lid  when 
!S  ofcir- 
)robably 

It  was 


howevei,  owing  Iflss  to  the  superiority  of  his  advice  than  of  his  influence, 
that  the  cardinal  gained  his  point,  and  that  the  duke  of  Orleans  was  re- 
leased after  a  captivity  of  five-and-twenty  years,  the  duke  of  Burgundy 
generously  assisting  him  in  the  payment  of  his  very  heavy  ransom. 

A.  D.  1444. — However  acquired,  the  influence  of  the  cardinal  was  un- 
questionably well  and  wisely  exerted  in  the  affair  above  described ;  and 
he  now,  though  with  less  perfect  success,  exerted  it  to  a  still  more  impor- 
tant end.  He  had  long  encouraged  every  attempt  at  peace-maknig  be- 
tween France  and  England,  and  he  now  urged  upon  the  council  the 
impossibility  of  a  complete  conquest  of  France,  and  the  great  difliculty  of 
even  maintaining  the  existing  English  power  there  while  Normandy  was 
in  disorder,  the  French  king  daily  gaining  some  advantage,  the  English 
parliament  so  incurably  reluctant  to  grant  supplies.  He  urged  that  it 
would  be  far  better  to  make  peace  now  than  when  some  new  advantage 
should  make  the  French  knig  still  more  unyielding  and  exigeant  in  his 
humour;  and  his  arguments,  based  alike  upon  humane  motives  and  facta 
which  lay  upon  the  very  surface,  prevailed  with  the  council.  The  duke 
of  Gloucester,  indeed,  accustomed  to  consider  France  the  natural  battle- 
ground and  certain  conquest  of  England,  opposed  the  pacific  views  of  the 
cardinal  with  all  the  violence  arising  from  such  haughty  prepossessions 
increased  by  his  fixed  hatred  of  witnessing  the  triumph  of  any  proposal 
made  by  the  cardinal.  The  latter,  however,^  was  too  completely  in  the 
ascendant  to  allow  Gloucester's  opposition  to^be  of  any  avail,  and  the  earl 
of  Suffolk  was  sent  to  Tours  with  proposals  for  peace.  The  pretensions 
of  the  two  parties  were  still  too  wide  asunder  to  admit  of  a  permanent 
peace  being  concluded  ;  but  as  the  earl  of  Suffolk  was  in  earnest,  and  as 
the  dreadful  state  to  which  most  of  Charles's  territories  were  reduced  by 
the  long-continued  war  made  some  respite  of  great  importance  to  his  sub- 
jects, as  well  as  to  his  more  personal  interests,  it  was  easily  agreed  that 
a  truce  should  take  place  for  twenty-two  months,  each  party  as  to  terri- 
tory remaining  as  it  then  was. 

As  Henry  of  England  had  now  reached  the  mature  age  of  twenty-three, 
this  truce  afforded  the  English  ministerb  opportunity  and  leisure  to  look 
around  among  the  neighbouring  princesses  for  a  suitable  queen  for  him. 
To  all  the  usual  difficulties  of  such  cases  a  serious  one  was  added  by  the 
extremely  simple,  weak,  and  passive  nature  of  Henrj'.  Without  talent 
and  without  energy,  it  was  clear  to  every  one  that  this  prince  would  reign 
well  or  ill,  exactly  as  he  fell  under  the  influence  of  a  princess  of  good  or 
bad  disposition.  Easily  attached,  he  was  as  easily  governed  through  his 
attachments;  and  each  faction  was  consequently  possessed  with  the 
double  anxiety  of  marrying  him  well,  as  to  itself  in  the  first  place  and  as 
to  the  nation  in  the  next.  The  first  princess  proposed  was  a  daughter  of 
the  count  de  Armagnac ;  but  as  she  was  proposed  by  the  duke  of  Glou- 
cester, the  predominant  faction  of  the  cardinal  at  once  rejected  her,  and 
proposed  Margaret  of  Anjou,  daughter  of  Regnier,  the  titular  king  of  Sicily, 
Naples,  and  Jerusalem,  whose  real  worldly  possessions,  however,  were  in 
exactly  inverse  ratio  to  his  magnificent  and  sounding  titles. 

Margaret  of  Anjou,  notwithstanding  her  poverty,  had  personal  qualities, 
independent  of  mere  beauty,  though  she  excelled  even  in  that,  which  made 
her  indeed  a  promising  queen  for  a  prince  who,  like  the  weak  and  almost 
childish  Henry,  required  not  a  burden  but  a  support  in  the  person  <  f  his 
wife.  She  had  great  and,  for  that  age,  very  highly  cultivated  talents,  and 
her  courage,  sagacity,  and  love  of  enterprise  were  such  as  are  seldom  found 
in  their  highest  perfection  even  in  the  other  sex.  Her  own  high  qualities 
and  the  strong  advocacy  of  the  cardinal  caused  Margaret  to  be  selected,  in 
spite  of  all  opposition  on  the  part  of  the  duke  of  Gloucester;  and  Suffolk 
was  entrusted  with  the  important  business  of  negotiating  the  marriage. 
In  this  important  negotiation  Suffolk  proved  that  his  party  had  by  nu  nieauH 


\f 


378 


THE  TEBASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


overrated  either  his  tact  or  his  zeal.  Notwithstanding  the  high  personal 
qualities  of  Margaret,  it  could  not  be  concealed  that  she  was  the  daughter 
of  a  house  far  too  poor  to  offer  any  dowry  to  such  a  monarch  as  the  king 
of  England ;  and  yet  Suffolk,  desirous  to  prepossess  the  future  queen  to 
the  utmost  in  favour  of  himself  and  his  party,  overlooking  altogether  tiie 
poverty  from  which  the  princess  was  to  be  raised  by  her  marriage,  con- 
sented to  the  insertion  of  a  secret  article  in  the  treaty,  by  which  the  prov- 
ince of  Maine  was  ceded  to  her  uncle,  Charles  of  Anjou,  prime  ministei 
and  favourite  of  the  king  of  France,  who  had  previously  made  Charles  the 
grant  of  that  province — only  the  grant  was  conditional  upon  the  wresting 
of  the  province  from  the  English  who  at  present  possessed  it. 

Had  any  member  of  the  Gloucester  faction  been  guilty  of  this  impu- 
dently politic  and  dexterous  sacrifice  of  his  country's  interest,  he  would 
undoubtedly  have  been  impeached  and  ruined  for  his  pains ;  but  it  is  most 
probabl'  that  Suffolk  had  in  secret  the  concurrence  or  tlie  cardinal,  for  the 
treaty  was  received  in  England  and  ratified  as  though  it  had  secured  some 
vast  territorial  advantage  ;  and  Suffolk  was  not  only  created  first  a  mar- 
quis and  then  a  duke,  but  also  honoured  with  the  formal  thanks  of  parlia- 
ment for  the  ability  he  had  displayed. 

As  the  cardinal  and  his  party  had  calculated,  Margaret  as  soon  as  she 
came  to  England  fell  into  close  and  cordial  connection  with  them,  and  gave 
so  much  increase  and  solid  support  to  the  already  overgrown,  though  hith- 
erto well  exerted,  authority  of  Winchester  himself,  that  he  now  deemed 
it  safe  to  attempt  what  he  had  long  desired,  the  final  ruin  of  the  duke  of 
Gloucester. 

A.  D.  1447. — The  malignity  with  which  the  cardinal's  party  hated  the 
duke  of  Gloucester  abundantly  shows  itself  in  the  treatment  which,  to 
wound  him  in  his  tendcrest  affections,  they  had  already  bestowed  upon  his 
duchess.  She  was  accused  of  the  impossible,  but  at  that  time  universally 
credited,  crime  of  witchcraft,  and  of  having,  in  conjunction  with  Sir  Roger 
Bolingbroke  iiiul  Margery  .Jordan,  melted  a  figure  of  the  king  before  a  slow 
fire,  with  magical  incantations  intended  to  (;anse  his  natural  body  to  con- 
sume away  simultaneously  with  his  waxen  effigy.  Upon  this  preposter- 
ous charge  the  duchess  and  her  alledged  confederates  were  found  guilty; 
and  she  was  condemned  publicly  to  do  penance,  her  less  illustrious  fellow- 
suflTerers  being  executed. 

The  duke  of  Gloucester,  though  noted  for  his  hasty  temper  and  some- 
what mis|)roud  sentiments,  was  yet  very  popular  on  account  of  his  candour 
and  general  humanity  ;  and  this  shameful  Ireatment  of  his  duchess,  though 
commitied  upon  what  we  may  term  the  popular  charge  of  witchcraft,  was 
very  ill  taken  by  tlie  people,  who  plainly  avowed  their  sympathy  witli  the 
sufferer  and  their  indignation  against  her  persecutors. 

The  popular  feeling  for  once  was  well  founded  as  well  as  humane;  but 
as  the  cardinal's  parly  feared  that  the  sympathy  that  was  expressed  might 
soon  shape  itself  into  deeds,  it  was  now  resolved  to  put  ilio  iinforluimle 
duke  beyond  the  power  of  doing  or  causing  mischief.  A  parliament  was 
ncconliiigly  siimiiKined  to  meet;  and,  ]c.^t  the  popularity  of  the  duke  in 
London  should  caiisi;  any  obstruction  to  the  felt  designs  of  his  eneiiiies, 
the  place  of  meeting  was  St.  Edmund's  Ihiry.  The  duke  arrived  there 
without  liny  suspicion  of  the  mischief  that  was  in  store  for  him,  and  was 
immediately  accused  before  the  parliament  of  liieh  treason.  lI|ioii  this 
elmrge  he  was  cnmmiHed  to  prison,  and  shortly  afterwards  was  found 
thei'i!  (lead  in  his  licil.  It  is  true  that  his  body  was  publicly  ex|)osi'd,  and 
that  no  marks  of  violence  could  be  dctect(>d ;  but  the  same  thing  bad  oc- 
curred III  the  cases  of  Thomas  of  Woodstock,  duki;  of  Gloucester,  Rii'hard 
the  Sccctiid,  and  E<lward  the  Second,  yet  does  any  reader  of  sane  mind 
doubt  that  they  weri'  nninlered  '  Or  can  any  such  reader  doubt  thai  tlii? 
inirortuniili>  prmve  was  murdered,  too.  hit  encmiea  fearing  that  \u»  inililio 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


379 


lie ;  but 
miglil 
)rlun!ile 
■III  was 
ilukc  ill 
iieinips, 

'J   llll'IO 

111(1  w:i» 
xm  tills 
IS  foiinil 
ii>i|,  and 
liad  DC- 
liiclinrd 
iiiiiiil 
that  iliii! 
luililiu 


execution,  though  the  servility  of  the  parliament  would  have  surely  sanc- 
tioned it,  might  be  dangerous  to  their  own  interests  I  The  death  of  the 
duke  did  not  prevent  certain  of  his  suite,  who  were  accused  of  being  ac- 
complices uf  his  alledged  treasons,  from  being  tried,  condemned,  and  par^ 
tially  executed  We  say  partially  executed,  because  these  unfortunate 
men,  who  were  ordered  to  be  hanged  and  quartered,  were  actually  hanged, 
preparatory  to  the  more  brutal  part  of  the  sentence  being  executed ;  but 
just  as  they  were  cut  down  and  the  executioners  preparing  to  perform  their 
more  revolting  task,  orders  arrived  for  that  part  of  tiie  sentence  to  be  re- 
mitted, and  surgical  means  to  be  taken  for  the  resuscitation  of  the  victims. 
And  this  was  actually  done. 

The  unhappy  prince  who  thus  fell  a  victim  to  the  raging  ambition  of  the 
cardinal's  party  was  a  scholar  and  a  man  of  intellect,  far  superior  to  the 
rude  age  in  which  he  lived.  Sir  Thomas  More  gives  a  striking  though 
whimsical  instance  of  his  acuteness  of  judgment.  The  duke  while  riding 
out  one  day  chanced  upon  a  crowd  which  had  gathered  round  an  impostor 
who  alledged  that  he,  having  been  blind  from  his  birth,  had  just  then  ob- 
tained his  sight  by  touching  th>-  th<;n  famous  shrine  of  St.  Albans.  The 
duke,  whose  learning  enabled  hini  lo  see  through  and  to  despise  the  monk- 
ish impostures  which  found  such  ready  acceptance  with  the  multitude, 
high  as  well  i!s  low,  condescended  to  ask  this  vagrant  several  questions, 
and,  by  way  of  testing  his  story,  desired  him  to  name  the  colours  of  the 
cloaks  of  the  bystanders.  Not  perceiving  the  trap  that  was  laid  for  him, 
tiie  fellow  answered  with  all  the  readiness  of  a  clothier  commending  his 
wares,  when  tlie  duke  replied,  "You  are  a  very  knave,  man;  had  you 
been  born  blind,  tiiough  a  miracle  had  given  you  sight,  it  could  not  thus 
early  have  taught  you  accurately  to  distinguish  between  colours,"  and,  rid- 
ing away,  he  gave  orders  that  the  flagrant  impostor  should  be  set  in  the 
nearest  stocks  as  an  example. 

It  was  generally  considered  that  the  queen,  whose  masculine  nature  had 
already  given  her  great  weight  in  the  dominant  party,  had  at  least  tacitly 
consented  to  the  murder  of  the  unfortunate  Gloucester.  This  probable 
supposition  had  caused  her  considerable  unpopularity,  and  a  circumstance 
now  occurred  by  which  the  ill  opinion  of  the  people  was  much  aggravated. 
It  WDulil  seem  that  that  article  of  Margaret's  marria^^e  settlement  which 
cedeil  Maine  to  her  uncle  was  kept  secret  during  the  life  of  the  duke  of 
Gloucester,  to  whose  opposition  to  the  cardinal's  party  it  would  of  neces- 
Bity  have  given  additional  weight.  But  the  court  of  franco  now  became 
80  urgent  for  its  immediate  performance,  that  King  Henry  was  induced 
by  M.irsfaret  and  the  ministers  to  despatch  an  autograph  order  to  the  gov- 
ernor ol  Mans,  the  capital  of  that  province,  to  give  up  that  place  to  Charles 
of  Aiijiin,  TliB  governor,  Sir  I'  rancis  Surienne,  strongly  interested  in 
keeping  his  post,  and  probably  forming  a  shrewd  judgment  of  tlio  manner 
in  whieli  the  king  had  been  induced  lo  make  such  an  order,  flatly  refused 
lo  obey  it,  and  a  French  army  was  forthwith  led  to  the  siege  of  the  place 
by  till!  celebrated  Diinois.  Kven  then  Surienne  ventured  to  hold  out,  but 
l)eiiii{  wli(dly  left  without  succour  from  Normandy,  where  the  duke  of 
Somerset  had  forces,  he  was  at  length  obliged  to  capitulate,  aiu'  lo  give 
up  not  only  Mans  but  the  whole  province,  which  thus  iiiglorionsly  wan 
transferreil  from  KiiKlaiid  lo  ('liarles  of  Anjoii. 

A- 1).  Ilia. — The  ill  effects  of  the  disgrui-eful  secret  article  did  not  stop 
here.  Surienne,  on  beini;  suffered  to  depart  from  Mans,  had  two  llmn'^and 
Ave  hundred  men  with  him,  wliom  be  led  into  Nnrmaiidy,  imlnr.illy  ex- 
pecting to  lie  allaehed  to  the  force  of  ihe  duke  of  Somerset.  Diit  the  duke, 
"".traiiened  in  means,  and  therefore  unwilling  to  have  so  large  an  adihlion 
to  the  miiliitude  that  already  depended  upon  liiin,  and  biMiig,  bcsules,  of 
the  cardiiial's  faction,  ami  therefore  angry  at  llu-  disobedience  of  Siinciinu 
•o  the  orders  of  the  king,  would  not  receive  him.     Thin  suddenly  ami  en- 


3M 


TUB  TKEASUKY  OF  HI8T0HY. 


tirely  thrown  upon  his  own  resources,  Surienne,  acting  on  the  maxims 
common  to  the  soldiery  of  his  time,  resolved  to  make  war  upon  his  own 
account ;  and  as  cither  tlie  king  of  England  or  ihc  king  of  France  would 
be  too  potent  and  dangerous  a  foe,  he  resolved  to  attack  the  duke  of  Brit- 
tany. He  accordingly  marched  his  daring  and  destitute  band  into  that 
country,  ravaged  it  in  every  direction,  possessed  himself  of  the  town  of 
Fougeres,  and  repaired,  for  his  defence,  the  dilapidated  fortresses  of  Pou- 
lorson  and  St.  Jacques  de  Beavron.  The  duke  of  Brittany  naturally  ap- 
pealed for  redress  to  his  liege  lord,  the  king  of  France ;  and  Charles,  glad 
of  an  opportunity  to  fasten  a  plausible  quarrel  upon  England,  paid  no  at- 
tention to  Somerset's  disavowal  alike  of  connection  with  the  adventurer 
Surienne  and  control  over  his  actions,  but  demanded  compensation  for 
the  duke  of  Brittany,  and  put  the  granting  of  tiiat  compensation  wholly  out 
of  the  question  by  fixing  it  at  the  preposterously  large  amount  of  one  mil- 
lion six  hundred  crowns. 

A.  D.  1449. — Payment  of  this  sum  was,  in  truth,  the  very  last  thing  that 
Charles  would  have  desired.  He  had  most  ably  employed  himself  during 
the  truce  for  a  renewal  of  war  at  its  expiration,  or  sooner,  should  fortune 
favour  him  with  an  advantageous  opening.  While  he  had  been  thus  em- 
ployed, England  had  been  daily  growing  weaker;  faction  dividing  the 
court  and  governm'^nt,  and  poverty  and  suflering  rendering  the  people  more 
and  more  indiflferent  to  foreign  wars  and  conquests,  however  brilliant. 
Under  such  circumstances  Charles  gladly  seized  upon  the  wrong  done  to 
the  duke  of  Brittany  by  a  private  adventurer  us  an  excuse  for  invading 
Normandy,  which  no  suddenly  entered  on  four  different  points  with  as 
many  well-appointed  armies,  under  the  command,  respectively,  of  Charles 
in  person,  the  duke  of  Brittany,  the  duke  of  Alcnson,  and  the  count  of 
Dunois.  So  sudden  was  the  irruption  of  Charles,  and  so  coinpletcly  un- 
prepared were  the  Norman  garrisons  to  resist  him,  that  the  French  had 
only  to  appear  before  a  place  to  cause  its  surrender;  and  they  at  once, 
and  at  the  mere  expense  of  marching,  obtained  possession  of  Verncuil, 
Noyent,  Chateau  Gaillard,  Ponteau  de  Mcr,  Gisors,  Nantes,  Vernon,  Ar- 
gentau,  Lisieux,  Fecamp,  Coutances,  Belcsinc,  and  Peurt  de  L*Arche,  an 
extent  of  territory  which  had  cost  the  English  incalculable  expense  of 
both  blood  and  treasure. 

Thus  suddenly  and  formidably  beset,  the  duke  of  Somerset,  governor 
of  Normandy,  found  it  utterly  useless  to  endeavour  to  check  the  enemy 
in  the  field ;  so  far  from  being  able  to  raise  even  one  numerous  army  for 
that  purpose,  his  force  was  too  scanty  even  to  supply  sufficient  garrisons; 
and  yet,  scanty  as  it  was,  far  too  numerous  for  his  still  more  limited 
means  of  subsisting  it.  He  consequently  threw  himself  with  such  force 
as  he  could  immediately  command  into  Rouen,  hoping  that  he  might 
maintain  himself  there  until  assistance  could  be  s(;nt  to  him  from  lOug- 
land.  But  Charles  allowed  no  time  for  the  arrival  of  such  aid,  but  present- 
ed himself  with  an  army  of  fifty  thousand  men  at  tlit!  very  gates  ot  Itouen. 
The  inhabitants,  already  disaffected  to  the  English,  now  became  driven 
to  desperation  by  their  dread  of  the  scvi.'rities  of  the  French,  and  tuinul- 
tuously  demanded  that  S(MnerHet  should  instantly  capitulate  in  order  to 
save  them.  Thus  assailed  within  .is  well  as  from  without,  Somerset  led 
his  troops  into  the  castle,  hut  finding  it  unteurihle  he  was  at  length  obliged 
to  yield  it,  and  to  purchase  permissn)n  to  retire  to  Ilarlleur  by  sum  ndtr- 
ing  Arqucs,  Taiicarville,  Uoutleur,  and  several  other  places  in  higher 
Normandy,  agreeing  to  pay  the  Htun  of  fifty-six  thousand  crowns,  and  de- 
livering hostages  for  the  failiiful  perfornnuuH!  of  the  articles.  Among 
the  hostages  was  the  e.trl  of  ShrewHhury,  li.e  aliicst  English  g(MH'ial  in 
France,  who  was  now  condeniin.'d  to  detention  ami  iiiaeiivity  at  the  very 
inoincn.  when  his  services  were  the  most  needed,  by  the  positi\e  rcrnsal 
uf  tbu  governor  of  Honlleur  to  give  up  that  place  at  the  order  of  Sum- 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY 


381 


crset.  Honfleur  also  gave  a  refusal,  but,  after  a  smart  defence  by  Sir 
Thomas  Curson,  was  at  length  compelled  to  open  its  gates  to  the  French 
under  Dunois. 

Succour  at  length  arrived  from  England,  but  only  to  the  very  insufficient 
number  of  four  thousand  men,  who  soon  after  they  landed  were  com- 
pletely defeated  at  Fourmigni  by  the  count  of  Clermont.  Somerset,  who 
had  retired  to  Caen  in  hope  of  aid,  had  now  no  choice  but  to  surrender. 
Falaise  was  given  up  in  exchange  for  the  liberty  of  the  earl  of  Shrews- 
bury; and  just  one  year  after  Charles's  first  irruption  into  Normandy,  the 
very  last  possession  of  the  English  in  that  province,  the  important  town 
of  Cherbourg  was  surrendered. 

In  Guienne  the  like  rapid  progress  was  made  by  the  French  under  Du- 
nois, who  encountered  but  little  difficulty  even  from  the  strongest  towns, 
his  artillery  being  of  a  very  superior  description.  Bourdeaux  and  Ba- 
yonne  made  a  brave  attempt  at  holding  out,  but  no  assistance  being  sent 
to  them  from  England,  they  also  were  compelled  to  submit;  and  the 
whole  province  of  Guienne  was  thus  reunited  to  France  after  it  had  been 
held  and  battled  for  by  the  English  for  three  hundred  years.  A  faint 
effort  was  subsequently  made,  indeed,  to  recover  Guienne,  but  it  was  so 
faint  that  it  utterly  failed,  and  war  between  England  and  France  ceased 
as  if  by  mutual  consent,  and  without  any  formal  treaty  of  peace  or  even 
truce. 


of 


ny  for 

isous; 

imited 

force 

uiii^ht 

Kng- 

■Hcnl- 

{ouen. 

Irivcn 

uniul- 

ilcr  to 

a  li'd 

iiligi'd 

iidtr- 
liglier 
ml  tlo- 
.inong 
ral  in 

very 
nfiisal 

Sora- 


CHAPTER  XXXII. 

THE    REION   UF    HENHV    VI.    {cOUcluded.) 

A.  D.  1450. — The  affairs  of  England  were  as  threatening  at  home  as 
they  were  disastrous  abroad.  The  court  and  the  ministerial  factions 
gave  rise  to  a  thousand  disorders  among  the  people,  besides  habituating 
them  to  the  complacent  anticipation  of  disorders  still  more  extreme  and 
general;  and  it  was  now  only  too  well  known  that  the  king,  by  whom 
both  factions  might  otherwise  have  been  kept  in  awe,  was  the  mere  and 
unresisting  tool  of  those  by  whom  he  chanced  to  bo  surrounded.  To 
add  to  the  general  distress,  the  cessation  of  the  war  in  France,  or,  to 
speak  mc  :'e  plainly,  the  ignominious  expulsion  of  the  English  from  that 
country,  had  filled  England  with  hordes  of  able  and  neiidy  men,  aceus- 
t.oinod  to  war,  and  ready,  for  the  mere  sak(!  of  plunder,  to  iollow  any  ban- 
ner and  support  any  cause.  A  cause  for  the  civil  war  which  these  needy 
dr^peradops  so  ardently  desired  soon  appeared  in  the  pretensions  to  the 
crown  put  forward  by  llicliard,  duke  of  V'ork.  Descended  by  liis  mother 
from  the  oidy  daughter  of  the  duke  of  Clarence,  sctond  son  of  Kdward  III., 
the  (hike  claimed  to  stand  before  King  Henry,  who  was  descended  from 
the  duke  of  Lancaster,  the  third  son  of  Edward  III.  His  claim  beiiic,' 
thus  cogent,  and  he  being  a  brave  and  capable  nr.in,  immensely  rich  ami 
eniiiiecled  with  numerous  noble  families,  including  the  most  potent  of 
lliein  all,  that  of  the  earl  of  Westmoreland,  whose  daughter  he  had  mar- 
ried, he  could  not  fail  to  be  a  most  formiditble  opponent  to  so  weak  and 
iiii';ipiibl(>  a  king  iis  Henry  ;  and  tlin  daily  inereasing  disorders,  sufferings 
and  discontents  of  the  nation,  promised  ere  long  to  allbrd  him  all  tlie 
opportunity  he  eonld  require  of  jiressing  his  claim  with  advantage. 

Though  parliament  and  the  pi'oph-  at  larijii  were  niiwilling  to  make  any 
sacrilices  for  the  defence  of  the  foreign  interests  of  the  iiaiioii,  and  could 
not  or  would  not  understand  that  niiicli  more  exertion  and  expense  are 
often  necessary  to  [ireserve  than  to  make  <'(Miipii'sts,  tliey  were  not  a  jot 
the  less  enraged  at  the  losses  in  France,  wlin'h,  llioii',di  tliey  mainly  orig- 
natcd  in  the  cesiioii  of  Maine  to  Charles  of  Anjou,  were  consummuted 


382 


THE  TRBASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


• 


t 


I 


through  the  rigid  parsimony  which  withheld  supplies  and  reinforcements 
when  they  were  actually  indispensable.  The  cession  of  Maine  to  Cliurles 
of  Anjou,  coupled  with  his  fast  friendship  to  the  king  of  France  and  his 
active  exertions  in  that  prince's  interest,  persuaded  the  English  people 
that  their  queen  was  their  enemy  at  heart,  and  that  her  influence  in  the 
K'nglish  council  was  a  chief  cause  of  their  disgrace  and  loss.  Already 
the  partisans  of  the  duke  of  York  busied  themselves  in  preparing  to  kin- 
dle a  civil  war ;  and  already  the  murder  of  Gloucester  began  to  be  avenged 
upon  its  authors,  not  merely  in  the  bitterness  which  it  gave  to  the  hatred 
of  the  people,  but  by  the  loss  of  the  courageous  authority  of  the  mur- 
dered duke,  now  so  much  needed  successfully  to  oppose  York  and  his 
seditious  partizans. 

As  the  favourite  minister  of  the  unpopular  Margaret,  as  the  dexterously 
unpatriotic  ambassador,  who,  to  oblige  her  had  robbed  England  of  Maine, 
and  as  the  man  most  strongly  suspected  of  having  brought  about  the 
murder  of  Gloucester,  Suflblk  would  under  any  circumstances  have  been 
detested;  but  this  detestation  was  lashed  into  something  very  like  in- 
sanity by  the  consideration  which  was  constantly  recurring,  that  this 
noble,  so  powerful  that  he  could  aid  in  murdering  the  nation's  favourite 
ruler,  and  rob  the  nation  to  conciliate  the  favour  of  a  princess  who  so 
lately  was  a  stranger  to  it,  was  only  a  noble  of  yesterday ;  the  great 
grandson,  merely,  of  a  veritable  trader !  It  was  this  consideration  that 
gave  added  bitterness  to  every  charge  that  was  truly  made  against  him, 
and  also  caused  not  a  few  things  to  be  charged  to  him  of  which  he  was 
wholly  innocent. 

Suftolk's  wealth,  always  increasing,  as  well-managed  wealth  needs 
must  be,  was  contrasted  with  the  daily  increasing  penury  of  the  crown, 
wliich  caused  the  people  to  be  subjected  to  a  thousand  extortions.  While 
he  was  continually  growing  more  and  more  dazzling  in  his  prosperity, 
the  crown,  indebted  to  the  enormous  extent  of  jG372,000  was  virtiiiiliy 
bankrupt,  and  the  very  provisions  for  the  royal  household  were  obiaimd 
by  arbitrary  purveyance — so  arbitrary,  that  it  fell  little  short  of  open  rob- 
bery with  violence. 

Aware  of  the  general  detestation  in  which  he  was  held,  SulFolk,  who, 
apart  from  all  the  mere  exaggerations  of  the  mob,  was  a  "  bold,  bad  niiin," 
endeavoured  to  forestal  any  formal  attack  by  the  commons'  house  of  par- 
liament, by  rising  in  his  place  in  the  lords  and  loudly  complaining  of  llie 
calumnies  that  were  permitted  to  be  uttered  against  him,  after  he  had  lost 
his  father  and  three  brothers  in  the  public  service,  and  had  himself  livcii 
seventeen  years  wholly  in  service  abroad,  served  the  crown  in  just  (ioubii' 
that  lunnber  of  campaigns,  been  made  prisoner,  and  paid  his  own  heavy 
ransom  to  the  enemy.  It  was  scandalous,  he  contended,  that  any  one 
should  dare  to  charge  iiim  with  treachery  and  collusion  with  foreign  en- 
emies, after  ho  had  thus  lonjf  ami  faithfully  served  the  crown,  and  been 
rewarded  by  high  hono\irs  and  important  oflicos. 

'I'liough  Suffolk's  apology  for  his  conduct  was  professedly  a  reply  only 
to  the  rumours  tli;it  were  current  against  him  among  the  vulgar,  the  house 
of  connnons  well  understoud  his  real  object  in  making  it  to  be  a  desire 
to  ()r('vent  them  from  originating  a  formal  charge  against  him;  and  feel- 
ing themselves  in  some  sort  ehallended  and  i)ound  to  do  ho,  they  sent  ii{) 
to  the  |)eers  a  ch.-irge  of  high  treason  ajrainst  Suflblk.  Of  this  charsie. 
which  was  very  long  and  (livi(le<l  into  a  great  number  of  clauses,  Hume 
thus  gives  a  suuniiary  :  "  They  insisted  tlialhe  had  persuaded  the  Freiuli 
knig  to  iiivaiU^  l''.ni;land  with  an  armed  force,  in  onler  to  depose  tlw!  Wmn 
Henry,  ami  to  pj-ce  on  the  throne  his  own  son,  John  dn  fjakole,  wlioiii 
h(!  intended  to  inarr\  to  Margaret,  llic  only  daughter  of  the  lati^  duke  o 
Siiinerset,  and  for  whom,  he  Imagined,  hi;  woiijil  by  that  means  aei{iiire  a 
title  to  the  crown,  that  he  had  contributed  to  the  release  of  (he  duke  (^ 


THE  TaEASURY  OF  HISTORY 


383 


«,  who, 
I  man,"" 
of  par- 

Of  till' 

liul  lost 

3lf  liVlMl 

doiiblf 

I'll  I'.eavy 

any  one 

L-igu  cn- 

md  been 

'ply  only 
lU!  Iiousc 
a  (Icsirc 
ai\il  iVcl- 
sent  lip 
c'liarsit'. 
,  lUnni' 
Frcnrli 
ihc  kmn 
wlioiu 
(liike  ti 
aciiuirc  a 
duke  f!* 


Orleans,  in  the  hope  that  that  prince  would  assist  King  Charles  in  expel- 
ling the  English  from  France  and  recovering  full  possession  of  his  king- 
dom ;  that  he  had  afterwards  encouraged  that  monarch  to  make  open  war 
on  Normandy  and  Guienne,  and  had  promoted  his  conquests  by  betraying 
the  secrets  of  England,  and  obstructing  the  succours  mtended  to  be  sent 
to  those  provinces ;  and  that  he  had,  without  any  powers  or  permission, 
promised  by  treaty  to  cede  the  province  of  Maine  to  Charles  of  Anjou, 
and  had  ceded  it  accordingly,  which  proved  in  the  issue  the  chief  cause 
of  the  loss  of  Normandy." 

These  charges  were  easily  refuted  by  a  resolute  and  self-possessed  man 
like  Suffolk.  As  regards  the  cession  of  Maine,  he  justly  enough  said,  that 
he  had  the  concurrenee  of  others  of  the  council ;  but  he  took  care  not  to 
add,  that  though  that  was  an  excellent  reason  why  he  should  not  be  alone 
in  bearing  the  punishment,  it  was  no  reason  why  he  should  escape  punish- 
ment altogether.  With  respect  to  his  alledged  intentions  as  to  his  son  and 
Margaret  of  Somerset,  he  more  completely  answered  that  charge  by  point- 
ing out  that  no  title  to  the  throne  could  possibly  be  derived  from  Margaret, 
who  was  herself  not  included  in  the  parliamentary  act  of  succession,  and 
by  confidently  appealing  to  many  peers  present  to  bear  witness  that  he 
had  intended  to  marry  his  son  to  one  of  the  earl  of  Warwick's  co-heir- 
esses, and  had  only  been  prevented  from  doing  so  by  the  death  of  that 
lady.  As  if  they  were  themselves  conscious  that  the  particulars  of  their 
first  charge  were  too  vague  and  wild  to  be  successful,  the  commons  sent  up 
to  the  lords  a  second  accusation,  in  which, timong  many  other  evil  doings, 
Suffolk  was  charged  with  improperly  obtaining  excessive  grants  from  the 
crown,  with  embezzling  the  public  money,  and  with  conferring  ofllces 
upon  unworthy  persons,  and  improperly  using  his  influence  to  defeat  the 
due  execution  of  the  laws. 

The  court  now  became  alarmed  at  the  evident  determination  of  the 
commons  to  follow  up  the  proceedings  against  Suffolk  with  rigour,  and 
an  extraordinary  expedient  was  adopted  for  the  purpose  of  saving  him 
from  tlie  worst.  The  peers,  both  spiritual  and  temporal,  were  summoned 
to  the  king's  presence,  and  Suffolk  being  then  produced  denied  the  charges 
made  against  him,  but  submitted  to  the  king's  mercy;  when  the  king  pro- 
nounced that  the  first  charge  was  untrue,  and  that  as  to  the  second,  Suf- 
folk having  submitted  to  mercy,  should  bo  banished  for  five  years.  This 
expedient  was  far  too  transparent  to  deceive  the  enemies  of  Suffolk,  wlvo 
dearly  saw  that  it  was  merely  intended  to  send  him  out  of  the  way  until 
the  danger  was  past,  and  then  to  recall  him  and  restore  him  to  aulliority. 
But  their  haired  was  too  intense  to  allow  of  their  being  thus  easily  balllod 
in  their  purpose  ;  and  tlioy  hired  the  captain  of  a  vess(!l  and  some  of  his 
fellows,  wlu)  surprised  Suffolk  near  Dover,  as  he  was  making  forFrunce, 
bclieadi'd  him,  ai\d  threw  his  body  into  the  sea. 

.So  great  a  favourite  as  Suffolk  had  been  of  Queen  Margaret,  it  was, 
iiowcver,  not  d(^emed  expedient  to  take  any  steps  to  bring  his  murderers 
to  JMstiee,  lest  in  the  incpiiry  more  should  be  disctovered  than  would  I'on- 
sist  with  the  possibility  of  the  queen  and  the  house  of  commons  ketiping 
up  any  longer  even  the  simulation  of  civility  and  good  feeling. 

Thougli  the  (Inkc!  of  York  was  in  Ireland  durnig  the  whole  of  the  pro- 
ceedings against  Suffolk,  and  therefore  could  not  be  directly  coiineetcHl 
with  them,  Margaret  and  her  friends  did  not  the  less  suspect  hin-  of  evil 
dt'sions  against  them,  and  were  by  no  means  blind  to  his  aspirinij  views 
to  the  erown  ;  nor  ilid  they  fail  to  connect  him  with  an  insin'reetion  which 
just  now  bniiu'  out  imder  the  direction  of  one  f'ade.  This  man,  who  was 
1  native  of  Ireland,  but  whoso  crimes  had  obliged  hin\  for  a  considfrable 
liiue  to  find  slndler  in  France,  possessed  great  resolution  and  no  small 
Hiare  of  a  rude  hut  showy  al'ility,  well  calculated  to  impose  upon  tin-  mill- 
ludc.     Returiung  to  Kngiand  just  as  the  popular  discontent  was  at  its  liii;li- 


384 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


est,  he  took  the  name  of  John  Mortimer,  wishing  himself  to  be  taken 
for  a  son  of  Sir  John  Mortimer,  who  early  in  the  present  reign  had 
been  sentenced  to  death  by  parliament,  upon  an  indictment  of  high 
treason,  wholly  unsupported,  and  most  iniquitously,  on  the  part  of 
Gloucester  and  Bedford,  allowed  to  be  executed.  Taking  up  the  pop. 
ular  outcry  against  the  queen  and  minister,  this  Cade  set  himself  up 
as  a  redresser  of  grievances ;  and  partly  from  his  own  plausible  talents 
but  chiefly  from  the  charm  of  the  very  popular  name  he  had  assumed 
he  speedily  found  himself  at  the  head  of  upwards  of  twenty  thous- 
and men.  Imagining  that  a  very  small  fovce  would  suffice  to  put  down 
what  was  considered  but  a  vulgar  riot,  the  court  sent  Sir  Humphrey  Staf 
ford  with  a  mere  handful  of  men  upon  that  errand  ;  but  Sir  Humphrey  was 
attacked  by  Cade  near  Sevenoaks,  his  little  force  cut  up  or  scatterred,  and 
himself  slain.  Emboldened  by  this  success,  Cade  now  marched  his  dis- 
orderly band  towards  London  and  encamped  upon  Blackheatb,  whence  he 
sent  a  list  of  obvious  grievances  of  which  he  demanded  the  correction; 
but  solemnly  protested  that  he  and  his  followers  would  lay  down  their 
arms  and  disperse,  the  moment  those  grievances  should  be  remedied,  and 
Lord  Say,  the  treasurer,  and  Cromer,  the  sheriff  of  Kent,  against  both  of 
whom  he  had  a  malignant  feeling,  should  be  coiidignly  punished  for  sun- 
dry malversations  with  which  he  strongly  charged  them.  Confinina:  his 
demands  within  these  bounds,  and  taking  care  to  prevent  his  fellows  from 
plundering  London,  whence  he  regularly  withdrew  them  at  nightfall,  he 
was  looked  upon  with  no  animosity,  at  least,  by  the  generality  of  men, 
who  knew  many  of  the  grievances  he  spoke  of  really  to  exist.  But  when 
the  council,  seeing  that  there  was  at  least  a  passive  feeling  in  favour  ot 
Cade,  withdrew  with  the  king  to  Kenilworth,  in  Warwickshire,  Cade  so 
far  lost  sight  of  his  professed  moderation  as  to  put  Lord  Say  and  Cromer 
to  death  without  even  the  form  of  a  trial.  As  soon  as  he  had  thus  set  the 
example  of  illegal  violence  he  lost  all  his  previous  control  over  the  mob, 
who  now  conducted  themselves  so  infamously  towards  the  citizens  of 
London,  that  they,  aided  by  a  party  of  soldiers  sent  by  Lord  Scales,  gov- 
ernor of  the  Tower,  resisted  them,  and  the  rebels  were  completely  defeated 
with  very  great  slaughter.  This  severe  repulse  so  far  lowered  the  spirits 
of  the  Kentish  mob,  that  they  gladly  retired  to  their  homes  on  receiviiiij 
a  pardon  from  the  archbishop  of  Canterbury,  who  also  filled  the  olfiue  of 
chancellor.  As  soon  as  it  could  safely  be  done,  this  pardon  was  pro- 
nounced to  be  null  and  void,  upon  the  ground  that  it  had  been  extorted  by 
violenire  ;  many  of  the  rebels  were  seized  and  executed,  and  Cade  himself, 
upon  whose  head  a  reward  was  set,  was  killed  by  a  gentleman  named  Ar- 
den,  while  endeavouring  to  conceal  himstilf  in  Sussex. 

Alany  circumstances  concurred  to  lead  the  court  to  suspect  that  this 
revolt  had  been  privately  set  on  foot  by  the  duke  of  York,  to  facilitate  liis 
own  designs  on  the  crown ;  and  as  he  was  now  returning  from  Irelaiul  they 
imagined  that  he  was  about  to  follow  up  the  experiment,  and  accordiiijjly 
issued  an  order  in  the  name  of  the  iinl)ecile  Henry,  to  oppose  his  return  to 
Kugland.  Hut  the  duke,  who  was  far  too  wary  lo  iiasten  his  measures  in  llii? 
way  his  enemies  anticipated,  converted  all  their  fears  and  pnicaufions  inti) 
ridii'ule,  hy  coolly  lauding  Willi  no  other  attendants  than  his  ordinary  re- 
tinue. Hut  as  the  fears  of  his  eiicniics  had  caused  them  lo  betray  their 
real  feelings  towards  him,  he  now  ri^solved  to  proceed  at  least  one  steji 
towards  his  ullimat(!  designs.  IIitliert<,  his  title  had  been  spoken  of  by 
his  friends  only  in  whispers  among  thiMiisclves,  but  he  now  authorized 
them  openly  to  urge  it  at  all  times  and  in  nil  places. 

The  pnrtiziins  of  the  reigning  king  and  of  the  aspiring  duke  of  York, 
respectfully,  had  e;\(di  very  plaiisiliU?  arguiiients ;  and  though  men's  minds 
were  pretty  cipcdly  divided  as  lo  ilicir  r('spi;ciiv(;  claims,  tlii'  supcricirity 
which  York  had  as  to  the  favour  of  powerful  noblemen  seemed  to  he  more 


'Tal,  t|„, 

'■'Slitv  V 

"Way  wa 

\'oi 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


38a 


taken 
;n  had 
)f  high 
part  of 
he  pop- 
laeir  up 
talents 
Dsuined 
'   ihous- 
jt  down 
■ey  Staf 
irey  was 
rred,  and 
I  his  dis- 
hence  he 
rrection ; 
iwn  their 
died,  and 
St  both  of 
1  for  3un- 
ifiiiin?  his 
lows  from 
ghtfall,  he 
f  of  men, 

But  when 

favour  ol 
e.  Cade  so 
nd  Cromer 
,hus  set  the 
>r  the  mob, 
[citizens  of 
Scales,  gov. 
■ly  defeated 
1  the  spirits 
|u  receiving 

lie  office  of 
was  pro- 
[extovted  by 

ide  himself, 
named  Ar 

let  that  this 
lacililiite  his 
jrclaml  limy 
kccordingly 
Lis  return  lo 
lisures  in  tliL' 
lautioiis  iutii 
-irdinary  ro- 
Ibi'iray  ilioit 
list  one  slL';i 
[)okcn  of  by 
authorizeil 

Ike  of  York, 

Inn'irs  niimis 

supiTioriiy 

kl  to  be  more 


tnan  counterbalanced  by  the  possession,  by  the  royal  party,  not  only  of  all 
authority  of  the  laws,  but  also  of  tliat  "  tower  of  strength,"  "  the  king's 
name."  On  the  side  of  tiie  crown,  besides  the  advantages  to  which  we 
have  already  alluded,  there  were  ranged  the  earl  of  Northumberland  and 
the  earl  of  Westmoreland,  and  these  two  nobles  carried  witii  them  all  the 
power  and  influence  of  the  northern  comnies  of  England;  and  besides 
these  two  groat  men,  the  cro-"".  could  reckon  upon  tiie  duke  of  Souiersnt 
and  bis  brother  the  duke  of  Kxeter,  the  duke  of  Huckingliam,  the  earl  of 
Shrewsbury,  the  lords  Cliff"()rd,  Scales,  governor  oi  the  Tower,  Audley 
and  a  long  list  of  nobles  of  less  note. 

A.  D.  14.51. — The  party  of  the  duke  of  York  was  scarcely  less  strong' 
but  so  far  had  arts  and  literature  begun  to  show  their  civilizing  clTecls, 
that  instead  of  instantly  and  fiercely  flying  to  arms,  the  hostile  parties 
seemed  inclined  to  struggle  rather  by  art  tlian  force.  The  duke  of  York 
was  the  more  inclined  to  this  plan,  because  lie  imagined  tliat  he  had 
power  enough  in  the  parliament  to  deprive  the  weak  Henry  of  the  pres- 
ence and  support  of  bis  friends ;  in  which  case  he  would  have  but  little 
difficulty  in  causing  the  succession  to  be  altered  by  law,  or  even  in  induc- 
ing Henry  to  abdicate  a  throne  which  he  was  obviously  and  lamentably 
unBt  to  fill. 

Nor  did  the  parliament  which  now  met  fail  to  confirm  York's  hopes ; 
the  first  step  taken  'jy  the  house  of  commons  was  to  petition  the  king  to 
dismiss  from  about  his  person  the  duke  of  Somerset,  tiie  duchess  of  Suf- 
folk, the  bishop  of  Chester,  Lord  Dudley,  aiiTl  Sir  .lolin  Sutton,  and  to  for- 
bid them  on  any  pretence  to  approach  within  twelve  miles  of  the  court. 
The  king  agreed  to  banish  all  named,  save  the  lords,  for  a  whole  year, 
unless,  as  the  answer  written  for  him  very  significantly  said,  he  should 
iiRpd  their  services  in  the  suppression  of  rebellion.  Still  farther  to  show 
his  sense  of  the  temper  ol  the  lower  house,  the  king — or  rather  his 
frieiiiis — refused  to  consent  to  a  bill  of  attainder  against  the  late  duke  of 
Sullulk,  thoujrh  It  had  passed  through  all  the  parliamentary  stages. 

A.  u.  U.'J'J. — The  mere  demonstrations  thus  made  by  the  house  of  com. 
moiis.even  though  it  had  proved  but  partially  successful,  was  sulHcient  to 
ciicoinagu  the  duke  to  more  open  advances,  and  he  issued  a  proclamation 
ili'iniindiug  a  lliorongh  reform  of  the  government,  and  especially  a  removal 
of  the  duke  of  .Somerset  from  all  office  aiid  authority ;  !ind  he  then  march- 
ed upon  liOndon  with  an  army  of  ten  thousand  men.  Greatly  popular  as 
he  knew  himself  to  be  in  London,  where  he  counted  upon  an  aflTcctioiiate 
welcome  and  a  considerable  addition  to  his  force,  he  was  astounded  to  find 
tlio  gates  fast  closed  against  him.  Scarcely  knowing  how  to  act  under 
such  unexpected  and  untoward  circunislances,  he  retreated  into  Kent, 
wliitiier  he  was  closely  pursued  by  the  king  at  the  head  of  a  far  superior 
army.  In  the  king's  suite  were  Salisbury,  Warwick,  and  many  more  fast 
frieiiils  of  the  duke  of  York,  who  probably  thus  attended  th;;  king  in  hope 
of  serving  York  as  mediators,  or  even,  should  an  action  lake  placi;,  turning 
tile  fortune  of  the  day  by  suddenly  leading  tlicir  lori-cs  to  his  side.  A  \v,\v. 
ley  ensued,  and  Somerset  was  ordered  into  arrest  to  await  a  parliann'ii- 
lary  trial,  and  York,  whom  the  (Miurt  did  not  as  yet  dare  to  ass;r|,  was 
onlcred  to  confine  himself  to  liis  secluded  house  at  Wigmore  in  Here- 
fordshire. 

CiMil  and  circumspect  as  he  was  resolute,  the  duke  of  York  livc^d  qui- 
otly  ill  this  relireuient  for  some  time,  but  was  at  length  called  fmui  it  by 
tlic  Uirrent  of  popular  indijinalion  against  the  niinislers,  which  followed  a 
new  and  abortive  attemiit  to  reconquer  Oascony ;  in  which  ailempt,  be- 
sides a  vast  iiuinberof  men,  the  English  lost  Iheir  deservedly  beloved  gen- 
eral, the  earl  of  Shrewsbury,  who  fell  in  battle  at  the  age  of  more  than 
I'ighty  years.  This  event,  and  the  ipieen  giving  birlli  to  a  son,  which  did  . 
itway  with  the  hope  great  numbers  hud  enlcrlaiiied  that  York  might  wait  " 
\'oi<.  i.—iH 


1^ 


sJfi  I 


\   I- 


386 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


and  succeed  to  Henry  quietly  and  as  next  heir,  urged  the  Yorkists  beyond 
ad'  farther  power  of  their  chief  to  control  them  ;  and  Henry  being,  by  an 
illness,  now  rendered  too  completely  imbecile  even  to  appear  to  rule,  the 
queen  and  her  council  were  obliged  to  yield  to  the  torrent  of  popular  feel- 
ing, and  they  consented  to  send  Somerset  to  the  Tower — he  being  now 
hated  even  more  than  Suffolk  had  formerly  been— and  to  appoint  tiie  duke 
of  York  lieutenant  of  the  kingdom.  The  friends  of  the  duke  of  York 
might,  naturally  enough,  desire  to  see  him  in  a  situation  so  favourable  to 
him  and  their  ultimate  views;  but  the  duke's  conduct  wholly  disappointed 
any  expectations  they  might  have  formed  of  decisive  measures  on  his  part, 
as  he  fairly  and  moderately  exerted  the  proper  authority  of  his  office,  and 
no  more. 

A.  D.  1455. — Margaret  and  her  friends,  however  well  pleased  to  profit  by 
the  duke's  moderation,  showed  no  intention  of  imitating  it.  On  the  con- 
trary, the  king  recovering  sufficiently  to  be  again  put  forward  in  public  as 
if  ai-ting  from  his  own  free  will,  was  made  to  annul  the  appointment  of 
York,  and  to  release  Somerset  from  the  Tower,  and  give  him  back  all  his 
former  power.  Uven  the  moderation  of  York  was  no  longer  able  to  avoid 
open  extremities,  as  it  was  clear  from  the  hasty  annulling  of  his  comtnis- 
sion,  that  he  was  not  safe  from  being,  by  some  artful  device,  brought  into 
difficulty  for  having  even  consented  to  accept  it.  But  even  now,  thcugh 
he  called  his  forces  about  him  and  placed  himself  at  their  head,  he  made 
no  claim  to  the  crown,  hut  limited  his  demands  to  a  reformation  of  the 
government  and  dismissal  of  the  obnoxious  ministry. 

The  hostile  forces  met  near  St  Alban's,  and  in  the  battle  which  ensued 
the  Yorkists  gained  the  victory,  tlioir  enemies  losing  5000  men,  ini-hiding 
the  detested  Somerset,  Stafford,  eldest  son  of  the  duke  of  Uuckingham,  the 
lord  Clifford,  and  many  other  leading  men  of  the  party.  The  prisoners, 
too,  were  numerous,  and,  chief  of  all,  the  king  was  among  then).  His 
own  utter  iniboeility  and  the  mild  temper  of  the  diike  of  York  saved  the 
unfortunate  Henry  from  all  annoyance.  The  duke  sliowed  him  every 
possible  respect  and  tenderness;  and  though  he  availed  himself  of  Ins 
good  fortune  to  exert  all  the  kingly  authority,  while  still  leaving  uindainied 
the  empty  title  of  king,  Henry  was  little  inclined  to  quarrel  with  an  nr- 
rangemcnt  which  saved  him  from  what  he  most  of  all  detested,  exertion 
and  trouble. 

TIk!  moderate  or  timid  policy  of  the  duke  of  York,  and  the  spirit  and 
ability  with  which  Margaret  kept  togeilier  her  weakeni'd  party,  prevented 
farther  bloodshed  for  a  time,  even  after  this  battle  had  commencen  llie 
dread  war  of  "the  roses;"  in  which,  besides  iniuunciable  skirinisln's, 
twelve  pitched  battles  were  fought  upon  English  ground,  and  whicli  for 
thirty  long  years  divided  families,  (k'.solated  the  land,  and  eansed  a  ijss 
of  life  of  which  some  notion  may  be  formed  from  the  simple  fiict,  that 
among  the  slain  were  no  fewer  than  eighty  princi's  of  the  blood!  The 
parliainent,  seeing  the  disinclination  of  the  duke  of  York  to  grasp  the 
sceptre  whi(di  seemed  so  nearly  within  his  reach,  shaped  its  pnici'ediiigs 
accordingly;  and  wliih.,  by  granting  an  indemnity  to  the  Yorkists  and  re- 
storing the  duke  to  his  otlice  of  lii'Utenant  or  protector  of  the  kingiloiii, 
they  renewed  their  oaths  of  allegiance  to  the  unconscious  and  iinbicilp 
king,  and  limited  York's  aiipoinlment  to  the  time  when  the  king's  son, 
who  was  now  made  prince  of  Wales,  should  attain  his  majority.  Tins 
parliament  also  did  good  service  by  revoking  all  the  impolitic  and  exten- 
sive grants  which  had  been  made  since  the  death  of  iIk^  late  king,  anil 
wliii'h  were  so  exti  nsive  that  they  had  mainly  caused  the  excessive  pov 
erty  into  which  the  crown  had  fallen. 

A.  n.  1456.— Margaret  was  of  loo  slern  ami  eager  a  nature  to  nefileit  any 
of  the  opportunities  of  strengthening  her  party  which  were  afforded  liy 
the  singular  moderation  or  iinlecision  of  York.    The  king  having  a  teiu- 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


387 


porary  lucid  interval— for  his  real  disease  was  a  sort  of  idiotcy — slie  took 
advantage  of  the  duke's  absence  to  parade  her  unfortunate  and  passive 
husband  before  the  parliament,  and  to  make  him  declare  his  intention  o' 
resuming  his  authority.  Unexpected  as  this  proposal  was,  York's  friends 
were  wholly  unprepared  with  any  reasonable  argument  against  it;  and, 
indeed,  many  of  them,  being  sufferers  from  the  recent  resumption  of  thf 
jrown  grants,  were  greatly  disgusted  with  their  leader  on  that  account. 
The  king  was  accordhigly  pronounced  in  posse'sslon  of  his  proper  author- 
;!y ;  and  York,  constant  to  his  moderate  or  temporising  polity,  laid  dnwn 
Ills  office  without  ;i  struggle  or  even  a  complaint. 

A.  D.  1457.— The  king,  or  rather  Margaret,  being  thus  agdin  in  ful'  ,)ov 
session  of  power,  the  court  went  to  pass  a  season  at  Cover\trv;  w'.ere 
York  and  the  earls  of  Warwick  and  Salisbury  were  invited  to  v'jjt  the 
kiiii;.  Tliey  wore  so  unsuspicious  of  the  real  motive  of  th'i  ivivitntion, 
that  they  readily  accepted  it,  and  were  actually  on  the  roid  when  they 
were  informed  of  Margaret's  intention  certainly  to  S'jize  urion  their  per- 
sons, and,  not  improbably,  to  put  them  to  death.  On  •.gc'.ving  this  start- 
ling intelligence  the  friends  separated,  to  prep'vre  for  their  defence 
against  the  open  violence  which,  it  seemed  pvob'ihle,  Margaret  would 
resort  to  on  finding  her  treachery  discovered  ind  disappointed  ;  York  re- 
tiring to  WIgmore,  Salisbury  to  his  noble  pla':e  at  Middieham  in  York- 
shire, and  Warwick  to  Calais,  of  wlreh  he  had  been  made  governor  after 
llie  battle  of  St.  Alban's,  and  v/hich  m'js  sspexially  valuable  to  the  York- 
ist cause,  inasmuch  as  it  cofita-ned  the  only  regular  mditary  body  which 
England  than  supported.  Kvei'.  now  York  was  not  inclined  to  proceed  to 
extremitiee  ;  ai<d  a?  Ma'garst  on  her  part  was  doubtful  as  to  the  sufficien- 
cy of  her  military  strength,  and  well  aware  of  the  very  great  extent  to 
which  the  popular  synipaihics  were  enlisted  on  the  side  of  York,  h  pause 
ensued,  of  wliich  B<iurchicr,  archbishop  of  York,  and  some  other  sincere 
lovers  of  their  country,  availed  themselves,  to  attempt  a  mediation  by 
wliicli  the  people  might  be  spared  the  ruinous  and  revolting  horrors  of 
civil  war. 

A.  u.  1458. — The  humane  endeavour  of  these  personages  so  far  succeed- 
ed, ili'it  the  leaders  of  both  parties  agreed  to  meet  in  London  for  a  solemn 
and  |)ul>lic  reconciliation  :  but  the  very  manner  of  their  meeting-,  notwith- 
slaiKJiiig  the  avowed  purpose  of  it,  was  sutlicient  to  have  convinced  all 
ai'iurate  observers  of  the  lillle  reliance  that  could  be  placed  upon  the 
frieiiiily  feeliiiiis  of  either  party.  Both  came  numerously  attended,  and 
liiitli  kept  their  atteiulants  near  thciu,  and  in  the  same  close  watch  and 
serried  (lislribuiion  as  would  ho  observed  in  hostile  armies  encamped  upon 
tlif  same  ground  at  evening,  pre[)aratory  for  the  bloodshed  and  the  strug- 
gle of  the  morrow. 

Tlioiigh  this  mnlnal  jealousy  and  dread  .lugnred  hut  ill  for  the  perma- 
nence of  a  fricuilsliip  declared  under  such  circumstances,  the  terms  be- 
tween the  opposing  parties  were  arranged  without  much  ditliculty  and 
wholly  without  strife;  and  the  hollow  peace  having  been  fully  arranged, 
the  parties  went  in  solemn  procession  to  St.  Paul's,  that  their  union  iniglu 
he  eviilciit  to  the  people;  York  gallantly  leading  by  the  hand  his  truculent 
Hiid  implacable  enemy  Margaret,  and  each  of  tlie  couples  who  followed 
llieni  in  the  procession  being  (;omposed  of  a  leading  man  of  the  opposing 
n^iriies  respectively. 

K.  I).  U.'jit.— The  peace  thus  patched  up  was  of  exactly  the  frail  tenure 
thai  inigljt  li;ive  hijcn  anticipated.  The  trivial  ai-eiilent  of  a  retainer  of 
(lie  earl  of  Warwick  being  insulted  led  to  a  general  brawl,  swords  were 
<lravvn,  the  light  became  serious,  and  the  royal  party  beinir  the  more  nu- 
meidus,  Warwick  only  saved  his  own  life  by  dying  to  (/alais.  This  ori 
giiially  petty  afTiirpntan  end  to  peace;  both  parties  took  otf  their  masks 
everywiiere  the  din  of  preparation  was  heard,  and  it  became  evident  even 


388 


THE  TKFA8LRY  OF  HISTOHY 


to  those  who  most  desired  peace  for  their  country,  that  a  civil  war  was 
now  wholly  inevitable. 

The  earl  of  Salisbury  having  raised  a  considerable  force  was  making 
hasty  marches  to  form  a  junction  with  the  duke  of  York,  when  ho  was 
overtaken  at  Blore  heath,  in  Staffordshire,  by  a  much  larger  party  of  the 
royalists  under  the  lord  Audley.  Salisbury's  numerical  inferiority  was 
fully  compensated  by  his  superiority  of  judgment.  To  reach  him  the 
royalists  had  to  descend  a  steep  bank  and  cross  a  stream.  Salisbury 
caused  his  men  to  retreat,  as  if  alarmed  at  their  enemies'  number;  and 
Audley,  falling  into  the  snare,  gave  his  vanguard  the  word  to  charge  and 
led  them  in  full  pursuit.  As  the  vanguard  reached  the  side  of  the  riv- 
ulet, Salisbury  suddenly  faced  about,  and  having  only  to  deal  with  a  body 
inferior  to  his  own,  put  it  completely  to  the  rout,  the  remaining  body  of 
the  royalists,  instead  of  hastening  over  to  support  their  comrades,  be- 
taking themselves  to  flight  in  good  earnest. 

York's  post  was  at  Ludlow,  in  Shropshire,  and  thither  Salisbury  now 
marched  his  troops,  whose  spirits  were  heightened  and  confirmed  by  theii 
victory.  Soon  after  his  arrival  York  received  a  new  accession  to  his 
numbers,  the  earl  of  Warwick  joining  him  with  a  body  of  veterans  from 
the  garrison  of  Calais.  York  was  naturally  delighted  with  this  accession 
of  disciplined  men,  who,  under  ordinary  circumstances,  must  necess  irily 
have  been  of  immense  importance ;  i)ut  their  commander,  Sir  Andrew 
Trollope,  turned  their  presence  into  a  calamity  instead  of  an  advantage 
to  the  duke's  cause.  Tiie  royal  army  arrived  in  sight  of  the  Y'orkists, 
and  a  general  action  was  to  take  place  on  the  morrow,  when  Sir  Andrew, 
under  cover  of  the  night,  basely  led  his  veterans  over  to  the  king.  The 
mere  loss  of  a  large  and  disciplined  body  of  men  was  the  least  mischic' 
this  treachery  did  to  York.  It  spread  a  perfect  panic  of  suspicion  and 
dismay  through  the  camp ;  the  very  leaders  could  no  longer  rely  upon 
each  other's  good  faith;  hope  and  confidence  fled,  and  the  Yorkists  deter- 
mined to  separate  and  await  some  more  favourable  slate  of  things  jre  put- 
ting their  cause  to  the  hazard  of  a  pitched  battle.  The  duke  of  York  re 
tired  to  Ireland,  where  he  was  universally  beloved,  and  Warwick  returnod 
to  Calais,  were  he  was  from  time  to  time  joined  by  large  reinforcements; 
York's  friends  who  remained  in  Kngland  continuing  to  recruit  for  him  as 
zealously  as  though  his  cause  had  sustained  no  check  from  the  recent 
treason. 

A.  D.  1460. — Having  completed  his  own  preparations,  and  being  satisfied 
from  the  advices  of  his  friends  in  England  that  he  might  rely  upon  a  con- 
siderable rising  of  the  people  in  his  favour,  Warwick  now  sailed  iVom 
Calais  with  a  large  and  well-equipi)ed  army,  and,  after  capturing  sonic  o( 
the  royal  vessels  at  sea,  landcti  in  safety  on  the  coast  of  Kent,  accom- 
panied by  the  earl  of  Marche,  the  eldest  son  of  the  duke  of  York,  and 
the  earl  of  Salisbury;  and  on  his  road  to  London  he  was  joined  by  the 
archbishop  of  Canterbury,  Lord  Cobham,  and  other  powerful  nobles  and 
gentlemen. 
The  city  of  London  eagerly  opened  its  gates  to  Warwick,  w'hose  nninlicrs 
daily  increased  so  much,  that  he  was  able  with  confidence  to  advance  to 
Northampton  to  meet  the  royal  army.  The  battle  commenced  furiously 
on  both  sides,  but  was  speedily  decided.  The  royalists  who  had  liilely 
been  benefited  by  treason  were  now  sufferers  from  it;  the  lord  Grey  of 
Ruthin,  who  had  the  command  of  its  vanguard,  leading  the  whole  of  liio 
troops  over  to  tiie  Yorkists.  A  universal  panic  spread  through  the  royal- 
ists by  this  base  treachery,  and  the  battle  became  a  rout.  The  slauglitei 
among  the  nobility  was  tremendous,  and  included  the  duke  of  Bucking- 
ham, the  earl  of  Shrewsbury,  Lord  Egrcmont,  Sir  William  Lucie,  and 
many  other  gallant  officers.  The  loss  of  the  common  soldiery  on  tlie 
royal  side  was  comparatively  trifling;  the  earl  of  Warwick  and  his  col- 


THE  TREA8UKY  OF  HI3T0H\. 


389 


war  was 


[eagfucs  directing  the  Yorkists,  both  in  the  battle  and  the  chase,  to  spare 
the  soldiery,  but  to  give  no  quarter  among  the  leaders. 

The  unhappy  Henry,  who  was  far  more  fit  for  the  quiet  seclusion  of 
some  well-ordered  country  abode,  was  by  the  compulsion  of  his  imperi- 
ous wife  a  spectator  of  this  battle,  and  was  taken  prisoner ;  but  both  policy 
and  good  feeling  led  the  Yorkist  leaders  to  show  every  respect  and  kind- 
ness to  one  whose  greatest  misfortune  was  being  a  king,  and  whose  great- 
est fault  was  a  disease  of  the  brain ;  whose  patient  and  simple  bearing, 
moreover,  had  won  him  the  tender  pity  of  his  people. 

Warwick  marched  with  his  royal  captive  to  London,  where  the  duke  of 
York  shortly  afterwards  arrived  from  Ireland,  and  a  parliament  was  sum- 
moned in  the  king's  name  to  meet  at  Westminster  on  the  7th  of  October. 
The  real  or  affected  scruples  of  York  were  now  wholly  at  an  end,  and 
he  had  determined  to  bring  forward  for  the  first  time  an  open  and  positive 
claim  to  the  throne.  But  even  now  he  would  only  do  so  through  the 
medium  of  a  farce  which  one  cannot  read  of  without  feeling  something 
like  contempt  for  him,  in  spite  of  the  remarkable  ability  of  liis  general 
conduct.  Though  the  archbishop  of  Canterbury  knew  the  intentions  of 
York  fully  as  well  as  the  duke  himself  knew  tiiem,  that  prelate  on  seeing 
him  enter  the  house  of  lords  and  advance  towards  the  throne,  asked  him, 
in  a  low  tone,  whether  he  had  as  yet  paid  his  respects  to  the  king;  and 
York  answered — as  tlie  prelate  well  knew  that  he  was  to  answer — iliat  he 
knew  of  no  one  to  whom  he  owed  the  respect  due  to  that  title.  How  two 
grave  men  could  unblushingly  perform  this  scene  of  needless  mockery,  or 
how  they  could  perform  it  unchecked  by  the  indignant  and  contemptuous 
laughter  of  their  fellow-peers,  it  really  is  not  easy  to  imagine. 

Having  by  lliis  ridiculous  scene  made  all  the  preparations  that  he  could 
desire,  the  duke  placed  himself  close  to  the  throne,  and  addressed  a  long 
speecli  to  the  peers  in  advocacy  of  his  right  to  the  throne,  and  in  com- 
ment upon  the  treason  and  cruelty  by  which  the  house  of  Lancaster  had 
usurped  and  kept  possession  of  it.  So  unnecessary  was  the  farce  with 
wliicli  the  duke  iiad  iliought  fit  to  preface  the  staiemeiit — so  well  prepared 
were  at  least  the  majority  of  the  peers  present  to  hear  it,  that  they  pro- 
ceeded to  take  the  subject  into  consideration  as  coolly  as  their  descend- 
ants of  the  present  day  would  resolve  themselves  into  a  committee  for  the 
consideration  of  a  turnpike  bill.  The  duke  probably  was  not  very  well 
pleased  with  the  excess  of  this  coolness ;  for  the  spot  upon  which  he  had 
placed  himself  and  his  bearing  throughout  the  scene  go  to  show,  that  he 
expected  that  the  peers  would  by  acclamation  place  liim  upon  the  throne 
against  which  he  leaned. 

The  lords  having  invited  the  leading  members  of  the  lower  house  to  aid 
them  in  the  investigation  of  the  claim  of  the  duke  of  York,  objections 
were  made  to  it,  grounded  on  former  parliamentary  settlements  of  the  suc- 
cession, and  upon  the  fact  that  the  duke,  who  had  always  borne  the  arms 
of  York,  now  claimed  tlirougli  the  house  of  Clarence;  but  to  both  these 
objections  the  duke's  friends  replied  by  ailedgingthe  prevailing  power  and 
great  tyranny  of  the  Lancastrians  ;  and  the  peers,  whom  this  reply  satis- 
fiinl— as,  no  doubt,  had  been  didy  agreed  upon  long  before  they  met  in  the 
house — proceeded  to  determine  tliat  the  title  of  the  duke  of  York  was 
heyoiid  doubt  just  and  indefeasible,  but  that  in  consideration  of  Henry 
iiiiviiig  worn  the  crown  thirty-eight  years,  he  should  continue  to  do  so 
for  ihe  remainder  of  his  life,  the  duke  acting  during  that  time  as  regeui.. 
The  lords  further  determined  that  the  duke  should  succeed  to  the  throne 
at  Henry's  decease;  that  any  attempts  upon  his  life  should  be  equally 
treason  with  attempts  on  the  life  of  the  king;  and  that  this  new  set- 
tlement of  the  crown  slur.ild  be  final,  and  abrogate  and  annul  ihe 
I'eitlemeiit  made  previously.  The  duke  was  well  contented  with  this 
iiuiderate  settlement  of  the  question  ;  the  weak-minded  and  captive  king 


-I? 


390 


THE  TUKA8URY  OF  HI8TOUY 


N* 


had  of  -^urst,  no  power  to  oppose  it,  mid  this  transfer  of  the  alllriiieiil  was 
agreed  *o  by  the  w  hole  parliiiineiit  with  les$t  excitement  than  a  triviul  party 
question  has  often  caused  since. 

Invested  with  the  fegeiicy,  and  also  h  iving  the  kiiiir's  person  in  his 
power,  York  was  now  king  in  ail  lint  name ;  but  he  too  well  understood 
the  audacious  and  able  s|)irit  of  Queen  .Mar;'aret,  lo  deem  hinistdf  ptTuia- 
nently  in  possession  as  li>ng  as  slie  nnnalned  in  thi^  kingloni  ut   lilierty. 
Anxious  10  get  her  into  his  |)ow(-r,  that  he  might  either  MMprison  or  banish 
her,  he  sent  her,  in  the  name  of  her  husband,  a  suinnions  to  join  iiini  in 
London.     But  iMargaret.  who  was  busy  raising  forces  in  Scotland  and  the 
north  of  Knglaiid,  by  promising  to  \\if  bravest  and  most  turbulent  men  in 
those  parts  the  spoiling  of  all  the  country  north  of  the  Trent,  instead  of 
com|)lyiug  with  this  sunnnons,  inifuiied   the  royal  standaril,  and  showed 
herself  at  the  head  of  twenty  thousand  men,  and  prepared  to  fight  yet  an- 
other tiattle  against  York  in  despite  of  ilisadvani.igcons  fortune.     Wlu  h.'r 
from  some  una(!countahle  want  of  jmlgmenl  on  tin-  part  of  th  ;  duk<',  or 
from  the  exceeding  popularity  of  Margaret  among  the  inhiibitimts  i,i  t!i,i 
nortli,  causing  him  to  be  wantonly  misled  as  to  her  resources,  the  (inke 
with  (July  five  thousand  men  marched  against  iMarnaret's  ar.uy,  as  though 
he  h.id  merely  to  put  down  an  ordinary  revolt  of  an  uiniisiiplint'd  liaijilhil 
of  men.     A  fatal  nnstake,  from  whatever  cause  it  arose  !     The  ilukc  had 
already  led  his  little  army  as  far  as  W'aki.'licld,  in  Y'oikshire,  ere  lie  (lis- 
covered  his  error  just  in  time  to  throw  himself  in  Snidal  (/aslle,  in  that 
neighbourhood  ;  and  even  now  he  might  have  been  safe  had  he  not  liecn 
guilly  of  a  second  error,  for  which  no  one  but  liimself  could  possilijv  be 
blamed.     He  was  urged  by  the  earl  of  Salisbury  and  llie  rest  of  the  friends 
who  accompanied  him,  to  keep  (dose  within  the  castle  until  his  son,  the 
earl  of  March,  could  arrive  from  the  borders  of  Wales,  where  he  was  levy. 
iug  troops,  and  thus,  when  he  had  something  like  an  equality  as  to  num- 
bers, to  descend  inio  the  plain  and  give  tin;  queen  battle.     This  prudent 
counsel  the  duke  wilIi  unconceivable  folly  rejected,  upon  the  ridiculous 
plea  that  he  slionld  be  forever  disgraced  as  a  soldier  were  he  to  remain 
sbut  up  within  a  fortress  because  threatened  by  a  woman.     Now  the  duke 
must   full  well  have  known,  that,  spirited  and  sanguinary  as  Margaret 
undoubtedly  was,  she  was  in  nierely  the  nominal  command  of  her  army 
that  she  was  aided  by  commanders  of  whose  talents  it  would  be  no  dis- 
grace to  him  to  show  his  respect;  and  that  finally,  her  force  oulnuinliercd 
his  in  the  overwhelming  proportion  of  four  to  one.     But  the  truth  was, 
that  the  duke  had  more  courage  as  a  knight  than  judgment  as  a  com- 
mander: and,  in  spite  of  all  that  could  be  said  by  his  real  and  judii'iuu-> 
friends,  he  obstinately  persisted  in  descending  to  the  neighbouring  plain 
and  givimr  battle  to  the  queen.     As  might  have  been  anticipated,  the  ruyal- 
ists  availed  themselves  of  their  vast  numerical   superiority,  and  ut  ihe 
commencement  of  the  action  detached  a  considerable  body  to  fall  upoiitlic 
rear  of  the  duke's  force.    This  maneeuvre  hastened  the  event,  which  was 
not  <lonbtful  even  from  the  commencemei!'  .  ilic   Inke's  army  was  com- 
pletely routed  and  he  himself  was  among  tlie  mini  '''  oi' the  slain. 

'I'hat  .Margaret  should  chose  to  resist  tlu  iirwu  t  ■■  •■  '  ..I'lral,  evei>  •■,i;,,; 
from  any  doubt  she  might  have  felt  as  ti  '.'■:  •■'^t';-  :/i,yof  his  claiiu  to 
that  of  her  husband  :  but  her  coiidn(!t  aftei  li.o  l>uttle  showed  a  de|)raved 
and  virulent  feeling,  which  was  at  oni^e  unwomanly  and  of  evil  augury  to 
the  people  in  the  event  of  her  ever  being  firmly  fixed  in  power.  Thehu^ly 
of  her  illustrious  opponent,  whose  triumph  would  have  been  secure  soin>! 
years  before  had  he  chosen  to  push  his  power  to  exiremity,  was  fuui.i 
among  the  slain;  and  this  disgustingly  unfeminine  queen  had  the  head 
Struck  off  and  aflixed  to  the  gate  of  York  castle,  a  paper  crown  being  lirst 
placed  >  ,)oii  the  ghastly  head,  in  bitter  and  cruel  mockery  of  the  duke's 
unsiicc'jasful  endeavours.    Margaret's  cruel  temper  seems  to  have  iu' 


THE  TRKASUaY  OK  Frrj^TOHY. 


351 


flupiicod  her  friends.  Thoyoiui^r  rarl  of  RuihuKi.soii  t\ftho  duke  ofYurk, 
and  then  only  seventeen  years  old,  being  takcMi  prisoner  ami  led  into  the 
presence  of  Lord  Clifford,  was  by  that  nolileman's  own  hand  put  tu  dfiith. 
This  dastardly  butchery  of  a  mere  boy  is  accounted  for  by  the  historians 
on  the  ground  of  Clifford's  own  father  having  perished  in  th^  luittle  of  St. 
Alban's!  As  though  that  could  have  been  any  justification  of  his  present 
butchery  of  a  young  prince  who  at  the  time  of  that  battle  wis  barely 
iwel'.'e  years  old!  Another  illustrious  victim  was  the  earl  of  Salisbury, 
who  being  severely  wounded  was  taken  prisoner,  carried  to  Pontefract, 
'jid  there  beheaded. 

'  ills  battle  was  a  terrible  loss  to  the  Yorkists,  upwards  of  three  thousand 
01  whom  perished,  besides  the  duke.  That  prince  was  only  fifty  years  of 
a^i-  when  he  fell,  and  was  reasonably  looked  upon  by  his  party  as  btjing 
likely  to  be  their  support  and  ornament  formany  years.  He  was  succeeded 
tn  his  title  and  pretensions  by  his  eldest  son,  Kdward ;  besides  whom  he 
left  two  other  sons,  George  and  Richard,  and  three  daughters,  Anne,  Eliza- 
beth, and  Margaret. 

A.  D.  1461. — ^Immediately  after  this  action  the  able  and  active,  thou  ^h 
most  hatefully  cruel  Margaret,  marched  with  the  main  body  of  her  army 
against  the  earl  of  Warwick,  who  was  left  in  command  of  the  main  boi'v 
of  the  Yorkists  at  London,  while  she  sent  a  detachment  under  .lasper  Tu- 
dor, carl  of  Pembroke,  and  half-brotherto  her  unfortunate  husband,  against 
Edward,  the  new  duke  of  York,  who  was  still  on  the  Welsh  border.  The 
earl  of  Pembroke  and  the  duke  of  York  metat  Mortimer's  Cross,  in  Here- 
fordshire, when  the  earl  was  completely  routed  with  the  loss  of  nearly 
four  thousand  men  ;  the  remainder  of  his  force  being  scattered  in  all  di- 
rections, and  he  himself  havinjr  no  small  difliculty  in  making  good  his  re- 
treat. His  father.  Sir  Owen  Tudor,  who  accompanied  him  to  this  disas- 
trous battle,  was  still  less  fortunate  ;  being  taken  prisoner  and  led  into  the 
presence  of  the  duke  of  York,  that  prince  instantly  ordered  him  to  be  be- 
headed. 

Margaret  was  more  fortunate  than  Pembroke.  She  encountered  War- 
wick at  St.  Alban's,  whither  he  had  marched  from  London  to  meet  her 
Warwick's  own  force  was  larjje,  and  he  was  strongly  reinforced  by  volun- 
teers, the  Londoners  being  for  the  most  part  staunch  Yorkists.  At  the 
commencement  of  the  battle  Warwick  even  had  the  advantage,  but  he 
was  suddenly  deserted  by  Lovelace,  wlio  commanded  under  him,  and  who 
led  the  whole  of  his  men  over  to  the  enemy.  The  consequence  was  the 
complete  rout  of  the  Yorkists,  two  thousand  three  hundred  of  whom  per- 
ished on  the  field.  Many  Yorkists  also  were  taken  prisoners,  as  was  the 
unhappy  king,  who  had  been  taken  to  the  battle  by  Warwick,  and  who,  in 
falhiig:  again  into  the  power  of  his  queen,  could  scarcely  so  properly  oe 
said  to  be  rescued  as  to  be  taken  prisoner.  Unhappy  prince  !  Into  w!  >se 
hands  soever  le  might  pass,  the  weakness  of  his  mind  rendercil  him  but 
the  mere  tool  and  pretext  of  his  possessors,  who  hurried  him  hitlier  and 
thither,  now  vexing  his  dull  intellect  with  tlie  subtle  scrhemes  of  party,  and 
now  stariling  liis  tame  and  timorous  spirit  with  the  bloody  scenes  and  rude 
alarms  of  the  tented  field.     Unhappy,  tlirice  unhappy  prince! 

Margaret  here  gave  a  new  proof  of  her  sanguinary  temper.  Lord  Bon- 
viile.  who  had  been  entrusted  with  the  care  of  the  king's  person  durin<r  the 
battle,  was  rather  agreeable  to  the  weak  prince,  who,  on  tlie  defeat  of  the 
Yorkists  bogged  this  nobleman  to  remain,  and  assiwed  him  of  pardon  and 
protection  But  Margaret,  as  soon  as  the  confusion  of  battle  allowed  ',er 
to  interfere,  ordered  him  to  be  beheaded  ;  and  a  similar  doom  was  •.■ilirted 
upon  Sir  Thinnas  Kyriel,  who  had  greatly  distinguished  hin'^elf  during 
tlie  wars  ni  France. 

Before  Mar^^aret  could  turn  the  victory  she  thus  ah-;sed  to  any  practical 
iAv^Mdgv,  the  young  duke  of  York  rapidly  approached  her ;  and  as  she 


ffW 


392 


THE  TKliASUllY  OF  HISTOHY. 


was  spiisiblo  of  her  disadvantages  in  being  between  his  arm)' and  London, 
where  he  was  so  popular,  she  hastily  retreated  northward ;  while  Kdward, 
whom  she  but  narrowly  avoided,  and  whose  army  was  far  more  numerous 
than  hers,  entered  London  m  triumph,  and  to  the  great  delight  of  his  party. 
Finding  his  cause  so  numerously  supported  by  the  Londoners,  and  greatly 
elated  by  the  cordial  gratulations  which  they  bestowed  upon  him,  which 
he  doubtless  owed  fully  as  much  to  his  youth,  the  elegance  of  his  person, 
and  his  kindly  though  courtly  address,  he  determined  to  cast  aside  all  tlie 
hesitation  and  delay  which  had  proved  so  fatal  to  his  father,  to  assume  the 
throne  in  despite  of  Henry's  existence,  and  to  maintain  his  assuuiptiini 
by  treating  as  traitors  and  rebels  all  who  should  venture  to  oppose  it.  As, 
however,  he  was  desirous  of  having  at  least  the  appearance  of  the  national 
consent  to  his  claims,  and  as  the  appealing  to  parliament  would  be  infin- 
itely too  tedious  for  his  impatience,  and  might  even  give  time  for  some 
fatal  bar  to  arise  to  his  success,  he  assembled  his  army  and  a  great  nnd- 
titude  of  the  Londoners  in  St.  John's  Fields,  where  an  artful  and  yet  pas- 
sionale  harangue  was  pronounced  in  vituperation  of  the  other  faction,  and 
in  support  of  the  claims  and  in  praise  of  the  high  qualities  of  Edward  liim- 
self.  Sucli  an  harangue  as  this,  delivered  before  a  meeting  coniposeo 
exclMsiv('ly  of  the  friends  and  partizans  of  Kdward,  could  not  fail  to  elicit 
applause;  and  when  it  was  followed  up  by  the  question  "which  king  they 
would  have,  Henry  of  LancastiTor  Kdward  of  York  V  who  can  be  in  doubt 
as  to  the  reply  with  which  Ihe  multitu<Ie  made  the  very  welkin  ring.  Kd- 
ward iluke  of  York  having  thus  been  hailed  by  "the  people"  as  their  king 
under  the  style  of  Kdward  IV.,  certain  peers,  prelates,  and  other  inlliicn- 
tial  personages  were  next  assembled  at  Baynard's  castle,  who  confirmed 
what  tiiey  ()i)stinately  affected  to  call  ''  the  people's  decision  ;"  and  Edward 
IV.  was  duly  proclaimed  king  on  the  5th  of  March,  thus  putting  a  formal 
end  to  the  reign  of  the  unfortuu.itn  Henry,  whoso  infancy  was  graced  with 
two  crowns,  and  hailed  by  the  loyal  shouts  of  two  nations,  and  whose 
maiiliiiod  had  been  only  one  long  series  of  servitude  in  the  hands  of 
avowed  enemies,  or  of  friends  whose  yoke  was  quite  as  heavy,  and  per- 
haps even  more  painful. 


CHAPTER  XXXHI. 


THG    RKIli.N    (IK    KHWAKD    IV. 

Thouoii  F']dward  was  now  oidy  in  his  twentieth  year,  he  had  already 
given  i)ro(if8  of  activity,  courage  and  a  very  determined  |)urpose;  to  wliicli 
we  must  add.  that  almusl  the  very  (irsi  act  of  his  reign  showed  that  if  lie 
wci  '  inure  prompt  and  rcsiiiule  than  his  fathrr,  he  was  also  by  far  mori' 
violi  It  and  sanguinary.  A  I'iii/en  of  Liimlon  had  the  sign  of  the  crown 
above  Ins  shop,  and  jocularly  said  that  his  son  should  he  "heir  lo  tlii) 
crown."  Anything  more  haruiless  than  this  jocular  speech,  or  mort^  ob- 
vious than  the  Ir.idi'sm m's  real  mcamng,  it  w<puld  not  be  ea>y  to  imagine 
Hut  Kdward,  jealous  of  bis  lille  ami  fcehlig  himself  insecure  upon  tli(» 
throne,  'iavc  ;i  ircHsoiial)le  liiicrprclalioii  lo  a  merry  joke,  insisted  that  it 
had  a  dcrisivi  allusion  to  hiinseif,  .ind  aciiiilly  haii  the  unfortimate  man 
condiiniied  for  treason — and  cvecuted  ! 

Tins  brnlal  murder  was  a  filling  pridmle  lo  tho  scenes  of  slaughter  with 
which  the  kiiiu'doin  w;is  soon  lilleil ;  ah>l  plainly  |)roclaimeil  that  .Margaret 
had  now  lo  deal  with  an  oppiHiciil  lo  the  full  as  Irnciileiil  .iiid  niis|i:iiiflg 
Bs  herself.  The  nation  was  dividecl  iiiio  Lancastrians  and  Vorkisis,  the 
former  bearing  Ihe  s\  mliol  of  the  rcul.  the  latter  of  the  white  rose  ;  and  i»i 
though  the  blood  sin  'I  in  actual  liizlil  were  iiisuHicieiil  lo  allay  the  liger- 
.ike  desire  of  the  principal  opponenls,  the  scilVolds  were  dyed  deeply  wi'b 
the  blood  of  the  prisoners  taken  t)y  either  party. 


THE  TllEASUaV  OF  HISTOKY. 


393 


(I  wliii'li 
;it  if  lit: 
ir  iiiDrt' 

ClDWIl 
to   til" 

iioii^  ol)- 
iiii;iMii>*' 

ion  till) 
lli;il  it 

itc  mail 

tcr  with 

ls|':inllK 
isls.  Ilic 
;  mill  K» 
III'  tiu'iT- 
ply  wi'h 


Margaret's  popularity  in  the  northern  counties  had  enabled  her  to  get 
together  an  army  of  sixty  thousand  men,  with  which  she  took  post  in 
Yorkshire,  whither  Edward  and  the  earl  of  Warwick  hastened  to  meet 
her.  On  arrivino-  at  Pontcfract,  Edward  despatched  Lord  Fitzwalter  with 
a  detachment  to  secure  the  passage  over  the  river  Ayre,  at  Ferrybridge. 
Fitzwalter  obtained  possession  of  the  important  post  in  question,  but  was 
speedily  attacked  there  by  very  superior  numbers  of  the  Lancastrians  un- 
der Lord  ClIfTord,  who  drove  the  Yorkists  from  their  position  with  great 
slaughter,  Fitzwalter  himself  being  among  the  slain.  When  the  remains 
of  the  beaten  detachment  carried  these  disastrous  tidings  to  the  earl  of 
Warwick,  that  nobleman,  fearing  that  the  misfortune  would  destroy  the 
spirits  of  his  troops,  had  his  horse  brought  to  him,  stabbed  it  to  the  heart 
in  presence  of  the  whole  army,  and  solemnly  swore  that  he  would  share 
the  fatigues  and  the  fate  of  the  meanest  of  his  soldiers.  He  at  the  same 
time  caused  public  proclamation  to  be  made,  giving  permission  to  any  sol- 
dier who  feared  the  approaching  struggle  immediately  to  depart  from  the 
army,  and  in  a  similar  spirit  denounced  the  most  severe  punishment  upon 
any  who  on  the  actual  day  of  battle  should  show  any  symptoms  of  cow- 
ardice wiiile  before  the  enemy.  As  the  post  which  had  been  so  disas- 
trously lost  by  Fitzwalter  was  of  great  importance,  Lord  Falciinberg  was 
sent  with  a  new  detachment  to  recover  it ;  and,  crossing  the  river  at  some 
miles  above  Ferrybridge,  he  fell  suddenly  upon  Lord  Clitford's  detachment 
and  routed  it,  ClifTord  himself  being  among  the  very  considerable  number 
of  the  killed. 

The  opposing  armies  at  length  met  at  Towton.  The  Yorkists  charged 
under  favour  of  a  severe  snow-storm  which  the  wind  drove  into  the  faces 
of  llie  enemy,  whose  half  blinded  condition  was  still  further  turned  to  ad- 
v;uii;ig('  by  Lord  Falcoiibcrg,  who  caused  a  party  of  his  archers,  while  yet 
ill  more  than  ordinary  arrow-shot  from  the  opposite  army,  to  discharge  a 
volley  of  the  light,  tar  flying,  but  nearly  harmless  arrows  called  flight  ar- 
rows, and  immediately  to  shift  their  position.  The  Lancastrians,  (jiiito 
unsuspicious  of  the  stralasein,  and  prevented  by  the  snow  from  noticing 
I  licir  opponents'  change  of  posiiioii,  sent  volley  after  volley  of  their  arrows 
ill  the  ilirection  whence  they  hud  been  assailed,  and  when  they  had  thus 
bootlessly  emptied  their  ((Uivers  the  main  body  of  the  Yorkists,  led  on  by 
Edward  himself,  made  a  grand  and  terribly  destniclive  charge;  the  bow 
was  laid  aside  on  both  sides  for  the  sword  and  battle-axe,  and  the  Lancas- 
trians were  routed  and  jiursued  all  the  way  to  Tadeaster  by  their  enemy. 
The  Laiicastri:iii  loss,  in  the  battle  and  the  scarcely  less  murderous  pur- 
suit, was  calculated  at  six  and  tliirly  Ihousaiid  men;  among  whom  were 
the  c-.:rl  of  Westiiiorcland  and  his  brotlier  Sir  .loliii  Nevil,  the  earl  of  Nor- 
iliiMilie-land,  the  lords  Dacres  and  Welles,  and  Sir  Andrew  Trollope, 
wljose  licaehery  had  formerly  been  so  disastrous  to  the  cause  of  tlu-  York- 
ists. 'I  he  (••iri  of  Devonshire,  who  was  uniong  the  jirisoiiers,  was  carried 
hi'fore  Mdward,  who  sternly  ordered  liiiii  to  be  beheaded  and  his  head  to 
he  suii'k  upon  the  gatt  of  York  castle  ;  whence  the  liejids  of  the  late  diike 
of  York  and  the  earl  of  Salisbury  were  now  taken  down  Margaret  and 
her  iiiiliappy  husband  were  foriiiiiate  enoiiirh  to  escape  to  Sroiland,  wliillier 
they  were  accoiiip.iiiied  by  the  diike  of  Somerset  and  by  the  diike  of  I'lxe- 
ler,  who  liml  sided  iiumnst  Ivlward,  alllioiisfh  he  !iad  oiarrieil  Ins  sisier. 
Si'oiluud  w.Ts  so  niiK'li  torn  by  faelion  that  the  Seoliish  coniicil  alVorded 
lint  lillle  eiieoiiraBeinent  to  Mnrgarel  to  even  hope  for  assistance,  until  she 
promised  lo  (jive  up  Herwick  and  lo  eonlraet  for  a  inarriaire  of  Inr  son 
and  the  sisier  of  King  .lames.  Even  then  the  tVieiidsliip  of  llie  Seols  did 
not  Hssuine  nil  as()ect  very  threaleiiing  to  Edward,  who  traii(|uilly  returned 
to  London  imil  Auminoned  a  parlianient. 

Kdwanl's  Hiiecess  rendered  this  ptrliaineiit  very  rf  idy  to  recogni«t»  hit 
» "'o  to  the  throne  by  descent  from  the  family  of  Mor'i"«'r    it  exoie«sed 


MM 


I 


i 


394 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


tlin  )itniost  detestation  of  what  it  now  called  the  intrusion  of  Henry  IV., 
annulled  all  grants  made  by  the  Laneiastrians,  and  declared  Kdward's  father 
rightly  seized  of  the  crown,  and  himself  the  rightful  king  from  the  very 
day  lliat  he  was  hailed  so  by  acclamation  of  the  soldiery  and  rabble,  which 
It  complacently  termed  "the  people." 

A.  p.  1462. — Though  Kdward  found  his  parliament  thus  accommodating, 
ho  so(Mi  per(!eived  that  he  had  very  great  difficulties  to  contend  against  ere 
he  could  consider  himself  secure  in  his  possession  of  the  crown.  Not 
only  were  there  numerous  disorders  at  home,  the  necessary  result  of  civil 
war,  but  there  were  enemies  abroad.  France,  especially,  seemed  to 
threaten  Kdward  with  annoyance  and  injury.  The  throne  of  that  country 
was  now  filled  by  Louis  XI.,  a  wily,  resolute,  and  unsparing  despot.  For- 
tunately for  Kdward,  however,  the  tortuous  policy  of  Louis  had  placed  him 
in  circumstances  which  rendered  his  power  to  injure  the  reigning  king  of 
Kngland  very  unequal  indeed  to  his  will  to  do  so.  He  at  first  sent  only 
a  very  small  body  to  the  assistance  of  Margaret,  and  even  when  that  queen 
subsequently  paid  him  a  personal  visit  to  solicit  a  more  decided  and  effi- 
cient aid,  his  own  (piarrcls  with  the  independent  vassals  of  France  only 
allowed  him  to  spare  her  two  thousand  men-at-arms,  a  considerable 
f<ir('e,  no  doubt,  but  very  unequal  to  the  task  of  opposing  such  a  prince 
as  I'Mward. 

Willi  this  force,  augmented  bj'  nnmerons  Scottish  adventurers.  Margaret 
made  an  irruption  into  the  uoithern  counties  of  Kngland,  but  she  was  de- 
feated by  liiiril  Montague,  warder  of  the  eastern  tnarchcs  between  Kng- 
land and  Sciiihind,  fir»t  at  lledgeley  Inver,  and  then  at  Hexham.  In  the 
latter  action  .M;iii;nret's  force  was  eoniplclely  destroyed.  Among  the 
prisoners  were  ,Sn'  Humphrey  Neville,  the  duke  of  Somerset,  and  the 
iordn  llnnsjerford  and  l)e  l{o(»s,  all  of  wli(»m,  wilii  many  gentleman  of  less 
note,  were  suniniarily  executed  as  traitors.  Henry,  who  had  been  as 
usual,  (oreed  to  the  liatlle-lield,  was  for  a  time  concealed  by  some  of  his 
friends  in  L-ini'iishire,  but  at  the  end  of  alu)Ut  a  year  was  given  up  to  Ed- 
wviril.  who  held  hiui  in  too  nmch  contempt  to  injure  him  beyond  cuimnit- 
liiiL'^  hiin  to  I'Idsc  cnsiody  in  the  Tower  of  Loudon. 

MiirLMret  after  her  esciipe  from  the  fatal  field  of  Hexham  went  through 
advciilnris  whicli  ri'ad  almost  like  the  inventions  of  roiuanee.  iSin^  was 
passiiiir  ihronuh  ii  ioresl  wiili  her  son  when  she  was  attacked  by  robbers, 
who,  Irealnig  with  conteiiipi  hi'r  royal  rank,  robbed  her  of  her  vahialije 
jewels  iiid  also  |iersonally  ill  treated  her.  The  (livisi(Mi  of  their  rich  lioiity 
caused  a  general  (|U.irrel,  whieh  so  much  engaged  their  allentioii  that  Mar- 
carel  and  her  son  were  eiialiled  to  escape.  She  uas  agiiii  stopped  in  llu^ 
foresl  by  a  siiiirji.  rubber,  to  whom — deriving  fearlessness  frojn  the  very 
desperation  of  her  eircinn^laiii'es — she  coiir:i!,'e<Misly  said,  "Here,  lliy 
friend  IS  ilie  son  of  your  king  ;  to  your  hoiionr  I  entrust  his  safely."  The 
b(d'l  ilenieaiioiir  of  the  (pieeii  ehaiiced  !o  cliiine  in  wilh  the  robber's  liii- 
nioiir;  he  vowed  himself  to  her  service,  and  protected  her  ihrmigh  the 

for«'>i  111  the  sea  co.ist,  whence  si scaped  to  her  father's  eonrl.  where 

for  seu'ral  years  she  lived  in  a  slate  of  ease  and  (piieliide  slraniiely  ill 
contrast  willi  the  stormy  hie  she  so  long  li.id  been  a<-eiislonied  to  lea, I, 

Margaret  |M)weiless,  Henry  iin|insoMei|,  imd  L(Miis  of  I'raiiee  (iilly  en- 
gaijed  with  quarrels  near.T  huine,  Kdward  now  tlKnitrht  biinselt'  siilti- 
eit-iitlv  seeureil  upon  bis  throne  lo  lie  warraiiteil  in  indiiluiiig  in  the  t>ay- 
Cties  anil  aiiintiis  whieh  were  so  well  •'iiiled  to  his  youth  and  leinpiT- 
dineiit.  IliM  ihiiiiuh  his  tiallantries  were  by  no  means  ill  t.ikeii  by  Ilia 
good  ei|i/eii>  of  Loiiiloii,  and  perhaps  even  iiiaije  him  more  popnhir  llian 
H  priiiee  of  ur.ner  life  woiihl  have  been  at  th.tt  lime,  his  siiseepliliillly  to 
the  ch.irms  of  ilie  fa  r  al  leiigih  inv<dvcd  hiin  in  a  sitious  ipianel. 

The  eiirl  of  Warwick  and  other  powerful  friends  of  Kdward  advised 
)l<lii  lo  iiiarr\ ,  and  thus,  lly  his  mairiiiiiHiial  alliance,  still  fartlnr  streiigihvii 


ear 

sta 

Lor 

con 

»IK 

Sir 

a  III 

wIk 

dee 
'I'l 

evei 

W,, 

hi- 

IIIIMI 

iialii 

IMi'l 

form 

Ve.v;< 

heeii 

most 

disi/ii 

hn 

deiiiii 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


395 


nis  throne.  Thi!  adviite  tallit'd  well  witli  Kilwiird's  own  jiulgiiK'nt,  and 
tlie  earl  of  Warwick  was  dispat(diud  lo  Paris  to  treat  for  lliu  hand  of 
Bona  of  Savoy,  sistiff  of  tliii  queen  of  France,  and  Warwick  siiccoeded 
80  well  that  he  returned  to  Kiijrland  wiiii  the  whole  affair  r(!a(Iy  for  for- 
niai  ratification.  Uul  during  Warwick's  absence  tii:;  fickle  ami  amorous 
mastiM-  had  been  enijajji'd  in  reiidcrnia;  the  earl's  mission  not  merely  use- 
less, but  as  miscliievons  as  anything  could  be  thai,  was  calculated  to  ex- 
cite the  hatred  and  rage  of  such  a  prince  as  Louis  XI. 

The  lady  Klizabeth,  widow  of  Sir  .loliu  Grey,  of  Groby,  who  was  killed 
at  the  second  battle  of  St.  Albans,  was,  by  the  confiscation  of  her  hus- 
band's estates,  for  his  siding  wilii  the  Lant^astrians,  so  reduced  in  her 
worldly  circumstances,  that  she  and  her  children  were  dependant  on  her 
father,  in  whose  house,  at  Grafton  in  Northamptonshire,  they  all  lesided. 
She  was  still  young,  and  her  remarkable  bisnily  was  little  impaired  by 
the  sorrows  she  had  endured;  and  the  king,  while  hunting,  chancing  to 
visit  (Jrafton,  the  lady  Klizabeth  look  the  iip(iorliiiiity  to  throw  herself  at 
his  feet  and  entreat  the  restoration  of  her  husband's  estates,  for  the  sake 
of  her  unfortmiate  children.  At  sight  of  her  beauty,  heigiitened  by  her 
suppliant  attitude,  the  intlammable  king  fell  suddenly  and  deeply  in  love 
with  her.  He  in  his  turn  became  a  smtor.  and  as  her  prudence  or  her 
virtue  would  not  allow  her  to  listen  to  dishonourable  proposals,  the  in- 
fatuated monaridi  privately  married  her. 

When  Warwick  returned  from  France  with  the  consent  of  Louis  to  the 
marriage  with  Hona  of  Savoy,  the  imprudent  marriage  of  the  king,  iiith- 
erto  kept  quite  secret,  \v;is  of  necessity  divniged  ;  and  Warwick,  indig- 
nant and  disgusted  with  the  ridiculous  part  he  had  been  made  to  play  in 
wooing  a  bride  fur  a  prince  who  was  alrc^ady  married,  left  the  court  with 
no  amicable  feelings  towards  his  wayward  master. 

A.  D.  14(J5. — The  mischief  of  Kdward's  hasty  and  iiu^onsiderate  al- 
liance did  not  end  here.  Like  all  persons  who  ari^  raised  much  above 
their  original  rank,  the  queen  was  exceedingly  presuming,  and  the  chief 
business  of  her  life  was  to  use  her  intlueiKU!  over  her  still  enamoured 
husband  to  heap  titles  and  wiaUh  upon  her  family  and  friends,  anil  to 
nun  those  who  were,  or  were  -uspecled  to  be,  hostib;  to  her  grasping  and 
ainbiti<nis  views.  ILir  father,  a  mere  private  gentleman,  was  created 
earl  of  Itivers,  made  treasurer  in  the  room  of  the  lord  Mountjoy,  and  con- 
stalde  for  life,  with  sncciession  to  his  son,  who,  marrying  the  daughli^r  of 
Lord  Scales,  had  the  title  as  well  as  the  vast  estates  of  that  nohlemmi 
cDiiferreil  upon  him.  The  queen's  sisters  wert^  piovidiul  with  proportion- 
silly  splendid  marriages,  and  the  queen's  son  by  her  first  marriage,  voung 
Sir  Thomas  (irey,  was  conlr.icted  to  the  heiress  of  the  duke  of  Kxeler, 
a  niece  of  the  king,  whoso  hand  had  been  pnnuised  to  Lord  .Montague, 
who,  with  the  whole  powerful  Neville  family,  was  consequently  very 
deeply  ofTeiided. 

'i'lie  exorbitant  and  insatiabb-  craving  of  the  (jueeu's  family  disgusted 
every  one  ;  but  to  no  one  did  it  give-  such  bitter  feelings  as  to  the  e.irl  of 
Warwick,  who,  tliough  from  his  favmir  with  the  crown  lie  hail  made  up 
his  fiMlni'.e  to  the  enormous  amount  of  eighty  thousand  crowns  per  an- 
iiiiiii,  as  we  learn  from  Pliilio  de  ('oinines,  was  himself  of  so  urasping  a 
nature  thi'.t  he  wa.s  still  greedy  for  more  gam,  and,  perhaps,  still  more  dia- 
iiielined  to  see  (itliers  in  possession  of  the  favour  and  mlliienee  which  ho 
formerly  liad  almost  exclusively  enjoyed.  This  powerful  noble,  having 
vexi'tioiis  of  th's  kind  to  imbitler  his  anger  at  ilii'  way  iii  whicli  be  hail 
been  treated  n»  rvjarded  the  marriage,  was  urged  to  wishes  and  projects 
tiiost  hoi. tile  to  f'Mward's  throne;  and  as  many  of  the  noliility  were  much 
(lisgeBtei'i  with  K'lward  on  iiccount  of  his  resumption  of  ijraiils,  Warwick 
Iriil  MO  diinmlty  in  ti>idinK  sympathy  in  his  anger  ami  assocMtioii  in  hi* 

deit|ir|18. 


MM 


396 


THE  TKKASUKV  OF  HISTORY. 


'h 


i| 


Among  all  the  high  personages  of  the  khigdom  to  whom  Edward's  ira 
prudent  marriage  and  uxorious  folly  gave  offence,  none  felt  more  deeply, 
perhaps  none  more  reasonably,  offended  than  Edward's  second  brother, 
the  duke  of  Clarence.  From  his  near  relationship  to  tiie  king  he  had 
every  right  to  expect  the  most  liberal  treatment  at  his  hands ;  but  so  fai 
was  he  from  receiving  it,  that  wliile  the  queen  and  her  recently  obscure 
relations  were  overwhelmed  with  favours  of  the  most  costly  kind,  hia 
fortunes  were  still  left  precarious  and  scanty.  Warwick,  a  shrewd  judge 
of  men's  tempers,  easily  descried  the  wounded  and  indignant  feelings  of 
Clarence,  and  offered  him  the  hand  of  his  eldest  daughter,  who,  being 
Warwick's  co-lieiruss,  could  bring  the  duke  a  much  larger  fortune  tlian 
the  king  could  bestow  upon  him,  even  liad  he  been  better  inclined  than 
he  had  hitherto  appeared,  to  mend  the  slender  fortunes  of  his  brother. 
Having  thus  united  the  influence  of  the  duke  of  Clarence  to  his  own, 
and  engaged  him  inextricably  in  his  projects,  Warwick  had  no  difficulty 
in  forming  an  extensive  and  very  powerful  confederacy  against  the  king. 

A.  D.  1-1C9. — The  unsettled  and  turbulent  temper  of  the  kingdom,  and 
the  preparatory  measures  of  such  a  confederacy,  so  headed,  could  not 
fail  to  produce  a  state  of  things  in  which  the  slightest  accidental  occur 
rence  might  lead  to  the  most  extensive  and  dangerous  public  disorders, 
especially  as  in  spite  of  all  Edward's  success,  and  the  stern  severity  with 
which  he  had  used  it,  there  was  still  remaining  throughout  the  country  a 
strong  though  a  concealed  attachment  to  the  ruined  house  of  Lancaster. 
A  grievance  which  at  first  sight  ajiijcared  little  connected  with  slate 
quarrels,  and  of  a  nature  to  be  easily  settled  by  so  arbitrary  a  monarch 
as  Edward,  caused  the  brooding  discontents  to  burst  forth  into  open  vie. 
lencr . 

St.  Leonard's  hospital,  in  Yorkshire,  like  many  similar  establishments, 
had  from  a  very  early  age  possessed  the  right  of  receiving  a  thrave  of 
corn  from  every  plougiilaiul  in  the  district ;  and  the  poor  complained, 
most  likely  with  great  reason,  tliat  this  tax,  which  was  instituted  for  tli.  ir 
relief,  was  allogetlier,  or  nearly  so,  perverted  to  the  personal  einolun  niil 
of  the  managers  of  tlie  charity.  From  complaints,  wholly  treated  with 
contempt  or  neglect,  the  peasantry  in  the  neighbourhood  proceeded  :>  re- 
fusal to  pay  the  tax;  and  when  their  goods  and  persons  were  molesttd  for 
their  contumacy,  they  fairly  took  up  arms,  and  having  put  to  death  the 
whole  of  the  hospital  officials,  they  inarched,  full  fifteen  thousand  strong, 
to  the  gales  of  the  city  of  York.  Here  tliey  were  opposed  by  some 
troofis  uiide.  .he  lord  Montague,  and  he  liaving  taken  prisoner  their  leader, 
by  name  Robert  Huldcrne,  instantly  caused  him  to  be  executed,  after  the 
common  and  disgracc^ful  practice  of  tliose  violent  times. 

The  loss  of  their  leader  did  not  in  the  h^ast  intimidate  the  rebels;  they 
Btill  kept  in  arms,  and  were  now  joined  and  headtnl  by  friends  of  the  earl 
of  Warwick,  who  saw  in  this  revolt  of  the  peasantry  a  favourable  oppor- 
tunity for  aiding  their  own  more  extensive  ami  ambitious  views. 

Sir  Henry  Neville  ami  Sir  John  Conyers  having  placed  liicinselvcs  at 
the  head  of  the  rebels,  drew  them  off  from  their  merely  local  and  loosely 
contrived  plants  and  marched  tliein  southward,  their  numbers  increasiiii; 
so  greatly  during  their  progress  as  to  cause  great  and  by  no  means  ill- 
fouiiiled  alarm  to  tin!  government.  Herbert,  who  had  obtained  the  earl- 
dom of  Pembroke  on  the  forfeiture  of  .lasper  'I'mlor,  was  orilered  to 
march  against  tiie  rebels  at  the  head  of  a  body  of  Welshmen,  reinforced 
liy  five  thoiisanil  well-appointed  archers  commanded  by  .Stafford,  earl  of 
Hoonshire,  who  had  obti-'iied  that  title  on  the  forfeiture  of  the  yreat 
Coiirlney  fiinily.  Scarcely  had  these  two  noblemen,  however,  joined 
their  forces,  when  a  quarrel  broke  out  between  them  upon  some  trivial 
question  alioiil  |iriority  of  right  t.i  ipiarters,  and  so  utterly  forueifnl  did 
the  angei  of  Devonshire  render  hiin  of  the  gre.it  and  impurtant  object  ul 


and 

fori  IK 

from 

brave 

Was 

tlioiigi 

poiii! 

Ciice, 

proiiii; 

ed  by 

want 

been 

save 
oppoii 

effeil  I 

'I'Ikmi 

ally, 

vet  .s 

tlle>e 

foa  b,n 

iin|ires> 

dis|.,ite| 

buii,pi(>i 

A.  n. 

no    slLr||, 

as  W( 
froiii  I  III 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


397 


jiflvcs  at 
i\  loosely 
[icrciisiiii} 
lusiiis  ill- 

llU)  (Mil- 

■rilt'rrd  10 

IflllfoKld 
III,  t'Hil    Ol 

Mil'  unal 
i'|-,  jiiiiifl 
l)it'  trivial 
\rttflll  iliil 
Olljl'll  ol 


i!is  comniand,  that  lie  sullenly  drew  off  his  valuable  force  of  archers,  and 
left  ilie  earl  of  Pembroke  to  stand  the  brunt  of  the  approaching  encounter 
with  lite  rebels  with  his  own  unaided  and  inferior  force. 

Undismayed  by  this  defection  of  his  colleague,  Pembroke  continued  to 
approacli  the  rebels,  when  the  hostile  forces  met  near  Banbury.  At  the 
first  encounter  Pembroke  gained  the  advantage,  and  Sir  Ileiiry  Neville 
beiuif  among  his  prisoners,  he  had  that  popular  gentleman  immediately 
executed.  If  this  severity  was  intended  to  strike  terror  into  the  rebels 
it  wholly  failed  of  its  purpose.  The  rebels,  so  far  from  being  iiitiniidated, 
were  incited  by  their  rage  to  a  carnage  more  desperate  than,  piob.ibl}', 
any  other  means  could  have  inspired  tiiem  with,  and  they  attacked  the 
Welsh  so  furiously  that  the  latter  were  completely  routed,  and  vast  num- 
bers perished  in  the  pursuit,  the  Welsh  sternly  refusing  quarter.  Pem- 
broke bciii^  uiifoitunalely  taken  prisoner  by  the  rebels,  was  by  Iliem  con- 
signed to  the  same  fate  which  he  had  inflicted  upon  their  leader.  The 
king  was  very  naturally  excited  to  the  utmost  indignation  by  the  fatal 
results  of  tiie  obstinacy  and  insubordination  of  the  earl  of  Devonshire, 
whom  he  caused  to  be  executed. 

Even  here  the  cold  butcheries  which  either  party  dignified  with  the 
name  of  executions  did  not  terminate.  Some  of  the  rebels,  dispatched 
to  Cirafton  by  Sir  John  Couyers,  succeeded  in  capturing  the  queen's 
inollicr,  tile  earl  of  Rivers,  and  liis  son,  Sir  John  Grey;  and,  tlieir  sole 
crime  being  that  they  were  related  to  «the  queen  and  that  they  were  not 
piiilosophers  enough  to  refuse  to  profit  by  that  rclatiiuisliip,  they,  too, 
were  "  executed''  by  the  rebels. 

Thoiijili  tiiere  is  no  ri'asonable  ground  for  doubting  that  the  earl  of 
Warwick,  and  his  son-in-law,  tiie  duke  of  Clarence,  were  the  real  liliect- 
ors  of  the  revolt,  ihey  deemed  it  politic  to  leave  its  public  mauageinent 
to  Xi'ville  and  Couyers— doubtless  to  be  tolerably  sure  of  the  result  be- 
fore they  would  too  far  commit  their  personal  safety.  Accordingly  all 
the  whde  that  so  much  bloodshed  had  been  going  on  in  Kiigluiui,  Warwick 
and  ("larenee  lived  ill  great  apjiareut  uiii'oncern  at  Calais,  of  whicli  the 
former  was  siovernor,  and,  still  farther  to  conceal  their  ultimate  intentions 
from  the  king,  Warwick's  brother,  the  lord  Montague,  was  among  the 
bravest  and  most  active  of  the  opponents  of  the  rebels.  So  eonliilent 
was  Warwick  that  the  suspicious  of  the  king  could  not  fall  upon  him, 
ilioush  the  murder  of  the  earl  Rivers  was  surely  a  cireuiiislance  to  have 
poiau  il  to  the  guilt  of  that  nobleman's  bitterest  rival,  that  he  and  ("^lar- 
enee, when  the  languid  rale  at  which  the  rebellion  progressed  seemed  to 
proiinse  a  disastrous  i>sue  to  it,  canii!  over  to  Knglaiid,  and  were  entrust- 
ed by  llilward  with  very  considerable  commands,  wliieli,  prolialily  from 
want  of  opportiiiiily,  they  made  no  ill  use  of.  The  rebellion  having 
been  already  very  considerably  (juelled,  Warwick,  probably  an.xioiis  to 
save  as  many  malcontents  as  jjossililt!  for  a  fnliire  and  more  f.ivoiiiable 
oj)liiiiliiiiity,  persuaded  Kdward  to  grant  a  general  pardon,  which  had  the 
elVeii  of  completely  dispersing  the  already  wearied  and  discour.ii;ed  rebels. 

Tlioiii>h  Warwiirk  and  Montague  nave  so  much  outward  show  of  loy- 
.illy,  aiiil  llioiigh  the  king  heaped  favours  and  honours  u|)oii  the  family,  he 
vet  !-ecins  to  have  b(!en  iiy  no  mean  unaware  of  thi' secret  fei'lin;4Md"l)ipth 
llioe  resiless  noblemen ;  for  on  one  occasion  when  be  aceonipanied  them 
to  a  liaiapii't  given  by  their  brolhi'r,  llu^  arelibishop  of  York,  he  was  so 
inipiesseil  with  tiie  fetdiiig  that  he  intended  to  take  that  opjiertiinity  of 
disiiiitelimt;  him  by  poison  or  otherwise,  tliat  hi;  suddenly  rushed  from  the 
baii.pielinu  room  aiitl  hastily  returned  to  his  palace, 

A.  n.  1  ITtl. — A  new  rebelliim  now  broke  imt.     At  the  outset  there'  wert 
no  si^nis  to  eonneet  I'itlier  «'larenee  or  t!ie  ei'rl  of  Warwick  with  it;  ye 
as  w(^  know  how  invit"  lately  disloyal  both  the  dnke  and  the  earl  were 
I'rum  the  uiomcnl  th.it  Mdward  married,  and  also  that  as  soon  as  they  had 


1 


393 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


an  opportunity,  and  had  reason  to  believe  that  the  rebellion  would  oe  sue- 
cessfiii,  they  prepared,  as  will  be  seen,  to  add  open  revolt  to  the  foulcsst 
treaciiery.  This  rebellion  coinnienced  in  Lincolnshire,  and  in  a  very 
short  ti";>'  the  leader  of  it,  Sir  Robert  Welles,  was  at  the  head  oi  not  fewer 
than  thiriy  thousand  men.  Sir  Robert's  father,  the  Lord  Welles,  not  only 
took  no  part  in  the  proceedings  of  his  son,  but  showed  his  sense  of  both 
their  danirer  and  impropriety  by  taking  shelter  in  a  sanctuary.  Bui  thia 
prudent  conduct  did  not  save  him  from  the  vengeance  of  the  king.  The 
unfortunate  nobhunan  was  by  plausil)le  arguments  allured  from  the  sanc- 
tuary, anil,  in  company  of  Sir  Thomas  Dymoke,  beheaded  by  the  kuig's 
orders.  I'Mward  soon  after  gave  battle  to  the  rebels  and  defeated  them, 
and  Sir  Robert  Welles  and  Sir  Thomas  Launde  being  taken  prisoners, 
were  iininediately  beheaded.  So  little  did  ihe  king  suspect  Clarence  and 
Warwick  of  any  concealed  influence!  in  tiiese  disturbances,  that  he  gave 
them  commissiou-  of  array  to  raise  troops  to  opposes  the  rebels.  The  op- 
portunity thus  affor  led  them  of  forwarding  their  treasonaiile  views  was 
too  tempting  to  he  resisted,  and  they  at  once  removed  all  doubts  as  to  their 
real  feelings  by  levying  forces  against  Ihe  king,  and  issuing  remonstraru'cs 
against  the  pnl)lic  measures  and  the  king's  ministers.  Tlie  defeat  of  Sir 
Robert  Welles  was  a  sad  discouiagement  to  them,  but  they  had  now  pro- 
C(!eded  loo  far  to  be  able!  to  withdraw,  and  they  marched  their  army  into 
FiancMsliire.  Here  they  fully  expected  the  countenance  and  aid  of  Sir 
Thomas  .Stanley,  who  was  the  earl  of  Warwick's  brother-in-law,  bin  find- 
ing that  luilliertliat  iiobltMiian  nor  the  lord  .Montague  would  join  them, 
they  dismissed  their  army  and  hastened  to  Calais  (the  government  ol 
Warwick)  where'  tliey  confidently  calculated  upon  finding  a  sure  and  safe 
refuge.  Here  again,  however,  they  wen'  doomed  to  be  disaiipoiiiled.  On 
leaving  Calais  the  last  time,  Warwick  had  left  there,  as  his  depniy  gov 
ernor,  a  (iascon  named  \^iiicler.  This  gentleman,  who  was  no  stran- 
ger to  Warwick's  disloyally,  readily  judged  by  the  foilorn  and  ill-attended 
style  ill  which  liiat  iiolilennin  iiiid  the  duke  of  Clarence  now  made  llieir 
appearain-e  before  (Calais,  that  tliey  had  been  unsnccessfnily  engaged  in 
some  illegal  proceeding  ;  he  therefore  refused  them  admittance,  and  would 
not  even  allow  the  duchess  of  Clarence  to  land,  though  she  Iiad  been  de- 
livered of  a  child  while  at  sea,  and  was  in  a  most  pilialile  state  of  ill  health. 
As,  however,  he  by  no  means  wished  to  break  irremediably  with  men 
whom  some  ciianci!  might  sjieedily  render  as  powerful  as  ever.  Vaiicler 
sent  wine  and  other  stores  for  the  use  of  the  ducliess,  and  secretly  assured 
Warwick  that  li<'  only  seemed  to  side  against  him,  in  order  that  lit;  might, 
by  gaining  the  conlideiKv  of  the  king,  be  able  lo  givi-  llie  fortress  up  to 
the  e  irl  at  the  first  "pporluiiity  ;  anil  he  dilaled  upon  those  circunislaiices 
of  the  placi!  which  rendered  it  very  ini|)robal)le  that  the  garrison  and  in- 
iliiliilaiils  would  jnsl  at  ihat  lime  siitfer  it  lo  be  held  by  Warwick  against 
the  estalili>lie(l  government  of  I'higland.  Wliatcxcr  might  be  Waruick's 
real  opinion  of  the  sincerity  of  Vaiicler,  he  feigned  to  he  qinte  satislied 
Willi  Ins  condiiel,  and  having  seized  nonw  Flemish  vessels  which  l;iy  od 
the  coast,  he  forthwith  departed  lo  try  his  fortune  al  the  c(Mirl  of  Krame. 
Mere  he  was  well  received,  for  the  French  king  bad  fininerly  held  a  close 
eorre?'|ioiidence  v\iUi  the  earl,  and  was  just  now  excreduigly  hostile  lo 
Kilward  oil  accoinil  of  Ihe  friendship  which  e.MsIrd  between  that  iiionarcli 
and  the  most  tuibiileiil  as  well  as  llie  most  powerful  vassal  of  Kiaiicc, 
the  diike  of  Ihiruniidy,  Tlioiigli  the  earl  of  Warwick  had  so  much  reason 
to  hale  the  house  of  Laiii'iister,  the  king  so  urgently  jiressed  hiin  lo  a  re- 
conciliiitioii,  and  lo  allein|it  lo  restore  thai  lioii>ie  to  the  llirone  of  Kiig- 
land,  that  at  an  inlerview  with  (Jiiceii  Marnaret  Ihe  earl  eoiiseiiicd  to  a 
recoiicdiatioii,  ainl  to  doing  his  nimost  lo  restore  Henry  lo  his  throne  (>n 
cerlain  conditioiiH.  The  chief  of  these  eoiidilioiis  were,  ihal  the  earl  o( 
Warwick  and  the  duke  of  (,'larence  should  ailiniiiisier  in  Kiijjland  during 


)lll(l 

tie- 
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ured 
i^lit, 
ip  to 

IICCS 

in- 

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11  rt'- 
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IIP'  on 
Mi-l  o( 
dui'iiig 


THE  TIlEASUllY  OF  HISToaV. 


301) 


llie  whole  minority  of  Prince  Edward,  son  and  lieir  of  Henry  ;  that  thai 
young  prince  siioiild  marry  the  lady  Anne,  Warwick's  second  d>iun;hter, 
a'ud  thai,  failing  issue  to  them,  the  crown  should  be  entailed  on  the  duke 
of  Clarence,  to  the  absolute  exclusion  of  the  issue  of  the  reigning  king. 
I3y  way  of  showing  the  sincerity  of  this  unnatural  confederacy,  Prince 
Edward  and  the  lady  Anne  were  married  immediately. 

Edward,  who  well  knew  the  innate  and  ineradicable  hostility  of  War- 
wick's real  feelings  towards  the  house  of  Lancaster,  caused  a  lady  of 
great  talent  to  avail  herself  of  her  situation  about  the  person  of  the  duke 
of  tMarence,  to  inttuence  the  duke's  niind,especialy  with  a  view  to  making 
him  doubtful  of  tlie  sincerity  of  Warwick,  and  of  the  probahility  of  his 
long  continuing  faithful  to  this  new  alliance  ;  and  so  well  did  the  fair  envoy 
ex(M'l  her  powers,  that  the  duke,  on  a  solemn  assurance  of  Kdward's  for- 
giveness and  fuiure  favour,  consented  to  take  the  earliest  favourable  op- 
portunity to  desert  his  father-in-law.  Uut  wliile  Kdward  was  intent  upon 
detacliing  the  duke  of  Clarence  from  Warwick,  this  latter  nobleman  was 
uf)  less  successful  in  gaining  over  to  his  side  his  brother,  the  marquis  of 
Montague,  whose  adhesion  to  Warwick  was  the  more  dangcious  to  Kd- 
ward because  .Montague  was  entirely  in  his  <'onfidence. 

When  Warwick  had  completed  his  preparations,  Louis  supplied  him 
with  men,  money,  and  a  fleet;  while  the  duke  of  Hnrijundy,  on  the  other 
h;md,  closely  united  with  Edward,  and  having  a  personal  quarrel  with 
Warwick,  cruised  in  the  channel  in  the  hope  of  nitercepting  iliat  nobleman 
ere  he  could  land  in  England.  The  duke  of  Ihirgundy,  while  thus  actively 
exerting  himself  for  Edwarit's  safety,  also  sent  him  the  most  urijent  and 
wise  advice;  but  Edward  was  so  over  confident  in  his  own  strength,  that 
he  professed  to  wish  that  Warwick  mi^^ht  make  good  his  landing. 

In  this  respect  his  wish  was  soon  granted.  A  violent  storm  dispersed 
the  duke  of  Hurgundy's  tleet,  and  Warwick  was  thus  enabled  to  land  with- 
out opposition  on  the;  coast  of  Devon,  accompanied  by  the  duke  of  Cla- 
rence and  the  earls  of  O.xford  and  Pembroke.  'The  king  was  at  this  time 
in  the  north  of  England  engaged  in  putting  down  a  revolt  caused  liy  War- 
wick's brother-in-law,  the  lord  Filzhugh:  and  Warwick's  popularity  being 
•inis  left  unopposed,  he,  who  had  landed  with  a  force  far  too  small  I'or  his 
•iesliins,  saw  himself  in  a  very  few  days  at  the  head  of  upwards  of  sixty 
(lionsand  men. 

The  king  on  hearing  of  Warwick's  lauding  hastened  southward  to  meet 
liiin,  and  the  two  armies  came  in  sight  of  each  other  at  Nolliiigham.  An 
action  was  almost  hourly  expected,  and  Edward  was  still  coiirKlcm  In  his 
gooil  fortune;  but  he  was  now  to  feel  the  ill  effects  of  tiii!  overweeiiini; 
(rust  lie  hail  put  in  the  marquis  of  Moiilairue.  That  nohlcinan  sndiieiily 
got  Ins  adherents  underarms  during  the  darkness  of  the  niifhi  lioiirs,  and 
made  their  way  to  the  quarter  occupietl  by  the  king,  shonliiin-  llie  war-cry 
of  llie  hostile  army.  Edward,  who  was  awakened  hv  ibis  sudden  tuinnll, 
uas  Informed  liy  Lord  Hastings  of  the  real  cause  of  it,  and  nrgcii  ios;ive 
!iinis(driiy  lliglil  while  tiien?  was  sidl  time  I'or  him  to  do  so.  .So  well  had 
(he  marquis  of  .Montague  limeil  his  Ireacherons  measure,  that  Edward  had 
bandy  tune  to  make  his  escape  on  li(»rseback  to  Lynn,  in  Noilolk,  where 
lie  got  on  board  ship  and  sailed  from  England,  leaving  Warwick  so  siid- 
lii'iily  and  rapidly  master  of  the  kingdom,  (hit  iIk!  (ickle  and  licsiiating 
('lai'ciice  h;id  not  had  time  for  the  cliangt!  of  sides  ho  had  conlemiilaled, 
and  wliicli  woulil  now  have  been  fital  to  him. 

S(i  sudden  had  been  Edward's  forced  departure  from  his  king  loin,  that 
be  had  not  lime  to  lake  money,  jewels,  or  any  oiher  valuables  wiib  him  ; 
and  when,  after  narrowly  escaping  from  (he  Manse  towns,  (hen  al  at 
Willi  biidi  England  ;ind  Krance.  lie  landi'd  ;it  AhMiiaer,  in  Holland,  he  ,  .id 
nothing  with  which  to  recompense  the  master  of  the  ship  save  a  robe  richlv 


,..#•'' 


lOT 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


liiif'd  with  sable  fur,  which  he  accompanied  with  assurances  of  a  more 
subsfintial  recompense  should  more  prosperous  times  return. 

Tho  duke  of  Burgundy  was  greatly  annoyed  at  the  misfortune  of  Ed- 
ward. Personally  and  in  sincerity  the  duke  really  preferred  the  Lancas- 
trian to  the  Yorkist  house;  he  had  allied  himself  w'llh  the  latter  solely 
from  the  politic  motive  of  beinff  allied  to  tiie  reigning  house  of  Kngland ; 
and  now  that  the  Lancastrians  were  so  triumphant  that  even  the  cautious 
Vauclcr,  who  had  been  confirmed  by  Edward  in  his  government  of  Calais, 
did  not  scruple  to  give  that  important  place  up  to  Warwick — a  pretty 
certain  proof  that  the  Lancastrians  were  secure  for  some  time  at  least— 
the  duke  was  greatly  perplexed  by  the  necessity  he  was  under  of  invid- 
iously  giving  a  cold  reception  to  a  near  connection  who  was  suffering 
from  misfortune,  or  of  being  at  the  expense  and  discredit  of  supporting  a 
penniless  fugitive  whose  very  misfortunes  were  in  no  slight  degree  attri- 
butable to  his  own  want  of  judgment. 

Tho  flight  of  Edward  from  the  kingdom  was  the  signal  for  Warwick  to 
give  liberty  to  the  unhappy  Henry,  whose  confinement  in  the  Tower  had 
been  chiefly  the  earl's  own  work.  Henry  was  once  more  proclaimed  king 
with  all  due  solemnity,  and  a  parliament  was  summoned  to  meet  him  at 
Westminster,  whose  votes  were,  of  course,  the  mere  echoes  of  the  in- 
sructions  of  the  more  dominant  faction  of  Warwick.  As  had  formerly 
been  agreed  between  Warwick  and  Queen  Margaret,  it  was  now  enucled 
by  tho  parliament  that  Henry  was  the  rightful  and  only  king  of  England, 
but  that  Ills  inibocility  of  mind  rendered  it  requisite  to  have  a  regency,  the 
powers  of  which  were  placed  in  the  hands  of  the  duke  of  Clarence  and  the 
earl  of  Warwick  during  the  minority  of  Prince  Edward,  and  the  duke  of 
Ch'roncc  was  declared  heir  to  the  throne  failing  the  issue  of  that  younij 
p  Mcc.  As  usual,  very  much  of  the  time  of  the  parliament  was  occupied 
in  reversing  the  attainders  which  had  been  passed  against  Lancastrians 
during  the  prosperity  of  the  house  of  York.  In  one  respect,  however,  this 
parliament  and  its  dictator  Warwick  deserve  considerable  praise — thei; 
power  was  used  without  that  wholesale  and  unsparing  resort  to  bloodshec 
by  which  such  triumphs  are  but  too  generally  disgraced.  Many  of  tin 
IcadliiLf  Yorkists,  it  is  true,  fled  beyond  the  sea,  but  still  more  of  thou 
were  allowed  to  remain  undisturbed  in  the  sanctuaries  in  which  they  lool 
rofujio;  and  among  these  was  even  Edward's  queen,  who  was  delivercc 
of  a  son  wliom  she  had  christened  by  the  name  of  his  absent  father. 

A.  n.  '171. — Queen  Margaret,  who  was  perhaps,  somewhat  less  active 
than  she  had  been  in  earlier  life,  was  just  preparing  to  return  to  England 
with  Prince  Edward  and  the  duke  of  Somerset,  son  to  the  dnko  of  that 
title  who  was  beheaded  after  the  battle  of  Hexham,  when  their  journey 
was  rendered  useless  by  a  new  turn  in  the  affairs  of  England  ;  a  turn  most 
lament:iblo  to  those  Lancastrians  who,  as  Philip  de  Comines  tells  us  of 
tlie  dukes  of  Somerset  and  Exeter,  were  reduced  to  absolute  beggary. 
The  lurn  of  affairs  to  which  we  allude  was  mainly  caused  by  the  impru- 
dence of  tho  earl  of  Warwick,  who  acted  towards  the  duke  of  Burgundy 
in  such  wise  as  to  compel  that  prince  in  sheer  self-defence  to  aid  the 
exiled  Edward.  The  duko's  personal  predilections  being  really  on  the 
side  of  the  Lancastrians,  it  required  only  a  timely  and  prudent  policj  on 
tho  part  of  tlie  earl  of  Warwick  to  have  secured,  at  tin;  least,  the  duke's 
uoniralliy.  But  the  earl,  laying  too  much  stress  upon  the  relationship  lie- 
twccM  Edward  anil  Burgiuidy,  look  it  for  granted  that  the  latter  must  ho  ii 
determined  enemy  to  the  Lancastrians,  and  caused  him  to  boconio  so  by 
soiidiiig  •'  body  of  four  thousand  men  to  Calais,  whence  they  made  very 
niischicvcins  irruptions  into  tho  Low  Cotmtries.  Burgundy,  fearing  thf 
eonseqiioncos  of  being  attacked  at  once  by  France  aucl  by  England,  de- 
teriniiiod  to  divert  the  attention  and  power  of  the  latter  by  assisting  IiIb 
nrotln'r-iulaw.     But  while  determined  so  to  aid  Edward  as  to  enable  huii 


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put  all 
'CcKnl 

I'llliMV 

v., 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


401 


a  moT« 

of  Ed- 
Lancasi- 
•  solely 
ngland ; 
:autiou8 
[  Calais. 
1  pretty 
t  least— 
)f  iiivid- 
sufforing 
porting  a 
ree  atlri- 

irwick  to 

ower  had 

mod  king 

et  him  at 

jf  the  in- 
formerly 

w  euiielcd 

'  England, 

jrency,  the 

ice  and  the 

he  dnke  of 

that  young 

,s  occupied 

aiicastrians 

,\vevcr,this 

■aise— iheii 

)  bloodshcc 

[any  of  tin 
fc  of  then 
h  they  tool 
s  deliverer 

Itlic.r. 

Irss  active 
to  England 
Hike  of  tliat 
li'ir  journey 
i;i  turn  n)05t 
Is  tells  us  of 
ito  beggary. 
y  the  nn|ini- 
[f  Burgundy 
I,  to  aid  the 
eally  oil  the 
nt  poli'-J  oil 
t,  the  duke's 
[itionshiphe- 
T  must  be  ii 
■come  so  by 
made  very 
.  fearing  tlu' 
lEiigland,  de- 
assisling  hif 
0  enable  Inn, 


to  give  Warwick's  party  abundant  anxiety  and  trouble,  the  duke  waa  not 
the  less  careful  to  do  so  with  the  utmost  attention  to  the  preservation  of 
friendly  appearances  towards  the  English  government.  With  this  view 
he  furnished  Edward  with  eighteen  vessels,  large  and  small,  together  with 
a  sum  of  money  ;  but  he  hired  the  vessels  in  the  name  of  some  merchants, 
and  still  further  to  mislead  Warwick,  or  to  give  him  a  plausible  reason  for 
pretending  to  be  misled,  no  sooner  had  Edward  sailed  than  the  duke  pub- 
li(dy  forbade  his  subjects  from  affording  any  aid  or  countenance  to  that 
prince  either  by  land  or  water. 

Edward  in  the  meantime,  with  a  force  of  two  thousand  men,  attempted 
to  land  upon  the  coast  of  Norfolk,  but  was  driven  off,  and  he  then  landed 
at  Ravenspur,  in  Yorkshire.  Perceiving  that  here,  too,  from  the  care 
which  Warwick  had  taken  to  fill  the  magistracy  with  his  own  pariizans, 
the  Lancastrian  party  was  far  the  most  popular  and  powerful,  Edward 
adopted  the  policy  which  had  formerly  so  well  served  the  duke  of  Lan- 
caster, and  issued  a  proclamation  in  which  he  solemnly  averred  that  he  had 
landed  without  any  intention  of  challenging  the  crown  or  of  disturbing  the 
national  peace,  but  had  come  solely  for  the  purpose  of  demanding  the 
family  possessions  of  the  house  of  York,  to  which  he  was  incontestibly 
entitled.  This  affected  moderation  caused  great  rmmbers  to  join  his 
standard  who  would  not  have  done  so  had  he  openly  avowed  his  intention 
of  endeavouring  to  recover  the  crown ;  and  he  speedily  found  himself 
possessed  of  the  city  of  York  and  at»the  head  of  an  army  sufficiently 
numerous  to  promise  him  success  in  all  his  designs ;  while  his  chance 
uf  success  was  still  further  increased  by  the  unaccountable  apathy  of  the 
marquis  of  Montague,  who  had  the  command  of  all  the  forces  in  the 
north,  but  took  no  steps  to  check  the  movements  of  Edward,  though  he 
surely  could  not  have  been  unaware  how  important  and  dangerous  they 
were.  Warwick  was  more  alert,  and  having  assembled  a  force  at  Lei- 
cester he  prepared  to  give  battle  to  Edward,  who,  however,  contrived  to 
pass  him  and  to  make  his  way  to  London.  Had  Edward  been  refused  ad- 
mittance here,  nothing  could  have  saved  his  cause  from  complete  ruin  ; 
but  he  had  not  taken  so  bold  a  step  without  carefully  and,  as  it  proved, 
correctly  calculating  all  his  chances.  In  the  first  place,  the  sanctuaries 
of  London  were  filled  with  his  friends,  who  he  well  knew  would  join  him ; 
in  the  next  place,  he  was  extremely  popular  with  the  ladies  of  London, 
and  indebted  to  their  husbands  for  sums  of  money  which  they  could  nevei 
hope  to  receive  unless  he  should  succeed  in  recovering  the  crown  ;  and  in 
the  third  place,  Warwick's  brother,  the  archbishop  of  York,  to  whom  the 
government  of  the  city  was  entrusted,  gave  a  new  instance  of  the  facile 
and  shameless  treachery  which  disgraced  thai  •■me,  by  entering  into  a 
correspondence  with  Edward,  and  agreeing  to  betray  his  own  brotiier. 

Being  admitted  into  the  city  of  London,  Edward  made  himself  master 
of  the  |)erson  of  the  unfortunate  Henry,  who  was  tluis  once  more  passed 
froni  the  throne  to  the  dungeon. 

Though  many  circumstances  gave  advantage  to  Edward,  the  earl  ol 
Wiu-wick  was  liy  no  tueans  inclined  to  yield  witiiout  a  fairly  stricken  field, 
•and  having  collected  all  the  force  he  could  raise  tie  stationed  himself  at 
Biirnet.  Mere  he  was  doomed  to  the  deep  mortification  of  fully  experi- 
oiicjiig  the  ingratitude  and  treacliery  of  Clarence,  who  suddenly  broke 
from  his  quarters  during  the  night,  and  made  his  way  o>'er  to  Edward 
with  twelve  thousand  of  Warwick's  best  troojjs.  Had  Warwick  listened 
In  the  dictates  of  prudence  lie  would  now  have  closed  with  the  oilers  of  a 
peaceful  settlement  which  were  made  to  him  by  both  Edward  and  Cla- 
rence;  but  he  was  thoroughly  aroused  and  enrage(l,  and  he  resolved  to 
put  all  consequences  upon  the  issue  of  a  general  action.  It  commenced 
iccordingly,  and  both  leaders  and  soldiers  on  each  sid-  displayed  extraor 
dininv  valour.  A  mere  accident  gave  a  decisive  turn  to  the  long  uncer 
Vol..  1.    ■.'(; 


.fh 


/" 


102 


THE  TREASUEY  OF  HISTORY. 


tain  fortune  of  the  day.  The  cognizance  of  the  king  was  a  sun,  that  ol 
Warwick  a  star  with  rays  diverging  from  it ;  and  in  the  dense  mist  which 
prevailed  during  the  battle  the  earl  of  Oxford  was  mistaken  for  a  Yorkish 
leader,  and  he  and  his  troops  were  beaten  from  the  field  with  very  great 
slaughter  by  his  own  friends.  This  disaster  was  followed  by  the  death 
of  Warwick,  who  was  slain  while  fighting  on  foot,  as  was  his  brother 
Montague.  The  Lancastrians  were  now  completely  routed,  and  Edward 
giving  orders  to  deny  quarter,  a  vast  number  were  slain  in  the  pursuit  as 
well  as  in  the  battle.  Nor  was  the  vietoiy  wholly  without  cost  to  the 
conquerors,  who  lost  upwards  of  fifteen  hundred  men  of  all  ranks. 

As  Warwick  had  determined  not  to  make  terms  with  l^Idward,  his  bosl 
policy  would  have  been  to  await  the  arrival  of  Queen  Margaret,  who  was 
daily  expected  from  France,  and  whose  influence  would  have  united  all 
Lancastrians  and  probably  have  ensured  victory.  But  Warwick,  unsus- 
picious of  Clarence's  treachery,  felt  so  confident  of  victory,  that  he  was 
above  all  things  anxious  that  Margaret  should  not  arrive  in  time  to  share 
his  anticipated  glory ;  but  though  he  had  on  that  ace.  i.nt  hurried  on  tiie 
action,  Margaret  and  her  son,  attended  by  a  small  body  of  French,  landed 
in  Dorsetshire  on  the  very  day  after  the  fatal  batt'e  of  B.irnet.  IUtc  as 
soon  as  she  landed  she  learned  Warwick's  defeat  and  death,  and  tlie  new 
captivity  of  her  inveterately  unfortunate  husband  ;  and  she  was  so  much 
depressed  by  the  information  that  she  took  sanctuary  at  Beaulieu  abbey. 
She  was  here  visited  and  encouraged  by  Tudor,  earl  of  Pembroke,  Coiir- 
tenay,  earl  of  Devonshire,  and  other  men  of  rank  and  influence,  and  in- 
duced to  make  a  progress  through  Devon,  Somerset,  and  Gloucestersliiro. 
In  this  neighbourhood  her  cause  appeared  to  be  exceedingly  popular,  for 
every  day's  march  made  a  considerable  addition  to  her  force.  She  was 
at  length  overtaken  at  Tewkesbury,  in  Gloucestershire,  by  Edward's  army 
and  in  the  battle  which  ensued  she  \»~s  completely  defeated,  with  tlie  lo.sg 
of  about  three  thousand  men,  amopg  whom  were  the  earl  of  Dcvonsliire 
and  Lord  Wenlock,  who  were  killed  in  the  field,  and  the  duke  of  Somerset 
and  about  a  score  more  persons  of  distincjtion  who,  having  taken  sanctuary 
ill  a  church,  were  dragged  out  and  beheaded. 

Among  the  prisoners  were  Queen  Margaret  and  her  son.  They  were 
taken  into  the  presence  of  Edward,  who  sternly  demanded  of  the  young 
prince  on  what  ground  he  had  ventured  to  invade  England.  Thc'higli- 
spirited  boy,  regarding  rather  the  fortune  to  which  he  was  born  liian  liie 
powerless  and  perilous  situation  in  which  the  adverse  fortune  of  war  !i;ul 
placed  him,  boldly  and  imprudently  replied  that  he  had  come  to  En!,'laiid 
for  the  rightful  purpose  of  claiming  his  just  inheritant'e.  This  answer  so 
much  enraged  Edward,  tliat  he,  forgetful  alike  of  decency  and  mercy, 
struck  the  youth  in  the  face  with  his  gauntlcted  lian<l.  .\s  thouirli  this 
violent  act  had  been  a  preconcerted  signal,  the  dukes  of  Gloucester  aiul 
Clarence,  with  Lord  Hastings  and  Sir  Thomas  (tray,  dragged  tin;  young 
prince  into  an  adjoining  room  and  there  dispatched  him  with  their  datry;ors. 
Tlie  unhappy  Mariiarel  was  committed  to  close  confinement  in  the  Tmver, 
ill  wiiicli  sad  prison  Henry  had  expired  a  few  days  after  the  battle  ol 
Tewkesbury.  As  ILmry's  health  had  long  been  infirm,  it  seems  quite 
likely  that  his  death  was  natural,  but  as  the  temper  of  the  times  made 
violence  at  the  least  probable,  Edward  caused  the  body  to  be  exposed  to 
puliiic  view,  and  it  certainly  showed  no  signs  of  unfair  means. 

The  cause  of  the  liancastrians  was  now  extinguished.  The  priiii'es  ol 
that  house  were  dead,  the  best  and  most  devoted  of  its  friends  were  eitiier 
fugitive  or  dcjid,  and  Tudor,  earl  of  Pembroke,  who  had  been  riijsiiig 
forces  ill  Wales,  now  disbanded  them  in  despair,  and  sought  safety,  will: 
his  nephew,  the  earl  of  Kichmond,  in  Brittany.  The  last  efl'ort  was  iiiiidr 
by  the  bastard  of  Falconberg,  who  Icivied  forces  and  advanced  to  London 
but  he  was  deserted  by  hJs  troops,  taken  prisoner,  and  executeo 


oft; 

tilCi 

linie 

avail 

I'iaii 

view.' 

than 

betw( 

agree 

'o  ni; 

aioiia 

ivliici 

side  I 

luated 

Tht 

— whi 

for  iht 


THE  TKEA8UEY  OF  HISTORY. 


403 


Edw.ird,  now  wholly  triumphant,  summoned  a  parliament,  which  com- 
pliantly sanctioned  his  deeds;  and  all  dangers  being  now  at  an  end,  he 
resumed  the  jovial  and  dissipated  life  to  wiiieh  he  owed  no  small  portion 
of  that  popularity  which  would,  most  probably,  have  been  refused  to  a 
piince  of  a  higher  cast  of  character  and  of  more  manly  and  diornified 
bearing. 

Edward,  however,  was  soon  recalled  from  his  indulgence  in  pleasure, 
by  the  necessity  for  attending  to  his  foreign  interests.  He  was  by  no 
means  unconscious  of  the  cold  and  constrained  reception  that  had  been 
given  to  him  in  his  adversity  by  the  duke  of  Burgundy ;  but  considerations 
of  interest  now  led  Kdward  to  make  a  league  with  the  duke  against  the 
king  of  France.  By  this  league  it  was  provided  that  Edward  should  cross 
ihe  sea  with  not  fewer  than  ten  thousand  men  for  the  invasion  of  France, 
ui  which  he  was  to  be  joined  by  the  duke  of  Burgundy  with  all  the  force 
he  could  command.  The  objects  proposed  by  the  allies  were  to  acquire 
for  England  the  provinces  of  Normandy  and  Guienne,  at  least,  and  if  pos- 
sible the  crown  of  France,  to  which  Edward  was  formally  to  challenge 
the  right ;  while  the  duke  of  Burgundy  was  to  obtain  Champagne,  witli 
some  further  territory,  and  the  freedom  for  his  hereditary  territories  from 
all  feudal  superiority  on  the  part  of  France.  Their  league  seemed  the 
more  likely  to  be  successful,  because  they  had  good  reason  to  hope  for 
the  co-operation  of  the  duke  of  Brittany,  and  they  had  the  secret  assur- 
ance of  the  count  of  St.  Pol,  who  was  constable  of  France,  and  held  St. 
Quentin  and  other  important  places  *on  the  Somme,  that  he  would  join 
ihem  when  they  should  enter  France. 

A  French  war  was  always  sure  to  excite  the  pecuniary  liberality  of  the 
English  parliament,  which  now  granted  the  king  two  shillings  in  the 
pound  on  all  rents,  and  a  fifteenth  and  three  quarters  of  a  fifteenth ;  but 
tills  money  was  to  be  kept  in  religious  houses,  and  returned  to  the  con- 
tributors in  the  event  of  the  expedition  against  France  not  taking  place. 
From  this  stringent  care  of  the  money  we  may  perceive  how  much  the 
commons  of  England  had  increased,  both  in  power  and  in  the  knowledge 
how  to  make  efficient  and  prudent  use  of  it. 

A.  D.  1475. — So  popular  was  the  king's  project  against  France,  that  all 
the  powerful  nobles  of  England  offered  him  their  aid  and  attendance  ;  and 
inntead  of  the  stipulated  ten  thousand  men,  he  was  enabled  to  land  at 
Calais  with  fifteen  thousand  archers  and  fifteen  hundred  men-at-arms. 
Bu'.  to  Edward's  great  annoyance,  when  he  entered  France  he  was  disap- 
pointed by  the  count  of  St.  Pol,  who  refused  to  open  his  gates  to  him,  and 
by  the  duke  of  Burgundy,  who,  instead  of  joining  Edward  with  all  his 
forces,  had  employed  them  against  the  duke  of  Lorraine  and  on  the  frontiers 
of  Germany.  This  circumstance,  so  fatal  to  Edward's  views,  arose  out  of 
the  fiery  temper  of  Burgundy,  who  personally  apologized,  but  at  the  same 
time  confessed  that  it  would  be  impossible  for  him  to  make  his  troops 
available  to  Edward  for  that  campaign.  Louis  XL,  that  profound  politi- 
cian who  thought  nothing  mean  or  degrading  which  could  aid  hini  in  his 
views,  no  sooner  learned  the  disappointmeui  which  had  befallen  Edward, 
than  lie  sent  him  proposals  of  peace;  and  a  truce  was  easily  concluded 
between  tiiem,  Louis  paying  seventy-five  thousand  crowns  down,  and 
agreeing  to  pay  two-thirds  of  that  sum  aiuiually  for  their  joint  lives,  and 
to  marry  the  dauphin,  when  of  age,  to  Edward's  daughter.  Tlic  two 
inoiiarchs  met  at  Pecquigin  to  ratify  this  treaty;  and  the  prcc;iulions 
which  were  taken  to  nrevent  the  possibility  of  assasshiation  on  either 
side  give  us  but  a  low  notion  of  the  honour  by  which  eitlier  prince  w  as  ac- 
tuated himself  or  supposed  the  other  to  be. 

There  was  one  clause  of  this  treaty — otherwise  so  disgraceful  to  Louis 
—which  was  highly  creditable  to  the  French  king.  By  it  he  stipulated 
for  the  sp'"  release  of  the  unfortunate  Margaret,  for  whose  ransom  Louit 


«|l#'i 


404 


THE  TREASim»  Of  HISTORY. 


eoMseiited  to  pay  fifty  thousand  crowns.  She  vas  released  accordingly, 
and  until  lier  death,  which  occurred  in  1482,  she  lived  in  complete  seclu- 
sion from  that  world  in  which  she  had  formerly  played  so  conspicuous 
and  so  unfortunate  a  part. 

There  was  in  the  character  of  Edward  a  certain  cold  and  stubborn 
severity  which  made  it  no  easy  matter  to  recover  his  favour  after  he  had 
once  been  offended.  His  brother  Clarence,  much  as  he  had  done  in  the 
way  of  treachery  towards  his  unfortunate  father-in-law,  was  far  enough 
from  being  really  restored  to  Edward's  confidence  and  favour.  The 
brooding  dislike  of  the  king  was  the  more  fatal  to  Clarence  from  tliat  un- 
fortunate prince  having  imprudently  given  deep  offence  to  the  queen  and 
to  his  brother  the  duke  of  Gloster,  a  prince  who  knew  not  much  of  truth 
or  of  remorse  when  he  had  any  scheme  of  ambition  or  violence  to  carry. 
Well  knowing  the  rash  and  open  temper  of  Clarence,  his  formidable 
enemies  determined  to  act  upon  it  by  attacking  his  friends,  which  they 
rightly  judged  would  be  sure  to  sting  him  into  language  that  would  ruin 
him  with  his  already  suspicious  and  offended  king  and  brother. 

It  chanced  that  as  the  king  was  hunting  at  Arrow,  in  Warwickshire, 
he  killed  a  white  buck  which  was  a  great  favourite  of  the  owner,  a  wealthy 
gentleman  named  Burdett.  Provoked  by  the  loss  of  his  favourite,  the 
gentleman  passionately  exclaimed  that  he  wished  the  buck's  horns  were 
stunk  in  the  belly  of  whoever  advised  the  king  to  kill  it.  In  our  settled 
and  reasonable  times  it  really  is  no  easy  matter  to  understand  how — even 
had  the  speech  related,  as  it  did  not,  to  the  king  himself— such  a  speech 
could  by  the  utmost  torturing  of  Iniguage  be  called  treason.  But  so  it 
was.  Burdett  had  the  misfortune  to  be  on  terms  of  familiar  friendship 
with  the  duke  of  Clarence  ;  and  he  was  tried,  condemned,  and  beheaded 
at  Tyburn  for  no  alledged  offence  beyond  these  few  idle  and  intemperate 
words.  That  Clarence  might  have  no  shadow  of  doubt  that  he  was  him- 
self aimed  at  in  the  persons  of  his  friends,  this  infamous  murder  was  fol- 
lowed by  that  of  another  friend  of  the  duke,  a  clergyman  named  Stacey. 
He  was  a  learned  man,  and  far  more  proficient  than  was  common  in 
that  half  barbarous  age  in  astronomy  and  matliematical  studies  in  gen- 
eral. The  rabble  got  a  notion  that  su(.'h  learning  must  needs  imply  sor- 
cery ;  the  popular  rumour  was  adopted  by  Clarence's  enemies,  and  the 
unfortunate  Stacey  was  tried,  tortured,  and  executed,  some  of  the  most 
eminent  peers  not  scrupling  to  sanction  these  atrocious  proceedings  by 
their  presence.  As  the  enemies  of  Clarence  had  anticipated,  the  perse- 
cution of  his  friends  aroused  him  to  an  imprudent  though  generous  indig- 
nation. Instead  of  endeavouring  to  secure  himself  by  a  close  reserve,  lie 
loudly  and  boldly  inveighed  against  the  injustice  of  which  his  friends  had 
been  the  victims,  and  bore  lesiimony  to  their  innocence  and  honour. 
This  was  precisely  what  the  enemies  of  the  duke  desired;  the  king  was 
insidiously  urged  to  deem  tlie  complaints  of  ('larence  insulting  and  in- 
jurious to  him,  as  implying  his  participation  in  tlie  alledged  injustice  done 
to  tiic  duke's  friends. 

A.  D.  I47rt. — The  unfortunate  duke  was  now  fairly  in  the  toils  which 
haii  l)ei;n  set  for  Inm  by  his  enemies.  He  was  committed  to  the  Tower, 
and  a  parliament  was  specially  summoned  to  try  him  for  treason.  The 
treasons  alledged  anainst  him,  even  had  they  been  proved  by  ilie 
most  trustworthy  evidence,  were  less  treasons  th.ui  mere  pelulaist 
speeches.  Not  a  single  overt  act  was  even  alledged,  far  less  pri)ved 
against  him.  But  the  king  in  person  prosecuted  him,  and  the  slavish 
parliament  shamelessly  pronounced  him  guilty;  the  commons  adding  to 
their  vilencss  by  both  [)etitioning  for  the  duke's  execution  and  passing  a 
bill  of  attaindci'agaiiist  him.  The  dreadl'ully  severe  temper  of  Edwa.-d 
required  no  such  vile  prompting.  There  was  little  danger  of  his  showing 
mercy  even  to  a  brother  whom  he  had  once  fairly  learned  to  hate!    The 


Jtole  fd\ 

ed  to  c); 

and  unh 

whimsic 

ofLondc 

A.  D.  1^ 

the  daup 

sion  of  F 

busily  en 

with  a  m( 

nis  reign 

Though 

was  disgrj 

might  eari 

pleasures  i 

wise,  as  hi 

the  good. 


Ji-D.  1483. 
•Elizabeth  Gt 
were  none  tl 
s.'eni  characi 
fies  from  him 
her  son  the  n 
'he  other  iue, 
ofthekingdo 
ceeding  ambii 
ne  had  marrij 
»p  her  family! 
'he  lords  Has 
*^lieii  Edwl 
iioblenieii  audi 
5"f "()  sooner! 
aeavoured  to  f 
duke  of  «i„stl 
»'e  Miinoritv  ol 
though  Glol 
care  of  the  vol 
nobleman  renj 
'he  queen,  wl/ 
STeat  influence  f 
to  escort  the  k| 
undue  coereioij 
however,   LorJ 
op«n  oppositioil 
force  were  levil 
nie'it  of  Calais,! 
be  the  actual  rel 
moiives  than  ail 
such  force  neeif 
to  "f^ord  the  vol 
queen,  that  she! 
PfyhisnepheJ 
his  high  rank.    ^ 


THE  THEA8UR1  OF  HISTORY. 


406 


HOle  favour  that  he  would  grant  the  unhappy  duke  was  that  of  being  allow- 
ed to  choose  the  mode  of  tiis  death ;  and  he  made  choice  of  the  strangle 
and  unheard-of  one  of  being  drowned  in  a  butt  of  Muhnsey  wine,  which 
whimsically  tragic  death  was  accordingly  inflicted  upon  him  in  the  Tower 
of  London. 

A.  D.  1482. — Louis  XL  of  France  having  broken  his  agreement  lo  marry 
the  dauphin  to  the  daughter  of  Kdward,  this  king  contemplated  the  inva- 
sion of  France  for  the  purpose  of  avenging  the  affront.  But  while  he  was 
busily  engaged  with  the  necessary  preparations  he  was  suddenly  seized 
with  a  mortal  sickness,  of  which  he  expired  in  the  twenty-third  year  of 
his  reign  and  the  forty-second  of  his  age. 

Though  undoubtedly  possessed  of  both  abilities  and  courage,  Edward 
was  disgracefully  sensual  and  hatefully  cruel.  (lis  vigour  and  courage 
might  earn  him  admiration  hi  times  of  difficulty,  but  his  love  of  effeminate 
pleasures  must  always  preclude  him  from  receiving  the  approbation  of  the 
wise,  as  his  unsparing  cruelty  must  always  insure  him  the  abhorrence  of 
the  good. 


CHAPTER  XXXIV. 


THE   RGION  OF   EDWAHD  V. 


A.  D.  1483. — From  the  time  of  the  marriage  of  Edward  IV.  with  the  lady 
Elizabeth  Gray  the  court  had  been  divided  into  two  fierce  factions,  which 
were  none  the  less  dangerous  now  because  during  the  life  of  Edward  the 
stern  character  of  that  king  had  compelled  llie  concealment  of  their  enmi- 
ties from  him.  The  queen  herself,  with  her  brother  the  earl  of  Rivers  and 
her  son  the  marquis  of  Dorset,  were  at  the  head  of  the  one  faction,  while 
the  other  included  nearly  the  whole  of  the  ancient  and  powerful  nobility 
of  the  kingdom,  who  naturally  were  indignant  at  the  sudden  rise  and  ex- 
ceeding ambition  of  the  queen's  family.  The  duke  of  Buckingham,  though 
he  had  married  the  queen's  sister,  was  at  the  head  of  the  party  opposed 
to  her  family  influence,  and  he  was  zealously  and  strongly  supported  by 
the  lords  Hastings,  Stanley,  and  Howard. 

When  Edward  IV.  felt  that  his  end  was  approaching  he  sent  for  these 
noblemen  and  entreated  them  to  support  the  authority  of  his  youthful  son; 
but  no  sooner  was  Edward  dead  than  the  leaders  of  both  factions  en- 
deavoured to  secure  the  chief  interest  with  the  heartless  and  ambitious 
duke  of  tiloster,  whom  Edward  IV.  most  fatally  had  named  regent  during 
the  minority  of  Edward  the  Fifth. 

Tliouirh  Gloster  was  entrusted  with  the  regency  of  the  kingdom,  the 
care  of  the  young  prince  was  confided  to  his  uncle  the  earl  of  Rivers,  a 
nobleman  remarkable  in  that  rude  age  for  his  literary  taste  and  talents. 
The  queen,  who  was  very  anxious  to  preserve  over  her  son  the  same 
great  influence  she  had  exerted  over  his  father,  advised  Rivers  to  levy  troops 
to  escort  the  king  to  London  to  be  crowned,  and  to  (irotect  liini  from  any 
undue  coercion  on  the  part  of  the  enemies  of  his  family.  To  this  step, 
however.  Lord  Hastings  and  his  friends  made  the  strongest  and  most 
open  opposition ;  Hastings  even  going  so  far  as  to  declare  that  if  such  a 
force  were  levied  he  should  think  it  high  time  to  depart  for  his  govern- 
ment of  Calais,  and  his  friends  adding  that  the  levying  such  a  fonre  would 
be  the  actual  recommencement  of  a  civil  war.  (iloster,  who  had  deeper 
motives  than  any  of  the  oilier  of  the  parties  concerned,  affected  lo  think 
such  force  needless  at  least,  and  his  an  fill  professions  of  determination 
to  nfford  the  young  king  all  needful  protection  so  completely  deceived  the 
queen,  that  she  alteied  her  opinion  and  requested  her  brother  to  accom- 
pany his  nephew  to  Lor.don  with  only  such  equipage  as  was  belittmg 
his  high  rank. 


K' 


Hi*:': 


IW 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


When  the  young  king  was  understood  to  be  on  his  road,  Gloster  set  oui 
with  a  numerous  retinue,  under  pretence  of  desiring  to  escort  him  hon- 
ourably to  London,  and  was  joined  at  Northampton  by  Lord  Hastings, 
who  also  had  a  numerous  retinue.  Rivers,  fancying  that  his  own  retinue 
added  to  tlie  numerous  company  already  assembled  at  Northampton  would 
cause  a  want  of  accommodation,  sent  Edward  to  Stony  Stratford,  and 
went  himself  to  pay  his  respects  to  the  regent  Gloster  at  Nortliampion. 
Rivers  was  cordially  received  by  the  duke  of  Gloster,  with  vvliom  and 
Buckingham  he  spent  the  whole  evening.  Not  a  word  passed  whence  he 
could  infer  enmity  or  danger,  yet  on  the  following  morning  as  lie.  wasenter- 
ing  Stony  Stratford  to  join  his  royal  ward,  he  was  arrested  by  order  of 
the  duke  of  Gloster.  Sir  Richard  Gray,  a  son  of  the  queen  by  lier  first 
marriage,  and  Sir  Thomas  Vaughan.  were  at  the  same  time  arrested,  and 
all  three  were  immediately  sentinuler  a  strong  escort  to  Fontefract  castle. 

Having  thus  deprived  the  young  king  of  his  wisest  and  most  zealous 
protector,  Gloster  waited  upon  him  with  every  outward  show  of  kindness 
and  respect,  but  could  not  with  all  his  art  quiet  the  regrets  and  fears 
excited  in  the  prince's  mind  by  the  sudden  and  ominous  arrest  of  his  kind 
and  good  relative.  The  queen  was  still  more  alarmed.  In  the  arrest  of 
her  brother  she  saw  but  the  first  stop  made  towards  the  ruin  of  herself 
and  her  whole  family;  and  she  immediately  retired  to  the  sanctuary  ol 
Westminster,  together  with  the  young  duke  of  York  and  the  five  prin- 
cesses, trusting  that  Gloster  would  scarcely  dare  to  violate  the  sanctuary 
which  had  proved  her  efficient  defence  aganisl  all  the  fury  of  the  Lan- 
castrian faction  during  the  worst  limes  of  her  husband's  misfortunes,  llcr 
confidence  in  the  shelter  she  had  chosen  was  naturally  increased  by  the 
consideration,  that  whereas  formerly  even  a  family  opposed  to  hers  by 
the  most  deadly  and  immitigable  hostility  was  not  temi)tcd  to  violate  the 
sanctuary,  she  had  now  to  dread  only  her  own  brother-in-law,  while  hei 
son,  fast  approaching  the  years  which  would  enable  him  to  terminate  his 
uncle's  protectorate,  was  the  king. 

Hut  ni  rfMsoning  thus  the  queen  wholly  overlooked  the  deep  and  dan- 
gerous nature  of  her  brotlier-in-law,  whose  dark  mind  was  daring  enough 
for  the  most  desperate  deeds,  and  subtle  enough  to  suggest  excuses  lit  to 
impose  even  upon  the  shiewdcst  and  most  cautious.  Gloster  saw  that 
the  continuance  of  his  nephew  in  sanctuary  would  ojjpose  ai\  iusurinouiit- 
able  obstacle  to  his  abominal)le  designs  ;  and  he  at  once  devoted  his 
powers  of  subtlety  to  the  task  of  getting  the  younir  prince  from  that  se- 
cure shelter  witlnnit  allowing  the  true  motive  to  appear.  Making  full  al- 
lowance for  the  power  of  the  church,  lit;  represented  to  the  archbishops 
of  Canterbury  and  York,  that  tlw^  (|ueeu  in  some  sort  iusulted  the  church 
by  ainising,  to  the  protection  of  lierself  and  children  against  the  dangers 
which  existed  only  in  her  iiniigiiiatioii,  a  privilege  which  was  inleiided 
only  for  persons  of  inature  years  having  reason  to  fear  grievous  injury  on 
account  of  either  crime  or  debt  Now,  he  argued,  could  a  mere  child 
lik<^  the  l)rotlier  of  llieir  young  king  be  in  anywise  obnoxious  to  tlu^ 
king,  of  dangers  for  which  alone  the  riijlit  of  sanctuary  was  iiistitiiti'd  ! 
Was  not  the  church  as  well  as  the  governuuMil  concerned  in  piitling  a 

stop,  even  by  force  if  ni ssary,  to  a  course  of  coinlnet  on  the  part  (»f 

the  (pieeii  wliieh  was  calcii|.ite(l  to  possess  mankind  with  the  most  horri- 
ble suspicions  of  those  pers(Mis  who  were  the  most  concerned  in  the  king's 
hapjiiness  and  safety  1  The  prelates,  ignorant  of  the  dark  designs  of 
(ildster.  ami  even  of  his  real  nature,  whicli  hitherto  he  had  carefully  and 
most  dextennisly  di<*giiised,  could  scari'ely  fail  to  agree  with  him  as  to 
(he  folly  ol  the  queen's  conduct,  and  its  eniiri!  Heedlessness  for  securing 
her  son's  safety.  Hiit,  careful  of  the  privileges  of  iIm^  church,  they  would 
«ot  hear  of  the  sanctuary  being  forcibly  assailed,  but  readily  agreed  to 


THE  TREA8IJRV  OF  HISTORY. 


407 


et  out 
a  hon- 
slings, 
retinue 
1  would 
rd,  and 
niplon. 
on)  and 
;uce  he 
Lsenter- 
irder  of 
lier  first 
ted,  and 
t  castle. 

zealous 
kindness 
ind  fears 
his  kuid 

arrest  of 
)f  herself 
ctnary  ol 
five  prin- 
sancluary 

the  1-au- 
uncs.  Her 
sed  by  the 
o  hers  hv 
/iolate  the 

while  hei 

iiiinate  his 


ase  their  person  1  influence  with  the  queen  to  induce  her  voluntarily  to 
abandon  alike  her  retreat  and  her  fears. 

The  prelates  had  much  difBculty  in  inducing  the  queen  to  allow  the 
young  duke  of  York  to  leave  her  and  the  protection  of  the  sanctuary. 
His  continuance  there  she  again  and  again  alhrmed  to  be  important,  not 
only  to  his  own  safety,  but  to  that  of  the  young  king,  against  whose  life 
it  would  appear  to  be  both  useless  and  unsafe  to  strike  while  his  brothel 
and  successor  remained  in  safety.  In  reply  to  this,  the  prelates,  sin- 
cerely though  most  mistakenly,  assured  her  that  she  did  but  deceive  her- 
self in  her  fears  for  either  of  the  royal  brothers.  But  perhaps  their 
strongest  argument  was  their  frank  declaration  that  the  seclusion  of  the 
young  prince  was  so  offensive  both  to  tlie  duke  of  York  and  the  council, 
thai  it  was  more  than  possible  that  even  force  might  be  resorted  to  should 
the  queen  refuse  to  yield  the  point.  Dreading  lest  further  opposition 
should  but  accelerate  the  evil  that  she  wished  to  avert,  the  unhappy  queen 
at  length,  with  abundance  of  tears  and  with  lamentations  which  were  but 
too  prophetic,  delivered  the  young  prince  up,  bidding  hiin,  as  she  did  so, 
farewell  for  ever. 

Possessed  of  the  protectorate,  which  the  council,  on  account  of  his 
near  relation  to  the  throne,  had  at  once  conferred  upon  him  without  wait- 
ing for  the  consent  of  parliament,  and  now  possessed  of  the  persons  of 
the  young  princes,  Glosler  seems  to  have  deemed  all  obstacles  removed 
to  his  bloody  and  treacherous  purpose,  though  to  any  less  uncomprom- 
ising and  daring  schemer  there  might  have  seemed  to  be  a  formidabh?  one 
in  I  lie  existence  of  numerous  other  children  of  Edward,  and  two  of  the 
diik(^  of  (!;iarence. 

The  first  step  of  Oloster  in  his  infamous  course  was  to  cause  Sir  Ri- 
chard KatclifTe,  a  tool  well  worthy  of  so  heartless  and  unsparing  an  em- 
ployer, to  put  to  death  the  earl  of  Uivers  and  the  other  prisoners  whom 
he  had  sent  to  Pontefract  castle,  as  before  named  ;  and  to  this  measure 
the  ivrant  had  the  art  to  obtain  the  sanction  of  the  duke  of  Hnckinghain 
uiul  Lord  Hastings,  whom  subsequently  he  most  fittingly  repaid  for  their 
participation  in  this  monstrous  guilt. 

(iloster  now  quite  literally  imitated  the  great  enemy  of  mankind— ho 
made  this  first  crime  of  Buckingham's,  this  participation  in  one  murder 
tlij  cause  and  the  justification  of  farther  crime.  He  pointed  out  to  Buck- 
iiisham  that  the  death — however  justifiably  inflicted,  as  ho  affected  to  con- 
eiiTer  it — at  their  suygestion  and  command,  of  the  queen's  brother  and  son, 
was  an  olTence  which  a  woman  of  her  temper  would  by  no  means  for- 
get ;  and  that  however  impotent  she  might  be  during  the  minority  of  her 
son,  the  years  would  soon  pass  by  which  would  brnig  his  majority  :  sin; 
would  tlitMi  have  both  access  to  and  infiuence  over  him ;  and  would  not 
that  influence  be  most  surely  used  to  their  destruction  ?  Would  it  not  be 
safer  fin-  Hnckinghain,  aye,  and  better  for  all  the  real  and  anti(iue  nolniiiy 
of  tlie  kingdom,  that  tlie"olTspring  of  the  comparatively  niebeian  Kh/abeth 
Ciriiy  should  be  exehideil  from  the  throne,  and  that  the  sceptre  should 
p;iss  into  the  hands  of  (iloster  himself— he,  who  was  so  indissoliiltly  the 
fiieiiil  of  BuckinglMin,  ainl  so  well  alfeeted  to  Die  true  iiobiliiy  of  the 
kingdom?  Safely  from  the  consequences  of  a  crime  alremly  eominitled 
ami  irrevocable,  wiili  great  and  glowiiv^  pros|)ecl  of  rich  benefits  to  arise 
from  being  the  personal  friend,  the  very  riKht  hand  of  the  king,  allieit  a 
usiirping  king,  were  aruninents  prei-isely  adapted  to  the  emnpreliension 
mid  tavoiirof  Itiickiiigliam,  wlio  with  but  small  hesitation  agreed  to  lend 
Ills  aiii  and  sanciiim  to  the  iiicasures  necessary  to  convert  the  duke  of 
Glosler  into  King  Itielianl  111. 

Hiving  ihus  seenred  lluckingham,  (Cluster  now  turned  his  attention  to 
Lord  llanliiiKS,  whose  miliienee  wa.-<  so  exlensi\e  as  to  be  of  vast  impor 
aneu.    Tliruugh  the  medium  of  ('alesby,  a  lawyer  much  employed  b 


I 


l^\ 


toe 


THE  TaEASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


G  ost^r  wnen  chicane  seemed  the  preferable  weapon  to  iictual  violence 
G  ost»=r  sounded  Hastings;  but  that  nobleman,  weak  and  wicked  as  hi 
had  pioved  iiimself,  was  far  loo  sincerely  attached  to  the  children  of  hi» 
late  sovereign  and  friend  to  consent  to  their  injury.  He  not  only  refused 
to  aid  n  the  transfer  of  the  crown  from  Iheni,  but  so  refused  as  to  leave 
but  little  room  for  doubt  that  he  would  be  active  in  his  opposition.  The 
mere  suspicion  was  sufficient  to  produce  his  ruin,  which  Glostersut  about 
instantly  and  almost  without  the  trouble  of  disguise. 

A  council  was  summoned  to  meet  Gloster  at  the  Tower,  and  Hastings 
attended  with  as  little  fear  or  suspicion  as  any  other  member.  Gloster, 
whose  mood  seems  ever  to  have  been  the  most  dangerous  when  his  bear- 
ing  was  the  most  jocund,  chatted  familiarly  with  the  members  of  the 
council  as  they  assembled.  Not  a  frown  darkened  his  terrible  brow,  not 
a  word  fell  from  his  lips  that  could  excite  doubt  or  fear;  who  could  iiave 
supposed  that  he  was  about  lo  commit  a  foul  murder  who  was  sufficieutly 
at  ease  to  compliment  liishop  Morton  upon  the  size  and  earliness  of  the 
strawberries  in  his  garden  at  Holborn,  and  to  beg  that  a  dish  of  them 
might  be  sent  to  him  1  Vet  it  was  in  the  midst  of  such  light  talk  that  he 
left  the  council-board  to  ascertain  that  all  his  villainous  arrangements 
were  exactly  made.  This  done,  he  entered  the  room  again  with  a  die 
lurbed  and  angry  countenance,  and  startled  all  present  by  sternly  and  ab 
ruptly  demanding  what  pnnishineni  was  deserved  by  those  who  should 
dare  to  plot  against  the  life  of  the  uncle  of  the  king  and  the  appointed 
protector  of  the  realm.  Hastings,  really  attached  to  Gloster,  though  still 
more  so  to  tlie  royal  children,  warmly  replied  that  whoever  should  do  so 
would  merit  the  punishment  of  traitors. 

"Traitors,  aye  traitors!"  said  the  duke,  "and  those  traitors  arc  the 
sorceress,  my  brother's  wiilow,  and  his  mistress,  Jane  Shore,  and  others 
who  are  associated  with  them."  And  then  laymg  bare  his  arm,  which  all 
present  knew  lo  have  been  shrivch'd  and  defcM-med  from  his  earliest 
years,  he  continued,  "  See  to  what  a  condition  they  have  reduced  me  by 
their  abominable  wiihcraft  and  incantations !"' 

The  mention  of  .lane  Shore  c.xciicd  the  first  suspicion  or  fear  in  the 
mind  of  Hastings,  who,  subseqniMtt  to  the  death  of  the  late  king,  had  been 
inlnnate  with  the  beautiful  though  gmlty  woman  of  that  name. 

"  If,"  said  Hastings,  donbtfidly,"  they  have  done  this,  my  lord,  they  de- 
serve th;;  severest  piuiishment." 

"  If!"  shouted  (Jlostcr,  "ami  do  you  prate  lo  nie  of  your  i/s  and  nndf? 
You  are  llu!  chief  abettor  of  the  sorceress  Shore;  you  are  a  traitor,  and 
by  St.  Paul  I  swear  that  I  will  not  dine  until  your  head  shall  be  brought 
to  me." 

Thus  speaking,  he  struck  the  tabh;  witli  his  hand,  and  in  an  instant  the 
room  was  filled  with  armed   men  who  had  already  received  his  orders 
how  lo  act ;  Hastings  was  dragL'c<l  from  the  room  and  beheaded  on  a  log 
f>f  wood  which  chanced  to  be  1>  ing  in  the  court-yard  of  the  'I'ower.     In 
two  hours  after  this  savage  murder,  a  pioclaination  was  made  to  the  cit- 
i/ens  of  I.ondoii,  apologismg  for  tlii;  sudden  execution  of  Hastings  on  the 
score  of  the  ecpially  saidden  discovi-ry  of  nnincrous  olTcnces  which  the 
proclamation  chargol  upon  him.     'I'liough  (ilostcr  had  but  littl(>  reason  to 
iear  any  actual  outbreak  in  the  city,  the  lord  Hastings  was  very  popiilai 
there;  and  not  a  few  of  the  citizens,  even  including  those  who  were  tlio 
most  favourable  to  (ilostcr,  seemed  to  ayn  c  wiih  a  merchant  wlio,  iKitii" 
ing  the  elabur.ilc  composition  of  the  fairly  written  proclainaticni,  and  I'on 
Irasting  it  with  the  shortness  of  the  time  which  had  elapsed  from  llisiings 
murder,  slircvdly  remarked  ihat  "ihe  proclainalion  miglil  safely  be  relied 
on,  /i/r  It  u'fj.t  (/iiilr  Ilium  llial  it  hail  h'rn  dnurn  In/  tlir  s/iinl  iif  pru/i/iri  i/. 

'I'liough  the  Wtreme  violeuct!  of  (ilostcr  was  for  the  present  conlincd  to 
Uastmgs,  us  it  in  retributive  Jiislieo  upon  his  crime  towards  the  victinix  ol 


lipy( 

rfunili 

uholl 

lo  the 

tniiidc 

'0  nia 

l)een 

duke 

and  til 

duclici 

As 
mid  w, 
Were 
wa»  flr 


THE  TaEASUIlY  OK  HISTORY. 


409 


olencc 

I  as  ht 
1  of  hi* 
refused 
to  leave 
II.  The 
et  about 

Hastings 
Glosler, 
his  bciir. 
rs  of  the 
)ro\v,  not 
ulil  liave 
illicienlly 
ss  of  ilie 
I  of  Ihem 
Ik  that  he 
,ngcnients 
•ilh  a  die 
ly  nnd  ab 
ho  shnulil 
appoiiiteil 
liough  still 
ould  do  80 

irs  are  the 
and  others 
I,  which  all 
lis  earliest 
need  me  by 

fear  in  the 
g,  had  been 

rd, they  de- 

s  and  nil'''' 
traitor,  and 
he  hriiughl 

instant  the 
his  tn-divs 
lied  on  a  lug 
Irower.    Ill 
I,-  to  tlie  cit- 
\\\\\rn  oil  the 
vvhieli  th« 
lie  reason  to 
Lry  iiopnlai 
llio  were  (li» 

,  «',10,  llillK' 

■in,  and  eim 
III)  IM^'liiiK" 
|,.|y  lie  relK'ii 

iiMinned  to 

l„.  vie(uii»«>' 


Fontefract,  the  other  councillors  were  by  no  means  allowed  to  escape  scot 
free.  Lord  Stanley  was  actually  wounded  by  the  poli-axe  of  one  of  the 
soldiers  summoned  by  the  treaelierous  protector,  and  only,  perhaps,  es- 
caped being  murdered  in  tlio  very  preseni.-e  of  that  tyrant  by  the  more 
dexterous  than  dignified  expedient  of  fallnig  under  the  table,  and  renviin- 
ing  ilieie  till  the  confusion  attendant  upon  the  arrest  of  Hastings  had  sub- 
sided. He  was  then,  together  witli  the  archbishop  of  York,  the  bishop  of 
Ely,  and  some  other  councillors  whom  (iloster  hated  for  their  sincere  at- 
tachment to  ihe  family  of  the  late  king,  conveyed  from  the  council  room 
of  the  Tower  to  its  too  ominous  dungeons. 

A  new  and  a  meaner  victim  was  now  essential  to  the  dark  and  unspar- 
ing purposes  of  tlie  protector.  His  connection  of  the  murdered  Hastings 
with  the  alledged  sorceries  of  the  late  king's  mistress,  Jane  Shore,  render- 
ed it  necessary  that  he  should  appear  to  be  fully  coivjneed  that  she  was 
guilty  of  the  crimes  which  he  had  laid  to  her  charge.  The  charge  of 
witchcraft,  that  upon  which  he  laid  the  most  stress,  was  so  wholly  unsup- 
ported by  evidence,  that  even  the  ignorance  of  the  age  and  the  power  of 
Gloster  could  not  get  her  convicted  upon  it ;  but  as  it  was  notorious  that 
she,  a  married  woman,  had  lived  in  a  doubly  adulterous  intercourse  with 
the  late  king,  the  spiritual  court  was  easily  induced  to  sentence  her  to  do 
penance  publicly,  and  aitiredi  n  a  white  sheet,  at  St.  Paul's.  Her  subse- 
quent fate  was  just  what  might  he  expected  from  her  former  life.  Though 
111  her  guilty  prosperity  she  showed  many  signs  of  a  humane  and  kindly 
temper,  liberally  succouring  the  distresSed  and  disinterestedly  using  her 
iiifluenee  with  the  king  for  the  benefit  of  deserving  but  friendly  court  suit- 
ors, she  passed  unheeded  and  unaided  from  her  public  degradation  to  a 
privacy  of  miserable  indigence. 

IJloster's  impunity  thus  far  very  naturally  increased  both  his  propen- 
sion  to  crime  and  his  audacity  in  its  commission,  and  he  now  no  longer 
inaile  a  secret  of  his  desire  to  exclude  the  present  king  and  his  brother 
fidin  the  throne.  Heckless  of  woman's  fame  as  of  man's  life,  Gloster 
tuuk  advantage  of  the  known  luxiiriousiiess  of  the  late  king's  life  to  atlirm, 
that  previous  to  that  prince  marrying  the  lady  Klizabetli  Gray  he  had 
hnen  married  to  the  lady  Kleanor  Talbot,  the  daughter  of  the  earl  of 
Shrewsbury  ;  that  this  marria^re,  though  secret,  was  legal  and  binding, 
and  had  been  solemnizcid  bv  Mliliiigton,  bishop  of  Hath;  and  that,  con- 
sequently and  necessarily,  hdward's  children  by  the  lady  Khzabelh  Gray 
were  illegitimate.  The  children  of  Hdward  being  thus  pronounced  ille- 
i;itiinate,  Gloster,  by  his  partisans,  maintained  that  the  attainder  of  the 
(lake  of  ('larence  necessarily  dispossessed  /tit  chililren  of  all  right,  liut 
as  assertion  In  the  former  case  could  hardly  pass  fur  proof,  and  as  attaint 
had  never  been  ruled  to  exi'lude  frouj  the  crown  as  from  mere  private  suc- 
cession, Gloster  soared  to  a  higher  and  more  damning  pitcii  of  infamy  ; 
liitlierlo  he  had  impngiu:.'  the  chastity  of  his  sister-in-law — aow  he  passed 
lioyond  all  the  ordinary  villany  of  the  world  and  inijiuted  frequent  and 
familiar  harlotry  to  Ins  o' 'ii  mother!  To  make  his  right  to  tlie  throne 
wholly  iiitlepenilcnt  cither  of  the  alledged  secret  marriage  of  the  I  ite  kill); 
to  the  lady  KUNinor,  or  of  the  eflTcct  upon  Clarence's  children  of  the  at- 
tainder of  their  father,  (Jloster  now  taught  his  nnmerous  and  zealous  tools 
to  niaintain  that  his  mother,  the  (luches^<  of  York,  who  was  still  alive,  had 
been  repeatedly  false  to  her  marriage  vows,  that  both  Kdward  IV.aiid  the 
duke  of  ('larenc(!  had  been  illegitimate  and  the  sons  of  diirereiit  fathers, 
ail  1  tliat  the  duke  of  Gloster  was  alone  the  legitimate  son  of  the  duke  and 
duchess  of  York. 

As  if  this  horrible  charge  of  a  son  aKanist  his  mother,  who  had  lived 
and  was  still  living  in  the  highest  credit  of  the  most  irreproachable  virtue, 
were  not  gsiilicicntly  revolting  to  all  gooil  and  manly  feelings,  the  subject 
wa»  flnl  bruughl  forward  t»  church;  on  the  occasion  of  Dr.  Shaw  preaching 


•HfW 


410 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


a  sermon  before  the  protector.  The  preacher,  well  worthy  of  the  patron, 
took  the  significant  text,  "Bastard  slips  shall  not  thrive;"  upon  which  the 
preacher  enlarged  with  great  zeal  in  the  endeavour  to  throw  the  stain  of 
bastardy  upon  Edward  IV.  and  his  brother  Clarence.  Though  Gloster 
was  far  too  free  from  shamefacedness,  as  well  as  from  everything  in  the 
shape  of  "  compunctious  visiting,"  to  have  any  objection  to  being  present 
during  the  delivery  of  the  whole  of  the  tirade  against  his  own  mother's 
chastity,  yet  from  a  politic  motive  it  was  arranged  that  he  should  no! 
enter  the  churc^h  until  the  preacher  should  finish  pronouncing  the  follow 
ing  passage.  Contrasting  the  duke  of  Gloster  with  the  alledged  illegiti 
mate  sons  of  his  mother,  the  preacher  exclaimed,  "  Behold  this  excellent 
prince,  the  express  image  of  his  noble  father,  the  genuine  descendant  ol 
the  house  of  York ;  bearing,  no  less  in  the  virtues  of  his  mind  tlian  in  the 
features  of  his  countenance  the  character  of  the  gallant  Ricliard,  once  your 
hero  and  favourite.  He  alone  is  entitled  to  your  allegiance;  he  must  de- 
liver you  from  the  dominion  of  all  intruders;  he  alone  can  restore  the  lost 
glory  and  honour  of  the  nation." 

It  was  intended  that  this  glowing  panegyric  on  the  duke  of  Gloster 
should  be  pronounced  at  the  very  moment  of  the  object  of  it  making  his 
appearance  in  the  church,  in  the  hope  that,  taken  by  surprise  and  urged 
into  enthusia.st:c  feeling,  the  congregation  might  be  induced  to  hail  tiic 
wily  and  heartless  tyrant  with  the  cry  of  "  God  save  King  Richard."  Uiit 
)y  one  of  tlio.se  mistakes  which  very  often  occur  to  throw  ridicule  upon 
.he  deepest  schemes,  the  duke  did  not  make  his  appearance  until  the 
whole  of  this  precious  passage  had  already  been  delivered.  Rather  than 
his  eloquence  and  the  chance  of  its  success  should  be  lost  by  this  accident, 
the  preacher  actually  repeated  it;  but  the  audience,  either  from  the  repe- 
tition seeming  ridiculous,  or  its  impressing  them  the  more  strongly  with 
the  falsehood  and  villany  of  the  charges  insinuated  against  the  duchess  of 
Vork,  witnessed  the  performance  of  the  disgusting  farce  with  an  indiffiT- 
ence  which  probably  was  more  severely  felt  by  Gloster  than  any  other 
puiiishiuont  would  have  been. 

The  preaching  of  Dr.  Shaw  having  thus  failed  to  eflfect  ttie  purpose  ol 
Gloster,  recourse  was  now  had  to  the  management  of  Dr.  Shaw's  brother, 
who  at  this  time  was  mayor  of  Ijondon.  He  calhid  a  meeting  of  the  citi- 
zeiis.  to  whom  he  introduced  the  duke  of  Buckingham,  who  exerted  to  the 
utmost  his  powers  of  eloquence  upon  the  subject  of  Gjostcr's  great  and 
numerous  virtues,  and  upon  the  superiority  ol  his  unquestionable  claim 
to  the  throne.  Though  Buckingham  was  as  earnest  as  he  was  eloquent, 
he  could  by  no  means  cominnnicate  his  own  feelings  to  the  bosoms  of  the 
good  citizens,  who,  with  most  unmoved  countenances  and  lack  lustre 
eyes  heard  him  in  all  gravity,  and  heard  the  very  conclusion  of  his  address 
with  all  silence.  At  once  annoyed  by  this  repulsive  silence,  and  as  miicli 
abashed  by  it  as  so  experienced  a  courtier  W(!ll  could  be  by  anything,  the 
duke  angrily  demanded  of  the  mayor  what  the  silence  of  the  citizens 
might  mean.  The  mayor  rcjilied,  that  probably  the  citizens  had  not  fully 
understood  the  duke,  who  then  repealed  the  former  speech,  but  still  failed 
to  elicMt  any  reply  from  bis  auditors.  The  mayor,  in  his  desire  to  gratify 
the  duke,  preteiKled  that  the  citiziMis,  who  were  always  accustomed  to  be 
harangued  by  their  own  recorder,  could  inily  e(Mnpreh(Miil  the  duke's  speech 
if  delivered  to  tlitMu  through  Ihi!  medium  of  tiiat  ofiltter. 

i'lic  recorder,  Filzwilliam,  was  accordingly  desired  to  repeat  the  duke's 
speech,  which,  being  no  friend  to  (Jloster's  proji'cts,  he  took  care  to  do  in 
such  wise  that  the  |)eople  could  by  no  inciiis  t;ikc  the  words,  though  ile- 
hvereil  by  him,  to  h-avu  any  echo  in  his  wisht>s  ;  and  he,  like  the  duke, 
was  heard  to  tho  very  last  word  without  any  one  giving  him  n  word  of 
renly. 

The  duke  now  became  too  much  enraged  to  refrain  from  speaking  out, 


THE  TKEA8URY  OP  HISTORY. 


411 


ap'l  he  said,  "  This  is  wonderful  obstinacy ;  express  your  meaning,  my 
trien'is,  in  one  way  or  the  other.  When  we  apply  to  you  on  this  occa- 
sion it  is  merely  from  the  regard  which  we  bear  to  you.  The  lords  and 
commons  have  sufficient  authority  without  your  consent  to  appoint  a  king ; 
but  I  require  you  here  to  declare,  in  plain  terms,  whether  or  not  you  will 
have  tlie  duke  of  Gloster  for  your  sovereign  V  Tlie  earnestness  and 
anger  of  the  duke,  and  the  example  set  by  some  of  his  and  the  duke  of 
Gloster's  servants,  caused  this  address,  more  fortunate  tiian  the  former 
ones,  to  be  received  with  a  cry  of  Gud  save  King  Richard!  Tlie  cry  was 
feelile,  and  raised  by  people  few  in  numbers  and  of  the  humblest  rank  ; 
but  it  served  the  purpose  of  Buckingham,  who  now,  as  had  been  con- 
certed, hurried  off  to  Baynard's  castle  to  inform  Gloster  that  the  voice  of 
"  the  people"  called  him  to  the  throne  ! 

UuL'kingham  was  attended  to  Baynard's  castle  by  the  mayor  and  a  con- 
siderable number  of  citizens ;  and  though  the  wily  protector  was  most 
anxiously  expecting  this  visit,  he  affected  to  be  surprised  and  even  alarm- 
ed at  so  many  persons  in  company  demanding  to  speak  to  him ;  which 
pretended  surprise  and  alarm  of  the  protector,  Buckingham  took  caie  to 
point  out  to  the  especial  notice  of  the  thick-witted  citizens.  When  the 
prottctor  at  length  suffered  himself  to  be  persuaded  to  speak  to  the  duVe 
of  Buckingham  and  the  citizens,  he  affected  astoiiishirient  on  hearing  that 
he  was  desired  to  be  king,  and  roundly  declared  his  own  intention  of  re- 
maining loyal  to  Kdward  V.,  a  course  of  conduct  which  he  also  rccom 
mended  to  Buckingham  and  his  other  audrtors.  Buckingham  now  affected 
to  take  a  higher  tone  with  the  protector.  That  prince,  argued  Bucking- 
iiam,  could  undoubtedly  refuse  to  accept  the  crown,  but  he  could  not 
C(iin[)ei  the  people  to  endure  their  present  sovereign.  A  new  one  they 
would  have,  and  if  the  duke  of  Gloster  would  not  comply  with  their  lov- 
ing wishes  on  his  behalf,  it  would  only  behove  them  to  offer  the  crown 
elsewhere.  Having  now  sufficiently  kept  up  the  disgusting  farce  of  re- 
fusing that  crown  for  the  sake  of  which  he  had  already  waded  through  so 
niiicii  innocent  blood,  and  was  so  perfectly  prepared  and  determined  to 
commit  even  more  startling  crimes  still,  Gloster  now  gave  a  seemingly 
rriuctanl  consent  to  accept  it ;  and  without  waiting  fo.'  further  repetition 
of  tins  offer  from  "the  people,"  he  thenceforth  threw  aside  even  the  af 
feitiition  of  acting  on  behalf  of  any  other  sovereign  than  his  own  will 
and  pleasure. 

The  farcical  portion  of  the  usurpation,  however,  was  but  too  soon  after- 
ward followed  by  a  most  tragical  conipletion  of  Richard's  vile  crime. 
Tortured  by  the  true  bane  of  tyrants,  suspicion  and  fear,  Richard  fell  that 
80  long  as  his  young  nephews  survived,  his  usurped  crown  woulti  ever 
bo  insecure,  as  an  oiiponent  would  always  be  at  hand  to  be  set  ii|)  against 
liiiii  liy  any  noble  to  whom  he  might  chance  to  give  offence.  This  con- 
siilt  ralion  was  quite  enough  to  insure  Itie  death  of  the  unfortunate  young 
princes,  and  Richard  sent  ordeis  for  their  murder  to  the  coiistabli'  of  the 
Tower,  Sir  Uobert  Brackenbury.  But  ihis  gentleman  was  a  iii:in  of 
hoiKKir,  and  he  with  a  man  of  honour's  spirit  and  feeling  refused  to  have 
auglil  to  do  witli  a  design  so  atrocious.  The  tyrant  was,  however,  not  to 
!)e  li;illk'd  by  the  refusal  of  one  good  nnn  to  bend  to  his  infamous  designs, 
and  having  found  a  more  compliant  tool  in  tlie  person  of  Sir  James  Tyrrel, 
it  was  ordered  th;it  for  one  night  Brackenbury  should  surrender  to  that 
person  the  keys  of  the  Tower.  On  that  fatal  night  three  wretches,  named 
Slater,  Digliton,  and  Forrest,  were  introduced  to  the  chamber  in  wiiirh  tlie 
two  young  princes  were  buried  in  sinless  and  peaceful  sleep  In  that 
sleep  the  young  victims  were  smothered  by  the  three  assassins  just  named, 
Tyrt'l  waiting  (Uitside  the  door  while  tlie  horrid  deed  was  being  perpe- 
Irited,  and.  on  its  completion,  ordering  the  burial  of  the  bodies  at  the  foC 
of  the  staircase  leading  to  the  chamber. 


i 


412 


THR  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


It  may  not  be  quite  unnecessary  to  mention  here  that  doubtt,  Ironr 
which  man's  ingenuity  allows  few  truths,  however  plain,  wholly  to  escape, 
have  been  thrown  upon  this  portion  of  Richard's  guilt ;  but  the  most  in- 
genious reasoning  and  the  utmost  felicity  at  guessing  are  but  idle  when 
opposed  to  plain  fact,  as  in  the  present  case ;  something  more  is  requisite 
in  opposition  to  the  actual  confession  made  by  the  murderers  themseive« 
in  the  following  reign. 


CHAPTER  XXXV. 

THE    REIO.V    OF    RICHARD    III. 

A.  D.  148.3. — Having  not  only  grasped  the  crown,  but  also  put  to  deatti 
the  two  claimants  from  whom  he  had  the  most  reason  to  fear  future  an- 
noyance, Richard  now  turned  his  attention  to  securing  as  strong  a  body 
of  supporters  as  he  could,  by  the  distribution  of  favours.  And  so  anxious 
was  he  upon  this  point,  so  ready  to  forget  all  other  considerations  in  the 
present  usefulness  of  those  of  whose  services  he  stood  in  need,  that  he 
cast  bis  shrewd  eye  upon  powerful  enemies  to  be  conciliated  as  well  as 
devoted  friends  to  be  rewarded  for  the  past  and  retained  for  the  future. 

Among  those  whom  Richard  the  nost  carefully  sought  to  keep  firm  to 
his  interests  was  the  duke  of  Duckiii  ^ham.  Descended  from  Thomas  oi 
Woodstock,  duke  of  Gloster,  and  uncis  of  Richard  II.  this  nobleman  wag 
allied  to  the  royal  family,  and  from  the  same  cause  he  had  a  claim  upon 
a  moiety  of  the  vast  properly  of  Bohun,  earl  of  Hereford,  which  moiety 
had  long  been  held  by  the  crown  under  escheat.  Buckingham,  though 
his  wealth  and  honours  were  already  enormous,  deemed  that  the  services 
he  had  recently  rendered  to  Riciiard  gave  him  good  ground  to  claim  this 
property,  and  also  the  office  of  constable  of  England,  which  had  long  been 
hereditary  in  the  Hereford  family.  In  the  first  exultation  caused  by  his 
own  success,  so  much  of  which  was  owing  to  Buckingham,  Richard 
granted  all  that  nobleman  asked.  But  on  cooler  reflection  Richard  seema 
to  have  imagined  that  Buckingham  was  already  as  wealthy  and  powerful 
as  a  subject  could  be  consistently  with  the  safety  of  the  crown,  and  though 
he  virtually  made  a  formal  grant  of  the  Hereford  property,  he  look  care 
to  oppose  insuperable  difhculties  to  its  actual  fulfilment.  Buckingham 
was  far  too  shrewd  to  fail  to  perceive  the  real  cause  of  the  property  being 
withheld  from  him  ;  and  he  who  had  so  unr.crupulously  exerted  himself 
to  set  up  the  usurper,  now  felt  fully  as  anxious  and  resolute  to  aid  in  pul- 
ling him  down.  The  flagrancy  of  Richard's  usurpation  was  sucii  as  to 
promise  every  facility  to  an  attempt  to  dethrone  him,  if  that  attempt  were 
but  headed  by  a  man  of  adequate  jiower  and  consequence.  In  truth,  the 
very  success  of  his  usurpation  was  scarcely  more  aitributable  to  his  own 
daring  and  unprincipled  wickedness  than  to  ihe  absence  of  any  powerful 
opponent.  Kven  the  lowest  and  meanest  citizens  of  London  had  riither 
been  coerced  into  a  passive  admission  of  his  right  to  the  crown  than  into 
an  active  support  of  it ;  and  now  that  the  duke  of  Buckingham  was  con- 
verted into  an  enemy  of  the  usurper,  ihe  longdormanl  claims  of  the  Lan- 
castrians were  pressed  upon  his  attention,  and  nol  unfavourably  looked 
upon  by  him.  Morton,  bishop  of  Kly,  whom  Kichiird  committed  to  the 
Tower  on  the  day  of  Lord  Hastings'  liiiirdcr,  had  recently  been  committed 
to  the  less  rigorous  custody  of  the  duke  of  Buckingham,  and,  perceiving 
the  duke's  dis(;ontent,  turned  his  attention  to  a  filling  rival  to  oppose  the 
tyrant,  in  the  person  of  Henry,  the  young  earl  of  Iticiiinond.  Through  his 
mother  the  young  earl  was  heir  of  the  eider  briinch  of  the  house  of  ISoin- 
erBct ;  and  tliough  that  claim  to  the  crown  would  formerly  have  been  look- 
ed upon  us  very  slight,  the  failure  of  the  legitimate  branches  of  the  houia 


■ !  ?1 


"If 


THE  TREA8URY  OK  HIrtTOllY. 


413 


ct  Lancaster  now  gave  it  considerable  importance  In  the  eyes  of  the  adhe- 
rents of  that  hoirse.  Even  Edward  IV.  liad  been  so  jealous  of  the  earl  of 
Richmond's  claim  upon  the  throne,  that  after  vainly  endeavouring  to  get 
him  into  his  power,  he  had  agreed  to  pay  a  considerable  yearly  sum  to  the 
(iuke  of  Brittany  to  keep  the  dangerous  young  nohle  at  his  court,  nomi- 
nally as  a  guest,  but  really  as  a  prisoner.  The  very  jealousy  thus  shown 
towards  the  young  earl  naturally  increased  the  attention  and  favour  of  the 
Lancastrians;  and  it  now  occurred  to  the  bishop  Morton,  and,  from  his  rea- 
sonings to  the  duke  of  Buckingham,  that  Richard  might  be  dethroned  in 
fiivour  of  young  Henry.  But  as  the  long  depression  of  the  house  of  Lan- 
caster had  diminished  both  the  zeal  and  the  number  of  its  adherents,  Mor- 
ton, with  profound  policy  suggested  the  wisdom  of  strengthening  the  bonds 
of  Henry,  and  at  the  same  time  weakening  those  of  Richard,  by  the  mar- 
riage of  the  former  to  King  Edward's  eldest  daughter,  the  princess  Eliz- 
abeth, and  thus  uniting  the  party  claims  of  both  families  against  the  mere 
personal  usurpation  of  Richard,  who  was  deeply  detested  by  the  nation 
for  his  cruelty,  and  would  consequently  meet  with  no  hearty  support 
should  he  be  openly  opposed  with  even  a  probability  of  success. 

Young  Henry's  mother,  the  countess  of  Richmond,  was  informed  by 
Morton  and  Buckingham  of  their  views  in  favour  of  her  son ;  and  the  hon- 
our intended  for  him  was  too  great  to  allow  of  any  hesitation  on  her  part. 
Dr.  Lewis,  a  physician  who  had,  professionally,  the  means  of  communi- 
cating with  the  queen  dowager,  who  stilf  found  siielter  in  the  sanctuary 
of  Westminster,  knew  that  whatever  might  have  been  her  former  preju- 
dices against  the  Lancastrians,  they  instantly  yielded  to  the  hate  and  dis- 
gust with  which  she  thought  of  the  successful  usurper  who  had  murdered 
her  brother  and  three  sons.  She  not  only  gave  her  consent  to  the  pro- 
posed marriagr,  but  also  borrowed  a  sum  of  money  which  she  sent  to  aid 
Henry  in  raising  troops,  and  she  at  the  same  time  required  him  to  swear 
to  marry  her  daughter  as  soon  as  he  could  safely  reach  England. 

Morton  and  Buckingham  having  thus  far  met  with  success,  began  to 
exert  themselves  among  their  influential  friends  in  the  various  counties, 
to  prepare  them  for  a  general  and  simultaneous  rising  in  favour  of  Ihe  earl 
of  Richmond  when  he  should  land ;  and  in  this  respect,  too,  their  efforts 
met  with  an  uncommon  success,  the  tyranny  of  Richard  becoming  every 
day  more  hateful  to  all  orders  of  his  trampled  subjects. 

But  guilt  such  as  that  of  Richard  is  ever  suspicious,  even  where  there 
is  no  real  cause  for  suspicion ;  and  the  sudden  activity  of  various  men  ol 
influence  could  neither  escape  the  sharpened  observation  of  the  tyrant, 
nor  seem  explicable  to  him  on  any  other  ground  than  that  of  treason 
against  him.  Well  knowing  that  Buckingham  was  greatly  addicted  to 
political  plotting,  Richard  with  many  friendly  expressions  invited  the  dnkf 
to  court,  where  for  some  time  he  had  been  a  stranger.  Whether  the  king 
really  sought  a  reconciliation  with  the  duke  or  merely  wished  to  obtain 
pussession  of  his  person  does  not  clearly  appear.  The  duke,  however, 
who  well  knew  with  whom  he  had  to  deal,  interpreted  the  kind's  niessagi- 
iii  the  latter  sense,  and  only  replied  to  it  by  unfurling  the  standard  of  re- 
volt in  Wales  at  the  moment  when  Richard  was  levying  troops  in  the 
north. 

It  happened  most  unfortunately  for  Buckingham,  that  just  as  he  had 
marched  his  troops  to  the  Severn,  tliat  river  was  so  swollen  in  conse- 
quence of  rains  of  almost  unexampled  copiousness  and  duration,  as  to  bt 
quite  impassable.  This  unlooked-for  check  iMst  a  damp  upon  the  spiritK 
of  Buckingham's  followers,  who  were  st.il  farther  dispirited  by  great  dis 
tress  from  want  of  provisions.  De.sertions  ani<  ng  them  daily  became 
more  numerous,  and  Buckingham  at  lentrth  findiiiif  himself  wholly  aban- 
doned, disguised  himself  in  a  mean  habit  and  iii.ulc  his  way  to  the  house 
of  an  old  servant  of  his  family.    Even  in  this  obscure  retreat,  however 


114 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


he  was  discovered  and  carried  as  a  prisoner  to  the  king,  who  was  then 
posted  at  Salisbury.  All  the  former  services  rendered  by  the  duke  were 
forgotten  in  the  fact  of  his  more  recent  appearance  in  arms  as  the  avowed 
enemy  of  the  king,  and  he  was  immediately  sent  to  execution.  Several 
other  though  less  eminent  prisoners  fell  into  the  hands  of  Richard,  and 
were  by  him  transferred  to  the  executioner ;  and  one  of  these,  a  gentle- 
man named  Collingbourne,  is  said  to  have  suffered  not  for  his  direct  and 
open  opposition  to  Richard,  but  for  some  miserable  doggrel  in  which  he 
made  it  a  comolaint  that 

"  The  cat,  the  rat,  and  Lovcl  the  dog, 
Rule  all  Eofiland  under  the  hog." 

Stupid  as  this  doggrel  production  was,  its  stupidity  and  the  heinous  of- 
fence of  playing  upon  the  names  of  Catesby  and  Ratcliffe,  upon  that  ol 
Lovel  and  upon  the  cognizance  of  the  king,  seem  to  have  merited  a  some- 
what less  severe  punishment  than  death !  The  bishop  of  Ely  and  the 
marquis  of  Dorset,  to  neither  of  whom  would  Richard  have  shown  any 
mercy,  were  fortunate  enough  to  escape  from  the  kingdom.  In  the  mean- 
time the  yoimg  earl  of  Richmond  with  a  levy  of  five  thousand  men  had 
sailed  from  St.  Maloes,  in  igiiorince  of  the  misfortune  that  had  occurred 
to  his  cause  in  England ;  and  on  arriving  there  he  found  that,  for  the  pres- 
ent at  least,  all  hope  was  at  an  end,  and  he  sailed  back  to  Brittany. 

A.  D.  1484. — The  politic  Richard  easily  saw  that  the  recent  attempt  to  de- 
throne him  had,  by  its  ill  success,  and  the  severity  with  which  he  had  pun- 
ished some  of  the  chief  actors  in  it,  very  considerably  tended  to  sireii};then 
his  cause  not  in  the  affections,  indeed,  but  in  the  terrors  of  the  people. 
Hitherto,  being  sensible  of  the  flagrant  impudence  as  well  as  deep  guilt 
of  his  usurpation,  he  had  been  well  content  to  rest  his  right  to  the  throne 
upon  the  tyrant's  right,  superior  strength.  But  he  judged  that  he  now 
might  safely  call  a  parliament  without  any  doubt  of  its  recognising  his 
title.  His  anticipation  proved  to  be  quite  correct ;  the  parliament  acted 
just  as  he  wished,  echoed  his  words,  granted  him  the  usual  tonnage  and 
poundage  for  life,  and  passed  a  few  popularlaws.  With  the  same  purpose 
in  view  ho  now  addressed  himself  to  the  seemingly  difficult  task  of  con- 
verting the  queen  dowager  from  a  foe  into  a  friend.  He  saw  that  the  chief 
source  of  Richmond's  popularity  was  his  projected  espousal  of  the  prin- 
cess Lllizabeth,  and  he  knew  enough  of  human  nature  to  feel  sure  that  a 
woman  of  tlie  queen  dowager's  temper  would  be  far  from  unlikely  to  prefer 
the  union  of  her  daughter  with  a  king  in  fact,  to  her  union  with  an  earl 
who  might  never  be  a  king  at  all.  True  it  was  that  the  princess  Klizabeth 
was  solemnly  betrothed  to  his  rival  and  foe,  the  earl  of  Richmond,  and  was 
related  to  Ricliard  within  the  prohibited  degrees ;  but  then  Rome  could  grant 
a  dispensation,  and  Rome  was  venal.  Thus  reasoning,  Richard  applied 
himstdf  to  the  queen  dowager,  and  met  with  all  the  success  lie  had  anti- 
cipated. Wearied  with  her  long  seclusion  from  all  pleasure  and  all  au- 
thority, she  at  once  consented  to  give  her  daughter  to  the  wretch  wlio  Iwui 
deprived  her  of  three  sons  and  a  brother,  and  was  so  coR-oletely  coiivertcil 
to  his  interests  that  she  wrote  to  her  son,  the  marquis  jf  Dorset,  and  all 
the  rest  of  her  connections  to  withdraw  from  supporting  Richmond,  a 
piece  of  complaisance  for  which  she  paid  full  dearly  in  the  next  leigii. 

Flattering  liimsclf  that  no  material  danger  could  assail  his  throne  during 
the  interval  necessary  for  procuring  the  dispensation  from  Rome,  Riciiaid 
now  began  to  consider  himself  securely  settled  on  the  throne.  But  dan- 
ger accrued  to  him  even  out  of  the  very  measure  on  which  he  nainly 
rested  for  safety.  The  friends  of  the  earl  of  Richmond  now  more  liiai! 
ever  pressed  him  to  try  his  fortune  in  invading  England,  lest  the  dispen 
nation  from  Rome  should  enable  Richard  to  complete  his  project  of  mar 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


4ir> 


rying  tlie  princess  Elizabeth,  which  marriage  would  do  so  much  to  injure 
all  the  future  hopes  of  the  earl,  as  far  as  the  sympathies  of  the  people  were 
concerned,  in  a  union  of  the  houses  of  York  and  Lancaster.  Henry  ac- 
cordingly escaped  from  Brittany,  where  he  deemed  himself  in  danger  from 
the  treachery  of  the  duke's  confidential  minister,  and  proceeded  to  the 
court  of  France.  Here  lie  was  greatly  aided  by  Charles  VIII.,  who  had 
succeeded  the  tyrant  Louis  XL,  and  here,  too,  he  was  joined  by  the  earl 
of  O.xford,  who  had  escaped  from  the  gaol  into  which  Richard's  suspicions 
had  thrown  him,  and  who  now  brought  Henry  most  flattering  accounts  of 
the  excellent  chance  he  had  from  the  popular  disposition  in  England. 

Richard  in  the  meantime,  unconscious  or  careless  of  the  eHect  prmlu 
ced  on  the  conduct  of  Richmond  by  the  expectation  of  the  dispensation 
which  was  to  allow  Richard  to  deprive  him  of  his  promised  bride,  tri- 
umphed in  his  fortune  of  having  become  a  widower  at  only  a  short  time 
before  by  the  sudden  death — so  sudden  that  poison  was  suspected,  but 
ra:her  from  the  suddenness  and  from  the  general  character  of  Ricliard 
than  from  anything  like  proof— of  his  wife  Anne,  widow  of  that  Edward, 
prince  of  Wales,  of  whom  Richard  was  the  murderer.  His  actual  andliis 
proximate  marriage  must,  in  truth,  have  led  him  to  believe  that  the  murder 
of  a  lady's  male  relatives  was  anything  rather  than  a  bar  to  her  favour! 

A.  D.  1485. — But  while  Richard  was  exulting  in  triumph  as  to  the  past 
and  in  hope  as  to  the  future,  Richmond  with  an  army  of  two  thousand 
iren  had  sailed  from  the  Norman  port«of  Harflcur,  and  landed,  witiiout 
ei.ieriencing  opposition,  at  Milford  Haven,  in  Wales.  Here,  as  he  e.v- 
pected,  the  zealous  though  unfortunate  exertions  of  the  duke  of  Bucking- 
ham had  prepossessed  the  people  in  his  favour,  and  his  little  army  was 
increased  by  volunteers  at  every  mile  he  marched.  Among  those  who 
joined  him  was  Sir  Rice  ap  Thomas  with  a  force  with  which  he  had  been 
entrusted  by  Richard;  and  even  the  other  commander  of  the  tyrant.  Sir 
Walter  Herbert,  made  but  a  faint  and  inefficient  show  of  defence  for 
Richard.  Thus  strengthened  by  actual  volunteers,  and  encouraged  by 
the  evident  lukewarmness  of  Richard's  partizans,  Richmond  marched  to 
Shrewsbury,  where  he  was  joined  by  the  whole  strength  of  the  great 
Shrewsbury  family  under  Sir  Gilbert  Talbot,  and  by  another  numerous 
reinforcement  under  Sir  Thomas  Bourchier  and  Sir  Walter  Ilungorford. 

Richard,  who  had  taken  post  at  Nottingham,  as  being  so  central  as  to  ad- 
mit of  his  hastening  to  whichever  part  of  the  kingdom  might  earliest  need 
his  aiii,  was  not  nearly  so  much  annoyed  by  the  utmost  force  of  his  known 
I'Memies  as  he  was  perplexed  about  the  real  extent  io  which  lie  could 
ilcpend  upon  the  good  faith  of  his  seeming  friends.  The  duke  of  Norfolk 
Richard  had  reason  to  believe  that  he  could  securely  rely  upon;  but  Lord 
and  Sir  William  Stanley,  who  had  vnst  power  and  influence  in  the  north, 
were  closely  connected  with  Richmond's  family.  Yet  while  the  usurper 
fi'lt  the  danger  of  trusting  to  their  professions  of  friendship  and  good 
'ailh,  he  dared  not  break  with  tliem.  Compelled  by  his  situation  to  au- 
iluirize  them  to  raise  forces  on  his  behalf  in  Cheshire  and  Lancashire,  he 
I'liihnivoured  to  deter  then;  from  arraying  those  forces  against  him,  by 
ili'tiiining  as  a  hostage  Lord  Stanley's  son.  Lord  Strange. 

Thou^:'i  in  his  heart  Lord  Stanley  was  devoted  to  the  cause  of  Richmond, 
iiic  peril  in  which  his  son  Lord  Strange  was  placed  induced  him  to  forbear 
from  declaring  himself,  and  he  posted  his  numerous  levies  at  Atherstone, 
s^i)  situated  that  he  could  at  will  join  either  party.  Richard  in  this  con- 
ijiict  of  Lord  Stanley  saw  a  convincing  proof  that  the  hostility  of  tliiit  no- 
nleinan  was  only  kept  in  check  by  the  situation  of  his  son;  and  judging 
thill  the  destruction  of  the  young  man  would  be  a  spell  of  vi-ry  (IKferenl 
•'il'i'ct  from  his  continued  peril,  the  politic  tyrant  for  once  refused  to  shed 
i/iiioil  when  advised  to  do  so  by  those  of  his  friends  who  discerned  the 
meaning  of  Lord  Stanley's  delay.     Trusting  that  Lord  Stanley's  hesitation 


I       .1 


tl6 


THB  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


would  lasf  long  enough  to  allow  of  the  royal  troops  dealing  only  with  the 
earl  of  Richmond,  Richard  approached  the  army  of  the  latter  nobleman 
at  Uosworth,  in  Leicestershire.  The  army  of  Richmond  was  only  six 
thousand,  that  of  Richard  douhle  the  number.  Both  Richard  and  the  earl 
fought  in  the  main  guards  of  iheir  respective  armies,  which  had  scarcely 
charged  each  other  ere  Lor/J  Stanley  led  up  his  forces  to  the  aid  of  Ricli- 
mond.  The  effect  of  this  demonstration  was  tremendous,  both  in  en- 
couraging the  soldiers  of  the  earl  and  of  striking  dismay  into  the  already 
dispirited  troops  of  Richard.  Murderous  and  tyrannous  usurper  as  he  was, 
Richard  was  as  brave  as  a  lion  in  the  field.  Perceiving  that  such  power- 
ful aid  had  declared  for  his  rival,  nothinsr  but  the  de'tth  of  that  rival  could 
give  him  any  hope  of  safety  for  life  or  throne;  Richard  intrepidly  rushed 
towards  the  spot  where  Ri(-hmond  was  ordering  his  troops,  and  endeav- 
oured to  engage  with  him  ii;  personal  combat,  but  while  fighting  with 
murderous  vigour  he  was  slain,  after  having  dismounted  Sir  John  ('heyn6 
and  killed  Sir  William  Brandon,  Richmond's  standard  bearer. 

The  battle  ended  with  the  life  of  Richard,  of  whom  it  may  with  the 
utmost  truth  be  said,  that  "nothing  in  his  life  became  him  like  the  leaving 
of  it."  Even  while  under  his  dreaded  eye  his  soldiers  had  fought  with 
no  good  will ;  and  when  he  fell  they  innnediately  took  to  flight.  On  the 
side  of  Richard,  besides  the  tyrant  himself,  there  fell  about  four  thousand, 
includinir  the  duke  of  Norfolk,  the  lord  Ferrars  of  Chartley,  Sir  Richard 
RatclifFe,  Sir  Robert  Piercy,  and  Sir  Robert  Brackenbury;  and  Calesby, 
the  chief  confidant  and  most  willing  tool  of  Richard's  crimes,  being  taken 
prisoner,  was,  with  some  minor  accomplices,  beheaded  at  Leicester. 

The  body  of  Richard  being  found  upon  the  field,  was  thrown  across  a 
miserable  horse,  and  carried,  amid  the  hooting  and  jeers  of  the  people 
who  so  lately  trembled  at  him,  to  the  Grey  Friar's  church  at  Leicester, 
where  it  was  interred. 

The  courage  and  ability  of  this  prince  were  unquestionable;  but  all  his 
eouraye  and  ability,  misdirected  as  they  were,  served  only  to  render  him 
a  new  proof,  if  such  were  needed,  of  the  inferiority  of  the  most  brilliant 
gifts  of  intellect  without  hcnour  and  religion,  to  comparatively  inferior 
talents  with  them.  Low  in  stature,  deformed,  and  of  a  harsh  countenance, 
Richard  miglit  yet  have  connnanded  admiration  by  his  talents,  but  for  his 
excessive  and  ineradicable  propensity  to  the  wicked  as  regards  projects 
and  the  bloody  as  regards  action. 


CHAPTER  XXXVL 


THE    REIGN    OP   UENRY    VII. 


4.D.  148.5. — The  joy  of  Richmond's  troops  at  the  defeat  of  Richard  was 
proportioned  to  the  haired  with  which  that  tyrant  had  contrived  to  inspire 
every  bosom.  Long  live  King  Henry  the  Seventh !  was  il;c  c::v.!»'nor  cry 
which  now  everywhere  saluted  the  lately  exiled  and  distressed  earl  oi 
Richmond;  and  his  victorious  brow  was  bound  with  a  plain  gold  coronal 
which  had  been  worn  by  Richard,  and  had  been  torn  from  the  tyrant's 
forehead  by  Sir  William  Stanley  in  personal  coml)at  with  him  when  he  fell 

Though  Henry,  late  earl  of  Richmond,  and  now,  1-y  possession.  King 
Henry  VIL,  had  more  than  one  ground  upon  which  to  rest  his  claim, 
there  was  not  one  of  those  grounds  which  was  not  open  to  objection. 
The  Lancastrian  claim  had  never  been  clearly  established  by  Henry  IV., 
and  if  the  parliament  had  often  supported  tlie  house  of  Lancaster,  so  the 
parliament  had  not  less  frequently — and  with  just  as  much  apparent  sin- 
cerity— paid  a  like  compliment  to  the  house  of  York.  Then  again,  allow- 
io    the  Lancastrian  claim  to  be  good  ex  fonte,  yet  Richmond  claimed  oulv 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


41T 


from  the  illegitimate  branch  of  Somerset;  and  again,  it  in  reality  wan 
now  vested  not  in  him  but  in  his  still  living  mother,  the  countess  o."  Rieli- 
mond. 

On  the  other  hand,  it  was  open  to  Henry  to  fix  upon  himself,  by  virtue 
of  his  marriage  with  the  princess  Elizabeth,  the  superior  and  more  popu- 
lar title  of  the  house  of  York ;  but  in  this,  so  far  as  the  York  title  was 
concerned  Henry  could  look  upon  himself  only  as  a  king  consort,  with 
Ihe  loss  of  his  authority  should  ills  queen  die  without  issue. 

The  right  of  conquest  he  could  scarcely  claim,  seeing  that  conquest 
was  achieved  by  Knglishmen.  On  the  whole  review  of  his  case,  there- 
fore, Henry's  obvious  policy  was  to  set  forward  no  one  of  his  grounds  ot 
claim  with  such  distinctiveness  as  to  challenge  scrutiny  and  provoke  op- 
position, but  to  rely  chiefly  upon  the  strongest  of  all  rights,  that  of  pos- 
session, strengthened  still  farther  by  his  concurrent  circumstances  of  right 
and  maintained  by  a  judicious  policy  at  once  firm  and  popular,  watchful 
yet  seemingly  undoubting.  In  heart  Henry  was  not  the  less  a  Lancas- 
trian from  his  determination  to  link  himself  to  the  house  of  York,  and 
strengthen  himself  by  its  means  in  the  popular  love.  Of  the  Yorkish 
support  he  was  sure  while  connected  with  the  house  of  York  by  marriage, 
but  tills  far-sighted  and  suspicious  temper  taught  him  to  provide  against 
his  possible  disconnection  from  that  house,  and  to  give  every  "  coign  of 
'vantage"  to  the  Lancastrians,  whose  friendship  was,  so  to  speak,  more 
germane  to  his  identity.  » 

Only  two  days  after  the  victory  of  Bosworth  field  Henry  gave  a  proof 
of  the  feelings  we  have  thus  attributed  to  him,  by  sending  Sir  Robert 
Willoughby  to  convey  the  young  earl  of  Warwick  from  Sheriff  Watton, 
in  Yorkshire,  where  Richard  had  detained  him  in  honourable  and  easy 
captivity,  to  the  close  custody  of  the  Tower  of  London.  Yet  this  un- 
fortunate son  of  the  duke  of  Clarence,  inasmuch  as  his  title,  however 
superior  to  that  of  Richard,  was  not  hostile  to  the  succession  of  either 
Henry  or  his  destined  bridi  might  have  reasonably  expected  a  more  in- 
dulgent treatment 

Having  thus  nu  ;c  every  arrangement,  present  and  prospective,  which 
even  his  jealous  |H>hcy  could  suggest,  Henry  crave  orders  for  the  princess 
Elizabeth  bei  ig  rmvcycd  to  London  preparatory  to  her  marriage.  He 
himself  at  the  sannc  time  approached  the  metropolis  by  easy  journies. 
Everywher-  he  *as  received  with  the  most  rapturous  applause;  which 
was  the  nu  iv  siprcerc  and  hearty,  because  while  liis  personal  triumph  was 
shared  by  I'lc  Lancastrians,  his  approaching  marriage  to  Elizabeth  gave 
a  share  of  that  triumph  to  the  Yorkists,  and  seemed  to  put  an  end  for 
ever  to  those  contests  between  the  rival  houses  which  had  cost  them  both 
so  muL-li  sufTeriiig  during  so  long  a  time.  Bat  even  amidst  all  the  excite- 
ment attendant  upon  the  joy  with  which  men  of  all  ranks  liailed  their  new 
sovereign,  the  cold,  stern,  and  suspicious  temper  of  Hem  displayed  itself 
at  oiire  oflensivcly  and  unnecessarily.  On  his  arrival  a'  l.<mdon  the  mayor 
and  the  civic  companies  met  him  in  public  procession  ;  but  as  though  he 
disdained  their  gratnlations,  or  suspected  their  sincerity,  he  passed  tlirougli 
them  in  a  cloce  carriage,  and  without  showing  the  ^  ightest  sympathy 
with  their  evident  joy. 

Tiiougli  Henry  well  knew  the  importance  which  a  great  portion  oi  nis 
people  attached  to  his  union  with  the  princess  Klizabeth,  and,  with  his 
customary  politic  carefulness,  hastened  to  assure  them  of  his  unallered 
determination  to  complete  that  marriage,  and  to  contradict  a  report, — 
founded  upon  an  artful  hint  dropped  by  himself  while  he  was  yet  nneer- 
lain  of  the  issue  of  his  contest  with  Richard — of  his  having  promised  to 
espouse  the  princess  Anne,  the  heiress  of  Brittany,  yet  he  delayed  his 
marriage  for  the  present;  being  anxious,  tacitly  at  the  least,  to  alfinii  his 
own  claim  to  the  crown  by  having  his  coronation  performed  previous  t4» 
Vol.  I.— '.'7 


tl8 


THE  TllEASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


his  marriage.  Even  the  former  ceremony,  however,  was  for  a  time  de- 
ferred by  the  raging  of  an  awful  pliigne,  long  afterwards  spoken  of  with 
shuddering,  under  the  name  of  the  sweating  sickness.  The  sickness  in 
question,  was  endemic,  and  so  swift  in  its  operation,  that  the  person  at- 
tacked almost  invariably  died  or  became  convalescent  within  fourand 
twenty  hours.  Either  by  the  skill  of  the  medical  men  or  by  some  sana- 
tory alteration  in  the  condition  of  the  atmosphere,  this  very  terrible  visi- 
tation at  length  ceased,  and  Henry  was  crowned  with  the  utmost  pomp. 
Twelve  knights  banneret  were  made  on  occasion  of  this  ceremony ;  the 
king's  uncle,  Jasper,  earl  of  Pembroke,  was  created  duke  of  Bedford; 
Lord  Stanley,  the  king's  father-in-law,  earl  of  Derby;  and  Edward  Cour- 
tenay,  earl  of  Devonshire.  The  ceremony  was  performed  by  Cardinal 
Bourchier,  archbishop  of  Canterbury,  who  had  been  so  much  aiding  in 
Henry's  good  fortune. 

Even  in  the  matter  of  his  coronation  Henrj'  could  not  refrain  from  evi- 
dencing that  constant  and  haunting  suspicion  which  contrasted  so 
strangely  with  his  unquestionable  personal  courage,  by  creating  a  body- 
guard of  fifty-five  men,  under  the  title  of  yeomen  of  the  guard.  But  lest 
the  duty  of  this  guard,  that  of  personal  watch  and  ward  over  the  sover- 
eign, siiould  imply  any  of  the  suspicion  he  really  felt,  Henry  affected  to 
contradict  any  such  motive  by  publicly  and  pointedly  declaring  this  guard 
n  permanent  and  not  a  personal  or  leniporary  appointment. 

Henry  now  summoned  a  parliament,  and  his  partizatis  so  well  exerted 
themselves  that  a  majority  of  the  members  were  decided  Lancastrians. 
Some  of  them,  indeed,  had  been  outlawed  and  attainted  while  the  house  of 
York  was  in  the  ascendant,  and  a  question  was  raised  whether  persons 
who  had  been  tlius  situated  could  rightfully  claim  to  sit  in  parliaineiit. 
The  judges  who  were  consulted  upon  this  point  had  but  little  dilHciilty  ;  it 
was  easily  to  be  dealt  with  as  a  simple  matter  of  expediency.  Accord- 
ingly they  recoinniciided  that  the  elected  members  who  were  thus  sitiialed 
should  not  be  iillowi-d  to  take  ilicir  seats  until  their  former  sentciicps 
should  be  reversed  by  parliament,  and  there  w;is  of  eoursi;  neither  dilfi- 
culty  nor  delay  experienced  in  passing  a  short  act  to  that  especial  ilVect. 
This  doubt  as  to  the  members  of  parliament,  however,  led  to  a  still  morn 
ini|)()rtaiit  one.  Hetiry  had  been  himself  jittaiiite.d.  But  lie  judges  very 
soon  solved  this  difiiculty  by  a  decision,  evidently  founded  upon  a  liinita- 
tion  of  lh(!  power  of  a  court  of  judicature  from  interfering  \»ith  the  .suc- 
cession; a  power  which,  if  such  court  possessed  it,  might  so  oficii  he 
shainefiilly  perverted  i>y  a  bad  king  to  the  injury  of  an  obnoxious  heir  to 
the  throne.  The  judges  therefore  put  end  to  this  tpiestioii  by  tieeiiliiij; 
"  that  the  crown  dikes  away  all  defects  and  stops  in  blood  ;  and  that  frDiii 
the  time  that  the  king  assumed  the  royal  autlidriiy,  the  ftMnitain  was  clear- 
ed,  and  all  attaints  anil  corrimtions  of  bU)tu\  did  cease."  A  decision,  licit 
remarked,  far  more  remarkable  for  its  particular  justict;  than  for  its  logical 
correctiU'HS. 

I''in(!iiig  the  jiarliament  so  diilifidly  inclined  to  obey  his  will,  the  kinj; 
in  his  opening  speech  insisted  upon  both  his  hereditary  right  and  u[iom  Ins 
"victory  over  his  enemies."  The  entail  and  the  crown  was  drawn  in 
r()ual  accordance  with  the  king's  anxiety  to  avoid  such  speeiiil  asseriioii 
on  any  one  of  his  groundH  orehnin  as  slioidd  bcealenlated  to  lireed  ilis|iii 
tati(m;  no  mention  was  made  of  the  princess  Kli/abeth,  and  the  crown 
was  settled  absohilely  and  in  geiierrl  terms  upon  the  king  and  the  lieirJ  j( 
his  body- 
It  forms  a  rennukablc  nontrast  to  the  general  reserve  and  astuteness  ii( 
the  king,  that  he,  as  if  not  content  with  all  the  saiuiions  by  which  he  had 
iilreaily  fortified  his  possession  of  the  crown,  now  applied  to  the  pojic  for 
U  eoiillrn)llig  bull.  This  application,  besides  lieiiiu  liable  l<i  objection  a  iil' 
'inpolillc  concession  to  the  mi.sulnevous  and  nnd)ing  anxu'ty  of  Koiiic  I 


the  ( 
cans 

llOllli 

Ml 

Ills 
aiiiJii, 
lo  »| 

IHcl', 

narro 

"prici 

niieiui 

Unl 

•y"« 

iransa 

peace 

twonl 

I'he 

iessioi 

CJUIIl 

ivere 

*hici 

A.  i> 

"•pons 


II 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


■119 


interfere  in  the  temporal  affairs  of  nations,  was  still  farther  iini)0.itic  as 
ghowing,  what  Henry  ought  of  all  things  the  most  cautiously  to  liave  con- 
cealed, his  own  misgivnip  as  to  his  title.  Innocent  VIII.,  the  then  pope, 
was  delighted  to  gratify  Henry  and  to  interfere  in  his  temporal  concerns, 
and  he  immediately  obliged  him  with  a  hull  in  which  all  Henry's  titles  to 
the  crown  were  enumerated  and  sanctioned,  and  in  which  excommunica- 
tion was  denounced  against  all  who  should  disturb  Henry  in  his  possession, 
or  his  heirs  in  their  succession. 

It  consisted  at  once  with  justice  and  with  sound  policy  that  Honry  should 
reverse  the  numerous  attainders  whicli  had  been  passird  against  tiic  Lancas- 
trians. But  he  went  still  farther,  and  caused  his  obsequious  parliament 
to  pass  attainders  against  the  deceased  Richard,  the  duke  of  Norfolk,  the 
earl  of  Surrey,  the  viscount  Lovel,  the  lords  Ferrard  of  Chaitlos,  and  up- 
wards of  twenty  otlier  gentlemen  of  note.  Tiiere  was  a  sonietliingof  the 
absurd  added  to  very  mucli  of  tiie  tyrannical  in  these  sweeping  attainders. 
Ricliard,  usurper  though  he  was,  nevertheless  was  king  de  factn,  and  those 
against  whom  these  attainders  were  passed  thus  fought  /((r  the  ktm;,  and 
against  the  carl  of  Kiciimond,  who  iiad  not  theti  assutncd  the  title  of  king. 
The  attainders  were  fartiier  impolitic  because  they  greatly  tended  to 
weaken  the  confidence  of  the  people  in  the  total  ol)livion  of  the  qnarrels 
of  the  roses;  to  which  confidence  Henry  ought  to  have  been  mindful  that 
lie  owed  no  small  portion  of  security  and  popularity. 

Though  Henry  did  not  deem  it  expedient  to  add  to  the  numerous  de- 
mands he  had  so  successfnlly  made  upon  tills  obsequious  parliament,  it 
volunliirily  confiJrred  upon  him  the  perpetuity  of  tonn;ige  and  [louiidiige, 
which  had  b(!en  just  as  complacently  eonferrcii  upon  the  deceased  Itlcliard. 
By  way  of  compensation  for  the  spiteful  severity  witii  which  he  had  treat- 
ed the  leading  Irleiuls  of  ilie  deceased  kinir.  Henry  now  proehiimed  grace 
and  pardon  to  all  who  should  by  a  certain  d.iy  take  the  oaths  of  fiMlly  and 
alU-jfiance  to  him.  Hut  when  the  earl  of  Surrey,  among  the  multitude 
whom  thisproelamaiion  drew  from  their  saiictiiarles,  prt^sented  himself  to 
the  king,  he  was,  instead  of  being  received  to  <rraee,  immediately  eominit- 
ted  to  the  Tower,  liesidea  rewarding  his  iiiiinediat(!  supporters  by  cre- 
ating Chandos  of  Hrittany,  e;irl  of  llaili ;  Sir  (Jlles  Daubeny,  I<oril  Diiu- 
beiiy;  and  Sir  Uobert  Wiilonghliy,  l<oril  Uroke ;  the  king  bestowrd  upon 
the  duke  of  Uuckingham,  who  so  fiitally  to  himself  had  embraced  Henry's 
cause,  a  sort  of  poslliumous  reward  In  milking  resiltiitlon  of  the  family 
lioiiours  and  gnial  wealth  to  KdwiM  I  SialVunl,  the  duke's  eldest  son. 

.Morton,  who  had  so  ably  ami  under  such  perilous  eircnmstanees  proved 
his  friendship  to  Henry,  was  resto,  d  to  the  lilshoprie  of  Kly,  and  lie  and 
another  clergyman.  Fox,  now  made  hlHliop  of  Kxeter,  were  the  ministers 
to  whom  Henry  gave  his  chief  eonlideiiie.  Ilnine  thinks  that  Henry's 
preference  of  elerles  to  laics,  as  his  eonli.leiiliiil  advisers,  arose  from  his 
narrow  and  caleiil.iliiig  turn,  their  proiniptioii  from  poorer  to  richer  bish- 
iipries  all'ordlng  liiiii  the  means  of  stimulating  and  rewarding  their  zeal  less 
mieioiisly  to  hmi!>eir  than  ('onhl  have  been  the  case  with  laymen  of  rank. 
Hut  Hume  seems  here  to  have  laid  a  somewhat  undue  weiuhl  upon  Wcw- 
•y"s  general  eharaeler,  and  so  to  have  mistaken  his  motives  to  a  partienlur 
iransiictlon:  Henry,  though  personally  brave,  was  emphatleally  a  lover  of 
.leaee;  he  preferred  the  eoiupiesl  of  the  iiilelleel  to  the  coiiipiesl  of  the 
sword.  He  was  himself,  so  to  speak,  intellectually  of  a  clerical  nmiild. 
riie  learnii  i;  and  the  intelleilual  mastery  of  the  ilay  wi'ri'  ehlelly  in  pos- 
(esslmi  of  the  clergy;  and  we  need  look  im  dei  per  llian  that  fai't  to  ac- 
cjunt  for  Ins  preference  of  them,  that  fiel  snfliiiently  proving  that  they 
ivere  best  adapted  to  the  eauliuiis,  lortiKMis,  tlKinghtfiil,  and  deep  pidity 
ivhieh  lie  from  llii^  first  determined  to  follow. 

A.  i>.  Mrtti. — Henry's  eniphatie  declaration  of  his  unaltered  intention  to 
Aspnuse  the  princess  Klizabeth  did  not  wholly  quiet  the  aDprchensions  of 


t     :> 


i?0 


THE  TllKASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


ilie  people  upon  that  head.  The  parliumeiit,  even  when  showing  its  trim 
fulness  or  him  and  its  zeal  for  his  pleasure  in  granting  jjini  the  tonnaK>! 
and  poundage,  expressed  strong  wishes  upon  the  subject;  and  though  they 
concealed  their  real  motives  under  a  general  declaration  of  their  desire 
that  they  siiould  have  heirs  to  succeed  him,  his  own  comparative  youth 
must  have  sufliced  tu  convince  so  astute  a  person  tliat  the  parliament  had 
other  and  stronger  reasons  for  its  anxiety.  This  very  conviction,  how- 
ever, was  but  an  additional  reason  for  his  hastening  to  comply  ;  and  the 
nuptials  were  now  celebrated  with  a  pomp  and  luxury  surpassing  even 
those  which  had  marked  his  coronation.  The  joy  of  the  people  was  con- 
.spicuously  greater  in  the  former  than  it  iiad  b(;en  in  llu  'dlter  .taso  ;  r.iid  to 
tiie  brooding  and  anxiously  suspicious  niii\d  of  Henry  tiiiti  new  and  plain  in- 
dication of  the  warmtii  of  affection  with  which  the  liouse  of  York  was  still 
looked  upon  by  a  great  portion  of  liis  subjects,  was  to  tiie  iiiglicst  degree 
painful  and  offensive.  Publicly  his  policy  prevented  tliis  from  appe;iring, 
but  in  his  domestic  life  it  caused  him  to  treat  tlu!  queen  with  a  haishnetis 
and  coldness  which  her  amiable  temper  and  the  extreme  K\ibmissiveness 
of  her  bearing  towards  her  husband  by  no  means  appear  to  have  deserved 
Soon  after  his  marriage  Henry  determined  to  make  a  progress  through 
the  northern  counties,  in  tiie  view  of  awing  some  and  concilialing  tiic  rest 
of  the  partizans  of  the  late  king  and  his  house,  who  were  more  numerous 
in  that  part  of  the  kingdom  tiian  elsewhere.  He  had  already  reached  Not- 
tingiiam  when  he  received  information  that  Sir  Humphrey  Stafford,  his 
brother,  and  the  viscount  Lovel  had  loft  the  sanctuary  at  Colchester,  in 
which  they  had  found  shelter  since  the  battle;  of  Hosworth  field.  Unheed- 
ing, or  at  any  rate  not  fearing  tiie  consequences  of  this  movement,  he  con- 
tinued Ins  progress  to  York,  where  lie  learneil  lliat  Visiionnt  Lovel,  with  a 
force  three  or  four  thousand  sirong,  was  marching  to  York,  wliile  i^nothet 
army,  under  Sir  Humphrey  Stafford  and  iiis  brother,  was  iiasti'iiing  to  be 
siege  Worcester.  The  uprising  of  such  enemies  at  the  very  nioinep 
when  he  was  in  the  centre  of  precisely  tliat  part  of  Knjjiand  which  was 
the  mo.sl  disaffected  to  him  miglit  have  paralysed  an  ohhiiary  mind  ;  but 
the  rt'sinirces  of  Henry's  intelli^et  and  courage  rose  in  ai-cordaiK-e  willi 
the  demands  on  them.  The  mere  retinue  witli  which  lie  travelleil  formed 
no  mean  nucleus  of  an  army,  and  he  actively  and  succes.sfully  eng.iged 
himself  in  adding  tj  their  numbers.  The  force  thus  raised  was  of  ncces 
sity  ill  found  in  either  arms  or  the  munilions  of  war ;  and  Henry  therefore 
charged  the  duke  Hetlford,  to  whom  he  entrusted  the  chiif  coinniand,  to 
avoid  any  instant  general  en;,'agemeiit,  and  to  ilevoli;  his  chief  e.verlioii.i 
to  weakening  Loved  by  seducing  his  adherents  liy  promises  of  p.irdoii. 
Tills  ptdicy  was  even  more  snccessful  than  Henry  could  have  anticipatcil. 
Conscious  of  the  great  effect  wlii(di  the  king's  oilers  were  likely  to  pro- 
dnee  upon  rude  inmils,  already  by  no  means  zealous  in  the  cause  which 
(hey  had  embraced,  Lovel  was  so  lerrifieil  with  tiie  tliimght  of  being  aban- 
doiieil,  and  perhaps  even  made  prisoner  by  his  niolley  levy,  thai  he  fiiirly 
ran  away  from  his  troops,  and  after  some  dilUciilty  escaped  to  Flaiulrra, 
where  he  was  sheltered  by  the  duchess  of  Iturguiidy.  Aliandoiied  by  lliilr 
lender.  Lovel'^  troops  gladly  siihmilled  to  the  king  in  ai'cord.ince  with  his 
(lifers  of  mercy  ;  and  the  utter  fiilnre  of  this  liraneh  of  tlu;  revolt  so  terri- 
fied the  revolted  who  were  befori!  Woreesler,  thill  lliey  hastily  raised  llie 
»ifigi'  of  that  place  and  ihspersed.  The  .StalVonis,  llnis  deserted  by  llieir 
troops  :ind  unable  to  find  iiisliinl  me;iiiH  of  escaping  beyond  si'a,  took  shel- 
ter in  the  (dinrcli  of  Colnliam,  near  Abingdon.  It  turned  out,  however, 
that  this  cliureh  was  one  wliieh  did  not  possess  the  right  of  saiietnary,  and 
the  iiiiforlnnate  Stiilfords  were  dragijeil  forth.  The  elder  was  exeeiiteil 
as  a  traitor  anil  rebel  at  Tyburn;  the  younger  was  pardoned  (ui  Ihr  grniiu  I 
of  Ins  having  lieeii  misled  by  his  idder  hrotlier,  who  was  presume  I  to  li  r.r 
It  (/u(i.(i  ptiturnal  infliieneu  over  his  mind. 


still 
prna 
Tl 
Willi 
reina 
ill  que 

iilnOMn 

lllP;isii 

prelci 

bcrl 

srre.ii 

'l(iiiht( 

I'lersoii 

U'hose 

''ceoim 

fully 

vailed 

llMll  S(i 
•"COIlj 

illslnie 
If"  Won 
•f  that 
'lis  liisk 
;>oliiis  I 
l;ave  (•„ 
ih.n  shr 


THE  TKKASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


431 


H  tru»t 

•  desire 

youth 
cut  had 
11,  how- 
and  the 
)g  even 
.■ilS  coii- 
;  iv.iJ  to 
plain  in- 
was  still 
I  degree 
)pe;\ring, 
larshnesb 
ssiveness 
deserved 
3  tlirough 
g  the  rest 
numerous 
clied  Not- 
ifford,  his 
•\iesler,  in 
Unheed- 
lU,  he  eon- 
,v(d,  with  a 
ile  I'.nolhe* 
iiing  to  he 
ry  nroniei' 
vvhieli  was 

mind ;  hm 
liinre  willi 
lied  formed 

ly  engaged 
lis  of  nict'S 
|ry  llicrefore 

iinmand,  to 

f  exerlioii.s 
,)f  piirdoii- 

;m\ici|>att'd. 

ely  H>  1»"- 
■iiuse  which 
\,fing  abiUi- 
hal  he  fairly 
U)  I'landrrs, 
„„.,\  liy  ilii;r 
Hire  Willi  Ins 
voU  HO  lerri- 
Iv  raised  tin' 
rled  hv  ihfir 
].;i,  took  sliil- 
Lit,  however, 
liictiiary,  n"'' 
I'as  exi'iiili'l 

Fill  ituglOUU'l 

liiniel  loh.i^'i 


To  the  joy  which  the  dissipation  of  this  threatening  revo.t  diflfused 
among  the  friends  of  Henry  was  now  added  that  excited  by  the  delivery 
of  the  queen  of  a  son  and  heir,  on  whom  was  conferred  the  name  of  Ar 
Ihur,  both  in  eompliment  to  the  infant's  principality  of  Wales,  and  in  allu 
sion  to  the  pretended  descent  of  the  Tudors  from  the  far-famed  Prince 
Arthur 

The  success  of  the  king  \n  putting  an  end  to  the  late  revolt  had  arisen 
chiefly  from  the  incapacity  of  Lovcl  for  the  tisk  he  had  ventured  to  under- 
take ;  and  there  was  still  a  strong  under-current  of  ill-feeling  towards  tlin 
king,  to  which  he  was  daily,  though,  perhaps,  unconsciously,  adding 
strength.  To  the  vexation  caused  by  Henry's  evident  Lancastrian  feeling, 
as  manifested  by  his  severities  to  men  of  the  opposite  party,  and  espe- 
cially by  his  stern  and  harsh  treatment  of  the  qneen,  much  more  vexation 
.  was  caused  by  the  sufferings  of  manv  principal  Yorkists  from  the  resump- 
tion by  the  crown  of  all  grants  macie  by  princes  of  the  house  of  York. 
This  resumption  was  made  by  Henry  upon  what  appears  really  to  have 
been  the  just  plea  that  it  was  absolutely  necessary  for  the  remedy  of  the 
great  and  mischievous  impoverishment  of  the  crown.  This  plea  has  all 
the  more  appearance  of  sincerity  from  the  fact  that  by  the  very  same  law 
all  the  grants  made  during  the  later  years  of  Henry  VI.  were  resumed; 
"  resumption  which  injured  not  Yorkists  but  Lancastrians.  But  losing 
i  are  rarely  reasonable  men ;  and  as  the  balance  and  injury  was  heavi- 
on  the  side  of  the  Yorkists,  they  savy  in  this  a  new  proof  of  the  Lan- 

..sirian  prejudice  of  Henry,  which  had  caused  him  to  imprison  in"  Ju- 
lius' bloody  tower,"  in  the  very  plai-e  where  his  unfortunate  cousin  had 
been  butchered,  the  young  oarl  of  Warwick.  Faction  is  deprived  of  none 
of  its  virulence  or  activity  by  the  admixture  of  pecuniary  interests ;  and 
tliose  who  were  injured  by  the  resumption  of  grants  were  not  ill  disposed, 
events  soon  proved,  to  countenance,  at  the  least,  aught  that  promised 
injure  the  gaoler  of  the  earl  of  Warwick,  and  the  harsh  spouse  of  the 
iirincrss  of  the  house  of  York,  who,  merely  beoansn  she  was  such,  was 
Btill  uncrowned,  though  the  mother  of  a  prince  of  Wales,  and  wholly  irre- 
proachable whether  as  queen,  wife,  or  mother. 

Tlie  great  and  growing  unpopularity  of  Henry's  government  combined 
with  other  circumstances  to  suggest  to  a  priest  of  Oxford  ono  of  the  most 
remarkable  and  audacious  impostures  recorded  in  our  history.  The  priest 
in  question,  Richard  Siiinin,  well  knowing  how  slroiiR  the  Yorkist  feelinw 
among  the  peoiilc  was  rendered  by  th(^  king's  unpopular  manners  and 
niPasiircs,  formed  apian  for  disturbing  Henry  by  bringing  forward,  as  a 
pretender  to  the  crown,  a  very  handsome  and  graceful  youth  named  Lam- 
bert Siinnel.  This  youth,  though  Ih!  was  only  the  son  of  a  baker,  added 
*rr;it  shrewdness  and  address  to  his  extern. il  advantages;  and  Simon 
lioiilitcd  not,  by  careful  iimtrnction,  of  being  able  to  form  this  yoiilli  to 
personiite  liichard,  duke  of  York,  llie  younger  of  the  murdered  princes, 
whose  escape  from  the  Tower  and  from  the  fate  of  his  elder  brother  had 
liccoinc  a  matter  of  rather  <'xlensive  belief  Hut  while  Simon  was  care- 
fully giving  young  Sjinnel  the  necessury  insiriictioiis  and  information  to 
I'liiiiiie  liim  ti)  siijiport  ijie  part  of  tin-  duke  of  York,  a  new  rumour  jire- 
viiilcd  that  the  earl  of  Warwick  lia<l  escaped  from  llie  Tower.  "On  this 
liiiil  spitke  the  prii'st ;"  the  name  of  ihe  e;.fl  of  W  irwick  would  he  as  good 
!<>  conjure  with  as  that  of  Hiclmnl,  duke  of  York  and  Simnel  was  now 
instructed  in  all  such  [larticiilars  of  tlic  life  and  i.i  ily  of  yoniig  Warwick 
IS  wiMild  hi>  ncecHsary  to  enable  liiiii  to  hear  Ihe  i"  I'siiouiiig  ol'the  frieiuU 

•f  that  family,  .'^o  I'xecllenlly  was  the  young  impostor  "crammed,"  for 
'us  lask,  HO  well  informed  did  he  aflerw'inls  iippcar  to  be  upon  certain 
;i(»iiitH  of  the  private  Insiory  of  the  royal  family,  that  I'oiild  by  no  mcaui 
i;ave  come  within  ihe  observation  of  an  olisciire  priest  like  Ins  inslrncior, 
llial  shrewd  Huspicions  were  eiileriaincij  that  certain  of  the  royal  I'uiiiily  c' 


423 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


York  must  themselves  have  aided  in  preparing  the  youth  for  his  mission 
of  imposture.  The  qufcn  dowager  was  among  the  personages  tlius  sus- 
pected. She  and  her  dauglUer  were  both  very  unkindly  treated  by  Henry, 
and  the  dowager  was  precisely  of  that  busy  and  aspiring  turn  of  mind 
which  would  render  neglect  and  forced  inaction  sufficiently  offensive  to 
prompt  the  utmost  anger  and  injury  ;  and  she  might  safely  promote  the 
views  of  the  impostor  in  the  first  place,  in  the  full  confidence  of  being  able 
to  crush  him  whensoever  he  should  have  sufficiently  served  the  views  of 
herself  and  of  her  party. 

Aware  that,  after  all  the  pains  he  had  taken  to  prepare  the  apt  mind  of 
his  promising  young  pupil,  m;iny  chances  of  discovery  would  exist  in  Eng. 
land  which  would  be  avoiiled  by  commencing  their  nefarious  proceedings 
at  a  distant  ,  Simon  determined  to  lay  the  opening  scene  of  his  fraudulent 
drama  in  Ireland.  In  that  island  Warwick's  father,  the  late  duke  of  Clar- 
ence, was  remembered  witli  the  utmost  affection  on  account  of  his  per- 
sonal character,  as  well  as  of  his  many  pubhc  acts  of  justice  and  wisdom 
while  he  had  been  governor.  The  same  public  officers  now  held  their  sit- 
uations there  who  had  done  so  under  Clarence,  and  under  so  many  favour- 
able circumstances  Simon,  probably,  could  not  better  have  chosen  the 
scene  of  ihe  first  act  of  his  elaborate  and  very  impudent  imposture. 

Henry,  on  getting  the  alarming  intelligence  from  Dublin,  consulted  '.vith 
his  ministers,  and  among  the  first  measures  taken  was  thai  of  seizing  upon 
all  the  propiTty  of  the  queen  dowager,  and  closely  cinifining  her  in  the 
nunnery  of  Hermoinlsey.  Tins  rigorous  treatment  of  the  queen  dowager, 
occurring,  too,  at  this  particular  time,  seems  to  leave  no  doubt  that  she 
had  l)(!en  discovered  to  have  inaleri.illy  aided  the  im[)osture  of  Simon  and 
Siinnel.  The  alledged  reason  of  the  king  for  thus  severely  dealing  with 
one  with  whom  he  was  so  closely  connected,  was  her  having  shown  so 
mucli  favour  to  the  deceascii  tyrant  Richard,  as  to  place  herself  and  her 
daughters  in  his  powiT  when  she  was  safe  within  lier  sanctuary,  and  to 
consent  to  his  marriage  with  the  princess  Klizalietli.  Hut  it  was  quite 
cl(Mr  to  every  man  of  discernment,  that  the  king's  subsequent  marriage  to 
the  princess  was  a  complcie  condonation  of  all  that  ImcI  previously  pa.ssed 
between  liim  and  the  dowager  which  could  materially  off(!iid  him:  nor 
was  he  of  a  temper  so  long  to  have,  suffered  his  avarict'  and  hisvengeunce 
to  remain  in  abi'yaiice,  had  that  really  been  llii!  ground  of  his  otrence. 
That  he  disliked,  not  to  say  haled,  his  motlier-iii-law,  had  long  been  cer- 
tain ;  and  it  seems  no  less  so,  from  his  pn^seut  proceeding  with  respect 
to  her,  that  he  now  hail  iliscovtTcd  reason  to  fear  her,  as  being  important- 
ly aiding  and  abetting  in  an  imposture,  which  had  been  emiiienily  suci'(>s9- 
ful  in  Ireland,  and  which  he  was  by  no  me.ms  sure  «ou!d  not  be  eipially 
so  ill  l''nglaiid.  Having  secnridy  guarded  against  any  future  mischief  fiiiin 
the  ([ueeii  dowager,  by  thus  consigning  her  to  a  poverty  and  seclusion 
which  termiiiat(!d  only  with  her  life,  the  king  now  gave  his  Knglisli  siil). 
jccis  the  very  best  possible  proof  of  the  impnulence  and  filstdiood  of  Sim- 
nel's  assumptiim  of  the  title  and  (•haractiir  of  the  earl  of  Warwick,  by  pro- 
ducing that  unfortunate  young  nobleman  himself  at  St.  Paul's,  and  caus- 
ing many  jiersons  of  rank  who  had  intimately  known  him  to  have  free 
conversation  with  him;  aiiil  thus  not  only  demonstrate  tliat  the  preteii- 
■KMis  of  Siinnel  were  false,  but  also  that  they  were  even  founded  upon  ii 
false  report,  the  earl's  escape  from  the  Tower,  which  Simon  and  his  abet- 
tors h.  I  tiio  hastily  believed  on  the  strength  of  popular  rumour,  never  hav- 
iiiB  actually  taken  place. 

In  liOiidon  and  in  Kngland  generally  this  judicious  measilre  was  com 
pletely  decisive  of  the  popular  belief,  and  all  who  were  acipiainted  with 
ihe  king's  tortuous  mind,  easily  miderstooil  that  he  hiinsclf  hadcaiiseil  tin 
rumour  of  the  young  earl's  escape,  for  the  purpose  of  saving  himself  I'niir 


wit 

and 

m(<r 

of  I 

els. 

mail 

visc( 

also 

supp 

and 

life 

der  i 

his.' 

kill 

pric' 

nuiii 

falc 

tauie 


THE  TREA8UEY  OP  HISTORY. 


423 


Seiiig  importuned  to  relea:ie  him,  and  also  to  prevent  any  plots  being 
formed  for  that  purpose. 

Henry's  bold  temper  would  probably  have  prompted  him  to  go  over  to 
Ireland,  carrying  with  him  the  real  Warwiclt.  But,  in  the  first  place,  he 
knew  that  the  consummate  assurance  of  Simon  and  his  friends  had  led 
them,  even  after  the  imposture  liad  become  a  mere  mockery  in  England, 
to  protest  that  the  real  Warwick  was  the  youth  in  their  compaiy,  and  that 
the  Warwick  whom  Henry  had  so  ostentatiously  produced  w  is  tiic  only 
impostor.  And,  in  the  next  place,  Henry  from  day  to  day  had  i  iformation 
which  made  it  quite  certain  that  too  many  powerful  people  in  England 
were  his  enemies,  and  inclined  to  aid  the  impostor,  to  render  it  safe  for 
him  to  be  absent  from  the  kingdom  for  even  a  brief  space  of  time.  He 
therefore  resolved  to  await  the  farther  proceedings  of  the  impostor,  and 
contented  himself  with  levying  troops,  which  he  placed  under  the  com- 
mand of  the  duke  of  Bedford  and  the  earl  of  Oxford,  and  throwing  into 
confinement  the  marquis  of  Dorset,  not  on  account  of  any  actual  overt  act, 
but  lest  he  should  be  inclined  to  treason  by  the  hard  measure  which  had 
been  dealt  out  to  his  mother,  the  queen  dowager. 

Having  pretty  nearly  worn  out  their  welcome  in  Ireland,  and  having,  be- 
sides numerous  Irish  adventurers,  been  supplied  by  the  dowager  duchess 
of  Burgundy  witii  about  two  thousand  veteran  Germans  headed  by  a  vet- 
eran commander,  Martin  Schwartz,  Simon  and  Simncl  made  a  landing  at 
Foudrey,  in  Lancashire,  not  doubling  that  the  Yorkists,  whom  thoy  knew 
to  be  so  numerous  in  the  northern  coi.hties,  would  join  them  in  great  num- 
bers. In  this  respect  they  were  grievously  disappointed.  The  well  known 
courage  and  conduct  of  tiie  king,  the  general  impression  even  among  the 
Yorkisvs  of  England  that  Simnel  was  a  mere  impostor,  and  the  excellent 
military  arrangements  and  large  military  force  of  the  king,  caused  the  in- 
habitants of  the  northern  counties  either  to  look  on  passively  or  to  mani- 
fest their  loyalty  ^y  joining  or  supplying  tlie  royal  army. 

John,  earl  of  Lincoln,  son  of  .lohn  de  la  Pole,  duke  of  Suffolk,  and  ol 
Elizabeth,  eldest  sister  of  Edward  IV.,  had  for  some  time  past  been  resid- 
ing with  the  king's  bitter  enemy,  the  dowager  duchess  of  Burgundy ;  and 
he  now  appeared  at  the  head  of  the  mingled  crew  of  impostors,  rebels,  and 
their  foreign  and  hireling  mercenaries.  Tiiis  nobleman  perceiving  that 
nothing  was  to  be  hoped  from  any  general  rising  of  the  people  in  favour 
of  the  pseudo  earl  of  Warwick,  resolved  to  put  the  fate  of  tlii!  cause  upon 
the  issue  of  a  general  action.  The  king  was  equally  ready  to  give  l)attle, 
and  the  hostile  forces  at  length  met  at  Stoke,  in  Nottinghamshire.  'I'lie 
rebels,  conscious  that  they  fought  with  halters  around  their  necks,  fought 
with  proportionate  desperation.  The  action  was  long  ai\d  sangniniiry; 
and  though  it  at  length  terminated  in  favour  of  the  king,  his  loss  was  far 
mere  extensive  than  could  have  been  expected,  considering  his  advaiilaBC 
of  numbers  and  the  ability  of  his  officers.  TUv  loss  on  l\w  siile  of  the  rel)- 
els,  also,  was  very  great.  The  earl  of  Lincoln.  Uroiigliton,  and  the  (Jer- 
man,  Schwartz,  were  among  (out  thousaml  slain  on  (liat  side;  anil  as  the 
viscount  Lovel,  the  runaway  of  the  fornuT  and  less  saiiguiinry  ri'voll,  who 
alsd  took  a  part  in  this,  was  missing  and  never  afterwards  li^'ard  of,  it  was 
supposed  that  he,  too,  was  among  lh(!  slain.  Both  the  impi  stor  Sjninel 
and  his  tutor  Snnon  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  king.  The  pr  est  owimI  his 
lif(^  to  his  clerical  character,  but  was  seiilence'l  to  pass  the  whole  reniain- 
der  of  it  in  conflnemeiit ;  and  Henry,  both  niercifiilly  anil  wisely,  signified 
his  eoiileiu|)t  of  the  boy  Siinind,  liy  making  lijni  a  scullion  in  the  royal 
kilrhen.  In  this  capacity,  better  suited  to  his  origin  than  llie  part  the 
priest  had  so  uselessly  (aught  him  to  play.  Simnel  ciiiiihu'ted  himself  so 
numbly  and  satisfactorily,  that  he  was  afterwards  a(lv;iiic('d  lo  the  rank  of 
falconer,  a  rank  at  that  time  very  far  higher  than  could  ordinarily  be  at- 
(uned  bv  one  so  humbly  born. 


Vi4 


THE  TREASUHY  OF  HIsrOH-Y. 


Having  freed  himself  from  a  danger  wliLcK  had  at  one  time  been  nf  d 
Httle  alarmiiij}',  Henry  now  turned  his  attention  towards  making  it,  as-^e 
loved  to  make  everything,  a  source  of  profit.  Few  perished  on  the  scaf- 
fold for  this  revolt,  but  vast  numbers  were  heavily  fined  for  having  taken 
part  in  it.  And  lest  the  mulcture  of  actual  combatants  should  not  suffi- 
ciently enrich  tlie  royal  treasury,  Henry  caused  ail  to  be  fined  who  were 
proved  to  have  given  circulation  to  a  rumour,  which  had  somehow  got 
into  circuhiiion  before  the  battle  of  Stoke,  that  the  rebels  were  victorious, 
and  tiial  Henry  himself,  after  seeing  his  friends  cut  to  pieces,  had  only 
secured  his  safety  by  flight.  To  our  modern  notions,  the  mere  crediting 
and  reporting  of  such  a  statement  seems  to  be  somewhat  severely  pun- 
ished by  heavy  pecuniary  fine ;  but  Henry  perhap.s,  thought  that  in  most 
of  the  cases  "the  wish  was  father  to  tlie  thought,"  and  that  many  who 
had  given  circulation  to  the  report  would  not  have  been  violently  grieved 
had  it  turned  out  to  be  "prophetic,  though  not  true." 

Warned  by  much  that  had  reached  his  cars  during  the  absurd  and  mis- 
chievous career  of  Sininel,  Henry  now  determined  to  remove  at  least  one 
cause  of  dissatisfaction,  by  having  the  queen  crowned.  This  was  accord- 
ingly done  ;  and  to  render  the  ceremony  the  more  acceptable  to  the  peo- 
ple in  general,  but  especially  to  the  Yorkists,  Henry  graced  it  by  giving 
liberty  to  the  young  marquis  of  Dorset,  sou  of  the  queen  dowagej;. 


CHAPTER  XXXVn. 

TUB    RRIGN  OF  HGNRV    VII.    (CONTINUED.) 

A.  D.  1488. — Henrv's  steadfast  .ityle  of  administering  the  affairs  of  his 
kingdom,  and  the  courage,  conduct,  and  facility  with  which  he  had  de- 
livered iiiniself  from  the  (hmgerous  plots  and  revolts  by  which  he  had  been 

hreateiied,  acquired  him  mucli  consideration,  out  of  his  own  dominions 
as  well  as  in  them.  Of  this  fact  he  was  well  aware,  and  internal  peace 
now  siMMiiing  to  be  permanently  secured  to  hirn,  he  prepared  to  exert  his 
influence  abroad. 

Tlie  geographical  circumstances  of  Scotland  rendered  it  inevitable,  that 
so  long  as  that  kingdom  remained  politicidly  indepc  ndent  of  Kngland  the 
former  must  always  remain  either  an  open  and  troublesome  enemy,  or  an 
unsafe,  because  insincere,  friend  to  the  latter.  The  character  of  James 
HI.  ulio  now  filled  the  Scottish  throne,  was  precisely  of  that  easy  and 
indoleiit  c;ist  which,  whili!  it  encouraged  a  turbulent  nobility  to  wasste 
the  country  and  vex  tlu^  people,  would  have  encouraged  a  king  of  Knglanil 
addicted  to  war  and  conquest  nierely  for  their  own  sake,  toprosecuie  war 
with  Seotlainl  ni  the  assured  trust  of  making  a  final  and  ('om|)lete  conquest. 
Hut  Henry,  lliongh  he  could  look  with  nni)leni'hed  cheek  ii|)on  the  most 
sanguinary  battle-field,  was  ])rofonndly  sensible  of  the  blessings  of  peace. 
He  tli(  refore  now  sent  ambassadors  to  Scotland  to  propose  a  permanent 
and  luinorable  peace  between  the  two  countries.     .I.nmes  on  his  part  would 

lavc  well  liked  to  conclude  such  a  peace,  hut  bis  nobility  had  other  views, 

mil  all  that  came  of  this  embassy  was  a  somewhat  sullen  airrecment  for  a 
•  even  year's  truce;  but  it  must  have  been  eviilent  to  a  far  less  keen  ob- 
(•erver  than  Henry,  (hat  <'ven  that  tnice  would  b('  very  liki'ly  to  be  broken, 
lilioidil  the  breach  be  inv.ted  by  any  peculiarly  unfavourable  eircuinslances 
',n  the  situation  of  Kngland.  With  this  truce,  however,  sullen  and  insin- 
cere as  the  Scottish  tempiT  very  evidently  was,  Henry  determined  to  con- 
lent  himself;  and  from  Si'otland  he  now  turned  his  attention  to  France. 
FiOuis  \I.  was  some  time  dead,  and  his  son  and  heir  was  loo  yoiiiiij  for 

iile,<>|iei'ially  in  a  kiiigdnin  more  than  any  other  in  Kiirope  obnoxiou'  to 
disturbance  from   the  turbulence  and  ambition  of  powerful  vassals.      Hut 


and 

raisin 
ly  and 

So  C0( 

i)eeii 
ter— |] 
fact, 
eliaiic( 
upon  I 
lived 
iiui.st 
Was  ei 
:il\vay.> 
had  on 
oppres.' 
sheer i 
talil(! 
iie  con 
forbidd 
proceei 
flow  III 
keepin; 
deep  vi 
'M  a  sp( 


THE  TREASUllY  OF  HISTOllY. 


435 


iible.  tlial 
huiii  the 
|iiiy,  or  ;in 
of  Jiiiiies 
ciisy  iind 
to  \v;isln 

vuw  war 
fouqiu'st- 
\\u\  most 
of  |)f;ice. 
icrmaiKMil 
virl  \\o\\\i\ 
jhcrvit'ws, 
inciil  for  rt 
keen  ob- 
|\»i' broken . 
iiinslaiKes 
Bill!  iiisin- 
,r(\  to  <'on- 
rrimcP. 
yomm  f<'T 
liioxio"^  10 
isals.     But 


l,oiiis,  a  profound  judge  of  human  dispositions  and  talents,  had  well  provided 
for  the  juvenile  incapacity  of  his  son,  by  committing  the  care  of  the  king- 
dom, during  his  minority,  to  his  daughter  Anne,  lady  of  Beaujeu,  a  prin- 
cess of  masculine  talents  and  courage.  This  lady  became  involved  in 
many  and  serious  disputes  with  Brittany,  which  disputes  were  greatly 
fomented  by  the  duke  of  Orleans,  and  so  far  involved  France  with  other 
provinces,  that  at  this  time  the  lady  of  Beaujeu  felt  that  the  issue  of  the 
struggle  in  which  she  was  engaged,  greatly,  almost  enti'cly,  depended 
upon  the  part  which  might  be  taken  by  the  powerful,  prosperous,  and  sa- 
gacious king  of  England.  The  subjection  of  Brittany  by  France  seemed 
quite  certain  did  not  England  interfere  ;  and  Anne  of  Beaujeu  sent  am- 
bassadors to  England,  ostensibly  with  the  chief  purpose  of  congratulat- 
ing Henry  on  his  success  over  Simnel  and  the  partizans  of  that  misguid- 
ed youth.  The  real  purpose  of  this  embassy  was,  in  fact,  to  engage 
Henry  to  look  on  without  interfering,  while  his  benefactor,  the  duke  of 
Brittany,  should  be  plundered  of  his  territory.  Henry,  who  well  under- 
stood that,  and  who  really  wished  to  serve  the  duke  of  Brittany,  but  who 
mortally  hated  the  expense  of  war,  endeavoured  by  polity  and  mediation 
to  put  an  end  to  the  strife.  As  will  be  seen  in  the  history  of  France,  boti) 
mediation  and  warfare  were  tried  in  vain  until  the  year  1491,  when  the 
young  duchess  of  Rennos  being  besieged  in  Rennes  by  the  French,  was 
Bonipelled  to  surrender,  and  restored  the  duchy  to  peace  by  giving  her 
hand  to  the  French  monarch. 

Tliis  termination  of  ^.i  aftair  in  vvhicli  he  had  lost  the  benefit  of  much 
thought  and  money,  by  not  being  more  liberal  both  of  money  and  vigour, 
vexed  Henry  cxce  'igly;  bu  ,  with  a  most  philosophic  creed,  he  resolv- 
ed to  turn  even  •  /ailure  to  profit.  The  loss  of  independence  to  Brit- 
tany really  affec.a  Henry  very  deeply,  and  the  more  so  as  he  had  been 
in  some  sort  outgeneralled  by  Charles  VHI.  of  France.  But  it  was 
Henry's  care  to  a|)pear  more  deeply  hurt  than  he  really  was,  and  he  loud- 
ly and  |/assionately  declared  his  intention  to  go  to  war.  He  well  knew 
that  the  acquisition  of  Brittany  to  Fr.mce  was  to  the  last  degree  offensive 
to  the  people  of  England,  and  a  war  with  France  proportionally  popular, 
and  he  took  his  measures  accordingly.  He  issued  a  commission  for  the 
raising  of  a  benevolence,  which  species  of  tax  had,  however,  been  formal- 
ly and  positively  abolished  by  a  law  of  the  tyrant  Richard,  though  now 
so  coolly  laid  on  by  a  king  who  wolud  have  deemed  it  strange  had  he 
been  called  a  tyrant.  Of  the  extent  of  the  extortion — for  it  was  no  bet- 
ter—practised upon  this  occasion,  sonie  notion  may  be  formed  from  the 
fact,  that  London  alone  contributed  upwards  of  10,000/.  Morton,  the 
clianiu'llor,  and  now  archbisliop  of  Canterbury,  was  disgracefully  [jleasant 
upon  the  occasion,  directing  the  commissioners  to  take  no  excuse  ;  if  men 
livtii  liandsotuely  and  at  expense  it  was  only  fair  to  conclude  that  they 
must  he  wealthy,  and  if  they  lived  after  a  mean  and  miserable  fashion,  it 
was  eipMlly  sure  that  their  means  must  be  hoarded  !  The  dilemma  is  not 
always  a  figure  of  logic  even  for  a  chancellor  ;  the  archbishop's  dilemma 
h.id  one  horn  very  faulty,  for  it  is  quite  certain  that  badness  of  trade  and 
oppressiveness  of' taxation  might  m;:ke  many  a  man  live  meanly,  from 
sheer  necessity,  who,  nevertheless,  would  far  rather  have  furnished  his 
table  with  viands  than  his  .strong  bo.t  with  gold.  Having  raised  all  that 
he  could  by  way  of  benevolence,  that  is  to  say,  by  a  violence  expressly 
forbidden  by  a  law  made  even  during  the  reign  of  a  bad  king,  Henry  now 
proceeded  to  suminon  his  parliament  together,  for  the  purpose  of  seeing 
iiow  nineh  mon^  money  could  be  extracted  in  a  more  resjiilar  way.  Still 
Ueepinn  in  view  tlie  warlike  character  of  his  people,  and  their  recent  and 
deep  vexation  with  Kranee,  Henry  now  appealed  to  the  national  feelings 
'!)  a  spe(!ch  to  parliament,  which  is  so  ciirnms  a  specimen  of  the  art  of 
U'iii|{  eloquently  insincere,  that  we  transcribe  Hume's  summary  of  tlia 


4!26 


TliK  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


speech.  He  told  them  tlint  "  France,  elated  with  her  late  successes,  liad 
even  proceeded  to  a  contempt  to  England,  and  had  refused  to  pay  th»< 
tribute  which  Louis  XI.  had  stipulated  to  Kdward  IV. ;  that  it  oecame  so 
warlike  a  nation  as  tlie  Eiig^lish  to  be  roused  by  this  indignity,  and  not  to 
limit  tiicir  pretensions  merely  to  repelling  the  present  injury.  That  for 
his  part,  he  was  determined  to  lay  claim  to  the  crown  itself  of  France, 
and  to  maintain  by  force  of  arms  sojiist  a  title  transmitted  to  him  by  his  gal- 
lant ancestors.  That  Cressy,  Poitiers,  and  Agincourt  were  sufficient  to  in- 
struct them  in  their  superiority  over  the  enemy,  nor  did  he  despair  of  ad 
ding  new  names  to  the  glorious  catalogue.  That  a  king  of  France  had 
been  prisoner  in  London,  and  a  king  of  England  had  been  crowned  in 
Paris;  events  which  should  animate  them  to  an  emulation  of  like  glory 
with  that  which  had  'jeen  enjoyed  by  their  forefathers.  That  ihe  domes- 
tic dissensions  of  England  had  been  the  sole  cause  of  her  losing  these 
foreign  dominions,  and  tiiat  her  present  internal  union  would  be  the  effec- 
tual means  of  recovering  them ;  that  where  such  lasting  honour  was  in 
view,  and  such  an  important  acquisition,  it  became  not  brave  men  to  re- 
pine at  the  advance  of  a  little  treasure:  and  that,  for  his  part,  he  was 
determined  to  make  the  war  maintain  itself,  and  hoped  by  the  invasion  of 
so  opulent  a  kingdom  as  France,  to  increase  rather  than  to  diminish  the 
riches  of  the  nation." 

How  profoundly  Henry  seems  to  have  known  human  nature!  How 
skilfully  docs  he  a|)peal  to  the  vanity,  the  fierceness,  the  high 
courage,  and  the  cupidity  so  inherent  in  man's  heart!  "Warlike  na- 
tion," "just  title,''  "gallant  ancestors,"  "Cressy,  Poitiers,  and  Agin- 
court," "lasting  honour,"  and  "important  acquisition,"  how  admirably  are 
they  all  pressed  into  service,  in  the  precise  places  where  best  calculated  to 
aci  at  once  upon  the  good  and  the  evil  feelings  of  those  whom  he  addres- 
ses !  And  then,  with  what  a  sublime  contempt  of  all  filthy  lucre  does  he 
not  dehort  "  brave  men "  Irom  curing  about  "  the  advance  of  a  little 
treasure !" 

If  all  mcu  were  gifted  with  the  far  sight  of  La  Ftochefoucault  into  the 
human  heart,  perhaps  such  a  speech  as  this  of  Henry  would  defeat  itself 
by  the  very  excess  and  exquisitness  of  its  art.  Unt  all  men  are  not  so 
gifted,  and  never  was  man  belter  aware  of  that  fact  than  Henry  was.  He 
knew  the  instruments  lie  had  to  work  with,  and  he  worked  accordingly. 
Though  liiere  were  many  circumstances  in  the  state  of  I'lurope  whicli 
ougiit  to  have  made  the  parliament  chary  of  advancing  hard  cash  for  a 
war  with  l''rinice ;  though  that  country  was  strengthened  by  the  very  feu- 
dal ficfs  which  had  so  fafilly  weakened  it  when  ilie  gallant  ancestors  of 
Henry  had  deeply  dyed  with  French  blood  those  fatal  fields,  to  which 
Henry  so  proudly  and  so  efl^eciually  alluded  ;  thoug;h  even  on  the  very 
edge  (if  England,  to  wit,  in  Scotland,  a  new  and  warlike  monarch,  James 
IV.  had  succeeded  to  the  indolent  James  HI.  and  was  so  much  attached 
to  the  iiiicrests  of  France,  th-it  he  was  nearly  sure  to  evince  his  attach- 
ment by  making  war  on  England  whenever  Henry  should  lead  Hk^  Mower 
of  England's  forces  to  the  shores  of  France,  the  parliament  hailed  Henry's 
boasifnl  promises  with  delight.  Two  fifieenilis  were  readily  voted  to 
him,  anil  an  act  was  passed  to  enable  the  nobility  to  sell  their  estates;  hy 
which  Henry  accomplished  the  double  purpose  of  having  wciilthy  vcduntcers 
defray  many  unavoidabh;  expenses,  and  of  grt-ally  diminishing  tliat  liaro- 
nial  power  which  even  yet  trod  closely  npoii  the  kibes  of  Ei.glish  royally. 

A.  D.  1-llt','. — As  Henry  had  anticipated,  many  powerful  nobles,  inflaincd 
with  a  (leMrc  of  making  in  France  ricli  territorial  acquisitions,  such  us 
their  Nitrnitn  ati'estois  hail  made  in  England,  avaded  themselves  of  his 
politic  an,  and  sold  or  pawmd  their  bnMil  lands  to  raise  troops  for  the  in- 
vasion of  the  (Jaliii'  Dorado,  ."^c  widl,  in  shoit,  were  Henry's  well-fei;,'ni"l 
desires  seconded  that  on  the  Glhof  October  in  this  year,  he  was  enabled 


Hei 
ofi 


the  I 
The 
tera 
the  I 
quis 
him 
treat 
in  thi 
recei 
alteiii 
and 
poset 
feigni 
peace 
down 
might 
tions 
maint 
iSca 
cesjsfi 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


427 


to  land  at  Calais,  with  a  splendidly  equipped  army  of  twenty-five  thousand 
infantry  and  sixteen  iiundred  cavalry,  the  whole  c(nnnianded,  under  the 
king  himself,  by  the  earl  of  Oxford  and  the  duke  of  Bedford,  and  officered 
by  some  of  the  very  first  men  in  England.  Many  a  bright  vision  of 
avarice  and  of  nobler  ambition  was  dreamed  among  that  mighty  host ;  hut 
like  other  splendid  dreams,  they  were  as  fallacious  and  short  lived 
as  they  were  brdliant.  The  truth  is,  that,  nobly  as  the  kin^  hail  de- 
nounced wrath  to  France  and  promised  wealth  to  Kngland,  he  had  from 
the  very  first  not  the  slightest  intention  of  firing  a  gnu  or  drawing  a 
sword.  His  object  was,  snnply,  to  obtain  money;  the  only  sincere  part 
of  his  speech  was  that  in  which  he  professed  his  hope  of  making  the  war 
maintain  itself;  and  he  so  managed  the  affair,  witli  boih  friend  and  foe,  that 
he  really  did  make  the  war  not  only  pay  its  own  expenses,  but  uontrib.ite 
a  very  handsome  surplus  to  the  royal  treasury. 

It  was  whispered  among  shrewd  men.  that  October  was  a  singular  sea- 
son at  which  to  invade  Prance,  if  a  real  war  of  conquest  was  intended. 
Henry  heard  or  guessed  this  rumour,  and  he  hastened  to  contradict  it,  by 
professing  his  conviction  thiit  to  conquer  the  whole  of  France  would  not 
cost  him  a  whole  summer,  and  that  as  he  had  Calais  for  winter  quarters 
the  season  of  his  arrival  was  a  matter  of  perfect  indifference. 

Yet  at  the  very  lime  that  Henry  maile  this  boast,  which  would  have 
been  marvellously  silly  and  vain-glorious  had  it  not  been  entir(dy  insincere, 
and  made  only  for  an  especial  and  temporary  purpose,  a  secret  correspon 
dence  for  a  peace  had  for  some  time  been  carried  on  by  Henry  and  the 
king  of  France.  The  landing  of  Henry  in  France,  with  a  numerous  and 
well-appointed  army,  had,  as  he  had  foreseen,  grciilly  strengthened  the 
desire  for  peace  on  the  part  of  'lie  king  of  France,  and  commissioners 
were  now  very  speedily  appointed  to  s  'itle  the  terms. 

Any  other  man  but  Henry  would  have  been  much  puzzled  for  even 
plausible  reasons  by  which  to  acrcount  to  his  subjects  for  so  early  and  sud- 
denly agreeing  to  treat  for  peace,  after  making  such  magnificfcnt  promises 
of  a  war  of  actual  conquest;  promises,  loo,  which  had  caused  so  many  of 
his  subjects  very  larg(dy  to  invest  their  fortunes  in  his  service.  But  to 
Henry  this  was  no  difficult  matter.  He  had  represented  himself  as  sure 
of  large  aid  from  the  Low  Countries;  he  now  caused  Maximilian,  king  of 
(he  Romans,  to  send  to  inform  him  that  such  aid  could  not  then  be  fur- 
nished. Spain,  too,  was  at  war  with  PVance,  and  Spain  suddeiiiy  received 
the  counties  of  Rousillon  and  Cordagiie,  and  concluded  peace  with  France! 
These  alterations  in  the  state  of  affairs  would  naturally  suggest  some  al- 
teration in  the  proceedings  and  hopes  of  Henry!  He  gav(,'  full  time  for 
the  cinudation  of  the  news  through  his  camp,  and  then  he  caused  the  mar- 
quis of  Dorset,  and  numerous  other  nobles  in  his  confidence,  to  petition 
him  to  do  precisely  what  he  had  from  the  first  intended  to  do — to  make  a 
treaty  with  France!  Strangely  enough,  too,  they  were  made  to  allcdge 
in  their  petition,  that  very  lateness  of  the  season  which  the  king  had  so 
recently  affected  to  be  entirely  without  importance,  and  the  difficulties 
attendant  upon  the  seige  of  Boulogne,  which  he  had  only  just  commenced, 
and  which  no  one  with  a  partiide  of  common-sense  could  ever  have  sup- 
posed to  be  an  undertaking  without  its  difficulties!  Henry,  with  well- 
feigned  reluctance,  suffered  himself  to  be  persuaded ;  and  France  bought 
peace  by  the  payment  of  seven  hundred  aiul  forty-five  thousand  crowns 
down,  and  a  pension  of  twenty-five  Ihonsaiul  crowns  yearly.  Well  indeed 
might  the  money-loving  Henry  consider,  now,  that  l)(!lwe(Mi  the  contribu- 
tions of  his  subjects  and  those  of  France,  the  war  had  indifferently  well 
maintained  itself. 

Scarcely  had  Henry  concluded  this  singularly  cool  and  as  singularly  suc- 
cessful endeavour  to  convert  a  glaring;  political  blunder  into  a  means  oi 


1! 


128 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


raising  a  liirgc  sum  of  money,  than  he  was  once  more  called  upon  to  de. 
fend  liis  throne  against  a  daring  and  impudent  pretender. 

The  duchess  of  Burgundy,  whose  hatred  of  Henry  was  by  no  mcani) 
decreased  by  the  ease  and  perfect  suecoss  with  which  he  had  baffled  the 
designs  of  Simnel,  once  more  endeavoured  to  disturb  Henry's  throne. 
She  caused  it  to  be  given  out,  that  Richard,  the  young  duke  of  York,  es- 
caped from  the  Tower  when  his  young  brother  and  sovereign  was  mur- 
dered by  Richard,  duke  of  Gloster,  who  afterwards  usurped  the  throne. 
Improbable  as  it  was  that  the  younger  of  the  two  brothers  should  have 
escaped  from  the  monstrous  and  unsparing  murderer  of  the  elder,  the  tale 
was  eagerly  and  credulously  listened  to  by  the  people,  who  seem  to  have 
received  no  warning  from  the  former  impudent  imposture  of  Simnel. 
Perceiving  that  the  fund  of  public  credulity  was  far  from  being  exhausted, 
the  duchess  eagerly  looked  around  lier  for  some  youth  qualified  to  sustain 
the  part  of  that  young  duke,  of  whose  approaching  re-appearance  emissa- 
ries were  now  instructed  to  hold  out  expectations.  The  youth  she  desired 
soon  presented  himself  in  the  person  of  Perkin  Warbeck,  the  son  of  a 
christianized  Jew.  Young  Perkin  was  born  during  the  reign  of  the  amor- 
ous monarch,  Edward  IV.,  who  was  a  frequent  visitor  to  the  house  of  the 
wealthy  Jew.  This  circumstance,  and  the  singular  likeness  of  young 
Perkin  to  the  king,  had  occasioned  not  a  little  scandalous  remark  as  to  the 
actual  parentage  of  the  boy.  The  youth,  who  had  removed  with  his  father 
to  Touniay,  the  native  country  of  the  latter,  was  subsequently  thrown 
upon  his  own  resources,  and  caused  by  the  change  of  fortune  to  visit  a 
variety  of  places  ;  and  travel  had  thus  added  its  benefits  to  those  of  nature 
and  the  advantages  of  a  good  education.  The  youth  was  naturally  very 
quick-witted  and  of  graceful  manners,  and  the  singular  likeness  he  bore  to 
Edward  IV.  was  thus  rendered  the  more  remarkable,  especially  when, 
having  been  introduced  to  the  duchess  of  Burgundj',  and  by  her  instructed 
in  the  part  it  was  desired  that  he  should  play,  he  designedly  made  the  ut- 
most display  of  those  qualities  which  hitherto  he  had  enjoyed  almost  un- 
consciously. The  rapidity  and  completeness  with  which  he  mastered  all 
that  it  was  deemed  necessary  to  teach  him  delighted  the  duchess,  who, 
however,  in  order  to  give  time  to  the  reports  of  her  emissaries  to  spread 
among  the  populace  in  England,  sent  the  pseudo  duke  of  York  to  Portu- 
gal under  the  care  of  Lady  Brampton.  FromPortugal  he  was  recalled  on 
the  breaking  out  of  what  Henry  hail  called  the  "  war"  with  France;  and, 
as  his  predecessor  in  imposture  had  formerly  been,  he  was  sent  to  make 
the  first  public  essay  of  his  powers  of  impudence  in  Ireland.  His  success 
there  was  sufficient  to  cause  a  groat  interest  and  curiosity  not  only  in 
England  but  also  in  France;,  to  which  country  he  was  invited  by  Charles 
VIII.,  who  received  him  with  all  the  honours  due  to  distressed  royalty, 
assigning  him  splendid  apartments,  and  giving  him  a  personal  guard  of 
honour,  of  which  the  lord  Congrcsal  was  made  the  captain. 

The  personal  resemblance  of  young  Warbeck  to  Edward  IV.,  his  grace- 
ful exterior  and  really  remarkable  accomplishments,  added  to  the  air  of 
entire  sincerity  which  Charles — with  the  politic  design  of  embarrassitig 
Henry — afTected  in  his  treatment  of  the  impostor  as  the  genuine  duke  of 
York,  rendered  the  imposition  so  far  successful,  that  upwards  of  a  hun- 
dred gentlemen,  some  of  them  (as  SirOeorge  Nuvil  and  Sir  John  Taylor), 
of  considerable  eminence,  actually  travelled  from  England  to  Paris  to  olTei 
their  swords  ami  purs  es  to  the  duke  of  York. 

In  the  midst  of  a  tide  of  good  success,  which  must  have  astonished 
himself  more  than  any  one  else,  Warbeck  met  with  an  unexpected  check 
in  consequence  of  the  peace  that  was  so  suddenly  concluded  between 
France  and  England.  Ilenry,  indeed,  on  this  occasion  tried  to  induce  tiie 
king  of  France  to  give  Warbeck  up  to  him ;  but  Charles,  with  a  degree  of 
spirit  which  did  him  grea*  honour,  replied,  that  no  matter  what  was  tliu 


Vork 
niakins: 
who  hii 
Nir  Jail 
I'odies 
actual  I 


THifi  TRKASUBY  OS  HI3T0EY. 


429 


real  character  of  the  young  man,  he  ought  to  go  free  from  France,  to  wliicli 
Charles  had  himself  inviled  him.  Warbeck  accordingly,  to  the  great  vex- 
ation of  his  friends,  was  dismissed  from  the  court  and  liingdom  of  Charles  ; 
and  he  now  made  his  first  public  appearance  before  the  duchess  of  Bur- 
gundy, whose  instructions  he  had  hitiierto  so  well  obeyed.  With  a  gravity 
which  did  infinite  credit  to  her  talents  as  an  actress,  the  duchess,  affecting 
to  have  been  but  too  well  instructed  by  Simnel's  affair  ever  to  give  credit 
again  to  mere  plausible  stories,  received  Warbeck  with  a  coolness  whicli 
would  speedily  have  terminated  his  suit  had  he  been  other  than  an  impos- 
tor, and  not  quite  as  well  aware  as  the  duchess  herself  was  of  its  motive. 
Well  knowing  that  her  ultimate  countenance  of  his  pretensions  would  be 
valuable  precisely  in  proportion  to  her  seeming  unwillingness,  at  the  out- 
set, to  grant  it,  the  duchess  publicly  and  witli  much  seeming  severity  ques- 
tioned Warbeck  upon  his  pretensions  to  llic  title  of  York.  As  qufsslion 
after  question  was  answered  with  a  correctness  far  beyond  the  power  of 
any  mere  impostor — of  any  impostor  unless  assisted,  as  Warbeck  was, 
by  the  du(Oiess  or  some  other  member  of  the  royal  family — the  duchess, 
by  admirably  regulated  gradations,  passed  from  scornful  doubt  and  indig- 
nation to  wonder,  and  from  w  mder  to  conviction  and  a  rapture  of  delight, 
is,  all  her  doubts  removed,  she  embraced  him  as  the  marvellously  pre- 
served son  of  Edward,  the  true  scion  of  the  Flantagenets,  the  only  right- 
ful heir  to  the  tiirone  of  England,  her  own  long  lost  and  miraculously  re- 
stored nephew  !  The  scene,  in  short,  was  excellently  performed,  and  was 
as  pathetic  to  those  who  were  not  in  the  secret,  as  it  assuredly  must  liave 
been  wearisome  to  those  who  were. 

The  duchess  of  Burgundy,  having  thus  with  difficulty  and  reluctance 
satisfied  herself  of  the  truth  of  her  sni  disant  nephew's  pretensions,  as- 
signed him  a  guard  of  honour,  and  not  oidy  intimated  her  desire  that  he 
should  be  treated  with  the  utmost  respect  by  all  her  court,  but  herself  set 
the  example,  never  mentioning  him  but  with  the  honourable  and  endear- 
nig  title  of  the  white  rose  of  England. 

A.  D.  1493 — The  English  of  high  rank  were  not  behind  the  Flemish 
populace  in  giving  credence  to  Warbeck's  pretensions.  Men  easily  be- 
lieve that  which  they  have  learned  to  desire;  and  the  firm  rule  of  llc^nry, 
ami  the  great  and  obvious  pains  he  took  to  depress  the  nobility,  and  to 
elevate,  at  their  expense,  the  middle  and  trading  (dasses,  disposed  very 
many  men  of  power  and  consequence  to  assist  Warbeiik  in  the  struggle 
lie  meilitated  for  the  English  throne.  Even  Sir  William  Stanley  who  had 
done  so  much  to  secure  Henry's  elevation,  now  began  to  look  with 
coniplaceni'y  upon  his  possible  dethronement  by  thf.  pseudo  duke  of  York- 
and  Sir  Robert  Cliffyrd  actually  went  to  Flanders  to  join  the  pretender, 
and  wrote  tlionco  that  he  could  personally  vouch  that  the  youth  in  ques- 
tion was  really  that  Richard,  diike  of  York,  who  had  so  long  been  sup- 
posed to  have  been  murdered  by  his  uncle,  the  late  king.  The  high  rank 
and  respectable  character  of  Clifford  made  this  assurance  of  his  exten- 
Bively  and  inisclii(H'ously  influential;  causing  many,  who  would  have  dis- 
dained to  assail,  Henry's  throne  for  the  sake  of  an  impostor,  to  join  in  the 
wide  spreading  conspiracy  in  favour  of  the  supposed  duke  of  York. 

In  these  circnmstaiices  the  king's  best  safeguard  was  his  own  politic 
ond  vigilant  temper.  Well  served  by  his  lunnerons  spies,  both  in  England 
and  on  the  continent,  he  was  thoroughly  informed  of  every  important  stej' 
that  was  taken  by  iiis  enemies.  Being  morally  certain  tliat  the  duke  ol 
York  had  been  murdered  by  the  late  kitiLf,  he  took  the  necessary  steps  fof 
making  that  fact  appear  from  the  stateiiu'nt  of  those  who  were  still  living 
will)  had  personal  cognizance  of  it.  These  persons  were  two  in  nmnber  ; 
Sir  .lames  Tyrrel,  who  had  superintended  the  murder  and  seen  the  diMid 
bodies  of  the  murdered  youths,  and  Dighton,  who  had  been  one  of  I  lie 
actual  murderers;  both  of  whom  stated  the  murder  to  have  bci  ii  com" 


Hi  . 


130 


THE  TaEASUaV  OF  HI8T0aY. 


mitted  on  both  the  princes ;  and  their  separate  statements  agreed  with  the 
utmost  accuracy  in  every  particular. 

The  next  point  that  Henry  was  anxious  to  clear  up,  was  the  identity  ol 
the  pretended  duke  of  York.  That  he  was  an  imposlor  whs  beyond  all 
doubt ;  but  it  was  very  important  that  Henry  should  be  able  to  say,  not 
only  who  he  was  not,  but  who  he  was  and  whence  lie  had  sprung,  to  aim, 
by  a  daring  imposture,  at  the  English  throne.  With  this  view  he  sent 
spies  into  Flanders,  and  instructed  some  of  them  to  pretend  the  utmost 
zeal  against  him,  and  to  join  the  opposite  party.  By  this  plan  he  became 
aware  of  the  number  and  rank  of  Warbeck.'s  adherents ;  and  upon  these 
new  spies  were  set,  until  Henry,  by  slow  degrees,  and  through  the  instru- 
mentality of  men  against  whom  he  feigned  the  most  ungovernable  indig. 
nation,  possessed  himself  of  every  passage  in  the  history  of  young  War- 
beck  from  his  very  childhood.  The  tidings  thus  obtained  Henry  took 
great  pains  to  circulate  throughout  England  ;  and  the  clearness  with  which 
every  step  in  the  impostor's  career  was  traced  greatly  tended  lo  diminish 
the  popularity  of  his  cause,  and  to  weaken  the  zeal  of  his  parlizans,  upon 
whom  Henry  determined  to  take  ample  vengeance  at  his  own  leisure  and 
convenience. 

A.  D.  1494. — Having  taken  all  prudent  measures  for  disabusing  the 
minds  of  his  own  subjects  as  to  the  real  history  of  the  pretended  duke  of 
York,  Henry  made  a  formal  complaint  to  llie  archduke  Philip  of  the  en- 
couragement and  shelter  which  so  notorious  an  impostor  as  VVarbeck  had 
met  with  in  Flanders;  and  as  Philip,  at  the  instigation  of  the  duchess 
dowager  of  Burgundy,  coldly  replied  that  he  had  no  authority  over  the 
demesne  of  that  princess,  Henry  banished  all  Flemings  from  England,  and 
recalled  all  his  own  subjects  from  the  Low  Countries  ;  feeling  satisfied 
that  the  injury  thus  done  to  the  trade  of  so  commercial  a  people  as  the 
Flemings,  would  soon  urge  them  into  such  revolt  as  would  abundantly 
revenge  him  upon  their  sovereign. 

In  the  meaniime  Henry  suddenly  and  simultaneously  seized  upon  those 
of  his  own  subjects  who  had  been  the  most  zealous  in  conspiring  against 
him,  and  some  were  speedily  tried  and  executed.  Others,  among  wliom 
was  William  Worsely,  the  dean  of  St.  Paul's,  escaped  with  short  impris- 
onment. But  a  more  important  victim  was  yet  to  be  sacrificed.  Stanley 
the  lord  chamberlain,  was  accused  by  Clifford,  who  was  directed  to  come 
to  England,  kneel  to  the  king  for  pardon,  and  accuse  .Stanley.  The  im- 
mense wealth  of  the  latter,  who  had  forty  thousand  marks  in  ready  money 
and  valuables,  and  a  yearly  revenue  of  three  thousand  pounds,  by  no 
means  tended  to  diminish  the  king's  desire  to  convict  him.  Bui  Henry 
feigned  the  utmost  astonishment  and  incredulity,  expatiated  upon  the  very 
great  improbability  that  Stanley,  connected  with  Henry  and  holdjnji  the 
important  office  ol  chamberlain,  should  be  guilty  of  treason,  and  even  sol- 
emnly exhorted  Clifl^urd  to  beware  that  he  did  not  wrongfully  accuse  an 
innocent  man.  Clifford,  in  spite  of  all  this  pretended  anxiety  on  the  part 
of  the  king,  persisted  in  his  statements  of  Stanley's  guilt,  and  the  accused 
was  confronted  with  him.  Either  from  a  high  sense  of  honour  which 
deemed  every  suffering  and  danger  preferable  to  the  baseness  of  falsehood, 
or  from  a  weak  notion  that  his  great  services  to  the  king  in  former  dayi 
would  prove  liis  safeguard  now,  Staidey  did  not  affect  to  deny  his  guilt. 

A.  D.  149r).— Even  now,  though  Henry  could  not  have  a  doubt  of  Stan- 
ley's guilt,  and  was  fully  resolved  not  to  spare  him,  six  weeks  were  suf- 
fered to  elapse  before  the  prisoner  was  brought  to  trial;  a  clclay  by  which 
it  probably  was  intended  to  give  the  public  a  notion,  that  the  king  was 
unwillini;  to  proceed  to  extremities  against  a  man  who  had  formerly  been 
so  serviceable  to  him.  At  length  he  was  tried,  and  the  part  of  his  comluct 
which  gave  the  most  offence  was  his  having  said  to  Clifford,  that  if  he 
were  quite  sure  that  the  young  man  who  claimed  to  be  the  duke  of  York 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


431 


really  waa  so,  he  never  would  bear  arms  against  him.  This  speech,  as  show- 
ing  a  preference  to  the  house  of  York,  was  far  more  unpardonable,  in  the 
judgment  of  Henry,  than  the  oflence  of  siding  with  a  mere  nameless  pre- 
tender, and  probably  was  more  conclusive  against  Stanley  than  the  actual 
assistance  which  he  gave  to  Warbeck  in  the  way  of  money  and  advice. 
As  he  did  not  even  attempt  to  show  himself  innocent,  a  verdict  was  of 
course  returned  against  him ;  and  the  king,  who  previous  to  the  trial  had 
pretended  so  much  reluctance  to  believe  aught  against  him,  did  not  allow 
much  time  to  elapse  between  the  sentence  and  execution,  being  chielly 
influenced,  it  would  seem,  by  the  lai'ge  forfeiture  which  accrued  to  the 
crown. 

The  execution  of  Stanley,  high  in  rank,  holding  an  i  .>portant  office,  and 
having  unlil  so  late  a  date  enjoyed  so  large  a  share  c-.  the  king's  favour 
and  confidence,  naturally  struck  terror  into  the  confederates  of  Warbe  -k, 
as  Henry  intended  that  it  should.  And  not  only  did  tiiis  expectation  warn 
them  that  mercy  was  out  of  the  question,  should  any  be  con\i(;ted,  '.ut 
the  mere  appearance  of  Clifford  as  the  king's  informer  wa-  well  calc':lated 
to  strike  terror  into  the  guilty,  who  must  now  be  aware  that  ihcj  had 
no  longer  any  secrets  from  the  cold-blooded  and  resolved  king,  against 
whom  they  had  plotted  so  much  mischief.  Each  of  the  conspirators  now 
learned  to  look  with  dread  and  suspicion  upon  his  neighbour.  Many  were 
thus  impelled  into  withdrawing  from  the  support  of  the  pretende-  while 
they  still  had  an  opportunity  to  do  so  ;  and  tiiongh  rumors  and  lih  .  .s  ull 
continued  to  dismay  the  king,  a  very  gpneral  and  wholesome  opiiion  w  13 
formed  of  the  great  extent  of  the  king's  secret  information,  an.,  of  his 
resolute  determination  to  crush  the  guilty. 

Even  while  punishing  conspirators,  the  king  seemed  far  more  bent  upon 
increasing  his  wealth,  by  whatever  arts  and  schemes  of  extortion,  than 
apon  conciliating  the  affections  of  his  people,  and  thus  arraying  them  in 
lefence  of  his  throne  against  the  arts  and  efforts  of  open  pretenders  or 
secret  conspirators.  His  extortions  were  perpetual,  shameless,  and  mer- 
ciless ;  the  very  laws  which  ought  to  have  been  tlie  safeguard  of  l!ie  peo- 
ple, were  made  the  means  of  extorting  money  from  the  wealthy.  Sir 
William  Capel,  a  London  alderman,  had  information  laid  agamst  him 
which  involved  him  in  penalties  to  the  enormous  amount  of  two  thousand 
seven  hundred  and  forty-three  pounds,  and  he  actually  had  to  pay  near 
two  thousand  by  way  of  compromise.  The  lawyers  were  encouraged  to 
(ay  informations  against  wealthy  men,  and  the  guilt  or  innocence  of  the 
parties  seems  to  have  been  far  less  considered  tiian  their  willingness  and 
ability  to  enrich  the  king,  by  compounding  with  him  for  theiroffcnces,  real 
or  imaginary.  Aided  by  his  financial  agents,  Ki  j.j.  :  ;\  and  Dnijky,  to 
whose  unscrupulous  misconduct  we  shall  by  and  I  y  i\-  i?  to  recmr,  Henry 
in  this  way  fleeced  the  great  and  the  wealthy  of  enoii;!Ous  sum-;,  and  thus 
forwarded  his  double  design  of  depressing  the  somewhat  dangerous  power 
of  the  great,  and  of  increasing  his  own  vast  treasure. 

Tiiough  the  king  oppressed  the  wealthy  l)eyii;ul  measure,  the  main  body 
of  the  people  had  but  little  cause  to  complain  of  him,  for  it  might  most 
truly  be  said  of  him  that  he  would  allow  no  oppressor  in  his  kingdom 
except  himself.  In  spite,  therefore,  of  numerous  acts  of  particular  op- 
pression, the  king's  authority  was  daily  more  and  more  respected  by  the 
people  at  large  ;  and  Warbeck,  fearing  that  a  longer  delay  would  but  in- 
creas(!  the  difficulties  of  liis  design,  at  length  determined  to  make  a  descent 
upon  England.  Having  collected  an  army  of  somewiiat  less  than  a  liiou- 
sand  men.  consisting  cliicfly  of  men  equally  bankrupt  in  ciiaracter  and  in 
m'!ans,  Warbeck  took  advantage  of  the  absence  of  the  king,  who  was 
making  a  state  progress  through  the  north  of  England,  and  made  his  a|)- 
pearance  off  the  coast  of  Kent.  But  the  care  with  which  the  king  had 
exposed  the  real  character  and  connections  of  Warbeck,  and  the  sad  fate 


Jl 


\'^      p\ 


432 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


of  Sii  William  Stanley,  caused  the  Kentish  gentry  to  be  on  the  alert,  iint 
to  join  the  impostor,  but  to  oppose  him.     Wishing,  however,  to  make  iuiu 
prisoner,  they  told  the  messenger  whom  he  sent  ashore  that  they  were 
actua.ly  in  arms  for  him,  and  invited  him  to  land  and  place  himself  at 
their  head.     Warbeck  was  too  suspicious  to  fall  into  the  snare ;  and  the 
Kentish  men  finding  that  they  could  not  induce  him  to  trust  himself  ashore, 
fell  upon  those  of  his  retainers  who  had  landed,  and  took  a  hundred  ant' 
fifty  prisoners,  besides  putting  a  considerable  number  to  death.     This  ae 
lion  drove  Warbeck  from  the  coast;  and  the  king,  who  wars  thoroughly 
determined  to  put  down  the  revolt  witii  a  strong  and  unsparing  hand,  or 
dered  the  hundred  and  fifty  prisoners  to  be  put  to  death,  without  an  ex 
ception ! 

A  singular  and  very  important  law  '.vv>s  just  now  enacted,  by  which  it 
was  provided  tliat  no  man  should  be  attainted  for  aiding  the  king  dcfnclo, 
whether  by  arms  or  otherwise.  Henry  probably  instituted  this  law  for  the 
purpose  of  giving  increased  coiifidence  and  zeal  to  his  own  partizaiis,  by 
making  it  impossible  that  even  liis  fall  could  involve  them  in  ruin.  As  the 
first  and  most  important  end  of  all  laws  is  to  secure  the  peace  of  the  com- 
nmnity,  and  as  the  defenders  of  tlie  de  facto  king  are  usually  such  by  their 
attachment  to  public  order,  tlie  law  was  a  very  |)roper  one  in  spirit ;  but  it 
was  one  which  in  the  case  of  any  violent  revolution  was  but  little  likely 
to  be  respected  in  practice,  especially  as  nothing  could  be  easier  than  for 
the  dominant  party  to  cause  it  to  be  repealed. 

Of  the  invasion  of  Italy  by  France,  and  the  league  formed  to  cheek  the 
French  king's  ambitious  schetnes,  we  need  only  barely  make  mention  here ; 
for  th(nigli  Henry  was  a  member  of  that  league,  he  was  a  mere  honorary 
member  of  it,  neither  the  expenses  nor  the  trouble  of  warfr.ie  on  so  dis- 
tant a  scene  suiting  with  his  peace-loving  and  rigidly  economical  tempci 


CHAPTKR  XXXVni. 

THE    REION   OK    HKNIIV    VII.    (concluded.) 

A.  D.  1495. — Wahheck,  on  perceiving  the  treatment  that  was  beslowcd 
by  the  Kentish  p(!ople  upon  those  of  his  adherents  who  had  been  st)  unlor- 
tnnate  as  to  land,  sincerely  congratulaled  himself  upon  the  snspi(aun 
which  had  arisen  in  his  mind  at  the  regular  and  discijiluied  a|)jiearanee  oi 
the  men  who  pretended  to  be  newly  l<  vied,  and  with  an  es|)e('i.il  view  to 
his  service,  lie  had,  however,  gone  too  far  to  recede,  and  was,  besides, 
without  tlie  funds  nei-essary  to  sn|i|i(irt  his  iMiiiierotis  followers  in  idleness. 
Ireland  had  ever  been  ri'ady  to  war  ag.iinsi  the  king  of  I'liiHland  on  any  or 
oil  no  pretext,  and  10  Ireland  he  ai'ctMilinijly  steered  his  course,  llnl,  as 
we  have  nunc  |)ariu'nlarly  nieniiDiied  nnilir  (lie  history  of  that  country 
Poyninn's  law  and  other  good  measures  had  so  far  stren({ih(Mied  llie  royal 
uullKiniy,  that  even  in  the  nsnally  turlinlent  Irelam!  the  adventurer  eoiiM 
obtain  no  support,  f'ertain  lii>spitahtie^,  indeed,  lie  ex[)erieneed  at  the 
haiiils  III'  Kmw  of  the  ehieflains,  but  then  >  oarse  fare  and  rude  lialnls  were 
bill  little  to  Ins  taste,  and  he  left  them  toiiy  his  forluiie  in  Scothiiid.  Tliu 
king  of  France,  in  rt^venge  for  the  juiiein.n  of  Henry  with  the  other  (i|)- 
poiieiils  of  the  ambitions  sehemes  of  I' ranee,  and  the  kin;;  of  the  Itoinaiis, 
III  revenge  fur  Henry's  proliiliiiimi  of  all  eoinnieree  with  ih<^  Low  ('oiiii- 
tries,  secretly  liirni^hed  Warlieek  with  stnnig  reeinnineniialions  to  tlie 
king  of  Seotland,  .laini's  IV.  That  (diivalrie  [)riiice  seems  at  (irst  to  have 
■uspeeied  the  truth  of  Warheek's  story;  for  while  he  reeeiveil  Inin  otlic- 
wiic  kindly,  he  soineahat  pointedly  told  hini  that  be  whoever  or  «  hairvrf 
he  might  he  should  never  repent  ii.iviiig  trusted  to  a  kinii  of  Seotliiiid,  a 
remark  which  he  'AouUI  m:urci'ly  bavn  made  had  he  fell  any  cuiili^'.iiio 


iiijiire 
tlie 
of  an 
M'as  I 
of  the 
that  I 
tile  S'c 
"cirei 
ur.l 
lies  of 
""inintit 
'Seoitj 

•■>  profit 
'lis  terr 
on  this 
'"if  fin 
eoiiili 
"lein  to 
"ley  W( 

A.  n. 
linie  le 
■'le  \■,xf^^^ 
"■•'Kill  cci 
''y  hiin 

^itlOll. 

VJ 


THE  TaBASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


433 


it,  nnt 
ke  lull) 
y  were 
isell'  al 
md  the 
■ashore, 
red  am' 
riiis  ac 
roughlj' 
and,  or 
It  an  ex 

which  il 
dcfndo, 
w  for  the 
,izaa3,  by 
1.    \s  the 
■  the  coin- 
\\  by  their 
irit ;  but  il 
ittl<!  likely 
it  than  for 

,  cljcck  the 
nliouhcre; 
c  liouorary 
:;  on  so  iIh- 
ical  lempci 


18  bot>lo\v(d 
'.j.,!  so  uiilor- 
M-  siispu'iun 
[npe.iriuice  01 
Vi.il  view  to 
lv;is.  besiiles, 

s  ill  iiileliess. 

111,1  oil  ■.ii>y "' 

Ue.    nm,  »* 

lie.l  the  roy.d 
Li(ur<r .  (iiiM 
tlie.Ml    ill   till- 
,.  li.ilntr'xvfrP 
•oilaiwl.    'riic 
ill,.  i.iUeroii- 
l)„.  llmiv.iii!*. 
.   l,,i\v  ("ouii- 
liitions  10  il"' 
[l  riint  tob;'^'' 
.,.,1  liiui  olUc,- 
If  or  wbui'Vit 
Lf  s>Millm>'l>  a 
|„y  colli.  '  luO 


tnat  he  was  really  the  duke  of  York.  But  the  king's  suspicions  did  not 
long  hold  out  against  the  fascinating  manners  and  numerous  acomphsh- 
ments  of  the  young  adventurer.  So  completely  did  James  become  the 
dupe,  and  so  far  was  that  kind-hearted  monarch  interested  in  the  welfare 
of  the  young  impostor  who  practised  upon  his  credulity,  that  he  actually 
gave  him  in  marriage  the  lady  Catherine  Gordo;i,  daughter  of  the  earl  of 
Huntley,  and  not  very  distantly  related  to  the  king  himself. 

A.  D.  1496. — That  James  of  Scotland  really  did  give  credence  to  the  ela- 
borate falsehoods  which  were  told  him  by  young  Warbeck  seoms  certain, 
or  he  would  scarcely  have  given  him,  in  marriage,  a  young  and  beautiful 
iady  of  a  noble  family  and  even  related  to  the  crown.    But  policy  had, 
probably,  still  more  to  do  in  producing  James'  kindness  to  the  adventurer, 
than  any  considerations  of  a  merely  humane  and  personal  nature.    Injury 
to  .''nglaud,  at  any  rate  and  under  iiiiy  circumstances,  seems  to  have  been 
the  invariable  maxim  of  the  Scottish  kings  and  of  the  Scottish  people ;  and 
James,  deeming  it  prob''hle  that  the  people  of  the  northern  counties  of 
England  would  rise  in  favour  of  Warbeck,  led  him  thither  at  the  head  of  a 
strong  and  well  appointed  army.    As  soon  as  they  had  crossed  the  border, 
Warbeck  issued  a  proclamation  in  which  he  formally  stated  himself  to  be 
that  duke  of  York  who  had  so  long  been  supposed  dead,  claimed  to  be  the 
rightful  sovereign  of  Kngland,  and  called  upon  all  his  good  and  loyal  sub- 
jects to  rise  and  aid  him  in  expelling  the  usurper  who  laid  heavy  burdens 
upon  them,  and  whose  oppressions  of  men  of  all  ranks,  and  especially  his 
studied  degradation  of  the  nobility,  had,  said  the   proclamation,  justly 
caused  him  to  be  odious  to  all  men.    But  besides  that  the  men  of  the  north 
of  Kngland  were  but  little  likely  to  look  upon  a  Scottish  army  as  a  re- 
commendation of  the  new  comer,  there  were   two  circumstances  which 
prevented  this  proclamation  from  being  much  attended  to ;  every  day  taught 
men  to  look  with  increased  dread  upon  the  calm,  unsparing  and  iinraliering 
temper  of  the  king;  and  Warbeck's  Scottish  friends,  by  their  tasie  for 
plunder,  made  it  somewhat  more  than  difficult  for  the  Kniflish  borderers 
to  look  upon  them  in  any  other  light  than  that  of  plundering   foeiiioii. 
Warbeck  was  conscious  how  greatly  this  practice  of  the  Scots  leiuled  to 
injure  his  cause  amongthe  English,  and  he  remonstrated  with  James  upon 
llic  subject.     But  James,  who  now  clearly  saw  the  little  chance  there  was 
of  any  rising  in  favour  of  Warbeck,  plainly  told  him  that  all  his  sympathy 
was  tlirown  away  upon  enemies,  and  nil  his  anxiety  for  the  preservation 
of  iho  country  equally  wasted,  inasmuch  as  it  seemed  but  too  certain  that 
thill  country  would  neverown  his  sway.    In  fad,  but  for  their  nlundcring, 
the  Scots  would  literally  have  crossed  the  border  to  no  earthly  pin  pose, 
scarcely  an  Knglishman  being  by  their  cominij  induced  to  join  the  stand 
aril  of  Warbeck.     Ilrnry  was  so  confident  that  the  inaramliiig  iintpensi 
ticH  of  the  Scots  would  make  Warbeck's  cause  unpopular  in  the  northern 
counties  rather  than  the  contrary,  that  he  was  by  no  means  sorry  lor  the 
Scottish  irruption.     Nevertheless,  true  to  his  constant  maxim  of  making 
a  profit  of  everything,  he  alfecled  to  he  very  imiiirnaiit  at  this  violiiiion  of 
liis  territory,  and  he  summoned  a  parliament  to  listen  to  his  complaints 
on  this  hemi,  ami  to  aid  him  in  obtaining  redress  for  so  great  ami  atfront- 
iiiK  an  injury.     The  pathetic  style  in  which  Henry  so  well  knew  how  to 
couch  his  coui|)laintH,  so  far  prtnailed  with  the  parliament  as  to  induce 
thein  to  vote  liiin  asulisidy  of  a  hundred  and  twenty  thousand  pounds,  sinil 
lliey  were  then  dismissecl. 

A.  n.  1497. — The  people,  r>lways  shrewd  judges  of  character,  had  by  this 
lime  learned  to  nmlerstand  that  of  Henty.  Comparing  the  frequency  and 
ilie  largeness  of  the  grants  made  to  him  by  the  parliament  with  his  own 
rcijiil  economy  and  personal  s'.iiiiriness,  Iliey  easily  calculated  that  he  had 
hy  him  a  treasure  of  sutncicnt  extent  to  spare  Ins  Biihjects  this  new  iiupo- 
ntion.  It  followed  that,  though  the  parliainrnt  had  so  willingly  granted 
Vol,.  I.    -'J8 


I  H 


i 


4i 


434 


THE  TRBA8URY  OP  HISTORY. 


ihe  subsidy  in  the  mass,  the  people  were  by  no  means  so  willing  to  pay 
it  to  tjie  tax  collectors  in  detail.    This  was  more  especially  the  case  in 
Cornwall.    Far  removed  from  any  inroads  of  the  Scots,  the  people  of  that 
part  could  not  or  would  not  understand  why  they  should  be  taxed  to  repel 
an  enemy  whom  they  had  never  seen.    The  popular  discontent  in  Corn- 
wall was  still  farther  increased  by  two  demagogues,  Joseph  and  Flam- 
mock.    The  latter  especially,  who  was  a  lawyer,  was  much  trusted  by  the 
populace,  whom  he  assured  that  the  tax  laid  upon  them  on  this  occa- 
sion was  wholly  illegal,  inasmuch  as  the  nobility  of  the  northern  counties 
held  their  lands  on  the  express  condition  of  defending  them  against  all 
inroads  of  the  Scots ;  and  that  it  behoved  the  people  promptly  and  firmly, 
but  peaceably,  to  petition  against  the  system  under   which  their  burdens 
bade  fair  to  become  quite  intolerable.     It  is  scarcely  worth  while  to  in- 
quire  how  far  the  demagogues  were  sincere  in  their  exhortations  to 
peaceable  agitation ;  the  event  showed  how  much  easier  it  is  to  set  a  mul- 
titude in  motion  than  to  control  it  afterwards.    The  country  people  hav- 
ing their  own  opinions  of  the  illegality  and  injustice  of  the  tax  confirmed 
by  men  of  whose  talents  and  information  they  had  a  very  high  opinion, 
gathered  together  in  great  numbers,  most  of  them  b(;ing  armed  with  the 
impleiiH'iiis  of  their  rural  labour.    This  numerous  and  tumultuous  gather- 
ing chose  Flamniock  and  Joseph  for  their  leaders,  and  passing  from  Corn- 
wall through  Devonshire,  they  reached  Taunton,  in  Somersetshire,  where 
they  killed  one  of  the  collectors  of  the  subsidy,  who.se  activity  anil,  j)rr- 
haps,  S(!verity  had  given  them  niuc  h  offence.    From  Taunton  they  marched 
to  Wells,  in  the  same  county,  where  they  got  a  distinguished  leader  in  the 
person  of  the  lord  Audley,  a  nobleman  of  aniieiit  family,  but  very  prone 
to  popularity-hunting.    Headed  by  this  silly  nolilcman,  the  rebels  marched 
towards  London,  breathing  vengeaiice  against  the  principal  ministers  of 
the  king,  lliough  upon  the  whole  toi  r'I'ly  innocent  of  actual  wrong  or  vi- 
olence  during  the  latter  part  of  tlieir  .iiarcli.     Though  the  Kcntish-nien 
had  so  lately  shown  by  the  course  they  had  adopted  towards  Warhi'ck 
how  little  they  were  inclined  to  involve?  themselves  in  a  quarrel  with  the 
king,  Flaminock  had  persuaded  the  rebi'ls  that  they  were  sure  to  he  Joined 
by  the  Kentish  people,  because  these  latter  had  ever  maintained  tiieir  lib 
erly  even  against  the  Norman  invaders.    Tlie  turn  sr(/inhtr  was  either  not 
perceived  hy  the  multitude  or  not  considered  of  much  importance,  for  into 
Kent  they  marched  in  nursuance  of  rianmiock's  advice,  and  took  u|i  their 
position  on  a  hill  at  lOltliam,  a  very  few  miles  from  London.     So  Car  wan 
the  advice  of  Flammoek  from  being  well  founded,  that  there  jjrohahly  wac 
not  at  that  moment  a  singh;  spot  in  the  whole  kingdom  where  tiie  rebeiit 
were  less  likely  to  meet  with  supi  jrt  than  in  Kent.    Fvery  where  tliioiiyh- 
out  the  kingdom  there  was  considerable  discontent  arising  out  of  the  ex 
tortionate  measures  of  the  king,  but  everywhere  there  was  also  a  great 
respect  for  the  king's  power,  to  which  was  iidded  in  Kent  eoiisideral)!* 
kindly  feeling  springing  out  of  the  favour  and  ('(iiisideration  with  whicli 
he  had  acknowledged  the  service  done  to  hiin  when  Warbeck  appearcii 
off  the  coast.     Of  this  feeling  th(!  earl  of  Kent,  Lord  Aliergavenny,  and 
Lord  Colihiim  so  well  availed  themselves,  that,  though  tlie  rebels  made 
every  iieaeefiil  endeavour  to  recruit  their  ranks,  none  of  the  Keniish  men 
would  join  them. 

On  tins,  as  indeeilon  all  other  eniergeneies,  Henry  showed  liino'eiri'ijuai 
to  the  occasion.  IJi^  dctachod  the  earl  of  Surrey  to  hidd  in  cheek  or  lieal 
back  the  Scots;  tind  having  posted  liiinself  in  .^t.  (Jeorge's  fields  at  ill* 
head  of  OIK'  body  of  troops,  he  despatclied  liie  earN  of  Oxford,  Siill'ulk.  ami 
Kssex,  at  the  heail  of  another,  to  lake  the  rehejs  in  the  rear ;  while  a  third 
under  Lord  Danheny  eharged  them  in  front.  'I'lie  more  eoinpletcly  t" 
tiike  the  reJieU  by  surprise,  Henry  had  carefully  spread  a  report  thai  lif 
•bould  nut  attack  them  for  several  days  ;  iiii'dnl  he  give;  the  wind  to  P  .ii- 


THE  TREASUEY  OF  HISTORY. 


43fi 


to  pay 

;a8e  in 

of  that 

,0  repel 

(1  Corn- 

1  Flam- 

i  by  the 

is  occa- 

couiitics 

;aiiist  all 

'd  firmlyi 
burdens 

lile  to  in- 

ations  to 

iel  a  m  jl- 

ople  liav- 

confirmed 

;i  opinion, 

Iwith  the 

,u3  gather- 

roin  Corn- 
lire,  where 

y  and,  per- 

;y  marched 

lader  in  the 
very  pro»e 

ids  marched 

ministers  ol 

wrons  or  vi- 

;cnlish-n»<'" 

ftis  Vvarhick 

■rel  vvilUtlie 
to  be  ioincd 

lu'd  tlii'ir  lib 

M  filli'T  iiol 

[iiu'i'.  !">»' '"'" 
,imk  ui>  Ihi'ir 
So  tar  wi>» 
iirobaldy  wai 
re  till-  vcbi'is 
lu'ic  tlivovitih- 
lul  of  the  ex- 
also  a  ureal 
oou^idcriil)!" 
with  vvhu'h 
,-ck  ai)\iean-'t 
avenny,  ■>»'' 
rcbelH  uiiulf 
Kentish  men 

ll,imseU.'.iual 
,.l„M-k  or  (x'ivl 
,  n.dds  ;il  'h« 
|\,  Suffolk,  ami 
1  vvlide  a  tiiitd 
feomi>\el-W  '" 

'  word  to  \>.> 


oeny'a  division  to  advance  until  so  late  an  hour  in  the  day  that  the  rebels 
could  have  no  idea  of  being  attacked.  They  had  a  small  advance  at  Dept- 
ford  bridge,  which  Daubeny  easily  put  to  flight,  and  pursued  them  so 
closely  that  he  charged  upon  their  main  body  at  the  same  time  that  they  re- 
joined it.  Daubeny  charged  the  rebels  gallantly,  but  allowed  his  contempt 
of  their  want  of  discipline  to  cause  him  to  undervalue  their  number,  in 
which  respect  they  were  far  from  despicable,  being  above  sixteen  thous- 
and. The  rash  gallantry  of  Daubeny  actually  caused  him  to  be  for  a  few 
moments  taken  prisoner,  but  he  was  speedily  rescued  by  liis  troops,  whose 
discipline  soon  prevailed  over  the  raw  numbers  of  the  rebels,  and  the  lat- 
ter were  put  to  flight  with  the  loss  of  two  thousand  killed,  and  many 
thousands  prisoners ;  the  flrst  division  of  the  king's  troops  having  aided 
Daubeny  so  that  the  rebels  were  completely  surrounded,  but  a  compara- 
tively small  number  of  them  succeeded  in  cutting  their  way  through. 

Among  the  numerous  prisoners,  were  the  lord  Audley,  Flammoek,  and 
loseph,  all  of  whom  the  king  sent  to  immediate  execution.  Josepli  actu- 
ally exulted  in  his  fate,  which,  he  said,  would  insure  him  a  place  in  the 
history  of  his  country.  To  the  other  prisoners  the  king  gave  their  liber- 
ty ;  partly,  perhaps,  because  he  deemed  them  to  have  been  mere  dupes  in 
the  hands  of  their  leaders,  and  partly  because,  however  much  they  liad 
exclaimed  against  the  oppressions  of  his  ministers,  tlicy  had  in  nowise 
throughout  the  whole  revolt  called  in  question  his  title,  or  showed  any  dis- 
position to  mix  up  with  their  own  causes  of  complaint  the  pretensions  of 
the  pseudo  duke  of  York.  Lord  Surrey  and  the  king  of  Scotland,  mean- 
while, had  made  some  few  and  inefficient  demonstrations  which  led  to  no 
important  result,  and  Henry  took  an  early  opportunity  to  get  Hialas,  the 
Spanish  ambassador,  to  propose  himself— as  if  without  the  knowledge  of 
Henry— to  mediate  between  the  two  kings.  When  Hialas  was  agreed 
to  as  mediator,  the  flrst  and  most  important  demand  of  Henry  wa  i  that 
Warbeck  should  be  delivered  up  to  him,  a  demand  to  which,  to  liis  eternal 
honour,  James  IV.  replied  that  he  could  not  pretend  to  decide  upon  the 
young  man's  pretensions  ;  but  tliat  having  received  him  and  promised  him 
his  protection,  no  imaginable  consideration  should  evi^r  induce  him  to  be- 
tray ihm.  Subsequently  a  truce  of  a  few  months  having  been  agreed  to 
between  England  and  Scotland,  James  privately  begged  Warbeck  to  seek 
some  safe  asylum,  as  it  was  very  evident  that  while  he  remal'ied  in  Scot- 
land Henry  would  never  allow  that  country  to  have  any  j)erinanent  peace. 
The  measures  of  Henry,  meantime,  as  regarded  the  1'  lemings  iiad  pro- 
duced exactly  the  result  which  he  expected  from  them ;  the  I'leinlsh  mer- 
I'hant.s  and  artlfu-ers  had  siitlered  so  much  from  his  system  of  non-lnler* 
loiirse,  tiiat  tliey  iiad  in  a  manner  forced  liieir  arehdiiko  to  make  a  treaty 
by  wlhcii  all  English  rebels  were  excluded  from  the  F.ow  Countries,  and 
the  demesnes  of  the  dowager  duchess  of  liurgundy  were  especially  and 
[KiMitedly  inclmled  in  this  treaty.  Warlieck,  therefore,  on  being  requested 
to  leave  Scotland,  found  himself  by  this  treaty  completely  shut  out  of  the 
Iiow  ('onntries,  too,  and  he  was  fain  once  more  to  take  rcfege  among  the 
bugs  and  mountains  of  Ireland. 

Even  here,  such  were  the  known  vigilance,  art,  and  power  of  Henry 
the  unfortunate  impostor  did  not  leel  himself  secure.  Mis  fear  on  that 
head,  and  Ins  dislike  of  the  nidi*  ways  and  scanty  fare  of  his  entertainers 
induced  him  to  follow  the  advice  of  three  needy  and  desperate  adherents, 
Aslley,  Heme,  and  Skelton  ;  and  he  landed  in  (^iirnwajl,  wlierolie  eiidea- 
mured  to  profit  by  the  still  prevalent  disposition  to  di'^content  and  riot 
in  that  nelolibourhood  of  hardy,  turbulent,  and  ignorfint  men.  On  his 
laiiiling  at  liodmin,  Warbeck  was  joined  by  ujiwards  of  lliiee  tiiousand 
men;  and  so  much  was  ho  encouraged  by  even  this  e(|iiivoi'al  appearimce 
of  popularity,  tha'  he  now.  for  the  liist  time,  assumed  the  title  of  king  of 
Kngland  by  the  name  ot  Uichurd  IV.     He  next  marched  his  courageoun 


I 


ml 


i 


436 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


buf  wholly  undisciplined  men  to  Exeter,  where  the  inhabitants  wisely,  as 
v»<  1  as  loyally,  shut  their  gates  against  him,  dispatched  messengers  to  the 
king,  a'  ..  made  all  preparations  Tor  sustaining  such  a  siege  as  Warbock, 
df  .titiite  of  artillery  and  even  of  ammunition,  might  be  expected  to  carry 
on  against  them. 

Henry  rejoiced  to  hear  that  the  pretender  who  had  so  long  eluded  and 
amazed  him,  had,  at  length,  resolved  to  take  the  field.  Tlie  lords  Daube- 
ny  and  Broke,  with  the  earl  of  Devonshire,  the  duke  of  Buckingham,  and 
many  other  considerable  nobles,  hastily  raised  troops  and  marched  against 
the  rebels ;  the  king,  at  the  same  time,  actively  preparing  to  follow  with 
a  numerous  army. 

Warbeck  had  shown  himself  unfit  for  rule,  by  the  mere  elation  of  spirit 
into  which  he  was  betrayed  by  the  adhesion  of  three  thousand  ill-armed 
and  undisciplined  men;  he  now  showed  himself  still  further  unfit  by  utter 
want  of  that  desperate  courage  which,  if  it  often  betrays  its  possessor  into 
s.luations  of  peril,  no  less  frequently  enables  him,  as  if  by  miracle,  to  ex- 
tricate himself  with  advantage  even  where  his  ruin  appears  inevitable. 
The  zi'al  of  the  king's  friends  was  so  far  from  destroying  the  hopes  of 
Warbeck's  supporters,  that  in  a  very  few  days  their  number  increased 
from  three  to  about  seven  thonsand.  But  the  encouragement  afforded  by 
this  enthusiasm  of  his  friends  could  not  counterbalance  in  the  mind  of  this 
unworthy  pretender  to  empire,  the  terror  excited  by  the  number  and  rapid 
approach  of  his  foes.  He  hastily  raised  the  siege  "of  Kxelerand  retired  to 
Taunton  ;  and  thence,  while  numbers  were  joining  him  from  the  nurroinid- 
ing  lUMghbourhood,  he  made  a  stealthy  and  solitary  flight  to  the  sanc'.unry 
of  Beaulieu,  in  Hampshire.  Deserted  by  their  leader  the  Cornish  nun 
submitted  to  the  king,  who  used  his  triumph  nobly.  A  few  leading  iiiul 
particularly  obnoxious  offenders  were  executed,  but  the  majoiity  were 
dismissed  uninjured.  In  the  case  of  VV'arbeck's  wife,  Catlierine  Gordon, 
Henry  behaved  admirably.  That  lady  being  among  his  prisoners,  he  not 
only  received  and  pardoned  her,  as  being  far  more  worthy  of  pity  ilian  of 
blame,  but  even  gave  her  a  highly  reputable  post  at  court. 

A.  1).  14!)8  — The  long  annoyance  caused  by  VVarbcck  induced  Henry's 
advisers  to  urge,  him  to  seize  that  impostor  even  in  (iefiiiiici'  of  the  eliiiicli. 
But  Henry,  who  over  loved  the  tortuous  and  the  subth^  belter  iliaii  ilic 
openly  violent,  caused  his  emissarii-s  to  persuade  VVarbcck  volinitiirlly  lo 
leave  his  shelItT  and  throw  himself  upon  the  king's  mercy.  This  lie  ar 
cordiiijily  did,  and  after  having  been  led  m  i  r'lorkery  of  regal  stale  to 
London,  he  was  compelled  to  make  a  formal  iwid  detailed  coiifessinii  ol 
the  whole  of  Ins  strangt;  and  hyjiocritical  life,  and  was  then  coininiiicd  to 
close  custody. 

A.  n.  H!)!). — He  might  now  have  lived  securely,  if  irksomely;  but  he 
had  so  long  been  accnstoined  to  intrigue  and  the  activity  of  illlno^llll•c, 
that  lie  spi  edily  took  an  opportunity  to  elude  the  vigilance  of  Ins  ki  <  pcrs 
and  escajie  to  a  saiieiuary.  Here  the  prior  of  the  monastery  medialcij  lor 
hull,  and  the  king  coiiseiiled  oiiee  more  to  spare  his  life;  I 'it  set  linn  la 
the  slocks,  at  VV'estiniiisli'r  and  at  (.'heapslde;  compelled  him  in  tli;it  dis 
graceful  situation,  to  read  almid  his  confession,  and  then  coiiiiiiiitcd  liliii 
to  cliise  custody  in  the  Tower  of  l.ondoii.  Kven  now,  this  restless  iicr.^oii 
could  not  snbinil  to  his  fate.  He  <'ontriv<'rl  lo  seduce  some  of  the  i*cr- 
Viinis  of  the  governor,  and  to  associate  with  himself  in  the  projec  of  cs- 
ca|ie  the  unfoiiunato  young  earl  of  Warwick,  whose  long  imprisoiiiiieiit 
h'ld  so  weakened  his  iniiid.  that  no  artifice  was  too  gross  to  impose  ii|i(in 
him.  It  wonlil  almont  seem  that  this  hopeless  scheiiM'  innst,  iinlirccllv, 
li.ive  been  suggested  to  the  advcnlnrers  by  the  king  hiin.self,  that  he  iiii^fil 
have  a  sufficiently  (dansdilc  reason  for  pulling  Warheck  lo  death.  Nnr  is 
it  any  answer  lo  this  opinion  in  say.  that  Iwii  of  the  conniving  servaiils  cl 
the  governor  were  put  to  death  for  their  share  in  the  project;  for  lleiny 


THE  TREA8UEV  vf  HISTORY. 


437 


teas  not  of  a  character  to  allow  his  scheme  to  fail  for  want  of  even  such  a 
Bacrifice  as  that.  Both  VVarbeck  and  Warwick  were  executed;  the  latter 
on  the  ground  of  his  intention,  which  he  did  not  deny,  to  disturb  the  king's 
government. 

The  fate  of  the  unfortunate  Warwick  excited  universal  indignation 
against  Henry,  who  certainly  sinned  no  less  against  policy  than  against 
humanity  in  this  gratuitous  violence  upon  so  inoffensive  a  character. 

A.  D.  1501. — Henry  had  always  been  anxious  for  a  friendly  and  close 
connection  with  Ferdinand  of  Arragon,  whose  profound  and  successful 
polity,  in  many  respects,  resembled  his  own.  He  now,  accordingly,  ex- 
erted himself,  and  with  success,  to  unite  Ferdinaufi's  daughter,  the  prin- 
cess Catherine,  to  hi«  own  eldest  son,  Arthur,  prince  of  Wales,  the  for- 
mer being  eighteen,  the  latter  sixteen  years  of  age. 

A.  D.  1502. — Scarcely,  however,  had  the  king  and  people  ceased  their 
rejoicings  at  this  marriage,  when  it  was  fatally  dissolved  by  the  death  of 
(he  young  prince.  The  sordid  monarch  was  much  affected  by  the  loss  of 
his  son,  for  it  seemed  to  place  him  under  the  necessity  of  returning  the 
large  sum  of  two  hundred  thousand  ducats  which  had  been  received  as  the 
dowry  of  the  princess.  Henry  exerted  himself  to  bring  about  a  marriage 
between  the  princess  and  his  second  son,  Henry,  who  was  only  twelve 
years  of  age,  and  whom  he  now  crsated  prince  of  Wales.  The  young 
prince  was  as  averse  to  this  match  as  so  young  a  prince  could  be ;  but  his 
father  was  resolute  in  the  cause  of  his  beloved  ducats,  and  that  marriage 
was  celebrated  which  was  afterwards  the  cause  of  so  much  crime  and 
suffering;  the  prime  cause,  probably,  why  Henry  VIII.  is  not  by  far  the 
most  admired  of  all  the  monarchs  of  b^ngland. 

The  latter  years  of  the  king  were  chiuHy  spent  in  the  indulgence  of  that 
detestable  vice,  avarice,  which  seems  not  only  to  incirease  by  enjoyment, 
hut  also  to  grow  more  and  more  craving  in  exact  proportion  to  the  ap- 
proach of  that  hour  in  which  the  wealth  of  the  world  is  vain.  His  excel- 
lent but  far  from  well  treated  queen  having  died  in  child-bed  in  1503,  Hen- 
ry, from  that  time,  seems  to  have  been  haunted  with  a  notion  that  no  trea- 
6ure  could  be  too  immense  to  guard  him  against  the  rivalship  of  his  son, 
'he  priiico  of  Wales.  Conscious  that  the  late  queen's  title  was  better 
than  his  own,  Henry  probably  thought  that  if  the  prince  were  to  aim  at  the 
crown  in  right  of  his  mother  he  would  not  be  without  support,  and  that,  in 
such  case,  the  successful  side  would  be  that  which  had  t'.ie  best  supply 
ol"  money.  Upon  no  other  principle  can  we  account  for  the  shameless 
and  eager  rapacity  with  which,  by  means  of  benevolences  extorted  from 
parliament,  and  oppressive  fines  wrung  from  individuals  through  the  arts 
of  the  infamous  Dudley  and  Empson,  the  now  enormously  wealthy  mon- 
arch contiiuied  to  add  to  his  stores,  which,  in  ready  money  alone,  arc  said 
to  have  approached  the  largo  sum  of  two  millions.  Even  when  he  was 
rapidly  sinking  under  a  consumption,  he  still  upheld  and  employed  his 
merciless  satellites  in  their  "i'e  attacks  upon  the  property  of  innocent 
men.  The  heaping  up  of  gold,  hov  ever,  could  not  slay  the  ravages  of  his 
fearful  disease,  and  he  expired  at  nis  palace  at  liichni  >!id  at  the  compar- 
atively early  age  of  fifty-two  years,  and  after  a  prosperous  reign  of  twen- 
ty-three years  iind  eight  mouths,  on  the  twenty-second  of  April,  1501). 

Cold,  cautious,  resolute  and  stern,  Henry  was  an  arbitrary  and  unjust 
mon;irch ;  yet  for  the  mass  of  the  people  his  reign  was  a  gond  one.  To 
tht!  wealthy  his  Jwarice  was  a  scourge;  to  the  haughty  and  to  the  high- 
born his  firm  and  vigilant  rule  must  have  been  ternlile.  Uut  he  allowed 
no  one  to  plunder  but  for  him ;  no  one  to  tyrannize  but  in  obedience  to  his 
orders.  The  barbarotis  tyranny  of  the  feudal  nobles  was  forever  stricken 
down;  the  middle  classes  were  raised  to  an  importance  and  intlufiice  pre- 
viously unheard  of  in  England;  and,  apart  from  his  arbitrary  and  reiilly 
impolitic,  because  needless,  extortions  of  n  >i)ey,  the  general  strain  of  hii 


m 


438 


THE  TEEASURY  OF  HIS 'i  01:."! 


laws  tended  not  only  to  the  making  of  a  iesputic  monarch,  bu.  tli » if  a 
well  rogulated  nobility  >tiid  an  e;:terpri8ii';  pr  )S|:er.',s  i;-:  ie,  •<  !i.r.(  m- 
terprisM  and  whose  prosperity,  iiaviiig-  no  ■.liock  except  t'ie  uesp.v  ;■;  ^  ^wer 
of  the  monarch,  could  not  fail  sooner  or  la^i  r  to  curb  that  one  despotism 
which  .'I'lii  so  farbem  uiicful  that  i:  had  free<;  hem  from  the  many->ieadoi' 
despotism  of  the  nobilliy 


CHAPiEK  XXXIX. 


THE   KEKS*    OF  IJE^NRY    VIM, 


it.  D.  1509. — It  is  a  sad  but  a  jertuia  truth  'hat  thi;  'i  iss  of  luankind 
have  but  a  ionse  and  deceptive  lo-iraliiy  ;  they  cok  ratliei-  to  tUe  niaiiiiei 
than  to  the  extent  of  crime  when  iormiiig  liitir  judgments.  The  splendid 
tyranin.'s  of  an  Edward  were  rather  admired  than  deplored ;  even  the 
giftod  ferocity  of  the  usurping  third  iiichard  was  thought  to  be  in  some 
scr'.  redeemed  by  the  very  excess  of  subtlety  in  the  plan,  and  of  mere  an- 
inrd  daring  in  the  execution,  by  thai  nation  which  now  scarcely  endeav 
ouied  to  conceal  its  joy  at  the  dece;!se  of  the  cold,  avaricious  Henry. 
Yet,  bad  as  much  of  Henry's  conduct  was,  and  very  contemptible  as  iveli 
as  hateful  as  excessive  avarice  unqu(>uonably  is,  Richard,  nay  even  Ed- 
ward, would  not  for  an  instant  bear  n  mparison  with  Henry  if  the  public 
judgment  were  not  warped.  It  was  nni  so  much  tiie  vices  of  Henry  VII. 
that  the  people  hated  him  for,  as  his  cold  and  wearisome  firmness  of 
rule;  could  he  sometimes  have  been  niUi  impunity  sinned  against,  he 
might  have  sinned  ten  times  as  much  a:,  lie  did,  without  being  nearly  so 
much  hated  as  he  was. 

The  cautious  policy  of  Henry  VH.,  the  severity  of  his  punishments,  and 
his  incurable  cupidity,  gave  no  small  adv^inlage  to  the  commencement  ol 
the  reign  of  his  successor,  who  ascendti!  the  throne  with  probably  as 
many  prepossessions  in  the  hearts  and  minds  of  ills  people  as  any  moimn;ii 
in  our  iiistory. 

Young,  handsome,  gay,  skilled  in  all  manly  exercises,  and  far  belter  ed- 
ucated, scholastically  speaking,  than  was  usual  even  among  princes  at 
that  time,  Henry  Vlll.  had  the  still  farther  and  Inestimable  advantages  nf 
having  never  been  in  any  degree  assoclati'd  in  men's  minds  with  the  cru^ 
elties  or  the  extortions  of  his  father,  whose  jiNilousy  had  always  kept  the 
young  prince  unconnected  with  the  management  of  public  affairs.  Wih 
all  these  advantages,  and  uniting  in  his  own  person  the  claims  of  both 
York  and  Lancaster,  Henry  VIII.  may  most  truly  be  said  to  ii.iti;  coin- 
menccil  his  reign  with  the  universal  love  and  admiration  of  'ils  [irople. 
His  grandmother,  the  dowager  countess  of  Richmond  ...-.1  Derby,  was 
still  alive,  and  Henry  had  the  good  sense  and  fortune  to  be  guided  by 
her  shrewdness  and  rxperifiice  in  the  important  matter  of  forming  liis 
first  ministry.  The  ability  of  ibc  ministers  of  I'  c  late  king  was  beyond 
all  cavil,  and  it  was  Henry's  obvious  poliry  to  rrtaiii  as  much  of  the  tHJi'iit 
which  h,id  aided  his  father,  with  as  linle  as  possible  of  either  the  wirkid- 
ness  or  the  unpopularity.  Tin;  numberless  and  severe  sulTeriiigs  wbirii 
had  been  liiflieted  U(ioii  men  of  wealth  during  the  last  men,  causeil  a  |ini- 
portlonately  loud  and  general  cry  to  Im  now  raised  against  the  inforini'is, 
particularly  against  thi^  noted  Dudley  an.i  Enipsoii,  who  had  so  siiccrss'iilly 
and  unscrupulously  served  the  late  king;  and  though  the  justice  of  llmry 
VI H.  did  not  induce  him  to  part  with  any  portion  of  the  treasure  wliii'b 
his  father  had  so  Iniquitoiisly  obtained,  so  neither  did  it  prompt  lilin  to  ilr- 
fend  bis  father's  tools.  Roth  Dudley  and  Eni|)si)ii  were  seized  and  CDia- 
mitted  to  the  Tower,  amid  ihe  joy  aiiilexeerations  of  the  peo|)le  ;  aUlinii<.di, 
as  we  shall  in  n  few  words  be  able  to  sb'-w,  the  very  criniinalitv  ul 


^^     -^ 


iSS^Sii 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTOEY. 


439 


ic  power 
espotism 
y-lieadei' 


•  mankind 
life  mauuei 
le  splendid 
;  even  the 
le  in  some 
}f  mereiin- 
ly  enduav 
)us  Henry, 
ible  as  well 
V  even  Kd- 
fihe  public 
Henry  V 11. 
firmness  of 
iigainsi,  he 
iig  nearly  so 

shments.and 

lencemenl  oi 

probably  as 

ny  mouari!li 


Which  these  men  were  accused,  was  not  more  flagrant  or  hateful  than 
that  which  was  now  committed  against  them.  When  they  were  summon- 
ed  before  the  council,  aud  called  upon  to  show  why  they  should  not 
be  punished  for  their  conduct  during  the  late  reign,  Empson,  who  was  a 
fluent  speaker  and  a  really  able  lawyer,  mane  a  defence  of  his  own  and 
his  colleague's  conduct,  which,  had  the  king  been  just  and  the  people  rea- 
vonable,  would  have  led  to  such  alterations  in  the  laws  as  would  forever 
after  have  rendered  it  impossible  for  unprincipled  informers  to  ruin  the 
wealthy  subject,  while  pandering  to  the  greediness  of  a  grasping  and  un- 
just king.  He  very  truly  argued  that  he  and  his  colleague  had  acted  in 
obedience  to  the  king,  and  in  accordance  with  laws  which,  however 
ancient,  were  unrepealed  and  therefore  as  authoritative  as  ever ;  that  it 
was  not  at  all  to  be  marvelled  at  if  those  who  were  punished  by  law 
should  rail  at  those  who  put  the  law  in  force ;  that  all  well-regulated  states 
always  made  the  impartial  and  strict  enforcement  of  the  laws  their  chief 
boast,  and  that  that  state  would,  inevitably,  fall  into  utter  ruin,  where  a 
contrary  practice  should  be  allowed  to  obtain. 

This  defence,  which  clearly  threw  the  blame  upon  the  state  of  the  laws 
and  upon  the  evil  inclinations  of  the  late  king,  did  not  prevent  Dudley  and 
ilmpson  from  being  sent  to  the  Tower.  They  were  soon  afterwards  con- 
victed by  a  jury,  and  this  conviction  was  followed  up  by  an  act  of  attainder, 
which  was  passed  by  parliament,  and  Empson  and  Dudley  were  executed 
amid  the  savage  rejoicings  of  the  people,  whose  demeanour  on  this  occa- 
sion showed  them  to  be  truly  unworthy  the  liberty  they  so  highly  valued. 
We  do  not  palliate  the  moral  feelings  of  Empson  and  Dudley,  but,  legally 
speaking,  they  were  murdered;  they  were  put  to  death  for  doing  that 
which  the  law  directly  authorised,  and  indirectly  commanded  them  to  do. 

In  compliance  with  the  advice  of  his  council,  and  of  the  countess  of 
Richmond  and  Derby,  Henry  completed  his  marriage  with  the  princess 
Catiierine,  the  widow  of  his  brother  Arthur;  though  it  seems  certain,  not 
only  that  Henry  had  himself  no  preference  for  that  princess,  who  was 
plain  in  person  and  his  senior  by  six  years,  but  no  less  certain  that  his 
father  on  his  death-bed  conjured  him  to  take  the  earliest  possible  oppor- 
tunity to  break  the  engagement. 

Though  Henry  VIII.  had  received  a  good  education,  and  might  deserve 
the  praise  of  learning  and  ability,  even  without  reference  to  his  high  rank, 
he  was  far  too  impetuous,  and  too  mucii  the  creature  of  impulse,  to  de- 
servcth'.  title  of  a  great  politician.  At  his  coining  to  the  throne,  the  state 
of  Europe  was  such  that  laissez  alter  would  have  been  the  best  maxim  for 
all  the  sovereigns;  and  England,  blest  with  domestic  peace,  and  little  con- 
cerned in  the  affairs  of  the  continent,  ought  especially  to  have  kept  aUjof 
from  interference.  Italy  was  the  theatre  of  strife  between  the  powers  of 
Spain  and  France;  Henry's  best  policy  clearly  would  iiave  been  to  let  these 
great  powers  waste  their  lime  and  strength  against  each  other ;  yet,  at  the 
very  commencement  of  his  reign,  he  allowed  Pope  Julius  II.  to  seduce 
him  into  the  grossly  impolitic  step  of  allying  himself  with  that  pontiff, 
the  emperor  .Maximilian,  and  Henry's  fatiier-in  law,  Ferdinand,  to  crush 
ami  trample  upon  the  conmionwealth  of  Venice. 

A.  D.  1510. — Having  succeeded  in  engaging  Henry  in  this  league,  to 
which  neither  his  own  honour  nor  the  interests  of  his  people  obliged  the 
young  monarch,  Julius  was  encouraged  to  engage  him  in  the  more  am- 
bitious project  of  freeing  Italy  from  foreigners.  The  pontiff  accordingly 
sent  a  llatt;.'ring  message  to  Henry,  with  a  perfmnr ii  and  anointed  rose, 
and  he  held  out  to  Henry's  nmhassador  at  Home.  Hainbridge,  archbishop 
of  Yoik,  a  cardinal's  iiat  as  the  reward  of  his  exertions  in  his  interest. 
This  done,  he  persuaded  Ferdinand  and  the  Swiss  cantons  to  join  him, 
and  declared  war  against  the  duke  of  Ferrara,  the  ally  and  friend  of  ll" 
French 


140 


THE  TKEASUaV  OF  HISTORY. 


A.  D  1511 — The  emperor  Maximilian  still  hold  to  his  alliance  with 
Louis,  and  they,  with  some  maU^ontent  cardinals,  now  etideavourcd  to 
check  the  ambition  of  Julius,  by  calling  a  general  council  for  the  purpose 
of  reforming  the  church.  With  the  exception  of  ome  French  bishops,  the 
cardinals  had  scarcely  any  supporters,  and  they  were  so  ill  received  at 
Pisa,  where  they  first  met,  that  they  were  obliged  to  r.djourn  to  Milan. 
Even  here,  though  under  the  dominion  and  protection  of  France,  they 
were  so  much  insulted,  that  they  again  adjourned  to  Lyons;  and  it  was 
evident  that  they  had  but  little  chance  of  success  against  the  pope,  who, 
besides  being  extremely  popular,  did  not  fail  to  exercise  his  power  of  ex- 
communicating the  clerical  attendants  of  the  couni:il,  and  absolving  from 
their  allegiance  the  subjects  of  the  inonarchs  who  protected  them. 

A.  D.  1512. — Henry,  who  at  this  period  of  his  life  was  far  too  impet- 
uous to  be  otherwise  than  sincere,  was  really  anxious  to  protect  the  sov- 
ereign pontiff  from  insult  and  oppression,  and  he  was  strengthened  in 
this  inclination  by  the  interested  counsel  of  his  father-in-law,  and  by  his 
own  hope  of  being  honoured  with  the  title  of  Most  Christian  King,  which 
heretofore  had  belonged  to  the  king  of  France.  He  consequently  allied 
himself  with  Spain,  Venice,  and  the  pope,  against  the  king  of  France,  and 
not  merely  sent  an  embassy  to  dehort  Louis  from  warring  against  the 
pope,  but  also  demanded  the  restoration  to  Kngland  of  Anjou,  Maine, 
Guienne,  and  Normandy.  This  demand  was  considered  tantamount  to  a 
declaration  of  war,  and  was  supported  by  parliament,  which  granted 
Henry  a  very  liberal  supply. 

Ferdinand,  who  had  his  own  ends  to  serve,  afTected  to  be  extremely 
anxious  to  serve  Henry,  md  sent  a  fleet  to  convey  the  Kiiglish  troops,  to 
the  number  of  ten  thousand,  to  Fontarabia.  The  manpiisof  llnrset,  ac- 
companied by  the  lords  Broke  and  Howard,  and  maiiyotfiit  yiiting  iiolile- 
men  ambitions  of  warlike  fame,  commanded  this  force,  which  was  ex- 
tremely well  appointed,  though  it  chiefly  consisted  of  infantry,  llm 
Dorset  very  soon  found  that  Henry's  interests  were  not  ('(uisiihcd  by  Fer- 
dinand and  his  generals ;  and,  after  much  idle  disputation,  the  Knglish 
troops  broke  out  into  mutiny,  and  the  expedition  returned  wiilioul 
achieving  anything.  Henry  was  much  annoyed  by  this  egregious  fail- 
ure, and  Dorset  had  great  difTiculiy  in  convincing  him  of  the  exclusive- 
ly selfish  nature  of  Ferdinand's  designs. 

Uy  sea  the  English  were  not  nmch  more  prosperous  than  by  land.  A 
fleet  of  forty-five  sail  was  encoinilered  ofT  Brest  by  thirty-nine  sail  of 
the  French;  the  French  admiral's  ship  caught  fire,  and  I'rimaugei,  the 
commander,  resolutely  grappled  with  the  English  admiral,  and  both  ves- 
sels blew  up  together,  the  enraged  crews  combating  to  the  last.  The 
French,  notwithstanding  the  loss  of  their  admiral,  made  good  their  escape 
with  all  the  rest  of  their  ships. 

But  though  Henry  acquired  no  glory  or  advantage  by  these  operations 
against  France,  he  did  liOuis  serious  mischief  by  compelling  him  to  retain 
in  France  troops  whose  presence  was  absolutely  necessary  to  his  interests 
in  Italy.  But  for  this  circumstance  Louis  would  probably  have  prospered 
there.  His  young  and  heroic  nephew,  (laston  de  Foix,  even  with  tlie 
shMidcr  forces  that  cimhl  be  :spared  to  him,  during  a  few  months  of  a 
career  which  a  great  modern  poet  most  truly  calls  "brief,  brave,  and 
glorious,"'  obtained  signal  advantages  ;  but  he  fell  in  the  very  inomen'  o( 
victory  over  the  army  of  the  pope  and  Ferdinand,  al  Ravemia,  His  geiiinj 
had,  in  a  great  degree,  compensated  for  the  nunu^rical  inferiority  of  the 
French  ;  but  directly  after  his  death  (jciioa  and  Milan  revolted,  and  Louis 
was  N[)eedily  di^prived  of  every  foot  of  his  newly-acquired  Italian  con- 
quests, exce[)l  some  isolated  and  coniparatively  unimportant  fortresses. 

A.  D.  151.3.— Pope  Julius  H.  had  scaicel\  tioie  to  exult  over  his  sue* 
■;e8»es  against  the  arms  of  FjOiiis  when  that  pontiff  died,  and  wus  sue* 


coini 
lanir 

of  1)01 

was  ( 

'his 

heliiiK 

'hus 

deposi 

qi'arte 
Tl., 
tfirnw 
wouid 
up  to 


THE  TREASURY  OK  HISTORY. 


441 


3  with 
ircd  to 
lurpose 
jps,  the 
iveil  at 
Milan. 
;e,  they 
1  it  was 
!(!,  who, 
■r  of  p\- 
ng  from 

II. 

0  iinpet- 
tlie  sov- 
lieiicd  ill 
nii  by  I'.is 
ig,  wliich 
lily  ai\i('(i 
mice,  and 
lainst  tlie 
)U,  Maine, 
louiit  to  a 
li  granted 

extremely 

1  troops,  to 
Dorset,  ac- 
iiing  nolile 
h  was  ex- 
nitrv.     Ihil 

icd'liy  Fer- 
ic  Knglish 
.,1  williout 
cgious  fiiil- 
.  exclusive- 

|)y  land.     A 

line  sail  "1 

laiiiiei,  the 

Id  both  ves- 

lasl.    The 

jlieir  escape 

operations 
till  to  retain 
Tiis  interest* 
le  prospered 
T^n  with  the 
[lonVhs  of  a 
brave,  and 
monien*  of 
Uisuenins 
lority  of  the 
and  Louis 
ftlalian  eon- 
fortresses. 
v,.r  his  sue* 
[id  \>a3  siif 


eeeded  by  John  de  Medicis.  who,  under  the  title  of  Leo  X.,  is  famed  in 
history  no  less  for  his  patronage  of  the  arts  and  sciences,  than  for  his 
profound  political  talents.  Leo  X.  had  no  sooner  ascended  ti.e  papal 
throne  than  he  dexterously  withdrew  the  emperor  Maximilian  from  the 
French  interests;  and,  by  cheap  but  flattering  compliments  to  Henry  and 
his  leading  courtiers,  greatly  increased  the  popularity  of  the  papal  cause 
in  Fngland,  where  the  parliament  imposed  a  poll-tax  to  assist  the  king  in 
his  (Icsigns  against  France.  While  Henry  was  eagerly  making  his  pre- 
parations, he  (lid  not  neglect  his  dangerous  enemy,  James  of  Scotland. 
That  prince  was  much  attached  to  the  French  cause,  and  sent  a  squadron 
of  vessels  to  aid  it;  and,  though  to  Henry's  envoy  he  now  professed  the 
most  peaceable  inclinations,  the  earl  of  Surrey  was  ordered  to  watch  the 
borders  with  a  strong  force,  lest  Kngland  should  be  assailed  in  that  direc- 
tion during  the  king's  absence  in  France. 

While  Flenry  was  busied  in  preparing  a  large  land  force  for  the  invasion 
of  France,  his  fleet,  under  Sir  Edward  Howard,  cruised  in  the  channel, 
and  at  length  drew  up  in  order  of  battle  off  Brest  and  challenged  the 
French  force  which  lay  there ;  but  the  French  commander  being  in  daily 
expei-latioii  of  a  reinforcemimt  of  galleys  under  the  command  of  Prejeant 
(ie  Uidoux,  would  not  allow  any  taunts  to  draw  him  from  his  security. 
The  galleys  at  length  arrived  at  Conquet,  near  Brest,  and  Bidoux  placed 
himself  beneath  a  battery.  T  ">  lie  was  attacked  by  Sir  Edward,  who, 
Willi  a  Spanish  cavalier  and  sev  .;en  English,  boldly  boarded  Bidoux^s 
own  vessel,  but  was  killed  and  thrust  into  the  sea.  The  los.s  of  their  ad- 
miral so  discouraged  the  English  thai  they  raised  their  blockade  of  Brest 
harbour,  and  the  French  fleet  soon  after  made  a  descent  upon  the  coast 
of  Sussex,  but  was  beaten  off. 

Ki^jht  thousand  men  under  the  comr  and  of  the  earl  of  Shrewsbury, 
and  six  thousand  under  that  of  Lord  '^lerbert  of  Cherbury,  having  em- 
barked for  France,  the  king  now  prep;;  "J  to  follow  with  the  main  army. 
He  had  aires'  y  made  the  queen  regeiii,  during^  his  absence;  and  that  she 
might  be  in  the  less  danger  of  beiig  disturbed  by  any  revolt,  he  now 
caused  Edmund  de  la  Pole,  earl  of  Suf  vik,  who  had  been  attainted  during 
the  last  reign,  to  be  beheaded  in  the  T.wer  of  London. 

Oil  arriving  at  Calais  Henry  found  that  the  Rid  afforded  him  fell  very 
far  short  of  what  he  had  been  proniiaed.  Maxi'.  ili;in,  who  was  to  have 
brought  a  reinforcement  of  eight  thousand  men  i.i  return  for  a  hundred 
and  twenty  thousand  crowns  which  Henry  had  advanced  him,  was  unable 
to  fulfil  his  engagement.  He  hosvever  made  the  best  amends  in  his  power 
by  joining  with  such  scanty  force  as  he  could  command;  and  he  enlisted 
hiinsi'lf  under  Henry  as  his  officer,  with  a  salary  of  one  hundred  crowns 
per  day, 

The  carl  of  Shrewsbury  and  the  lord  Herbert  immediately  on  their 
arrival  In  France  had  laid  siege  to  Terouane,  a  town  on  the  borders  of 
Picardy,  w  hicli  was  gallantly  defended  by  two  thousand  men  uniler  the 
command  of  Creqiii  and  Teligni.  The  strength  of  the  place  and  the  gal- 
lantry of  the  garrison  bade  defiance  to  the  besiegers ;  but  a  dreadful  want 
of  both  provisions  and  ammunition  was  soon  felt  in  the  place.  Fontrailles 
was  detached  by  Louis  from  the  army  at  Amiens  to  carry  some  relief  to 
this  place.  He  took  eight  hundred  horsemen,  each  of  whom  -arried 
behind  him  a  sack  of  gunpowder  and  two  quarters  of  bacon,  and,  though 
thus  encumbered,  this  gallant  cavalry  cut  their  way  though  the  English, 
deposited  their  burdens  in  the  fosse  of  the  Icwn,  and  returned  to  their 
quarters  with  scarcely  any  loss. 

Tl>c  same  gallant  Footrailids  was  shortly  afterwards  again  about  to 
throw  80, ne  relief  into  Terouane;  and  as  it  was  judged  that  the  English 
would  now  be  on  the  alert,  a  strong  bodv  of  French  cavalry  was  ordered 
up  to  protect  him.    Henry  sent  out  a  body  of  cavalry  to  hold   hem  Ir 


III 


!42 


THB  TB,EA8I;RY  OP  HISTORY. 


check,  and,  strange  to  relate,  though  the  French  vvere  picked  troops,  con« 
sisting  chiefly  of  gentleman  who  had  fought  gallantly  and  often,  they 
were  seized  with  a  sudden  panic  at  the  approach  of  the  English,  and  fled 
in  spite  of  the  attempts  io  rally  them  which  were  made  by  such  men  ai 
the  chevalier  Bayard,  the  duke  of  Longueville,  anc.  other  distinguished 
oflBcers  who  were  among  the  number  taken  prisoners.  This  battle,  from 
the  panic  flight  of  the  French,  is  known  as  the  Battle  of  Spurs.  Had 
Henry  immediately  after  this  pushed  his  advantages,  he  might  easily  have 
marched  to  Paris,  where  both  friends  and  foes  fully  expected  to  see  him ; 
but  he  allowed  Maximilian  to  persuade  him  into  the  besieging  of  Tournay, 
which,  after  much  delay,  was  taken.  Henry  then  relumed  to  England, 
having  gained  some  reputation  as  a  chivalrous  soldier,  but  certainly  with 
no  increase  of  his  reputation  as  a  politician  or  a  general. 

During  Henry's  absence  the  Scots  acted  precisely  as  had  been  antici- 
pated. James,  with  an  army  of  flfty  thousand  men,  had  crossed  the  bordei 
and  taken  several  castles,  ravaging  and  plundering  the  country  in  every 
direction  around  them.  Having  taken  the  lady  Forde  prisoner  in  hci 
castle,  James  was  so  much  charmed  with  her  society  that  he  lost  much 
precious  time,  and  his  disorderly  troops  took  advantage  of  his  negligence 
and  retreated  to  their  hom^s  in  great  numbers  with  the  plunder  they  had 
obtained  from  the  Southrons.  The  earl  of  Surrey,  after  much  difliciilly, 
came  up  with  the  Scots,  who  by  these  desertions  were  reduced  to  some- 
what nearer  his  own  force  of  twenty-six  thousand  men.  James  in  person 
commanded  the  centre  division  of  the  Scots,  the  earl  of  Huntley  and  Lord 
Hume  the  ri^'ht,  the  earls  of  Lennox  and  Argyle  th^"^  left,  while  the  earl 
of  Bolhwell  had  charge  of  the  reserve,  i  ne  i'lnglish  centre  was  com- 
manded by  Lord  Howard  in  the  first  line,  and  by  ihe  gallant  earl  of  Surrey 
himself  in  the  second;  the  wings  by  Sir  Edmund  Howard,  Sir  Marmaduke 
Constable,  Lord  Dacre,  and  Sir  Edward  Stanley.  The  right  wing  of  tiie 
Scots  commenced  the  action,  and  fairly  drove  the  English  left  wing  ofl"  the 
field ;  but  the  Scottish  left,  in  the  meantime,  broke  from  all  discipline, 
and  attacked  so  impetuously,  but  in  such  disorder,  that  Sir  Edward  Howard 
and  the  lord  Dacre,  who  profited  by  their  confusion  and  received  them 
coolly,  cut  them  to  pieces  ere  they  could  be  rescued  by  James's  own  divi- 
sion and  the  reserve  under  Bothwell.  Though  the  Scots  sustained  this 
great  loss,  the  presence  of  the  sovereign  so  much  animated  their  courage, 
that  they  kept  up  the  engagement  until  night  put  an  end  to  it.  Even  then 
it  was  uncertain  which  side  had,  in  reality,  sustained  the  greater  loss. 
But,  on  the  following  day,  it  was  discovered  that  the  English,  as  well  as 
the  Scots,  had  lost  about  five  thousand  men;  the  former  had  suffered 
almost  exclusively  in  the  ranks,  while  the  latter  had  lost  many  of  their 
bravest  nobles.  The  king  of  Scotland  was  himself  among  the  missing 
from  this  fatal  "  Flodden  i'ield."  A  body,  indeed,  was  found  among  the 
slain,  which  from  the  royal  attire  was  supposed  to  be  the  king's,  and  it 
was  even  royally  interred,  Henry  generously  pretending  that  James,  while 
dying,  expressed  his  contrition  for  that  misconduct  towards  the  pope 
which  had  placed  him  under  the  terrible  sentence  of  excommunication. 
But  though  Henry  was  evidently  convinced  that  he  was  thi's  doing  honour 
to  the  body  cf  his  trother-in-law,  the  Scots  were  equally  convinced  thai 
he  was  not.  :  id  thai  James  did  not  fall  in  the  battle.  By  some  it  was  as- 
serted that  the  monarch,  escaping  from  the  field,  was  put  to  death  by  order 
of  Lord  Hume;  while  others  no  less  believed  that  he  escaped  to  the  Holy 
Land,  whe.ice  they  long  subsequently  continued  to  expect  him  to  retnrn. 

The  event  of  the  battle  of  Flodden  having  released  Henry  from  all  feaf 
of  his  northern  border,  at  least  for  that  time,  he  made  no  difficulty  about 
gratiting  peace  to  his  sister  Margaret,  who  was  now  made  regent  ofScot- 
land  during  the  minority  of  her  son. 

A.  D.  1514. — Henry  rewarded  the  chief  instruments  in  obtaining  himthli 


fH.a  THBA8UHY  OF  HISTORY. 


441 


)8,  con- 
n,  they 
mA  fled 
men  ai 
iguished 
le,  from 
,.    Had 
jily  have 
3ee  him ; 
rournay, 
EnglHnd, 
iiily  with 

en  antici- 
he  bordei 
in  every 
ler  in  hei 
,ost  much 
legVigcnct 
r  they  had 
1  difficulty, 
d  to  some- 
5  in  person 
y  and  Lord 
lie  the  earl 
was  com- 
rl  of  Surrey 
Marmaduke 
wing  of  the 
wing  off  the 
,  discipline, 
ard  Howard 
eived  them 
's  own  divi- 
suiined  this 
ir  courage, 
Kvcn  then 
reater  loss. 
1^  as  well  as 
(id   suffered 
iny  of  their 
the  missing 
among  the 
ng's,  and  it 
ames,  while 
\s  the  pope 
munication. 
oing  honour 
[winced  that 
le  it  was  as- 
ath  by  order 
to  the  Holy 
Im  to  return. 
Ifrom  all  feaf 
iculty  about 
lent  of  Scot" 

liing  him  ihii 


splendid  victory,  by  conferring  on  the  earl  of  Snrrey  the  title  of  duke  ol 
Norfolk,  which  had  been  forfeited  by  that  nobleman's  father,  who  sided 
with  Richard  HI.  at  Bosworth  Field;  upon  Lord  Howard  the  title  of  the 
earl  of  Surrey ;  on  Lord  Herbert  that  of  earl  of  Worcester ;  upon  Sir  Ed- 
ward Stanley  that  of  lord  Monteagle ;  and  upon  Charles  Brandon,  earl  of 
Lisle,  that  of  duke  of  Suffolk. 

At  the  same  time  the  bishopric  of  Lincoln  was  bestowed  upon  the  king's 
chief  favourite  and  prime  minister,  Thomas  Wolsey,  whose  part  in  this 
reign  was  so  important  as  to  demand  that  we  should  presently  speak  of 
him  at  some  length. 

The  war  with  Scotland  being  fortunately  terminated,  Henry  again  turned 
his  whole  attention  to  France.  There,  however,  he  found  little  cause  of 
graiuicition.  His  father-in-law,  Ferdinand  of  Arragon,  having  obtained 
possession  of  the  petty  frontier  kingdom  of  Navarre,  had  eagerly  made 
peace  with  Fiance,  and  induced  the  emperor  Maximilian  to  do  the  same  ; 
and  the  pope,  in  whose  cause  Henry  had  sacrificed  so  much,  had  also  ac- 
cepted of  the  submission  of  Louis. 

The  truth  was  now  more  than  ever  apparent,  that,  however  great  Henry's 
"ther  qualities,  he  was  by  no  means  skilled  in  the  wiles  of  politics;  and 
lis  present  experience  of  that  truth  was  the  more  embittered,  because  lie 
found  that  Maximilian  had  been  induced  to  abandon  him  by  an  offer  of  the 
daughter  of  France  to  the  son  of  that  prince ;  though  that  son  Ciiarles 
had  already  been  affianced  to  Henry's  own  younger  sister,  the  princess 
Mary,  who  was  now  fast  approaching  the  age  for  the  completion  of  the 
contract. 

Thus  doubly  duped  and  injured,  Henry  would,  most  likely,  have  re-in- 
vaded France,  no  matter  at  what  sacrifice,  but  that  the  duke  of  Longue- 
ville,  who  had  remained  a  prisoner  ever  since  the  memorable  "  battle  of 
spurs,"  suggested  a  match  between  the  deserted  princess  Mary  and  Louis 
of  France  himself.  It  is  true  that  monarch  was  upwards  of  fifty  years  of 
age,  and  the  princess  not  quite  sixteen;  but  so  many  advantages  were 
offered  to  Henry,  that  the  marriage  was  concluded  at  Abbeville,  whither 
Louis  proceeded  to  meet  his  young  bride.  Their  happiness  and  the  re- 
joicings of  the  French  people  were  of  but  short  duration,  the  king  sur- 
viving the  marriage  only  about  three  months. 

The  young  queen  dowager  of  France  had,  before  her  marriage,  shown 
some  partiality  for  the  duke  of  Suffolk,  the  most  accomplished  cavalier  of 
the  age,  and  an  especial  favourite  of  Henry ;  and  he  now  easily  persuaded 
her  to  shorten  the  period  of  her  widowhood.  Henry  was,  or  fi  i  ^ned  to 
be,  angry  at  their  precipitate  union;  lull  his  anger,  if  rei.i,  was  only  of 
short  duration,  and  the  accomplished  duke  and  his  lovely  bride  v,tce  soon 
invited  to  return  to  the  English  court. 


CHAPTER  XL. 

THE   REIGN  OF  HENRY  vin.  {continued). 

As  Henry  VIII.  was,  in  many  respects,  the  most  extraordinary  of  ou 
monarchs,  his  favourite  and  minister,  the  cardinal  Wolsey,  was  at  the  very 
head  of  the  extraordinary  men,  even  in  that  age  of  strange  men  and 
.«!  range  deeds.  He  was  the  son  of  a  butcher  in  tlie  town  of  Ipswich,  and 
displaying,  while  young,  great  quickness  and  intelligence,  he  had  a  learned 
education,  with  a  view  to  his  entering  the  church.  Having,  at  the  con- 
clusion of  Ins  (iwn  education,  been  employed  in  teaching  the  children  of 
the  marquis  of  Oorsel,  he  gave  so  much  satisfaction  that  that  nobleman  re 
commended  him  to  Henry  VIII.,  as  his  chaplain.  As  the  private  and 
public  servant  of  that  monarch,  Wolsey  gave  equal  salisl'aclioii ;  and  when 


i 


m 


444 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HI8T0R\. 


Henry  VIII.,  a  gay,  young,  and  extravagant  monarch,  showed  a  very  en 
dent  preference  of  the  earl  of  Surrey  to  the  somewhat  severe  and  eco 
nomic  Fox,  bishop  of  Winchester,  this  prelate  introduced  VVolsey  to  the 
king,  hoping  that,  while  his  accomplishments  and  pliability  would  enable 
him  to  eclipse  the  earl  of  Surrey,  he  would,  from  his  own  love  of  pleasure 
if  not  from  the  motives  of  gratitude,  be  subordinate  in  all  matters  oi 
politics  to  the  prelate  to  whom  he  owed  his  introduction.  The  difference 
between  the  actual  conduct  of  VVolsey,  and  the  expectations  of  the  pre- 
late,  furnishes  a  strlknig  illustration  of  the  aptitude  of  otherwise  able  men 
to  fall  into  error  when  they  substitute  their  own  wishes  for  the  principles 
inherent  to  human  nature.  Wolsey  fully  warranted  Fox's  expectation!! 
in  making  himself  even  more  agreeable  to  the  gay  humour  of  the  king 
than  the  earl  of  Surrey.  But  Wolsey  took  advantage  of  his  position  to 
persuade  the  king  that  both  the  earl  and  the  prelate,  tried  counsellors  oi 
the  late  king,  felt  themselves  appointed  by  him  rather  than  by  their  present 
royal  master,  to  whom  th^y  considered  themselves  less  servants  than 
authoritative  guardians  and  tutors.  He  so  well,  at  the  same  time,  showed 
his  own  capacity  equally  for  pleasure  and  for  business,  and  his  own  readi- 
ness to  relieve  the  king  from  the  weight  of  all  irksome  details,  and  yet  to 
be  his  very  and  docile  creature,  that  Henry  soon  found  it  impossible  to  do 
without  him,  in  either  his  gaieties  or  in  his  more  serious  pursuits ;  and 
Wolsey  equally  supplanted  alike  the  courtier  and  the  graver  man  of  busi- 
ness,  who,  in  endeavouring  to  make  him  his  tool,  enabled  him  to  become 
his  superior.  Confident  in  his  own  talents,  and  in  the  favour  of  Henry, 
this  son  of  a  very  humble  tradesman  carried  himself  with  an  all  but  regal 
pomp  and  haughtiness;  and  left  men  in  some  difficulty  to  pronounce 
whether  he  were  more  grasping  in  obtaining  wealth,  or  more  magnificent 
in  expending  it.  Supercilious  to  those  who  affected  equality  with  him, 
he  was  liberal  to  the  utmost  towards  those  beneath  him;  and,  with  a  sin- 
gular inconsistency,  though  he  could  be  ungrateful,  as  we  have  seen  in 
the  case  of  the  unsuspecting  bishop  of  Winchester,  no  man  was  more 
prone  to  an  exceeding  generosity  towards  those  who  were  not  his  patrons 
but  his  tools. 

A.  D.  1515. — A  favourite  and  minister  of  this  temper  could  not  fail  to 
make  many  enemies ;  but  VVolsey  relaxed  neither  in  haughtiness  nor  in 
ambition.  Well  knowing  the  temper  of  Henry,  the  politic  minister  ever 
affected  to  be  the  mere  tool  of  his  master,  though  the  exact  contrary 
really  was  the  case ;  and  by  thus  making  all  his  acts  seem  to  emanate 
from  Henry's  will,  he  piqued  his  vanity  and  wilfulness  into  supporting 
them  and  him  against  all  shadow  of  opposition  or  complaint.  Made 
bishop  of  Lincoln,  and  then  archbishop  of  York,  Wolsey  held  in  com- 
mendam  the  bishopric  of  Winchester,  the  abbey  of  St.  Alban's,  and  had 
the  revenues  at  very  easy  leases  of  the  bishoprics  of  Bath,  VVorcester, 
and  Hereford.  His  influence  over  the  king  made  the  pope  anxious  to  ac- 
quire a  hold  upon  him;  W'olsey,  accordingly,  was  made  a  cardinal,  and 
thenceforth  his  whole  energies  and  ambition  were  (ie.oted  to  the  endeavour 
to  win  the  papal  throne  itself.  Contrary  to  the  custom  of  priests,the  precious 
metals  ornamented  not  only  his  own  attire,  but  even  the  saddles  and  furni 
tureof  his  horses;  hi»  cardinal's  hat  was  carried  before  him  by  a  man  of  rank 
and  laid  upon  the  altar  when  he  entered  chapel ;  one  priest,  of  noble  stat- 
ure and  handsome  countenance,  carried  before  him  a  massive  silver  cross, 
and  another  the  cross  of  York.  Warham,  archbishop  of  Canterbury, 
also  held  the  office  of  chancellor,  and  was  but  ill  fitted  to  contend  with  so 
resolute  a  person  as  Wolsey,  who  speedily  worried  him  into  a  resignation 
of  the  chancellorship,  which  dignity  he  himself  grasped.  His  emoluments 
were  vast,  so  was  his  expenditure  magnificent;  and,  if  he  grasped  at 
many  offices,  it  is  but  fair  to  add  that  he  fulfilled  his  various  duties  with 
rare  energy,  judgment,  and  justice.    Wolsey  might  now  be  said  to  be 


lot  fail  to 
ess  nor  in  ■ 
lister  ever 
contrary 
emanate 
(upporting 
111.     MailB 
[d  in  cam- 
and  had 
Vorcoster, 
ious  to  ac- 
dinal,  and 
endeavour 
le  precious 
and  furni 
lanofrank 
noble  slat- 
ilver  cross, 
anierhury, 
lid  with  so 
resignation 
moUiments 
[grasped  at 
luties  with 
said  to  be 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


445 


Henry's  only  minister ;  fox,  bishop  of  Winchester,  the  duke  of  Norfolk, 
and  the  duke  of  Suffolk  being,  like  the  archbishop  of  Canterbury,  unable 
to  make  head  against  his  arbitrary  temper,  and  driven  from  the  court  by 
ft  desire  to  avoid  a  useless  and  irritating  conflict.  Fox,  bishop  of  Win- 
chester, who  seems  to  have  been  greatly  attached  to  Henry,  warned  him 
against  Wolsey's  ambition,  and  besought  him  to  beware  lest  the  servant 
should  become  the  master.  But  Henry  had  no  fear  of  tiie  kind  ;  he  wiis 
far  too  despotic  and  passionate  a  person  to  fear  that  any  minister  could 
govern  him. 

The  success  which  Francis  of  France  met  with  in  Italy  tended  to  ex- 
cite the  jealousy  and  fears  of  England,  as  every  new  acquisition  made  by 
France  encroached  upon  the  balance  of  power,  upon  which  the  safely  of 
English  interests  so  greatly  depended.  Francis,  moreover  had  given  of- 
fence, not  only  to  Henry,  but  also  to  Wolsey,  who  look  care  not  to  allow 
his  master's  anger  to  subside  for  want  of  a  prompter.  But  though  He.nry 
spent  a  large  sum  of  money  in  stirring  up  enmities  against  France,  he 
did  so  lo  little  practical  effect,  and  was  easily  induced  to  peace. 

A.  D.  1516. — Ferdinand  the  Catholic,  the  father-in-law  of  Henry,  died  in 
the  midst  of  a  profound  peace  in  Europe,  and  was  succeeded  by  his  grand- 
son Charles.  This  event  caused  Francis  to  see  the  necessity  of  bestirring 
himself  to  insure  the  friendship  of  England,  as  a  support  against  tlie  ex- 
tensive power  of  Spain.  As  the  bast  means  of  doing  so,  he  cau^-ed  his 
ambassador  to  make  his  peace  with  Wolsey,  and  affected  lo  ask  that 
haughty  minister's  advice  on  the  most  confidenliul  and  important  sub- 
jects. One  of  the  advantages  obtained  by  Francis  from  this  servile  flat- 
tery of  the  powerful  minister,  was  the  restoirtiion  of  the  important  town 
of  Tournay,  a  frontier  fortress  of  Prance  and  the  Netherlands ;  Francis 
agreeing  to  pay  six  hundred  thousand  crowns,  at  twelve  equal  annual  in- 
Blalments,  to  reimburse  Henry  for  his  expenditure  on  the  citadel  of  Tour- 
nay.  At  the  same  time  that  Francis  gave  eight  men  of  rank  as  hostages 
for  the  payment  of  the  above  large  sum  lo  Henry,  he  agreed  to  p:iy  twelve 
thousand  livres  per  annum  to  Wolsey  as  an  equivalent  for  the  bisliopric 
of  Tournay,  to  which  he  had  a  claim.  Pleased  with  this  success,  Francis 
now  became  bolder  in  his  flatteries,  terming  Wolsey  governor,  tutor,  and 
even  father,  and  so  winning  upon  the  mind  of  Wolsey  by  fulsome  affecta- 
tions of  humility  and  admiration,  that  Polydore  Virgil,  who  was  Wolsey's 
contemporary,  speaks  of  it  as  being  quite  certain  that  Wolsey  was  willing 
to  have  sold  him  Calais,  and  was  only  prevented  from  doing  so  by  the 
general  sense  he  found  to  be  entertained  of  its  value  to  England,  and  by 
his  forming  closer  connections  with  Spain,  which  somewhat  cooled  his 
attachment  to  France.  The  pope's  legale,  Campeggio,  being  recalled  on 
his  failure  to  procure  a  tithe  demanded  by  the  [xjpe  from  the  English  cler- 
gy, on  ihe  old  and  worn-out  pretext  of  war  with  the  Infidels,  ileiiiy  pro- 
cured the  legatine  power  to  be  conferred  on  Wolsey.  With  this  new  dig- 
nity, Wolsey  increased  the  loftiness  of  his  pretensions,  and  the  magnifi- 
cence of  his  habits;  like  the  pope,  he  had  bishops  ami  mitred  abbots  to 
serve  him  when  he  said  mass,  and  he  farther  liad  nobles  of  the  best  fam- 
ilies lo  hand  him  the  water  and  towel. 

So  haughty  had  he  now  become  thai  he  even  eornphiined  of  Warham, 
archbishop  of  Canterbury,  as  being  guilty  of  undue  familiarity  in  signing 
himself  "  Your  loving  brother;^'  which  caused  even  the  meek-spirited  War- 
ham  to  make  the  bitter  remark,  "this  man  is  drunk  with  loo  much  pros- 
perity." But  Wolsey  did  not  treat  his  lefjatine  appointment  as  being  a 
mere  matter  of  dignity  and  pomp,  but  forthwith  opein^d  what  he  called  the 
legatine  court;  a  court  as  oppressive  and  as  expensive  in  its  authority  as 
the  Inquisition  itself.  It  was  lo  inquire  into  all  matters  of  morality  and 
>:on.science,  and,  as  it  was  supplementary  to  the  law  of  the  land,  its  au;hor. 
ty  was,  in  reality,  only  limited  by  the  conscience  of  the  judge     The  first 


|g 


m 


w    iw 


(4l> 


THE  THEA8UEY  OP  HISTORY. 


iudge  appointed  to  this  anomalous  and  dangerous  court  was  John  Allen,  d 
man  whose  life  was  but  ill  spoken  of,  and  who  was  even  said  to  iuivo  been 
convicted  by  Wolsey  himself  of  perjury.  In  the  hands  of  sticii  a  man  as 
this,  the  extensive  powers  of  the  legatine  court  were  but  too  likely  to  be 
made  mere  instruments  of  extortion;  and  it  was  publicly  reported  that  Al- 
len was  in  the  habit  of  convicting  or  acquitting  as  he  was  unbribeil  or 
bribed.  Wolsey  was  thought  to  receive  no  small  portion  of  the  sums  thus 
obtained  by  Allen  from  the  wickedness  or  the  fears  of  the  suitors  of  his 
court.  Much  clamour  was  raised  against  Wolsey,  too,  by  the  >iliiio8t 
papal  extent  of  power  he  claimed  fur  himself  in  all  matters  concerning' 
wills  and  benefices,  the  latter  of  which  he  conferred  upon  his  ereatureii 
without  the  slightest  regard  to  the  monks'  right  of  election,  or  the  lay  gen- 
try and  nobility's  right  of  patronage.  This  miquity  of  Allen  at  length 
caused  him  to  be  prosecuted  and  convicted;  and  the  k.vag,  on  thai  occa- 
liion,  expressed  so  much  indignation,  that  Wolsey  was  ever  :\fter  more 
cautious  and  guarded  in  the  use  of  his  authority. 

A.  1).  1519.^1mmersed  in  pleasures,  Henry  contrived  to  expend  all  the 
huge  treasures  which  accrued  to  him  on  the  death  of  his  father;  and  lie 
was  now  poor,  Just  when  a  circumstance  occurred  to  render  his  pusses 
>>iun  of  treasure  more  than  usually  important.  Maximilian,  the  eni- 
|)eror,  who  had  long  been  declining,  died;  and  Henry  and  the  kings  of 
I'rance  and  Spain  were  candidates  for  that  chief  place  among  the  princes 
of  Christendom.  Money  was  profusely  lavished  upon  the  electors  by  both 
t-'harles  and  Francis;  but  Henry's  milliliter,  I'ace,  having  scarcely  any 
luiiimand  of  cash,  found  his  enorts  everywhere  useless,  and  Charles 
gained  the  day. 

A.  D.  1520. — In  reality  Henry  was  formidable  to  citht^r  France  or  the 
i-mperor,  and  he  could  at  a  moment's  warning,  throw  his  wiMght  into  the 
one  or  the  other  scale.  Aware  of  this  fact,  Francis  was  an.\ious  for  an 
opportunity  of  personally  practising  upon  the  generosity  and  want  of  ('(miI 
jiuignieiit,  which  he  quite  correctly  imputed  to  Henry,  lie,  therefore, 
proposed  that  they  should  meet  in  a  field  within  the  I'hiKli.sh  pale,  near 
Calais ;  tlie  proposal  was  warmly  seconded  by  Wolsey,  wlio  was  as  easier 
as  a  court  beauty  of  t)ie  other  sex  lor  every  occasion  of  pe.'r.sonal  splendour 
and  costliness.  Ea'  n  of  the  monarchs  was  youni;,  gay,  lastel'til,  and  niii^'- 
nilicc!!' :  and  go  well  did  their  courtii^rs  enter  into  their  feeling  of  gor- 
geous rivalry,  that  some  nobles  of  both  nations  expended  on  tliecereni(iiiy 
and  show  of  a  few  brief  days,  sums  wliicli  iiuolved  their  families  in  strait- 
ened circumstances  for  the  rest  of  their  lives. 

The  emperor  (Charles  no  sooner  heard  of  the  proposed  interview  between 
the  kings,  than  he,  i)eing  on  I'.is  way  from  .Spain  to  the  Netiierlands,  pan! 
Henry  ilic  compliment  of  laiiiliiiL!  at  Dover,  whither  Henry  at  once  pro- 
ceeded to  iJieel  hull,  ('iiarles  not  only  end(>avoured  in  evi^ry  possible 
way  to  please  and  llatlcr  Henry,  but  he  also  paid  assidious  court  to  Wol- 
sey, and  hound  that  aspiring  personage  to  his  interests  by  promising  to 
aid  hiin  in  reaching  the  papacy  ;  a  promise  which  ('Iiarles  fell  the  less  dif 
licuKy  about  making,  becaiiHe  ihi^  reigning  pope  l.eo  X.  was  Junior  to  V\i.l- 
•(!y  by  some  years,  and  very  likely  to  outlive  liini.  Henry  was  perlecll\ 
well  aware  of  the  pains  Charles  look  to  concdialo  VVcd.Hcy,  but,  siraii;;*' 
to  say,  felt  rather  llatlered  than  hurt,  as  though  the  compliment  were  ulii- 
niatelv  |iaid  to  his  own  pcMoii  and  will. 

V  "11  the  ein|)cror  had  taken  his  Lieparturc  Henry  proceeded  to  France, 
will  .e  the  meeting  took  place  bet  vvecu  hiru  and  Francis.  Wolsey,  who 
had  the  regulation  of  the  cereiiioiiial,  so  well  indulged  his  own  and  lii> 
masier's  lo\c  of  iiiagmlieenee,  thai  the  place  of  meeting  was  by  the  coiU' 
iiioii  coiifieiil  of  the  delighted  spectators  hailed  by  Ihe  gorgeous  title  ol 
I'lirfin'ii  of  the  clath  of  golil.  dolil  and  j"W('ls  aliollllded  ;  and  li<illi  tlif 
monarchs  and  tliiMr  niinieroiis  courts  were  a|iparelled  in  the  mob>  cor 


THE  TEEASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


447 


geous  and  picturesque  style.  The  duke  of  Buckingham,  who,  though  very 
WBHllhy,  was  not  foud  of  parting  with  his  money,  found  the  expenses  to 
which  he  was  put  on  this  occasion  so  intolerable,  tliat  he  expressed  him- 
self so  angrily  towards  Wolscy  as  led  to  his  execution  some  time  after, 
though  nominally  for  a  different  oflfcnce. 

The  meetings  between  the  monarchs  were  for  some  time  regulated  with 
the  most  jealous  and  wearisome  attention  to  strict  etiqueile.  At  lougth 
Francis,  attended  by  only  two  of  his  geutlemen  and  a  page,  rode  into 
Henry's  quarters.  Henry  was  delighted  at  this  proof  of  his  brother-mon- 
arch's confidence,  and  threw  upon  his  neck  a  pearl  collar  worth  five  or  six 
thousand  pounds,  which  Francis  repaid  by  the  present  of  an  arniUjt  worth 
twice  as  much.     So  profuse  and  gorgeous  were  these  young  kings. 

While  Henry  remained  at  Calais  he  received  another  vi^5ll  from  the  cm 
penir  Charles.  Tiiat  artful  monarch  had  now  completed  ilie  good  imprcs 
sion  he  had  already  made  upon  both  [lenry  and  Cardinal  Wolsc^y,  by  of- 
fering to  leave  all  dispute  between  himself  and  France  to  the  arbitration 
of  Henry,  as  well  as  by  assuring  Wolsey  of  the  papacy  at  some  future 
day,  and  putting  him  into  instant  possession  of  the  revenues  of  the  bish- 
oprics of  Uadajos  and  Placcncia.  The  result  was,  tiiat  the  emperor  made 
demands  of  the  most  extravagant  nature,  well  knowing  tiiat  France  would 
not  comply  with  them;  and  when  tiio  negotiations  were  thus  broken  off, 
a  \reaty  was  made  between  the  emperor  and  Henry,  by  whii-h  the  daughter 
of  the  latter,  the  princess  Mary,  was  tjetrothed  to  the  former,  and  Fngjand 
was  bound  to  invade  France  with  an  army  of  forty  lliousand  men.  Tins 
treaty  alone,  by  the  very  exorbilaiuiy  of  its  injuriousncss  to  Kiiifland, 
would  sulTicieiitly  show  at  once  the  power  oi  Wolsey  over  his  king  and 
the  extent  to  which  he  was  r(^ady  to  exert  that  power. 

The  duke  of  Huckingham,  who  had  imprudently  given  oflTenee  to  the 
all-powerful  cardinal,  was  a  man  of  turbulent  temper,  and  very  imprudent 
in  ex|iri'ssing  himself,  by  which  means  he  afforded  abundant  evidence  for 
his  own  rum.  It  was  proved  that  he  had  provided  arms  with  tlie  intent 
to  disturb  the  government,  and  that  ho  liadcven  threatened  the  lilV;  of  ttm 
kiufj,  to  whinn  he  thought  himself,  as  being  descended  in  the  female  line 
frem  the  youngest  son  of  Kdward  the  Third,  to  be  the  riglilful  successor 
should  the  kt  .g  die  without  issue.  Far  less  real  gnlli  than  this,  ai  led  by 
the  enmity  of  such  u  man  as  Wolsey,  would  have  sullieed  to  ruin  Uiick- 
ingliiini,  who  was  condemned,  audi  to  the  great  discontent  of  tlit;  people, 
executed. 

A.  n.  My'^X, — We  have  already  mentioned  .hat  Henry  in  his  youth  had 
been  jimlously  secluded  from  all  share  in  public  business,  lie  derived 
from  this  eireumslance  ihe  advantaj't!  of  far  more  seludaslie  leaniiiiij  than 
eoniinonly  fell  to  tin;  lot  of  princes,  anil  eircumstanees  now  oeinnred  to 
set  Ins  literary  attainments  and  prop'osities  iii  a  sinking  lijiht.  I, en  X. 
Iiiiving  published  a  general  iniiilgeiice,  cireumstanees  of  a  nieiily  per- 
soiiiil  interest  caused  Vreendioldi,  a  (!( iioese,  then  a  liislinp  but  urieiiially 
a  merehant,  who  fanned  the  collccliiui  of  the  nioiiey  in  S;ix(iiiy  mid  iliu 
coiiiilries  on  the  Hallie,  to  cause  the  preaelimg  for  the  ilidulgeiiees  to  liu 
((iven  to  the  Doiiiiiiicans, instead  of  to  the  Aiigiisiincs  who  had  iisiiiilly  en- 
joyed that  privilege.  Miirlin  r.iitlier,  an  Augiisliiie  Ciiar,  feeling  liiiiisidf 
an  I  Ins  whole  (u-der  allVonted  bv  lliis  chaniie,  preaetied  auMinst  il,  and  in- 
veighed againsi  eertiiin  vices  of  life,  of  wliieli,  pr  ibably,  Ihe  DoniinieanB 
re;illy  were  guiliy,  Ihoiigli  not  more  so  than  liie  Atiijiisliiie  His  spirited 
and  e(i;irse  eensures  provoked  the  eensined  order  lo  reply,  and  as  they 
dwelt  iiiiieliiipoii  the  p:i|ial  aull.orily,  as  an  .ill-siiHicii'iit  ansv.erlo  !jU- 
Iher,  he  was  iiidiieed  lo  (piesiioii  diat  auiliiMity  ;  and  as  lie  extended  his 
reailiiii;  he  found  iMiise  for  more  ami  iiiot<'  exiciided  eomnlauit ;  sv»  that 
lie  w  lio  at  fr  I  had  merely  >  onifdaiiied  of  a  v  rung  done  to  .1  jiarti.  iilaror- 
der  ot  cliurchnien,  sjiecdily  dielared  himself  ajjiii  nt  iniicli  of  ll.ii  doolrm# 


t 


446 


THE  TREASI/RY  OP  HISTORY 


pa  pill 


and  discipline  of  the  church  itsplf,  as  hcing  corrupt  and  o(  merely  human 
invention  for  evil  human  purposes.  From  (iermHny  the  new  doctiines  of 
Luther  quickly  spread  to  the  rest  of  Kurope,  and  found  many  proselytes 
»i  Knjrland.  Henry,  however,  was  the  last  man  in  his  dominions  who 
was  likely  to  assent  to  Luther's  arguments;  as  a  scholar,  and  as  an  ex- 
tremely (lespjtic  monarch,  he  was  alike  shocked  by  them.  He  not  only 
exerted  himself  to  prevent  the  Lutheran  heresies,  as  he  termed  and  no 
doubt  thought  them,  from  tiikiiig  root  in  Kngland,  but  also  wrote  a  book 
in  Latin  against  them.  This  book,  which  would  have  been  by  no  means 
discreditable  to  an  older  and  more  professional  polemic,  Henry  sent  lo  the 
pope,  who,  charmed  by  theabihty  liisplayed  by  so  illustrious  an  advocate  of 
tlie  papal  cause,  conferred  upon  him  the  proud  title  of  Defender  of  the  Faith, 
which  has  ever  since  been  borne  by  our  nionarchs.  Luther,  who  was  not 
of  a  temper  to  qnail  before  rank,  replied  to  Henry  with  great  force  and 
with  but  l;ltle  decency,  and  Henry  was  thus  made  personally  as  well  as 
scliolaslically  an  opponent  of  the  new  doclrincs.  But  those  doctrines  in- 
volved so  many  consequences  favourable  to  hump.n  liberty  and  flattering 
to  human  pride  that  neither  scholastic  n^r  kingly  power  could  prevent 
their  spread,  which  was  much  fiicilitaled  by  the  recent  invention  of  print- 
ing. Tlie  progress  of  the  new  opinions  was  still  firllier  favoured  by  the 
dealli  of  the  vigorous  and  gifted  Leo  X.,  and  by  the  succession  to  the  papal 
throne  of  Adrian,  who  was  so  fir  from  being  inclined  to  go  too  far  in  the 
8up|iort  of  the  establishment,  that  he  candidly  admitted  the  necessity  for 
mucli  reformaiion. 

A.  n.  Vri'i. — The  emperor,  fearing  l.'st  Wolsey's  disappoinment  of  the 
)1  llniMie  should  injure  ihc  imperial  liilcresis  in  Kiigland,  again  came 
■r.  pn)ff.-,sc(lly  only  on  a  visit  of  compliineiit,  but  really  to  forward  his 
political  inleresls.  He  pari  ■i^^sidmnis  court,  not  only  lo  Henry,  but  also 
to  VVolsi'v,  lo  whom  he  ikhiiU'iI  out  that  the  age  and  infirmities  of  Adrian 
remlered  another  vacancy  likely  soon  to  occur  on  tlie  papal  throne  :  and 
VVolsey  saw  it  to  be  his  interest  to  dissemble  the  indignant  vexation  his 
disMiipoiiitinent  had  really  caused  him.  The  emperor  in  cinistMiueiiC!'  suc- 
ceeded in  his  wishes  of  reiaiiiiiig  Henry's  alliance,  and  of  causing  him  to 
declare  «ar  against  I'Vanee.  Lord  Surrey  j'litered  Fiance  with  an  army 
which,  Willi  reinforcements  from  the  Low  ('ouiilvies,  nuinbere(l  eighteen 
Ihonsaiid  men.  Hut  the  operations  by  no  means  corres[unided  in  impor- 
tance lo  the  force  assembled  ;  and,  afler  losing  a  great  iiiirnber  of  men  by 
sickness,  .Surrey  went  into  winter  quarters  in  the  month  of  October  will^ 
out  having  made  himself  master  of  a  single  (ilaee  In  France. 

When  Frani'i!  was  at  war  with  Kiiglaiid,  tli>  re  was  but  little  probability 
of  Scotlanil  reinaiuing  quiet.  Albany,  who  lind  arrived  from  France  es- 
pecially with  a  view  lo  vexing  the  northern  frontier  of  Fiigland,  summoned 
all  the  Scottish  force  that  could  be  rau-ied,  inarched  into  .\iiiiandale,  and 
prepared  to  cross  into  Fngland  at  Solway  IVith.  Ihit  llie  storm  wh! 
averted  from  Knglandby  the  discontents  of  the  Scottish  nobles,  who  co.n. 
plained  that  the  interests  id'.Sciul and  shtnild  be  exposed  to  all  llie  dinger 
of  a  contest  wiiti  so  superior  a  power  as  Knirl.md,  merely  for  the  advan- 
age  of  a  foreign  power.  So  strneiily,  indeed,  did  the  (iordcms  anil  other 
powerful  clansnien  I'Xpress  their  (lisciMileiils  (ni  this  hcarl,  that  Albany 
made  a  truce  with  the  Fuglish  warden,  the  lord  Dacre,  and  returned  to 
France,  taking  llii'  precaution  of  sending  thither  f(ne  him  the  earl  of 
Angnsi,  husband  of  the  iiuccn  dowager 

A.  ».  l.'i'.'n. — With  only  an  infant  king,  nnd  with  their  regent  absent 
frnm  (he  kiiigdiiin,  the  Scots  lahonred  under  the  additional  disadvaulaye 
of  being  divided  into  almost  :'.s  luanv  factious  ;iv  they  numbered  pnteiil 
and  noble  familieM.  Taking  advaniat'c  cdlhis  nielaiicli  y  «tale  of  l!img!> 
III  Scoiland,  Henry  sent  to  that  eounlry  a  powerful  force  etider  the  i  ,irl  o,' 
Surrey,  who  innn'hed  witlKuil  oppiisitioii  into  the  Merse  am'  Teviotit.ilr, 


THE  raEASUIlY  OP  HISTORY. 


aid 


burned  the  town  'it  Jedburgh,  and  ravaged  the  whole  country  round. 
Henry  endeavoured  to  improve  liis  preKeni  superiority  over  the  Scots,  by 
bringing  about  a  marriage  between  his  only  daughter,  the  yoniig  princess 
Mary,  and  the  infant  king  of  Scotland;  a  measure  wliich  would  at  once 
have  put  an  end  to  all  contrariety  of  interests  as  to  the  two  countries,  by 
uniting  them,  as  nature  evidently  intendeil  them  to  be,  into  one  state. 
But  tilt;  friends  of  France  opposed  this  measure  so  warmly,  that  the  queen 
dowager,  who  had  every  possible  motive  for  wishing  to  comply  with  it, 
both  as  favouring  her  bnitlier,  and  promising  an  otherwise  tmattalMablc 
prosperity  to  the  future  reign  of  her  son,  was  unable  to  bring  it  about. 
The  pirtizans  of  Knghmd  and  France  were  nearly  equal  in  power,  if  not 
in  number ;  and  while  they  still  debated  the  (lucstion,  it  was  decided  aguinst 
England  by  the  arrival  of  Albany.  He  raised  troops  and  made  somi' show 
of  battle,  but  there  was  little  actual  fighting.  Disgusted  with  the  factions 
into  which  the  people  were  divided,  Albany  at  length  retired  again  to 
France  ;  and  Henry  having  enough  to  do  in  his  war  with  that  country,  was 
well  content  to  givi?  up  his  notion  of  a  Scottish  alliance,  and  to  rely  upon 
the  Scdis  being  busy  with  their  own  fends,  as  his  best  security  iigainst 
their  licnceforlli  attempting  any  serious  diversion  in  favour  of  France. 
In  truth.  Hi-nry,  as  wealthy  as  he  had  been  at  the  commenci'inent  of 
Ills  ri'igii,  had  been  so  profuse  in  liis  pursuit  of  pleasure,  that  he  hid  now 
1)0  means  of  prosecuting  war  with  any  considerable  vigour  even  against 
France  alone.  Though,  in  many  re^spects,  possessed  of  actual  despotic 
power,  Henry  had  to  suffer  the  usual  inconvenience  of  poverty.  At  one 
time  he  issued  privy  seals  demaiiiling  loans  of  certain  sums  from  wealthy 
men;  at  another  he  dtMiuinded  a  loan  of  five  shillings  in  the  pound 
from  the  clergy,  ami  of  two  shillings  in  the  pound  from  the  laity. 
Though  nominally  /'xi/n,  these  sums  were  really  to  be  eonsidertd  as 
gtfls ;  impositions  at  once  so  large,  so  arbitrary,  and  so  liable  to 
be  repeated  at  any  period,  necessarily  caused  much  discontent.  Soon 
after  this  last  e.\pedient  lor  raising  money  without  the  consent  of  parlia- 
ment, he  suinmoiii'd  a  coiivoeation  iiul  a  parliiinent.  From  the  former, 
Wnlsey,  r(dying  upon  Ins  high  power  and  infiience  ■'  =  cardinal  and  arch- 
jisliiip,  (lemanded  ten  sliilliiigs  in  the  poun  '  on  tlu  •  ■■  esiaslical  revenue, 
to  be  lcvi(!d  in  five  ytars.  The  clergy  nvrimired,  bi,  ,  as  Wolsi  y  had  an- 
icipateil.a  few  sharp  wm-ds  from  him  sileiici'd  all  oli'.eelions,  and  what  ho 
deiiKinded  was  granted.  Having  thus  far  sn<  ceedi  d.  Wolsey  now,  ai- 
teiidecl  by  several  lords,  spiritual  and  temporal,  a<'drf  ssed  the  housi;  of 
cnminons  ;  dilating  upon  the  wants  of  ttie  king,  and  unon  tht  disadvan- 
tngeoiis  position  ill  which  those  wants  phued  him  willi  rcs|)ei't  to  both 
Fr;iii(  r  ami  Scotland,  lut  denianiied  a  yfran  f  two  hundred  llioii'-irid 
poun  Is  per  annum  fm-  four  years.  After  iini.li  liesitHtion  and  muriiining, 
theeiMnmons  granted  only  one  half  the  rc"  ired  sum;  and  here  ('(■■iirrcd 
a  sinking  proof  of  the  spirit  of  indi'penilence,  whiidi,  though  it  was  very 
long  III  growinif  to  its  present  height,  hail  already  been  produced  in  tliC 
house  of  commons  by  its  possession  of  the  pnver  of  the  purse.  Wol.sey, 
oil  liMMinig  how  little  the  ciunmons  had  voi'  d  towards  wh;ii  he  I, id  de- 
inaiiiled,  HMinired  to  be  allowed  lo  "nasou"  with  the  liouse,  bul  wis 
gravi  ly,  ;nid  with  real  dignity,  informed,  tluit  lie  house  of  cominoiix  '  oidd 
reas.in  only  .iiiioug  ii!<  own  miiiil  its.  nut  f^'-nrv  sent  for  Kdward  Mon- 
tague, ,111  iiirtiientiil  member,  and  coar-ejy  llire  it 'md  hiiii  that  if  ilic  (om- 
inous did  not  vote  !<<  ler  on  the  fo||owin)f  day,  ^l"lll  tj^iie  iMvrMiId  Is  hi!» 
head.  This  threat  e.iimii!  the  eoinmoiis  lo  .I'lvanec  tiniiirwhat  n  i'  ir 
fxriner  olVers,  tli.iug'.th' y  Ktill  fell  far  short  of  the  sum  ori({Jii;(ll 

It  may  be  presmnecl  that  Henry  ^/nn  partly  goaled  to  his  vi   :.   ,:    ! 

iiruiiil  threat  lo  Month'  , in  by   v,  ry  iir((rni  necessily  ;  iiinong  the  items  .'f 
llie  I  iionijt  i-raiiit  I,  wai  n  levy  of  three  sIiiIIhi/s  in  ihr  p«>iinfl  on  all  ,•. 
poM^css^..|  fitly  pounds  per  1111111101,  and  though  Dm  wan  Co  b**  (<*v;'  I  ni 
Vol.  I.— aa 


4ft0 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


four  years,  Henry  levied  the  whole  of  it  in  the  very  year  in  which  it  was 
gianted. 

While  Wolsey— for  to  him  the  people  attributed  every  act  of  the  king- 
was  thus  powerful  in  Englfind,  either  very  great  treachery  on  the  part  ol 
the  emperor,  or  a  most  invincible  misfortune,  rendered  him  constantly  un- 
successful as  to  the  great  object  of  his  ambition,  the  papal  throne.  It  now 
again  became  vacant  by  the  death  of  Adrian,  but  this  new  awakening  of 
his  hope  was  merely  the  prelude  to  a  new  and  bitter  disappointment.  He 
was  again  passed  over,  and  one  of  the  Do  Medicis  ascended  the  papal 
throne  under  the  title  of  Clement  VII.  Wolsey  wa=  well  aware  that  this 
election  took  place  with  the  concurrence  of  the  imperial  party,  and  he, 
therefore,  determined  to  turn  ITcnry  from  the  alliance  of  the  emperor  to 
that  of  France.  When  wo  consider  how  much  more  preferable  the  French 
alliance  was,  as  regarded  the  interests  and  happiness  of  millions  of  human 
beings,  it  is  at  once  a  subject  of  indignation  and  of  self-distrust  to  reflect, 
that  the  really  profound  and  far-seeing  cardinal  was  determined  to  it,  only 
by  the  same  paltry  personal  feeling  that  might  animate  a  couple  of  small 
squires  in  a  hunting  field,  or  their  wives  at  an  assize  ball.  But  he  never 
really  coin/irehaids  the  teachings  of  history,  who  is  not  well  informed  upon  the 
jiersnnal  feelings,  and  ten/  cnjiahlc  of  making  allowance  for  the  personal  errors 
of  the  i<;-eat  actors  in  the  drama  of  nations. 

Disappointed  in  the  gr<'at  object  of  his  ambition,  Wolsey  affected  tlie 
utmost  approval  of  the  election  which  had  so  imich  mortified  him,  and  he 
applif  1  to  Plement  for  a  continuation  of  that  lepatine  power  which  had 
now  been  ciitnisted  t  >  him  by  two  popes,  and  Clement  granted  it  to  liim 
for  life,  a  greiit  and  most  unusual  compliment. 

A.  n-  l-'i^ri. — Tliough  Henry's  war  with  France  was  productive  of  much 
expense  of  both  blood  and  treasure,  the  Fnglish  share  in  it  was  so  little 
brilliant,  that  there  is  no  necessity  for  our  entering  here  into  details,  wiiicji 
must,  of  necessity,  be  given  in  another  place.  We  need  only  remark 
that  the  defeat  and  captivity  of  Francis  at  the  great  battle  of  Favia,  in  the 
previous  yi'ar,  would  have  lieen  improved  by  Wolsey,  to  the  prohiilile 
concjuest  of  France,  but  for  the  ilecp  olfeiiee  he  had  received  fnun  llie 
emperor,  which  caused  liini  to  represent  to  llcmry  the  importance  to  him 
of  France  as  aeounterlialaufing  |)Ower  to  the  emperor.  He  suce('.«^i',i!!y 
appealcfl  10  the  jiowerftil  pa^isions  of  Henry,  by  pointing  out  proofs  of 
cohlnt'ss  and  of  increased  assumption  in  the  style  of  the  emperor's  letters 
Bubsequi'iit  t.)  the  battle  of  Favta  :  and  Henry  was  still  more  deterniiiied 
by  iiii->  '"'.evely  per^.fual  argument  tlian  he  had  been  by  even  the  cnirent 
political  one.  The  result  was  that  Hciiry  made  a  treaty  with  the  moilier 
of  Francis,  who  had  Ix'cn  left  liy  him  as  regent,  in  wliicdi  he  undertook  to 
procure  the  liberty  of  Francis  i«i  reascuiable  terms  ;  while  she  '"I'kiiowl- 
»«'lKeil  Henry  ereciiior  of  France  «i  thi'  amotini  of  nearlv  two  .nillions  o| 
crowns,  which  she  uii'Vriook  to  pay  at  the  rate  of  (iflv  Ihous.ii.  i  in  ev(>ry 
fix  moittli!«.  Wolsey.  besides  gra^fving  Ins  splfsfit  itjfnnst  the  i'm|ieior 
in  brimrni'j  about  this  treaty  with  I'luk-c,  prociir^^rt  th*  iiore  s(tliil  ';raii- 
fiealiou  of  a  hundred  th<««iaiKl  pounds,  paid  to  him  uihler  the  name  el 
arrears  of  a  pf  union  aritnted  to  linn  on  the  giving  up  of 'rournay,  as  men- 
tioned in  Its  prop«r  ptae*  m  this  hickory. 

As  It  wan  very  priibabl'  that  lliw  treaty  witli  Frani"  would  lead  to  a 
war  with  the  emperor,  H-  nry  issunt  a  commission  for  levyjug  a  las  ol 
four  sliillings  m  the  ponu'l  up(m  the  '•lergy,  and  llirt  i'  aiKt-tourpeiicc  ii{hiii 
llie  laity.  As  this  heavy  demand  e^nsert  gUMt  miniim'-ing,  lie  look  care 
to  have  it  made  known  that  he  il-sir»'d  this  money  oiii*  in  the  way  of  k- 
t^pTitlrnrr.  Hut  people.  l»y  ibis  iiin*'  j^Klerstood  that  lonn  hfiinolrnn ,  aiiit 
t^r  Wfff  oidy  different  iwmeK  for  the  'nv  mAti'  matter  of  ready  men"/,  aiMi 
lh«  iwi'irirnriiig  diH  iM  <-fu»r  lt«  (M>me  pnrii«  of  the  eountrv  the  iieo|i|e, 
indeed,  Wtjiko  out  iiH«  »p«'n  revolt  ;  but  as  Ifny  bad  no  wealthy  or  mllu 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


451 


ential  leader,  the  king's  officers  and  frienis  put  them  down,  and  Henry 
pardoned  the  ringleaders  on  the  politic  pretence  that  poverty,  and  not 
wilful  disloyalty,  had  led  them  astray. 

A.  D.  1527. — Tiiough  Henry  had  now  so  many  years  lived  with  his  queen 
ni  all  apparent  cordiality  and  contentment,  several  ( ircunistances  had  oc- 
curred to  give  him  doubts  as  to  the  legality  of  their  marriajjc.  When  llie 
emperor  Charles  had  proposed  to  espouse  Henry's  daughter,  the  yoimg 
princess  Mary,  the  states  pf  Castile  objected  to  her  as  being  illegitimate ; 
and  the  same  objeclioH-was  subsequently  made  by  France,  when  ii  was 
proposed  to  ally  her  to  the  prince  of  that  country. 

It  is,  we  think,  usual  too  readily  to  take  it  for  granted  that  Henry  was, 
from  the  first,  prompted  to  seek  the  dissolution  of  litis  marriage,  tnerely 
by  a  libertine  and  sensual  disposition.  It  is  quite  true  that  the  queen  was 
considerably  older  than  he,  and  that  her  beauty  was  not  remarkable  ;  and 
it  may  be  quite  true  that  those  circumstances  were  among  his  motives. 
But  ii  should  not  be  forgotten  that  he  had  studii'd  deeply,  and  that  his  fa- 
vourite author,  Thomas  Aquinas,  spoke  in  utter  reprobation  of  the  marry- 
ing by  H  man  of  his  brother's  widow,  as  denomiced  in  the  book  of  Leviti- 
cus. The  energetic  reprobation  of  an  author  of  whom  he  was  accustomed 
to  think  so  reverently  was,  of  course,  not  weakened  by  the  rejection  of 
his  (laughter  by  botii  Sjjain  and  France,  on  the  ground  of  the  incestuous 
marriage  of  her  parents,  anl  Henry  at  length  biniame  so  desirous  to  have 
some  authoritative  settlement  of  hisiloubls,  tliat  he  caused  the  question  to 
be  mooted  before  the  jjrelates  of  England,  who,  witii  the  single  exception 
of  Fis'ier,  bishop  of  Roi^lieslcr,  subscribed  to  tlie  opinion  that  the  mar- 
riage uas  ah  tncepto  illegal  ;ind  null.  While  Henry's  conscientious  scru- 
ple was  thus  strongly  coiitinncd,  bis  desire  to  get  bis  marrnige  formally 
and  eHV'ctually  annulled  was  greatly  incii  ised  by  his  failing  in  love  with 
Anne  Boleyn,  a  ynuiia,  lady  of  great  beauiy  and  aeeomplishments.  Her 
parents  were  coiiiiectiwl  with  some  of  the  best  fiimilies  in  the  nation,  her 
father  bad  several  times  been  honourably  eiiiployeii  abroad  by  the  king, 
anit  the  young  lady  iierself,  to  her  very  great  inisfortmie,  was,  at  this  time, 
one  (il'tiie  maids  of  linnoiii  to  the  (jueen.  Tiiat  we  "are  corriu-t  in  believ- 
ing Henry  to  lie  less  the  mere  and  willing  slave  of  passion  than  he  lias 
generally  been  represented,  seems  to  be  clear  from  the  single  fai  t,  that 
there  is  no  mslaiiee  of  his  shouiiig  that  contempt  for  the  virtue  of 
the  court  females  so  conimon  in  the  ease  of  monareliH.  He  im  snoner  saw 
Aiiue  Hideyii  than  he  desired  her,  not  as  a  mistress,  liul  as  a  wife,  and 
that  (if'sire  maile  bun  more  than  ever  anxious  hi  dissolve  bis  marriage  with 
Catherine.  He  now,  therefore,  Mpplie<l  to  the  popi'  for  a  divorce,  upon  the 
ground,  not  merely  of  the  ineesiiioiis  nature  of  the  marriage — as  that  might 
have  seemed  tiMpieslioti  or  to  linul  the  dispensing  jjower  nf  Home — lint 
oa  tlie  ground  that  the  bull  which  had  aullKuiseil  it  bad  liei  n  obtaiiu'd  un- 
der false  pretences,  wlueli  were  cleaiiy  |)ii)veii .  a  ground  which  had  al- 
ways been  leld  by  Komi  to  hi'  suflieient  to  tiiithorise  the  imllifynig  of  a 
biili.  Clement,  the  pope,  whs,  at  this  time,  a  prisoner  in  the  bands  of  the 
emr.eror,  and  bis  cnief  liope  of  ol)t:iiiuiig  his  ridease  on  such  terms  as 
would  render  it  desirable  nY  honourable  rested  on  the  exertions  of  lli  iiry, 
Francis,  and  the  states  with  which  ihey  were  in  alliance.  The  popo, 
therefore,  was  desirous  to  conc:iiat(MIenry's  favour;  but  bf!  was  timid, 
v.ieilliitinii,  an  Itaban  .oul  an  ailept  in  that  ibssimiilation  w  bich  is  so  char- 
ai'ieristie  of  men  who  add  constituiional  imnibty  to  inlelleetnal  power. 
Anxious  to  conciliate  llemy  by  graiitmg  the  divorce,  be  was  fearful  li'st 
he  sliouldei\rage  the  emperiir— Queen  Catbeniie's  nephew— by  domg  s,, , 
tlie  coiisequenee  was,  a  long  ;<erie«  of  expcilieiils,  delays,  promises,  and 
di»i!i|)poinlments,  ledions  to  rivul  of  in  even  the  mo- 1  elaborate  histories,  and 
wliieh,  to  relate  here,  would  be  an  injitrioiis  waste  of  sniiee  mid  time. 

The  eardiiial  rainpegijiii  was  at  length  joined  with  NVolscy  in  a  com- 


452 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HrSTORY. 


mission  to  try  the  affair  in  England.  The  two  legates  opened  their  couri 
in  London ;  both  the  queen  and  Henry  were  summoned  to  appear,  and  a 
most  painful  scene  took  place.  When  their  majesties  were  called  by  name 
in  the  court,  Catherine  left  her  seat  and  threw  herself  at  the  feet  of  the 
king,  recalled  to  his  memory  how  she  had  entered  his  dominions,  leaving 
hU  friends  and  support  to  depend  upon  him  alone ;  how  for  twenty  years 
she  had  been  a  faithful,  loving,  and  obedient  wife.  She  impressed  upon 
him  the  fact  that  tlie  marriage  between  her  and  his  elder  brother  had,  in 
truth,  been  but  sutdi  a  mere  formal  betrothal  as  in  innumerable  other  cases 
bad  been  held  no  bar  to  subsequent  niarriag"  ;  that  both  their  fathers,  es- 
teemed the  wisest  princes  in  Christendom,  had  consented  to  their  marriage, 
which  they  would  not  have  done  unless  well  advised  of  its  propriety ;  and 
she  concluded  by  saying,  that  bei'v^r  well  assured  that  she  bad  no  reason 
to  expect  justice  from  a  court  ai  (he  disposal  of  her  enemies,  so  never 
more  would  she  appear  before  i'.. 

After  the  departure  of  the  (lueen  the  trial  proceeded.  It  was  prolonged 
from  week  to  week,  and  from  month  to  mcntli.  by  the  arts  of  Cam[)eijgio, 
acting  by  the  instructions  of  Clement,  who  i  .nployed  the  time  in  making 
his  arrangements  with  the  emperor  for  tiis  n-vn  benefit,  ami  that  of  the 
De  Medicis  in  general.  Having  succeoi^ed  in  doing  this,  lie,  to  Henry's 
great  astonishment,  evoked  the  'Muse  to  I'ome  on  the  queen's  appeal,  just 
as  every  one  expected  tlie  lega-  's  to  pronounce  for  tlie  divorcer  HtMiry 
was  greatly  enraged  at  Wolscy  on  account  of  this  result.  He  had  so  long 
been  accstonied  to  see  the  cardinal  successfil  in  whatever  he  attempted, 
that  he  attributed  his  present  failure  rather  to  treachery  than  to  want  of 
judgment.  Tlie  great  seal  was  s'>orlly  taken  from  him  and  given  to  Sir 
Thomas  Mori,  -md  he  was  ordered  to  give  up  to  the  king  his  stalely  and 
gorgeously  furnished  palace  called  York-House,  which  was  converted  into 
a  royal  residence,  under  the  name  of  Whitehall.  The  wealth  seized  in 
this  one  residence  of  the  cardinal  was  immense  ;  his  plate  was  of  regal 
splendour,  and  included  what  indeed  not  every  king  could  boast,  one  per- 
fect cupboard  of  massive  gold.  His  furniture  and  other  •'fleets  wvvf  nu- 
merous and  cosily  in  proportion,  as  may  be  judged  f"-  ;n  tlie  single  item 
of  one  thousand  pieces  of  fine  FioUand  cloth!  The  7  .-isessor  of  all  ilijs 
wealth,  however,  was  a  ruined  man  now  ;  in  the  privacy  of  his  coinpara- 
tively  mean  country  house  at  Esher,  in  Surrey,  he  was  unvisiied  and  un- 
noticed by  those  courtiers  who  had  so  eagerly  crowded  around  him  while 
he  was  yet  disiinguished  by  ihe  king's  favour.  Hut  if  the  ingiatituili'  ol 
his  friends  left  him  undisturbed  in  bi.s  sitlitude,  the  aclivity  of  his  fmsdid 
not  let  him  rest  even  there.  The  king  had  not  as  yet  deprived  hini  ol 
his  sees,  and  h;id,  morecver,  seiil  him  a  ring  and  a  kind  nicssage. 
His  enemies,  therefore,  fearful  lest  li(^  should  even  yet  recov(!r  his  lost  I'a- 
vour,  .iiid  so  ae(|uin'  the  power  to  repay  iht'ir  ill  services,  took  every 
intihod  to  prejudice  him  in  the  c^yes  of  the  king,  who  at  length  abaiiiliiiicd 
him  to  the  power  of  parln'ineiit.  The  lords  passed  Ibity-foiir  ariieles 
against  him,  of  wbicii  it  ,s  not  too  much  lo  say  that  there  was  not  oiif 
whii'h  might  not  lue  •  been  exiilained  away,  had  anything  like  legal  liirni 
or  () roof  been  called  Tor  or  eoiiMdered.  Ainu!  the  general  and  >hanierul 
abandonments  of  Wolsey  by  Ihosf  who  had  so  hilely  fawned  upon  liini, 
it  IS  (lelightriil  to  have  to  record,  thai  when  Ihesi  articles  were  sent  dnwn 
to  the  house  of  commons,  the  oppressed  and  ahandoiied  cardinal  was 
warmly  and  ably  defended  by  'I'honias  (^roinwidl,  whom  his  |)ati'onai;e 
had  raised  from  a  very  low  origin.  All  del'ence,  liowe\er,  was  vain  ;  the 
iiarliament  |iroiiouni'ed  "That  he  was  out  of  the  kinii's  proleelioii ;  thai 
nis  lands  ami  goods  were  forfeited  ;  and  that  Ins  person  inigiil  be  coiniiiit 
ted  to  ee.,ti((l;.  ." 

From  Ksher,  Wolsey  removed  to  P.iclimoiid,  hut  hiw  enemies  had  liii'' 
jrdered  lo  Voikshire,  where  he  lived  m  great  modesty  at  Cawood.     iii.t 


THE  TREASUHY  OF  HISTORY. 


453 


.le  king's  differences  with  Rome  were  now  every  day  growing  greater, 
i!id  he  easily  listened  to  those  who  assured  him  that  in  finally  shaking  off 
ill  connection  with  the  holy  see,  he  would  encounter  powerful  opposition 
from  the  cardinal.  An  order  was  issued  for  his  arrest  on  a  charge  of  high 
treason,  and  it  is  very  probable  that  his  death  on  the  scaffold  would  have 
been  added  to  the  stains  upon  Henry's  memory,  but  that  the  harrassed 
frame  of  the  cardinal  sunk  under  the  alarm  and  fatigue  of  his  arrest  and 
forced  journey.  He  was  conveyed  by  Sir  William  Kingston,  constable  of 
the  Tower,  as  far  as  Leicester  abbey.  Here  his  illness  became  so  extreme 
ihat  he  could  be  got  no  farther,  and  here  he  yielded  up  his  breath  soon 
after  he  had  spolten  to  Sir  William  Kingston  this  memorable  and  touch- 
ing caution  against  an  undue  worldly  ambition : 

"I  pray  you  have  me  lieartily  recommended  unto  Ms  royal  majesty,  and 
beseech  iiim,  on  my  behalf,  to  call  to  his  remembrance  all  matters  that 
have  passed  between  us  from  the  beginning,  especially  with  regard  to  his 
business  with  the  queen,  and  then  he  will  know  in  his  conscience  whether 
1  liave  offended  him.  He  is  a  prince  of  a  most  royal  carriage,  and  hath  a 
princely  heart ;  and  rather  than  he  will  miss  or  want  any  part  of  his  will, 
he  will  endanger  the  one  half  of  his  kingdom.  I  do  assure  you  that  I 
iuive  often  kneeled  before  him,  sometimes  three  hours  together,  to  per 
suade  him  from  his  will  and  appetite,  but  could  not  prevail.  Had  I  but 
served  God  as  diligently  as  I  have  served  the  king,  he  would  not  have 
given  me  over  in  my  grey  hairs.  But  this  is  the  just  reward  that  I  must 
receive  for  my  indulgent  pains  and  Study,  not  regarding  my  duty  to  God, 
but  only  to  my  prince.  Therefore,  let  me  advise  you,  if  you  be  one  of 
the  privy  council,  as  by  your  wisdom  you  are  fit,  take  care  what  you  put 
into  the  king's  head,  for  you  can  never  put  it  out  again."  Touching  and 
pregnant  testimony  of  a  dying  man,  of  no  ordinary  wisdom,  to  the  hollow- 
iiess  with  which  all  the  unrighteous  ends  of  ambition  appear  clad,  when 
ilie  votary  of  this  world  >p'.  L-ives  the  final  and  irrevocable  summons  to  the 
blighter  and  purer  world  beyond ! 


-W 


It 


CHAPTER  XLI. 

THE    REIGN  OK  HCNIIV  VIIl.    (CONTINUED.) 

Xatl'ram.v  too  fond  of  authority  to  feel  without  impatience  the  ncavy 
yoke  of  Koine,  ttie  opposition  he  had  so  signally  experienced  in  the  mat- 
ter of  liis  divorce  had  eiir,iged  Henry  so  much,  that  he  gave  every  eneour- 
agenient  to  the  parliament  to  abridge  the  exoroitant  privileges  of  the 
clergy;  in  doing  which,  he  eijually  pleased  himself  in  mortifying  Home, 
luiil  in  paving  the  way  for  that  entire  independence  of  the  pajjal  power,  of 
which  every  day  made  him  more  desirous.  The  parliament  wa.s  ('qually 
ready  to  depress  the  clergy,  and  several  hills  were  passed  which  tended 
to  make  iIk;  laity  more  iiKlependeiil  of  them.  The  parliament,  about  ihis 
time,  passed  anotlnT  bill  to  acquit  the  king  of  all  claimH  oo  account  of 
tliose  exactions  wIikIi  he  had  speciously  called  loans. 

While  Henry  was  agitated  between  the  wish  lo  break  with  Rome,  and 
the  opposing  uiiwiljlngm'ss  to  give  so  plain  a  coiilradietion  to  all  that  he 
had  adv;iiiced  in  tlie  book  which  had  proiiired  him  thr  flatteiing  title  ot 
Di/mder  nf  tlir  Failli,\\v  was  iiii'onncd  that  !)i.  Cninmer.  a  fellow  of  Jesus' 
rojlcge,  Cambridge,  and  a  man  of  yood  repii.e,  hotli  as  lo  life  and  leaniiiig, 
■lail  suggested  that  all  the  uiiivi  isilies  of  lairopi-  should  be  ennsulled  as 
Co  the  legality  of  Henry's  marriage  ;  if  the  deeision  were  in  fa»oiir  ol  it, 
the  king's  qualms  of  eoiiseieiice  must  needs  ilisappear  bt-lDfe  such  a  liont 
of  learning  and  jiidgiiieiit ;  if  tlie  (i|iiiiion  were  against  n.  equally  must 
til',  hesitation  nf  Kdine  us  lo  granting  tli^  divorce  be  shamed  awav.     Oil 


'";ui;i.ii; 


m 


THE  TREA8'JRy  OF  HISTORV. 


hearing  this  opinion  Hoary,  in  his  bkiflf  way.yxclaiuied  that  Crantner  h;i,1 
takcM)  the  right  sow  by  t!ie  ear,  sent  for  him  to  ourt,  and  was  so  well 
pleased  witli  liini  as  lo  employ  him  to  write  in  favour  of  the  divoree, ;  'vl 
to  superintend  the  course  he  h  id  himself  sugjrested. 

A.  I).  153.?.— The  measures  taken  by  parliament,  with  the  evident  i,'ood« 
will  of  the  kin.  were  so  obviously  tending  towards  a  total  separatio:, 
from  Rome,  that  Sir  Thoin'as  More,  the  chancellor,  resigned  the  great 
seal;  t';t  able  man  being  devotedly  atlaehed  to  the  pupal  authority,  and 
clearly  s'  eingthat  he  could  no  longer  retain  office  but  at  the  risk  of  being 
called  upon  to  act  against  the  pope. 

At  Rome  the  nieasure.i  of  Henry  were  not  witnessed  without  auxiet}  ; 
and  wiiile  the  emjieror'.-;  agents  did  all  in  their  |)ower  to  determine  the  pe^'ii 
against  Henry,  the  more  cautiiuis  nii'nibers  of  tlu^  eonelave  advisisd  that  a 
iavour  often  granted  to  meaner  princes,  should  not  be  denied  to  him  wlio 
had  heretofore  been  so  good  a  son  of  the  cliurch,  and  who,  if  driven  to  des- 
peration, might  wholly  alienate  from  the  i)apacy  the  most  precious  of  all 
the  states  over  which  it  hidd  sway. 

Hut  the  time  for  conciliaiing  Henry  was  now  gone  by.  He  had  iii 
interview  with  ihe  king  of  Fraiux',  in  ..liieh  they  renewed  their  personal 
friendship,  and  agreed  upon  liie  measures  of  mutual  defence,  and  Henry 
privately  married  Anne  Uoleyn,  whom  he  had  previously  created  coinitess 
of  Pembroke. 

A.  I).  1.53.3. — The  lieu-  wife  of  Henry  proving  pregnant,  Cranmer,  now 
arcliliisliop  of  ('anli  i'.a'y,  was  directed  lo  hold  a  court  at  Dunstable  to 
decid(!  on  the  invalidity  of  the  marriage  of  Catherine,  who  lived  at  Anipt- 
hill  in  that  neighbourhood.  If  this  court  were  anything  tuit  a  more  mock- 
ery, reasonable  men  argued,  its  decision  should  surely  have  preceded  and 
not  followed  the  second  marriage.  But  t!ie  king's  will  was  absolute,  and 
the  opinions  of  the  universities  and  the  judgment  of  the  eoijvocations  liav- 
ing  been  formally  read,  and  both  opinions  and  judgment  being  ag.iinsl 
Cathiaine's  marriage,  it  was  now  solemnly  annulled.  Soon  after,  the  new 
qui'eii  was  didivered  of  a  daughter,  the  afterwards  wise  and  powerful 
Qui.'cn  HiizaliiUh. 

Notwithstanding  all  the  formalities  that  had  been  brought  to  bear  against 
her  rights.  Queen  Catherine,  who  was  as  resolute  as  she  was  otherwise 
amialile,  refusi'd  to  be  styled  aught  but  (pieen  of  England,  ami  lo  the  day 
of  her  death,  eoniptdled  her  servants,  and  all  who  had  the  privilege  of  ap- 
proaching her,  to  address  and  treat  her  as  their  qni^en. 

The  enemies  of  Henry  at  Romi-  urged  the  po|ie  anew  to  pronounce  sen- 
tence of  ex(  ommunication  against  liim.  But  Clement's  niece  was  now 
married  to  the  second  sop  of  the  king  of  France,  who  spoke  fo  the  (lope  in 
Henry's  f.iv  ur.  Clement,  therefore,  for  the  present,  confined  his  severity 
to  issuing  a  s(;nti,'nee  nullifying  Cranmcr's  sentence,  and  the  marriage  of 
Henry  to  Xnw  Uoleyn,  and  threatening  to  (•xcommumcato  him  shoull 
he  not  restore  Ins  affairs  to  their  former  footing  by  a  certain  day. 

A.  D.  \!}'V>. — .\s  Henry  had  slill  some  strong  leanings  to  the  church,  and 
as  It  was  obviously  nuudi  to  the  interest  of  Kome  not  wholly  to  lose  its 
intluence  over  so  wealthy  a  nation  as  England,  there  even  yet  seenied 
to  be  some  chance  <if  an  amicable  termination  of  this  (juarr(d.  By  l\v: 
good  olfKU's  (>f  th(^  king  of  France,  the  pope  was  induced  to  promise  to 
proiionu(;e  in  favour  of  the  divorce,  on  the  receipt  ofa  certain  promise  of  lh(> 
king  to  submit  his  cause  to  Uome.  The  king  agreed  to  make  this  proini.se 
ami  actually  dispatched  a  courier  with  it.  .Somedel.iys  ofthero.ad  prevt'iu.'d 
the  arrival  of  the  important  document  at  Uome  until  two  days  after  the 
proper  iiww.  In  the  iuti'rim  it  v\'as  re|)oried  at  Home,  probiilily  by  .some 
i>f  till'  imperial  agents,  that  the  pope  anil  e.irdinals  had  been  ridiculed  in  a 
tiiree  th.it  had  been  oerformi'il  befori;  Henry  ami  bis  (Muirt.  Knragcd  v 
!l»is  iiitelliijeiiee,  the  pope  and  caidiii.ils  viewed  it  as  sure  proof  that  Ilea 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


455 


(l-.iy 
(;  of  ap- 

nrc  meli- 
us now 
;)i)po  ill 
ipverily 

T,\gi'  of 
sllOlllit 

I'll,  ami 
I'  ils 
sccmi'il 

By  the 
misc  to 

of  llip 
iromiso 

vi'iiii'd 
Tier  tlin 
some 

I  ill  A 


ry  8  promise  w.  s  not  intended  to  he  kept,  and  a  Bfiitence  was  immediately 
pronounced  in  '...our  of  Catherine's  marriage,  wiiile  Henry  was  threat- 
ened with  excommunication  in  the  event  of  that  sentence  not  being  sub- 
aiitted  to. 

It  is  customary  to  speak  of  the  final  breach  of  Henry  with  Rome  as 
Having  been  solely  caused  by  this  dispute  with  Rome  about  the  divoi  :e  ; 
all  fact,  however,  is  against  that  view  of  the  case.  The  opinions  of  Lu- 
ther had  spread  far  and  wide,  and  had  sunk  deep  into  men's  Hearts  ;  and  the 
bitterest  things  said  against  Rome  by  the  reformers  were  gentle  when  com- 
pared to  the  testimony  borne  against  Eoine  by  her  own  vcnalit)'  and  her 
gciieral  corruption.  In  this  very  case  how  could  the  validity  of  Cathe- 
rine's marriage  he  afTected  by  the  real  or  only  allcdged  performance  of  a 
ribald  farce  before  tiie  English  court  above  a  score  of  years  after  it  1  The 
very  readiness  with  which  li;'"  nation  joined  the  king  in  seceding  from 
Rome,  shows  very  clearly  tlia.  inder  any  possible  circumstances  that  se- 
cession must  have  sliortly  taken  place.  We  merely  glance  at  this  fact, 
because  it  will  be  put  beyond  all  doubt  when  we  come  to  speak  of  the  ac- 
cession of  Queen  Elizabeth  ;  for  notwithstanding  all  that  Mary  had  done, 
by  the  zealous  support  she  gave  to  the  church  of  Rome  and  by  her  furious 
persecution  of  the  lleformer  i,  to  render  the  subserviency  of  England  to 
Rome  both  permanent  and  perfect,  the  people  of  this  country  were  re- 
joiced at  the  opportunity  it  afforded  them  of  throwing  off  the  papal  authority. 

The  houses  of  convocation — with  only  four  opposing  votes  and  one 
doubtful  voter — declared  that  "the  bishop  of  Rome  had  by  the  law  of  God 
no  more  jurisdiction  in  England  than  any  other  foreign  bishop ;  and  tlic 
authority  which  he  and  his  predecessors  have  here  exercised  was  only  by 
usurpation  and  by  the  sufferance  of  th<;  English  princes.'  The  ccni'oca- 
tion  also  ordtired  tliat  the  act  now  passed  by  the  parliament  against  all  ap- 
peals to  Rome,  and  the  appeal  of  ilie  king  from  the  pope  to  a  general 
council  should  be  affixed  to  all  churcli  doors  througliout  the  kingdom. 
That  iiotliii^-  might  be  left  undone  to  convince  Rome  of  Henry's  resolve 
upon  an  entire  separation  from  the  church  of  which  he  had  been  so  ex- 
tolled a  defender,  the  parliament  passed  an  act  confirming  the  iiivulidity 
of  Henry's  marriage  with  Catherine.  anJ  the  validity  of  that  willi  Anne 
Doleyn.  All  persons  were  requirei!  to  take  the  oath  to  support  the  suc- 
cession thus  fixed,  and  the  only  pers  its  of  consequence  who  r^'fuscd  were 
Sir  Thomas  More  and  bisliop  Fishc  ,  who  were  both  indicted  and  com- 
mitted to  the  Tower.  The  parliament  having  thus  completely,  and  we 
may  add  servilely,  complied  with  all  llie  wishes  of  the  king,  wiis  for  a 
sliort  time  prorogued. 

The  parliament  had  already  given  to  Henry  the  reality,  and  it  now  pro- 
ceeded to  give  him  the  title  of  supreme  head  of  the  church;  and  thai  Rome 
miglit  have  no  doubt  that  the  very  exorbitancy  with  wliicli  she  iiad  pres- 
sed her  pretensions  to  authority  in  England  iiad  wholly  transferred  that 
.uUliority  to  the  crown,  the  parliament  accompanied  tliis  new  and  sigiii- 
ficaiit  title  with  a  sraiit  of  all  tlie  annates  and  tithes  of  benefices  wiiich 
had  hitherto  Ix^eii  paid  to  Rome.  Af  r-ibli;  and  practical  iiliistratimi  of 
(lie  sort  of  supremai-y  which  Henry  iateiided  that  himself  and  liis  sticces- 
sms  should  exercise,  and  one  whi(di  showed  Rome  that  not  in(>rely  in  su- 
perstitious observances  but  also  in  solid  matters  of  pecuniary  tribute,  it 
(vus  Henry's  determination  that  iiis  people  should  l)e  free  from  ()apal  dom 
inntioii 

Hoth  in  Ireland  and  Scotland  the  king's  affairs  were  just  at  this  moment, 
whi'ii  he  was  carrying  matters  wit!i  so  high  a  hand  with  Rome,  siiidi  as  to 
cause  him  some  anxiety,  but  his  main  can!  was  wisidy  bestowed  upon  his 
own  kiiigd. 11(1.  The  mere  si'ci'ssion  of  that  kingdoai  from  an  authority 
so  timeiuiuoured  and  hitherto  so  drci.iled  and  so  arlntrary  as  Rome,  w  is, 
even  lo  so  powerful  and  resolute  a  monarcli  as  Henry,  an  experiiii^'iit  of 


456 


THE  TllEASUllY  OF  HISTORY. 


some  nicety  and  danger.  Might  not  they  who  had  been  taught  to  rebel 
against  the  church  of  Komc  be  induced  to  rebel  against  the  crown  itself? 
The  conduct  of  the  anabaptists  of  Germany  added  an  afRrmative  of  expe- 
rience to  the  answer  wliich  reason  could  not  fail  to  suggest  to  this 
question.  But  besides  that  there  were  many  circumstances  which  ren- 
dered it  unlikely  that  the  frantic  republican  principles  which  a  few  re- 
forming zealots  iiad  preached  in  Germany,  would  talie  a  hold  upon  the 
hardy  and  practical  intellect  of  Englishmen  long  and  deeply  attached  to 
monarchy,  there  was  little  fear  of  the  public  mind,  while  Henry  reigned, 
having  too  much  speculative  liberty  of  any  sort.  He  had  shaken  off  t!ic 
pope,  indeed,  but  he  had,  as  far  as  the  nation  was  concerned,  only  done 
so  to  substitute  himself ;  and  though  the  riglit  of  private  judgment  was  one 
of  the  most  important  principles  of  the  Reformation,  it  very  soon  became 
evident  that  the  private  judgment  of  the  English  subject  would  bi:  an  ex- 
tremely dangerous  thing  except  when  it  very  accurately  tallied  wilii  that 
of  his  prince.  Opposed  to  the  dis(!ipline  of  Rome,  as  a  king,  he  was  no 
less  opposed  to  the  leading  doctrines  of  Luther,  as  a  theologian.  His 
conduct  and  language  perpetually  betrayed  the  struggle  between  these 
antagonistic  feelings,  and  among  tiie  ministers  and  frequenters  of  the 
court,  as  a  natural  consequence,  "motley  was  the  only  wear."  Thus  the 
queen,  Cromwell,  now  secretary  of  state,  and  Craniner,  arclibishop  of 
Canterbury,  were  attached  to  the  reformation,  and  availed  themselves  of 
every  opportunity  to  forward  it,  but  they  ever  found  it  safer  to  impugn  the 
papcuy  liian  to  criticise  any  of  the  doctrines  of  catholi(Msm.  On  the  other 
side  the  duke  of  Norfolk,  and  Gardiner,  bishop  of  Winchester,  both  of 
whoni  were  high  in  authority  and  favour,  were  strongly  attached  to 
the  ancient  faith.  The  king,  flattered  by  each  ol"  the  parties  upon  a  portion 
of  his  principles,  was  able  to  play  the  popi!  over  both  his  catholic  and  his 
proiesiant  subjects,  and  liis  stern  and  liea'!strong  style  of  both  speech  and 
action  gieatly  added  to  the  advantage  given  him  by  the  anxiety  of  each 
parly  to  have  him  for  its  ally  against  the  other. 

In  the  meantime  it  was  no  longer  in  the  power  of  eitherking  or  ministei 
to  prevent  the  purer  principles  oI'iIk!  Reformation  from  making  their  way 
to  the  hearts  and  minds  of  the  people.  Tindal,  .loyce,  and  other  learned 
men  who  had  sought  in  the  Low  (countries  for  safety  from  the  king's 
arbitrary  temper,  found  means  to  smuggle  over  vast  numbers  of  tracts 
and  a  translation  of  the  scriptures.  Tliese  got  extensively  circulated  and 
were  greedily  perused,  although  the  catiiolic  portion  of  the  ministry  aided 
— however  singular  the  phrase  may  sound — by  tlie  catholic  portion  of  the 
king's  v>  ill,  made  great  endeavours  to  keep  them,  but  especially  the  bible, 
from  the  i  yes  of  the  people. 

A  singular  anecdote  is  related  of  one  of  the  attempts  made  to  suppress 
the  l)ibl(!.  Tonstal,  bishop  of  London,  a  zealous  catholic,  but  humane 
man,  was  very  anxious  to  prevent  the  circulation  of  Timlal's  bible,  and 
Tindal  was  himself  but  little  less  anxious  for  a  new  and  more  accurate 
ediii')!).  Tonstal,  preferring  the  preveiuion  of  what  he  deemed  crime  to 
the  jumishment  of  offenders,  devoted  a  large  sum  of  inone^y  to  purchasing 
all  iiie  copies  that  could  be  met  with  of  Tindal's  bible,  and  all  the  copies 
thus  obtained  were  solemnly  burned  at  the  Cross  of  Cheap.  Uotli  the 
bishop  and  Tindal  were  gratified  on  this  occasion ;  the  former,  it  is  true, 
destroyed  the  lirsi  and  incorrect  edition  of  the  bible  by  Tindal,  but  he  at 
the  same  time  supplied  that  zealous  scholar  with  the  pecimiary  means,  ol 
which  111!  was  otherwis(,'  destitute,  of  bringing  out  a  second  and  more  per 
feci  as  well  as  more  ext(  nsive  edition. 

Oiliers  were  less  humane  in  their  desire  to  repress  what  they  lieemed 
heresy,  and  few  were  more  severe  than  Sir  Thomas  .More,  who  succeeded 
W'olscy  as  chancfdior,  and  of  whose  own  imprisonunMit  we  have  already 
Hpukeu,  as  presently  sve  shall  have  to  speak  of  his  death.     Though  a 


salvatii 
ed. 
but  the 
detestei 
than  to 
more  lii 
moilerat 
temper 
.\t  Aid 

inoilly 

iiitliienc 
her  jgno 
iiis|)irati 
proving 
limt  for 
of  Kent 
great  di 
self,  wli 
chapel 
profit's  I 
I'roin  oil 
of  the  : 
iiartoii  I 
image 

\i  (n- 
merely 


THE  TUKASUllY  OF  HISTOttY. 


457 


man  of  elegant  learning  and  great  wit,  and  though  in  spcrulative  opin- 
ions he  advanced  much  which  the  least  rigid  protestant  might  justly  con- 
demn as  impious,  yet,  so  true  a  type  was  he  of  the  motley  age  in  which 
he  lived,  his  enmity  to  all  opposition  to  papacy  in  practice  could  lead  him 
to  the  most  dastardly  and  hatofi  v      'I'o  speak,  in  detail,  of  the 

errors  of  a  great  man  is  at  all  ioasant ;  we  merely  mention, 


"'13  gentleman,  a  student 

p  accused  of  heing  con 

if  the  reforrx'd  doctrines 

not  deny  his  own  part  ir 

refused   to  give  any  testi- 

00k  place  in  thecliancellor's 


therefore,  his  treatment  of  Jami 
of  the  Temple,  was  during  Moi 
cerned  with  others  in  aiding  in  ii 
It  appears  that  the  unfortunate  gi 
tlie  acts  attributed  to  him,  but  huaouratiy 
mony  against  others.     His  first  examination 

own  house,  and  there,  to  his  great  disgrace,  he  actually  had  the  high- 
minded  gentleman  stripped  and  brutally  wliipped,  the  chancellor  in  person 
witnessing  and  superintending  the  disgusting  exhibition.  Dul  the  mis- 
taken and  maddening  zeal  of  iMore  did  not  stop  even  here,  b^nraged  at 
the  constancy  of  his  victim,  he  had  him  conveyed  to  the  tower,  and  there 
saw  him  put  to  tlie  torture.  Under  this  new  and  most  terrible  trial  the 
(Irinnessof  the  unhappy  gentleman  for  a  time  gave  way  and  he  abjured 
his  priiuriples ;  but  in  a  very  short  time  afterwards  he  openly  returned  to 
them,  and  was  burned  to  death  iii"  Smithfield  as  a  relapsed  and  confirmed 
heretic. 

It  will  easily  be  supposed  that  while  so  intellectual  a  catholic  as  More 
was  thus  furious  on  behalf  of  Rome,  the  mean  herd  of  persecutors  were 
not  idle.  To  teach  children  the  Lord's  prayer  in  English,  to  read  the 
scriptures,  or  at  least  the  New  Testament  in  that  language,  to  speak 
against  pilgrimages,  to  neglect  the  fa;sts  of  the  cluircli,  to  attribute  vice  to 
the  old  clergy,  or  to  give  shelter  or  encouragement  to  the  new,  all  these 
were  ollences  punishable  in  the  bishop's  courts,  some  of  them  even  capi- 
tally. Tiius,  Thomas  Uilney,  a  priest,  who  had  embraced  and,  under 
tliieais,  renounced  the  new  doctrines,  emtraced  them  once  again,  and  went 
llinjiigh  Norfolk  zealously  preaching  against  the  absurdity  of  relying  for 
salvation  upon  pilgrimages  and  images.  He  was  seized,  tried,  and  burn- 
ed. Tiius  far  ilie  royal  severity  had  chiefly  fallen  upon  the  reformed ; 
but  the  monks  and  friars  of  the  old  faith,  intimately  dependant  upon  Home, 
detested  Henry's  separation  and  assumption  of  supremacy  far  too  much 
than  to  be  otherwise  than  inimical  to  him.  In  their  public  preachings  they 
more  than  once  gave  way  to  libellous  scurrillity,  which  Henry  bore  with  a 
moderation  by  no  means  usual  with  him,  but  at  length  the  tiger  of  his 
temper  was  thoroughly  aroused  by  an  extensive  and  Impudent  (;onspiracy. 

.\t  Aldington,  in  Kent,  there  was  a  woman  named  Klizabeth  llarion,  coni- 
inoiily  known  as  the /10/y  maii/o/ Jftvjt,  who  was  subject  to  fits,  under  the 
iiilhience  of  which  she  unconsciously  said  oddandiiieoherentlliings,  which 
iier  ignorant  neighbours  imagined  to  be  the  result  not  of  epilep.sy  but  ol 
inspiration.  The  vicar  of  the  parish,  Richard  Masters,  instead  of  re- 
proving and  enligiitening  his  ignorant  Hock,  took  their  igimrant  fancy  a.sa 
innl  for  a  deep  scheme.  He  lent  his  authority  to  ilie  report  that  the  maid 
of  Kent  spoke  by  theiiiSi)iration  of  the  Holy  («li03t,  and  he  had  not  any 
great  diliiculty  in  acquiring  the  most  entire  authority  over  the  maid  her- 
self, who  ihencefortli  spoke  whatever  he  deemed  fit  to  dictate.  Having  a 
chiipt'l  ill  which  stood  an  image  of  the  Virgin,  to  which,  for  his  own 
profit's  sake,  he  was  anxious  to  withdraw  as  many  pilgrims  as  possible 
from  other  shrines,  he  entered  into  a  confederacy  with  l)r.  Hocking,  one 
of  the  ciinons  of  Canterbury  cathedral,  and  under  their  direction  Klizabeth 
|{art(m  pretended  to  receive  a  supernatural  direction  to  proceed  to  the 
image  in  (jiiestioii  and  pray  there  for  her  cure. 

\l  lirst,  It  seems  quite  clear,  the  unforliiiiate  woman  was  truly  and 
merely  an  epileptic ;  but  ignorance,  poverty,  and  perhaps  some  natural 


m 


Im 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


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1.25 


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^    1^    12.0 


U    ill  1.6 


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Hiotographic 

Sciences 

Corporation 


33  WIST  MAIN  STRUT 
WHSTIR,N  Y    t4SM 

(716)  i/i^soa 


<? 


L<9 


M8 


THE  TREA8UHY  OF  HISTORY. 


cunningf,  made  her  a  ready  and  unscrupulous  tool  in  the  hands  of  the  |)I<it. 
tnig  ecclesiastics,  and  auer  a  series  of  affected  distortions,  which  wuulj 
have  been  merely  ludicrous  liad  their  purpose  not  added  something  of  the 
impious,  she  pretended  that  her  prostrations  before  the  image  had  entire- 
ly freed  iier  from  her  disease. 

Thus  far  the  priests  and  their  unfortunate  tool  had  proceeded  without 
any  interference,  the  severity  with  which  the  king  and  the  powerful  cath- 
olics treated  all  enmity  lo  pilgrimages  and  disrespect  to  shrines,  being  of 
itself  sufBcient  to  insure  their  impunity  thus  far.  But  impunity  as  usual 
produced  want  of  caution,  and  the  priests,  seeing  that  the  wondering 
multitude  urged  no  objection  to  the  new  miracle  which  they  alledged  to 
have  been  wrought,  were  now,  mostlucklessly  for  themselves,  encouraged 
to  extend  their  views  and  to  make  the  unfortunate  Elizabeth  Burton  of 
use  in  opposing  the  progress  of  the  reformed  doctrine,  and  against  Henry's 
divorce  from  Catherine.  Hence  the  ravings  of  the  maid  of  Kent  were 
directed  against  heresy,  with  an  occasional  prophesy  of  evil  to  the  king 
on  account  of  the  divorce ;  and  the  nonsense  thus  uttered  was  not  only 
repeated  in  various  parts  of  the  kingdom  by  monks  and  friars  who,  most 
probably,  were  in  concert  with  Masters  and  Bocking,  but  were  even  col- 
lected into  a  book  by  a  friar  named  Deering.  Tlie  very  industry  with 
whicii  tlie  original  inventors  of  this  grossly  impudent  imposture  caused  it 
to  be  noised  abroad  compelled  the  king  to  notice  it.  The  maid  of  Kent 
with  her  priestly  abettors  and  several  others  were  arrested,  and  without 
being  subjected  to  torture  made  full  confession  of  their  imposture,  and 
were  executed.  From  circumstances  whitii  were  discovered  during  the 
investigation  of  this  most  impudent  cheat,  it  but  too  clearly  appeared  that 
the  so  called  holy  maid  of  Kent  was  a  woman  of  most  lewd  life,  and  that 
imposture  was  by  no  means  the  only  sin  in  which  Masters  and  Bocking 
had  been  her  accomplices. 

A.  D.  1535. — The  discoveries  of  gross  immorality  and  elaborate  cheating 
whicii  {Jwere  made  during  the  investigation  of  tlio  affair  of  the  maid 
of  Kent  seems  to  us  to  have  been,  if  not  the  very  first,  at  all  events  the 
most  influential  of  the  king's  motives  to  his  subsequent  sweepuig  and 
cruel  Mupprcssion  of  the  monasteries.  Having  on  this  occasion  suppress- 
ed tlirec  belonging  to  the  Observantine  friars,  tiie  very  little  sensation 
their  loss  seemed  to  cause  among  the  common  people  very  naturally  led 
him  to  extend  his  views  still  fartlier  in  a  course  so  productive  of  pecu- 
niaiy  profit. 

But  Ht  present  he  required  some  farther  satisfaction  of  a  more  terriHe 
nature  for  the  wrong  and  insult  that  had  lately  been  done  to  him.  Fisher, 
bisiiop  (if  lloclie.ster,  in  connnon  with  Sir  Thouias  More,  had  been,  us  we 
alrea<ly  mentioned,  connnitted  to  prison  for  objecting  lo  take  the  oath  of 
succressionas  settleilby  the  arbitrary  king  and  the  no  less  obsequious  par- 
liament. Uniiappily  for  the  prelate,  though  a  good  and  even  a  learned 
man,  be  was  very  credulous,  and  he  had  been  among  the  belit-vers  and, 
to  a  ctrlaiii  cxttmt,  among  the  supporters  of  the  impudent  Elizuixtli  Uar- 
t(in.  Still  more  uniiappily  for  thcngi^d  prelate,  wliile  he  already  lay  so 
deeply  in  tluj  king's  displeasure,  and  after  ho  had  for  a  whole  year  been 
oontiiied  with  sucT.  severity  that  he  was  often  in  want  of  conimon  ikm-us- 
tarieM,  the  pope  cr»at(Hl  him  a  (cardinal.  This  decided  the  fate  of  the  un- 
fortinnile.  jirelate,  who  was  at  once  indicted  under  the  act  ■  (  supremacy 
and  lii'iu'iiiled. 

The  dialh  of  Fisher  was  almost  instantly  foUowed  by  that  of  the  learn- 
ed, tlioufjh,  as  V  "  have  seen,  bigoted  and  sometnnes  cruel  Sir  Thomas 
More.  Ills  objcctiDUn  to  taking  the  new  oatli  of  siiceession  seem  to  have 
been  prrfcctly  sincere  and  wtTe  perfectly  insuperable.  We  leuni  from 
himself  that  it  was  intimated  to  him  by  Cromwell,  now  in  high  fivoiir, 
that  unless  he  could  show  him  reasons  ''or  his  determined  refusal,  it  would 


'^W" 


THE  TttEA.SUHY  OP  HISTORY. 


439 


li  and 

ppress- 

:;iis;ttion 

lly  led 

peou- 

tcrrihle 

Kislier, 
us  we 
:ith  of 

HIS  par- 
anied 
I  mid, 
I  Dar- 
av  so 

ir  been 

IKM-eS- 

ht'  uii- 
■eiiiacy 

Icarii' 
liiiiiian 
ti  have 
fi'iini 

[:i\(llir, 

wiiiild 


most  probably  be  set  down  to  the  account  of  obstinacy.  His  own  version 
of  the  dialogue  between  himself  and  Cromwell  is  so  curious  that  we  ex- 
tract the  following  fro:Ti  it. 

More  said  (in  reply  to  the  above  argument  of  Cromwell)  "  it  is  no  ob- 
stinacy, but  only  the  fitar  of  giving  offence.  Let  me  have  sufficient  war- 
rant from  the  king  that  he  will  not  be  offended  and  I  will  give  my 
reasons." 

Cromwell.—"  The  king's  warrant  would  not  save  you  from  the  penal- 
ties enacted  by  the  statute." 

More. — "  In  this  case  I  will  trust  to  his  majesty's  honour  ;  but  yet  it 
thiiikclh  me,  that  if  I  cannot  declare  the  causes  without  peril,  then  to 
leave  them  undeclared  is  no  obstinacy." 

Cromwell. — "  You  say  that  you  do  not  blame  any  man  for  taking  the 
oath,  it  is  then  evident  that  you  are  not  convinced  that  it  is  blanieable 
to  take  it ;  but  you  must  be  convinced  that  it  is  your  duty  to  obey  the 
king.  In  refusing,  therefore,  to  take  it,  you  prefer  that  which  is  uncertain 
to  that  which  is  certain." 

More. — "I  do  not  blame  men  for  taking  the  oath,  because  I  know  not 
their  reasons  and  motives .  but  I  should  blame  myself  because  I  know 
that  I  should  act  against  my  conscience.  And  truly  such  reasoning 
would  ease  us  of  all  perplexity.  Whenever  doctors  disagree  we  have 
only  to  obtain  the  king's  commandment  for  either  side  of  the  question  and 
we  must  be  right." 

Abbot  of  Westminster. — "  But  you  ought  to  think  your  own  conscience 
erroneous  when  you  have  the  whole  "ouncil  of  the  nation  against  you." 

More. — "  And  so  1  should,  had  I  not  for  me  a  still  greater  council,  the 
whole  council  of  Christendom," 

More's  talents  and  character  made  him  too  potent  an  opponent  of  the 
king's  arbitrary  will  to  allow  of  his  being  spared.  To  condemn  him  was 
not  difficult;  the  king  willed  his  condemnation,  and  he  was  condemned 
accordingly.  If  in  his  day  of  power  More,  uiil'i'miately,  showed  that  he 
knew  how  to  inflict  evil,  so  now  in  his  fall  he  si  owed  the  far  nobler  pow- 
er of  bearing  it.  In  his  happier  days  he  had  bceh  noted  for  a  certain  jocu- 
lar piiraseology,  and  this  did  not  desert  him  even  in  the  last  dreadful 
scene  of  all.  Being  somewhat  infirm,  he  craved  the  assistance  of  a  by- 
slander  as  he  mounted  the  scaffold  ;  saying,  "  Friend,  help  aie  up,  when 
I  come  down  again  you  may  e'en  let  me  shift  for  mys^  if."  W'lien  tl;e 
ceremonies  were  at  an  end  the  executioner  in  the  custom. iry  terms  begged 
his  forgiveness  ;  "  I  forgive  you,"  he  replied,  "but  you  will  surely  get  no 
credit  by  the  job  of  l)eheading  me,  my  neck  is  so  "short."  Even  as  he 
laid  his  head  upon  lh(^  block  he  said,  putting  aside  the  long  beard  he  wore, 
"Do  not  hurt  my  beard,  that  at  least  has  committed  no  treason."  These 
words  uttered,  the  executioner  proceeded  with  his  revolting  task,  and 
Sir  Thomas  More,  learned,  thotign  a  bigot,  and  a  good  man,  though  at  timc^ 
a  persecutor,  perished  in  the  fifty-third  year  of  his  age. 

A.  D.  1.'>3G. — While  the  court  of  Rome  was  exertiiiB  itself  to  the  utmost 
to  show  its  deep  sense  of  the  indignation  it  felt  at  ttie  execution  of  two 
Buih  men  as  Fisher  and  More,  an  event  took  place  in  Kiigland  whicli,  in 
Chrihtian  charity,  we  are  bound  to  lielieve  gave  a  severe  shock  even  to 
the  hard  heart  of  Henry.  Though  the  divorced  Catherine  hail  resolutely 
persisted  in  being  treated  as  a  queen  by  all  who  approaclied  her,  she 
liad  suffered  with  so  dignified  a  patieiici!  that  she  was  the  more  deeply 
sympathized  with.  But  the  stern  effort  with  which  she  bore  her  wrongs 
w;is  too  much  for  her  already  broken  consiitntion.  Perceiving  that 
her  days  on  earth  were  numbered,  slu!  besought  Henry  that  she  iniglu 
onco  more  look  u|)on  her  child,  the  princess  Mary  ;  to  the  disgrace  of  our 
common  nature,  even  this  request  was  sternly  denied.  Slie  then  wrote 
liun  u  letter,  so  ufTecting,  that  oven  he  shod  tears  over  it,  in  which  she, 


460 


THE  TRBA3UKY  OF  HISTORY. 


gentle  and  submissive  to  the  last  in  all  save  the  one  great  point  of  her 
wrongs,  nailed  him  her  "dear  lord,  king,  and  husband,"  besought  his  affec- 
tion for  their  child,  and  recommended  her  servants  to  his  goodness.  Her 
letter  so  moved  him  that  he  sent  her  a  kind  message,  but  ere  the  bearer 
of  it  could  arrive  she  was  released  from  her  suffering  and  wronged  life. 
Henry  caused  his  servants  to  go  into  deep  mourning  on  the  day  of  her 
funeral,  which  was  celebrated  with  great  pomp  at  Peterborough  cathedral. 

Whatever  pity  we  may  feel  for  the  subsequent  sufferings  of  Queen 
Anne  Buleyn,  it  is  impossible  to  withhold  our  disgust  from  her  conduct  on 
this  occasion.  Though  the  very  menials  of  her  husband  wore  at  least 
the  outw'ird  show  of  sorrow  for  the  departed  Catherine,  Anne  Boleyn  on 
that  day  dressed  herself  more  showily  than  usual,  and  expressed  a  per- 
fectly savage  exultation  that  now  she  might  consider  herself  a  queen  in* 
deed,  as  her  rival  was  dead. 

Her  exultation  was  as  short  lived  as  it  was  unwomanly.  In  the  very 
midst  of  her  joy  she  saw  Henry  paying  very  unequivocal  court  to  one  of 
her  ladies,  by  name  Jane  Seymour,  and  she  was  so  much  enraged  and  as- 
tonished that,  being  far  advanced  in  pregnancy,  she  was  prematurely  de- 
livered of  a  still-burn  prince.  Henry,  notoriously  anxious  for  legitimate 
male  issue,  was  cruel  enough  to  reproach  her  with  this  occurrence,  when 
she  spiritedly  replied,  tiiat  he  had  only  himself  to  blame,  the  mischief  be 
ing  entirely  caused  by  liis  conduct  with  her  maid. 

This  answer  completed  the  king's  anger,  and  tliat  feeling,  with  his  new 
passion  fur  Jane  Seymour,  caused  ruin  to  Anne  Boleyn  even  ere  she  had 
ceased  to  exult  over  the  departed  Catherine. 

Her  levity  of  manner  had  already  enabled  her  foes  to  poison  the  ready 
ear  of  the  king,  and  his  open  anger  necessarily  caused  those  foes  to  be 
still  more  busy  and  precise  in  their  whisperings.  Being  present  at  a  lilt- 
ing match,  she,  whether  by  accident  or  design,  let  fall  her  handkerchief 
exactly  at  the  feet  of  Sir  Henry  Norris  and  hor  brother,  Lord  Rooliford 
who  at  (hilt  moment  were  the  combatants.  At  any  other  time  it  is  likely 
that  Henry  would  have  let  so  trivial  an  aceid  !is  unnoticed.     But  his 

jealousy  was  already  aroused,  his  love,  such  >vas,  had  already  burnt 

out,  and,  above  all,  he  had  already  cast  his  on  Jane  Seymour,  and 

was  glad  of  any  excuse,  good  or  bad,  upon  whicn  to  rid  himself  of  Anne. 
Sir  Henry  Norris,  who  was  a  reputed  favourite  of  the  queen,  not  only 
raised  the  handkerchief  from  the  ground,  but  used  it  to  wipe  his  face,  be 
ing  heated  with  the  sport.  The  king's  dark  looks  lowered  upon  all  pres- 
ent, and  he  instantly  withdrew  in  one  of  those  moods  in  which  few  cared 
to  meet  him  and  none  dared  to  oppose  his  will.  On  the  next  morning 
Lord  Uochford  and  Sir  Henry  Norris  were  arrested  and  thrown  into  the 
Tower,  and  Anne  herself,  while  on  her  way  from  Greenwich  lo  London, 
was  met  by  Cromwell  and  the  duke  of  Norfolk,  and  by  them  informed 
that  she  was  accused  of  infidelity  to  the  king;  and  she,  too,  was  taken  to 
the  Tower,  au,  charged  with  being  her  accomplices,  were  Brereton,  Wes- 
ton, and  Sineaton,  three  gentlemen  of  the  court. 

Well  knowing  the  danger  she  was  in  when  once  cliarged  with  such  an 
ofTem^e  against  such  a  husband,  she  instantly  became  hysterical ;  now  de- 
claring her  innocence  with  the  bitterest  tears,  and  anon  relying  upon  the 
impossibility  of  any  one  proving  her  guilty.  "If  any  man  accuse  me," 
said  she  to  the  lieutenant  of  the  Tower,  "  I  can  but  say  nay,  and  they  can 
bring  no  witnesses." 

Anne  now  had  to  experience  some  of  that  heartless  indifference  which 
■he  had  so  needlessly  and  disgracefully  exhibited  in  the  case  of  the  unfor- 
tunate and  blameless  Catherine.  At  the  head  of  the  commission  ot 
twenty-six  peers  who  were  appointed  to  try  her,  on  the  revolting  charge 
of  gross  infidelity  with  no  fewer  than  five  men,  including  her  own  half 
brother,  tiiis  unfortunate  lady  had  the  misery  to  see  her  own  uncle,  tha 


THE  THKASURY  OF  HISTOEY. 


4G1 


an 

de- 

the 

me," 

CUll 


II 


ot 

ii.iir 

tll8 


dOKe  of  Norfolk,  and  to  see,  too,  that  in  him  she  had  a  judge  wlio  was  fiir 
enough  from  heing  prejudiced  in  her  favour.  She  was,  as  a  matter  of 
course,  found  guilty  and  sentenced  to  death,  the  mode  by  fire  or  by  the 
ixe  being  left  to  the  king's  pleasure. 

We  have  seen  that  Anne  had  in  her  prosperity  been  favourable  to  the 
refurmed ;  and  as  Cranmer,  archbishop  of  Canterbury,  was  well  known 
to  have  great  influence  over  Henry,  the  unhappy  Anne  probably  hoped 
that  he  would  exert  it,  at  the  least,  to  save  her  life.  If  she  entertained 
such  hope,  she  was  bitterly  disappointed.  Henry,  who  seems  to  have 
feared  aome  such  humanity  on  the  part  of  Cranmer,  sent  to  him  to  pro- 
nounce sentence  against — as  formerly  he  had  pronounced  it  for — the 
original  validity  of  Anne's  marriage  with  Henry.  Cranmer,  learned  and 
pious,  wanted  only  moral  courage  to  have  been  a  thoroughly  great  and 
good  man ;  but  of  moral  courage  he  seems,  save  in  the  closing  act  of  his 
life,  to  have  been  thoroughly  destitute.  Upon  whatever  proofs  the  king 
chose  to  furnish  for  his  guidance,  he,  afler  a  mere  mockery  of  trial,  and 
with  an  affectation  of  solenmity  and  sincerity  which  was  actually  impious, 
pronounced  the  desired  sentence ;  and  thus  declared  against  the  legitimacy 
of  the  princess  Elizabeth,  as  he  had  already  done  in  the  case  of  the  prin- 
cess Mary. 

Anne  was  not  allowed  to  suflTer  long  suspense  after  her  iniquitous  con 
demnaiion  ;  iniqnitons,  even  if  she  really  was  guilty,  inasmuch  as  her  trial 
was  a  mere  mockery.  She  was  kept  for  a  few  days  in  the  Tower,  where, 
with  a  better  spirit  than  she  had  formerly  shown,  she  besought  the  for- 
giveness of  the  pvinccss  Mary  for  the  numerous  injuries  she  had  done  her 
through  her  deceased  mother ;  and  was  then  publicly  beheaded  on  the 
Tower  green,  the  evecutioner  severing  lier  head  at  one  stroke. 

Of  Henry's  fecliiiga  on  the  occasion  it  is  unnecessary  to  say  more  than 
that  he  put  on  no  mourning  for  the  deceased  Anne,  but  on  the  very  morn- 
ing afler  her  execution  was  married  to  Jane  Seymour. 

As  U)  Anne's  •;iiilt,  we  think  it  most  likely  that  both  friends  and  foes 
juJged  .amiss.  Her  general  levity  and  many  circumstances  which  would 
be  out  of  place  here,  forbid  us  to  believe  her  wholly  innocent ;  and  we 
are  the  mure  likely  to  err  in  doing  so,  because  our  chief  argument  in  her 
favour  must  be  drawn  from  the  character  of  her  husband,  of  whom  it  must 
not  be  forgotten  that  once  at  least  he  certainly  ivas  wronged  by  a  wife. 
On  the  other  hand,  to  believe  her  as  guilty  as  she  has  been  represented, 
is  to  tlirow  aside  all  considerations  of  the  uUcr  impossibility  of  her  hav- 
ing thus  long  been  so,  without  being  detected  by  the  numerous  enemies 
with  whom  her  supplanting  Catherine  and  her  patronage  of  the  reformed 
faith  must  needs  have  caused  to  surround  her  during  the  whole  of  her  ill- 
fated  elevation. 

A  new  parliament  was  now  called  to  pass  a  new  act  of  succes>-ion,  by 
which  the  crown  was  settled  on  such  children  as  he  might  hive;  by  his 
prcsciii  queen,  Jane  Seymour  ;  and  failing  such,  the  disposal  of  the  crown 
was  left  to  Henry's  last  will  signinl  by  his  own  hand.  It  wan  tlmught 
from  tills  last  named  clause  that  Henry,  f(;arliig  to  leave  no  legitimate 
inalc!  suvcessor,  wished  in  that  case  to  have  tlie  power  of  leaving  the 
crown  to  his  illegitimate  son,  young  Fit/roy,  who,  however,  to  Hciry'* 
great  sorrow,  died  shortly  afterward. 

Henry  seems  to  have  been  much  grieved  by  the  death  of  Fitzroy,  but  he 
W.1S  |irevented  from  long  indulging  in  tliat  grief  by  a  very  formidable  in- 
surreialon  which  broke  out  in  the  October  of  this  year.  The  apathy  wlili 
which  the  people  had  witnessed  the  dissolution  and  forfi-ilnre  of  three 
monasteries  on  occasion  of  the  deleclioii  of  the  fraud  of  Fllzalicth  Uarton, 
hjcl  naturally  encouraged  Henry  to  look  forward  to  that  sort  of  suniinary 
justice  i\«  a  sure  and  abundant  source  of  ri^venue.  So  exlended  was  his 
influence  that  he  had  even  fouml  memliers  of  convocation  to  projiosi'  iliu 


i^2 


THE  TEEASIiRY  OF  HISTORY. 


surrender  of  tlie  Icsaer  monasteries  into  his  hands.  It  was  probably  one 
of  the  chief  causes  of  his  determined  enmity  to  his  old  tutor  and  council 
lor,  Fisher,  bisliop  of  Rochester,  that  that  excellent  prelate  made  a  very 
pithy,  though  quaint  opposition  to  this  proposal,  on  the  ground  that  it 
would  infallibly  throw  the  greater  monasteries  also  into  the  kinpr's  hands 
Subsequently  to  the  affair  of  the  maid  of  Kent,  the  king  and  his  ministei 
Cromwell  had  proceeded  to  great  lengths  in  dissolving  the  lesser  monas- 
teries, and  confiscating  their  property.  The  residents,  the  poor  who  had 
been  accustomed  to  receive  doles  of  food  at  the  gates  of  these  houses, 
and  tiie  nobility  and  gentry  by  whom  the  monasteries  had  been  founded 
and  endowed,  were  all  greatly  offended  by  the  sweeping  and  arbitrary 
measures  of  the  blacksmith's  son,  as  they  termed  Cromwell,  and  the  re- 
trenchment of  several  holidays,  and  the  abolition  of  several  superstitious 
practices  which  had  been  very  gainful  to  the  clergy,  at  length  caused  an 
open  manifestation  of  discontent  in  Lincolnshire.  Twenty  thousand  men, 
headed  by  Prior  Mackrel,  of  Barlings,  rose  in  arms  to  demand  the  putting 
down  of  '•  persons  meanly  born  and  raised  to  dignity,"  evidently  aiming  at 
Cromwell,  and  the  redress  of  divers  grievances  under  which  they  stated 
the  church  to  be  labouring.  Henry  sent  the  duke  of  Suffolk  against  this 
tumultuous  multitude,  and  by  a  judicious  mixlure  of  force  and  fair  words 
the  leaders  were  taken,  and  forthwith  executed,  and  the  multitude,  of 
course,  dispersed. 

But  in  the  counties  further  north  than  Lincolnshire  the  discontents 
were  equally  great,  and  were  the  more  dangerous  because  more  distance 
from  the  chief  seat  of  the  king's  power  rendered  the  revolted  bolder. 
Under  a  gentleman  named  Aske,  aided  by  some  of  the  better  sort  of  those 
who  had  been  fortunate  enough  to  escape  the  breaking  up  of  the  Lincoln- 
sliiie  confederacy,  upwards  of  forty  thousand  men  assembled  from  the 
counties  of  York,  Durham,  and  Lancaster,  for  what  they  called  the  pilgrim- 
age of  grace-  For  their  banner  they  had  an  embroidery  of  a  crucifix,  a 
chalice,  and  the  five  wounds  of  the  Saviour,  and  each  man  who  ranged 
himself  under  this  banner  was  required  to  swear  that  he  had  "entered 
into  the  pilgrimage  of  grace  from  no  other  inotive  than  his  love  of  God, 
care  of  the  king's  person  and  issue,  desire  of  purifying  the  nobility,  of 
driving  base  persons  from  about  the  king,  of  restoring  the  church,  and  of 
suppressing  heresy." 

But  the  absence  of  all  other  motive  may,  in  the  case  of  not  a  few  of 
these  revolters  be  very  reasonably  doubted,  when  with  the  oath  taken  by 
each  recruit  who  joindd  the  disorderly  ranks  we  take  into  comparison  the 
style  of  circular  by  which  recruits  were  invited,  which  ran  thus : — "  We 
command  you  and  every  of  you  to  bo  at  (here  the  particular  place  was 
named)  on  Saturday  next  by  eleven  of  the  clock,  in  your  best  array,  as 
you  will  answer  before  the  high  judge  at  the  great  day  of  doom,  and  in  tiie 
lain  of  pulling  down  your  houses  and  the  losing  of  your  goods,  and  your 
odies  to  be  at  the  captain's  will." 

Confident  ir.  ilieir  numbers,  the  concealed,  but  real  lenders  of  the  en- 
rerjjrise  caused  Aske  to  send  delegates  to  the  king  to  lay  their  deinaiiiis 
bel^on!  him.  The  king's  written  answer  bears  several  marks  of  the  an- 
noyance he  felt  that  a  body  of  low  peasants  should  venture  to  trench  upon 
subjects  upon  which  he  flattered  himscdf  that  he  was  not  unequal  to  tiie 
most  learned  clerks.  He  told  them  that  he  greatly  marvelled  how  sudi 
ignorant  rhiirh  should  speak  of  thmlogical  .whjrcis  to  him  who  something  had 
been  noted  to  be  learnid,  or  oppose  the  supjiression  of  monasteries,  as  if  it 
W(T(^  not  better  to  relieve  the  head  of  the  church  in  his  necessity,  lliiui  to 
support  the  sloth  and  wickedness  of  monks."  As  it  was  very  n'lpiifilc, 
however,  to  break  up  as  peaceably  as  possible,  lui  assemblage  wliicli  its 
mere  numbers  would  rcinier  it  somewhat  diflicult  as  well  as  dauHrrotis  to 
disperse  by  main  force,  Henry  at  the  same  time  [iroinised  that  he  woulJ 


C; 


THE  TREASUaY  OF  HI8T0H\ 


463 


)\y  one 
:ouncil 

a  very 

that  It 
i  hands 
niiiustei 

raonas- 
vho  had 

houses, 

founded 
arbitrary 
1  the  re- 
;rsiitiou3 
aused  an 
and  men, 
le  putting 
aiming  at 
ey  stated 
ainst  this 
'air  words 
Ititude,  of 

iscontents 
e  distaiwe 
ed  bolder, 
irt  of  iliose 
e  Lincoln- 
1  from  the 
the  pilgrim- 

crucifix,  a 
vho  ranged 
j  "entered 
ve  of  God, 

nobility,  of 
rch,  and  of 

)t  a  few  o( 
li  taken  by 
narison  the 
:u8-.-"NVe 
I-  plaec  was 
St  array,  as 
,  and  in  the 
"s,  and  your 

of  the  en- 
|ir  demaiuls 
of  Ihc  an- 
irench  upon 
i'qual  to  tlie 
:  liow  s\»ch 
mcihi'ia  Aerf 
rics,  -.IS  if  il 
ily,  llr.m  to 
y  rt'<{ni»'iie. 
e  wlii<'li  i*s 
imgerous  to 
t  he  woulJ 


remedy  such  of  their  grievances  as  might  seem  to  need  remedy.  This 
promise  being  unfulfilled,  the  same  counties  in  the  following  year  (1537) 
again  assembled  their  armed  masses.  The  duke  of  Norfolk,  as  com- 
mander-in-chief of  the  king's  forces,  posted  himself  so  advantageously 
that  when  the  insurgents  endeavoured  to  surprise  Hull,  and,  subsequently, 
Carlisle,  he  was  able  to  beat  them  easily.  Nearly  all  the  lending  men 
were  taken  prisoners  and  sent  to  London,  where  they  were  shortly  after- 
wards executed  as  traitors.  With  the  common  sort,  cf  whom  vast  num- 
bers were  taken  prisoners,  there  was  less  ceremony  used ;  they  were 
hanged  up  "by  scores,"  says  Lingard,  in  all  the  principal  towns  of  the 
chief  scene  of  revolt.  When  by  this  wholesale  shedding  of  human  blood 
the  king  had  at  length  appeased  his  wrath  and  that  appetite  for  cruelty 
which  every  year  grew  more  and  more  fierce,  the  proclamation  of  a  gen- 
eral pardon  restored  peace  to  the  nation. 

The  chief  plea  for  the  late  insurrection  had  been  the  suppression  of  the 
lesser  monasteries.  That  Henry  had  from  the  very  first,  according  to 
the  shrewd  prophecy  of  Fisher,  bishop  of  Rochester,  intended  to  go  from 
the  lesser  up  to  the  greater,  there  is  no  doubt ;  and  the  part  which  the 
monasteries  had  taken  in  encouraging  the  pilgrimage  of  grace,  only  made 
him  the  more  determined  in  that  course.  The  ever  obsequious  parlia- 
ment showed  the  same  willingness  to  pass  an  act  for  the  suppression  of 
the  remaining  and  greater  monasteries  that  had  so  often  been  shown  in 
far  less  creditable  affairs ;  and  of  twenty-eight  mitred  abbots — exclusive 
of  the  priors  of  St.  John  of  Jerusalem  and  Coventry — who  had  seats  in 
the  house  of  lords,  not  one  dared  to  raise  his  voice  against  a  measure 
which  must  have  been  so  distasteful  to  tiicm  all. 

Commissioners  were  appointed  to  visit  the  monasteries.  That  there 
were  great  disorders  in  many  of  them,  that  the  burden  they  inflicted  upon 
the  capital  and  the  industry  of  the  country  far  outweighed  the  good  done 
to  the  poor  of  the  country — a  class,  be  it  remembered,  which  the  monastic 
doles  had  a  most  evil  tendency  to  increase — and  that  they  ought  to  have 
been  suppressed,  no  reasonable  man  in  the  present  state  of  political 
science  will  venture  to  deny.  It  may  be,  nay  it  is  but  too  certain,  that  the 
innocent  and  the  guilty  in  some  cases  were  confouiuled  ;  that  numbers  of 
people  were  thrown  out  of  employment,  and  that  with  a  vast  amount  of 
good  some  evil  was  done ;  that  Henry  even  in  doing  good  could  not  re- 
frain from  a  tyrannous  strain  of  conduct ;  and  that  much  of  the  pr()|)erty 
thus  wrested  Crom  superstition  was  lavished  upon  needy  or  upon  profligate 
courtiers,  instead  of  being,  as  it  ought  to  have  been,  maile  a  permanent 
national  property  in  aid  of  the  religious  and  civil  expenses  of  the  niition. 
But  after  admitting  all  this,  it  is  quite  certain  that,  however  prompted  or 
however  enacted,  this  suppression  of  the  monasteries  by  Henry  VIII.  was 
the  most  important  measure  since  the  Norman  conquest,  and  wa.f  the 
measure  which  gave  the  first  impulse  to  England  in  that  march  of  reso- 
lute industry  which  has  long  since  left  her  with  scarcely  a  rival  upon  the 
earth,  whether  in  wealth  or  in  power. 

While,  however,  we  for  the  sake  of  argument  admit  that  Henry  was 
arbitrary  iii  his  conduct  towards  the  monasteries,  and  that  his  conmiis- 
sinners  were  infinitely  less  anxious  for  truth  than  for  finding  out  or  invent- 
ing causes  of  cnnfisc.ition,  we  are  not  the  less  bound  to  assert  that,  even 
for  the  single  sin  of  imposture,  the  monasteries  required  the  full  weight  of 
the  iron  hand  of  Henry.  Of  the  gross  frauds  which  were  conniiilted  for 
the  purpose  of  attracting  the  attention  and  the  money  of  the  credulous  to 
particular  monasteries,  our  space  will  only  allow  of  our  mentioning  tv.o, 
which,  indeed,  will  sufTiciently  speak  for  the  rest. 

At  the  monastery  of  Hales,  in  (Jloiicestershire,  the  relic  upon  which  the 
monks  relied  for  profit — every  monastery  having  relics,  some  of  which 
must  have  had  the  power  of  ubiquity,  it  bemg  a  fact  that  many  monasteries 


4tfi 


THB  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


at  home  and  abroad  have  pretended  to  possess  the  same  especial  toe  or 
finger  of  this,  that,  or  the  oilier  saint! — was  said  to  be  some  of  the  bl  lod 
of  our  Saviour  wiiich  had  been  preserved  at  the  time  of  the  crucifixion. 
In  proportion  to  the  entiiusiusm  which  such  a  pretence  was  calculated  to 
awaken  among  people  who  were  as  warmly  and  sincerely  pious  as  they 
were  ignorant,  was  the  abominable  guilt  of  this  imposture.  But  the  mere 
and  naked  lie,  bad  as  it  was,  formed  only  a  part  of  the  awful  guilt  of  these 
monks.  They  pretended  that  this  blood,  though  held  before  the  eyes  of 
a  man  iu  mortal  sin,  would  be  invisible  to  him,  and  would  continue  to  be 
BO  until  he  should  have  performed  good  works  sutBcient  for  his  absolutio«. 
Such  a  tale  was  abundantly  sufficient  to  enrich  the  monastery,  but  whea 
the  "  visitors"  were  sent  thither  by  the  king,  the  whole  secret  of  tlie  im- 
pudent fraud  at  once  became  apparent.  The  phial  in  which  the  blood  was 
exhibited  to  the  credulous  was  transparent  on  one  side,  but  completely 
opaque  on  the  other.  Into  this  phial  the  senior  monks,  who  alone  were 
in  the  secret,  every  week  put  some  fresh  blood  of  a  duck.  When  the  pil. 
grim  desired  to  be  shown  the  blood  of  the  Saviour  the  opaque  side  of  ilie 
phial  was  turned  towards  him;  he  was  thus  convinced  that  he  was  in 
mortal  sin,  and  induced  to  "perform  good  works,"  i.  e.,  to  be  fooled  out 
of  his  money,  until  the  monks,  finding  that  he  could  or  would  give  no 
more  at  that  time  turned  the  transparent  side  of  the  phial  to  him,  and  sent 
him  on  his  way  rejoicing  and  eager  to  send  other  dupes  to  the  monks  of 
Hales. 

At  Boxley,  near  Maidstone,  in  Kent,  there  whs  kept  a  crucifix  called  the 
rood  of  grace,  the  lips,  eyes,  and  head  of  whi(^h  were  seen  to  move  when 
Ihe  pilgrim  approai^hed  it  with  such  gifts  as  were  satisfactory;  at  the  desire 
of  Hilscy,  bishop  of  Rochester,  this  miraculous  crucifix  was  taken  to  Lon- 
don and  publicly  pulled  to  pieces  at  Paul's  cross,  when  it  was  made  clear 
that  the  image  was  filled  with  wheels  and  springs  by  which  tlie  so-called 
miraculous  motions  were  regulated  by  the  officiating  priests,literally  as  the 
temper  of  their  customers  required. 

How  serious  a  tax  the  preteiitled  miraculous  images  and  genuine  relics 
levied  upon  the  people  of  tlic  whole  kingdom,  we  may  judge  from  the  fact, 
that  of  upwards  of  six  hundred  monasteries  and  two  thousand  chantries  and 
chapels  wliich  Henry  at  various  times  demolished,  comparatively  few  were 
wholly  free  from  this  worst  of  impostures,  while  the  sums  received  by 
some  of  them  individually  may  be  called  enormous-  For  instance,  the 
pilgrims  to  the  tomb  of  St.  Thomas  a  Becket  paid  upwards  of  nine  hun- 
dred pounds  iu  one  year— or  something  very  like  three  thousand  pounds 
of  our  piosent  money  !  The  knowledge  of  such  a  disgraceful  tact  as  this 
would  of  itself  have  justified  Henry  in  adopting  moderately  strong  mea- 
sures to  put  an  end  to  the  "  Pilgrimage  to  Canterbury."  But  moderation 
was  not  Henry's  characteristic,  and  Ihicket  was  a  saint  especially  halcftil 
to  him  as  having  fought  tlie  battle  of  the  triple  crown  of  Rome  against  the 
king  of  Kngland.  Not  content,  thiirufore.  with  taking  the  proper  measures 
of  mcrt!  policy  that  were  recjuiretPlo  put  an  (Mid  to  a  sort  of  pluiKhM-  so  dis- 
graceful, H.jury  ordered  the  saint  who  had  reposed  for  centuries  in  the 
toml)  to  be  formally  cited  to  appear  in  court  to  answer  to  an  information 
laid  airainst  him  by  the  king's  attorney!  "  It  had  been  suggested,"  says 
Dr.  liingani,  "  that  as  long  as  the  name  of  St.  Thomas  of  Canlcrhury 
shouhi  ri'inaii)  in  the  calendar  men  would  be  stimulated  by  his  example  to 
brave  the  erciesiastical  authority  of  their  sovereign.  The  king's  attorney 
was  therefore  instructed  to  exliil)it  an  information  against  him,  and  Tho- 
mas i\  Uecket,  somfitimc  archbishop  of  Canterbury,  was  formally  cited  to 
app(!ar  iii  <H)urt  and  answer  to  the  charge.  The  interval  of  tliiriy  dnys 
allowed  by  the  canon  law  was  suffered  to  elapse,  and  still  the  saint 
neglected  io  (|iiit  the  tomb  in  which  he  had  reposed  for  two  ccniiineR  and 
t  half,  and  judgment  would  have  been  given  against  him  by  default,  imd 


TUB  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


465 


not  the  king  of  his  special  grace  assigned  hini  counsr.l.  Tlie  court  sat  at 
Westminster,  the  attorney-general  and  the  a(lvo(;ate  of  the  accused  were 
heard,  and  sentence  was  finally  pronounced  that  Thomas,  sometin)e  arch* 
bishop  of  Canterbury,  had  been  guilty  of  rebellion,  contumacy,  and  treason, 
that  his  bones  should  be  publicly  burned  to  admonish  the  living  of  their 
duty  by  the  punishment  of  the  dead,  and  that  the  offerings  which  had  been 
made  at  his  shrine,  the  personal  property  of  the  reputed  saint  should  be 
forfeited  to  the  crown.  A  commission  was  accordingly  issued,  the  sen- 
tence was  executed  in  due  form,  and  the  gold,  silver  and  jewels,  the  spoils 
obtained  by  the  demolition  of  the  shrine  were  conveyed  in  two  ponderous 
coffers,  to  the  royal  treasury.  The  people  were  soon  afterwards  informed 
by  a  royal  proclamation  that  Thomas  h  Becket  was  no  saint,  but  rather  a 
rebel  and  a  traitor,  and  it  was  ordered  to  erase  his  name  out  of  all  books, 
under  pain  of  his  majesty's  indignation,  and  imprisonment  at  his  grace's 
pleasure." 

We  have  selected  Lingard's  account  of  this  matter  because  that  histo- 
rian has  a  very  evident  leaning  to  the  catholic  side  of  every  question  of 
English  history,  and  yet  he,  unconsciously,  perhaps,  in  the  words  of  the 
above  passage  which  we  have  printed  in  italics,  goes  far  towards  justifying 
Henry's  measures  against  the  monkish  superstitions  and  impostures,  no 
matter  what  his  motives  may  have  been.  What!  gold,  silver,  and  jewels 
thus  abstracted  from  the  wealth  of  the  nation  and  made  perpetually  incon- 
vertible and  unproductive,  and  yet  the  keepers  of  the  shrine  of  the  pre- 
tended saint  and  mira(;le-worker  still  so  insatiate  that  they  drew  nearly 
a  thousand  pounds  of  the  money  of  that  time  in  a  single  year!  The  pal- 
triest smattering  of  true  political  economy  would  tell  us  that  such  a  state 
of  things,  existing  as  it  did  all  over  the  kingdom,  if  unchecked  fur  but  a 
few  years  by  the  sovereigti,  would  have  been  terminated  by  a  most  san- 
guinary revolt  of  the  ruined  people,  whose  hungf  r  would  liave  been  too 
strong  for  both  their  own  i]L;norance  anri  the  villainy  atid  ingenuity  of  their 
dehulers.  And  it  is  to  be  remembered  that  although  Henry  was  unwisely, 
nay,  wickedly  profuse  of  the  property  which  he  recovered  from  a  set  of 
vile  corporations  which  had  obtained  possession  of  it  by  false  Miiuences, 
it  was  of  only  a  part  of  this  property  that  he  thus  improperly  ,  ..'osed. 
Kvcry  monk  who  was  dispossessed  of  an  idle  ease  which  he  ought  never 
to  have  had,  received  a  yearly  allowance  of  eight  marks,  and  every  abbot 
and  prior  had  a  yearly  allowance  proportioned  to  his  character  and  the  in- 
come of  his  abbacy  or  priory.  Making  these  provisions  must  have  con- 
sumed a  large  portion  of  the  money  realized  by  the  s  izures  of  monastic 
property ;  but,  besides  these,  the  king  made  and  endowed,  from  the  same 
source,  six  new  bishopricks,  Weslmiuisler,  Oxford,  Peterborouiih,  Bristol, 
Chester,  and  Gloucester.  When  these  facts  are  taken  into  the  account, 
the  "profit"  derived  by  the  king,  that  the  vulgar  and  more  violently  pa- 
pistical  writers  are  fond  of  talking  about,  will  be  found  to  amount  to  little 
indeed. 

Cardinal  Pole,  a  near  kinsman  of  Henry,  and  eminent  alike  for  talents 
and  virtue,  had  long  resided  on  the  continent,  and  to  his  powerful  and  ele- 
gant pen  Henry  attributed  many  of  the  forcii)lc,  eloquent— ami  sometimes 
we  may  add,  scurrilous — declamations  which  the  papists  of  Italy  contin- 
ually sent  forth  against  him  whom  the  popedom  had  once  hailed  and  flat- 
tered as  the  defender  of  the  faith,  but  whom  it  now  denounced  us  anolliei 
Julian  alike  in  talents  and  in  apostany.  Henry,  unable  to  decoy  the  as- 
tute cardinal  into  his  power,  arrested  and  put  to  death  first  the  brother? 
and  then  the  mother  of  that  emincnl  person,  the  venerable  countess  of  Sal 
isbury.  Heal  charge  against  this  lady,  then  upwards  of  seventy  yeart  ol 
age,  there  was  none ;  but  the  ever  obsequious  parliament  passed  an  act 
attaintmg  her  in  the  absence  of  any  trial  or  confession,  .\ftcr  two  yean 
of  riguniiis  conlincnienl  in  the  Tower  of  London  the  countess  was  brougD 
Vol.  1 — :U) 


«66 


THE  TBRA8URT  OF  HISTORY. 


ovx  for  execution ;  and  as  she  refused  to  lay  her  head  upon  the  block,  the 
executioner's  assistant  had  to  place  her  and  keep  her  there  by  mnin  force, 
and  even  as  the  axe  descended  on  her  neck  she  cried  out  "  Blessed  are 
they  who  suffer  persecution  for  righteousness  sake." 

At  the  dictation  of  Henry  the  parliament  now  passed  a  bill  which  de 
dared  "  That  in  the  cucharist  is  really  presented  the  natural  body  of  Chris 
under  the  forms  and  without  the  substance  of  bread  and  wine ;  that  com 
munion  in  both  kinds  is  not  necessary  to  the  soul's  health ;  that  priests 
may  not  marry  by  the  laws  of  God;  that  vows  of  chastity  are  to  be  ob- 
served ;  that  private  masses  ought  to  be  retained ;  and  that  the  use  of 
auricular  confession  is  expedient  and  necessary."    Heavy  penalties  were 
denounced  on  any  who  should  act  contrary  to  the  above  articles ;  and 
Cranmer,  who  liad  for  many  years  been  married,  could  only  save  himself 
from  the  effects  of  this  act — to  the  passing  of  which  he  had  made  a  stout 
but  ineff"ectual  opposition — by  sending  his  wife,  with  their  numerous  chil- 
dren,  to  Germany,  of  which  country  she  was  a  native. 

The  frequent  changes  which  had,  duriiig  a  quarter  of  a  century,  taken 
place  in  the  theological  opinions  of  the  king  himself,  did  not  by  any  means 
mspire  him  with  any  merciful  feeling  towards  those  who  chanced  to  differ 
from  his  temporary  opinion ;  he  had  thrown  off"  the  clerical  pope  of  Rome 
only  to  set  up  quite  as  "infallible"  a  pope  in  the  person  of  the  king  of 
England.  A  London  schoolmaster,  named  Lambert,  was  unfortunate 
enough  to  contradict  a  sermon  of  Dr.  Taylor,  afterward  bishop  of  Lincoln, 
in  which  sermon  the  doctor  had  defended  tiie  prevalent  Catiiolic  doctrine 
of  the  "real  presence."  Lambert  had  already  been  imprisoned  for  his 
unsound  opinions,  but  having  learned  nothing  by  the  peril  he  had  so  nar- 
rowly escaped,  he  now  drew  up  formal  objections,  under  ten  heads. 
These  objections  he  made  known  to  Dr.  Barnes,  wlio  was  a  Lutheran  and 
who  consequently  was  as  obnoxious  to  the  existing  law  as  Lambert,  whom 
he  caused  to  be  cited  before  Cranmer  and  Latimer.  They,  however  much 
they  might  agree  with  him  in  their  hearts,  did  not  dare  publicly  to  oppose 
themselves  to  the  standard  of  opinion  which  the  arl)iirary  Henry  had  set 
up  under  the  protection  of  shocking  penalties,  but  they  took  a  middle 
course,  and  endeavoured  to  prevail  upon  Lambert  to  save  his  life  by  a 
timely  recantation  ;  but  he  appealed  from  their  judgment  to  that  of  the 
king  himself.  Henry,  ever  well  pleased  to  e.xerciso  his  controversial 
powers,  caused  it  to  be  made  as  public  as  possihle  that  he  would  in  per.son 
try  the  soundness  of  Master  Lambert's  opinions.  Westminster  Hall  was 
fitted  up  for  the  occasion  with  scaffoldings  and  seats  for  such  as  chose  to 
be  present,  and  the  king  took  his  seat  upon  the  throne,  clad  in  wiiite  silk 
robes,  and  surrounded  by  the  bishops,  the  judges,  and  the  chief  officers  ol 
state.  LarMbert's  articles  being  read,  the  king  in  a  set  s|)eech  replied  to 
the  first;  ■  ranmer,  Gardiner,  and  others  following  in  refutation  of  other 
articles,  and  at  the  conclusion  of  arguments  which  lasted  five  hours,  and 
in  which  the  king  was  as  grossly  flattered  as  the  poor  vain  schoolmaster 
was  unfairly  brow-beaten,  Henry  asked  the  poor  man  wliether  the  argu- 
ments had  cleared  his  mind  of  doubts,  to  which  question  he  added  the  no 
less  interesting  one,  "Will  you  live  or  die!"  Lambert,  unconvinced  by 
all  that  he  had  heard,  noticed  only  the  last  part  of  the  king's  speech,  and 
replied,  that  for  his  life  he  would  hold  it  at  his  maj(,'sty's  gracious  mercy ; 
to  whicli  Henry  ungraciously,  not  to  say  cruelly,  assured  him,  that  he  was 
not  minded  to  show  himself  the  patron  of  JHUctics,  and  Cromwell  was 
ordered  to  pass  sentence  on  the  prisoner,  whose  chief  olfence  scorns  to 
have  been  his  folly  in  cravnig  the  notice  of  the  king  l)y  a  most  gratuitous 
and  useless  display  of  opinions  which  no  earthly  power  could  have  pre- 
vented him  from  enjoying  in  safety,  had  he  conscntctl  to  do  so  in  si't-rci'v 
The  unfortunate  man  was  burned  to  death,  and  as  he  was  supposei!  to  be 
personally  obnoxious  to  Hi^nry  from  having  ventured  publicly  to  dispiiti 


Trul  or  Lambcrt  reforii  UcNnr  VIII.  in  Westminster  Hall. 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


467 


with  him,  the  cruel  executioners  purposely  made  the  fire  so  slow  tnat  his 
legs  and  thighs  were  gradually  consumed  before  the  flames  even  ap- 
proached any  vital  part.  The  long  tortures  to  which  this  poor  man  was 
subjected  at  length  so  greatly  disgusted  some  of  the  guards,  that  with  their 
halberts  they  threw  him  farther  into  the  flames,  and  he  tiiere  perished, 
exclaiming  with  his  last  breath,  "  None  but  Christ,  none  but  Christ !" 
Many  other  cruel  executions  took  place  about  this  time. 

In  August,  1537,  Henry's  third  queen,  the  lady  Jane  Seymour,  gave 
birth  to  a  prince,  to  the  great  delight  of  the  king,  whose  joy,  however,  was 
much  dimmished,  when,  in  a  few  days,  this  best  beloved  and  most  amiable 
of  all  his  wives  died.  He  soon  after  commenced  negotiations  for  a  new 
marriage,  but  being  disappointed  in  his  views  on  the  duchess  dowager  of 
Longueville,  and  being  then  refused  by  Francis  permission  to  choose  be- 
tween the  two  sisters  of  that  lady  precisely  as  he  would  have  chosen  sheep 
or  oxen,  ho  was  persuaded  by  Cromwell  to  demand  the  hand  of  Anne  oi 
Cleves,  lister  of  the  reigning  duke.  Her  portrait,  of  course  a  flattering 
one,  from  the  pencil  of  the  celebrated  Hans  Holbein,  caused  Henry  to 
fancy  himself  very  much  enamoured  of  her,  and  when  he  learned  that  she 
had  landed  at  Dover,  he  actually  rode  as  far  as  Rochester  in  disguise,  that 
he  might  unseen,  or  at  least  unknown,  have  a  glance  at  her  to,  in  his  own 
phrase,  "  nourish  his  love."  This  glance,  however,  "  nursed"  a  very  dif- 
ferent feeling.  The  difference  between  the  delicate  limning  of  Hans  Hol- 
bein, and  the  especially  vast  person  and  coarse  complexion  of  the  lady, 
so  disgusted  and  surprised  Henry,  that  he  passionately  swore  that  they 
had  chosen  him  not  a  woman  and  a  princess,  but  a  Flanders  mare  ;  and 
he  would  have  fain  sent  her  back  without  a  word  said  to  her,  but  that  he 
was  afraid  of  offending  the  German  princes  connected  with  her  brother, 
and  thus  raising  against  himself  a  too  powerful  coalition.  Detesting  the 
very  sight  of  Anne,  and  yet  feeling  obliged  to  marry  her,  the  king  was  not 
long  ere  he  made  the  full  weight  of  his  indignation  fall  upon  the  head  ot 
Cromwell.  That  too  servilely  obeiMent  minister  now  had  to  feel  in  per- 
son the  very  same  injustice  which,  at  his  instigation,  the  detestably  syco- 
phantic parliament  had  so  recently  inflicted  upon  the  venerable  countess 
of  Salisbury.  He  was  accused  of  high  treason,  denied  a  public  trial,  niul 
a  bill  of  attainder  passed  both  houses,  without  even  one  of  the  many  whom 
he  had  befriended  having  the  generous  courage  to  show  that  gratitude  to 
him  which  he,  under  similar  circumstances,  had  shown  to  Cardinal  Wol- 
scy.  Having  got  judgment  passed  against  Cromwell,  Henry  now  turned 
his  attention  to  obtaining  a  divorce  from  Anne  of  Cleves.  Even  he  could 
(Scarcely  make  it  a  capital  offence  to  have  coarse  features  and  an  awkward 
figure ;  moreover,  the  influence  of  Anne's  brother  was  such  as  to  make  it 
unsafe  for  Henry  to  proceed  to  any  thing  like  violent  steps  against  her. 
Fortunately,  however,  for  the  comfort  of  both  parties,  if  he  viewed  her 
with  disgust,  she  viewed  him  with  the  most  entire  indifference ;  and  she 
readily  consented  to  be  divorced  on  Henry  giving  her  three  thousand 
pounds  per  annum,  the  royal  palace  of  Richmond  for  a  residence,  and  such 
precedence  at  court  as  she  would  have  enjoyed  had  she  been  his  sister 
instead  of  being  his  divorced  wife. 

Six  days  after  the  passing  of  the  bill  of  attainder  against  Cromwell,  that 
minister  was  executed,  no  one  seeming  to  feel  sorrow  for  him ;  the  poor 
hating  him  for  the  share  he  had  taken  in  the  suppression  of  the  monaste- 
ries, and  the  rich  detesting  him  for  having  risen  from  a  mere  peasant  birth 
to  rank  so  high  and  power  so  great. 

As  if  to  show  that  he  really  cared  less  for  either  protestantism  or  popery 
than  he  did  for  his  own  will  and  pleasure,  the  king  ordered  just  now  the 
e.\ecution  of  Powel,  Abel,  and  Featherstone,  catholics  who  ventured  to 
deny  the  king's  supremacy,  and  of  Barnes,  Garret,  and  Jerome,  for  the 
apposite  offum^e  of  being  more  protestant  than  it  pleased  the  king  that 


J 


66 


THE  TRBASURY  OP  HISTOKY. 


they  should  be !  And  to  render  tliis  impartiality  in  despotism  the  more 
awfully  impressivp,  the  protestant  and  catholic  offenders  were  drawn  to 
the  stake  in  Siniihticid  on  the  same  huidle  ! 

A.  n.  1341. — Though  the  king  had  now  been  married  four  times,  and, 
sertainly,  with  no  such  happiness  as  would  have  made  marriage  seem  so 
very  desirable,  the  divorce  from  Anne  of  Cleves  was  scarcely  aceom- 
plisiied  ere  his  council  memoralised  him  to  take  another  wife,  and  he 
complied  by  espousing  the  niece  of  the  duke  of  Norfolk.  Tiiis  lady,  by 
name  Catherine  Howard,  was  said  to  have  won  the  heart  of  the  king''  by 
her  notable  appearance  of  honour,  cleanliness,  and  maidenly  belntv- 
iour,"  and  so  well  was  the  king  at  first  satished  with  this  his  fifth  wife, 
that  he  not  only  behaved  to  her  with  remarkable  tenderness  and  respiMt, 
but  even  caused  the  bishop  of  London  to  compose  a  form  of  thanksgiving 
for  the  felicity  his  majesty  enjoyed.  But  the  new  (jueen,  being  a  caiholir,, 
had  many  enemies  among  the  reformers ;  and  intelligence  was  koou 
brought  to  Cranmer  of  such  conduct  on  the  part  of  Catherine  before  nuir- 
riage  as  he  dared  not  conceal  from  the  king,  though  it  was  by  no  means  a 
safe  thing  to  speak  upon  so  delicate  a  matter.  In  fact,  so  much  did  Cran- 
mer dread  the  violent  temper  of  the  king,  that  he  committed  the  painful 
intelligence  to  writing.  Henry  was  at  first  perfectly  incredulous  as  to  the 
guilt  of  a  woman  whose  manners  and  appearance  had  so  greatly  impused 
upon  him.  He  ordered  her  arrest,  and  while  in  durance,  she  was  visited 
by  a  deputation  from  Henry  and  exhorted  to  speak  the  truth,  in  the  assu- 
rance that  her  husband  would  rejoice  at  her  innocence,  and  that  the  laws 
were  both  just  and  strong  enough  to  protect  her.  As  she  hesitated  to 
answer,  a  bill  of  attainder  was  passed  against  her,  and  then  she  confessfd 
that  her  past  life  had  b(!en  debauched,  to  an  extent  that  cannot  with  de- 
cency be  particularised.  It  -nust  suflice  to  say,  that  the  revolting  and 
gross  sliamelessness  of  her  conduct  before  marriage,  as  dejwsed  by  oth- 
ers, and  in  general  terms  confessed  by  herself,  render  it  scarcely  possible 
for  any  one  acquainted  with  human  nature,  and  the  laws  of  evidence,  to 
place  the  slightest  reliance  upon  her  assertions  of  the  iinioccnce  of  her 
post-nuptial  (conduct ;  though,  as  she  belonged  to  the  catholic  |)arty,  the 
liistoiiaus  of  that  parly  have  taken  some  pains  to  justify  her,  The  must 
abandoned  of  her  sex  ini^'lit  blush  for  the  shameless  guilt  of  which  she 
had,  by  her  own  confessiiiii  been  guilty;  and  the  historian  of  any  |);iny 
must  have  a  Strang"  nntion  of  the  tenets  of  his  parly,  and  of  the  true  na- 
ture of  his  own  vdiMiion,  who  seeks  for  parly  sake  to  prop  up  a  character 
80  loalhsoine. 

A.  D.  I'll.;. — Having  put  the  shameless  wanton  to  deatli,  by  the  tyran- 
nous mode  of  attainder,  together  with  her  paramours  and  tier  conliilmite, 
thai  tnipriucipleil  l;idy  Kochfort,  who  had  tak(>n  xo  principal  a  part  in  the 
death  of  Anne  Holeyn,  Henry  caused  a  l.iw  to  he  passed,  that  any  woni:'.n 
who  should  marry  him,  or  aay  of  his  successors,  should,  if  incontinent 
before  marriage,  reveal  that  disgrace  on  pain  of  deatii ;  on  the  passing  of 
whiidi  law  tin!  people  jocosely  remarked  that  the  king's  best  ])lan  would 
be  to  tiike  a  wiilow  for  his  next  wife. 

Henry  now  employe. I  soiiu- tune  in  mitiirating  the  severe  six  articles 
90  far  as  regardtu)  the  marriage  of  priests  ,  Iml  In?  made,  at  the  same  tnee, 
considerable  inroads  upon  tht;  proixirty  of  both  the  regular  and  secular 
elcri:y.  Still  bent  upon  u|)hoMing  and  exerting  his  supremacy,  he  also 
encouraged  appeals  from  the  spiritual  to  the  civil  courts,  of  wliieh  Htnne 
as  pithily  as  justly  says  that  it  was  "a  happy  innovation,  tliouijh  at  fnsl 
invented  for  arbitrary  purposes."  lie  now  also  issued  it  small  volume  en- 
titleil"Tlie  Insiitnlioii  of  a  (^lirisiian  Man,"  in  which  in  his  usual  arbi- 
trary style,  and  wilhoul  the  least  ap|iareiit  eonseinnsni'ss  of  tiie  iiicoiisi»t 
riit  veering  he  had  dis|)layed  on  tlieologieal  suhjeils,  he  prescrilied  to  hit 
people  how  they  shtnilii  believe  and  think  upon  the  delicate  mattets  ul 


THE  TKEA3URY  OF  HI8T0EY. 


10  iyr;ui- 

niliil'iiiie, 

rl  iu  the 

WDIlll'.ll 
IlltlllClll 

,11)  WOlllli 

\rliflt's 

lime  liii'i-'i 

soculiir 

lie  iilso 

•li  lliimo 

(r|l  III  (iisl 

)hiini!  (Ml- 
isu;iliirl)i- 
jiii'(»nsi»l 
licil  loliii 


)u<tific4tio'i,  free-will,  good-works,  and  grace,  with  as  much  coolness  as 
though  his  ordinances  had  concerned  merely  ihe  fashion  of  a  jerkin,  or  the 
length  of  a  cross-bow  bolt.  Having  made  some  very  inefficient  alterations 
in  the  mass-buok,  Henry  presently  sent  forth  another  little  volume,  oilled 
the  "  Erudition  of  a  Christian  Man."  in  this  he  flatly  contradicted  the  "  In- 
stitution of  a  Christian  Man,"  and  that,  too,  upon  matters  of  by  no  means 
secondary  importance;  but  he  just  as  peremptorily  and  self-complacently 
called  upon  his  subjects  to  follow  him  now  as  he  had  when  just  before  he 
pointed  a  directly  opposite  path ! 

The  successful  rivalship  of  his  nephew,  James  of  Scotland,  in  the  aflec- 
ttons  of  Marie,  dowager  duchess  of  Longueville,  gave  deep  offence  to 
Henry,  which  was  still  farther  irritated  into  hatred  by  James*  adhesion 
to  the  ancient  faith,  and  his  close  correspondence  with  the  pope,  the  em- 
peror Charles,  and  Francis,  of  which  Fienry  was  perfectly  well  informed 
by  the  assiduity  of  his  ambassador.  Sir  Ralph  Sadler.  These  personal 
feelings,  fully  as  muc'.i  at  any  political  considerations,  caused  Henry  to 
commence  a  war  which  almost  at  the  outset  caused  James  to  die  of  over- 
excited anxiety  ;  but  of  this  war  we  shall  hereafter  have  to  speak. 

The  king  in  his  sixth  marriage  made  good  the  jesting  prophecy  of  the 
people  by  taking  to  wife  Catherine  Parr,  widow  of  Nevil,  Lord  Latimer. 
She  was  a  friend  t(»  the  reformeo,  but  a  woman  of  too  much  prudence  to 
peril  herself  injudiciously.  He  treated  her  with  great  respect,  and  in  1544, 
when  he  led  a  large  and  expensive  expedition,  with  considerably  more 
eclat  than  advantage,  he  left  her  regent  during  his  absence  from  England. 
Subsequently,  however,  the  queen,  in  spite  of  her  prudence,  was  more 
than  once  in  imminent  danger.  Anne  Askew,  a  lady  whom  she  had 
)penly  and  greatly  favoured,  imprudently  provoked  the  king  by  opposi- 
(ion  upon  the  capital  point  of  the  real  presence,  and  chancellor  Wriuttts- 
ley,  who  had  to  interrogate  the  unhappy  lady,  being  a  bigoted  catholic,  it 
was  greatly  feared  thatliis  extreme  severity  might  induce  her  to  confess 
how  fiir  Catherine  and  the  chief  court  ladies  were  implicated  in  her  obnox- 
ious opinions.  Young,  lovely,  and  delicate,  the  poor  girl  was  laid  upon 
the  rack  and  questioned,  but  torture  itself  failed  to  extort  an  answer  to 
the  questions  by  which  the  chancellor  endeavoured  to  come  at  the  queen. 
So  enraged  was  that  most  brutal  offii;er,  that  he  ordered  the  lieutenant  of 
the  Tower  to  stretch  the  rack  still  farther,  and  on  his  refusing  to  do  so, 
"  laid  hia  own  hand  to  the  rack  and  drew  it  so  violently  that  he  almost  tore  her 
body  asunder.*^  This  diabolical  cruelty  served  no  other  purpose  than  to 
make  his  own  name  mfamous  while  the  annals  of  England  shall  rcniiiin. 
The  heroic  girl  bore  her  horrible  torture  with  nnflinthing  fortitude,  and 
was  carried  to  the  stake  in  a  chair,  her  body  being  so  maimed  and  dislo- 
cated that  she  could  not  walk.  She  sufferecl  at  the  same  lime  with  John 
Lasiellcs,  of  the  king's  household,  John  Adams,  tailor,  and  Nicholas  Die- 
nun,  a  priest. 
Subsequently  the  queen  was  again  much  endangered.    Though  she  had 


never  pretended  to  nilerfere  with  his  conduct,  she  would  occanionaliy 

fearfully  bloated, 
und  an  ulcer  in  his  leg  caused  him  so  much  agonv  that  "ho  was  as  furious 


argue  « ilh  him  in  private.     He  had  by  this  time  become  fearfully  bloated, 


as  a  chained  tiger."  Tlis  natural  venomence  and  intolerance  of  opjiosition 
were  ooiisoqiiontly  much  increased  under  such  circumstaiicos  ;  and  Cath- 
erine's argunients  at  length  so  offended  him,  that  he  i'OMi|ilaini'd  of  hci 
conduct  to  (iardiner  and  VVrioitrslcy.  Thoy,  bigoted  fnoiuis  to  the  oalh- 
olic  pnrty,  were  proportionally  inimical  to  Catherine  as  a  friend  of  the 
'eformed;  and  they  encouraged  his  ill  temper,  and  so  dexterously  argued 
upon  the  peculiar  necessity  of  putting  down  heresy  in  the  high  places 
that  he  actually  gave  orders  for  her  beiii,'}  sent  to  the  Tower  on  llie  (bl- 
lowing  day.  She  was  fortunate  enough  to  get  information  of  what  was 
In  store  for  her,  and  her  cool  temper  and  shrewd  woitian's  wit  sulRicd  to 


HnRo 


170 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


flave  her  from  her  enemies.  She  well  knew  that  as  lust  had  been  the 
crime  of  Henry's  manhood,  so  vanity— that  vanity  which  cannot  endure 
even  the  pettiest  opposition — was  the  great  spring  of  his  actions  now  that 
his  eye  was  growing  dim  and  his  natural  force  abated.  She  paid  him  her 
usual  visit  that  day,  and  when  he  tried  to  draw  her  into  their  common 
course  of  argument,  she  said  that  arguments  in  divinity  were  not  proper 
for  women ;  that  women  should  follow  the  principles  of  their  husbands,  as 
she  made  a  point  of  following  his ;  and  that  though,  in  the  belief  that  it 
something  alleviated  his  physical  sufferings,  she  sometimes  pretended  to 
oppose  him,  she  never  did  so  until  she  had  exhausted  ail  her  poor  means 
of  otherwise  amusing  him."  The  bait  to  his  inordinate  vanity  was  easily 
taken.  "  Is  it  so,  sweetheart  V  he  exfiaimed,  "  then  we  are  perfect  friends 
again,"  and  he  embraced  her  affectionately.  On  the  following  day  the 
chancellor  and  his  far  more  respectable  myrmidons  the  pursuivants  went 
to  apprehend  the  queen,  when  the  sanguinary  man  was  sent  away  with  a 
volley  of  downright  abuse,  such  as  Henry  could  bestow  as  well  as  the 
meanest  of  his  subjects  when  once  his  temper  was  fully  aroused. 

A.  D.  1547. — In  almost  all  Henry's  persecutions  of  persons  of  any  emi- 
nence, careful  observation  will  generally  serve  to  discover  somntliiiig  of 
that  personal  ill-feeling  which  in  a  man  of  lower  rank  would  be  called 
personal  spite.  Thus  the  duke  of  Norfolk  and  his  son,  the  earl  of  Surrey, 
were  now  arrested  and  charged  with  various  overt  acts  which  caused 
them — as  the  charges  ran — to  be  suspected  ofhigh  treason.  Their  real,  and 
their  only  real  crime  was  their  relationship  to  Catherine  Howard,  his  fifth 
queen.  The  very  frivolous  nature  of  the  charges  proves  that  this  was  the 
case,  but  the  despicably  servile  parliament,  as  usual,  attended  only  to  the 
king's  wishes,  and  both  Norfolk  and  his  son  were  condemned.  The  pro- 
ceedings in  the  case  of  the  latter,  from  his  being  a  commoner,  were  more 
ipecdy  than  that  of  his  father,  and  the  gallant  young  Surrey  was  execu- 
ted. Orders  w<'re  also  given  for  the  execution  of  Norfolk  on  the  niorniiiR 
of  the  29th  of  January,  1547 ;  but  on  the  night  of  the  28th  the  furious  king 
himself  died,  in  the  thirty-seventh  year  of  his  arbitrary  reign  and  in  the 
fifty-sixth  of  his  age;  and  the  council  of  the  infant  prince  Edward  VI. 
wisely  respited  the  duke's  sentence,  from  which  he  was  released  at  the 
accession  of  Queen  Mary. 

That  the  character  of  Henry  was  per  se  bad,  few  can  doubt  that  have 
read  his  reign  attentively  ;  but  neither  will  any  just  man  deny,  that  h'-,  so 
gny  and  generous,  so  frank  and  so  great  a  lover  of  literature  in  youth, 
owed  not  a  little  of  his  subsequent  wickt^dness  to  the  grossly  servile  adu- 
lation of  the  great,  and  to  the  dastardly  suhmission  of  the  parliament. 
Wliat  could  be  expected  from  a  man,  naturally  vain,  to  whuni  tin;  able 
(Tromwell  could  say,  that  "  he  was  unable,  and  he  believed  all  men  were 
unpble,  to  describe  the  imutteral)le  (|irilities  of  tlu!  royal  mind,  the  sul)- 
lime  virtues  of  the  royal  heart ;"  to  whom  Kich  could  say,  that  "  in  wis- 
dom  he  was  enniil  to  Solomon,  in  strength  and  courage  to  Samjison,  in 
beauty  and  address  to  Absalom  ;"  and  what  could  be  expected  from  a  man, 
naturally  violent  and  contemptuous  of  human  life,  who  found  both  honsca 
of  parliament  vile  r nough  to  slay  whoever  he  plcascil  to  denounce  ?  An 
arbitrary  reign  was  that  of  Henry,  but  it  wroiiulit  as  much  for  the  perma- 
nent, religious,  and  moral  good  of  the  nalioii,  as  the  storms  anil  tempests, 
')eneath  which  wo  cower  while  they  last,  work  for  the  physical  atmosphere 


CHAPTKR  XMI. 

THE  RRinN  OK  CinVAHn  vi 

T).  1547. — Hknht's  will  fixed  the  majiu'ily  of  his  son 


Kdwanl  VI ,  at  the  tire  of  ei>>hteen. 


and  siircesior 
riie  young  prince  at  the  time  of  his 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


471 


Ihat  have 
lat  lu',  so 
n  youth, 
j!e  adu- 
i;uiit'nt. 
\\\v.  able 
pii  were 
111'  sill)- 
111  wis- 
npsoii  ill 
im  a  mail, 
til  liousra 
1     All 
le  piTiua- 

(Mlipi'Sl*. 

iKisplu're 


»u( ccnior 
im'  of  lii* 


father's  death  was  but  a  few  month's  more  than  nine,  and  the  government 
was  during  his  minority  vested  in  sixteen  executors,  viz.,  Cranmer,  arch- 
bishop of  Canterbury ;  Lord  Wriottesley,  chancellor ;  Lord  St.  John,  great 
master;  Lord  Russell,  privy  seal ;  the  earl  of  Hertford,  chamberlain;  Vis- 
count Lisle,  admiral ;  Tonstall,  bishop  of  Durham  ;  Sir  Anthony  Browne> 
master  of  the  horse  ;  Sir  William  Paget,  secretary  of  state  ;  Sir  Bdward 
Forth,  chancellor  of  the  court  of  augmentations;  Sir  Edward  Montague, 
chief  justice  of  the  common  pleas;  Judge  Bromley,  Sir  Anthony  Denny, 
and  Sir  William  Herbert,  chief  gentlemen  of  the  privy  chamber;  S»r  td 
ward  Wotton,  treasurer  of  Calais  ;  and  Dr.  Wotton,  dean  of  Canterbury. 
Not  only  did  Henry  VIIL  name  these  councillors,  some  of  whom  were 
in  station  at  least,  far  below  so  important  a  trust,  but  he  laid  down  a  course 
of  conduct  for  them  with  a  degree  of  minuteness,  which  shows  that  to  the 
very  close  of  his  career  his  unbounded  vanity  maintained  its  old  ascend- 
mcy  over  his  naturally  shrewd  judgment,  and  that  he  expected  that  his 
political  and  religious  supremacy  would  be  respected  even  when  the  eartlv 
worms  and  the  damps  of  the  charnel-house  should  be  busy  with  his  inani- 
mate body.  The  very  first  meeting  of  the  councillors  showed  the  fallacy 
of  the  late  kin.g's  anticipations.  He  evidently  intended  that  the  co-ordinat« 
distribution  oi  the  state  authority  should  render  it  impracticable  for  the 
ambition  of  any  one  great  subject  to  trouble  or  endanger  the  succession  o( 
the  young  Edward  ;  and  this  very  precaution  was  done  away  with  by  the 
first  act  of  the  councillors,  who  agreed  that  it  was  necessary  that  some 
one  minister  should  have  prominent  and  separate  authority,  under  the 
title  of  protector,  to  sign  all  orders  and  proclamations,  and  to  communi- 
cate with  foreign  powers.  In  a  word,  tliey  determined  to  place  one  of 
their  number  in  precisely  that  tempting  propinquity  to  the  throne,  to  guard 
against  which  had  been  a  main  object  of  Henry's  care  and  study.  The 
earl  of  Hertford,  maternal  uncle  to  the  king,  seemed  best  entitled  to  thin 
high  office,  and  he  was  accordingly  chosen,  in  spite  of  the  opposition  of 
Cliancnllor  Wriottesley,  who  from  his  talents  and  experience  had  antici- 
pated that  he  himself,  in  reality  though  not  formally,  would  occupy  this 
very  position. 

Having  made  this  most  important  and  plainly  unauthorised  alteration 
in  Henry's  arrangement,  the  council  now  gave  orders  for  the  interment 
of  the  (li'ccased  monarch.  The  body  lay  in  state  in  the  chapel  of  ■White- 
hall, which  was  hung  with  fine  black  cloth.  Kighty  large  black  tapers 
were  kept  constantly  burning;  twelve  lords  sat  round  within  a  rail  as 
nionriicrs;  and  every  day  masses  and  dirges  were  performed.  At  the 
comiiieiiceineiit  of  each  service  Norroy,  king-at-ariiiL".  cried  in  a  loud 
voice,  "  Of  your  charity  pray  for  the  soul  of  the  high  and  miifhty  prince, 
our  late  sovereign  lord,  Henry  the  Kiglith."  On  the  Uih  of  February  the 
body  was  removed  to  Sion  house,  and  thence  to  Windsor  on  the  following 
Jay,  and  on  the  16th  it  was  interred  near  tiiat  of  Lady  Jaiii;  Seymour  in  a 
vault  near  the  centre  of  the  choir.  (laniiiier,  bishop  of  Winchester,  per- 
formed the  service  and  preached  a  sermon.  As  \w  scattered  eaitli  upon 
the  I  offiii  and  pronounced,  in  Latin,  the  soleinii  words,  "  Ashes  to  aslies 
and  dust  to  dust,"  certain  of  tlu!  principal  attendants  broke  their  wands  of 
oflice  iiiid  three  parts,  above  their  ln'ad»,  and  llir<'w  the  pieces  upon  the 
-olTiii.  The  solemn  psalm  r/p  ;>ro/uri(/i.«  was  tlicn  recited,  and  garter  king 
at  arms,  attended  by  the  archiitihop  of  ('anterlnirv  and  the  bishop  of  Dur- 
ham, pioclaiined  the  style  and  titles  of  Kihvard  V'l. 

The  coronation  next  f(dlowe<l,  hut  was  much  abridged  of  the  usual  cere- 
niony  and  "pliMidour,  chiefly  on  accnunl  of  the  delicate  state  of  (he  king's 
heallh.  The  executors  of  the  late  king,  though  lliey  had  sci  imporlaiitly 
departed  frmn  the  express  directions  of  the  will  upon  some  |Miiiits,  were 
very  exact  in  fidlowiiig  it  u|mmi  other.?.  Thus,  Henry  had  charged  them 
*o  make  certain  creations  or  promotions  in  the  petrugc ;  and  Hertford 


172 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


was  now  made  duke  of  Somerset,  marshal  and  lord  treasurer ;  his  oppo- 
nent, the  chancellor  Wrioliesley,  ear!  of  Southampton  ;  the  earl  of  KssfX, 
marquis  of  Norlhampton;  Viscount  Lisle,  earl  of  Warwick;  Sir  Tliomas 
Seymour,  Lord  Seymour  of  Sudley  and  achniral  of  Knirland ;  and  Sirs 
Richard  Rich,  William  Willoughhy,  and  Kdmund  Sheffield,  barons.  Som- 
erset and  some  of  the  other  peers  were  at  tlie  same  time,  to  enable  iliein 
to  support  their  dignity,  gratified  with  deaneries,  prebends,  and  other  spir- 
itual benefices  ;  a  most  pernicious  precedent,  and  one  which  has  caused 
and  enabled  so  much  church  property  and  influence  to  be  placed  in  tlio 
hands  of  laymen,  many  of  whom  are  avowedly  and  flagrantly  dissenters 
from  the  doctrine  of  the  church,  and  foes  to  her  establishment. 

Wriottesley,  earl  of  Southampton,  was  greatly  disappointed  that  he,  in- 
stead of  Somerset,  had  not  been  chosen  protector ;  and  this  feeling  teuchid 
greatly  to  exasperate  the  political  opposition  which  had  ever  existed 
between  them.  Wriottesley,  with  a  want  of  judgment  strangely  in  con 
trast  with  his  usual  conduct,  gave  to  Somerset  an  opportunity  to  distress 
an'  rtify  him,  of  which  that  proud  noble  was  not  slow  to  avail  hiiiis  II. 
Dci.i.iia  to  give  the  utmost  possible  amount  of  time  to  public  business, 
and  as  far  as  possible  to  share  and  check  the  authority  of  the  protector, 
Southampton,  merely  upon  his  own  authority,  put  the  great  seal  into  com- 
mission, empowering  four  lawyers  to  execute  the  office  of  chancellor  for 
him  ;  and  two  of  the  four  lawyers  thus  named  were  canonists,  which  gave 
some  appearance  to  his  conduct  of  a  desire  to  show  disrespect  to  the  com- 
mon law.  Somerset  and  his  party  eagerly  caught  at  this  indiscretion  of 
their  noble  and  resolute  opponent,  and  easily  obtained  from  the  judges  an 
opinion  to  the  effect  that  Southampton's  course  was  illegal  and  unjusti- 
fiable, and  that  he  had  forfeited  his  office  and  even  laid  himself  open  to 
still  farther  punishment.  Southampton  was  accordingly  summoned  before 
the  council;  and,  though  he  defended  himself  acutely,  he  wascondenined 
to  lose  the  great  seal,  to  pay  a  pecuniary  fine,  and  to  be  confined  to  his 
own  house  during  pleasure. 

Having  thus  opportunely  removed  his  most  powerful  and  persevering 
opponent,  Somerset  immediately  set  about  enlarging  his  own  power  and 
alterins;  its  foundation.  Professing  to  feel  a  delicacy  in  exercising  the 
extensive  powers  of  protector  while  holding  that  office  only  under  the  au- 
thority of  the  executors  of  the  late  king's  will,  he  obtained  from  the  young 
king  Kdward  a  patent  which  gave  him  the  protectorate  with  full  n^gal 
powers,  and  which,  though  it  re-appointed  all  the  councillors  and  execu- 
tors named  in  Henry's  will,  with  the  sole  exception  of  Southampton,  ex- 
empted the  protector  from  his  former  obligations  to  consult  thein  or  to  be 
bound  by  their  opinion. 

Aided  by  Cranmer,  the  protector,  in  spite  of  the  strong  and  able  opposi- 
tion of  Gardiner,  made  considerable  advances  in  religious  rcformaiiDn; 
yet  m  ide  them  with  a  most  prudent  and  praiseworthy  tenderness  to  the 
existing  prejudices  of  the  mass  of  that  generation.  Thus,  he  appointed 
visitors,  lay  and  clerical,  to  repress,  as  far  as  might  bo  obvious,  iinposinii'S 
and  flagrant  immoralities  on  the  part  of  the  catholic  clergy  ;  hut  he  at  the 
same  lime  instructed  those  visitors  to  <leal  respectfully  with  such  cereuin- 
nials  as  were  yet  unabolished,  and  with  such  images  ami  shrines  as  were 
unabused  to  the  purpose  of  idolatry.  While  thus  prudent,  in  tenderness 
to  the  inveleriile  an:J  ineradicable  piejuilices  of  iIk;  ignorant,  he  with  a 
very  sound  polii'y  look  measures  for  wi-akcuing  the  mischievous  elfi'ds 
of  the  prcMching  of  the  monks.  Many  of  these  men  were  phiceil  in  vacimt 
cliMrchi's,  that  so  the  excheau<'r  might  be  relieved, /(m  tunin,  of  the  |);iv 
ini'iit  III' the  anmiiiies  settled  upon  tlicin  at  the  sn|)|)ression  of  rcliuioiiij 
houses.  As  it  was  found  that  tluiy  took  advantnire  of  their  posiliini  to  in- 
stil into  the  minds  of  the  ignorant  the  worst  of  thi^  old  superstitions  ami  a 
tierce  hatred  of  the  reforiMation  Somerset  now  eompi^iled  them  to  avoid 


THE  TUEASUKY  OF  HWTORY 


473 


that  ooivliict,  by  enjoining  upon  them  llie  reading  of  certain  homilies  hav- 
ing precisely  the  opposite  tendency  and  l)y  strictly  forbidding  them  to 
preach,  unless  by  special  mdnlsjence,  anywhere  save  in  their  own  parish 
churches.  'I"he  monks  being  thus  siricity  L-onftned  in  their  own  parish 
chundies,  and  limited. in  their  liberty  of  preaching  even  there,  while  the 
proteslanl  clergymen  could  always  insure  a  special  license  for  peripatetic 
preaching,  was  a  sysiem  loo  obviously  favourable  to  the  reformation  to 
pass  uuceiisnred  by  the  principal  catholic  champions.  Bonner  at  the  out- 
set gave  the  protector's  measures  open  and  strong  opposition,  but  subs  - 
quenily  agreed  to  them.  Gardiner,  a  less  violent  but  far  firmer  and  more 
consistent  man,  because,  probably,  a  far  more  sincere  man,  was  staunch 
in  his  opposition.  He  was  of  opinion  that  the  reformation  could  not  be 
carried  any  farther  but  with  real  and  great  danger.  "  It  is,"  said  he,  "a 
dangerous  thing  to  use  too  much  freedom  in  researches  of  this  kind.  If 
you  cut  the  old  canal,  the  water  is  apt  to  run  farther  than  you  have  a  mind 
to ;  if  you  indulge  the  humour  of  novelty,  you  cannot  put  a  stop  to  people's 
demands,  nor  govern  their  indiscretions  at  pleasure.  For  my  part  my  sole 
concern  is  to  manage  the  third  and  last  act  of  my  life  with  decency,  and 
to  make  a  handsome  exit  off  the  stage.  Provided  this  point  is  secured  I 
am  not  solicitous  about  the  rest.  I  am  already  by  nature  condemned  to 
death :  no  man  can  give  me  a  pardon  from  this  sentence,  nor  so  much  as 
procure  me  a  reprieve.  To  speak  my  mind,  and  to  act  as  my  conscience 
directs,  are  two  branches  of  liberty  which  I  can  never  part  with.  Sincerity 
in  speech  and  integrity  in  action  are  enduring  qualities;  they  will  sli(;k  by 
a  man  when  everything  else  takes  its  leave,  and  I  must  not  resign  them 
upon  any  consideration.  The  best  of  it  is,  if  I  do  not  throw  these  awi'y 
myself,  no  man  can  force  them  from  me  ;  but  if  I  give  them  up,  then  am 
1  ruined  by  myself,  and  deserve  to  lose  all  my  preferments."  Desid  s 
the  obvious  danger  of  going  loo  far  and  making  the  people  mischievously 
familiar  with  change,  Gardiner  charged  his  opponents  with  an  unnecessary 
ind  presumptuous  assumption  of  metaphysical  exactitude  upon  the  doc- 
trines of  grace  and  justification  by  faith,  points  not  vitally  necessary  to 
any  man,  and  beyond  the  real  comprehension  of  the  multitude.  The 
ability  and  the  firmness  with  which  he  'iressed  these  and  other  grounds  of 
opposition  so  highly  enraged  the  protestor,  that  Gardiner  was  committed 
to  the  Fleet,  and  there  treated  with  a  severity  which,  his  age  and  his 
talents  being  considered,  reflected  no  little  discredit  upon  the  protestjiit 
parly.  Tonstal,  bishop  of  Durham,  who  sided  with  Gardiner,  was  expelled 
the  council,  but  allowed  to  live  witliout  farther  molestation. 

The  active  measures  of  Somerset  for  promoting  the  reformation  in 
F.ngland  gave  force  and  liveliness  to  the  antagonist  parties  in  .Scotland 
also.  The  cardinal  Beaton,  or  Bethune,  was  resolute  to  put  down  ihe 
preaching,  even, of  the  reformers;  while  these  latter,  on  the  other  hand, 
were  daily  becoming  more  and  more  inflamed  with  a  zeal  to  which  mar- 
tyrdom itself  had  no  terrors.  Among  tlie  most  zealous  and  active  of  the 
reformed  preachers  was  a  well-born  gentleman  named  Wishart,  a  man  ol 
great  learning,  high  itioral  character,  and  a  rich  store  of  that  passioiciie 
ind  forcible,  though  rude,  eloquence  which  is  so  powerful  over  llu;  minds 
af  enlhiftiastic  but  uneducated  men.  The  principal  ^cene  of  his  preach- 
ing was  Dundee,  where  his  eloquence  had  so  visible  and  stirring  an  effcci 
upon  the  multitude,  that  the  magistrates,  as  a  simple  mailer  of  civil  po- 
lice, fell  bound  to  forbid  him  to  preach  within  their  jurisdiction.  Unable 
to  avoid  retiring,  Wishart,  however,  in  doing  so,  soletiinly  invoked  and 
prophesied  a  heavy  and  speedy  calamity  upon  the  town  in  which  his 
|)reaching  had  thus  been  stopped.  Singularly  enough,  he  had  not  long 
been  banished  from  Dundee  when  the  plague  burst  out  with  great  violence. 
Post  hoc,  crffo  prnplir  hoc  is  ever  the  popular  maxim  ;  men  loudly  declared 
that  the  plague  was  evidently  the  consec  lencc  of  VVishart's  banishment 


474 


THE  TREA8UEY  OP  HISTOaV. 


i      ^. 


and  that  the  hand  of  the  destroying  angel  would  never  be  stayed  until  the 
preacher  should  be  recalled.  Wishart  was  recalled  accordingly;  and 
taking  advantage  of  the  popular  feelings  of  dismay,  he  so  boldly  and  pas- 
sionately advocated  innovations,  that  Cardinal  Beaton  caused  him  to  be 
arrested  and  condemned  to  the  stake  as  a  heretic. 

Arran,  the  governor,  showing  some  fear  and  unwillingness  to  proceed 
to  the  extremity  of  burning,  the  cardinal  carried  the  sentence  into  execu- 
tion on  his  own  anthority,  and  even  stationed  himself  at  a  window  from 
which  he  could  behold  the  dismal  spectacle.  This  indecent  and  cruel 
triumph  was  noted  by  the  sufferer,  who  solemnly  warned  Beaton  that  ere 
many  days  he  should  be  laid  upon  that  very  spot  where  then  he  triumphed. 
Agitated  as  the  multitude  were  by  the  exhortations  of  their  numerous 
preachers  of  the  reformed  doctrine,  such  a  prophecy  was  not  likely  to 
fall  uiilieeded  from  such  a  man  under  such  circumstances.  His  followers 
in  great  numbers  associated  to  revenge  his  death.  Sixteen  of  the  most 
courageous  of  them  went  well  armed  to  the  cardinal's  palace  at  an  early 
hour  in  the  morning,  and  having  thrust  all  his  servants  and  tradesmen  out, 
proceeded  to  the  cardinal's  apartment.  For  a  short  time  the  fastenings 
defied  their  power,  but  a  cry  arising  to  bring  fire  to  their  aid,  the  unfortu- 
nate old  man  opened  the  door  to  them,  entreating  to  spare  his  life  and  re- 
minding them  of  his  priesthood.  The  foremost  of  his  assailants,  James 
Melville,  called  to  the  others  to  execute  with  becoming  gravity  and  de- 
liberation a  work  which  was  only  to  be  looked  upon  as  tlie  judgment  of 
God. 

"  Repent  thee,"  said  this  sanguinary  but  conscientious  enthusiast,  "  re- 
pent thee,  thou  wicked  cardinal,  of  all  thy  sins  and  iniquities,,  especially  of 
the  murder  of  Wishart,  that  instrument  of  God  for  the  conversion  of  thene 
lands.  It  is  his  death  which  now  cries  vengeance  upon  thee :  we  are 
sent  by  God  to  inflict  the  deserved  punishment.  For  here,  before  the  Al- 
mighty, I  protest  that  it  is  neither  hatred  of  thy  person,  nor  love  of  thy 
riches,  nor  fear  of  thy  power,  which  moves  me  to  seek  thy  death,  but  only 
because  thou  hast  been  and  still  remainest  an  obstinate  enemy  to  Christ 
Jesus  and  his  holy  gospel." 

With  these  words  Melville  stabbed  the  cardinal,  who  fell  dead  at  his 
feet.  This  murder  took  place  the  year  before  the  deathof  Henry  VHI.,to 
whom  the  assassins,  wiio  fortified  themselves  and  friends,  to  the  number 
of  a  hundred  and  forty,  in  the  castle,  dispatched  a  messenger  for  aid. 
Henry,  always  jealous  of  Scotland  and  glad  to  cripple  its  turbulent  nobili- 
ty, promised  his  support,  and  Somerset  now,  in  obedience  to  the  dying  in- 
junction of  the  king,  prepared  to  march  an  army  into  Scotland,  for  the 
purpose  of  compelling  a  union  of  the  two  countries,  by  marrying  tlie  minor 
queen  of  Scotland  to  the  minor  king  of  Kngluiid.  With  a  fleet  of  sixty 
sail  and  a  force  of  eighteen  thousand  men,  he  set  out  with  the  avowed 
purpose  of  not  listening  to  any  negotiation,  unless  based  upon  the  (condi- 
tion of  the  marriage  of  the  young  queen  of  Scotland  to  Kdward  of  Kng- 
land;  a  measure  which  he  urged  and  justified  at  great  length  in  a  pam- 
phlet published  by  him  before  opening  the  campaign. 

Except  as  a  means  of  justifying  his  own  conduct  in  commencing  the 
war,  it  would  seem  that  so  well  informed  a  statesman  as  SomerHel  ';oul(l 
surely  have  expected  little  efTect  from  this  manifesto.  The  queen  dowa- 
ger of  Scotland  was  wholly  influenced  by  France,  which  could  not  but  be 
to  the  utmost  degree  opposed  to  the  union  of  Scotland  and  England  ;  and 
she  was  also  far  too  much  attached  to  the  catholic  religion  to  look  with 
any  complacent  feelmg  upon  a  transfer  of  Scotland  into  the  hands  of  the 
known  and  persevering  enemy  of  that  religion.  From  Berwick  to  Edin- 
burgh Somerset  experienced  but  little  resistance.  Arran,  however,  liad 
taken  up  his  position  on  the  bunks  of  the  Eske  at  about  four  miles  from 
Edinburgh,  with  an  army  double  in  number  to  that  of  the  English.    In  u 


I 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


470 


until  the 
(ly;  and 
and  pas- 
im  to  be 

(  proceed 
,0  execu- 
low  from 
md  cruel 
11  that  ere 
iumphed. 
numerous 

likely  to 
followers 
the  most 

an  early 
isincn  out, 
fastenings 
B  unforiu- 
ife  and  re- 
its,  James 
y  and  de- 
ilgment  of 

siast,  "  re- 
pecially  of 
on  of  tlie8G 
e :  we  are 
"ore  the  Al- 
ove  of  thy 
h,  but  only 
T  to  Christ 

lead  at  his 
_  VIII., to 

ho  number 

r  for  aid. 

nt  nobili- 

liying  in- 

nd,  for  the 

tiic  minor 

t  of  sixty 

w  avowed 

the   (rondi- 

irdof  Kng- 

in  a  pam- 

nnicinR  the 
irset  i:oulii 

\wv\\  dowii- 
not  but  be 
gland ;  and 
look  with 
luids  of  the 

jk  to  Kdin- 
iwever,  luid 
miles  fritin 
(jlish.    In  a 


cavalry  affair  of  outposts  the  Scots  were  worsted,  and  Lord  Hume 
geverely  wounded,  but  Somerset  and  the  earl  of  Warwick  having  recon- 
noitred the  Scottish  camp,  found  that  it  was  too  well  posted  to  be  assailed 
with  any  reasonable  chance  of  success.  Somerset  now  tried  negotiation, 
otTering  to  evacua: :  the  country  and  even  to  make  compensation  for  such 
mischief  as  had  already  been  done,  on  condition  that  the  Scots  should  en- 
gage to  keep  their  young  queen  at  home  and  uncontracted  in  marriage 
until  she  should  reach  an  age  to  choose  for  herself.  This  ofler,  so  much 
in  contrast  with  the  determination  with  which  the  protector  had  set  out, 
caused  the  Scots  to  suppose  that,  intimidated  by  their  numbers  or  moved 
by  some  secret  and  distressing  information,  he  was  anxious  to  get  away 
upon  any  terms,  and  the  very  moderation  of  the  terms  offered  by  him  was 
the  cause  of  their  being  rejected.  Whoever  will  carefully  and  in  detail 
study  the  great  campaigns  and  battles,  whether  of  ancient  or  of  modern 
times,  will  find  that  at  once  the  rarest  and  the  most  precious  gift  of  a  '^"^ 
eral-in-chief  is  to  know  how  to  refrain  from  aclion.  The  Fabian  policy  .. 
suitable  onlv  to  the  very  loftiest  and  most  admirable  military  genius  ;  not 
because  of  the  physical  difliculty  of  remaining  tranquil,  but  simply  because 
to  do  so  in  spite  alike  of  the  entreaties  of  friends  and  the  taunts  of  foes, 
requires  that  self-conquest  which  is  to  be  achieved  only  by  a  Fabius  or  a 
VVelliiiglon.  On  the  present  occasion  the  Scot's  leaders  had  to  contend 
not  only  against  tlieir  own  mistake  as  to  Somerset's  circumstances  and 
motives,  but  also  against  the  frantic  eagerness  of  their  men,  who  were 
wound  up  to  the  most  intense  rage  by  the  preaching  of  certain  priests  in 
their  camp,  who  assured  I  hem  that  the  detestable  heresy  of  the  English 
made  victory  to  their  arms  altogether  out  of  the  question. 

Finding  his  moderate  and  peaceable  proposal  rejected,  Somerset  saw 
that  it  was  necessary  to  draw  the  enemy  from  their  sheltered  and  strong 
position,  to  a  more  open  one  in  which  he  could  advantageously  avail  him- 
self of  his  superiority  in  cavalry.  He  accordingly  moved  towards  the 
sea;  and  as  his  ships  at  the  same  moment  stood  in  shore,  as  if  to  re- 
ceive him,  the  Scots  fell  into  the  snare  and  moved  from  their  strong  posi- 
tion to  intercept  him.  They  entered  the  plain  in  three  bodies,  the  van- 
guard commanded  l)y  Angus,  the  main  body  commanded  by  Arran,  and 
some  light  horse  and  Irish  archers  on  the  left  flank  under  Argyle. 

As  tlie  Scots  advanced  into  the  plain,  they  were  severely  galled  by  the 
artillery  of  the  Knglish  ships,  and  among  the  killed  was  the  eldest  son  of 
Lord  Graham.  The  Irish  auxiliaries  were  thrown  into  the  utmost  disor- 
der, and  the  whole  main  body  began  to  fall  back  upon  the  rear-guard, 
wliicii  was  under  the  command  of  Huntley.  Lord  Grey,  who  had  the 
command  of  the  English  cavalry,  had  orders  not  to  attack  the  Scottish 
vail  till  it  should  be  closely  engaged  with  the  English  van,  when  he  was 
lotiike  it  in  flank.  Tempted  by  the  disorder  of  the  enemy,  he  lU'glected 
this  order,  and  led  the  English  cavalry  on  at  full  gallop.  A  heavy  slough 
and  broad  ditch  threw  them  into  confusion,  and  they  were  easily  repulsed 
by  tiie  long  spears  of  the  Scotch  ;  Lord  (Jrey  himself  'vas  severely  wound- 
ed, the  protector's  son.  Lord  Edward  Seymour,  iiad  his  horse  killed 
under  him,  and  the  cavalry  was  only  rallied  by  the  ulmosl  exertion  and 
presence  of  mind  on  the  part  of  Sir  Ralph  Sadler,  Sir  Ralph  Vane,  and 
liie  protector  in  person.  The  English  arclujis  and  the  Englisii  ships 
(failed  the  van  of  the  Scots  so  severely  that  it  at  length  gave  way,  and 
tlie  English  van  being,  at  that  critical  monient,  led  on  in  gooti  order,  the 
S(;ots  and  their  Irish  auxiliaries  took  to  ftl>>lit.  How  short  and  unequal 
(he  night  was,  and  how  persevering  aiul  murderous  tlie  pursuit,  may  be 
judged  from  the  fact,  that  the  English  loss  was  short  of  two  hundred,  and 
that  of  the  Scots  above  ten  thousand!  Full  fifteen  hundred  were  also 
made  prisoners  at  this  disastrous  battle  of  Pliikey. 
Somerset  now  took  several  castles,  received  the  submission  uf  the  coun« 


fir 


«76 


THK  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


ties  on  the  border,  destroyed  the  shipping  on  the  coast,  and  was  in  a  sit- 
uation to  hiive  imposed  the  moot  onerous  terms  on  the  Scots,  could  he 
have  followed  up  his  advantiigos ;  but  inTormation  reached  him  of  in- 
trigues going  on  in  England,  wliii.-h  obliged  him  to  return,  after  having  ap- 
pointed Berwick  for  the  placte  of  conference  of  the  commissioners,  whom 
the  Scots,  in  order  to  gam  time  and  procure  aid  from  France,  affected  to 
wish  to  send  lo  treat  for  peace. 

On  Somerset's  return  to  Kngland  he  assumed  more  state  than  ever, 
being  elated  with  his  success  in  Scotland.  He  caused  his  nephew  to  dis- 
pense Willi  the  stittute  of  precedency  passed  in  the  late  reign,  and  to  grant 
to  him,  the  protector,  a  pnient  allowing  him  to  sit  on  the  throne,  upon  a 
stool  or  bench  on  the  right  hand  of  the  king,  and  to  enjoy  all  honours  and 
privik'ges  usually  enjoyed  by  any  uncle  of  a  king  of  England. 

While  thus  intent  upon  his  own  aggrandizement,  Somerset  was,  never, 
theless,  attentive  also  to  the  ajueliorating  of  the  law.  The  statute  of  the 
six  articles  was  repealed,  as  were  all  laws  against  Lollardy  and  heresy— 
though  the  latter  was  still  an  undefined  crime  at  common  law — all  laws 
extending  the  criiue  of  treason  beyond  the  twenty-fifth  of  Edward  HI., 
and  all  the  laws  of  Henry  VIII.  extending  the  crime  of  felony;  andno 
accusation  founded  upon  words  spoken  was  to  be  made  after  the  expira- 
tion of  H  month  from  the  ailcdged  speaking. 

A.  D.  1548 — The  extensive  repeals  of  which  we  have  made  mention  are 
well  described  by  Hume  as  having  been  the  cause  of  "some  dawn  of  both 
civil  and  religious  liberty"  to  the  people.  For  them  great  praise  was  dut 
to  Somerset,  who,  however,  was  now  guilty  of  a  singular  inconsistency; 
one  which  shows  how  difficult  it  is  for  unqualified  respect  to  the  rights 
of  the  multitude  to  co-exist  with  such  extensive  power  as  that  of  the  pro- 
tector. What  Hiiine,  with  terse  and  significant  emphasis,  calls  "  that  law, 
the  destruction  of  all  laws,  by  which  the  king's  proclamation  was  made  of 
equal  force  with  a  statute,"  was  repealed;  and  yet  the  protector  continued 
to  use  and  uphold  the  proclamation  whensoever  the  occasion  seemed  to 
demand  it;  as,  for  instance,  forbidding  the  harmless  and  time-hallowed 
■uperstitions  or  absurdities  of  carrying  about  candles  on  Candlemas  day, 
ashes  on  Ash  Wednesday,  and  palm  branches  on  Palm  Sunday. 

Aided  by  the  French,  the  Scots  made  many  attempts  to  recover  the 
towns  and  castles  which  had  been  taken  from  them  by  Somerset,  and  with 
very  general  success.  The  English  were  reduced  to  so  rhuch  distress, 
and  so  closely  kept  within  Haddington  by  the  number  and  vigilance  of 
their  enemies,  that  Somerset  sent  over  a  reinforcement  of  eighteen  thou- 
sand English  troops  and  three  thousand  German  auxiliaries.  This  large 
force  was  commanded  by  the  earl  of  Shrewsbury,  who  relieved  Hadding- 
ton, indeed,  but  could  not  get  up  with  the  enemy's  troops  until  they  were 
80  advantageously  posted  near  Edingburgh,  that  he  thought  it  imprudent 
to  attack  them,  and  marched  back  into  England. 

We  nmsl  now  refer  to  those  intrigues  of  the  English  court  to  which  the 
Scots  owed  not  a  little  of  their  comparative  security.  Between  the  pro- 
tector and  his  brother,  the  lord  Seymour,  a  in:ui  of  great  talent  and  still 
greater  arrogance  and  ambition,  inere  was  a  feeling  of  rivalry,  which 
was  greatly  increased  and  inibittered  by  the  feminine  rivalry  and  spile 
of  their  wives.  The  queen  dowager,  the  widow  of  Henry  VIII.,  marrjtd 
Lord  Seymour  at  a  scarcely  decent  interval  after  her  roy;il  husband's 
death ;  the  queen  dowager,  though  married  to  a  younger  brother  of  the 
duke,  took  precedence  of  the  duciiess  of  Somerset,  and  the  latter  used  all 
her  great  powi^r  and  inllneni-e  over  her  husband  to  irritate  him  against  hi? 
brother.  When  Smnersel  led  the  English  army  into  Scotland,  Lord  .Sev 
mour  took  the  opportunity  to  endeavour  to  strengthen  his  own  cabal,  'w 
distributing  his  liberalities  among  the  king's  councillors  and  servaius, 
and  by  improper  indulgence  to  the  young  king  himself.    Secnitary  Paget, 


THE  TREA8IJEY  OF  HISTOEY. 


07 


who  well  knew  the  bitter  and  restless  ri"alry  of  the  two  brothers,  warned 
Lord  Seymour  to  beware,  that,  by  encouraging  cabals,  he  did  not  bring 
down  ruin  upon  tliat  lofiy  state  to  which  both  himself  and  the  protector 
had  risen,  and  which  had  made  them  not  a  few  powerful  foes,  who  would 
but  little  hesitate  to  side  with  either  for  a  time  for  the  sake  of  crushing 
both  in  the  end.  Lord  Seymour  treated  the  nMnonstrauces  of  Paget  with 
neglect;  and  the  secretary  perceiving  tlie  evil  and  danger  daily  to  grow 
more  imminent,  sent  the  protector  such  information  as  caused  him  to  give 
up  all  probable  advantage,  and  hasten  to  protect  his  authority  and  inter- 
ests at  home.  The  subsequent  departure  of  the  young  queen  of  Scotland 
for  France,  where  she  arrived  in  safety  and  was  betrothed  to  tiie  dauphin, 
made  Somerset's  Scottish  projects  comparatively  hopeless  and  of  Utile 
consequence,  and  he  subsequently  gave  his  undivided  attention  to  the 
maintenance  of  his  authority  in  England. 

Not  contented  with  the  degree  of  wealth  and  authority  he  possessed,  as 
admiral  of  England  and  husband  of  the  queen  dowager.  Lord  Seymour, 
whose  artful  complaisance  seems  to  have  imposed  upon  his  nephew, 
caused  the  young  monarch  to  write  a  letter  to  parliament  to  request  that 
Lord  Seymour  might  be  made  governor  of  the  king's  person,  winch  office 
his  lordship  argued  ought  to  be  kept  distinct  from  that  of  prototttor  of  the 
realm.  Before  he  could  bring  the  affair  before  parliament,  and  while  he 
was  busily  engaged  in  endeavouring  to  streniftlien  his  party,  Lord  Sey- 
mour was  warned  by  his  brother  to  desist.  The  council,  too,  threatened 
that  it  would  use  the  letter  he  had  obtained  from  the  affection  or  weak- 
ness of  the  young  king,  not  as  a  justification  of  his  factious  opposition  to 
the  protector's  legal  authority,  but  as  a  proof  of  a  criminal  tampering  with 
a  minor  and  a  mere  child,  with  intent  to  disturb  the  legal  and  .-leated  gov- 
ernment of  the  realm,  ft  was  further  pointed  out  to  him,  that  the  council 
now  knew  quite  enough  to  justify  it  in  sending  him  to  the  Tower:  and 
the  admiral,  however  unwillingly,  abandoned  his  designs,  at  least  for  the 
time. 

Somerset  easily  forgave  his  brother,  but  the  ambition  and  aching  envy 
of  that  turbulent  and  restless  man  was  speedily  called  into  evil  activity 
again,  by  a  circumstance  which  to  an  ordinary  man  would  have  seemed 
a  sufficient  reason  for  lowering  its  tone.  His  wife,  the  queen  dowager, 
died  in  giving  birth  to  a  child,  and  Lord  Seymour  then  paid  his  addresses 
to  the  lady  Elizabeth,  as  yet  only  sixteen  years  of  age.  As  Mary  was 
the  eldest  daughter,  and  as  Henry  had  very  distinctly  excluded  both  Mary 
and  Elizabeth  from  the  throne  in  the  event  of  Iheir  marrying  without  the 
consent  of  his  executors,  which  consent  Lord  Seymour  could  have  no 
chance  of  getting,  it  was  clear  that  Seymour  could  only  hope  to  derive 
benefit  from  such  an  alliance  by  resorting  t(»  absolute  usurpation  and  vio- 
lence.  Tliat  such  was  his  intention  is  fiirtluT  rendered  probable  by  the 
fact,  that  besides  redoubling  his  efforts  to  obtain  influence  over  all  who 
had  access  to  the  king  or  power  in  the  stale,  he  had  so  distrilmted  his  fa- 
vours even  among  persons  of  comparatively  low  rank,  that  he  calculated 
on  being  able,  if  it  were  necessary,  to  muster  an  army  of  ten  thousand 
men.  For  this  number,  it  seems,  he  had  actii;\lly  provided  arms  ;  he  had 
farther  strengthened  himself  by  protecting  piratcH,  whom,  as  admiral  of 
England,  it  was  his  especial  duty  to  suppress  ;  iiiid  he  had  corrupted  Sir 
John  Spurington,  the  master  of  the  mint  at  IJristol,  who  was  to  supply 
Iiiin  with  money. 

Well  informed  as  to  his  brother's  criminal  projects,  the  protector,  both 
by  intreaties  and  by  favours  conferred,  endeavoured  to  induce  him  to 
abandon  his  mad  ambition.  But  the  natural  wroiig-headediicss  of  Lord 
Seymour,  and  the  ill  advice  of  Dmiiey,  earl  of  Warwick,  a  man  of  great 
talent  and  courage,  but  of  just  such  [iiiiu'iplcs  as  might  be  exp( '  ted  from 
the  80U  of  that  Dudley,  the  extortioner,  who  was  colleague  of  Empson 


478 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


in  the  reign  of  Henry  VII.,  rendered  the  humane  efforts  of  the  protector 
vain.  Hating  both  the  brothers,  Warwick  dreaded  the  Lord  Seymour  the 
more  for  his  aspiring  temper  and  superior  •"lents;  and  seeing  him  only 
too  well  inclined  to  seditious  practices,  the  treacherous  Warwick  urged 
him  on  in  his  guilty  and  foolish  career,  and  at  the  same  lime  secretly  ad- 
vised the  protector  to  take  stern  means  of  putting  a  stop  to  the  practices 
of  a  brother  upon  whom  kindness  and  good  counsel  were  completely 
thrown  away.  By  Warwick's  advice  the  protector  first  deprived  hin 
brother  of  the  office  of  admiral,  and  then  committed  him,  with  some  of  his 
alledged  accomplices,  to  the  Tower.  Three  privy  councillors,  who  were 
sent  to  examine  the  prisoners,  reported  that  there  was  important  evidence 
against  them ;  and  even  now  the  protector  offered  liberty  and  pardon  to 
his  brother,  on  condition  of  his  retiring  to  his  country  houses,  and  con- 
fining himself  strictly  to  private  life.  Undaunted  by  all  the  appearances 
against  him.  Lord  Seymour  replied  only  by  threats  and  sarcasms ;  and, 
urged  by  his  personal  and  political  friends,  real  and  pretended,  the  pro- 
lector  consented  not  only  that  his  brother  should  be  proceeded  against,  but 
also  that  he  should  be  refused  a  free  and  open  trial  which  he  indignantly 
demanded,  and  be  proceeded  against  before  that  ready  instrument  of  sove 
reign  vengeance,  the  parliament. 

A.  D.  1549. — On  the  meeting  of  parliament  a  bill  of  attainder  was  origi- 
nated in  the  upper  house.  By  way  of  evidence,  several  peers  rose  and 
stated  what  they  knew  or  professed  to  know  of  the  criminal  designs  and 
practices  of  the  admiral ;  and  upon  this  evidence  given,  be  it  observed,  by 
judges  in  the  case,  that  house  of  peers  in  which  the  deluded  man  had  sup- 
posed himself  to  have  so  many  fast  friends,  passed  the  bill  with  scarcely 
a  dissenting  voice,  and,  as  Hume  observes  "  without  any  one  having  eithct 
the  courage  or  equity  to  move  that  he  miy:ht  be  heard  in  his  defence ;  thai 
the  testimony  against  him  should  be  delivered  in  a  legal  manner,  and  that  he 
should  be  confronted  with  the  witnesses."  Contrary  to  what  might  have 
been  anticipated,  a  better  spirit  was  exhibited  in  the  lower  house,  wliere 
it  was  moved  that  the  proceeding  by  bill  of  attainder  was  bad,  and  tliai 
every  man  should  be  present  and  formally  tried  previous  to  condemnation, 
A  message,  nominally  from  the  king,  but  really  from  the  council,  how 
ever,  terminated  this  show  of  spirit  and  equity,  and  the  bill  was  passed  by 
a  majority  of  four  hundred  to  some  nine  or  ten.  .Shortly  afterwards  the 
admiral  was  beheaded  on  Tower-hill,  the  warrant  of  his  execution  being 
signed  by  his  brother  Somerset !  or  rather  the  condemnation.  After  tlif 
trial  of  Lord  Seymour  the  most  important  business  of  this  session  was 
ecclesiastical ;  one  act  allowing  priests  to  marry,  but  saying  in  the  pre- 
amble that  "  it  were  better  for  priests  and  the  ministers  of  the  church  t" 
live  chastely  and  without  marriage,  and  it  wort  much  to  be  wished  that 
they  would  of  themselves  abstain;"  another  prohibiting  the  use  of  flrsli 
meat  in  Lent ;  and  a  third  permitting  and  providing  fora  union  of  irurpsiii 
the  city  of  York.  .Many  of  these  cures,  it  was  stated  in  the  preamble,  were 
too  much  impoverished  singly  to  support  an  incumbent ;  an  impoverish- 
ment wliicli  no  doubt  arose  from  the  transfer  of  the  ecclesiastical  reven- 
ues into  the  hands  of  laymen  and  abstnitecs.  There  was  now  a  very  gen- 
eral outward  conformity,  at  least,  with  the  doctrine  and  liturgy  of  the  re- 
formation. Hut  both  Bonner  and  Gardiner  were  imprisoned  for  niaiiit:iin- 
Ing  the  catholic  doctrine  of  the  real  presence,  the  princess  Mary  wao 
threatened  by  the  council  for  persisting  to  hear  mass,  and  obtained  ;in 
indulgence  through  the  influence  of  the  emperor.  A  still  farther  am! 
worse  |)n)of  was  given  that  the  duty  of  toleration  was  as  yet  but  very  im- 
pel fecily  understood  by  tin;  reformers,  by  the  proseeulion  of  a  wornm 
named  .loan  Bocher,  or  Joan  of  Kent,  for  heresy.  The  coinieil  eondcn- 
ned  the  poor  creature  to  the  flames.  Tor  some  time  the  young  kintir  wouM 
not  sign  the  warrant  for  her  execution.     Cranmer — alas !  that  Cranine 


lormidahli 
In  \ori 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


47!> 


should  have  less  of  Christian  charity  than  his  infant  king ! — argued  him 
into  compliance :  but  a  compliance  accompanied  by  tears  and  by  the  re- 
mark that  upon  Cranmer's  head  would  the  deed  lie  for  good  or  evil.  The 
execution  of  this  woman  was  followed  by  that  of  a  Dutch  arian,  named 
Von  Paris,  who  suffered  his  horrible  death  with  apparent  delight — so  ill 
»dapted  is  persecution  to  make  converts ! 


CHAPTER  XLIII. 
THE  REIGN  OF  EDWARD  VI.  (continued) 

To  deny  that  a  great  reformation  was  much  needed  in  the  church  at  tne 
time  when  it  was  commenced  by  Henry  VHI.  would  be  utterly  and  ob- 
stinately to  close  one's  eyes  to  the  most  unquestionable  evidence.  Nev- 
ertheless it  is  no  less  certain  that  the  wealth  which  was  justly  taken  from 
the  monks  was  quite  as  unjustly  bestowed  upon  laymen.  It  was  not  be- 
cause corrupt  men  had  insinuated  or  forced  themselves  into  the  church, 
that  therefore  the  church  should  be  plundered ;  it  was  not  because  the 
monks  had  diverted  a  part  of  the  large  revenues  of  the  church  from  the 
proper  purpose,  that  therefore  the  king  should  wrongfully  bestow  a  still 
larger  part.  The  laymen  upon  whom  Henry  bestowed  the  spoils  of  tlie 
ffreater  and  lesser  houses  had  in  few  cases,  if  any,  a  single  claim  upon 
those  spoils  save  favouritism,  not  always  too  honourable  to  themselves 
qr  to  the  king ;  yet  to  them  was  given,  without  the  charge  of  the  poor,  that 
property  upon  which  the  poor  had  been  bountifully  fed.  The  baron  or  the 
knight,  the  mere  courtier  or  the  still  worse  character  upon  whom  this 
property  was  bestowed  might  live  a  hundred  or  even  a  thousand  miles 
from  the  land  producing  his  revenue — from  that  land  upon  wfiich  its  for- 
mer possessors,  its  resident  landlords  the  monks,  employed  the  toiling 
man,  and  fed  the  infirm,  the  helpless,  and  the  suffering.  Nor  was  it 
merely  by  the  hind  who  laboured,  or  by  the  needy  man  who  was  fed  in 
iiharity,  that  the  monks  were  now  missed ;  the  monks  were  not  only  res- 
ident landlords,  they  were  also  liberal  and  indulgent  landlords.  They  for 
a  great  portion  of  their  low  rents  took  produce;  the  lay  landlords  de- 
manded higher  rents  and  would  be  paid  in  money ;  the  monks  lived  among 
their  tenants  and  were  their  best  customers ;  the  lay  landlord  drew  hin 
money  rents  from  Lincoln  or  Devon,  to  spend  them  in  the  court  revels  at 
London  or  in  the  wars  of  France  or  Scotland.  Many  other  differences 
might  be  pointed  out  which  were  very  injurious  to  the  middle  and  lowei 
dass  of  men;  but  enough  has  been  said  to  show  that  however  necessary 
the  change,  it  was  not  made  witii  duo  precautions  against  the  impoveris!' 
meat  and  suffering  of  great  bodies  of  men,  and  great  i-onseqiiont  dangci 
of  state  disturbances.  Kven  the  iron  hand  of  Henry  VIII.  would  not  have 
been  able  to  prevent  both  suffering  and  murnniring  ;  and  when  under  i)if 
milder  rule  of  the  protector  Somerset  the  people  were  still  farther  distress 
I'd  by  the  rage  for  grazing,  which  caused  the  peasantry  to  be  driven  in 
lierds  not  only  from  the  estates  upon  wliich  tiiey  had  laboured,  hut  eves 
fnim  their  cottages  and  from  the  commons  upon  which  t'ley  liad  f(!d  their 
I'ows  or  sheep,  the  cry  of  distress  became  loud,  general,  and  appalling. 
Tlie  protector  issued  a  commission  to  inquire  into  the  state  of  the  rur;d 
people,  and  to  find  out  and  remedy  all  evils  conneeted  with  enclosures. 
But  tlie  poor  in  various  parts  of  the  country  rose  in  arms  before  tliecon>- 
mission  had  time  even  to  make  inquiries;  Wiltshire,  Oxford,  Gloueester, 
Hants,  Sussex,  and  Kent  rose  sinndlaneously,  hut  were  speedily  put  ilown, 
:'hie(ly  by  Sir  William  Herbert  and  Lord  (fray  of  Wilton,  Hut  the  most 
rormidalile  rioters  made  their  appearauec  iti  Ncnfolk  and  Devonshire. 

In  Norfolk  above  twentv  thousand  assembled,  and  from  their  original 


«80 


THB  TEEA8URY  OF  BlSTOP.y. 


demand  for  doing  away  with  the  enclosures,  tliey  passed  to  demanding 
the  restoration  of  the  old  reli<!:iun,  the  plai-iii);  of  new  councillors  about 
the  king,  and  the  utter  abolition  of  all  gentry !  A  bold  and  rulfiaidy  fel- 
low, one  Ket,  a  tanner,  took  the  command  of  this  assemblage,  and  exer- 
cised his  authoriiy  over  such  of  the  gentry  as  were  unlucky  enough  to  be 
within  ins  reach,  in  the  arbitrary  and  itisolent  style  that  might  be  antici- 
pated, holding  his  court  bencatli  a  great  oak  on  MouscholU  Hill,  which 
overlooks  the  city  of  Norwi(;h.  Against  this  detnagogue  and  his  de- 
luded followers  tlie  marquis  of  Northampton  was  at  first  sent,  but  Ik;  whs 
completely  repulsed,  and  Lord  Sheffield,  one  of  his  officers,  was  killed. 
The  earl  of  Warwick  was  then  sent  against  Kei  with  an  army  >■!  six 
thousand,  which  had  been  hivind  to  go  lo  Scotland.  Warwick,  w'.m  hh 
usual  courage  and  conduct,  beat  the  rebels;  killed  two  thou.sriid  of  them, 
hanged  up  Ket  at  the  castle  of  Norwiiili,  and  nine  ol'  the  other  ringlead- 
ers on  the  boughs  of  the  oak  tree  on  iMousehold  hill. 

In  Devonshire  as  in  Norfolk,  though  the  coniplaiuts  made  by  the  people 
originated  in  the  injustice  of  ilie  enclosures  and  in  very  real  and  widely- 
spread  misery,  demagogues,  among  whom  were  some  priests  of  Sainpford 
dourtenay,  artfully  caused  them  to  make  a  return  to  the  old  religion  a 
chief  article  of  their  demand  ;  and  ttie  insurrection  here  was  tlie  more 
formidable,  beeaase  ma  ly  of  the  giMitry,  (m  account  of  the  religious  de- 
mands, joined  the  rebels.  Among  the  gentlemen  who  did  so  was  Elnni- 
phrey  Arundel,  governor  of  St.  Michael's  Mount,  chiefly  by  whose 
means  it  was  that  the  rebels,  though  ten  thousand  in  number,  were  brought 
into  something  of  the  regular  onler  of  disc^iplined  troops.  Lord  Russell, 
who  had  been  sent  against  ihein  with  but  a  weak  force,  finding  them  so 
numerous  and  determined,  and  in  such  good  order,  endeavored  to  get 
thcin  n  'iisperse  by  affecting  to  negotiate  with  them.  He  forwarded 
their  extravagant  demands  to  the  council,  who  returned  for  answer  that 
tliey  should  be  pardoned  on  tlieir  immediate  submission.  This  answer  so 
much  enraged  the  rebels  that  t!iey  ei.deavoured  to  storm  Exeter,  but 
were  repulsed  by  the  citizens.  Tliey  llu'ii  sat  down  before  Exeter  and 
endeavored  to  mine  it.  By  this  time  Lord  Russell  was  reinforced  by 
some  German  horse  under  .Sir  Willinin  Herbert  and  Lord  Gray,  and  some 
Italian  infantry  under  Hallista  Spiuoli.  and  he  now  marched  from  his 
itMrters  at  Honiton  to  the  relief  of  Exeter.  TIk;  rebels  suffered  dreiid- 
ully  both  in  the  battle  and  subsequent  to  the  retreat.  Humphrey  .\run- 
del  and  other  leading  men  wen;  seized,  carried  to  London,  and  there  ex- 
ecuted ;  many  of  the  rabble  were  executed  on  the  spot  by  martial  law, 
anil  the  vi(rar  of  St.  Thomas  was  hanged  on  the  top  of  his  own  steeple 
in  the  garb  of  a  popish  priest. 

The  stern  and  successful  severity  with  which  the  more  formidalde  re- 
bellions of  Norfolk  and  Devonshir';  had  been  put  down,  caused  weaker 
parii(!S  in  Yorkshire  and  elsev  re  t  i  !ake  the  alarm  and  disperse;  .nnd 
the  pri  ii  ctor  both  wisely  and  hnm.ntelv  ;  j-'ered  this  sr>irit  of  re!:ii;.,;ig 
obedience  by  proclaiming  a  g'  i  :.■!  !  :  v  ^,  ly.  Hut  h  ,,  j  the  terrihle 
loss  of  life  which  these  insur.  (e  ■  co.  in  the  spot,  they  caused  great 
losses  both  in  Scotland  and  in  France.  In  the  former  country  the  want 
of  i]w  force  of  six  thousand  men,  which  Warwick  led  to  put  down  the 
Norfolk  men,  enabled  the  French  and  Scotch  to  capture  the  fortress  of 
Hroughty  and  put  the  garrison  to  the  sword,  and  so  to  waste  the  coinitry 
for  miles  round  Haddington,  that  it  was  found  iiecess  iry  to  dismantle  and 
abandon  that  important  fortress  and  carry  the  stores  to  Berwick. 

Tlie  king  of  Fruicc  was  at  the  same  tiiiu!  leiniiled  by  the  deplorable 
domestic  disturbances  in  England  to  make  an  cffurt  to  recover  Uoulogiie, 
whiidi  had  been  taken  during  the  reign  of  Hi'iiry  \'I!I.  M(^  took  several 
fortresses  in  the  neighbourhood,  but  while  prcparii'.;;  to  attack  ni)iiloi;m! 
itself,  a  pestilential  distemper  broke  out  in  liisc.im|i.     The  autumnal  raiim 


?. 


THE  TaEA^*lJRy  OF  HISTORY. 


481 


)  demanding 
cillors  about 
rulRanly  fel- 
ge,  and  exer- 
eiiough  to  be 
ghl  be  aniici- 
d  Hill,  which 
I  and  his  dp 
it,  but  h'-  ^vi' 
g,  was  Willed. 
I  army  -l  six 
,v'ick,  vv'.''i  1  '• 
i.sr.nd  of  them, 
nh!.'r  i-iuglead" 

;  by  the  people 
lal  and  widely- 
its  of  Sampford 
old  religion  a 
was  tlie  more 
le  religious  de- 
j  so  was  Hum- 
pfly  by    whose 
3r,  were  brought 
Lord  Russell, 
'finding  tliem  so 
ideavorcd  to  get 
He  forwarded 
for  answer  that 
This  answer  so 
;,rin  Exeier,  but 
jfore  Exeter  and 
us  reinforced  by 
Gray,  and  some 
iirched  from  his 
,  suffered  dread- 
flumphrey  .\run- 
n\,  and  there  ex- 
,  by  martial  law, 
his  own  steeple 

re  formidable  rc- 
„  caused  weaker 
liid  disperse;  mA 
irit   of  rc'.ni.iiig 
,  .   ,  the  terrible 
they  caused  great 
[•ountry  the  want 
to  put  down  tlio 
ire  the  fortress  of 
■aste  the  country 
to  dismantle  and 
Berwick, 
iv  the  deplorable 
■[.(•over  Boulogne, 
He  took  several 
)  iittack  Uoidosine 
he  luitunuial  raiin' 


lulling  with  great  rjolence,  Henry  of  France  lost  all  iiisiant  hope  of  tak- 
ing Boulogne,  and  returned  to  r»aris,  leaving  (taspar  de  Ciiia'iiy,  so  well 
known  as  the  admiral  Coligny,  to  conunaiul  the  troops  ami  to  form  Iho 
siege  as  early  as  possible  in  the  following. H|)rins-  rolii^fiiy  even  went  be- 
yond these  orders  by  making  some  dashing  altrmpts  during  the  winter, 
but  they  were  all  unsuccessful.  The  protector  having  in  vain  a  tempted 
to  procure  the  alliance  of  the  emperor,  he  turned  his  thoughts  o  making 
peace  with  both  France  and  Scotland.  The  young  queen  ol'  Scotland, 
for  whose  hand  he  had  chiefly  gone  to  war,  could  not  now  be  inarri(  li  to 
Edward  of  England,  however  much  even  tlie  Scots  might  licsirc  it ;  and 
as  regards  the  French  quarrel,  Henry  VUI.  having  agreed  to  give  up 
Bouhigne  in  1554,  it  was  little;  worth  while  to  keep  up  an  expensive  war- 
fare for  retaining  the  place  for  so  few  years  as  had  to  elapse  to  that  date. 
But  Somerset,  though  a  man  of  unquestionable  ability,  seems  to  have 
been  singularly  ignorant  or  unobservant  as  to  tlie  real  light  in  which  he 
was  regarded  by  the  council,  and  still  more  so  of  the  real  fharacler  and 
views  of  Warwick.  He  gave  his  reasons,  as  we  have  given  them  above; 
and  sound  reasons  they  were,  and  as  humane  as  sound;  but  he  did  not 
sufliciently  take  into  calculation  the  pleasure  which  his  enc  les  derived 
from  the  embarrassment  caused  to  him,  and  the  discontent  h  ^cly  to  arise 
in  the  public  mind  on  account  of  the  state  of  our  affairs,  at  once  inglo- 
rious and  expensive,  in  France  and  Scotland. 

Besides  having  the  personal  enmity  of  Warwick,  Southampi  m,  whom 
the  protector  had  restored  to  his  place  in  the  council,  and  otlu  council- 
lors, Somerset  was  detested  by  a  great  part  of  the  nobility  an  gentry, 
who  accused  him,  perhaps  not  altogether  unjustly,  of  pnndiasing  popular 
jiy  at  the  expense  of  their  fcafety,  by  showing  such  an  excessive  uid  un- 
fair preference  of  the  poor  as  encouraged  them  in  riot  and  robbeiv.  As 
an  instam^e  of  this,  it  was  objected  that  he  had  erected  a  court  of  re- 
quests in  his  own  house  for  the  professed  relief  of  the  poor,  and  even  in- 
terfered with  the  judges  on  their  behalf.  The  principles  of  constitii'ional 
liberty  such  as  we  now  enjoy  were  at  that  time  so  little  understood,  that 
it  was  not  the  mere  interference  with  the  jiulges,  which  we  should  now 
very  justly  consider  so  indecent  and  detestable,  that  caused  any  dis-  ust; 
but  Somerset  had  interfered  against  the  very  persons,  the  nobles  and  gen- 
try, upon  whom  alone  lie  (;ould  rely  for  support,  and  he  was  now  to  en- 
dure ilie  consequences  of  so  impolitic  a  course.  His  execution  ol  Ins 
own  brother,  however  guilty  that  brother,  his  enormous  acquisitions  of 
church  property,  and  above  all,  the  magnificence  of  the  palace  he  was 
building  ill  the  Strand,  for  wliich  a  parish  church  and  the  houses  of  three 
bishops  were  pulled  down,  and  the  materials  of  which  he  cliiell>  got  hr 
dismantling  a  chapel,  with  cloister  and  charnel-iiousc,  in  Si.  Paul's 
c'  iirchyard,  after  his  labourers  had  been  by  force  of  arms  driven  from  an 
aiiempl  to  tear  down  St.  Margaret's,  VVestmiiistcr,  for  that  purpose ! — 
lliese  things,  and  tlif^  overweening  pride  which  was  generally  allril)uted 
to  iiim,  were  skilfully  taken  advantage  of  by  his  enemies,  and  he  was 
everywhere  des(;ribrd  as  the  main  cause  of  all  the  recent  public  calamities 
at  iioine  and  abroad.  Warwick,  with  Southampton,  .\rundel,  and  five  of 
the  councillors,  headed  by  Lord  St.  John,  president  of  the  council,  formed 
themselves  into  a  sort  of  independent  couikmI.  Taking  upon  themselves 
the  style  and  authority  of  the  whole  council,  they  wrote  letters  to  all  the 
cliief  nobility  and  gentry,  asking  for  their  support  and  aid  in  remedying 
the  public  evils,  which  they  affected  to  charge  entirely  upon  Somerset's 
mnladmiiustraiion.  Having  determined  on  their  own  scheme  of  reme- 
dial measures,  they  siuit  for  the  mayor  and  aldermen  of  London  and  the 
heuteiiaiit  of  the  Tower,  and  informing  them  of  the  plans  which  they 
proposed  to  adopt,  striirtiv  enjoined  them  to  aid  and  obey  them,  in  desfiito 
'if  aught  that  Somerset  inight  think  fit  to  order  to  the  contrary.  Soiner 
\  Ml,.  I.— :il 


182 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


! 


\ 


get  was  now  so  unpopular,  that  obedience  was  readily  promised  to  tliis 
command,  in  llio  face  at  once  of  liie  king's  patent  and  of  the  fact  that 
these  very  councillors,  who  now  complained  of  the  protector's  acts  as 
illegal,  had  aided  and  encouraged  him  in  whatever  had  been  illegally 
done— Ills  original  departure  from  the  wil!  of  the  late  king!  No  farther 
argument  can  be  requisite  to  show  that  personal  and  selfish  feeling,  and 
not  loyalty  to  the  young  king  or  tenderness  to  his  suffering  people,  ac- 
tuated these  factious  councillors.  But  faction  has  an  eagle  eye  where- 
with to  gaze  unbliukingly  upon  the  proudest  and  most  brilliant  light  of 
truth ;  and  tlie  self-appointed  junto  was  on  the  following  day  joined  by 
the  lord  clianccllor  Rich,  by  the  marquis  of  Northampton,  the  earl  of 
Shrewslmry,  Sir  Thomas  (^hcncy,  Sir  John  Gage,  Sir  Ralph  Sadler,  and 
the  chief  justice  Montague.  And  when  the  protector,  seeing  the  innni- 
nent  peril  in  which  he  was  placed,  sent  Secretary  Petre  to  treat  with  the 
councillors  at  Kly-house,  that  craven  personage,  instead  of  performing 
his  ilnty,  took  his  seat  and  sided  vvith  the  junto. 

Consulting  with  Cranmer  and  Paget,  who  were  the  only  men  of  mark 
and  power  that  still  abided  by  his  fortunes,  the  protector  removed  the 
young  king  to  Windsor  castle,  and  gathered  his  friends  and  retainers  in 
arms  around  him.  But  the  adhesion  to  the  Junto  of  the  lieutenai\i  of  the 
Tower,  and  the  unanimity  with  which  the  common  council  of  London 
joined  the  mayor  in  promising  support  to  the  now  measures,  caused  the 
speaker  of  the  liouse  of  commons  and  the  two  or  three  other  councillors 
who  had  hitlK-rto  remained  neuter  to  join  t*ie  ascendant  party  of  War- 
wick; and  Somerset  so  completely  lost  all  hope  and  confidence,  th;it  he 
now  began  to  apply  to  his  foes  for  pardon.  This  manifestation  of  his 
despair,  which  would  have  been  inexcusable  had  it  not,  unhappily,  been 
uuavoid.ihic,  was  decisive.  Warwick  and  his  frienils  addressed  the  king, 
and  with  many  prolesiatious  of  tlieir  (;.\ccedimr  loyalty  and  tin;  misdiicv- 
ousness  of  the  protector's  measures,  solicited  that  they  might  \w  adniitted 
to  his  majesty's  presence  and  conliilence,  and  thai  Somerset  be  disuiissid 
from  his  high  oflii'c.  The  fallen  stali'sman  was  accordingly,  with  several 
of  his  liiends,  ini'ltidiiig  Cecil,  the  afterwards  renowned  and  aihiiiral)le 
Lord  Ihirleigh,  sent  to  the  Tower.  But  though  the  junto  thus  pi-ononnced 
all  that  Somerset  had  done  to  l)e  illegal,  they  appcMUied  as  council  of  re- 
gency,  not  tlir  persons  named  in  the  lal(^  king's  will,  but,  for  the  most 
pari,  tlu^  same  men  who  had  been  appointed  by  Somerset,  and  whose  acts 
mider  his  ap|)oinlmcnt,  supposing  it  to  be  illegal,  ought  clearly  to  hiive 
dis<]ualined  them  now.     Such  is  faction! 

When  till'  govcrnmeiU  bad  thus  been,  virtually,  vested  in  the  ambitious 
and  unprincipled  Warwick  ;  when  hi"  had  snitched  the  ofTice  of  earl  uiar- 
slial,  l.onl  St.  .loliii  that  of  treasurer,  the  maripiis  of  Norlbamplon  th:it  of 
great  idiamlicrlain,  Lord  Weiitwoitli  that  of  cli'iml)erlain  of  tlu^  bonsclioM, 
besides  the  manors  of  Stepney  ami  Hackney  wliich  were  pluudereil  iVoin 
the  bishopric  of  Lomiou,  and  Lord  Uussill  the  earldom  of  Hedl'iMil.  the  li<it 
patriotism  of  W.arwick  was  salislicd.  The  hiimlileil  Souii'rset  having  tlias 
ii.aile  way  for  his  enemies,  and  having  stiiojied  to  ihc  degradaliou  of  mik- 
inif  to  them  apologies  ami  snlinnssions  which  Ins  admirers  must  evci 
lauicul,  he  was  restored  to  liberty  and  forgiven  aline  of  .C.'ooo  a  year  in 
laud  which  hail  been  inllicled  upon  bim.  As  though  even  this  liuuulialinii 
were  not  enough,  Warwick  not  only  re-aihuilied  bim  to  the  council,  Im' 
gave  his  son,  Lord  Pudlcy,  in  marriage  to  Somerset's  d.iughter,  the  lady 
.lane  Seymour. 

A.  n.  i')')!*. — The  new  governors  of  Knglnud,  though  they  had  insidiously 
refused  to  aid  Somerset  in  his  wise  and  reasonable  |)roposals  lor  m  ikiiii; 
jieaec  with  I' ranee  and  Scotland  when  he  was  di'sirons  to  do  so,  now 
eagirly  cxcrtcil  themselven  for  the  same  end.  Having,  to  colour  ovei 
their  factiuim  oppositM)U  to  Somerset,  maile  proposals  for  the  warlike  ki* 


m 


THE  TEEASDRY  OF  HISTORY. 


lised  to  this 
llic  fact  thiit 
tor's  acts  lis 
een  illegally 
No  farther 
1  feeliii},',  and 
g  people,  ac- 
3  eye  where- 
lliaut  light  of 
lay  joined  by 
1,  the  earl  of 
h  Sadler,  and 
ng  \hc  inimi- 
ireat  witli  tlie 
of  performing 

men  of  mark 
■  removed  the 
id  retainers  in 
utenant  of  the 
(cil  of  London 
es,  eaiised  the 
her  eouni'illors 
parly  of  W'lr- 
Idence,  that  he 
ii'statiDii  of  his 
inhappily,  heen 
ressed  itie  king, 
d  \\w  miscliirv- 
jjht  he  admitted 
ct  he  ihsmisscd 
ly,  will'  several 
.uid  admirahle 
HIS  prononneed 
,  eoiineil  of  re- 
I,  for  tlie  most 
rind  whose  acts 
(dearly  to  have 

II  the  ambitious 

iiT  of  e.irl  Miar- 

Hiamplon  that  of 

If  the  hoiisclinld, 

plunderiMl  rrcin 

Jodt'oid.  the  hot 

irsel  haviiiL;  ihnu 

adatioM  of  ni  d^- 

iiTs  must  eve! 

COOOO  !i  year  in 

tins  Inimdialimi 

til,,  comied.  hat 

Inijhter,  till'  I'ldy 

had  insidiously 
|s:ds  for  nnl^ui« 
I,)  do  no,  now 
lo  (■(dour  tivei 
the  warlike  kin 


489 


tf  the  emperor,  which  aid  they  well  knew  would  be  refused,  they  agreed 
lo  restore  Boulogne  for  four  thousand  erowns,  to  restore  Lauder  and 
Douglass  to  Scotland,  and  lo  demolish  the  fortresses  of  Roxburgh  and 
Eymbuth.  This  done,  they  contracted  ihe  king  to  Elizabeth,  a  daugli  er 
of  the  king  of  France,  the  most  violent  persecutor  of  the  prolestants ;  hut 
lluiugh  all  the  articles  were  settled,  this  most  shameful  marriage  treaty 
came  to  nothing. 

In  the  history  of  public  affairs  there  is  scarcely  anything  that  is  more 
startling,  or  that  gives  one  a  lower  opinion  of  the  morality  of  those  public 
men  who  most  loudly  vaunt  their  own  integrity  and  decry  that  of  their 
opponents,  than  the  coolness  with  which  they  will  at  the  same  instant  of 
time  propose  two  measures  diametrically  opposed  to  one  and  th(!  same 
principle.  We  have  seen  that  Warwick  and  his  friends  had  agreed  lo 
marry  the  proteslant  Kdward,  their  sovereign,  to  the  daughter  of  Henry  of 
France,  the  fiercest  persecutor  of  the  protestaiits.  But  even  while  they 
were  thus  proclainting  their  friendship  with  the  chief  upholder  of  the  right 
of  Catholicism  to  persecute,  they  visited  several  of  the  most  eminent  of 
their  own  catholics  with  severe  punishment,  not  for  persecuting  protest- 
ants,  but  merely  for  a  natural  unwillingness  to  he  more  speedy  than  was 
unavoidable  in  forwarding  the  proteslant  measures.  Gardiner,  as  the 
most  eminent,  was  the  first  to  be  attacked.  For  two  long  years  he  was 
detained  in  prison,  and  then  Somerset  condescended  to  join  himself  with 
Secretary  Fetre,  by  wIkmii  ho  had  himself  formerly  been  so  shamefully 
deserted,  as  a  dc^putation  to  endeavour  to  persuade  or  cajole  the  high- 
minded  and  learned,  however  mistaken  prelate,  into  a  eomplianl  mood. 
More  than  one  att(!inpt  was  made  ;  but  though  (i.irdincr  showed  himself 
.  very  ready  lo  comply  to  a  certain  and  becoming  extent,  he  would  not 
confess  that  his  conduct  had  been  wrong  ;  a  eonfession  of  which  he 
clearly  saw  that  his  enemies  would  make  use  to  ruin  him  in  charaelcr  as 
well  as  fortune;  and  a  commission,  c  ynsisting  of  Cramner,  the  bishops  of 
London,  I'ily,  and  Lincoln,  Secretary  I'etre,  and  some  lawyers,  sentenced 
lilin  lo  he  (lc|)rivt;d  of  his  bishopric  and  committed  to  close  custody;  and 
lo  make  this  iiii(|uitous  sentence  the  more  severe,  he  was  deprived  of  all 
hooks  and  papers,  and  was  not  only  denied  the  comfort  of  the  visits  of  two 
friends,  Iml  even  of  their  letters  or  message's. 

A.  II.  1551. — Several  other  prelates  were  now  marked  out  for  persecu- 
tion; some  because  they  wer(!  actually  disobedient,  others  because  they 
wei('  suspected  lo  be  not  cordial  in  llicir  ohedienee.  L.irne  sums  of  money 
were  thus  wrung  from  them  ;  and,  under  the  pretence  of  purginu:  the  lihra- 
rles  of  Westminster  and  Oxford  of  superstitious  hooks,  the  dominant  p(di- 
tical  parly — for  religi(Hi  really  had  nothing  to  do  with  the  motives  of  War- 
wick and  his  lay  friends — destroyed  inestmiiible  literary  treasures  for  the 
mere  sake  of  the  C(miparalively  small  scims  lo  be  (d)laiiie(l  by  the  gold  and 
silver  Willi  which,  unforlunately,  the  hooks  ami  inaiiiisiripts  were  adorned. 

Much  as  we  shall  have  occasion  to  blame  Ihe  Queen  Mary  for  her  mer- 
ciless abuse  of  power,  it  is  not  easy  to  ''..dii  admiring  the  c(dil,  stern,  mi- 
hleiieliiiig  mien  with  whudi  the  priiici  ss  .M;iry  at  this  time  of  peril  defied 
all  attempts  at  making  her  how  to  the  doniiicii.l  parly.  Deprived  of  her 
chaplains,  and  (U'dered  lo  read  prolesiani  hooks,  she  calmly  professed  her 
readiness  to  endure  marlyrdoni  rmher  than  prove  false  to  her  faith  ;  and 
this  coMiliict  she  steadfastly  maintained,  allhoiigh  il  was  only  from  (ear  of 
the  warlike  iiiierrerence  of  the  em|ieidr  that  her  persecutors  were  with 
lielil  fnmi  olTering  her  personal  violence. 

Kven  in  the  imdsi  of  thi  se  i/iki.ii  rt  ligious  vexatiimR,  some  very  useful 
measures  were  taken  for  promoiiiig  industry,  especially  by  revoking 
sundry  most  impolitic  |)aleiils,  by  which  Ihe  trade  in  (doth,  woid,  anil 
ni;iny  other  eominodities  had  been  almost  eiitinly  thrown  into  the  haiidi 
•ii  loieijriiein.      'riie  mercli  mis  of  iln'  Ilanse   towns  lon'W  rxcl.iimed 


494 


THE  THKASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


-i 


against  this  "new  measure;"  but  Warwick  and  his  friends — this  al  least 
is  to  their  credit — were  firm,  and  a  very  sensible  improvement  in  the  Kng- 
lish  spirit  of  industry  was  the  immediate  consequence.  Is  it  to  looii  too 
curiously  into  public  cause  and  effect  to  ask  whether  our  present  high 
commercial  fortune  may  not  be  greatly  owing  to  this  very  measure,  though 
nearly  three  centuries  have  since  elapsed  \ 

Bui  Warwick  could  not  long  confine  his  turbulent  and  eager  spirit  to 
the  noble  and  peaceable  triumphs  of  the  patriot.  Self  was  his  earthly 
deity.  The  title  and  the  vast  estate  of  tiie  earldom  of  Northumberland 
were  at  this  time  in  abeyance,  owing  to  the  last  carl  dying  without  issue, 
and  his  brother.  Sir  Thomas  Percy,  having  been  attainted  of  treason.  Of 
these  vast  estates,  together  with  the  title  of  du/ce  of  Northumberland,  War 
wick  now  possessed  himself,  and  he  procured  for  his  friend.  Lord  Si.  John, 
the  title  of  marquis  of  Winchester,  and  for  Sir  William  Herbert  that  of 
earl  of  Pembroke. 

Nortliumberland's  complete  triumph  and  vast  acquisitions  could  not  but 
be  very  distasteful  to  Somerset,  who  not  only  cherished  the  most  violent 
intentions  towards  him,  but  was  even  stung  into  the  imprudence  of  avow- 
ing them  in  the  presence  of  some  of  his  intimate  attendants,  among  whom 
was  Sir  Thomas  Palmer,  who  appeared  to  have  been  placed  in  his  service 
as  a  mere  spy  of  Northumberland's.  Somerset,  his  duchess,  and  several 
of  their  friends  ami  attendants,  were  suddenly  arrested ;  and  Somerset 
was  accused  of  high  treason  and  felony;  the  former  crime  as  having  pre- 
pared for  insurrection,  the  latter  as  having  intended  to  assassinate  North- 
umberland, Northampton,  and  Pembroke. 

The  marquis  of  Winchester,  the  friend,  almost  the  mere  follower  of 
Nortlinniberland,  was  appointed  high  steward,  and  presided  at  ti)e  trial  of 
Somers^cl ;  and  of  the  t\venty-S(!ven  peers  who  made  the  jury,  three  were 
Norlliuiuberland,  Noriliain|)lon,  and  Pembroke,  the  very  men  whom  lie 
had  threatened  !  He  was  arquilted  of  treason,  but  found  guilty  of  felony, 
to  the  great  grief  of  the  people,  among  wlioni  Somerset  was  now  pop\ilar. 
A.  1)  l.O.'iv!. — As  it  was  not  to  be  supposed  that  a  mild  and  toward  youiiu 
prini'e  like  Kdward  VI.  «ould  easily,  if  at  all,  be  brought  to  turn  a  deiif 
ear  to  his  uneh^'.-s  soliciiatioii  for  mercy,  great  can;  was  taken  by  Nortli- 
imilierliiiid  to  prevent  ail  access  to  the  king  of  the  friends  of  Somersel,:iiid 
that  unhappy  nobleman  after  all  his  services  as  regent,  and  after  his  almost 
pateni:il  goodness  as  guardian  of  the  kind's  person,  was  exeeuleil  on 
rower-liill  ;  the  grieveij  people  di|>|)ing  tlieir  handkerchiefs  in  his  blood 
as  mementos  of  his  martyrdom.  Ills  friends,  Sirs  Tlioinas  Aninilcl, 
Michael  Stanhope,  .Miles  Partriilge,  and  Ualph  Vane  were  also  executed  . 
Paget,  eli;iiii'ellor  of  the  diieliy  of  Lancaster,  was  deprived  o(  Ins  oiliee 
and  of  the  garter,  ami  fined  jL'i!,Oi)l) :  and  Lord  Rich,  the  chancellor,  w.m 
also  ileprivcd  of  ollire  for  the  eriiiie  of  luing  the  friend  of  Somerset,  whosi! 
chief  faults  seem  to  have  been  an  overweening  ainlnlion,  co-existiiig  wiili 
rather  less  than  more  than  the  averaije  sagaeit-  and  firmness  of  those  vvla. 
lake  the  lead  in  troiililoiis  and  unsellied  tun". 

A.  II.  \M'.\ — A  lieu  session  of  piirliame*'  rt  as  held  imm('(liate|y  after  tliu 
pxeciilion  of  Somerset,  in  wliieli  sever:''  ennlalioiis  were  m.ule  thai  wcki 
ealeiil.ited  lo  advaiiei;  the  cause  of  t!..-  reforinatioii.  lint  the  eoiiiiiioiH 
haviiii:  refused  to  p.iss  a  lull  of  dep:<valioii  auMiiisl  the  universally  respui'l 
ed  Toiistal,  bishop  of  Durli  iin,  a  new  parliament  w  as  Hiiininoiied  ;  ami  to 
secure  one  favourable  lo  Ins  v.ews  Norilininlicrland  caused  the  kiiiii,  eer 
tainly,  and  most  proh.iliJv  .ne  majority  of  the  coiineillors  and  piers,  to 
recommend  particular  snitlemeii  to  he  sent  up  for  partieiilur  eoiiiilie*. 
The  parliameiil.  iliiis  conveniently  composed,  readily  eoiilirined  the  ili'|iri- 
valioii  arliilranly  pronomieeil  ii|ion  'roiislal,  and  iwo  liishoprics  wereere- 
Hleil  (Mil  of  til  ilof  Durham— :he  rich  reifalilies  of  that  see  being  eoiil'i  iird 
upon  Norlhumlierluiid  himself.     Insatiable,  wholly  insatiable,  Norihu.n- 


'W 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


486 


berland  induced  the  king  to  bestow  the  dukedom  of  Suffolk  upon  the  mar- 
quis of  Dorset ;  and  having  persuaded  the  new  duke  to  giiVe  his  daughter, 
the  lady  Jane  Grey,  in  marriage  to  Northumberland's  fourth  son,  the  Lord 
Guildford  Dudley,  next  proceeded  to  persuade  Edward,  who  was  in  an  in- 
firm condition,  to  pass  by  hiH  sisters  Mary  and  Elizai>eth,  both  of  whom 
had  been  pronouneed  illegitimate,  and  the  former  of  whom,  as  well  as  the 
young  queen  of  Scots,  was  a  papist,  and  to  settle  the  crown  on  the  mar- 
chioness of  Dorset  (duchess  of  Suffolk)  whose  heiress  was  the  lady  Jane 
Grey.  By  a  variety  of  arguments,  some  of  which  were  both  specious  and 
solid,  but  all  of  which,  as  proceeding  from  so  ambitious  a  man,  ought  to 
have  been  looked  upon  witli  suspicion,  Northumberland  prevailed  upon 
the  young  king.  It  was  in  vain  that  the  judges  and  the  most  eminent  law 
officers  protested  against  being  compelled  to  draw  out  a  patent ;  it  was  in 
vain  they  urged  that  they  would  subject  themselves  to  the  pains  and  pen- 
alties of  treason  should  they  do  so;  Northumberland  gave  Montague, 
chief  justice  of  common  pleas,  the  lie  ;  swore  he  would  fight  any  man  in 
liis  sliirt  who  should  deny  the  justice  of  lady  Jane's  succession  ;  and  was 
so  successful  that  the  crown  was  accordingly  settled  upon  lady  Jane  ;  her 
mother,  the  duchess  of  Suffolk,  very  willingly  allowing  heiself  to  be 
passed  by. 

This  patent  was  by  many  looked  upon  as  the  death-warrant  of  Edward 
VI.  signed  by  himself.  His  health  daily  grew  worse,  and  his  physicians 
being  dismissed  in  favour  of  some  ignorant  woman,  her  quack  medicines 
brought  on  symptoms  at  once  fatal  and  very  symptomatic  of  poison,  and 
he  died  in  the  ICth  year  of  hia  age  and  tlie  seventh  of  his  reign. 

The  whole  life;  and  reign  of  this  prince  was  spent  literally  in  stntupupil- 
tari;  but  so  far  as  he  could  in  suidi  a  slate  manifest  his  disposition,  he 
s( cms  fully  to  have  deserved  the  affection  with  which  even  to  this  dav 
he  16  spoken  of. 


CHAPTER  XI.IV. 


THK    RKIU.N    or   MARY. 


aflcrllit) 
Ihal  wt'i« 
(iiiiMi'iai 
icspui'V 
|;  ami  t" 
liiiU.  >''r 

llllllll*. 
!■  ilcpri- 

HTCCIC- 

iiiil't'iii'J 
LttUuiat- 


A.  n.  1553. — TiiK  artful  prei-autions  taken  by  Northumberland  to  secure 
the  throne  to  his  young  and  accomplished  daughter-in-law,  by  no  means 
rendered  the  success  of  the  project — for  which  he  had  certainly  toiled 
much,  and  for  which,  we  fear,  he  hail  sinned  no  little — so  seeuri^asat  first 
sight  it  might  seem.  In  ilie  first  place,  young  Kd ward's  reign  had  been  so 
short  and  eomplelely  a  reign  of  tutelage,  tliat  his  will  had  none  of  that 
force  with  the  multiludc  which  was  possessed  by  the  will  of  his  bluff  and 
.Ton-hanil(>(l  futhcr.  Henry  Vlll.  had,  it  is  triu',  bastardized  both  his 
laughters,  but  he  had  suliscipu-utly  restored  them  to  the  succession;  and 
;hepc()[)lc  were  too  much  accustoincil  to  regarding  Mary  as  tin;  rightful 
successor  to  Kilward,  in  the  event  of  his  dying  without  issue,  to  allow 
of  the  almost  dying  act  of  the  young  king  speedily  changing  their  o|)in- 
ion  and  direcling  their  loyalty  lo  the  lady  Jane.  Again,  the  catholics, 
far  more  inmuMinis  secretly"  th;in  might  be  ninigincd,  were  to  a  nnin 
parlizans  of  Mary;  and  if  the  |ii(ilestanls  had  amne  misgivings,  founded 
on  her  known  bigotry  in  favour  of  her  own  faith,  they  yet  feared  even 
the  bigot  f.ir  less  than  tiii'  lady  Jane,  who,  as  they  well  knew,  could 
he  and  would  lie  a  mere  puppet  in  the  hands  of  Northumherlaud,  who 
hy  this  lime  had  contrived  to  ri'iidcr  himself  at  once  the  most  powerful, 
the  most  dreaded,  ami  the  iiiost  detested  man  in  the  whole  nation.  And 
it  is  worthy  of  observation  also,  that  so  nearly  balanced  were  the  par 
<'<:iiiH  of  the  respective  religions,  tliat  each  stood  in  dread  of  the  olbei 
lint  Noilliuinl)erlaud  was  far  too  wily   a  personage  to  be  ignorHul  <■' 


486 


THK  TllKASUHV  OF  HISTORY. 


the  weight  which,  with  the  mrtjorily  of  the  people,  detustation  of  him 
self  and  respect  for  the  memory  of  Henry  VIII.  woiilJ  have  in  i]ecidin§ 
between  Ihe  princess  Mary  and  the  lady  .lane.  When,  therefore,  he 
perceived  that  the  speedy  death  of  Kd  ward  was  inevitable,  Norliiuniberlaud 
caused  the  princesses  Mary  and  Klizabetii  to  be  sent  for,  as  though  the 
young  king  had  been  desirous  of  seeing  them.  Mary  had  reached  Hod- 
desden  in  Hertfordsl.ire,  only  about  seventeen  miles  from  London,  when 
the  king  died.  Norlhimiberland,  an.xious  to  get  her  into  his  power, 
gave  orders  that  tlie  melancholy  event  .should  be  kept  a  secret ;  but  the 
earl  of  Arundel  sent  her  warning  of  Nortiiumberland's  deceit  and  pro- 
bable designs,  and  she  hastily  retreated  to  the  retirc^d  fishin;i  town  of 
Frainlingham,  in  Suffolk,  whence  she  .sent  letters  to  the  council  and  to 
the  principal  nobility,  informing  them  of  her  knowledge  of  her  brother's 
death,  promising  indemnity  to  all  who  had  thus  far  aided  in  concealing 
it,  but  calling  upon  them  forliiwitii  to  proclaim  her  as  queen.  While 
thus  active  in  asserting  her  right,  she  carefully  provided,  also,  for  her 
flight  into  Flanders,  in  the  event  of  her  elTorts  proving  unsuccessful. 

When  Northumberland  found  tli.ii  Kdward's  death  was  known  to  the 
rightful  queen,  he  at  once  threw  off  all  l.sgnise.  Lord  and  the  lady  .lane 
Dudley  were  at  this  time  resiiling  at  Sion  House ;  and  Northumberland, 
with  James'  father,  the  earl  of  Pembroke,  and  other  noblemen,  approached 
her  with  all  the  form  and  respect  due  from  subjects  to  their  sovereign. 
Young,  gifted  with  singular  talents  for  literature,  and  with  a  scarcely  less 
singidar  propensiou  towards  literary  pursuits,  Jane  viewed  the  throne  in 
its  true  light  as  a  dangerous  and  uneasy  eminence.  Even  now  when  her 
father,  her  still  more  powerful  and  dreaded  father-in-law,  and  the  very 
chiefest  men  in  the  kingdom,  with  all  the  emblemsof  slate,  pnssed  her  to 
assume  the  authorily  of  queen,  she  recoiled  from  it  as  an  ev  of  the  first 
magnitude.  Her  husband,  though,  like  herself,  but  little  i  lore  than  si.\- 
teen  years  of  age,  had  been  l.iit  loo  skilfully  tutored  by  li  >  wily  father, 
and  he  seconded  that  ambitious  maii'.s  entreaties  so  well  thai,  overcome 
though  not  convinced,  the  nnfortuii.Tle  Jane  consented.  Slie  was  imme- 
diately escorted  to  the  Tower,  the  usual  rtisidence  of  the  English  sove- 
reigns on  their  first  accession ;  and  Norlhnmberland  took  care  that  she 
should  lie  accompanied  thither,  not  oidy  by  his  known  and  fast  friends, 
but  also  by  the  wlude  of  the  councillors,  whom  he  thus,  in  effect,  made 
prisoners  and  hostages  for  the  adhesion  of  their  absent  friends.  Orders 
were  now  issued  to  i)roelaim  Queen  Jane  throughout  ,.ie  kingdom,  but  it  was 
only  in  Louilon,  where  .Northundierland's  aulhority  was  as  yet  loo  firm  to 
be  opeidy  resisted,  that  the  orders  wire  obeyed.  And  c^ven  in  liOndon  the 
majority  listened  to  the  proclamation  in  a  sullen  and  ominous  silence;.  Some 
openly  scoffeil  at  Jane's  prelensions,  and  one  unfortunate  hoy,  who  was  a 
vintner's  servant,  was  severely  punished  for  even  this  verbal,  and  perhaps 
unreasoning  opposition  to  the  wdl  of  the  haughty  Northumberland. 

While  the  people  of  London  were  thus  cool  towards  their  nominnl 
queen,  and  even  the  protestants  listened  withdut  conviction  to  the  prea(!li- 
iiigs  of  Ridley  and  other  eminent  protestatit  churchmen  in  her  favour,  Miry 
in  her  retreat  In  Snff(dk  w,is  ai'tively  and  ably  exerting  herself  for  Ihe  pro- 
tection of  her  birthright.  She  was  surrounded  by  einiiu'ut  and  influential 
men  Willi  their  levies  of  tenants  or  hired  adherents;  and  as  she  strouijly 
and  repeatedly  iirofessed  her  detcrniinalion  not  to  infringe  the  laws  of  her 
brother  with  respect  to  religion,  even  the  protestants  thr(Mighont  .Suffolk, 
equally  wilh  llu!  catholics,  were  enthnsi  isiir  in  her  cause.  Nor  w. is  the 
feeding  in  favour  of  Mary  exhibited  merely  in  her  own  neiglibonrhood,  or 
iiniiuig  those  who  might  be  called  her  personal  friends.  Northumberland 
conimisHioned  Sir  I'Mward  Hastings,  brother  of  the  cui  of  Hunlingdon,  td 
levy  men  in  Kuckinghamsliire  on  behalf  of  Jane.  Sir  Ivlward  executed 
the  eommiHsion  with  great  readiness  and  success  as  far  as  related  to  levy- 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


87 


\v;is 
■in  to 
l\w 
Dino 
;is  a 
hiips 


in;il 
•,u!ti- 
Miry 
pro- 
•iitirtl 
)i\i,'ly 
ii'r 
ilTolk, 
the 
I.  or 
•rl.iinl 
)i).  til 
•iiii'il 
levy- 


;1ir 


ingthemen;  but  he  no  sooner  fouiul  himself  at  the  iu'ad  of  a  force  of 
nearly  four  thousand  strong  than  he  marched  in  to  the  aid  of  Mary.  With 
Ilia  marine  the  duke  was  not  more  fortunate  than  with  the  land  forces ;  a 
fleet  was  sent  by  him  to  cruise  oflf  the  Suffolk  coast,  to  cut  Mary  off  from 
iier  retreat  to  Flauders,  should  she  attempt  it,  and  was  driven  by  stress  of 
weather  into  Yarmouth,  where  it  immediately  declared  in  favour  of  Mary. 

Perplexed  and  alarmed,  Norlhumberlaud  yet  determiucd  not  to  give  up 
the  grand  prize  without  a  stout  effort  for  its  preservation,  lie  determineJl 
to  remain  with  Jane  at  the  Tower,  and  to  commit  the  command  of  the 
troops  he  had  levied  to  her  father.  But  the  imprisoned  councillors,  clear- 
ly understanding  both  their  own  position  and  his,  astutely  per.suadcil  him 
that  he  alone  was  fit  to  head  the  forces  upon  which  so  much  depended, 
uiid  they,  at  the  same  time,  successfully  worked  upon  the  fears  of  Jane  on 
behalf  of  her  father.  The  councillors  were  the  more  sueces.sful  ni  per- 
suading Northumberland  to  the  almost  suicidal  act  of  taking  the  command 
of  the  troops,  because,  while  he  naturally  felt  great  confidence  in  hi^  own 
well-tried  valour  and  ability,  he  was  well  aware  of  the  inferiority  of  Suf- 
folk in  the  latter  respect  at  least. 

Northumberland  accordingly  set  out  to  combat  the  forces  of  the  enemy, 
and  was  taken  leave  of  by  the  councillors  with  every  expression  of  at- 
tachment and  confidence  of  his  success  ;  and  Arundel,  his  bitterest  enemy, 
was  by  no  means  the  least  profuse  of  these  expressions.  Scarcely,  how- 
ever, had  Northumberland  marched  out  of  London  ere  he  perceived  a  bo- 
ding and  chilling  sullenness  among  all  ranks  of  men;  and  lu!  remarked  to 
Lord  (irey,  who  accompanied  him,  "  Many  come  out  to  look  at  our  array, 
indeed,  but  1  find  not  one  who  cries  '  Oud  speed  your  eiilcrprisc.'' " 

Arrived  at  Bury  St.  Edmund's,  the  duke  found  that  his  army  did  not 
really  exceed  six  thousand  men,  while  the  lowest  reports  of  the  opposite 
Tce  gave  double  that  number.  Aware  of  the  immense  importance  of  the 
rst  encounter,  Northumberland  resolved  to  delay  his  proposed  attack,  and 
tent  an  express  to  the  councillors  lo  send  him  a  large  and  instant  rein- 
forcement. But  the  councillors  had  no  sooner  icceived  the  duke's  ex|)ress 
than  tliey  left  the  Tower,  on  the  pretext  of  obeying  his  order;  and  assembled 
at  Haynard's  castle,  the  house  of  Pembroke,  to  delilierate,  not  upon  the 
means  of  aiding  Northumberland,  lint  upon  the  best  nuMiis  of  throwing  off 
his  yoke,  and  of  dethroning  the  puppet  queen  he  had  set  over  them.  Arim- 
del,  whom  Northumberland  had  wild  a  nio.st  unaccountable  weakness  left 
behind,  expatiated  warmly  and  eloquently  upon  all  Northumberland's 
vices  and  evil  deeds,  and  exhorted  the  olher.s,  as  the  only  just  or  even 
priiilcnl  course,  to  join  him  in  at  once  throwing  their  weight  into  the  scale 
of  Mary,  and  tuns  insuring  not  merely  her  pardon  for  their  past  involun- 
tary olliiices,  but  also  her  favour  for  their  present  and  prompt  loyalty. 
Penilinike  loudly  applauiled  the  advice  of  Arundel,  and,  laying  bis  hand 
upon  iiis  Hword,  expressed  his  readiness  lo  light  on  the  instant  any  man 
will)  KJiiiuld  pretend  to  op|)ose  it.  Tiie  nuiy.ir  and  aldermen  of  London 
beinij  sent  for  to  attend  'his  <'(Mifereiice,  slioued  the  utmost  alaerity  to 
pro(i;iiin  M.iry,  and  the  proclamation  was  accordingly  made  ainiil  the 
nio.t  rapturon.s  ajipjaiises  of  llie  popiilaci'.  The  reign  of  Jane,  if  a  lonely 
and  anxious  coiifineinenl  in  tlu'  Tower  for  leu  days  could  be  callc'd  a 
reii!ii,  was  now  at  an  end;  and  she  retired  lo  her  |)rivat(!  residence  and 
private  siation,  with  a  readiness  as  great  as  the  reluctance  she  had  shown 
to  liMve  them. 

Tlie  councillors  having  thus  eonipletely  beaten  Northumberland  in 
his  cliief  oronly  slroiinhold,  sent  inessengers  to  demand  that  lie  should 
lay  down  his  arms,  di.sliand  his  troo|>s,  and  sii  .mil  liiinself  lo  the  mercy 
of  Ins  riirhiful  sovereign,  (iiieen  Mary.  'I'lie  message  was  needless; 
Noi'ilininberlaiKl,  reci'ivmg  no  reinlorrement  from  l.oiiilon,  saw  ilie  iin- 
nofsii)ilily  of  resisting  the  hourly  iiicreas;iig  force  of  >Liry,  and  liniling 


f'i 


488 


THE  TilEASOllY  OF  HISTORY. 


himself  fast  deserted  by  his  handful  of  foreigners,  had  already  proclaim. 
edQucL'u  Mary  with  as  much  apparent  heartiness  and  zeal  as  though  he 
iiad  not  aimed  at  her  crown — and  probably  her  life. 

Miiry,  on  receiving  the  submission  and  hypocritical  adhesion  of  Nor- 
thumberland, set  out  for  London.  Her  progress  was  one  continued  and  un- 
broken triumph.  Everywhere  she  was  met  by  multitudes  of  the  people 
invoking  blessings  upon  her  ;  her  sister,  the  lady  Elizabeth,  met  her  at  the 
head  of  a  thousand  well-appointed  horse,  and  when  she  readied  the  Tower 
she  found  that  even  Suffolk  had  thrown  open  its  gates  and  declared  him- 
self in  her  favour.  All  circumstances  considered,  there  is  scarcely  an 
instance  in  history  to  equal  this  in  the  facility  with  which  a  riglitful 
princess  of  no  amiable  chanicter,  and  opposed  to  a  large  portion  of  her 
subjects  in  religion,  vanquished  the  opposition  of  so  wily,  so  daring,  and 
80  accomplished  a  pre- usurper  as  Northumberland. 

Mercy  was  assuredly  not  the  characteristic  of  Mary,  but  the  utmost 
infatuation  of  mercy  could  not  have  allowed  offences  so  gross  as  tliose 
of  Northuniiierland  to  pass  unpunished.  Mary  gave  orders  for  his  arrest, 
and,  whether  from  being  broken-spirited  by  his  ill  success,  or  from  sheer 
cowardice  and  a  lingering  hope  of  saving  at  least  his  life,  he  fell  oii  his 
knees  to  his  biUer  enemy,  Arundel,  who  arrested  him,  and  implored  his 
mercy.  His  sons,  tlie  earl  of  Warwick  and  lords  Ambrose  and  Henry 
Dudley,  and  his  brotiier  Sir  Andrew  Dudley,  were  at  the  same  time  com- 
mitted to  custody ;  as  were  the  marquis  of  Northampton,  the  earl  of 
Huntingdon,  Sir  Thomas  Palmer,  and  Sir  John  Gates.  On  farther 
inquiry  and  consideration,  the  queen's  advisers  found  it  necessary  to  con- 
fine the  duke  of  Suffolk,  Lord  (niildford  Dudley,  and  his  innocent  and 
unfortunate  wife,  the  lady  .lane.  At  this  early  period  of  her  reign  pol- 
icy overcame  Mary's  natural  propensity  to  cruelly  and  sternness.  Tiie 
councillors,  ])lea(iing  tlieir  constraint  by  Northumberland,  were  speedily 
liberated,  and  even  Suff()lk  himself  was  not  excluded  from  this  ai'i  of 
mingled  justice  and  mercy.  Northumberland,  Sir  Thomas  Palmer,  luid 
Sir  John  Gates  were  brought  lo  trial.  The  duke's  offence  was  too  clear 
and  tliigrant  to  admit  of  any  elaborate  defence  ;  hut  he  asked  the  peers 
whether  they  could  possibly  pronounce  a  man  guilty  of  treason  who  had 
obeyed  orders  under  the  great  seal,  and  whether  persons  who  had  been  in- 
volved in  his  alledgcd  guilt  could  be  alli»wed  to  sit  in  judgment  upon 
him?  The  answer  to  each  ()uoslion  was  obvious.  In  reply  to  tlu!  first, 
ne  was  told  that  the  great  seal  of  a  usurper  could  have  no  authority;  to 
tlie  Sv'cond,  that  persons  not  having  any  sentence  of  attaint  against  ihein 
were  clearly  qualified  to  sit  on  any  jury.  Northumberland  tlien  pleaded 
guilty,  and  he,  with  Sir  Thomas  Palmer  and  Sir  John  Gales  were  execu- 
ted. At  the  scaffold  Nortinimberland  |)rofess.'d  to  die  in  the  catholic 
faith,  and  assured  ihc.  bystanders  that  tliey  would  never  |)rosper  until  the 
catholic  religion  should  lie  restored  to  all  its  authority  among  iheai.  Coii- 
sidering  the  whoh;  char.icter  of  Northumbi'rl.uid  and  the  inditrereuee  he 
hail  always  shown  to  dis|)ules  of  faith,  it  is  hut  too  probable  that  even  ui 
these  his  dying  word-s  he  was  insincere,  and  used  them  to  engage  the 
mercy  of  the  (pieeii,  who>e  bigotry  they  might  flatter,  towards  his  unfor- 
tuniit('  family.  Tpon  thi;  jieople  his  advice  wrought  no  effect.  .Many 
looked  u|ion  tlie  preparations  for  his  death  inerely  with  a  cold,  unpityiiig 
steiiiiii'ss,  still  miM'i'  shouted  to  him  to  reiiiciiibcr  Somerset,  and  some 
even  Inlil  up  to  him  handkeri  liiefs  iiirrusled  with  the  blood  of  that  nolile- 
man,  and  exulted,  rather  hk<>  fiends  than  men,  that  his  hour  of  a,  like 
bloody  doom  was  at  length  arrived. 

Liird  Giiildfdrd  Dudley  and  the  lady  Jane  were  also  condemned  to  di'ath, 
but  tliiir  youth  and,  perhajis,  Mary's  feeling  of  the  impolicy  of  extreme 
dcvcrily  lo  criminals  who  had  so  eviilently  offended  under  the  coiislraiiit 
and  lut'elagc  of  .Northumberland,  saved  them  for  the  present— a'as '.  onU 
for  the  present ! 


Thai 

itovv  ev 

very  eai 

sessary 

When  si 

try  into 

Ihe  close 

P'.\eter,  ' 

finemcnt 

no  shadi 

Tonstal, 

upon  th< 

They  we, 

moved  as 

earl  of  Di 

their  sees 

condemn; 

same  niea 

The  qu« 

Holgate,  ', 

so  much,  1 

and  the  bi: 

mass,  thoi 

Ha!(  s,  wh( 

Mary  whei 

cluile  her 

Marv  now 

prooYof  hi 

prison,  and 

iost  his  sen 

It  will  he 

retreat  at  K 

siirances  th 

as  to  religi( 

»"<i  tyrann 

ventured  to 

received  as 

one  of  then 

cily  was  pi;; 

Craiinier, 

Plii'ed  in  a  n 

^  "[.  Orami, 

monarch's  r; 

|inle  as  a  wo 

''■' ;  and  any 

to  he  forgott 

lier  religion 

'i"ii.    Nolhin 

r<'sigi);ition  o 

'"':"(y  and  si 

iiiso  too  confi 

'lUeeii,  to  be 

lines,  pereeiv 

frmn  the  qnee 

'0  hi.s  haviiiw 

"'i"S  it  wouM 

•■'•P'lrt  with  c, 

••liarueter  to  r 


THE  TUEASCIIY  OF  IHSTOllY 


189 


far 

'VS 

iii- 


loUc 

II  k: 
'im- 

hc 
'II  111 

llie 
iifor- 
l.iny 
yiiiy 
iDine 
ihU'.- 

liko 

ratli. 

ri'iiit" 

liMiiit 


The  reign  of  Mary  contains  so  little  upon  which  the  historian  can  be- 
•tow  even  neijative  praise,  that  it  is  pleasing  to  be  able  to  remark  that  the 
very  earliest  portion  of  her  reign,  if  stained  with  the  bloodshed  of  a  ne- 
cessary justice,  was  also  marked  by  some  acts  of  justice  and  gratitude. 
Wlien  she  arrived  at  the  Tower  of  London  and  made  her  triumphant  ip.- 
try  into  that  fortress,  the  duke  of  Norfolk,  wiio  had  been  in  prison  from 
Ihe  close  of  the  reign  of  Henry  VIII.,  Courtney,  son  of  the  marquis  of 
Kxeter,  who  ever  since  his  father's  attninder  had  been  in  the  same  con- 
finement, though  when  he  entered  it  he  was  a  mere  child  and  there  was 
no  shadow  of  a  charge  against  him,  with  bishops  Gardiner,  fionner,  and 
Tonstal,  were  allowed  to  meet  her  on  tiie  Tower  green,  whore  they  fell 
upon  their  knees  before  her,  and  implored  her  grace  ;'.nd  protection. 
They  were  restored  to  liberty  immediately  ;  Norfolk's  attainder  was  re- 
moved as  having  been  ab  origme  null  and  invalid,  and  Courtney  was  made 
earl  of  Devonshire.  Gardiner,  Bonner,  and  Tonstal  were  reappointed  to 
their  sees  by  a  commission  which  was  appointed  to  review  their  trial  and 
condemnation;  and  Day,  Heath,  and  Vesy  recovered  their  sees  by  the 
same  means. 

The  queen's  zeal  for  the  catholic  religion  now  began  to  show  itself. 
Holgate,  archbishop  of  York,  Covcrdale,  to  whom  the  reformation  owed 
so  much,  Ridley,  Hooper,  and  Latimer,  were  speedily  thrown  into  prison  ; 
and  the  bishops  and  priests  wore  exhorted  and  encouraged  to  revive  tlie 
mass,  thougli  the  laws  against  it  were  still  in  unrepealed  force.  Judge 
Hales,  who  had  so  well  and  zealously  defended  liie  riglit  of  the  princess 
Mary  when  her  brother  desired  him  to  draw  the  patent  which  was  to  ex- 
clude her  from  the  throne,  opposed  the  illegal  practices  which  Queen 
.Mary  now  sanctioned.  All  his  former  merits  were  forgotten  in  this  new 
proof  of  his  genuine  and  uncompromising  honesty ;  Kowas  thrown  into 
prison,  and  lh<;ro  treated  with  such  merciless  cruelty  and  insult,  that  he 
lost  his  senses  and  committed  suicide. 

It  will  he  remembered  that  the  zeal  of  the  men  of  Suffolk,  during  Mary's 
retreat  at  Framlingham,  was  stimulated  by  her  pointed  and  repealed  as- 
siu'ances  that  she  would  in  no  wise  alter  the  laws  of  her  brother  Kilward, 
as  to  religion.  These  simple  and  honest  men,  seeing  the  gross  partiality 
and  tyranny  by  which  the  queen  now  sought  to  depress  the  protostants, 
ventured  to  remind  her  of  lier  former  promises.  Their  rcnionstraiK^e  was 
received  as  though  it  had  been  some  monstrous  and  seditions  matter,  and 
one  of  them  continuing  his  address  with  a  somewhat  uncourtly  pertina- 
city was  placed  in  the  pillory  for  his  pains. 

Cranmer,  archbishop  of  Canterbury,  washy  the  change  of  sovereigns 
pl.iced  in  a  most  perilous  position.  It  is  true  that  during  the  lit'e  of  Henry 
VIII.  Cranmer  had  often  and  zealously  exerted  himself  to  prevent  that 
monarch's  rage;  from  beina  fell  by  the  princess  Mary.  Uut  >Iary'3  gr.iti- 
tiiilo  as  a  woman  was  but  Tittle  security  against  her  iiigotiy  as  a  religion- 
i>.t;  and  any  services  that  Cranmer  liad  rendered  her  were  likely  eno'nrh 
to  be  forgotten,  in  consideration  of  the  discouragements  he  had  dealt  to 
her  religion  in  his  (diaraeler  of  chamiiion  -.s  well  as  child  of  the  reforma- 
tion. .Nothing,  probably,  could  have  saved  Cranmer  l)Ut  entire  silence  and 
resignation  of  his  see,  or  imuKMHate  emigration.  Hut  Oaniner  was  too 
hearty  and  sincere  in  liis  love  of  the  refornuil  religion,  and,  perhaps,  was 
niso  too  confident  of  its  success,  even  now  that  Home  was  b-  ked  by  the 
.]Ueen,  to  be  in  anywise  mindeil  for  craven  silence  or  retreai.  His  ciie- 
iiiles,  perceiving  that  as  yet  he  had  met  with  no  signal  affront  or  injury 
fmin  tlie  queen,  spread  a  report  that  he  owed  his  safely  and  proliable  favour 
lo  his  having  promised  to  say  mass  before  Mary.  Situated  as  f'ranmer 
vva>',  it  would  have;  been  his  wisest  plan  to  have  listened  to  this  insulting 
rt'piirt  wilh  eoiitempluous  silence,  aiii^  to  have  relied  upon  his  well-earned 
i:l.aiuctcr  to  refute  the  calumny  lo  all  whose  judgment  was  of  any  real 


490 


THK  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


II    :■"■ 


i;ons()quence.  But  the  iirclibishop  thought  otherwise,  and  he  hastened  to 
publish  a  manifesto  in  which  he  gave  the  most  unqualified  contradiction  to 
tiie  report.  Nay,  he  did  not  stop  even  here ;  not  content  with  vindicating 
himself  he  entered  more  gemually  into  tlie  matter,  and  thus  gave  his  ene- 
mies that  very  handle  against  him  which  they  so  eagerly  wished  for.  He 
said,  afier  contradicting;  the  charge,  that,  "  as  the  devil  was  a  liar  from  the 
beginning,  and  the  father  of  lies,  he  had  at  this  time  stirred  up  his  ser- 
vants to  persecute  Christ  and  his  true  religion;  that  this  infernal  spirit 
was  now  endeavouring  to  restore  the  Latin  satisfactory  masses,  a  thing 
of  his  own  invention  and  device ;  and,  in  order  to  effect  his  purpose,  had 
falsely  made  use  of  his,  Crannier's,  name  and  authority  ;"  and  Cranmer 
added,  that  "the  mass  is  not  only  without  foundation  in  either  the  scrip- 
tures or  the  practice  of  the  primitive  church,  but  likewise  discovers  a  plain 
contradiction  to  antiquity  and  the  inspired  writings,  and  is,  besides,  re- 
plete with  many  horrid  blas[)luMnics." 

However  much  we  may  admire  the  general  character  of  Cranmer— 
though  it  was  by  no  means  without  its  blemishes — it  is  impossible  for  the 
most  zealous  and  sincere  protcstants  to  deny  that,  under  the  circumstan- 
ces of  the  nation,  many  of  the  passages  we  have  quoted  were  grossly 
ofluiisive;  and  equalh"  impossible  is  it  to  deny  that  under  Cranmer's  now 
personal  circumstances  they  were  as  grossly  and  gratuitously  impolitic. 
His  enemies  eagerly  availed  themselves  of  his  want  of  temper  or  policy, 
and  used  this  really  coarse  and  inflammatory  paper  as  a  means  by  which 
to  induce  the  queen  to  throw  him  into  prison  for  the  share  he  had  had  in 
the  usurpation  of  the  lady  Jane,  about  which  he  otherwise  would  prob;ibly 
have  remained  iniquesticmed.  Merely  as  the  protestant  archbishop,  Cran- 
mer had  more  than  enough  of  enemies  in  the  house  of  peers  to  insure  his 
being  found  guilty,  and  he  was  sentenced  to  death  on  the  charge  of  high 
treason.  H(;  was  not,  howevei,  as  might  have  been  expected,  immedi- 
ately and  upon  this  sentence  put  to  death,  but  committed  back  to  close 
custody,  where  !ie  was  kept,  as  will  soon  be  seen,  for  a  still  more  cruel 
doom. 

Kvtry  day  made  it  mor(!and  more  evident  that  the  protestantshad  noth- 
ing to  expect  but  the  utmost  severity  of  persecution,  and  many  even  of 
th(!  most  eminent  of  their  preachi^rs  began  to  look  abroad  and  to  exile  for 
safety.  Pcti  r  Martyr,  who  in  the  late  jirosperiiy  of  the  reformers  had 
been  formally  and  with  much  pressing  invited  to  Kngland,  now  applied  to 
the  council  for  p(;rmi8sioM  to  return  to  his  own  country.  At  first  the 
council  seemed  nnieh  inclined  to  refusi;  (tompliance  with  this  reasonahh; 
re(|uest.  Unt  (jfardiner,  with  a  s|)irit  which  makes  ns  the  more  regret 
that  bigotry  ever  induced  him  to  act  less  generously,  represented  that  as 
Peter  had  been  invited  to  Kngland  by  the  goverameni,  his  departure  could 
not  be  opposed  without  the  utmost  national  disgrace.  Nor  did  (Jardiner's 
generosity  end  here ;  having  obtained  Peter  |)ermission  to  leave  the 
realm,  he  supjilied  him  with  money  to  trav(d  with.  The  bones  of  Peter 
Martyr's  wife  were  shortly  afterwards  torn  from  the  grave  at  Oxford,  ami 
buiied  in  a  dunghill;  and  the  iniiversily  of  Canibriilge  about  the  same 
liuM'  disgraced  itself  by  exhuinmg  the  bones  of  lluijer  and  Fagius,  two 
I'lniiKMii  fiinugn  reformers  who  had  been  buried  there  in  ihe  late  reign, 
.'ohn  a  l.i[isco  and  his  congregation  were  now  ordered  to  depart  the  king- 
doin.  and  most  of  the  foreign  |)rotestants  took  so  significant  a  hint  and 
f(dlowed  Iheni;  by  which  tiie  country  was  deprived  of  its  most  skilful  iiiiil 
induslnoiis  arliz.uis  just  as  ihi'y  were  giving  a  useful  and  extensive  im- 
pidse  to  its  manufactures.  The  temper  manifested  by  Ihi!  court,  and  llie 
suililen  departure  of  the  foreign  protcstants,  gre.itly  alarmed  the  proles- 
tanls  ii'  gcnieral ;  anil  many  of  the  Knglish  of  that  connnnnion  followed 
the  example  set  them  by  their  foreign  brethren,  and  lleil  from  a  liiiiii 
which  everything  seemed  to  ihreatcn  with  the  ntost  terrible  and  speedy 
troubles 


TllKASUIlY  OF  HISTORY. 


43i 


riie  maeliiig  of  parliament  hy  no  means  iinpioviid  the  pr()sp;!(;tB  of  tlie 
protcstaiits.  It  has  already  been  remarked  that,  however  eompleKdy  the 
refdi Illation  miglit  iuive  seemed  to  be  Irimnphiint,  there  was  somclhing 
ilk<^  a  moiety,  at  least,  of  the  nation  that  was  still  in  heart  attached  to  the 
(lid  faith.  To  these  the  court  coulii  a(l<l  as  practical  fiiends  that  large 
hoily  which  in  all  times  and  in  all  countries  is  ready  to  side  with  the  dom- 
inant party;  there  was  consequently  no  difficulty  experienced  in  getting 
such  men  returned  to  parliament  as  woidd  be  [)liant  tools  in  the  hands  of 
Mary  and  her  ministers.  To  the  dismay  of  the  protestants,  though  it 
would  be  to  impeach  their  sagacity  shoidd  we  say  that  it  was  to  iheir 
surprise  also,  parliament  was  opened  not  by  [)rayer  after  the  reformed 
ordinance,  but  by  the  celebration  of  mass  in  the  Latin  tongue.  Taylor, 
bishop  of  Lincoln,  more  sincere,  or  at  all  events  more  courageous  than 
some  of  his  brethren,  honesUly  refused  to  kneel  at  this  mass,  and  "as  in 
conse(iuenee  very  rudely  assailed  by  some  of  the  catholic  zealots,  and  at 
length  ai;tually  thrust  from  the  house. 

After  following  the  good  example  of  the  parliament  of  the  last  reign  in 
passing  an  act  by  which  all  law  of  treason  was  limited  to  the  statute  of 
Kihvard  111.,  and  all  law  of  felony  to  the  law  as  it  stood  before  (I  Henry 
Vin.)  the  parliament  pronouneed  the  queen  legitimate,  amiulled  the  di 
vorce  pronounced  by  Cranmer  between  Catherine  of  Arragoii  aiul  Henry 
VIM.,  and  severely  censured  Cranmer  on  account  of  that  divorce.  It  is  a 
little  singular  that  even  th(?  acute  Hume  has  not  noticed  the  inctuisistency 
with  which  Mary  had  by  the  vote  of  her  parliainent,  which  in  reality  was 
lur  vote  as  the  meinbeis  were  her  mere  creatures,  denied  the  infallibility 
and  upset  the  decision  of  that  holy  see,  the  infallibility  of  which  she  pre- 
scribed to  her  subjects  on  pain  of  the  stake  and  the  tar  barrel ! 

Continuing  in  the  same  hopeful  course,  the  parliament  now  at  one  fell 
swoop,  and  by  a  single  vote,  repealed  all  tiutse  slatules  of  Kiui;  Edward  ivith 
respect  to  reUs;ion,  which  Mary  had  again  ami  ii^ain,  and  siinietinics  even 
voluntarily,  said  that  nuthmii  slwnlil  induce  her  tn  disturb !  Uicers'  oaths 
and  lovers'  vows  are  not  more  frail  than  the  promises  of  a  bigot! 

.Mary,  who  even  in  her  first  youth  had  no  feminine  beauty  to  boast,  was 
considerably  above  thirty  years  of  age,  indeed  fast  a|)proaching  to  forty — 
that  decline  of  life  to  even  the  most  brilliant  personal  charms — when  she 
ascended  the  thrtnte ;  and  wheti  her  parliament  showed  its  an.viety  as  to 
Iter  marriage  she  lu^rself  ajipeared  to  be  fully  as  anxious.  Courtney,  son 
of  the  marquis  of  Exeter,  whom  she  liberated  from  the  Tower  at  her  ac- 
cession and  created  earl  of  Devon,  was  at  that  time  a  very  young  man, 
and  possessed  not  only  great  perfection  of  manly  beauty,  but  also,  despite 
nis  long  and  dreary  imprisonment,  all  those  graces  and  accomplishments 
which  are  so  rarely  to  be  acquired  tisewhere  than  at  court.  The  queen 
was  so  favourably  impressed  by  his  maimers  and  appearance,  that  she 
fornieil  th(!  idea  of  raising  him  to  the  dignity  of  her  husband  ;  smd  as  her 
situation  would  have  rendered  any  advances  on  his  part  presinnptuous, 
site  not  oidy  showed  him  all  possibh!  person  il  distini'tion,  hut  even  caused 
otlicial  hints  to  be  given  to  him  of  the  favom-  with  which  he  might  hope 
for  his  highest  aspirations  being  rei-cived.  But  Courtney  was  young  and 
romantic,  and  Mary  was  not  only  disagreeabh;  in  face  am!  figure,  and  re- 
pulsive in  manner,  but  was  also  very  nearly  idd  enough  to  bo  his  mother, 
and  he  showed  not  tin?  slightest  intention  of  profiting  by  the  amorous  con- 
descension of  his  sovereign.  Knraged  that  he  should  neglect  her,  she 
was  .still  more  enraged  when  she  discovered  that  he  was  a  close  attendant 
upon  her  sister  Elizabeth,  then  in  her  first  fins''  ,i  youth.  The  parliament, 
by  ainiullingthe  divorce  of  .Mary's  iuother,  had  virtually  pronounced  F.liz- 
ahcth's  illegitimacy  ;  and  as  .M:iry  on  discovi'ring  Courtney's  partiality  to 
thill  jirincess  exhiliited  extreme  annoyance  and  laid  her  under  great  re- 
striction, Klizabelh's  friends  began  to  be  seriously  alarmed  for  even  liei 


193 


THE  TREASUllY  OF   HISTORY. 


personal  safety,  especially  as  her  attachment  to  the  reformed  religion 
could  not  fail  to  increase  the  hatred  called  down  upon  her  by  tlie  attach- 
ment of  Courtney  to  herself. 

Despairing  of  making  any  impression  upon  the  youthful  fancy  of  the 
earl  of  Devon,  Mary  now  bestowed  a  passing  glance  at  the  graver  and 
more  elderly  attractions  of  the  Cardinal  Pole.  It  is  true  he  was  a  car- 
dinal, but  he  had  never  taken  priest's  orders.  He  was  a  man  of  high 
character  for  wisdom  and  humanity,  and  yet  had  suffered  much  for  his 
attachment  to  the  catholic  church,  of  which,  on  the  death  of  Pope  Paul 
III.,  he  had  nearly  obtained  the  highest  honour;  and  his  mother,  that  old 
countess  of  Salisbury  who  was  so  brutally  beheaded  by  order  of  Henry 
Vni.,  had  been  a  most  kind  and  beloved  governess  to  Mary  in  her  girl- 
hood. But  the  cardinal  was  somewhat  too  far  advanced  in  life  to  please 
Mary,  and  it  was,  moreover,  hinted  to  herb  •  'ler  friends,  that  he  was  now 
too  long  habituated  to  a  quiet  and  studious  life  to  be  able  to  reconcile 
himself  to  the  glitter  and  bustle  of  the  cour,.  But  though  she  rejected 
Pole  as  u  husband,  she  resolved  to  have  the  benefit  of  his  abilities  as  a 
minister,  and  she  accordingly  sent  assurances  to  Pope  Julius  111.  of  her 
anxious  desire  to  reconcile  her  kingdom  to  the  holy  see,  and  requested 
that  Cardinal  Pole  might  be  appointed  legate  to  arrange  that  important 
business. 

Charles  V.,  the  emperor,  who  but  a  few  years  before  was  master  of  all 
Germany,  had  recently  met  with  severe  reverses  both  in  Germany  and 
France,  in  which  latter  country  he  was  so  obstinately  resi.sted  by  the  duke 
of  Guise,  tliiit  he  was  at  length  obliged  to  retire  with  the  remnant  of  his 
dispirited  army  into  the  low  countries.  Far-seeing  and  ambitious,  Charles 
no  sooner  heard  of  the  acLfoSion  of  Mary  'o  the  throne  of  England,  than 
he  formed  the  design  of  m.iking  t'le  gain  of  that  kingdom  compensate  for 
the  losses  he  had  sustained  in  Germany.  His  sen  Philip  was  a  widower, 
and  though  he  was  only  twenty-seven  years  of  age,  and  eleven  years 
Mary's  junior,  the  emperor  determined  to  demand  her  hand  for  his  son, 
and  sent  over  an  agent  for  that  purpose.  If  Mary  had  looked  with  favour 
upon  Courtney's  person,  and  had  felt  a  passing  r.ttachment  excited  by  the 
mental  endowments  of  Cardinal  Pole,  Philip  had  the  double  recommenda- 
tion of  being  a  zealous  catholic,  and  of  her  mollicr's  family.  Thus  actu- 
ated by  bigotry  and  by  family  feeling,  and  being,  moreover,  by  no  means 
disinclined  to  matrimony,  Mary  gladly  entertained  the  proposal,  and  was 
seconded  by  ihe  advice  not  only  of  Norfolk,  Arundel,  and  Paget,  but  also 
of  Gardiner,  whose  years,  wisdom,  and  the  persecution  he  hail  endured 
for  Catholicism  had  given  him  the  greatest  possible  authority  in  her 
opinion.  Gardiner,  at  the  same  time,  strongly  and  wisely  dissuaded  the 
queen  from  further  proceeding  in  her  enterprise  of  making  innovation"  in 
religion.  He  well  observed  that  an  alliance  with  Spain  was  already  ni  ro 
than  sulTiciently  unpopular;  that  the  parliament,  amidst  all  its  complais- 
ance and  evident  desire  to  make  all  reasonable  concessions  to  the  personal 
wishes  and  feelings  of  the  sovereign,  nevertheless  had  lately  show.n  strong 
jnwillingness  to  make  any  further  concessions  to  Rome.  He  argued,  too, 
that  whereas  any  precipitate  measures  in  religion  just  at  that  time  would 
greatly,  perhaps  even  fatally,  increase  the  popular  prejudice  against  the 
Spanish  alliance,  that  alliance  when  once  brought  about  would,  contrari- 
wise, cnabh!  the  queen,  unresisted,  to  work  her  own  will  in  the  other  and 
far  more  important  measure.  To  the  emperor,  Gardiner  transmitted  the 
same  reasonings,  with  the  additional  hint  that  it  was  necessary  that, 
ostensibly  or  temporarily  at  least,  t.ie  terms  and  conditions  of  the  mar- 
riage should  be  such  as  to  secure  the  favour  of  the  Kngiish  populace,  by 
appearing  even  more  than  fairly  favoural)lo  to  Knglish  interests.  The 
emperor,  who  had  a  high  opinion  of  Gardiner's  sagacity  and  jndgi.iciii, 
not  only  asseiled  to  all  that  he  advised,  but  qven  enforced  his  advi  ^  as 


to  religii 

Mary. 

eerily  ai 

over  his 

ligour  aj 

linghcn, 

liiice  she 

coinisels, 

Tlie  pa 

marriage 

orders  to 

had  been 

with  a  gi 

order  of  1 

of  it  boldl 

catholics, 

I'Oiild  ran 

who  finall 

and  decid( 

if  not  of  i 

tiewed  tin 

themsejvei 

ley  to  be  c 

which  endi 

catholics. 

A.  D.  155 

IkiIcs  on  r 
vocation,  V 
alion.s  in  rt 
the  astute  ( 
I'on/irms  w 
nveen  the  ; 
two  previo 
parts  (if  Fi 
niation  in  t 
liann'Mt,  tin 
old  abuses, 
execiilioi). 
iiig  atlachcc 
replaced  liy 
iiiicc  again 
oflice.     The 
Henry  VIII 
iiou-aiitiiori 
mass  and  || 
i'iliile.l  from 
Wliik!  Mai 
'ioni  once  m 
'ents  thus  ( 
founded  iind 
'lie  public  n 
'•uuit.  in  coil 
*vas  taken  U 
'lisit  could  at 
Thus  it  wi 
'"  Pliilip,  tin 
affice  whatev 
Kuglish  laws 


i 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


493 


to  religious  moderation,  at  least  for  that  time,  in  his  own  private  letters  to 
Mary.  He  even  went  still  further;  for  being  informed  that  Pole,  the  sin- 
cerity and  fervour  of  whose  religious  zeal  not  unfrequently  triumphed 
over  his  great  natural  humanity,  had  sent  Mary  advice  to  proceed  with 
rijfour  against  open  iieresy,  the  emperor  detained  Pole  at  the  town  of  Uil- 
hnghen,  on  the  Danube,  as  he  was  on  his  way  to  England,  lest  his  pres- 
ence sliould  prevent  Mary  from  following  his  more  pacific  and  politic 
counsels. 

Tiie  parliament  having  openly  expressed  a  dislike  of  Mary's  proposed 
marriage  with  a  son  of  Spain,  was  dismissed,  and  Mary's  ministers  had 
orders  to  press  the  match  on  to  a  conclusion.  The  convocation,  wliich 
had  been  summoned  at  the  same  time  as  the  parliament,  was  not  contented 
with  a  general  profession  and  exhibition  of  its  attactnnent  to  ttie  new 
order  of  tilings  that  Mary  had  so  rapidly  introduced,  but  the  catholic  part 
of  it  boldly  volunteered  to  put  the  capital  article  between  them  and  the 
■•alholics,  transubstantiation,  into  dispute.  The  protestants  argncrl,  iiut 
io\dd  rarely  be  heard,  through  the  clamour  raised  by  their  adversaries, 
who  finally,  being  the  majority,  complacently  voted  that  they  had  clearly 
iind  decidedly  triumphed.  This  triinupii — at  least  of  voices  and  numbers, 
if  not  of  fair  argument — so  elated  liie  Romanists,  that  they  soon  after  re- 
newed the  dispute  at  Oxford,  and,  as  if  to  show  liow  secnro  they  held 
themselves  to  be  of  the  victory,  they  caused  Cranmer,  Latimer,  and  Rid- 
ley to  be  conveyed  thitlier  under  a  guard  to  take  their  parts  in  the  debate, 
wliich  ended,  as  may  be  anticipated,  in  the  complete  verbal  triumph  of  the 
catholics. 

A.  D.  1554. — The  complaisance  of  the  parliament,  and  the  forma!  de- 
biiics  on  religion  that  had  been  initiated  by  Romanist  members  of  con- 
vdcation,  were  merely  preclusive  to  still  further  and  nutrc  sweeping  alter- 
ations in  religion,  which  were  made  in  defiance  of  all  that  the  emperor  and 
the  astute  Gardiner  could  urge  to  the  contrary.  It  is  true— and  the  fact 
I'onlirms  what  we  have  more  than  once  said  as  to  the  wide  difrcrcnce  be- 
iwcen  the  apparent  and  the  real  number  of  protestants  existing  during  the 
two  previous  reigns — the  mere  connivance  of  government  had  in  most 
parts  of  Kiigland  sulTiced  to  encourage  the  people  to  set  aside  the  refor- 
mation in  the  most  imjiortant  particulars.  IJut  after  the  dismissal  of  par- 
'.ianit'iit,  the  new  regulations  of  Mary,  or  rather  her  new  enaclMieiits  of 
old  abuses,  were  everywhere,  openly,  and  by  formal  authority,  carried  into 
cxcciilion.  Mass  was  re-established,  three-fourths  of  the  clergymen,  be- 
ing aiiachcd  to  reformed  principles,  were  turned  out  of  their  livings,  and 
n^placed  by  zealous  or  seemingly  zealous  Romanists,  and  mairiaijc  was 
oiK'c  agciiii  declared  to  be  incompatible  with  ilic  holding  of  ;iny  sacred 
ollice.  The  oath  of  supremacy  was  enjoined  by  the  unrepealrd  law  ol 
Ileiiry  Vlll.,  but  it  was  an  instruct  ion  to  a  commission  which  the  (jueen 
now  aiitliorised  to  sec  to  the  more  perfect  and  speedy  re-establisliiiuMit  of 
mass  and  the  other  ancient  rites,  tiiat  clergymen  siiould  strictlly  be  pro 
liiliiied  from  taking  the  oath  of  supremacy  on  entering  benelices. 

While  Mary  was  thus  busied  in  preparing  the  way  for  laying  her  king- 
'loni  once  more  at  the  feel  of  the  haughty  pontilTs  of  Roni'  ,  the  discon- 
tents thus  caused  were  still  further  increased  by  the  feais,  some  well 
founded  and  sonu!  vague,  but  no  less  powerful  on  that  account,  excited  in 
Uie  pul)lic  m!.id  on  account  of  thi^  Spanish  niatcli.  On  i  <■  part  of  the 
i;ourt,  in  compliance  with  the  sagacious  advice  of  Ganliiur,  great  care 
was  takiMi  to  insert  nothing  in  the  marriage  articles,  whicii  were  imblishcd, 
lliat  could  at  all  fairly  be  deemed  unfavourable  to  F.nglaiid. 

Thus  it  was  stipulatcMl,  that  tlioimh  the  title  of  king  should  he  accorded 
10  Piiilip,  tiie  administration  should  be  entirely  in  the  (|ueen  ;  that  no 
afiice  wliatever  in  the  kingdom  should  be  tenable  by  a  fi-reiirner ;  thit 
Kiiglish  laws,  customs  and  privileges  should  remain  unaltered  ;  that  the 


)94 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


queen  should  not  be  taken  abroad  by  Philip  without  her  own  consent,  i-nr 
any  of  her  irhildren  without  that  of  the  nobility ;  that  a  jointure  of  sixty 
thousand  pounds  should  be  securely  settled  upon  the  queen  ;  that  the  male 
issue,  if  any,  of  the  marriage  shoidd  iniierit  not  only  I'higland,  but  also 
DuriTUiidy  and  the  Low  Coinitries  in  any  ease,  and  that  in  the  case  of  the 
death  of  Don  Carlos,  son  of  I'hilip,  such  male  issue  of  Philip  and  Mary 
should  also  inherit  Spain,  Sicily,  Milan,  and  all  the  other  dominions  of 
Philip. 

Every  day's  experience  serves  to  show  that  it  •«  quite  possible  to  carry 
policy  too  far,  and  to  cause  the  sincerity  of  concession  to  be;  suspected 
from  its  very  excess.  If  we  may  suppose  that  men  so  sagacious  as  the 
emperor  and  (iarcliner  were  rendered  by  their  anxiety  temporarily  for- 
getful of  tliis  trulii,  the  public  murmuring  very  speedily  reminded  them  of 
it.  The  people,  with  that  intuitive  saga(!ity  which  seems  the  special  pro- 
vision  for  the  safely  of  tiie  unlettered  nuiltilnde,  analogous  to  the  instinct 
of  the  lower  animals,  exclaimed  that  the  emperor,  in  his  greedy  and  tyran- 
nous aiuii'ty  to  obtain  possession  of  so  rich  ycit  liated  a  country  as  here- 
tical Kngland,  woidd  doubtless  accede  to  any  terms.  As  a  pa[)ist  and  a 
Spaniard  he  would  promise  anything  now,  with  the  full  determination  of 
revoking  everything  the  moment  he  should  have  concluded  the  desired 
match  ;  and  the  more  favourable,  argued  the  people,  the  terms  now  pub- 
lished were  to  Kngland,  t!ie  greater  the  probability  that  the  emperor  and 
his  son  would  revoke  them  at  the  very  first  opportunity,  if,  indeed,  they 
were  not  already  provided  with  secret  articles  antiiorizing  them  to  do  so. 
To  the  fraud  and  ambition  of  tiie  emperor  the  popular  report  s;iid  that 
Philip  added  sullcnness,  haughtiness,  cruelty,  and  a  domineering  disposi- 
tion peculiarly  bis  own.  That  the  death  of  the  emperor  would  put  Philip 
in  possession  of  his  father's  dominions  was  clear;  the  people  assumed  it 
to  be  equally  so  that  England  would  from  that  moment  become  a  mere 
province  of  Spain  ;  that  Englishmen  equally  with  the  other  siibjiu^ts  of 
S()ain  would  then  be  subjected  to  all  the  tender  mercies  of  the  inquisition, 
and  that  the  Spanish  alliance  and  the  complete  ruin  of  England  and  en- 
slaving of  all  Englishmen  were  but  dilTereut  terms  and  formula  in  which 
to  enunciate  the  sami!  thing. 

To  a  people  already  discontented,  as  the  protestants  of  England  were, 
with  the  recent  and  sudden  changes  made;  in  religious  affairs,  such  argu- 
inenis  as  these  could  not  be  addressed  with  any  art  or  industry  without 
being  produ<'tive  of  great  effect.     Every  day  iiuTCased  the  general  dislike 
of  the  people  to  the  Sj)Mnish  match.    The  more  prudent  among  even  those 
who  in  principle  were  the  most  deeply  and  sincerely  opposed  to  the  coii 
lemplat(Ml  marriage,  did  not,  iiideeil,  see  that  the  mere  anticipation  of  evil 
toci)ine,  and  an  aiili(Mj)alion,  loo,  which  was  quite  ojiposed  to  the  avowed 
purposes  of  the  emperor  and  Philip,  could  warrant  an  open  resistance. 
Hut  the  reasonable  and  the  just  art;  seldom  the  majority  where  eitlier  the 
feelings  or  tlii!  interests  of  mankind  are  very  much  aroused  and  ap|i(Mlerl 
to;  and  a  few  men  of  some'  note  were  soon  found  to  ])laee  themselves  M 
the  head  of  the  discontented,  with  the  avowed  iiitention  of  appealiii!.'  I" 
arms  rather  than  allowing  themselves  to  become  the  bond-slaves  of  the 
Spaniaril.    [laii  Eranec  at  this  critical  juncture  takcMi  advantage  of  Mary's 
dillienlti(!s  and  want  of  [)opularity,  it  is  very  probable  that  her  reign  would 
have  (Muled  here,  and  that  her  memory  would  have  been  saved  from  the 
ind(dil)le  stains  of  much  and  loathsome  cruelty.     Hut  the  king  of  France, 
though  at  war  with  Philip,  would  lend  no  aid  to  an  English  insurrection 
Perhaps  he  fell  that  Mary,  aided  as  she  was  certain  to  be  by  Spain,  woiilil 
surely  put  down  any  attenipis  at  insurrection,  in  which  ease  she,  of  coinse, 
would  aid  the  emperor  against  Prance  ;  and  to  this  motive  we  may  iml 
unreasonably  be  supposed  to  have  mUmI  that  feeling  for  the  rights  ofsov- 
oreignty  over  subiecls,  which  even  the  hostility  of  sovereijjns  can  rarck 


I'     i.ili| 


•janish  from 
France  did 
sovereign's  ; 
ihusiasni  of 
Wyatt  ofTerc 
Carew  those 
raise  the  mit 
re-invest  the 
taneous  actin 
kept,  it  i.s  nio 
successful, 
the  appointed 
the  duke  of  S 
and  with  diffi 
Harew's  faijui 
Thom:is  and  f 
and  Leicester, 
by  a  party  of 
before  he  eoul 
perse  his  few 
discovered  his 
^Vyatt,  in  tlie 
Kent,  where  h( 
aid  him  in  renK 
the  ruin  of  the 
Spanish  match 
some  catholics, 
niention  of  reli 
guards  and  soin 
der  the  coniniai 
Willi  them  at  !{< 
w\ att,  pretendf 
carrying  with  I 
eloquence  so  w 
^I'lii'Sr  in  (he  ei 
desertion  might 
marched  to  Soiit 
"R  placed  in  his 
ror  of  Spanish  t 
'•diors  shonl,)  fo 
forniance  of  thes 
.    ^Vhih;  Wyalt  _ 
'"?  «  reply,  Norf 
•5leps  (o  overawe 
1  erceiviiig  his  er 
le  crossed  the 
'h'lc,  however,  , 
'•'fed  niKl  seized 
''■>■•     ^'ist  numb 
s'"'zed,  iind  as  the 
wliieh  she  had   be 
'iiiitierous.     ft   is 
"■retches  were  pui 
;'^'»"i<'d,  hut  beiiu 
■inelt  (o  her  and 
prime  luover  of  th 
^oafTdld  he  took  ^ 
!'■'  i':irtieipation  oi 


4 


THE  TREASUaV  OF  HISTORY. 


495 


banish  from  their  hearts.  From  whatever  motives,  however,  the  king  o! 
France  did  refuse  to  aid  the  English  in  their  proposed  rosislanee  to  theii 
sovereign's  alliance  willi  Philip  of  Spain,  Hut  this  did  not  damj)  ili"  en- 
thusiasm of  the  leading  opponents  of  the  Spanish  alliance.  Sir  Tlidinas 
Wyatt  offered  to  raise  and  head  the  malcontents  of  Kent,  and  Sir  Peter 
Carew  those  of  Devonshire  ;  and  they  persuaded  tlie  duke  of  Suffolk  to 
raise  the  midland  counties,  by  assuring  him  that  their  chief  object  was  to 
re-invest  the  lady  .lane  with  the  cmwn.  A  time  was  fixed  for  the  simul- 
taneous a(!tion  of  these  leaders ;  and  had  the  compact  been  punctually 
kept,  it  is  more  than  probable  that  lliu  enterprise  would  have  been  fully 
successful.  But  Sir  Peter  Carew,  in  his  exceeding  eagerness,  rose  before 
the  appointed  time,  and  being,  in  conscc|ueiice,  imsupportcd  by  VVyatl  and 
the  duke  of  Suffolk,  was  beaten  at  the  first  onset  by  the  earl  of  Ucdford, 
and  with  difficulty  made  his  escape  to  France.  Suffolk,  on  hearing  of 
Tarew's  failure  and  flight,  left  town,  accompanied  by  his  brothers.  Lord 
Tiiomas  and  Sir  Leonard  Gray,  and  proceeded  to  the  counties  of  Warwick 
and  Leicester,  where  his  chief  influence  lay.  Uul  be  was  holly  pursued 
by  a  party  of  horse  under  the  earl  of  Huntingdon,  and  being  overtaken 
before  he  could  raise  sufficient  force  for  resistance,  was  obliged  to  dis- 
perse his  few  followers  and  conceal  himself.  Accident  or  treachery  soon 
discovered  his  hiding  place,  and  he  was  sent  under  an  escort  to  London. 
Wyatt,  in  the  meantime,  raised  the  standard  of  revolt  at  Maidstone,  in 
Kent,  where  he  issued  a  passionate  proclamation,  inviinig  the  peopl(>  to 
aid  him  in  removing  evil  councillors  from  about  the  queen,  and  to  prevent 
the  ruin  of  the  nation  wliicli  must  needs  follow  the  completion  of  the 
Spanish  match.  Great  numbers  of  persons  joined  him,  aiui  among  them 
some  catholics,  as  he  had  dexteiousiy  omitted  from  bis  proclamation  ail 
mention  of  religion.  Tiie  duke  of  Norfolk,  at  the  bead  of  tiie  queen's 
guards  and  some  other  troops,  reinforced  by  five  hundred  Londoners  un- 
der the  command  of  Hrett,  niarciied  against  the  revolted  and  came  np 
with  them  at  Rochester.  Here  Sir  George  Harper,  who  had  been  with 
Wyatt,  pretended  to  desert  to  the  duke,  but  quickly  returned  to  Wyatt, 
carrying  with  him  Hrett  and  his  Londoners,  upon  whom  Sir  George's 
eloquence  so  wrought,  that  they  professed  their  preference  of  death  to 
aiding  in  the  enslavement  of  their  country.  Norfolk,  fearing  that  this 
desertion  might  mislead  the  rest  of  his  force,  now  retreated,  and  Wyatt 
marched  to  Sonthvvark,  whence  he  sent  to  demand  that  the  Tower  sliould 
he  placed  in  bis  hands,  that  the  queen  should  free  the  nation  from  ail  ter- 
ror of  Spanish  tyranny  by  marrying  an  Rnglishman,  and  that  four  ('oun- 
cillors  shotdd  forthwith  bo  placed  in  his  hands  as  hostages  for  the  per- 
formance of  these  conditions. 

While  Wyatt  was  wasting  bis  lime  in  sending  this  demand  and  await- 
ing a  reply,  Norfolk  had  secured  London  l)ridge,  and  had  taken  effecinal 
olcps  to  ov(M'awe  the  Londoners  and  prevent  them  from  joining  Wyatt. 
['crceiving  his  error  when  too  late,  Wyatt  marched  to  Kingston,  where 
he  crossed  the  river,  and  made  his  way  unresisted  into  Westminster. 
Here,  however,  his  follosvers  rapidly  deserted  him,  and  he  was  encoiin- 
lered  and  seized  in  the  Strand,  near  'I'emplebar,  by  Sir  Maurice  llerke- 
Icy.  Vast  nuiidjcrs  of  the  deluded  coniurymcn  were  at  the  same  time 
seized,  and  as  the  qu(!en's  rage  was  proportioned  to  the  fear  and  peril  to 
wiiich  she  imd  been  subjected,  the  exetjutions  that  followerl  were  very 
luiitienius.  It  is  said  that  not  less  than  four  hundred  of  the  captured 
wretches  were  put  to  death  in  cold  blood  ;  four  hundred  more  were  con- 
demned, but  being  led  before  the  queen  with  halters  on  their  necks,  they 
knelt  to  her  and  implored  her  grace,  which  was  granted.  Wyatt.  the 
prime  mover  of  this  revolt,  was  executed,  as  a  matter  of  course.  On  the 
-ciilTold  he  took  care  to  exonerate,  in  liie  most  unequivocal  terms,  from 
nil  participation  or  even  knowledge  of  his  proceedings  the  lady  Elizabeib 


i 

PI 

m 

Hi 

m 

496 


THE  TIIEASURYOF  HISTORY. 


h  '^'>\ 


and  the  earl  Jl  Devon,  whom  Mary's  jealous  hatred  had  endeavoured  to 
connect  with  this  ill-starred  and  ill-managed  revolt.  They  were  boti) 
seized  and  strictly  examined  by  the  council,  but  Wyatt's  manly  and  pre- 
cise  declaration  defeated  wliatever  intent  there  might  have  been  to  em- 
ploy false  witnesses  to  connect  them  with  his  rash  proceedings.  But 
iioiigh  Mary  was  thus  prevented  from  proceediny;  to  the  last  extremity 
against  them,  she  sent  lOlizabeth  under  strict  surveillance  to  Woodstock, 
and  the  earl  of  Devon  to  Fotheringay  castle.  To  Elizabeth,  indeed,  iin- 
niediate  rcleasi;  was  offered,  on  condition  of  her  accepting  the  hand  of  the 
ihike  of  Savoy,  and  thus  relieving  her  sister  from  her  presence  in  the 
kingdom  ;  but  Klizabcth  knew  how  to  "  bide  lier  time,"  and  she  quietly, 
but  positively,  refused  the  proffiired  alliance. 

All  this  linn;  Lonl  Guildford  Dudley  and  the  lady  Jane  had  remained  Im- 
prisoned, but  unmolested  and  unnoticed.  The  time  which  had  elapsed 
without  any  proceedings  being  taken  against  them,  beyond  their  mere 
confinement,  led  every  one  to  suppose  that  their  youth,  and  tlu;  obvious 
restraint  under  wliicii  they  had  acted,  had  determined  .Mary  not  to  punish 
them  beyond  iiiii)risonnient,and  that  she  would  terminate  even  that  when 
she  safely  coiiM  do  so.  IJiit  the  im|)rudent,  nay,  the  situation  of  his 
daughter  and  her  iiusband  being  considered,  the  wicked  connection  of  tiie 
duke  of  Sullolk  with  W'yalt's  revolt,  aroused  in  Mary  that  suspicion 
which  was  no  less  fatal  to  its  objects  than  her  bigotry.  Jane  now  anew 
apijeai'cd  to  lii'riii  the  character  of  a  competitor  for  the  throne.  That 
she  was  not  will"iilly  so,  that  she  was  so  closely  coiirnied  that  she  could 
not  by  any  po.-isibiiity  correspond  with  tlu;  disaffected,  were  arguments 
to  which  Mary  attached  no  iinportJince.  To  her  it  was  enough  iliat  this 
innocent  creature,  even  now  a  mere  girl  and  wishing  for  iiolhing  so  niiich 
as  tluMiiiict  and  studious  moral  life  in  which  her  earlier  girlhood  hadbr'en 
pas-i(  il,  might  possildy  be  made  the  pretext  for  fuiiire  revolt.  The  Lord 
(iiiililford  Dudley  anil  Lady  Jano  were,coiise(|ueiitly,  warneil  that  the  day 
was  fixed  for  their  execution.  Siibse(]iienlly  the  (lucen  bestowed  theciiicl 
mercy  of  a  reprieve  for  three  days,  on  the  [ilea  that  she  did  not  wish, 
\\\\\h'  inflicting  bodily  death  mi  Jane,  to  peril  her  eternal  salvation.  Tlin 
iinhiippy  laily  was.  tlieri'forc,  during  the  slioit  remnant  of  her  life  iinpiir- 
iniicd  and  annoyed  by  ealliolic  priests,  who  wi  re  sent  by  the  (jiiceii  torn, 
deavoiir  to  coiivcit  her  to  their  failli.  Itiit  she  skilfully  and  coolly  used 
all  the  ariiiiineiils  then  in  use  to  defend  the  reformed  faith,  and  even  wrnle 
a  (>re"k  letter  to  her  sister,  adjuring  her  to  persevere  in  the  true  faith, 
wliatever  j.i'rils  might  environ  lier. 

It  was  at  fust  intended  to  beheiid  liolh  the  prisoners  at  the  same  time 
and  on  the  same  scalVohl.  On  rell'dioii,  motives  of  policy  caused  the 
ipieeii  to  alter  this  determiiiatioii ;  and  it  was  ordered  that  Iiord  (Iiiihll'oid 
mIioiiIiI  (irsl  be  executed  on  Towcr-hdl,  and  llie  lady  Jane  shortly  afti  r- 
wanls  witliiii  the  precincts  of  the  'I'ower,  where  she  was  conrnu'd. 

On  the  inoriiing  apiiointed  for  ibis  double  minilcr,  Lord  Oiiildford  sent  to 
Ills  yoiiiiu  and  unfortunate  wife,  and  rei|uesteil  an  interview  to  take  ;iii 
earlldy  farewell;  but  Jane  with  a  more  inasciiluie  and  self-possessed  pril- 
lieiice,  declined  it  on  the  ground  tint  Iheir  appioachiiig  f.ite  reipiircil  lliu 
full  alti'iiliiiil  of  e  icli,  :ilid  lliiit  their  brief  and  iilooily  separation  on  earth 
would  be  followed  by  an  eteniid  union.  From  her  jinson  w  imlow  llio 
lail}  J.'iiie  saw  her  youthful  hiisbanil  led  out  to  execution,  ami  shortly  af- 
li-rvvardi'  saw  his  headless  body  broiiyht  back  in  a  ciMiiinoii  cart.  I]<cii 
this  sad  spectacle,  instead  of  sliakiiii;  lier  lirinness,  did  Inn  the  iiioic  cdii- 
firm  and  strengthen  a  constancy  wliieli  was  founded  not  upon  mere  cuii. 
Klitution,  bui  upon  long,  serious,  and  healthy  study. 

Her  own  dread  hour  had  at  length  iirrivecl,  and  Sir  John  Sage,  tfie  ciiii- 
stalle  of  the  Tower,  on  siiiiimoniiiL;  her  to  the  sead'ohl,  beiiued  her  to  I"'- 
ituw  some  gift  upon  him  winch  he  might  keep  as  a  perpetu.il  menuMi.il  of 


THE  THEASUHY  OF  HISTORY. 


497 


Iciin- 
III  i>( 


her.  She  (rave  him  her  tablets  in  which,  on  seeing  the  dead  body  of  her 
liusband,  she  liad  written  a  sentence  in  Greek,  Latin,  and  English,  to  the 
effect  that  though  human  justice  was  against  her  husband's  body,  the  di- 
vine mercy  would  be  favourable  to  his  soul ;  tiiat,  for  iierseif,  il  her  fault 
deserved  punishment,  her  yuutii,  at  least,  and  her  imprudence,  were  wor- 
thy of  excuse,  and  that  she  trusted  for  favour  to  God  and  to  posterity. 

On  the  scaffold  she  blamed  herself  not  for  ever  having  wished  for  the 
crown,  Imt  for  not  having  firmly  refused  to  act  upon  the  wishes  of  others 
in  reai'hing  at  it  She  confessed  herself  woriliy  of  death,  and  being  dis- 
robed by  her  female  attendants,  calmly  and  unshrinkingly  subniitied  her- 
self to  liiT  fatal  doom. 

The  duke  of  Suffolk  and  Lord  Thomas  Gray  were  shortly  afterwards 
executed  for  their  share  in  Wyatt's  revolt.  Sir  Nicholas  Tliiogmorlon 
was  tried  in  (Miildhall  for  the  same  ofTence,  but  there  being  liitle  or  no 
evidence  against  him,  his  eloquent  and  acute  defence  led  the  jury  to  acquit 
him.  With  an  arbitrary  and  insolent  stretch  of  prcrogaiivf;  that  now 
scents  aliniist  incredible,  Mary,  enraged  at  the  ac(|uiiial,  not  only  recom- 
mitted Sir  Nicholas  to  the  Tower,  where  she  kept  him  for  a  considerable 
time,  but  she  even  had  the  jury  sent  to  prison,  and  fined  from  one  to  two 
thousand  pounds  each !  The  end  she  had  in  view  in  this  alximinably  ty- 
rannous conduct,  however,  was  fully  achieved.  Thenceforth  junns  were 
liitle  prone  to  acquit  the  unhappy  gentlemen  who,  no  luatter  bow  loosely, 
were  charged  with  participation  in  the  alTair  of  Wyatl.  Many  were  con- 
demned merely  in  consequence  of  the  terrors  of  their  jurors,  and  among 
litem  was  Sir  John  ThroginorlDii,  brother  to  Sir  Niciiolas.  Arrests  took 
place  every  day,  the  Tower  and  other  places  of  confinement  were  filled 
with  nobles  ami  genilemen,  whose  offence  was  that  they  chanced  to  be 
|ii)|)nlar  ;  tlie  alfection  of  the  people  being  a  deadly  offence  to  the  (|ueen, 
who  felt  llial  she  was  loathed  by  them,  and  who  felt  so  little  secure. 
nuiiiii>t  a  new  outbreak,  that  she  sent  out  conimissioners  to  disarm  them, 
iiiid  lay  n|i  the  M'l/ed  arms  in  her  strong-holds. 

Ill  the  midst  iif  this  gloomy  state  of  tliiiifis,  the  ])arliament  was  called 
ii|iiiii  to  invest  the  (pieen  with  the  power  which  had  formerly  been  granted 
Id  lier  r.itlicr.  of  disposing  of  the  crown  at  her  decease.  Gardiner  took 
(■;irf  to  dwell  ii|iiiii  ilie  precedent  afforded  by  the  power  given  to  Henry 
VIII.,  and  he  bad  little  fear  of  success,  becanse,  independeiil  of  the  gen- 
eral terror  caused  by  the  queen's  merciless  and  sanguinary  proceedings, 
the  ^oimI  w  ill  111'  numerous  members  of  parliament  had  been  purchased  by 
liie  liistnliiiliiiii  of  lour  hundred  thousand  crowns,  which  the  ein|ieror  had 
sent  (iver  for  that  purpose. 

Hill  neither  terror  nor  purchased  complaisance  could  blind  the  house  to 
llie  lacN,  tliat  tlii!  ijin-en  dete.>''l(  (I  F.ll/abelli,  and  that  the  lei;ilimai'y  of  the 
({iiiiii  must  imply  the  bastardy  of  Kli/abetli.  The  nianner,  ton,  in  which 
(lanliiier  m  the  course  of  his  speech  avoideil  nieiitioiniin  llli/.alicth,  ex- 
lepiiiiji  merely  as  "the  lady  Kli/alieth,"  and  without  styling  her  the  queen's 
sisler,  eunfinned  the  suspicion  that,  ote'e  invested  willi  llie  pnwer  which 
File  now  1 1. limed,  the  (|U(ten  woulil  declare  Kli/abeth  illegitimate,  and  by 
iiiiikiiit!  a  will  bei|neatliing  tin:  throne  tn  Pliilip,  band  over  the  nation  to 
iill  that  .Spiinisli  tyranny  of  which  such  terrible  antu'ipations  had  been  iiiid 
still  were  entertained. 

As  if  to  stiengilieii  all  other  grounds  of  suspicion  of  Mary's  intention, 
llie  birelings  and  parasites  of  I'liilip  «  ere  just  now,  as  zealously  as  impru- 
ileiiily,  liu«y  in  ilwelling  upnii  I'liilip's  di'sei'iil  from  the  lionsi-  of  Lancas- 
ter, and  represi  ntiinr  him-  taking  I'.li/.abeth's  bastardy  as  a  matter  of 
iHPinse— as  the  next  heir  to  >Liry  by  ri«bt  of  descent. 

fireat,  then,  as,  from  fear  or  favour,  was  the  desire  of  the  wl  ole  pnrlia 
nil  lit  1 1  (iratil'y  the  (pieeii,  the  deternunatmn  not  to  throw  llie  nation  liouin! 
Hiid  blinilfcddeil  into  the  hands  of  Ihu  Spaniard  was  ntill  greater.     Tiiei 
Vol.  L-;iJ 


Ji^ 


49H 


THK  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


not  only  refused  to  pass  the  bill  to  give  .Mary  the  power  to  will  away  the 
throne,  but  when  another  bill  was  introduced  to  make  it  treasonable  to 
imagine  or  attempt  the  death  of  the  queen's  husband  while  she  lived,  they 
coolly  laid  it  aside;  and  that  Philip  might  not  be  led  to  complete  the  mar 
riage  by  tiny  lingerin;?  hope  of  possessing  any  authority  in  the  nation 
whieh  was  unhappy  enough  to  have  Mary  for  its  queen,  the  house  passed 
a  law  enacting,  "That  her  majesty,  as  their  only  queen,  should  solely  and 
as  a  sole  queen  enjoy  the  crown  and  sovereignty  of  her  realms,  wiih  all 
the  pre-eminences,  dignities,  and  rights  thereto  belonging,  in  as  large  and 
ample  a  manner  after  her  marriage  as  before,  without  any  title  or  claim 
accruing  to  the  prince  of  Spain,  either  as  tenant  by  courtesy  of  the  realm 
or  by  any  other  means." 

Having  thus,  as  far  as  was  in  their  power,  limited  and  discouraged  tlm 
dangerous  ambition  of  the  cruel  and  bigoted  Philip,  the  parliament  passed 
the  ratification  of  the  articles  of  marriage,  which,  indeed,  were  drawn  so 
favourably  to  Kngland,  that  no  reasonable  objection  could  have  been  made 
to  them. 

As  nothing  more  could  be  extorted  or  bribed  from  parliament  with  re- 
spect to  the  queen's  marriage,  its  attention  was  now  directed  to  matters 
connected  with  religion.  The  bishopric  of  Durham,  which  had  been  di- 
vided in  the  r"igii  of  Kdward,  and  which  by  an  arbitrary  edict  of  the  queeii 
had  already  been  re-conferred  upon  Tonslal,  was  now  re-erected  by  net 
of  parliament.  Some  bills  were  also  introduced  for  revising  the  law.s 
against  LoUanly,  erroneous  preaching,  and  heresy  in  general,  and  for  ilic 
suppression  of  books  containing  hetcnido.K  opinions,  liut  here  again,  to 
its  credit,  tt>e  parliament  was  boiii  discrnninaling  and  firm  ;  the  bills  wvk 
thrown  out;  and  the  queen  pcrccivii\g  ttiat  neither  Philip's  gold  nor  llu! 
terrors  of  her  more  sanguinary  conduct  could  niak(!  this  parliament,  at 
least,  suflficiently  pliant  and  slavi.^h  lor  her  pur()oses,  she  suddenly  and 
sullenly  dissolved  it. 


II     "  M 


CIIAPTKR  XLV, 

TUB    RHION    OK    MAKV   (cONTI.NUEn). 

Mary's  age,  and  some  conscl(Misnei<s,  perhaps,  of  the  addition  made  by 
her  fearful  temper  to  the  natural  hoincliiicss  nf  her  featured,  had  teinli'd  in 
make  the  acquisiiion  of  a  young  and  illusirious  husband  all  the  iiiuri' 
eagerly  desired,  for  its  very  ini|ir<il):ilidity  ;  and  lliougli  she  had  seen  only 
the  [lortrait  of  her  future  husband,  she  had  cdLtrivcil  to  become  so  cii;iin 
ourcdoriinn,  that  when  the  prelinnnanesof  the  marriage!  were  all  arr:ini,'i  I, 
and  the  arrival  of  the  pnnei!  was  Imurly  expected,  every  delay  ami  every 
obstacle  irritated  her  almost  to  phrcii/y.  TIiciukIi  as  a  matter  of  aml)iiiiiii 
I'hilip  was  V('ry  desirous  of  the  malcli,  an  a  simple  matter  «( love,  he  wis, 
at  the  very  least,  indilTerent;  and  even  the  pri)Vcri.i,il  hauteur  and  sdlnn. 
nity  of  the  Spanish  character  eoiild  iidt  sulliiicntly  accMuint  for  the  enM 
neglect  wliich  caused  liiin  to  forhe  ir  from  even  favouring  his  future  uilV 
Biiii  <|ueeii  with  a  letter,  to  nceount  for  delays  which,  m  spile  of  her  (IdtiM!,' 
fondiii's.-i,  Mary  cciuld  not  liut  lielicve  that  the  prince  mifJlit  easily  h;ivc 
put  an  end  to  hal  Ins  impatience  been  at  all  equal  to  her  own.  Frein 
olaining  I'hilip,  llie  impatient  foiidiiefs  so  riire  as  well  as  so  iiiibei-diinii!; 
at  her  ailvanccd  period  of  life,  caused  her  to  turn  her  resentiiieiil  at;;iiii>l 
her  subjects,  to  whose  oppdsiticMi  she  clidsi'  td  impiit"  that  iiniiirereiiii'  on 
the  part  id' the  prince,  wliieh  reilly  arose  from  iii>like  of  her  repulsive  and 
nreinatiiiely  iiijed  person.  \  circiiinst.iiiee  now  dei-urred  which  (jrinily 
uicreased  the  queen's  auger  against  her  siilijects,  ami  wliiidi  prohalily,  lii 
»o  sullen  uud  resentful  a  nature  hi  hers,  did  much  to  fan  into  a  ll  ime  thai 


H-M 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY 


499 


ay  the 
ibl«  to 
1,  they 
le  mar 

nation 

passed 
ely  and 
.villi  all 
^rgc  anil 
jr  claim 
le  realm 

%<rcd  tlie 
\l  passed 
Irawu  80 
^cii  made 

t  with  rc- 
o  matters 
,  been  di- 
ihc  quciMi 
cd  hv  ai'l 
tl\c'la\va 
[ind  for  ilu' 
e  a'jAin,  to 
a  bills  wiTo 
)ld  nor  llu! 
rliameut,  al 
ddenly  and 


lion  made  by 
a.ltendiMllo 
ill   llie  inorr 
[xl  srcn  only 
„(.  HO  cnum 
liillarranu'L 
ly  an'i  ''^'I'V 
irof  ainliiii'ii' 
l„v.',  l>o  w.is, 
ir  and  solnii- 
for  llii-  ''iiM 
U  fntnri'  wil'' 
l„f  lirr  iUiliii'^ 
,,;,sily  li;>vi' 
Idvvn.     Vwm 
iinlx-comin.; 
jmcnl  asjaiii'l 
lidillVrcnii'  oil 
rcpolMve  ami 
Ivbifli  uriallv 
|i  prolial 

;i   ll  I'l 


V,  lil 


tierce  bigotry  which  subsequently  lighted  the  fires  of  persecution  in  exery 
county  in  England,  and  left  scarcely  a  village  without  its  martyr  and  its 
mourning.  A  squadron  had  been  fitted  out,  and  the  command  was  given 
to  Lord  Kflinghara,  to  convoy  the  prince  to  England ;  but  so  unpopular 
was  the  service,  and  such  strong  symptoms  appeared  of  a  determined 
spirit  of  mutiny  among  the  sailors,  that  Lord  Effingham  frankly  informed 
the  queen  that  he  did  not  think  the  prince  would  be  safe  in  their  hands, 
and  the  squadron  was  at  once  disbanded.  But  this  measure,  though  in- 
dispensably necessary  under  the  circumstances,  brought  no  peace  to  the 
mind  of  the  queen,  for  she  now  dreaded  not  ni'  rely  the  inevitable  dangers 
of  the  sea,  but  also  that  her  husband  should  be  intercepted  by  the  French 
fleet.  The  slightest  rumour  so  heightened  her  self-torturmg,  that  she 
was  frequently  thrown  into  convulsions ;  and  not  merely  was  her  bodily 
health  aff"ecteain  the  most  injurious  degree,  but  even  her  mind  began  to 
be  affected  to  a  very  perceptible  extent.  Hypochondriac  and  pitiably 
nervous,  she  became  painfully  conscious  of  her  want  of  beauty  ;  though, 
with  the  usual  self-flattery,  she  ascribed  the  repulsive  aspect  presented  to 
her  by  her  unflattering  mirror  wholly  to  her  recent  suff^erings.  From  be- 
ing frantically  impatient  for  the  arrival  of  Philip,  the  unhappy  queen  now 
became  desponding,  and  dreaded  lest  on  his  arrival  he  should  find  her  dis- 
pleasinsf. 

At  length  the  object  of  so  many  hopes  and  fears  arrived  ;  the  marriage 
was  publicly  and  with  great  pomp  performed  at  Wincthester;  and  when 
Philip  had  made  a  public  entry  into  London,  and  dazzled  the  eyes  of  the 
gazers  with  the  immense  riches  he  had  brought  over,  Mary  hurried  him 
away  to  the  comparative  seclusion  of  Windsor.  This  seclusion  admirably 
suited  the  prin<;e,  whose  behaviour,  from  the  day  of  his  arrival,  was  as 
well  calculated  as  though  it  had  been  purposely  intended,  to  confirm  all 
the  unfavourable  opinions  that  had  been  formed  of  him.  In  his  manner 
lie  was  distant,  not  with  shyness  but  with  overweening  disdain  ;  and  the 
bravest  and  wisest  of  the  oldest  nobility  of  England  had  the  mortification 
10  son  him  pans  them  wiilioul  manifesting  by  glance,  word,  or  gesture, 
that  he  was  conscious  of  their  respect,  salutations,  or  even  their  preseni'c. 
The  unavoidably  wearisome  etiquette  of  court  was  now  so  much  increased 
liy  Spanish  formalities,  that  both  Philip  and  Mary  may  almost  be  said  to 
have  been  inaccessible.  This  circumstance,  however  disgusting  to  sub- 
jeels,  waft  in  the  highest  degree  pleasing  to  the  queen  :  having  at  length 
possessed  I'.erMclf  of  her  huiiband,  slie  was  unwilling  that  any  one  should 
share  his  eoi'ipany  with  her  for  a  moment.  More  like  a  lovt-siek  girl 
than  n  h;'.ritJi.::t'ir('(l  and  hanl-heartrd  woman  of  forty,  she  could  not  bear 
llie  princ':'  to  be  oit  of  her  sight ;  his  shortest  absijiice  annoyed  her,  and 
if  lie  showed  the  "omnionest  courtesy  to  any  of  the  court  ladies,  her 
i'"ilini?y  was  insla.itly  shown  to  liiiii,  and  her  resentment  to  the  fair  who 
iiail  been  so  unfortunate  as  to  b(>  honoured  with  his  civility. 

The  v/«inaiily  observation  of  Mary  soon  convinced  her  that  the  only 
way  to  Philip's  heart  was  to  (.'ratify  ills  ambition  ;  and  she  was  abundantly 
ready  to  pnrehasc  Ins  love,  or  llie  semlilanec"  of  it,  even  at  the  (iriee  of  the 
Vital  saeriliee  of  the  lilierlies  and  interests  of  the  whole  Eiigli.sli  |)eo|)le. 
By  means  ofdanliner  she  used  both  fear  and  hope,  both  (lower  and  gold, 
lo  ifct  members  returned  in  her  entire  interests  to  a  new  parllamenl  which 
she  now  sommoneil ;  and  the  ri  lums  were  sneli  as  to  jiroiniso  thai,  in  the 
exi'stiiia  ieni|ier  of  the  nation,  winch  had  not  yet  forgotten  the  sanguinary 
punishinent  of  ihe  revolt  under  WyatI,  she  mii^lit  safely  make  her  next 
fiif/.a  onward  movement  towards  the  entire  restoration  of  eathidicism  and 
the  esliibiishmeiit  of  her  own  iibsolnle  jiower. 

Tardiiial  Pole,  who  was  now  in  I'landers,  invested  with  the  office  of 
Unratc.  (inly  awiuled  the  removal  of  Ihe  attainder  passed  against  him  in 
the  ri'igii   if  llenrv  Vlll.     The  parliuinent  readily  passed  an  act  for  that 


irtf 


500 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HI8T0RV. 


im* 


iK    ! 


purpose,  and  the  legate  immediately  came  to  England,  when,  after  wait- 
ing on  Philip  and  Mary,  he  presented  himself  to  parliament,  and  formally 
invited  the  English  nation  to  reconcile  itself  to  the  holy  see  from  which, 
said  the  legate,  it  had  been  so  long  and  so  unhappily  separated. 

The  well-trained  parliament  readily  acknowledged  and  professed  to  de- 
plore the  defection  of  England,  and  presented  an  address  to  Philip  and 
Mary,  entreating  them,  as  being  uninfected  by  the  general  guilt,  to  inter- 
cede with  the  holy  father  for  their  forgiveness,  and  at  the  same  time  de- 
clared iheir  intention  to  repeal  all  laws  that  were  prejudicial  to  the  church 
of  Rome.  The  legate  readily  gave  absolution  to  the  parliament  and  peo- 
ple of  Et.sjland,  and  received  them  into  the  communion  of  Rome ;  and 
Pope  Julius  HI.,  with  grave  and  bitter  mockery,  observed,  when  the  formal 
thanks  of  the  nation  were  conveyed  to  him,  that  the  English  had  a  strange 
notion  of  thii.gs  thus  to  thank  him  for  doing  what  he  ought,  in  fact,  to 
thank  them  for  letting  him  do. 

It  must  not  l;e  supposed  that  though  the  nobility  and  gentry  in  parlia 
ment  assembled  thus  readily  and  crouchingly  laid  England  once  a:'ain  at 
the  feet  of  the  Roman  pontiff,  that  they  were  prepared  fully  to  unilo  all 
that  Henry  had  (ione.  Indifferent  as  to  the  mode  of  faith  presttribed  to 
the  multitude,  they  had  not  an  objection  to  make  this  sudden  and  sweep- 
ing re-transfer  of  the  spiritual  authority  over  F]iigland.  But  before  they 
would  consent  to  that  transfer  of  spiritual  aullu)rity,  they  obtained  from 
Rome,  as  well  as  from  the  queen,  the  most  positive  assurances  that  the 
church  property,  snatched  from  the  church  and  divided  among  laymen  by 
Henry,  should  not  be  interfered  with,  but  should  remain  undisturbed  in  (he 
hands  of  its  lay  possessors.  The  parliament,  also,  in  the  very  act  by 
which  it  restored  the  pope's  spiritual  authority,  enacted  that  all  marriages 
contracted  during  the  English  separation  from  Rome  should  remain  valid, 
and  also  inserted  a  clause  which  secured  all  holders  of  church  lands  in 
their  possessions  ;  and  the  convocation  presented  a  petition  to  the  pope  to 
the  same  effect,  to  which  peiitien  the  legate  gave  an  affirmative  answer. 
Bigoted  and  arbitrary  as  Mary  confessedly  was,  it  ap|)earcd  that  siie  could 
not  fully  restore,  even  temporarily,  the  power  ol"  Rome. 

The  sentence  had  irrevocably  gone  forth  against  that  grasping  and  greedy 
despotism  ;  and  though  the  accidental  occurrence  of  a  fientely  and  coldly 
cruel  bigot,  in  the  person  of  Mary,  being  seated  upon  tlie  throne  g.ivc  hack 
for  a  time  to  Rome  the  spiritual  jurisdiction,  and  the  power  todnlati'  and 
tyrannize  in  spiritual  affiirs,  all  the  power  ami  zeal  of  that  bigot  cunll  not 
repossess  the  church  of  the;  lands  which  had  bi^eome  lay  property.  In 
tho  first  instance,  indeed,  Rome  hoped,  by  forgiving  the  past  fruits  of  the 
the  lands,  lo  he  able  to  resume  the  lands  for  the  futiir(! ;  but  when  Pole 
arrived  in  England  he  received  information,  amply  eonlirnied  by  his  own 
observ.itions,  which  induced  him  without  further  strug:;le  to  agree  to  tin' 
formal  and  complete  settlement  of  the  lands,  of  which  we  have  ai)ovc 
given  an  account. 

Periiapi  no  greater  misfortune  could  have  m-cnrred  to  England  llrui 
this  very  cession  in  form,  by  the  pope,  of  the  right  of  the  laiiy  to  tlio 
lands  ofwhiciiihey  had  possessed  tlieins(dves  at  the  expense  of  the  clinicli. 
Had  Koino  attempted  to  resume  the  soliil  property,  as  well  as  the  spiriiiiiil 
rights,  ( f  the  church,  considerations  of  interest  in  the  (oriniT  would  Irivc 
caused  the  nol>ility  and  gentry  to  hesitate  about  surrendering  the  lalicr; 
but  having  seciireil  their  own  property,  iIk;  great  were  easily  iiidiii-ed  tn 
hand  over  the  bulk  of  the  people  to  a  spiritual  tyranny  wnich  they  (hit- 
tiTcd  ihemsclves  that  liny  would  not  siiffi-r  fnun.  Tiie  vile  old  Invs 
ngaiiiM  heresy,  whicji  the  former  pirliamenl  hail  honestly  and  indignantly 
rejected,  were  now  re-enacled  ;  si  itiites  were  passed  for  |)UiiiMiiiii<i  sedi 
tiuui  rumours,"  unJ  U  was  iiiado  treason  lo  imagine  or  (u  attempt  the  lif' 


)f  Phi 
refuse 
But, 
liamen 
'.einpt  ( 
crown, 
tion.    ' 
nient  oi 
enipero 
very  ph 
sonally 
hauteur, 
from  hi), 
niinish  1 
prisoner 
guasi  off 
tliese  pri 
have  dor 
that  prin< 
fulness  0 
About 
the  lord  1 
Sir  Edmt 
gether  wi 
released  ( 
reached  I 
ascribed  i 
Baffled 
tive,  the  q 
"ity,  of  th 
symptoms 
of  I-ondoii 
for  the  eat 
Iju-  even  tl 
'ifu-,  stron 
provoking 
and  hagj 
the  peop 
"'e  ijueei 
"'«-'  last  po, 
'futh,  and 
>■,""«:  the  in 
tliat  ihis  w 
"k'  parliain 
("■odiiciive 
iianient 
A.  n.  ir,r,. 

which  of  it 
times.  Soi 
•lavish  CO 
'uinority,  (| 
f^roni  llieir 
these  iiii>iii 
"t  the  inert 
made  tin 
exeremcj  t| 
the  i|ii(.(.|t'i, 

'U  hriiiiriiijr 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


5o> 


rooily 

•oliUv 

liiu'k 

'  iind 

1U)1 

III 
f  the 
I'lili" 
own 
0  tin' 
\h()vc 


i!i:in 
till' 
iiircli. 
)niui;il 
1  li.ivi' 
;iiit'r; 
•I'll  III 
y  Hat- 

ii;mtly 

MI'lll 
tllO  llf' 


if  Philip  during  that  of  the  queen,  which,  also,  the  former  parliament  had 
refused. 

But,  amidst  all  this  disgusting  aycophancy,  even  this  complaisant  par- 
liament had  still  some  English  sense  of  reserve,  and  resisted  every  at 
',empt  of  the  queen  to  get  her  husband  declared  presumptive  heir  to  the 
Drown,  entrusted  with  ihe  administration,  or  even  honoured  with  a  corona- 
tion. The  same  anti-Spanish  feeling  which  caused  the  firmness  of  parlia- 
ment on  those  points,  also  caused  it  to  refuse  all  subsidy  in  support  of  the 
emperor,  in  the  war  whicli  he  was  still  carrying  on  against  France.  'I'licse 
very  plain  indications  of  the  feelings  of  the  nation  towards  himself  per- 
sonally caused  Philip,  not  indeed  to  lay  aside  his  morose  and  impolitic 
hauteur,  for  that  was  part  and  parcel  of  his  nature,  and  as  inseparable 
from  his  existence  as  the  mere  act  of  breathing,  but  to  endeavour  to  di- 
minish his  unpopularity  by  procuring  the  release  of  several  distinguished 
prisoners,  confined  either  for  actual  offence  against  the  court,  or  for  the 
ijuasi  offence  of  being  agreeable  to  the  people.  The  most  illustrious  of 
these  prisoners  was  the  lady  Elizabeth ;  and  nothing  that  Philip  could 
have  done  could  have  been  more  pleasing  to  the  nation  than  his  releasing 
that  princess,  and  protecting  her  from  the  petty  but  no  loss  annoying  spite- 
fulness  of  her  sister. 

About  the  same  time,  Philip's  politic  intervention  also  gave  liberty  to 
the  lord  Henry  Dudley,  Sir  George  Harper,  Sir  Nicholas  Throgmorton, 
Sir  Edmund  Warner,  Sir  William  St.  Loe,  and  Sir  Nicholas  Arnold,  to- 
gether with  Harrington  and  Tremaine.  Tlie  carl  of  Devonshire  also  was 
released  from  Folheringay  casile,  and  allowed  to  go  abroad,  but  he  only 
reached  Padua  when  he  was  poisoned,  and  the  popular  rumour  and  beliel 
ascribed  the  murder  to  the  Imperialists. 

Baffled  in  her  endeavours  to  get  her  husband  declared  her  heir  presump 
live,  the  queen  became  more  than  ever  anxious  for  the  honours  of  mater- 
nity, of  the  approach  of  which  she  at  length  imagined  that  she  felt  iho 
symptoms.  She  was  publicly  declared  to  be  pregnant,  and  Bonner,  bishop 
of  London,  ordered  public  prayers  to  bo  put  up,  that  the  young  prince — 
for  tiie  catholics  chose  to  consider  not  merely  the  pregnancy  of  the  queen, 
but  even  the  sex  of  the  child  a  matter  perfectly  settled  ! — might  be  lieau- 
iifu.,  strong,  and  witty.  The  people  in  general,  however,  manifesitd  a 
provoking  incredulity  even  as  to  the  pregnancy  of  the  queen,  whose  age 
and  haggard  aspect  certainly  promised  no  very  nuiuerous  offspring;  and 
the  people's  incredulity  was  shortly  afterwards  justified,  it  proving  that 
the  queen  had  been  mistaken  by  the  incipient  symptoms  of  dropsy.  To 
the  last  possible  moment,  howctver,  Philip  and  his  friends  concealed  the 
truth,  and  Philip  was  thus  enabled  to  get  himself  appointed  protector  du- 
ring the  minority,  sliould  the  child  survive  and  the  queen  le.  Finding 
that  this  was  the  utmost  concession  that  could  at  present  be  wrung  from 
the  parliament,  and  trusting  that  it  might  by  good  management  be  made 
pioilnciive  of  more  at  some  future  time,  the  queen  now  dissolved  the  par- 
liament. 

A.  p.  1555.— The  dissolution  of  parliament  was  marked  by  an  ocrurrence 
which  of  itself  would  be  snflicient  to  indicate  the  despotic  character  of  the 
limes.  Some  members  of  the  commons'  house,  unwilling  to  agree  to  the 
slavish  comjilaisance  coimnonly  shown  by  the  majority,  and  yet,  as  a 
minority,  quite  unable  to  stem  the  tide,  lamc  to  the  resolution  to  secede 
from  llieir  attendance.  No  sooner  was  the  parliament  dissolved  than 
these  members  were  indicted  in  the  king's  bench.  Six  of  thnn,  terrified 
at  the  mere  thought  of  u  contest  with  the  powerful  and  vindictive  queen, 
made  the  requisite  submissions  and  obtained  pardon;  and  the  remamde! 
exercised  their  riuht  of  traverse,  thereby  so  long  postponing  the  trial  that 
the  (iiu'en's  death  put  an  end  to  the  affair  altogether.  Cardiner's  succes* 
in  bringing  about  the  Spanish  match  to  which  the  nation  had  been  no 


603 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HI3T0RY. 


r  M 


averse,  airl  tlio  tact  and  zeiil  for  the  queen's  service  which  he  had  shown 
ill  his  duxierous  inaii:igeineiit  of  the  house  of  coiniiious,  made  hiin  now 
more  than  ever  a  weighty  auiliority,  not  only  with  the  queen  but  with  the 
cath'iiic  party  in  general.  It  is  singular  enougii,  as  Hume  well  remarks, 
that  thout;h  tins  very  learned  prelate  was  far  less  zealous  upon  points  of 
theology  than  Cardinal  Pole,  yet,  while  the  mild  temper  of  the  latter 
allayed  and  ehasteaeil  his  tendency  towards  bigotry,  tlie  sterner  and  hardi- 
er  character  of  the  former  caused  him  to  look  upon  the  free  judgment  ol 
the  commonality  as  a  presumption  which  it  behoved  the  rulers  of  the  laud 
to  put  down,  even  by  the  severest  and  most  unsparing  resort  to  persecu 
tion.  For  some  liinc  it  was  doubtful  whether  the  milder  course,  recom- 
mended  hs  politic  by  Pole,  or  the  sterner  course,  advocated  as  essentially 
necessary  by  Gardiner,  would  prevail.  But  Gardiner  had  the  great  advan- 
tage of  advixratiug  the  system  which  vvas  the  most  in  accordance  with 
the  cruel  and  bigoted  temper  of  both  Philip  and  Mary  ;  and  Pole  had  the 
morliflcHtion  not  o;dy  of  being  vanquished  by  his  opponent,  but  also  of 
seeing  full  and  ti-rrible  license  and  freedom  given  to  the  hitherto  partially 
restrained  demons  of  persecution. 

Having  determined  the  queen  and  court  to  a  course  of  severity,  Gar- 
diner had  no  dii1ii:iilly  in  persuading  them  that  it  was  politic  to  select  the 
first  victims  from  among  the  e  nini'iit  for  learning  or  authority,  or  both; 
and  Rogers,  prebend. iry  of  St.  i  aul's,  a  man  still  more  remarkable  for 
virtue  and  learning  IImu  for  his  eminence  in  the  church  and  in  the  reform- 
ed parly,  had  the  melancholy  honour  of  being  singled  out  as  the  first  vic- 
tim. As  instances  of  conversion  were  even  more  sought  after  by  Gardin- 
er than  punishment,  there  was  probably  yet  another  reason  why  Itogers 
was  s'lecied  for  the  first  prosi'ciition.  He  had  a  wife  and  ten  ciiildreu, 
and  was  remarkable  for  Ins  aflfeciiiMi  both  as  a  father  and  a  husband  ;  and 
there  was  every  probability  that  ten(lern<'ss  for  them  might  lead  him  to 
avoid,  by  aposlacy,  a  danger  which  otherwise  ho  might  have  been  expect- 
ed to  brave.  Uul  if  Gardiner  really  reasoned  thus,  ho  was  greatly  mista- 
ken. Rogers  not  only  refused  to  recant  an  iota  of  his  opinions  at  what 
was  called  Ins  trial,  but  even  after  the  I'a'al  sentence  of  burning  was  pass- 
ed iiiMin  him  he  still  preserved  such  an  equable  frame  of  mind,  that  when 
the  fatal  hour  arrived  his  jailers  actually  had  to  awaken  him  from  a  sweet 
sound  sleep  to  proceed  to  the  slake.  Such  courage  miyiht,  one  would 
suppose,  have  disarmed  even  the  wrath  of  bigotry;  but  Gardiner,  when 
the  condeTined  gentleman  asked  permission  to  have  a  parting  interview 
with  his  wife,  cruelly  nnd  scofilnifly  rcplicil,  tli.il  Rogers,  being  a  priest, 
could  not  possibly  have  a  wife!  This  iinforlnnatc  and  h^arned  divine  was 
burned  at  Smitlitield,  and  the  flames  that  coii'^U'iied  him  may  be  said  to 
have  kindled  a  v,ist  and  moving  pili;  that  swallowed  up  sufferers  of  both 
sexes,  and  of  nearly  all  iiges  in  every  county  of  ICnglaiid. 

Hooper,  bishop  of  (Jlouitester,  was  tried  at  tin;  same  lime  with  Rogers, 
and  was  also  condemned  to  the  stake,  but,  with  a  refinement  upon  cruelly, 
he  was  not  executed  at  Smithfid  I.  tlioimh  tried  in  London,  but  sent  for 
that  purpose  into  his  own  diocese,  Ih.it  his  agoiiics  and  death  in  the  iniilst 
of  the  very  scene  of  his  labours  of  piety  and  iisefuliU'ss  niiglit  the  more 
efTectiially  strike  terror  into  the  lienrts  of  his  Hock.  Hooper,  however, 
lurned  what  his  enemies  intended  for  an  aggravation  of  his  fate  iiilo  a 
consolation,  ;ind  an  op|)ortuniiy  of  giving  lo  those  whom  he  had  long  ami 
faithfully  tauifht,  a  piirling  proof  of  llie  siiicerily  of  his  leachings,  and  ol 
the  efTicacy  of  genuine  religion  to  uphold  iis  sincere  believers,  even  iiiidei 
the  most  terrible  agonies  th;it  riilliless  and  misiaken  in:in,  in  liis  pride  ol 
flercencss,  can  inflict  upon  his  fellow  worm.  And  terrible,  even  heyoiiii 
tile  usual  terrors  of  these  alioniinabic  si'eiics,  were  the  tintiires  of  llie 
m^irlvred  Hooper.  The  facgots  provided  for  hiscxccuiion  were  loo  green 
III  kindle  rajitdly,  and,  a  high  wind  blowing  at  the  time,  the  flames  phiyed 


i     III 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


503 


niclty, 

111  fi)r 

iniilsl 

inori! 

mill  ;i 
iiji  and 

mil  ol 

iiiiiloi 
rnU'.  ol 
licyoiul 

of  llic 
njrt'i'ii 

pliiycd 


sround  his  lower  limbs  without  hein^r  Me  to  fasten  upon  the  vital  parts. 
One  of  ins  hamls  dropped  off,  and  with  the  other  lie  continued  to  beat  his 
breast,  praying  to  heaven  and  exhorting  the  pitying  spectators,  until  his 
swollen  tongue  coild  no  longer  perform  its  office;  and  it  was  tliree  quar- 
ters of  an  hour  before  his  tortures  were  at  an  end.  Of  the  courage  and 
sincerity  of  Hoopiir  there  is  striking  evidence  in  the  fact  that  the  queen's 
pardon  was  placed  before  him  on  a  stool  after  lie  was  tied  to  the  slake, 
but  he  ordered  it  to  be  removed,  preferring  the  direst  torture  with  sincerity, 
to  safely  with  apostaey. 

Sanders,  burned  at  Coventry,  also  had  the  queen's  pardon  offered  to 
him,  and  he  also  rejected  it,  embracing  the  stake  and  exclaiming,  "  We 
have  the  cross  of  Christ!  Welcome  everlasting  life."  Taylor,  the  cler- 
gyman of  Hadley,  in  Hertfordshire,  was  burned  at  that  place,  in  the  pres- 
ence of  his  parishioners.  When  tied  to  the  stake  he  began  to  pray  in 
English,  which  so  enraged  his  guards.  Dial,  bidding  him  speak  Latin,  they 
struck  him  so  violently  on  llie  head  with  their  halberls,  that  he  died  on  the 
instant,  and  was  spared  the  lingering  agonies  prepared  for  him. 

Pliilpot,  archdeacon  of  VVinchcsler,  had  very  greatly  distinguished 
hiinsi'|fl)y  hts  zeal  for  proiestaiuisin.  On  one  occasion,  being  engaged 
in  a  controversy  with  an  Ariaii,  the  zeal  of  the  archdeacon  so  far  got  the 
ascendancy  over  his  good  manners,  ihat  he  actually  spat  in  the  Arian's 
face.  Sulisequently,  and  when  he  might  have  been  expected  to  have  re- 
pented on  relleclion  of  what  he  had  done  in  the  heat  of  passion,  he  pub- 
lished a  formal  Juslirication  of  his  conduct,  in  which  he  said  that  he  felt 
bound  to  give  that  strong  proof  of  the  detestation  of  his  opponent's  blas- 
phemy. So  impetuous  a  man  was  not  likely  lo  escape  notice  in  the 
jiersecnticm  that  now  raged,  and  he  was  brought  to  trial  for  heresy  and 
burned  to  death  in  Sinithfield. 

IfCaruiner  was  the  person  to  whom  the  persecution  chiefly  owed  its 
coniHienceinenl,  it  was  Homier,  bishop  of  London,  who  carried  it  on 
with  the  coarsest  and  most  unrelenting  barbarity.  Apart  from  all  mere 
bigiiiry,  this  singularly  brutal  man  appeared  lo  derive  positive  sensual 
gralilicaiioii  from  the  act  of  iiiHiciing  torture.  He  occasionally,  when  he 
had  prisoners  under  examination  who  did  not  answer  to  his  satisfaction, 
would  have  them  stripped  and  flog  them  with  his  own  hand.  No."  was 
thi'^  his  worst  brutality.  An  unfortunate  weaver,  on  one  occasion,  re- 
fused to  recant,  when  Bonner  endeavoured  to  persuade  him,  and,  as  is 
veraciously  recorded,  this  distirace  of  his  sacred  profession  first  lore  tl;ei 
unfortunate  man's  heard  out  by  the  root,  and  then  held  his  hand  in  the 
flame  of  a  lamn  until  the  sinews  burst,  by  way  of  giving  him,  as  he  said, 
some  notion  of  what  burniiiK  really  way  like  ! 

When  we  say  that  this  horribh!  system  of  persecution  and  cruelty 
endured  for  three  years,  and  that  in  that  iniie  two  hundred  and  twenty- 
seven  persons  are  known  to  have  suffered — while  probably  many  more 
wert!  similarly  buU.'hered  of  whom  we  have  no  account— whili;  that,  be- 
si<les  men  of  all  ranks,  from  bishops  to  day-labourers,  fifty-five  women 
and  four  children  thus  perished,  it  must  be  obvious  that  a  detailiMl  account 
of  thi,?  terrible  season  of  cruelly  would  he  disgusting,  even  were  it  not 
quiie  impracticable.  We  shall,  therefore,  add  but  a  few  more  cases, 
and  then  leave  a  subject  which  cannot  be  treated  of  even  at  tlii»  distance 
of  lime  without  feelings  of  disgust  and  horror. 

Ferrar,  bishop  of  St.  David's,  in  Wales,  being  condemned  to  death  as  a 
lieretic,  appealed  to  ('ardinal  Pole  ;  but  his  appeal  was  wholly  uiiaitendcd 
to,  and  the  unfortunale  bishop  was  burned  in  his  own  diocese. 

There  yet  remained  two  still  more  illustrious  victims  to  be  immolated. 
Ridley,  formerly  bishop  of  Lomlon,  and  Latimer,  formerly  liislmiuif  Wor- 
ecsliT,  had  long  been  celebrated  for  both  the  zeal  and  (Mlicieiicy  of  thcur 
(tupportofthc  cause  of  the  reforiiialion.     In  the  preaching  of  boih  therf 


604 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


was  a  certain  nervous  lioineliiioas,  which  m;ide  their  eloquence  especially 
effective  npon  the  minils  an. I  hearts  of  the  lower  orders,  ami  on  thut  very 
acconnt  these  two  prelates  were  more  formidable  to  the  Uomanists  than 
they  wonlil  have  been  h:d  they  affected  a  more  learned  and  chastened 
style.  Ttiat  two  such  capital  enemies  of  Romanism  -one  of  whom  more- 
over, liad  even  for  some  time  been  possessed  of  Bonner's  own  see — should 
escape,  could  not  be  expected.  They  were  tried  and  eoiideoineil,  and 
both  burned  at  the  same  stake  at  Oxford.  Both  died  with  courage  and  a 
calm  constancy  not  to  be  surpassed.  Even  when  they  were  already  lied 
to  the  stake,  and  the  revolting  tragedy  commenced,  Latimer  cheerfully 
called  out,  "  Be  of  good  courage,  brother  Ridley,  we  shall  this  day  kindle 
such  a  torch  in  England,  as,  I  trust  in  God,  shall  never  be  extinguished." 
Latimer,  who  was  very  aged,  suffered  but  little,  being  very  early  killed  by 
the  ex()losion  of  some  gunpowder  which  the  executioner  had  mercifully 
provided  for  that  purpose ;  but  Ridley  was  seen  to  be  alive  some  time 
after  he  was  surrounded  by  flames. 

As  neither  age  nor  youth,  neither  learning  nor  courage,  could  make  any 
impression  upon  the  flinty  heart  of  Bonner,  so  neither  could  even  the  most 
heroic  proof  of  filial  piety.  A  y(ning  lad,  named  Hunter,  who  was  only 
in  his  nineteenth  year,  suffered  himself,  with  the  imprudence  common  to 
youth,  to  be  drawn  into  a  religions  argument  with  a  priest,  in  the  course 
of  wbieh  argument  he  iiad  the  farther  imprudence  todeny  the  real  presence. 
Subse(iiii!nily  he  began  to  apprehend  the  danger  of  what  he  had  done,  and 
absconded  lest  any  treachery  on  the  part  of  the  priest  should  involve  him 
in  puiiislimvnl.  The  priest,  as  the  young  man  had  feared,  did  give  infitr- 
mation,  and  Bonner,  learning  that  the  youth  had  abseonded,  caused  his 
father  to  be  seized,  and  not  only  treated  him  with  great  immediate 
severity,  but  threatened  him  with  still  worse  future  treatment.  The 
youth  no  sooner  heard  of  the  danger  and  trouble  to  which  he  had  imiii- 
tentioiially  (exposed  his  father,  than  he  delivered  himself  up.  To  a  gen- 
erous man  this  conduct  would  have  been  decisive  as  to  the  propriety  of 
overlooking  till!  lad's  speculative  error  or  boldness  ;  but  Bonner  knew  no 
remorse,  and  the  youth  was  merciles.sly  committed  to  the  flanK^s. 

A  still  more  disgraceful  and  barbarous  incident  o(;curred  in  Guern- 
sey. A  wretched  woman  in  that  island  was  condemned  to  the  slake, 
and  was,  when  led  to  punishment,  far  advanced  in  pregnancy.  The 
ineffable  pangs  inflicleil  upon  her  produced  labour,  and  one  of  the 
guards  snatched  the  new-born  infant  from  tlie  flamt^s.  A  brutal  and 
thoroughly  ignorant  magistrate  who  was  present  ordered  the  helpless 
litthi  innocent  to  be  thrown  back  again,  "  being  determined  that  noiliinij 
should  survive  which  sprung  from  so  heretical  and  obstinate  a  parent." 
Setting  aside  ihe  HbiuMTCiit  and  almost  incredible  offence  a^.^inst  humanity 
committed  by  th.s  detestable  magistrate,  he  was,  even  in  the  rigid  inter- 
prelation  of  the  law,  a  imirderer,  ami  ought  to  have  been  executed  as  one; 
for,  whalever  the  offence  of  the  wretclnid  mother,  the  child  idearly  was 
not  contemplated  in  the  sentence  passed  npon  her.  But,  alas!  the  spiiit 
of  bigotry  tramples  alike  upon  the  laws  of  nature  and  of  man;  ami  it  is 
probable  that  this  detestable  murderer,  so  far  from  receiving  merited  pun- 
ishment for  his  brutality,  might  have  been  even  applauded  Air  his  "zeal." 

As  ihongli  the  national  dread  ami  detestation  of  the  Spani.>ii  alliance  had 
not  already  beini  but  too  abundantly  justified  by  the  event,  spies  were 
sent  out  in  every  direction,  and  a  commission  was  a|)pointed  for  inquiring 
into  and  puMi.sliing  all  spiritual  and  even  some  civil  crinu's;  and  two  very 
brief  extracts  from  the  commissioN  and  instructions  will  show  that  in  oh- 
j<!ct,  [lowers,  and  process,  the  cominissioners  were,  only  under  anotlier 
name,  in(|nisitors,  and  their  spies  n\\i\  informers  officials  of  the  inqiiisltiuii. 
The  conimissicMi  said,  that  "  fSlnce  many  false  rumours  were  published 
among  the  "ubjects,  and  many  heretical  <>t'    ions  were  also  spread  ainuiiy 


them,  V 
by  Willi 
after  all 
books ; 
clnircli  I 
tlie  altai 
to  servi( 
holy  wa 
heresies 
punishec 
power  tc 
and  to  u! 
premises 
they  plea 
what  they 
inquisitio 
determin; 
"Tobr 
tice  of  th( 
joining  th 
confess,  a 
"Secie 
practice  o 
tices  of  th 
honest  oer 
mand  then 
out  such  pi 
shall  despj 
about  to  m 
also  that  tl 
justices  of 
it  shall  be 
such  suspe 
secretly  to  i 
''ons  befort 
were  accus 
This  prec 
"otoiily  th 
and  writing 
presently  b 
person."    1 
touch  of  hu 
Was  possibl 
''eritance,  fi 
'hem  to  soi_ 
condescend 
While  V\\ 
to  merit  the 
filled  the  pa 
rij^hl  of  co/j/ 
possessed  d 
and  to  insist 
Several  of  tl 
'"and  back  _ 
erishiiig  the 
judgment  of 
"lade  to  the 
by  saying  th 


THE  TIIEASURY  OF  HI8T0KY. 


605 


lis 


them,  the  commissioners  were  lo  iiiqnirc  into  these  either  by  presenfmeiits, 
by  witnesses,  or  any  other  political  way  they  could  devise,  and  lo  search 
after  all  heresies,  the  bringers  in,  ilm  sellers,  the  readers  of  all  heretical 
books  ;  to  examine  and  punish  all  inisbeliaviours  or  negligences  in  any 
clutrch  or  chapel ;  to  try  all  priests  that  did  not  preach  ihe  sacrament  of 
the  altar  ;  all  persons  that  did  not  hear  mass,  or  go  to  their  parish  church 
to  servicre;  that  would  not  go  in  processions  or  did  not  lake  holy  bread  or 
holy  water ;  and  if  they  found  any  that  did  obstinately  persist  in  such 
heresies,  they  were  to  put  them  into  the  hands  of  their  ordinaries,  to  be 
punished  according  to  the  spiritual  l-.iws ;  giving  the  commissioners  full 
power  to  proceed  as  their  diserelioii  and  consciences  should  direct  them, 
and  to  use  all  such  means  as  they  would  inrcid  for  the  searching  of  the 
premises,  empowering  thein,  also,  to  call  before  them  such  witnesses  as 
they  pleased,  and  to  Jhrce  them  m  make  oath  of  such  things  as  might  discover 
what  they  sought  after.''''  This  new  commission  was,  in  fact,  an  English 
inquisition ;  and  the  following  extract  from  Hume  abundantly  shows  the 
determination  that  that  inquisition  should  not  want  for  officials  imd  familiars. 

"To  bring  the  method  of  proceeding  in  England  still  nearer  to  the  prac- 
tice of  the  inquisition,  letters  were  wriitcn  to  Lord  North  and  others,  en- 
ioining  them 'to  put  to  the  torture' such  obstinate  persons  as  would  not 
confess,  and  there  to  order  them  at  their  discretion. 

"Secret  spies,  also,  and  informers  were  employed,  according  to  the 
practice  of  that  iniquitous  tribunal.  Instructions  were  given  to  the  jus- 
tices of  the  peace  that  they  shmild  '  call  secretly  before  them  one  or  two 
honest  persons  within  their  limits,  or  more,  at  their  discretion,  and  com- 
mand them,  by  oath  or  otherwise,  that  they  shall  secretly  learn  and  search 
out  such  persons  as  shall  evil  behave  themselves  in  the  church,  or  iiJly,or 
shall  despise,  openly  by  words,  the  king's  or  queen's  proceedings,  or  go 
about  to  make  any  commotion,  or  tell  any  seditious  tales  or  news.'  And 
also  that  the  same  persons,  so  to  be  appointed,  shall  declare  to  tiie  same 
justices  of  the  peace  the  ill  behaviour  of  lewd  disorderly  persons,  whether 
it  shall  be  for  using  unlawful  games  or  any  such  other  light  behaviour  of 
such  suspected  persons;  and  that  the  same  information  shall  be  given 
secretly  to  tlie  justices,  and  the  same  justices  shall  call  such  accused  per- 
sons before  them  and  examine  them,  without  declaring  by  whom  they 
were  accused." 

This  precious  commission  also  had  power  to  execute  by  martial  law 
not  only  the  putters  forth  of  all  heretical,  treasonable,  and  seditious  books 
and  writings,  but  also  all  "  whosoever  hiid  any  of  these  books  and  did  not 
presently  burn  them,  without  reading  them  or  showing  them  to  any  other 
person."  Did  not  the  whole  tenor  of  tiiis  portion  of  our  history  forbid  all 
touch  of  humour,  one  would  be  strongly  tempted  to  intiuire  how  a  man 
was  possibly  to  know  the  character  of  books  coming  to  him  by  gift  or  in- 
lierilance,  for  instance,  without  either  reading  them  himself  or  show  ing 
them  to  some  one  else  !  But  as  bigotry  cannot  feel,  so  neither  will  it 
condescend  to  reason. 

While  Philip  and  Mary  were  thus  exhibiting  an  evil  industry  and  zeal 
to  merit  the  reconcilement  of  the  kingdom  to  Rome,  Paul  IV.,  who  now 
filled  the  papal  throne,  took  advantage  of  Marv's  bigotry  to  assume  t!:e 
right  o{  conferring  upon  Mary  the  kingdom  of  Ireland,  which  she  already 
possessed  dejactoet  de  jure  as  p>rt  and  parcel  of  the  English  sovereignly, 
and  lo  insist  upon  the  restoration  to  Rome  of  certain  lands  and  mmicy ! 
Several  of  the  council,  probably  fcaiJng  that  by  degrees  Rome  would  de 
inand  back  all  tin;  church  properly,  pointed  out  the  great  riangerof  impov- 
erishing the  kingdom,  and  but  that  death  had  deprived  Mary  of  the  shrewd 
judgment  of  Gardiner,  such  concessiiuis  would  probably  not  have  been 
made  to  the  grasping  spirit  of  Uome.  But  Mary  replied  lo  all  objections 
by  saying  that  she;  preferred  the  salvation  of  he^  f  wn  soul  to  ten  such 


•'IS 

I  "I 


b06 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


I'l' 


kingdoms  as  England;  and  Heath,  archbishop  of  Canterbury,  who  had 
succeeded  Gardiner  in  the  possession  of  the  great  seal,  encouraged  her  in 
that  feeling.  A  bill  was  accordingly  presented  to  parliament  for  restoring 
to  tlie  church  the  tenths,  first  fruits,  and  all  impropriations  which  remained 
in  the  hands  of  the  queen.  At  first  sight  it  might  seem  that  parliament 
had  little  cause  or  right  to  interfere  in  a  matter  wliich,  as  far  as  the  terms 
of  liie  bill  went,  concerned  only  the  queen  herself.  But  the  lay  possessors 
of  church  lands  naturally  enough  considered  that  subjects  would  scarcely 
be  spared  after  the  sovereign  had  been  mulcted.  Moreover,  while  some, 
probably  a  great  number,  of  the  members  were  chiefly  moved  by  this  con- 
sideration, all  began  to  be  both  terrified  and  disgusted  by  the  cruel  execu- 
tions which  had  disgraced  the  whole  nation.  A  steady  opposition  conse- 
quently arose ;  and  when  the  government  applied  for  a  subsidy  for  two 
years  and  for  two-fifteenths,  the  latter  were  refused,  and  the  opposition, 
with  equal  bitterness  and  justice,  gave  as  the  reason  of  this  refusal,  that 
while  the  crown  was  wilfully  divesting  itself  of  revenue  in  behalf  of  Rome, 
it  was  quite  useless  to  bestow  wealth  upon  it.  The  dissatisfaction  of  the 
parliament  was  still  farther  evidenced  by  the  rejection  of  two  bills,  enact- 
ing penalties  against  such  e.\ilcs  as  should  fail  to  return  within  a  certain 
time,  and  for  incapacitating  for  the  office  of  justice  of  the  peace  such 
magistrates  as  were  remiss  in  the  prosecution  of  heretics.  This  fresh  and 
pointed  proof  of  the  displeasure  of  the  parliament  determined  the  queen 
to  dissolve  it.  But  the  dissolution  of  tlie  parliament  did  not  diminish  the 
pecuniary  embarrassment  of  the  queen.  Her  husband  had  now  been 
several  months  with  his  father  in  Flanders ;  and  the  very  little  of  his  cor- 
respondence with  which  he  favoured  her  chiefly  consisted  of  demands  for 
money.  Stern  and  unfeeling  as  she  was  to  every  one  else,  the  infatuated 
queen  was  passionately  attached  to  the  husband  who  certainly  took  no 
pains  to  conceal  his  dislike  of  her ;  and  as  the  parliament,  previous  to  its 
dissolution,  had  granted  her  but  a  scanty  supply,  slie  was  led,  by  iter 
anxiety  to  meet  her  husband's  demands,  to  extort  money  from  lier  subjects 
in  a  manner  the  most  unjustifiable.  From  each  of  one  thousand  persons, 
of  whose  personal  attachment  she  affected  to  be  quite  certain,  she  de- 
manded a  loan  of  60/. ;  and  even  this  large  sum  being  inadequate  to  her 
wants,  she  demanded  a  farther  general  loan  from  all  persons  possessing 
twenty  pounds  a  year  and  upwards;  a  measure  which  greatly  distressed 
the  smaller  gentry.  Many  of  them  were  obliged  by  her  inroads  upon 
their  purses  to  discharge  some  of  their  servants,  and  as  these  men  sml- 
denly  tiirown  upon  the  world  became  troublesome,  the  queen  issued  a 
proclamation  to  compel  their  former  employers  to  take  them  back  again! 
Upon  seven  thousand  yeomen  who  had  not  as  yet  contributed,  she  levied 
sixty  thousand  marks,  and  from  the  merchants  she  obtained  the  sum  of 
six  and  thirty  thousand  pounds.  She  also  extorted  money  by  the  most 
tyrannous  interference  with  trade,  as  regarded  both  the  foreign  and  nativp 
mcrchanis ;  yet  after  all  this  shameless  extortion  she  was  so  poor,  that 
she  off(!red,  and  in  vain,  so  bad  was  her  credit,  fourteen  per  cent,  for  a  loan 
of  30,000J.  Not  even  that  high  rate  of  interest  crould  '.iduce  the  merchants 
of  Antwerp,  to  whom  she  offered  it,  to  lend  her  the  .noney,  until  by  men- 
aces she  dad  induced  her  good  city  of  London  to  be  security  for  her! 
Who  would  iinagine  that  we  arc  writine  of  the  self-same  nation  that  so 
shortly  afterwards  warred  even  to  the  death  with  Charles  I.  for  the  com- 
paratively trifling  matter  of  the  ship  money? 

The  poverty  which  alone  had  induced  Philip  to  correspond  with  her  was 
now  terminated,  the  emperor  Charles  the  Fifth,  that  prince's  father,  resisfn- 
ing  to  him  all  his  wealth  and  dominion,  and  retiring  to  a  monastery  in 
Spain.  A  singular  anecdote  is  told  of  the  abdit^ated  nionarch.  He  spent 
much  of  his  time  in  the  construoling  of  watches,  and  finding  it  impossiljle 
to  make  •hem  go  exactly  alike,  he  retnarkcd  that  he  had  indeed  been  fool 


it  l:ll.:!tl 


THE  TKEASUHV  OF  HISTORY. 


50-7 


;;im '. 
ied 
of 

most 

ulivp 
ihiil 
loan 
ants 

mcu- 
her! 

ill  so 
com- 

r  \va3 
:sign- 
jry  in 
spent 
ssil)le 
fool 


iah  to  expect  that  he  could  compel  that  uniformity  in  minds  which  he  could 
not  achieve  even  in  mere  machines  !  The  reflection  thus  produ(  ed  is  said 
even  to  have  given  him  some  leaning  towards  those  theological  t)pinions 
of  which  he  and  his  son  had  been  the  most  brutal  and  ruthless  porsecnlors. 
A.  D.  1556. — Cranmer,  though  during  the  whole  of  this  reign  lie  h:id  been 
left  unnoticed  in  confinement,  was  not  forgotten  by  the  vindictive  queen 
She  was  daily  more  and  more  exacerbated  in  her  naturally  wretched  tem- 
per by  the  grief  caused  by  the  contemptuous  neglect  of  her  husband.  Her 
private  hours  were  spent  in  tears  and  complaints;  and  that  misery  which 
usually  softens  even  the  most  rugged  nature  had  in  her  case  only  the  effect 
of  making  her  still  more  ruthless  and  unsparing. 

Cranmer,  though  he  had  during  part  of  Henry's  reign  warded  off  that 
monarch's  rage  from  Mary,  was  very  much  hated  by  her  for  the  part  he 
had  taken  in  bringing  about  the  divorce  of  her  mother,  and  she  was  not 
only  resolved  to  punish  him,  but  also  to  make  his  death  as  agonising  as 
possible.  For  the  part  he  had  taken  in  the  opposition  to  her  ascending 
the  throne  she  could  easily  have  had  him  beheaded,  but  nothing  short  of 
the  flames  seemed  to  her  to  he  a  sufficiently  dreadful  punishment  for  him. 
She  caused  the  pope  to  cite  him  to  Rome,  there  to  take  his  trial  for  heresy. 
Being  a  close  prisoner  in  the  Tower,  the  unfortunate  prelate  perforce  neg- 
lected the  citation,  and  he  was  condemned  par  contumace,  and  sentenced 
to  the  stake.  The  next  step  was  to  degrade  him  from  his  sacred  office; 
and  Bonner,  who,  with  Thirleby,  bishop  of  Kly,  was  entrusted  with  this 
task,  performed  it  with  all  the  insolent  and  triumphant  brutality  consonant 
with  his  nature.  Firmly  believing  that  Cranmer's  eternal  as  well  as  earthly 
punishment  was  assured,  the  queen  was  not  yet  contented ;  she  would 
fain  deprive  him  in  his  last  hours  even  of  human  sympathy,  and  the  credit 
attached  to  consistency  and  fidelity  to  the  cause  he  had  embraced.  Per- 
sons were  employed  to  persuade  him  thai  the  door  of  mercy  was  still  open 
to  him,  and  that  he,  who  was  so  well  qualified  to  be  of  wide  and  perma- 
nent service  to  mankind,  was  in  duty  bound  to  save  himself  by  a  seeming 
compliance  with  the  opinions  of  *.he  queen.  The  fear  of  death,  and  the 
strong  urgings  of  higher  motives,  induced  Cramner  to  comply,  and  he 
agreed  to  subscribe  to  the  doctrines  of  the  real  presence  and  the  papal 
supreuiacr.  Shallow  writers  have  blamed  Cranmer  for  this  compliance ; 
none  will'do  so  who  consider  "how  fearfully  and  how  wonderfully  we  are 
made"— in  mind  as  well  as  in  body;  how  many  and  urgent  were  the  mo- 
tives to  this  weakness,  how  much  his  mind  was  shaken  by  long  peril  anil 
imprisonment,  and,  above  all,  who  remember  and  reflect  how  nobly  he 
subsequently  shook  off  all  earthly  motives  "like  dew  drops  from  the  lion's 
mane,"  and  with  what  calm  and  holy  serenity  he  endured  the  last  dread 
tortiiri's. 

Having  induced  Cranmer  privately  to  sign  his  recantation,  the  queen 
now  demanded  that  he  should  complete  the  wretched  price  of  his  safety 
by  publicly  making  his  rccantaticMi  at  St.  Paul's  before  the  whole  people, 
•■""'en  this  would  not  have  saved  Cranmer.  But,  either  from  his  own 
judgment,  or  from  the  warning  of  some  secret  friend,  Cranmer  perceived 
that  it  was  intended  to  send  him  to  execution  the  moment  that  he  should 
thus  have  completed  and  published  his  degradation.  .\ll  his  former  high 
and  courageous  spirit  was  now  again  aroused  within  him  ;  and  hv.  not  only 
refused  to  comply  with  this  new  dcnnmd,  but  openly  and  boldly  said  that 
the  only  passage  in  his  life  of  which  he  deeply  and  painfully  repented  was, 
that  recantation  which,  in  a  moment  of  natural  weakness,  he  already  had 
been  induced  to  make.  He  now,  he  said,  most  sincerely  repented  .ind  dis- 
avowed that  recantation,  and  inasmuch  as  his  haiut  had  ofl'cnded  in  signing 
it,  so  should  his  hand  first  sufl^er  the  doom  which  only  thai  single  weak- 
ness and  insincerity  had  made  him  dcservinsf.  The  rage  of  liie  irourt  a.:-' 
\U  sycophants  at  hearing  a  [lublic  avowal  so  different  from  that  which 


'   iji 


mm) 


608 


THE  TllEASnilY  OK  HISTOll 


Ihey  expected,  scarcely  left  them  as  much  dt'ct'iicy  of  patience  as  would 
allow  them  to  hear  him  to  the  end  of  his  discourse;  and  the  instant  that 
he  ceased  to  speak  he  was  led  away  to  tiie  slake. 

True  to  his  promise,  Craiuiier  wh(!u  the  fajfgots  were  lighted  held  out 
his  hand  into  the  risiiiij  flames  until  it  was  coiisuuied,  repeatedly  exclaim- 
ing as  he  did  so, '^  Thi  i  uitworlhy  hand  V  "  This  hutid  has  offended P'  Tho 
fierce  flames,  as  they  readied  his  hody,  were  not  able  to  subdue  the  sub- 
lime sereiiiiy  to  which  he  liad  wrouirht  his  christian  courage  and  endurance, 
and  as  Imiw  as  his  eouiitenauce  was  visible  to  the  appalled  bystanders,  it 
wore  tlie  character  not  of  agony  but  of  a  holy  sacrifice,  not  of  despair  but 
of  an  assured  and  eternal  hope.  It  is  said  by  some  Protestant  writers  of 
the  time,  that  when  the  sad  scene  was  at  an  end,  his  heart  was  found  en- 
tire and  uninjured  ;  hut  probably  this  assertion  took  its  rise  in  the  singular 
constancy  and  calmness  with  which  the  martyr  died.  Cardinal  Pole,  on 
the  death  of  Cranmer,  was  made  archbishop  of  Canterbury.  But  though 
this  ecclesiastic  was  a  man  of  great  hunianity  as  well  as  of  great  ability, 
and  though  he  was  sincerely  anxious  to  serve  the  great  interests  of  religion 
not  by  ensnaring  and  destroying  the  unhappy  and  ignorant  laity,  but  by 
elevating  the  clergy  in  the  moral  and  intellectual  scale,  to  render  them 
more  efRinent  in  their  awfully  important  service,  there  were  circumstances 
which  made  his  power  far  inferior  to  his  will.  He  was  personally  disliked 
at  Rome,  where  his  tolerance,  his  learning,  and  his  addiction  to  studious 
retirement,  had  caused  iiim  to  be  suspected  of,  at  least,  a  leaning  to  the 
new  doctrines. 

A.  D.  1557. — In  the  midst  of  Mary's  fierce  persecutions  of  her  protestant 
aubjecls,  she  was  self-tortured  beyond  all  that  she  had  it  in  her  power  to 
inflict  on  others,  and  might  have  asked,  in  the  words  of  the  dying  Inca  to 
liis  complaining  soldiers,  "  Think  you  that  /,  then,  am  on  a  bed  of  roses  1" 
War  raged  between  France  and  Spain,  and  next  to  her  desire  firmly  to  re- 
establish Catholicism  in  I']ngland,  was  her  desire  to  lavish  the  blood  and 
treasures  of  her  people  on  the  side  of  Spain.  Some  opposition  being  made 
Philip  visited  London,  and  the  queen's  zeal  in  his  cause  was  increased, 
instead  of  being  as  in  the  case  of  a  nobler  spirit  it  would  have  been,  utterly 
destroyed,  by  his  sullen  declaration,  that  if  Kngland  did  not  join  him  against 
France,  he  would  see  England  no  more.  Kveii  this,  however  much  it  af- 
fected the  queen,  did  not  bear  down  the  opposition  to  a  war  which,  as  the 
clearer-headed  members  discerned,  would  be  intoleraWy  expensive  in  any 
case,  and,  if  suc<!essful,  would  tend  to  make  England  a  mere  dependeivcy 
of  Spain.  Under  the  circumstances,  a  true  English  patriot,  indeed,  must 
have  wished  to  see  Spain  humbled,  not  exalted;  crippled  in  its  finances, 
not  enriched.  It  unfortunately  happened,  however,  that  an  attempt  was 
made  to  seize  Scarborough,  and  Stafford  and  Ji's  fellows  in  this  attempt 
confessed  that  they  were  incited  to  it  by  Henry  of  iTaiice.  This  declar- 
ation called  up  all  the  dominant  national  antipathy  to  France  ;  the  prurtem  c 
of  the  opposition  was  at  once  laid  asleep ;  war  was  de(!lared,  and  every 
preparation  that  the  wretched  financial  state  of  England  would  permit, 
was  made  for  carrying  it  on  with  vigour.  By  dint  of  a  renewal  of  the 
most  s'haineless  and  excessive  extortion,  the  queen  contrived  to  raise  and 
equip  an  army  of  ten  thousand  men,  who  were  sent  to  Flanders  under  the 
earl  of  PtMnbroke.  To  prevent  disturbances  at  home,  Mary,  in  obedience 
probably  to  the  advice  of  her  cold  and  cruel  husband,  caused  many  of  the 
first  men  in  England,  from  whom  she  had  any  reason  to  fear  opposition, 
to  be  seized  and  imprisoned  in  places  where  even  their  nearest  friendi 
could  not  find  them. 

The  details  of  the  military  affairs  between  France  and  Spain  with  her 
English  auxiliaries  belong  to  the  history  of  France.  In  this  place  it  may 
Buflice  to  say.  that  the  talents  of  Guise  rendered  all  attempts  useless  ;  and 
and  that,  so  far  from  benefiting  Philip,  the  English  lost  Calais,  that  key  te 


France,  ( 
uiipairio 
was  oftpi 
her  deatl 
But  regrt 
success  I 
her  very 
from  an  c 
Philip  c 
drawn  fro 
toralioii  o 
der  a  drop 
after  a  moi 
''''lis  mise 
sole  good, 
"lis  virtue 
'iistorian. 
But  why? 
by  lier  tanii 
li"od,  after 
days,  while 
ability  of  I 
that  she  coi 
proteslanis 
yet  she  no  i 
'ered  her  pi 
and  cruelty 
"hich  even 
Of  the  Ui. 


»■  D.  1558.1 
di'^gusted  hel 
"pillions,  thai 
C'l  and  almol 
been  called 
Heath,  as  cli 
conclude  erel 
Klizabeth ! 
Doep  and 
qufien  n,  !:nv| 
'o  a  nation  prl 
Elizabeth,  ■ 
"cld,  where  ; 
""•'iitifor,  evtj 
younger  siste] 
o<'casion  to  bil 
'"  "10  appear,! 
abode  in  the  [ 
8'juices  nnderl 
^^'len  she  waJ 
'Pr  "len  all-n.l 
KiK^'Js  and  r..ti| 
from  -iaiiger 


ifM 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


509 


very 

rmit, 

the 

iind 

the 

pui'e 

f  the 

iiion, 

ric'iuli 


th  her 
nwy 
and 
key  tf 


France,  of  which  England  was  so  chary  and  so  proud.  Evi,ii  the  cold  and 
uiipairiotic  heart  of  Mary  was  touched  by  this  capital  inisfortuni!;  and  she 
was  often  heard  to  say,  in  the  agonies  of  her  uxorious  grief,  that,  after 
her  death  "Calais"  would  be  found  visibly  graven  upon  her  broken  heart. 
But  regrets  were  vain,  and  wisdom  came  too  late.  France  improved  her 
success  by  stiiruig  up  the  Scotch;  and,  with  such  a  danger  threatening 
her  very  frontier,  England  was  obliged  sullenly  and  silently  to  withdraw 
from  an  onerous  warfare,  whicli  she  had  most  unwisely  entered  upon. 

Philip  continued  the  war  for  some  time  after  England  had  virtually  with- 
drawn from  it;  and  he  was  negotiating  a  peace  and  insisting  upon  the  res- 
toration of  Calais  as  one  of  its  conditions,  when  Mary,  long  labouring  un- 
der a  dropsy,  was  seized  with  mortal  illness  and  died,  in  the  year  1588, 
after  a  most  wretched  and  mischievous  reign  of  five  years  and  four  months. 
This  miserable  woman  has  been  allowed  the  virtue  of  sincerity  as  the 
sole  good,  the  one  oasis  in  the  dark  desert  of  her  charai-ter.  Uul  even 
this  virtue  must,  on  careful  examination,  be  denied  to  her  by  the  impartial 
'iistorian.  As  a  whole,  indeed,  her  course  is  not  marked  by  in8in(*erity, 
Bat  why]  Her  ferocity  and  despotism  were  too  completely  unresisted 
by  her  tame  and  aghast  people  to  leave  any  room  for  the  exercise  of  false- 
hood, after  the  very  first  days  of  her  disgraceful  reign.  But  in  those  first 
days,  while  it  was  yet  uncertain  whether  she  could  resist  the  p(jwer  and 
ability  of  the  ambitious  and  unprincipled  Northumberland,  she  proved 
that  she  could  use  guile  where  force  was  wanting.  Her  promises  to  tho 
prolestanis  were  in  many  cases  voluntary,  and  in  all  profuse  and  positive  i 
yet  she  no  sooner  grasped  the  sceptre  firmly  in  her  hand,  than  she  scat- 
tered her  promises  to  the  wmds,  and  commenced  that  course  of  bigotry 
and  cruelty  which  h.w  Tor  ever  affixed  to  her  memory  the  loatlicd  name, 
wliiclieven  \  ft  no  Kiiiilishinan  can  pronounce  without  horror  and  disgust, 
of  the  Bi,     iiv  Queen  Marv. 


CHAPTER  XLVI. 


THE    REIGN    OK    ILIZARETH. 


A.  D.  1558. — So  completely  had  the  arbitrary  and  cruel  reign  of  Mary 
disgusted  her  subjects,  almost  witliout  disliiiclion  of  rank  or  religious 
opinions,  that  the  acces.slon  of  Klizabeth  was  li;iiled  as  a  blcssiiiij  inialloy- 
ed  and  almost  too  great  to  have  been  hoped  for.  The  parliament  had 
been  called  together  a  few  days  before  tlie   dealii  of  Mary,  and  when 


.as  hardly  allowed  to 
ry  of  "  God  save  Queen 


offences  of  the  deceased 
•ct  of  joy,  instead  of  grief, 

■  no  Fnaland  ! 


Heath,  as  chancellor,  announced  that  event 
conclude  ere  both  liouses  burst  into  t'le  joy fn 
Elizabeth!     Long  and  happily  may  she  reign!" 

Deep  and  deadly  indeed  must  have  been  tht 
queen  n,  \i^ve  rendered  her  death  an  actual  sub 
ton  nation  proveiIiir.!!y  «"  loviil  .md  ntTi'ctiniv.u. 

Klizabeth,  when  she  received  the  news  of  her  sister's  death  was  at  Hat- 
field, where  she  had  for  some  time  resided  in  studious  and  close  retire 
ment ;  for,  even  to  the  last,  Mary  had  shown  that  her  malignity  against  her 
younger  sister  had  suffered  no  abatement,  and  required  only  the  sliglitest 
occasion  to  burst  out  iu  fat:d  violence.  When  she  had  devoted  a  few  days 
to  the  appearance  of  mourning,  she  proceeded  to  London  and  took  up  hei 
abode  in  the  Tower.  The  remembrancro  of  the  very  different  circiim- 
stajices  under  whicl  she  had  formerly  visited  that  blood-stained  fortnss, 
when  she  was  a  pr  soner,  and  her  life  in  danger  from  the  malignity  of 
I'lCr  then  all-powerful  sister,  affected  her  so  much,  that  she  fell  upon  her 
kiincs  and  returned  thanks  anew  to  the  Almighty  for  her  safe  deliver.iiir'C 
from  danger,  which,  she  truly  said,  was  scarcely  inferior  to  that  of  Daniel 


610 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


M.:i 


in  the  (leu  of  lions.  Her  immediately  subsequent  conduct  showed  that 
her  heart  was  properly  aflTected  by  the  emotions  which  called  forth  thi«  act 
of  piety.  She  had  been  much  injured  and  much  insulted  during  the  life 
of  her  sister;  for  such  was  the  hateful  and  petty  cast  of  Mary's  mind, 
that  there  were  few  readier  ways  to  win  her  favour  than  by  insult  or  in- 
jury to  the  then  friendless  daughter  of  Anne  Doleyn.  But  Elizabeth  now 
seemed  determined  only  to  remember  the  past  in  her  thankfulness  for  her 
complete  and  almost  miraculous  deliverance  from  danger.  She  allowed 
neither  word  nor  glance  to  express  resentment,  even  to  those  who  iiad 
most  ijijured  her.  Sir  H.  Bedingfield,  who  had  for  a  considerable  time 
been  her  host,  and  who  had  both  harshly  and  disrespectfully  caused  lier 
to  feel  that,  though  nominally  his  guest  and  ward,  she  was  in  reality  his 
jealously-watched  prisoner,  might  very  reasonably  have  expected  a  cold 
if  not  a  stern  reception;  but  even  this  man  she  received  with  affability 
when  he  first  presented  himself,  and  never  afterwards  inflicted  any  severer 
punishment  upon  him  than  a  good-humoured  sarcasm.  The  sole  case 
m  which  she  manifested  a  feeling  of  dislike  was  that  of  the  brutal  and 
blood-stained  Bonner,  from  whom,  while  she  addressed  all  the  other 
bishops  with  almost  affectionate  cordiality,  she  turned  away  with  an  ex- 
pressive and  well-warranted  appearance  of  horror  and  disgust. 

As  soon  as  the  necessary  attention  to  her  private  affairs  would  allow 
liir,  Vhe  new  queen  sent  off  messengers  to  foreign  courts  to  announce  her 
sister's  death  and  her  own  accession.  The  envoy  to  Philip,  who  at  this 
time  was  in  Flanders,  was  the  lord  Cobham,  who  was  ordered  to  return 
the  warmest  tlianks  of  his  royal  mistress  for  the  protection  he  had  afforded 
her  when  she  so  much  needed  it,  and  to  express  her  sincere  and  earnest 
desire  that  their  friendship  might  continue  unbroken.  The  friendly  ear- 
nestness of  Elizabeth's  message  strengthened  Philip  in  a  determination  he 
had  nuide  even  during  the  illness  of  Mary,  of  whose  early  death  he  could 
not  but  have  been  expectant,  and  he  immediately  instructed  his  ambassa- 
dor to  the  court  of  London  to  offer  the  hand  of  Philip  to  Eii/.alielh. 
Blinded  by  his  eager  desire  to  obtain  that  doiniiuon  over  England  which 
his  marriage  with  Mary  had  faih.'d  to  secure,  Philip  forgot  tliat  tliere 
were  many  oljjections  to  this  measure;  ohjectioiis  which  he,  intl(UMl, 
would  easily  have  overlooked,  but  which  tlio  sagacious  Elizab(nh  couM 
not  fa  I  to  notice.  As  a  catholic,  Philip  was  necessarily  disliked  l)y  the 
protestants  who  had  so  lately  tasted  of  catholic  pcrsccntio4i  in  its  worst 
form ;  as  a  Spaniard,  lie  was  cordially  detested  by  Eiiglislimen  of  cither 
creed.  Hut  apart  from  and  beyond  these  weighty  olijei^tions,  wtiicli  of 
themselves  would  have  been  fatal  to  his  pretensions,  be  stood  in  precisely 
the  same  relationship  to  Elizabctii  that  her  fallier  had  stood  in  to  (.'atli- 
arine  of  Arragoii,  and  in  inarrving  Philip,  Elizabeth  would  virtually,  ami 
in  a  manner  which  the  world  would  surely  not  overlook,  pronounce  lier 
mother's  marriage  illegal  and  her  own  birth  illegitimate.  This  Inst  con- 
sideration alone  would  have  decided  lOlizalieth  iigainsl  Philip;  hut  while 
in  her  heart  she  was  fully  and  irrevocalily  determined  never  to  marry  hiin, 
she  even  thus  early  brought  into  use  that  (hiiilicity  for  which  slii'  was 
aflerwanls  as  reinarkabh-  as  for  her  higher  and  nobler  (lualities,  and  sent 
him  so  eijuivocal  aiHl  undecided  an  answer,  that,  so  far  from  des|i!iiiiiiu 
of  success,  Philip  actually  sent  to  Koint!  to  solicit  the  dispensation  that 
would  be  necessary. 

With  her  characteristie  prudence,  Elizabeth,  through  her  ambassailor  at 
Rome,  aiinouiiccd  her  accession  to  the  pojie.  'i'hal  exalteil  pcrsonaije 
was  grieved  at  the  early  death  of  .Mary,  not  only  as  it  deprived  l!iii"e  o' 
tile  benefit  of  her  liigotry,  hut  as  it  mad(!  way  for  a  princess  who  was 
already  lonkcil  up  to  with  pride  and  ctuifidein'e  by  the  prolesinii's ;  and 
he  siilicred  Ins  double  vexation  to  uianifent  itself  with  ii  very  indiscreet 
eiM-'iKV*      lie  treated  Elizabeth's  nssum[ition  of  tlu^  crown  without  hn 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


511 


IcrsKiiiiun 

li;()i"t'  ()' 

Vvllll    W'.IS 

|iits;  aixl 
|iulisfri'i'< 
llioul  111* 


permission  as  being  doubly  wrong;  wrong,  as  treating  witn  disrespect 
the  holy  see,  to  which  he  still  deemed  England  subject,  and  wrong,  as  the 
holy  see  had  pronounced  her  birth  illegitimate.  This  sort  of  conduct 
was  by  no  means  calculated  to  succeed  with  Elizabeth ;  she  immediately 
recalled  her  ambassador  from  Home,  and  only  pursued  her  <;ourse  with 
the  more  resolved  and  open  vigour.  She  recalled  home  all  who  had  been 
exiled,  and  set  at  liberty  all  who  had  been  imprisoned  for  their  religious 
opinions  during  the  reign  of  her  sister;  she  caused  the  greater  part  of 
the  service  to  be  performed  in  FiUglish,  and  she  forba(>3  the  elevation  of 
the  host  in  her  own  chapel,  which  she  set  up  as  the  standard  for  all  other 
places  of  worship.  But,  always  cool  and  cautious,  Klizithcih,  while  she 
did  thus  much  and  thus  judiciously  to  favour  the  reformers,  did  not  neg- 
lect 10  discourage  those  who  not  only  would  have  fain  outstripped  her  in 
advancing  reform,  but  even  have  inflicted  upon  the  Romanists  some  of 
the  persecutions  of  which  they  themselves  had  complained.  On  occasion 
of  a  petition  being  presented  to  her,  it  was  said,  in  that  partly  quaint  and 
partly  argumentative  style  which  in  that  age  was  so  greatly  affected,  that 
having  graciously  released  so  many  other  prisoners,  it  was  to  be  imped 
that  she  would  receive  a  petition  for  the  release  of  Matthew,  Mark,  Luke 
and  John.  Being  as  yet  undetermined  as  to  the  extent  to  which  it  would 
be  desirable  to  permit  or  encourage  the  reading  of  the  Scriptures,  she 
readily  replied,  that  previous  to  doing  so  she  must  consult  those  prison- 
ers, and  learn  whether  they  desired  their  liberty.  To  preaching  slie  was 
never  a  great  friend ;  one  or  two  preachers,  she  was  wont  to  say,  were 
enough  for  a  whole  county.  And,  at  this  early  period  of  her  reitiii,  she 
deemed  that  the  indiscreet  zeal  of  many  of  the  most  noted  of  the  pro- 
tcstaiit  preachers  was  calculated  to  promote  that  very  persecution  of  the 
Honiaiilsis  which  she  was  especially  anxious  to  avoid  ;  and  she,  conse- 
quently, forbade  all  preaching  save  hy  specrial  license,  and  took  care  to 
grant  licenses  only  to  men  of  discretion  and  moderation,  from  whose 
preaching  no  evil  was  to  be  apprehended. 

The  parliament  was  very  early  employed  in  passing  laws  for  the  sup- 
pressi(Mi  of  the  recently  erected  monasteries,  and  restoring  the  alien- 
nifd  tenths  and  first  fruits  to  the  crown.  Sundry  other  laws  were  passed 
chiefly  rclatitig  to  reliulon;  but  those  laws  will  be  sufficiently  under- 
stood hy  those  who  have  a'lPiitively  ai'companied  us  thus  far,  when  we 
siiy,  that  they,  sulistaniially,  abolished  all  that  Mary  had  done,  and  re- 
stored all  that  she  had  ahroi,  ted  of  tlie  laws  of  Edward. 

The  then  bishops,  owing  everything  to  her  sister  and  to  Catholicism, 
were  so  greatly  offended  by  these  clear  indications  of  her  iiittinled 
course,  that  they  refused  to  officiate  at  her  coroiiatioii,  and  it  was  not 
without  Home  difficulty  tliat  the  bishop  of  Carlisle  was  at  leiigl'i  pre- 
vailed upon  to  perform  the  ceremony. 

The  most  i)riiilciil  and  eireclUMl  steps  having  thus  been  taken  to  se- 
cure the  piotestaiit  interests  without  in  any  degree  awakening  <m'  en- 
cniiriigiiig  whatever  there  might  be  of  jirotestant  higoiv,  and  to  despoil 
llie  Itoiiiiuiisls  of  what  they  hail  vicdeiitly  ai  quired  witlmiit  drivinLr  Ihrm 
to  desperation,  tlie  queen  (■ailsed  a  solenin  disputalinll  to  lie  lielil  hefori' 
ll;ic,ri,  vvlioiii  .ilie  had  maih-  lord  keeper,  between  llie  prolestjint  and  the 
IfiiMKiiiist  divines.  The  latter  were  vaiiqiiislied  in  aiizuineiit,  liui  were 
til"  "ilistiiialc  to  confess  it ;  anil  some  o(  tlieiii  were  so  relVacicn  v  that 
it  was  deemed  necessary  lo  imprison  tin  in.  Having  been  tliiis  lar  In- 
lanpliaiii,  the  pr(tte^tallts  iirnceedi  d  to  their  iiltiinaie  and  inofst  iiii|'iirt:iiit 
^•I'p;  aiiil  a  lull  was  pi^s^ed  by  which  the  mass  was  aludmliid,  and  the 
liturgy  of  Iviiig  Edward  re-estnlili.shed ;  and  penalties  wen^  eiitcteil 
'igiunsi  all  who  shdiild  either  absent  tlieinselves  from  «or>'liip  or  diqiarl 
fnin  the  (iriler  heri!  laid  down.  Ib'fuie  the  roiielilsion  of  tlii'  seni-uin, 
liie  piirli'iiiieiit  gave  a  still  farther  proof  of  its  attiicliin"iit  lo  tlii'   ipieen, 


512 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY 


and  of  it'?  desire  to  aid  her  in  tier  desiirns.  by  voting  her  a  subsidy  (v 
four  sliilliii<rs  in  the  poiiiid  on  liiml,  and  two-:in>l-eicrht-pence  on  goods 
with  two  fifteenths.  Weil  i<novvjiiir  all  the  dangers  of  a  disputed  sue 
cession,  the  piirlianient  nt  the  siinie  time  petitioned  her  to  choose  a  lius 
b.ind.  But  the  queen,  though  she  aeknowledi^cd  that  the  petition  was 
couched  in  terms  so  gciUTHl  and  so  respectful  that  she  could  not  take 
any  ofTtMiee  at  it,  protested  that,  idways  nndesirous  of  changing  her  con- 
dition, she  was  anxious  only  to  he  the  wife  of  Kngland  and  the  mother 
of  the  Knglish,  and  had  no  hijrher  ambitimi  thai-,  to  have  for  her  epitaph, 
"  Here  lies  Elizabeth,  who  lived  and  died  a  maidoii  queen." 

A.  1).  1559. — The  parliament  Just  prorogued  had,  as  we  have  shown,  got 
through  a  vast  deal  of  important  business  in  the  session  ;  but  though  that 
WHS  the  first  session  of  a  new  reign,  a  reign,  too,  immediately  following  one 
in  which  such  horrors  of  tyrannous  cruelty  had  been  enacted,  it  is  to  be  re- 
marked, to  the  praise  of  the  moderation  of  both  queen  and  parliament,  that 
not  a  ^sillgle  bill  of  attainder  was  pissed,  thmigh  some  attaints  by  former 
parliaments  were  mercifully  or  justly  removed. 

Wliiltr  the  queen  had  been  thus  wisely  busy  at  home,  she  had  been  no 
less  active  abroad.  Sensible  ilint  her  kingdom  required  a  long  season  of 
repose  to  enable  it  to  regnin  its  power,  she  ordered  her  ambassadors, 
Lord  KiBngharn  and  the  bishop  of  Kly,  to  conclude  peace  with  Frani^e  on 
any  terms;  and  peace  was  accoriliiigly  concluded.  Uut  as  the  marriiige 
of  Henry  and  Anne  Uoleyn  had  been  concluded  in  open  opposition  to 
lloiiic,  Krance  chose  to  ilntMU  Kluahelli  wrongfully  seated  upon  lliu 
throne;  and  the  duke  of  (Jiiisc  and  Ins  brothers,  seeing  that  Mary,  ()iiei'ii 
of  Sects,  the  wife  of  the  daii|iliiii.  would — supposing  Klizabeth  out  of  the 
question — be  the  rightful  heir,  (ler.sn.Kled  the  king  of  France  to  order  his 
sou  and  his  daiighter-iti-liw  to  asMinie  both  the  title  and  the  arms  of 
I'lngiand.  The  death  of  Henry  of  France  al  a  tournament  not  being  fol- 
lowed by  any  abandoiunent  on  the  pari  of  Mary  and  her  husband,  ilicn 
Francis  |[.  of  Frunze,  of  this  most  nnwarrantaiile  and  insulting  assiimp- 
tioii,  F.lizabiah  was  i>lnng  into  Oh:  coinnieni-ement  of  that  deadly  halreil 
wlili-h  subsequently  proved  so  fatal  to  the  fairer  but  less  prudent  Mary  uf 
Scotliiiid. 

A.  n.  15t)l. — The  sitintion  of  Scotland  and  the  eircumstances  wliii'li 
oi'i'iirred  there  at  tins  ficrioil  will  lie  found  In  all  necessary  detail  iiiiijer 
the  proper  lieail.  It  will  siidice  to  say,  here,  lliat  the  theological  and  civil 
dis|iiM(s  that  riiged  fiercely  iiiiKMig  the  liirbnlent  and  warlike  nobility  ol 
ScDihind  and  their  rcsprclivc  follow. ■r?',  iiliinged  Ibiit  country  iiilo  a  siati; 
of  confusion,  which  encoiiniged  lOliZiibetli  in  her  hope  of  e.viorliiig  fruiii 
Mary,  now  a  widow,  a  cleiir  and  salisfactory  iibaiidoiiment  of  her  assiiiii|i- 
tioii;  an  aliandonmcnt  wlii.-li,  Indeed.  h,ii|  been  made  for  her  by  a  iriMiy 
at  I'lijiiilinrgh,  wlucli  treaty  Flizalieth  now,  through  'riirogminMoii,  licr 
ainliiiss.i  lor,  denmnded  that  M  uy  should  r  itify.  lint  wilfulness  and  a 
cerfaiii  petty  woiii.Tiily  pique  ilctermined  Mary  to  refuse  this,  aliliniiijli 
iiiinii  diali'ly  on  the  deith  of  Ipt  husband  she  hiid  laid  a^ide  both  the  Mile 
and  the  arms  of  ijiiei'ii  of  Fngl  uid. 

.\Iary's  residence  in  Fr;iiici',  inranwliile,  h;id  become  viTy  disaitrceahle 
U>  liiT  tioiii  the  ill-olfices  of  iln'  (|iii'('n  mother,  and  she  resolved  to  com- 
ply with  the  invitation  of  ilie  stales  of  Scotland  to  return  to  tli.at  kimiiloiii. 
She  iiccordinijly  ordered  her  .inili  isstdor,  D'Oifcl,  to  ;ip|)lv  to  Fli/iihi|li 
for  a  safe  eoiidit''t  thiiMiu''i  FiiLiland  ;  but  Klizabeth,  throiigli  'riirogmoiion 
refiisr  I  compliance  with  ih  t'  reijiiest,  except  on  eondition  of  .NlaryV  r:it- 
ilieaiion  of  the  tnaiy  of  I'Minluiriih.  Mary  remoiistrafed  in  sevi're  iIiohliIi 
idiasicned  terms,  and  imniedialidy  detertiiineil  upon  proceedinir  to  Srot- 
land  by  sea,  for  wlindi  piirpogc  .she  embarked  at  C.ilais.  F.liz.ibelh  ;it  llie 
tame  tune  Mint  out  ernisi'rs,  o^lenslbly  to  pursue  pirates,  but,  :is  it  should 
■eem,  with  the  inteiiiion  of  seizing  iipim  the  person  of  .Mary,  vslio,  luov- 


m 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


497 


whii'ti 

nil  iiii'ler 

iiiMil  civil 

ihiliiv  I'l 

•,i  siuti; 

iiiiu  Inmi 

,i>simip- 

;i  iriMiy 

iiiitl  ;i 

lilllli»li!'l 
U  ilH-  ii'le 

.(I  111  I't'in- 
Uiimiloiiv 

Kli/.;il"'i'' 

•OjillV'lliill 

liirv's  rut- 

,_,    IK  Silll- 

"itli  '.It  tin' 

is  If*!!""!'' 

(wild,  li"**'- 


f 


her.  She  (rave  him  her  tablets  in  which,  on  seeing  the  dend  body  of  her 
husband,  she  h;id  writteii  a  sentence  in  Greek,  Latin,  and  hJnglish,  to  the 
eflect  that  though  human  justice  was  against  her  hu.'^band's  body,  the  di- 
vine mercy  would  be  favourable  to  his  soul ;  that,  for  herself,  il  her  fault 
deserved  punishment,  her  youth,  at  least,  and  her  imprudence,  were  wor- 
thy of  excuse,  and  that  she  trusted  fur  favour  to  God  and  to  pii&icrity. 

On  the  scaffold  she  blamed  herself  not  for  ever  having  wished  for  the 
crown,  but  for  not  having  firmly  refused  to  act  upon  the  wishes  of  others 
in  reaching  at  it.  She  confessed  herself  wonhy  of  death,  and  beirg  dis- 
robed by  her  female  attendants,  calmly  and  unshrinkingly  submitted  her- 
self to  her  fatal  doom. 

The  duke  of  Suffolk  and  Lord  Thomas  Gray  were  shortly  afterwards 
executed  I'or  their  share  in  Wyatt's  rev(»lt.  Sir  Nicholas  'fhrojimorton 
was  tried  in  Guildhall  for  the  same  offfiue,  but  there  being  liiile  or  no 
evidence  against  him,  his  eloquent  and  acute  defence  led  the  jury  to  a(;quit 
him.  With  an  arbitrary  and  insoh-ni  sirelch  of  prerogaliv(;  tinit  now 
seems  almost  iiicredible,  Mary,  enrayed  iil  ilie  ucquiiliil,  noi  only  recom- 
mitted Sir  Nicholas  to  the  Tower,  where  slie  kept  liim  for  a  considerable 
time,  but  she  even  had  the  jury  sent  to  [iiiscni,  and  fined  from  one  to  two 
tliousand  pounds  each!  The  cud  she  li;id  in  view  in  this  abdniinalily  ty- 
rarmous  conduct,  however,  was  fully  aclii(^ved.  Thenceforth  jurors  were 
little  prone  to  acquit  t!ie  unhappy  gentlmien  who,  no  matter  how  loosely, 
were  charged  wiih  participation  in  the  ud'air  of  Wyatl.  IMany  wer(!  con- 
denuied  merely  in  consequence  of  the  terrors  of  their  jurors,  and  antong 
theni  was  Sir  .liihn  Throgmorton,  brother  to  Sir  Nicholas.  Arrests  took 
pliice  every  day,  tin!  Tower  and  other  places  of  cnnnnemenl  were  filled 
with  nobles  and  gentlemen,  whose  offeiu-e  was  that  they  cliMucfil  to  be 
popular;  the  aHVction  of  the  people  being  a  deadly  ofTence  to  the  (jueen, 
wlio  felt  iliiil  sill!  was  loathed  by  them,  and  who  felt  so  little  secure 
a^iiinvt  a  new  out- break,  that  she  sent  onl  commissioners  to  disarm  them, 
anil  liiy  up  the  sei/ed  arms  in  her  slroiig-liDMs. 

In  llie  midst  (if  this  gloomy  state  of  things,  the  parliament  was  called 
upon  to  inv(  st  the  (ineeii  wiih  the  power  which  h;id  formerly  been  granted 
to  lier  fiillier.  of  dispipsingof  the  crown  at  her  decease.  Gardiner  took 
cure  to  d«(  II  upon  the  precedent  affunlcd  b\  the  power  given  to  Henry 
VIII.,  anil  he  liad  liitle  fear  of  success.  Iieiiiiise,  indepeiideiil  iif  the  gen- 
eral terror  ciuiscd  liy  the  ()iieeii's  menilcss  and  sanguinary  piocecdings, 
the  good  w  ill  of  nuMierous  nieinbers  of  parliament  hail  been  |)iHeliased  by 
tlu^  ilislnlnilion  of  four  hundred  thousand  crowns,  which  the  emperor  had 
siiii  over  tor  ilial  purpose. 

lint  neither  terror  nor  purchased  complaisance  could  blind  the  house  to 
the  lads,  that  llic  (|ueeii  detested  F.llzalielli,  and  that  the  Icgltlinary  of  the 
qiiccii  mii»l  imply  the  bastardy  of  ICli/idicili.  'I'lie  inaniH'r,  too,  iii  which 
Giirdincr  m  th<'  course  of  his  speech  avmded  inentitniiiig  Klizalieth,  ex- 
cepting merely  as  "the  lady  Klizabeth,"  and  wiihout  styling  her  llie  queen's 
sister,  conlirined  the  snspiiion  that,  (nice  invested  with  llie  power  which 
flic  now  (I, limed,  the  queen  wduld  declare  l''.liz;iheth  illegilnnale,  and  by 
iiiiikini.'  a  will  licipieathiiig  the  throne  to  PI  dip,  hand  oM'r  the  nation  to 
nil  llial  Spaiiisli  lyraiiny  of  whi'jli  such  terri  >  anticipations  had  la  en  and 
still  were  I  nteitained. 

As  if  i(»  Hiinuiheii  all  other  jrrotmds  of  spicion  of  Mary's  intention, 
the  hirelings  tiiid  purasiles  of  Philip  were  just  now,  as  zcahnisly  as  impru- 
dently, busy  III  dwelling  upon  Philip's  descent  from  the  house  of  Lancas- 
ter, and  n'piesenting  him-  taking  llli/.abeth's  bastardy  as  a  matter  of 
coiir!-)'— US  llie  ne.xt  jieir  to  Miry  by  right  of  deseeiil. 

Great,  then,  as,  (Vom  fear  or  favour,  was  the  desire  of  the  wlicde  parh' 
ni(  lit  t  I  gr  iiil\  the  (pieeii,  the  deteriiiinatKMi  not  to  throw  the  nation  liouiid 
lunl  blinilfoliled  into  the  hands  of  the  Spuniard  whs  still  greater.     Thci 
Vol.  I.  -;!J 


a 

H 

f 

V- 

.r 

li 

i\ 

If 

?             ' 

■■f 

498 


THK  TRBA8URY  OP  HISTORY. 


not  only^  refused  to  pass  the  bill  to  give  Mary  the  power  to  will  away  the 
tiiTiitie,  but  when  -mother  bill  was  introduced  to  make  it  treasonable  to 
imagiiie  or  attempt  the  death  of  the  queen's  husband  while  she  lived,  they 
cooHytiid  it  aside;  and  that  Philip  might  not  be  led  to  complete  the  mar 
riage  by  any  lingering  hope  of  possessing  any  authority  in  the  nation 
which  was  unhappy  enough  to  have  Mary  for  its  queen,  the  house  passed 
a  la#'*^nacting,  "That  her  majesty,  as  their  only  queen,  should  solely  and 
as  a«oIe  queen  enjoy  the  crown  and  sovereignty  of  her  realms,  with  all 
the  pre-eminences,  dignities,  and  rights  thereto  belonging,  in  as  large  and 
anir' >*  manner  after  her  marriage  as  befpre,  without  any  title  or  claim 
accruing  to  the  prince  of  Spain,  either  as  tenant  by  courtesy  of  the  realm 
or  by>  any  othor  means." 

fitiving  thus,  as  far  as  was  in  their  power,  limited  and  discouraged  the 
dangerous  ambition  of  the  cruel  and  bigoted  Philip,  the  parliament  passed 
the  ?»itiflcation  of  the  articles  of  marriage,  which,  indeed,  were  drawn  so 
favourably  to  England,  that  no  reasonable  objection  could  have  been  made 
to  thorn. 

A8  nothing  more  could  be  extorted  or  bribed  fom  parliament  with  re- 
spect to  the  qween's  marriage,  its  attention  was  now  directed  to  matters 
connected  with  religion.  The  bishopric  of  Durham,  which  had  been  di- 
vided in  the  reign  of  Kdward,  and  which  by  an  arbitrary  edict  of  the  queen 
had  Slready  been  re-conferred  upon  Tonstal,  was  now  re-erected  by  act 
of  parliament.  Some  bills  were  also  introduced  for  revising  the  laws 
against  Lollardy,  erroneous  preaching,  and  heresy  in  genurai,  and  for  the 
suppression  of  books  containing  heterodox  opinions.  But  here  again,  to 
its  credit,  the  parliament  was  both  discriminating  and  firm ;  the  bills  weru 
thrown  out;  and  the  queen  perceiving  that  neither  Philip's  gold  nor  thi; 
terrors  of  hur  more  sanguinary  conduct  could  make  this  pailiamtnt,  at 
least,  sufficiently  pliant  and  slavish  for  her  purposes,  she  suddenly  and 
suUenlj  dissolved  it. 

ii.  .»/:•      "  •       I  ■■  


■M    ■.! 


CHAPTKll  XLV. 

TUB   RRION   OF   MARV  (CONTINUED). 

Mart's  age,  and  some  consciousness,  perhaps,  of  the  addition  made  by 
her  fearful  temper  to  the  natural  homcliiicss  of  her  features,  had  temlcd  lo 
make  the  acquisition  of  a  young  and  illustrious  husband  all  the  more 
eagerly  desired,  for  its  very  improbaliiiilyj  and  though  she  had  seen  only 
the  portrait  of  her  future  husband,  she  had  coiitrivcd  to  become  so  ciiam 
oured  of  him,  that  when  the  preliininarirs  of  the  marriage  were  all  arninircil. 
and  the  arrival  of  the  prini;c  was  hourly  expected,  every  flelay  and  every 
obstacle  irritated  her  almost  to  phreiizy.  Thoui^h  as  a  matter  of  ainl)i!iiiii 
Philip  was  very  desirouid  of  the  match,  as  a  simple  matter  of  love,  he  was, 
at  the  very  least,  indiirerent;  and  even  the  prover«ial  hauteur  and  solem- 
nity of  thu  Spanish  cimracier  could  nut  siillieiently  airconnt  for  the  eiilil 
neglect  which  caused  him  to  forbear  from  even  favouring  his  futun;  wife 
and  queen  with  a  letter,  to  account  for  delays  wliieli,  in  spite  of  her  doliiiK 
fondness,  Mary  (tmild  iidI  but  helievc!  that  tli(^  prince  might  easily  have 
put  an  cnil  to  had  his  impatinncn  been  at  all  ripial  to  her  own.  Knim 
blaming  Philip,  the  impatient  fondness  so  rare  as  well  as  so  uiibecoiiilii;,' 
at  liiir  advanced  period  of  life,  caused  her  in  turn  her  reseiitinent  against 
her  Bubirels,  to  whose  o|)|M>sitioti  she  clidse  to  iiii|)iite  that  iiiditTereiiee  on 
the  pari  of  the  prinre,  wliieli  really  arone  from  dislike  of  her  repiilsive  and 
proinalurcly  aged  p<'rs(>ii.  A  circnmstaiiee  now  oeeiirred  wliieli  greatly 
itierensed  the  queen's  linger  ayaiiist  lier  siilijeets,  and  which  prnltalily.  m 
■>() sullen  and  resentful  a  iihIui'c  as  hers,  diil  niiieli  to  fan  into  a  iVim  '  tliiit 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


499 


i\l 


.  made  by 

temlt'd  ID 
the  more 

seen  only 

80  ciiiim 

arransji'il. 

niv\  fViTy 
aiul)i'-i"" 

.,  he  wiis, 

nd  solciu- 
Iho  fi'M 

mure  wifi' 
irr  iloliiiK 
isily  ti!>^''' 
11.  Kniin 
ihecominsi 

IVreni'c  on 
lulsive  aiiJ 
[ch  urtally 
rohalilv.  I" 
iV.Pi'  •  llial 


tierce  bigotry  which  subsequently  lighted  the  fires  of  persecution  in  e\ery 
county  in  England,  and  left  scarcely  a  village  without  its  martyr  and  its 
mourning.  A  squadron  had  been  fitted  out,  and  the  coi.^maud  was  given 
to  Lord  Kflingham,  to  convoy  the  prince  to  England;  lut  so  unpopular 
was  the  service,  and  such  strong  symptoms  appeared  ^f  a  determined 
spirit  of  mutiny  among  the  sailors,  that  Lord  Effingham  rankly  informed 
the  queen  that  he  did  not  think  the  prince  would  be  safe  in  their  hands, 
»nd  the  squadron  was  at  once  disbanded.  But  this  measure,  though  in- 
dispensably necessary  under  the  circumstances,  brought  no  peace  to  the 
mind  of  the  queen,  for  she  now  dreaded  not  merely  the  inevitable  dangers 
of  the  sea,  but  also  that  her  husband  should  be  intercepted  by  the  French 
fleet.  The  slightest  rumour  so  heightened  her  self-torturing,  that  she 
was  frequently  thrown  into  convulsions :  and  not  merely  was  her  bodily 
health  affiectea  in  the  most  injurious  degree,  but  even  her  mind  began  to 
be  affected  to  a  very  perceptible  extent.  Hypochondriac  and  pitiably 
nervous,  she  became  painfully  conscious  of  her  want  of  beauty  ;  though, 
with  the  usual  self-flattery,  nhe  ascribed  the  repulsive  aspect  presented  to 
her  by  her  unflattering  mirror  wholly  to  her  recent  sufferings.  FVom  be- 
ing frantically  impatient  for  the  arrival  of  Philip,  the  unhappy  queen  now 
became  desponding,  and  dreaded  lest  on  his  arrival  he  should  find  her  dis- 
pleasing. 

At  length  the  object  of  so  many  hopes  and  fears  arrived  ;  thi  marriage 
was  publicly  and  with  great  pomp  performed  at  Winchester;  and  when 
Philip  had  made  a  public  entry  into  London,  and  dazzled  the  eyes  of  the 
gazers  with  the  immense  riches  he  had  brought  over,  Mary  hurried  him 
away  to  the  conparative  seclusion  of  Windsor.  This  seclusion  admirably 
suited  the  piiiice,  whose  behaviour,  from  the  day  of  his  arrivr.l,  was  as 
well  calculated  as  though  it  had  been  purposely  intended,  to  confirm  all 
the  unfavourable  opinions  that  had  been  formed  of  him.  In  his  manner 
he  was  distant,  not  with  shyness  but  with  overweening  disdain ;  and  the 
bravest  and  wisest  of  the  oldest  nobility  of  England  had  the  mortification 
0  see  him  paas  them  without  manifesting  by  glance,  word,  or  gesture, 
(hat  he  was  conscious  of  their  respect,  salutations,  or  even  their  presence. 
The  unavoidah'y  wearisome  etiquette  of  court  was  now  so  much  increased 
by  Spanish  formalities,  that  both  Philip  and  Mary  may  almost  be  said  to 
hHve  been  inaccessible.  This  circumstance,  however  disgusting  to  suii- 
jccts,  was  in  the  highest  degree  pleasing  to  the  queen  ;  having  at  length 
posse-iispd  herself  of  her  husband,  she  was  unwilling  that  any  one  should 
share  his  conipany  with  her  for  a  moment.  More  like  a  love-sick  girl 
thrin  8  hanl-teatuied  and  hard-hearted  woman  of  forty,  she  couhl  not  hear 
the  prince  to  be  out  of  her  sight ;  his  shortest  absence  annoyrd  her,  ami 
il  ho  showed  the  commonest  courtesy  to  any  of  the  court  ladies,  her 
]( ilonsy  was  instantly  shown  to  him,  and  her  resentment  to  the  fair  who 
iiad  been  so  unfortunate  as  to  be  honoured  with  his  civility. 

The  v/omanly  observation  of  Mary  soon  convinced  l.cr  that  the  only 
way  to  Philip's  heart  was  to  gratify  his  ambition  ;  and  slu  was  aliuinlantly 
rciiily  to  purchase  his  love,  or  the  semblance  of  it,  even  at  the  pri<-c  of  the 
Votnl' sacrifice  of  the  liberties  and  interests  of  the  whole  English  people. 
By  means  of  Oanliner  slu-  used  both  fear  and  hope,  both  power  and  gold, 
Id  gel  members  returned  in  her  entire  interests  to  a  new  parliament  winch 
siie  now  summoned;  and  the  returns  were  such  as  to  iiromise  tiial,  in  the 
I'xisling  temper  of  the  iiation,  which  had  not  yet  forgotten  the  sanguinary 
punishment  of  the  revolt  under  Wyatt,  she  mi^jlit  safely  make  her  next 
great  onward  movement  towards  the  entire  restoration  of  Catholicism  and 
the  estiibliihment  of  her  own  ;ibsolute  power. 

Cardinal  Pidc,  who  was  now  in  Flanders,  invested  with  the  office  of 
leiratc.  only  awaited  the  removal  of  the  attainder  passed  against  him  in 
the  reign  of  llcnrv  Vlll.     The  parliument  readily  passed  an  act  for  thai 


IP 


900 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


purpose,  and  the  legate  immediately  came  to  England,  when,  after  wait- 
mg  on  Philip  and  Mary,  he  pre  ented  himself  to  parliament,  and  formally 
invited  the  English  nation  to  reooncile  itself  to  the  holy  see  from  which, 
said  ihe  legate,  it  had  been  so  long  and  so  unhappily  separated. 

The  welUtrained  parliament  readily  acknowledged  and  professed  to  de- 
plore the  defection  of  England,  and  presented  an  address  to  Philip  and 
Mary,  entreating  them,  as  being  uninfected  by  the  general  guilt,  to  inter- 
cede with  the  holy  father  for  their  forgiveness,  and  at  the  same  time  de- 
clared their  intention  to  repeal  ail  laws  that  were  prejudicial  to  the  church 
of  Rome.  The  legate  readily  gave  absolution  to  the  parliament  and  peo- 
ple of  Eujland,  and  received  them  into  the  communion  of  Rome ;  and 
Pope  Julius  III.,  with  grave  and  bitter  mockery,  observed,  when  the  formal 
thanks  of  tKe  nation  were  conveyed  to  him,  that  the  English  had  a  strange 
notion  of  thit.gs  thus  to  thank  him  for  doing  what  he  ought,  in  fact,  to 
thank  them  for  letting  him  do. 

It  must  not  Ire  supposed  that  though  the  nobility  and  ^'cntry  in  parlia 
ment  assembled  thi'S  readily  and  crouchingly  laid  England  once  again  at 
the  feet  of  the  Roman  pontiff,  that  they  were  prepared  fully  to  undo  all 
that  Henry  had  (ione.  Indifferent  as  to  the  mode  of  f  lith  prescribed  to 
the  multitude,  they  had  not  an  objection  to  make  this  sudden  and  sweep- 
ing re-transfer  of  the  spiritual  authority  over  England.  But  before  they 
would  consent  to  that  transfi  r  of  spiritual  authority,  they  obtained  from 
Rome,  as  well  as  from  the  queen,  the  most  positive  assurances  tliat  the 
church  property,  snatchei"  from  the  church  and  divided  among  laymen  by 
Henry,  should  not  be  interfered  with,  but  should  remain  undisturbed  in  tlie 
hands  of  its  lay  possessors.  The  parliament,  also,  in  l!ie  very  act  by 
which  it  restored  the  pope's  spiritual  authority,  enacted  that  all  inainagfs 
contracted  during  the  English  separation  from  Rome  should  remain  valid, 
and  also  inserted  a  clause  which  secured  all  holders  of  church  lauds  iii 
their  possessions  ;  and  the  convocation  presented  a  petition  to  the  pope  to 
the  same  effect,  to  which  petition  the  legate  gave  an  alflrmativc  answiir. 
Bigoted  and  arbitrary  as  Mary  confessedly  was,  it  appeared  that  she  could 
not  fully  restore,  even  temporarily,  the  power  of  Rome. 

The  sentence  had  irrevocably  gone  forth  against  that  grasping  and  greedy 
despotism  ;  and  though  the  accidt;ntal  occurrence  of  a  fieniely  and  coMly 
cruel  bigot,  in  the  person  of  Mary,  bijiiig  si/aliul  upon  the  throne  gave  hack 
for  a  time  to  Rome  the  spiritual  jurisdiction,  and  the  power  todirtate  and 
tyrannize  in  spiritual  aff.iirs,  all  the  power  and  zeal  of  that  bigot  could  nut 
re-pi)sscss  tlic  church  of  the  lands  whidi  had  become  lay  {)roperty.  In 
the  (irst  instance,  indeed,  Rome  hoped,  by  forgiving  the  past  fruits  of  the 
th(!  lands,  to  be  able  to  resume  tlie  lands  for  tlio  future ;  but  wiien  Pole 
arrived  in  England  he  re("(MV(!d  infonnalion,  amply  confiriiied  by  iiis  own 
observations,  which  induced  him  witliout  further  struggle  to  agree  to  llip 
formal  and  complete  settlement  of  the  lands,  of  which  we  have  above 
given  an  account. 

Perliapi  no  greater  niisfortiiiic  could  have  ociMirred  to  F'ligland  tliaii 
this  very  cession  in  form,  by  the  pope,  of  the  right  of  the  laiiy  to  tlio 
lands  of  whicli  they  had  possessed  theinscd  vcs  at  the  expense  of  the  cluircli. 
Had  Ilonio  attempted  to  resume  the  solid  pro|)erty,  as  well  as  the  spiriiua! 
ri^lits,  of  the  church,  considerations  of  interest  in  thi;  former  would  have 
caused  the  nobility  and  gentry  to  hesitate  about  surrendering  tlie  latti^r; 
but  having  siM-ured  their  own  properly,  the  gr,:at  were  easily  inducted  to 
hand  over  the  bulk  of  the  people  to  a  spiritual  tyranny  which  they  tlat- 
i^'t^'^]  themselves  that  thi^y  would  not  suffer  from.  The  vile  old  laws 
ag.'iiiht  heresy,  which  the  former  parliament  had  honestly  and  indigiiaully 
rejected,  were  now  re-cnactcii ;  statutes  were  passed  for  pnnisliinsj  cedi 
tiuus  rumours,"  and  it  was  made  treason  to  imagine  or  to  attempt  the  iif)' 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


5b  • 


»(]  (rrneJy 
1  coMly 
ive  hiick 
l;ite  anil 

coulil  IHll 
rtv.  Ill 
ts'of  tlie 
KMi  I'ole 
his  own 
ro  t(i  UiP 

ivi!  above 

ty  to  til- 
n';  cluircll. 
spiritual 
miM  liavo 
llu'  l-iti'T; 
iidiu'iiil  to 
llioy  flitl- 
(ilJ  laws 
iiiiiguaiitly 
liiiu  ai'ili 
[)t  tlif.  lif' 


if  Philip  during  that  of  the  queen,  which,  also,  the  former  parliament  had 
refused. 

But,  amidst  all  this  disgusting  sycophaney,  even  this  complaisant  par- 
liament had  still  some  English  sense  of  reserve,  and  resisted  every  at 
Ujuipt  of  the  queen  to  get  her  husband  declared  presumptive  heir  to  the 
crown,  entrusted  with  ihe  administration,  or  even  honoured  with  a  corona- 
lion.  The  same  anti-Spanish  feeling  which  caused  the  firmness  of  parha- 
inent  on  those  points,  also  caused  it  to  refuse  all  subsidy  in  support  of  the 
emperor,  in  the  war  which  he  was  still  carrying  on  against  France.  These 
very  plain  indications  of  the  feelings  of  the  nation  towards  himself  per- 
sonally caused  Philip,  not  indeed  to  lay  aside  his  morose  and  impolitic 
hauteur,  for  that  was  part  and  parcel  of  his  nature,  and  as  inseparable 
from  his  existence  as  the  mere  act  of  breathing,  but  to  endeavour  to  di- 
minish his  unpopularity  by  procuring  the  release  of  several  distinguished 
prisoners,  confined  either  for  actual  offence  against  the  court,  or  for  the 
ijuasi  offence  of  being  agreeable  to  the  people.  The  most  illustrious  of 
these  prisoners  was  the  lady  Elizabeth ;  and  nothiiig  that  Philip  could 
have  done  could  have  been  more  pleasing  to  the  nation  than  his  releasing 
that  princess,  and  protecting  her  from  the  petty  but  no  less  annoying  spite- 
fulness  of  her  sister. 

About  the  same  time,  Philip's  politic  intervention  also  gave  liberty  to 
the  lord  Henrv  Dudley,  Sir  George  Harper,  Sir  Nicholas  Throgmorton, 
Sir  Edmund  irner,  Sii  William  St.  Loe,  and  Sir  Nicholaa  Arnold,  to- 
gether will-  rrington  and  Tremaine.  The  earl  of  Devonshire  also  was 
released  from  Fotheringay  castle,  and  allowed  to  go  abroad,  but  he  only 
reached  Padua  when  he  was  poisoned,  and  the  popular  rumour  and  belief 
ascribed  the  murder  to  the  Imperialists. 

Bafiled  in  her  endeavours  to^^p*  her  husband  declared  her  heir  presump 
live,  the  queen  became  more  tli,.n  ever  anxious  for  the  honours  of  mater- 
nity, of  the  approach  of  which  she  at  length  imagined  that  she  felt  the 
symptoms.  She  was  publicly  declared  to  be  pregnant,  and  Bonner,  bishop 
of  London,  ordered  public  prayers  to  be  put  up,  that  the  young  prince — 
for  the  catholics  chose  to  consider  not  merely  tlie  pregnancy  of  the  queen, 
but  even  the  sex  of  the  child  a  matter  perfectly  settled! — might  be  beau- 
iifu.,  strong,  and  witty.  The  people  in  general,  however,  manifested  a 
provoking  incredulity  even  as  to  the  pregnancy  of  the  queen,  whose  age 
ana  haggard  aspect  certainly  promised  no  very  numerous  offspring;  and 
the  people's  incredulity  was  shortly  afterwards  justified,  it  proving  that 
the  queen  had  been  mistaken  by  the  incipient  symptoms  of  dropsy.  To 
the  last  possible  moment,  however,  Philip  and  his  friends  concealed  the 
Irutli,  and  Philip  was  thus  enabled  to  get  hims.df  appointed  protector  du- 
ring llie  minority,  should  the  cliil  I  survive  and  the  queen  die.  Finding 
that  this  was  the  utmost  concession  that  could  at  present  be  wrung  from 
the  parliament,  and  trusting  that  it  might  by  good  management  be  made 
proiluctiveof  more  at  some  future  time,  the  queen  now  dissolved  the  par- 
liament. 

A.  n.  1555. — The  dissolution  of  parliametit  was  marked  by  an  occurrence 
which  of  itself  would  be  sunicient  to  indicate  the  despotic  character  of  the 
times.  Some  members  of  the  commons'  house,  unwilling  to  agree  to  the 
slavish  complaisance  coiumonly  shown  by  the  majority,  and  yet,  as  a 
minority,  quite  unable  to  stem  the  tide,  came  to  the  resolution  to  secede 
from  their  attendance.  No  sooner  was  the  parliament  dissolved  than 
these  members  were  indicted  in  the  king's  bench.  Six  of  them,  terrified 
at  the  mere  thought  of  a  contest  with  the  powerful  and  vindictive  queen, 
made  the  requisite  submissions  and  obtained  [)ardon  ;  mid  the  remaindei 
exeri'ised  their  right  of  traverse,  thereby  so  long  postponing  the  trial  that 
liie  (iiii'cn'H  death  put  an  end  to  the  afiair  altogether.  Gardiner's  success 
ill  bringing  abo'ui  the  Spanish  match  to  which  the  nation  had  been  no 


^ 

PJ^!' 

■y» 

J 

m 

i  : ' 


I  ii^;i: 


503 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


averse,  and  the  tact  and  zeal  for  the  queen's  service  which  he  had  shown 
in  his  dexterous  maniigement  of  the  house  of  commons,  made  him  novr 
more  than  ever  a  weighty  authority,  not  only  with  the  queen  but  with  the 
catholic  party  in  general,  it  is  singular  enough,  as  Hume  well  remarks, 
that  though  this  very  learned  prelate  was  far  less  zealous  upon  points  of 
theology  than  Cardinal  Pole,  yet,  while  the  mild  temper  of  the  latter 
allayed  and  chastened  his  tendency  towards  bigotry,  thesternerand  hardi. 
er  character  of  the  former  caused  him  to  look  upon  the  free  judgment  ol 
the  commonality  as  a  presumption  which  it  behoved  the  rulers  of  the  land 
to  put  down,  oven  by  the  severest  and  most  unsparing  resort  to  persecu 
tion.  For  some  time  it  was  doubtful  whether  the  milder  course,  recom- 
mended as  politic  by  Pole,  or  the  sterner  course,  advocated  as  essentially 
necessary  by  Gardiner,  would  prevail.  But  Gardiner  had  the  great  advan- 
tage of  advocating  the  system  which  was  tiie  most  in  accordance  with 
the  cruel  and  bigoted  temper  of  both  Philip  and  Mary  ;  and  Pole  had  the 
mortification  not  only  of  being  vanquished  by  his  opponent,  but  also  of 
seeing  full  and  terrible  license  and  freedom  given  to  the  hitherto  partially 
restrained  demons  of  persecution. 

Having  determined  the  queen  and  court  to  a  course  of  severity,  Gar- 
diner had  no  difficulty  in  persuading  them  that  it  was  politic  to  select  the 
first  victims  frotn  among  the  emint-nt  for  learning  or  authority,  or  both; 
and  Itogers,  prebendary  of  St.  Paul's,  a  man  still  more  remarkable  for 
virtue  and  learning  than  for  his  eminence  in  the  church  and  in  the  reform- 
ed party,  had  the  melancholy  honour  of  being  singled  out  as  the  first  vic- 
tim. As  instances  of  conversion  were  even  more  sough*  after  by  Gardin- 
er than  punishment,  there  was  probably  yet  another  reason  why  Rogers 
was  selected  for  the  first  prosecntion.  He  had  a  wife  and  ten  children, 
and  was  remarkable  for  his  affection  both  as  a  fr.ther  and  a  husband;  and 
there  was  every  probability  that  tenderness  for  them  might  lead  him  to 
avoid,  by  apostacy,  a  danger  which  otherwise  he  might  have  been  expect- 
ed to  brave.  But  if  Gardiner  really  reasoned  thus,  he  was  greatly  mista- 
ken. Rogers  not  only  refused  to  recant  an  iota  of  his  opinions  at  what 
was  (•ailed  his  trial,  hut  even  after  the  fatal  sentence  of  burning  was  pass- 
ed upon  him  he  still  preserved  such  an  equable  frame  of  mind,  that  when 
the  fatal  hour  arrived  his  jailers  actually  had  to  awaken  him  from  a  swc  I 
sound  sleep  to  proceed  to  the  stake.  Sucih  courage  might,  one  would 
suppose,  have  disarmed  even  the  wrath  of  bigotry ;  but  Gardiner,  when 
the  condemned  gentleman  asked  permission  to  have  a  parting  interview 
with  his  wife,  cruelly  and  scoflingly  replied,  that  Rogers,  being  a  priest, 
could  not  possibly  have  a  wife!  This  unfortunate  and  learned  divine  was 
burned  at  Smithficld,  and  the  flames  tliat  coiisinned  him  may  be  said  to 
have  kindled  a  vast  and  in)ving  pile  that  swallowed  up  sufferers  of  both 
sexes,  and  of  nearly  all  ages  in  every  county  of  Kngland. 

Hooper,  bishop  uf  Gloucester,  was  tried  at  the  same  time  with  Rogers, 
and  was  also  condemned  to  the  stake,  but,  with  a  refinemiMil  upon  cruelty, 
he  was  not  executed  at  SmithfieM.  though  tried  in  London,  but  sent  for 
that  purpose  into  his  own  diocese,  that  his  agonies  and  death  in  the  midst 
of  tlie  very  scene  of  his  labours  of  piely  and  usefulness  might  the  more 
effectually  strike  terror  into  the  lie.irts  of  iiis  flock.  Hooper,  however, 
turned  what  his  enemies  intended  for  an  agjjravaiion  of  his  fate  into  a 
consolation,  and  an  opportunity  of  giving  lo  those  whom  he  had  long  ami 
faithfully  tauifht,  a  parting  proof  of  the  sinci^rity  of  his  teachings,  and  ol 
the  cfticacy  of  genuine  religion  to  uphold  its  sincere  believers,  even  undei 
the  most  terrible;  agonies  ttiat  ruthless  and  mistaken  man,  in  his  pride  ol 
fierceness,  can  inflict  upon  his  fellow  worm.  And  terrible,  even  beyond 
the  usual  terrors  of  these  aliominable  simmics.  were  the  tortures  of  the 
martyred  Hooper.  The  faggots  provided  for  his  execution  were  too  green 
lo  kindle  rapidly,  and,  a  high  wind  blowing  at  the  time,  the  flames  played 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


803 


around  his  lower  limbs  without  being  able  to  fasten  upon  the  vital  parts. 
One  of  his  hands  dropped  off,  and  with  the  other  he  continued  to  beat  his 
breast,  prayings  to  heaven  and  exhorting  the  pitying  spectators,  until  his 
swollen  tongue  could  no  longer  perform  its  office ;  and  it  was  three  quar- 
ters of  an  hour  before  his  tortures  were  at  an  end.  Of  the  courage  and 
sincerity  of  Hooper  there  is  striking  evidence  in  the  fact  that  the  queen's 
pardon  was  placed  before  him  on  a  stool  after  he  was  tied  to  the  stake, 
but  he  ordered  it  to  be  removed,  preferring  the  direst  torture  with  sincerity, 
to  safety  with  apostacy. 

Sanders,  burned  at  Coventry,  also  had  the  queen's  pardon  offered  to 
him,  and  he  also  rejected  it,  embracing  the  stake  and  exclaiming,  "  We 
have  the  cross  of  Christ!  Welcome  everlasting  life."  Taylor,  the  cler- 
gyman of  Hadley,  in  Hertfordshire,  was  burned  at  that  place,  in  the  pres- 
ence of  his  parishioners.  When  tied  to  the  slake  he  began  to  pray  in 
English,  which  so  enraged  his  guards,  that,  bidding  him  speak  Latin,  they 
struck  him  so  violently  on  the  head  with  their  hulbcrts,  that  he  died  on  the 
instant,  and  was  spared  the  lingering  agonies  prepared  for  him. 

Philpot,  archdeacon  of  Winchester,  had  very  greatly  distinguished 
himself  by  his  zeal  for  protestantism.  On  one  occasion,  being  engaged 
in  a  controversy  with  an  Arian,  the  zeal  of  the  archdeacon  so  far  got  the 
ascendancy  over  his  good  manners,  that  he  actually  spat  in  the  Arian's 
face.  Subsequently,  and  when  he  might  have  been  expected  to  have  re- 
pented on  reflection  of  what  he  had  done  ia  the  heat  of  passion,  he  pub- 
lished a  formal  justification  of  his  conduct,  in  which  he  said  that  he  felt 
bound  to  give  that  strong  proof  of  the  detestation  of  his  opponent's  blas- 
phemy. So  impetuous  a  man  was  not  likely  lo  esctape  notice  in  the 
persecution  that  now  raged,  and  he  was  brought  to  trial  for  heresy  and 
burned  to  death  in  Smithfield. 

If  Gardiner  was  the  person  to  whom  tlie  perse r.tion  chiefly  owed  its 
cumniencement,  it  was  Uonner,  bishop  of  London,  v.lio  carried  it  on 
with  the  coarsest  and  most  unrelenting  barbarity.  Apart  from  all  mere 
bigotry,  this  singularly  brutal  man  appeared  to  derive  positive  sensual 
gratification  from  the  act  of  inflicting  torture.  He  occasionally,  when  he 
had  prisoners  under  examination  who  did  not  answer  to  his  satisfaction, 
would  have  them  stripped  and  flog  them  with  his  own  hand.  Nor  was 
tliis  his  worst  brutality.  An  unfortunate  weaver,  on  one  occasion,  re- 
fused to  recant,  when  Bonner  endeavoured  to  persuade  him,  and,  as  is 
veraciously  recorded,  this  disgrace  of  his  sacred  profession  first  tore  the 
unfortunate  man's  beard  out  by  the  root,  and  tiicn  held  his  hand  in  the 
flame  of  a  lamp  until  the  sinews  burst,  by  way  of  giving  him,  as  he  said, 
some  notion  of  what  burning  really  was  like  ! 

When  we  say  that  this  horrible  system  of  persecution  and  cruelty 
endured  for  three  years,  and  that  in  that  time  two  hundred  and  twenty- 
seven  persons  are  known  lo  have  suflered — wlnle  probably  many  more 
were  similarly  butchered  of  whom  we  have  no  account — while  that,  be- 
sides men  of  all  ranks,  from  bishops  to  day-labourers,  fifty-five  women 
and  four  children  thus  perished,  it  must  be  obvious  that  a  detailed  account 
of  this  terrible  season  of  cruelty  would  be  disgusiing,  even  were  it  not 
quite  impracticable.  We  shall,  therefore,  add  hut  a  few  more  cases, 
and  then  leave  a  subject  which  cannot  be  treated  of  even  at  tliis  distance 
of  time  without  feelings  of  disgust  and  horror. 

Ferrar,  bishop  of  St.  David's,  in  Wales,  being  condemned  to  death  as  a 
heretic,  appealed  to  Cardinal  Pole  ;  but  his  appeal  was  wholly  unattended 
to,  and  the  unfortunate  bishop  was  burned  in  his  own  diocese. 

There  yet  remained  two  still  more  illustrious  victims  to  be  immolated. 
Ridi'v,  formerly  bishop  of  London,  and  Latimer,  formerly  bishop  of  Wor- 
cester, had  long  been  celebrated  for  both  the  zeal  and  efficiency  of  their 
supportof  the  cause  of  the  reformalion.     In  the  preaching  of  both  there 


601 


THE  TBEA90RY  OF  HiaTORY. 


i'dii 

m 


ii..  iii 


Nil 


was  ;i  certiiii  lU'i-voiis  iioivuiliiiess,  wluuh  iniide  ilieir  eloquence  especially 
effectivu  uju)!!  llie  miiiils  hikI  hearts  of  ihe  lower  orders,  and  on  that  very 
account  tliKsc  two  prelates  wore  more  formidable;  to  the  Uoaianists  than 
they  would  iiave,  been  li,  d  tliey  afflicted  a  more  learned  and  chastened 
style.  That  two  such  capital  enemies  of  Romanism  -one  of  whom  more- 
over, hail  even  for  some  time  been  possessed  of  Bonner's  own  see — should 
escapi',  c'puld  not  be  expected.  They  were  tried  and  i-ondemned,  and 
both  buriiuil  at  the  same  stake  at  O.vford.  Both  died  with  coura<(e  and  a 
calm  constancy  not  to  be  surpassed.  Kven  when  they  were  already  lied 
to  the  stake,  and  the  revoltin^r  tragedy  commenced,  Latimer  cheerfully 
called  out,  "  Ue  of  trood  courage,  brother  Ridley,  we  shall  this  day  kindle 
such  a  torch  in  England,  as,  I  trust  in  God,  shall  never  be  extinguished." 
Latimer,  who  was  very  aged,  suffered  but  little,  being  very  early  killed  by 
the  explosion  of  some  gunpowder  which  the  executioner  had  mercifully 
provided  for  that  purpose;  but  Ridley  was  seen  to  be  alive  some  time 
after  he  was  surrounded  by  flames. 

As  neither  age  nor  youth,  neitiier  learning  nor  courage,  could  make  any 
impression  upon  the  flinty  heart  of  Bonner,  so  neitiier  could  even  the  most 
heroic  proof  of  filial  piety.  A  young  lad,  named  Hunter,  who  was  only 
in  his  niiietecnth  year,  suffered  himself,  with  the  imprudence  common  to 
youth,  to  be  drawn  into  a  religious  argument  with  a  priest,  in  the  course 
of  which  argument  he  had  the  farther  imprudence  todeny  the  real  presence. 
Subsequently  he  began  to  apprehend  the  danger  of  what  he  had  done,  and 
absconded  lest  any  treachery  on  the  part  of  the  priest  should  involve  him 
in  puuishnieiil.  The  priest,  as  liie  young  man  had  feared,  did  give  infor- 
matioii,  and  l^)iincr,  learning  that  the  youth  had  absconded,  caused  his 
father  to  be  seized,  and  not  only  treated  him  with  great  immediate 
severity,  but  threattiiied  him  with  still  worse  future  trealinent.  The 
youth  no  sooner  heard  of  the  danger  and  trouble  to  which  he  had  unin- 
tentionally exposed  his  fatlier,  than  he  delivered  himself  up.  To  a  gen- 
erous man  this  conduct  would  have  been  decisive  as  to  the  propriety  of 
overlooking  Iht;  lad's  speculative  error  or  boldness  ;  but  Bonner  knew  no 
remorse,  and  the  youth  was  mercilessly  committed  to  the  flames. 

A  still  more  disgraceful  and  barbarous  incident  occurred  in  Guern- 
sey. A  wretched  woman  in  that  island  was  condemned  to  the  stake, 
and  was,  when  led  to  punishment,  far  advanced  in  pregiiiincy.  The 
ineffable  pangs  inflicted  upon  her  produced  labour,  and  one  of  the 
guards  snitched  the  new-born  infant  from  the  flames.  A  brutal  and 
thoroughly  ignorant  niagistnite  who  was  present  ordered  the  helpless 
little  innocent  to  be  thrown  back  again,  "  being  determined  that  nolliins; 
should  survive  which  sprung  from  so  heretical  and  obstinate  a  parent." 
Setting  aside  the  abliorrent  and  almost  incredible  oflfence  against  humanity 
coinmiticd  by  this  dettjstable  magistrate,  he  w;is,  even  in  the  rigid  inter- 
pretation of  the  law,  a  murderer,  and  ought  to  have  been  executed  as  one; 
for,  whatever  the  ofTence  of  the  wret<;hed  mother,  the  child  dearly  was 
not  contemplated  in  the  sentence  passed  upon  her.  But,  alas!  the  .ipiiit 
of  bigotry  tramples  alike  upon  the  laws  of  nature  and  of  man;  tind  it  is 
probable  tliat  t!iis  detestable  murderer,  so  far  from  receiving  merited  pun- 
ishmciil  for  his  brutality,  might  have  been  oven  applauded  for  his  "zeal." 

As  tlioiigh  the  national  dread  and  detestation  of  the  Spanish  alliance  had 
not  already  been  but  too  abundantly  justified  by  the  event,  spies  were 
sent  out  in  every  direction,  and  a  coininission  was  appointed  for  inquiring 
into  and  punishing  all  spiritual  and  even  some  civil  crimes;  and  two  very 
brief  e.viracts  from  the  commissioN  and  instructions  will  show  that  in  oli- 
jei.'t,  [lowers,  and  process,  the  commissioners  were,  only  under  another 
name,  iiitjuisitors,  and  tiieir  spies  and  informers  olTicials  of  the  inquisition. 
Tlu!  commission  said,  that  "Since  many  false  rumours  were  published 
among  ilic  subjects,  and  many  heretical  or    ions  were  also  spread  amoiiy 


them,  (h£ 
by  wiinei 
after  all  I 
books  ;  t( 
church  01 
the  altar; 
to  service 
holy  wate 
heresies,  i 
punished  i 
power  to  I 
and  to  use 
premises, 
they  pieasi 
w/iat  t/iey  6 
inquisition 
deterininat 
"Tobrir 
tice  of  the 
ioining  thei 
confess,  an 
"Secret 
practice  of 
tices  of  the 
honest  pers 
maiid  them, 
out  .such  pel 
shall  despisi 
about  to  ma 
also  that  tin 
justices  of  tl 
it  shall  be  A 
such  suspef 
secretli/  to  tli 
sons  before 
were  accuse 
This  preci 
not  only  the 
and  writings 
presently  bm 
person."    D 
touch  of  hun 
was  possibly 
lieritance,  fo 
them  to  som 
condescend 

While  Phi 

to  merit  the 

filled  the  pap 

fight  of  confe 

possessed  ile 

and  to  insist 

Several  of  thi 

maud  back  al 

prishiiiK  the 

judgment  of  i 

"lade  to  the  g 

^V  saying  tha 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


SOS 


them,  the  commissioners  were  to  inquire  into  these  either  by  presentments, 
by  witnesses,  or  any  other  political  \v:\y  lliey  could  devise,  and  to  search 
after  all  heresies,  the  bringers  in,  ihc  sellers,  the  readers  of  all  liereiieal 
books ;  to  examine  and  punish  all  misbelniviuurs  or  negligences  in  any 
church  or  chapel ;  to  try  all  priests  that  ditl  not  preach  the  sacrament  of 
the  altar  ;  all  persons  that  did  not  hear  mass,  or  go  to  their  parish  <^hurch 
to  serviire;  that  would  not  go  in  processions  or  did  not  take  holy  bread  or 
holy  water;  and  if  they  found  any  that  did  obstinately  persist  in  such 
heresies,  they  were  to  put  them  into  the  hands  of  their  ordinaries,  to  be 
punished  according  to  the  spiritual  liws;  giving  the  commissioners  full 
power  to  proceed  as  their  discretion  and  consciences  should  direct  thfm, 
and  to  use  all  such  means  as  they  would  invent  for  the  searching  of  the 
premises,  empowering  them,  also,  to  call  before  them  such  witnesses  as 
tiiey  pleased,  and  iajorce  Ihem  to  make  oalk  of  such  things  as  might  discover 
what  they  sought  after."  This  new  commission  was,  in  fact,  an  English 
inquisition  ;  and  the  following  extract  from  Hume  abundantly  shows  iho 
determination  that  that  inquisition  should  not  want  for  officials  xmd  familiars. 

"To  bring  the  method  of  proceeding  in  England  still  nearer  to  the  prac- 
tice of  the  inquisition,  letters  were  written  to  Lord  North  and  others,  en- 
joining them  'to  put  to  the  torture'  such  obstinate  persons  as  would  not 
confess,  and  there  to  order  them  at  their  discretion. 

"Secret  spies,  also,  and  informers  were  employed,  according  t(j  the 
practice  of  that  iniquitous  tribunal.  Instructions  were  given  to  the  jus- 
tices of  the  peace  that  they  should  'call  secretly  before  them  one  or  two 
honest  persons  within  thtir  limits,  or  more,  at  their  discretion,  and  com- 
mand them,  by  oath  or  otherwise,  that  they  shall  secretly  learn  and  search 
out  such  persons  as  shall  evil  behave  themselves  in  the  church,  or  idly,  or 
shall  despise,  openly  by  words,  the  king's  or  queen's  proceedings,  or  go 
about  to  make  any  commotion,  or  tell  any  seditious  tales  or  news.'  And 
also  that  the  same  persons,  so  to  be  appointed,  shall  declare  to  the  same 
jusliites  of  the  peace  the  ill  behaviour  of  lewd  disorderly  persons,  wluiilicr 
it  shall  be  for  using  unlawful  games  or  any  such  other  light  behavjinir  of 
such  suspected  persons;  and  that  the  same  information  shall  be  given 
secretly  to  the  justices,  and  the  same  justices  shall  call  such  accused  per- 
sons before  them  and  examine  them,  without  declaring  by  whom  they 
were  accused." 

This  preciou?  commission  also  had  power  to  execute  by  martial  law 
not  only  the  putters  forth  of  all  heretical,  treasonable,  and  seditious  books 
and  writings,  but  also  all  "  whosoever  had  any  of  these  books  and  did  not 
presently  burn  them,  without  reading  them  or  showing  them  to  any  other 
person."  Did  not  the  whole  tenor  of  this  portion  of  our  history  forbid  all 
touch  of  humour,  one  would  bo  strcnigly  tempted  to  inquire  how  a  man 
was  possibly  to  know  the  character  of  books  coming  to  him  by  gift  or  in- 
heritance, for  instance,  without  either  reading  them  himself  or  showing 
them  to  some  one  else  I  But  as  bigotry  cannot  feel,  so  neither  will  it 
condescend  to  reason. 

While  Philip  and  Mary  were  thus  exhibiting  an  evil  industry  and  zeal 
to  merit  the  reconcilement  of  the  kingdmn  to  Rome,  Paul  IV.,  who  now 
filled  the  papal  throne,  took  advantage  of  Mary's  bigotry  to  assume  t!io 
right  of  con/<?rnn^  upon  Mary  the  kingdom  of  Ireland,  which  she  already 
possessed  dejactoet  de  jure  as  part  and  i)arcelof  the  English  sovereignty, 
and  to  insist  upon  the  restoration  to  Rome  of  certain  lands  and  inmiey ! 
Several  of  the  council,  probably  fearing  that  by  degrees  Rome  would  de 
mand  back  all  the  church  pro[)erty,  pointed  out  the  great  danger  of  impov- 
erisliiiig  the  kingdom,  and  but  that  death  had  deprived  Mary  of  the  shrewd 
judgment  of  Gardiner,  such  concessions  would  probably  not  have  been 
made  to  the  grasping  spirit  of  Rome.  But  Mary  replied  to  all  objections 
by  saying  that  she  preferred  the  salvation  of  he  f  wn  soul  to  ten  such 


if 


!''!If 


b06 


THE  THEASWRY  OP  HISTOHY. 


kingdoms  an  England ;  and  Heath,  archbishop  of  Canterbury,  who  hadt 
succeeded  Gardiner  in  the  possession  of  the  great  seal,  encouraged  her  in 
that  reeling.  A  bill  was  accordingly  presented  to  parliament  for  restoring 
to  tlie  church  the  tenths,  Arst  fruits,  and  all  impropriations  which  remained 
in  the  hands  of  the  queen.  At  first  sight  it  might  seem  that  parliament 
had  little  cause  or  right  to  interfere  in  a  matter  which,  as  far  as  the  terms 
of  the  bill  went,  concerned  only  the  queen  herself.  But  the  lay  possessors 
of  church  lands  naturally  enough  considered  that  subjects  would  scarcely 
be  spared  after  the  sovereign  had  been  mulcted.  Moreover,  while  some, 
probably  a  great  number,  of  the  members  were  chiefly  moved  by  this  con- 
sideration, all  began  to  be  both  terrified  and  disgusted  by  the  cruel  execu- 
tions which  had  disgraced  the  whole  nation.  A  steady  opposition  conse- 
quently arose ;  and  when  the  government  applied  for  a  subsidy  for  two 
years  and  for  two-fifteenths,  the  latter  were  refused,  and  tlie  opposition, 
with  equal  bitterness  and  justice,  gave  as  tiie  reason  of  this  refusal,  that 
while  the  crown  was  wilfully  divesting  itself  of  revenue  in  behalf  of  Rome, 
it  was  quite  useless  to  bestow  wealth  upon  it.  The  dissatisfaction  of  the 
parliament  was  still  farther  evidenced  by  the  rejection  of  two  bills,  enact- 
ing penalties  against  such  exiles  as  should  fail  to  return  within  a  certain 
time,  and  for  incapacitating  for  the  office  of  justice  of  the  peace  such 
magistrates  as  were  remiss  in  the  prosecution  of  heretics.  This  fresh  and 
pointed  proof  of  the  displeasure  of  the  parliament  determined  the  queen 
to  dissolve  it.  But  the  dissolution  of  the  parliament  did  nut  diminish  the 
pecuniary  embarrassment  of  the  queen.  Her  husband  had  now  been 
several  months  with  his  father  in  Flanders ;  and  the  very  little  of  his  cor- 
respondence with  which  he  favoured  her  chiefly  consisted  of  demands  for 
money.  Stern  and  unfeeling  as  she  was  to  every  one  else,  the  infatuated 
queen  was  passionately  attached  to  the  husband  who  certainly  took  no 
pains  to  conceal  his  dislike  of  her ;  and  as  the  parliament,  previous  to  its 
dissolution,  had  granted  her  but  a  scanty  supply,  slie  was  led,  by  her 
anxiety  to  meet  her  husband's  demands,  to  extort  money  from  her  subjects 
in  a  manner  the  most  unjustifiable.  From  each  of  one  thousand  persons, 
of  whose  personal  attachment  she  affected  to  be  quite  certain,  she  de- 
manded a  loan  of  60/. ;  and  even  this  large  sum  being  inadequate  to  her 
wants,  she  demanded  a  farther  general  loan  from  all  persons  possessing 
twenty  pounds  a  year  and  upwards  ;  a  measure  which  greatly  distressed 
the  smaller  gentry.  Many  of  them  were  obliged  by  her  inroads  upon 
their  purses  to  discharge  some  of  their  servants,  and  as  these  men  sud- 
denly thrown  upon  the  world  became  troublesome,  the  queen  issued  a 
proclamation  to  compel  their  former  employers  to  take  them  back  again! 
Upon  seven  thousand  yeomen  who  had  not  as  yet  contributed,  she  levied 
sixty  thousand  marks,  and  from  the  merchants  she  obtained  the  sum  of 
six  and  thirty  thousand  pounds.  She  also  extorted  money  by  the  most 
tyrannous  interference  with  trade,  as  regarded  both  the  foreign  and  native 
merchants ;  yet  after  all  this  shameless  extortion  she  was  so  poor,  th;it 
she  offered,  and  in  vain,  so  bad  was  her  credit,  fourteen  per  cent,  for  a  loan 
of  30,000i.  Not  even  that  high  rate  of  interest  could  induce  the  merchants 
of  Antwerp,  to  whom  she  ofl'ered  it,  to  lend  her  the  money,  until  by  men- 
aces she  had  induced  her  good  city  of  London  to  be  security  for  her! 
Who  would  imagine  that  we  are  writing  of  the  self-same  nation  that  so 
shortly  afterwards  warred  even  to  the  death  with  Charles  I.  for  tlie  com- 
paratively trifling  matter  of  the  ship  money  ? 

The  poverty  which  alone  had  induced  Philip  to  correspond  with  her  was 
now  terminated,  the  emperor  Charles  the  Fifth,  that  prince's  father,  resign- 
ing to  him  all  his  wealth  and  dominion,  and  retiring  to  a  monastery  in 
Spain.  A  singular  anecdote  is  told  of  the  abdicated  monarch.  He  spent 
much  of  his  time  in  the  constructing  of  watches,  and  finding  it  impossible 
lo  make  them  go  exactly  alike,  he  remarked  that  he  had  indeed  been  fool 


nes.s  ;iri( 
^t«  syco 


THE  TREASUin  OK  IllSTOllY. 


S07 


111  her  was 
cr,  resign- 
nasicry  in 
He  spent 
impossible 
been  fnol 


ish  to  expect  that  he  could  compel  that  uniformity  in  minds  which  he  could 
not  achieve  even  in  mere  machines  !  The  reflection  thus  produced  is  said 
even  to  have  given  him  some  leaning  towanis  tliose  theological  opinions 
of  which  he  and  his  son  had  been  the  most  brutal  and  ruthless  persecutors. 
A.  D.  1656. — Cranmer,  though  during  the  whole  of  this  reign  he  had  been 
left  unnoticed  in  confinement,  was  not  forgotten  by  the  vindictive  queen 
She  was  daily  more  and  more  exacerbated  in  her  naturally  wretched  tem- 
per by  the  grief  caused  by  the  contemptuous  neglect  of  her  husband.  Her 
private  hours  were  spent  in  tears  and  complaint'  ;  and  that  misery  which 
usually  softens  even  the  most  rugged  nature  hao  in  her  case  only  'he  effect 
of  making  her  still  more  ruthless  and  unsparing. 

Cranmer,  though  he  had  during  part  of  Henry's  reign  warde  3  off  that 
monarch's  rage  from  Mary,  was  very  much  hated  by  her  for  the  part  he 
had  taken  in  bringing  about  the  divorce  of  her  nu  ner,  and  >';e  was  no' 
only  resolved  to  punish  him,  but  also  to  make  his  death  as  agonising  a 
possible.  For  the  part  he  had  taken  in  the  opposition  to  her  asccndin  - 
the  throne  she  could  easily  have  had  him  beheaded,  but  nothing  short  o!" 
the  flames  seemed  to  her  to  he  a  sufficiently  dreadful  punishment  for  li  m. 
She  caused  the  pope  to  cite  him  to  Rome,  there  to  take  histr  !  for  heresy. 
Being  a  close  prisoner  in  the  Tower,  the  unfortunate  prelate  f-e,  v  rce  neg- 
lected the  citation,  and  he  was  condemned  par  contumace,  >.nd  si  ntenced 
to  the  stake.  The  next  step  was  to  degrade  him  from  his  sacred  office ; 
and  Bonner,  who,  with  Thirleby,  bishop  of  Kly,  was  entrusted  with  this 
task,  performed  it  with  all  the  insolent  and  triumphant  brutality  consonant 
with  his  nature.  Firmly  believing  that  Cranmer's  eternal  as  well  as  earthly 
punishment  was  assured,  the  queen  was  not  yet  contented ;  she  would 
fain  deprive  him  in  his  last  hours  even  of  human  sympathy,  and  the  credit 
attached  to  consistency  and  fidelity  to  the  cause  he  had  embraced.  Per- 
sons were  employed  to  persuade  him  that  the  door  of  mercy  was  still  open 
to  him,  and  tliat  he,  who  was  so  well  qualified  to  be  of  wide  and  perma- 
nent service  to  mankind,  was  in  duty  bound  to  save  himself  by  a  seeming 
compliance  with  the  opinions  of  the  queen.  The  fear  of  death,  and  the 
strong  urgings  of  higher  motives,  induced  Cranmer  to  comply,  and  he 
agreed  to  subscribe  to  the  doctrines  of  the  real  presence  and  the  papal 
supremacy.  Shallow  writers  have  blamed  Cranmer  for  this  compliance; 
none  will  do  so  who  consider  "how  fearfully  and  how  wonderfully  we  are 
mafic"— in  mind  as  well  as  in  body;  how  ri^ny  and  urgent  were  the  niii- 
tives  to  this  weakness,  how  much  his  mind  v;:.,  *haken  by  long  peril  aiwl 
imprisonment,  and,  above  all,  who  remeii.':  "  uid  reflect  how  nobly  he 
subsequently  shook  off  all  earthly  motives  "like  dew  drops  from  the  lion's 
mane,"  and  with  what  calm  and  holy  serenity  he  endured  the  last  dread 
tortures. 

Having  induced  Cranmer  privately  .0  sign  his  recantation,  the  queen 
now  demanded  that  he  should  complfte  the  wretched  price  of  his  safety 
by  publicly  making  his  recantatioi  at  St.  Paul's  before  the  whole  people. 
Even  this  would  not  have  saved  Cranmer.  But,  either  from  his  own 
judgment,  or  from  the  warning  of  some  secret  friend,  Cranmer  perceived 
that  it  was  intended  to  send  him  to  execution  the  moment  that  he  should 
thus  have  completed  and  published  his  degradation.  All  his  former  high 
and  courageous  spirit  was  now  again  aroused  within  him ;  and  he  not  only 
refused  to  comply  with  this  now  demand,  but  openly  and  boldly  said  that 
the  only  passage  in  his  life  of  which  he  deeply  and  painfully  repented  was, 
that  recantation  which,  in  a  moment  of  natural  weakness,  he  already  had 
been  induced  to  make.  He  now,  he  said,  most  sincerely  repented  and  dis- 
avowed that  recaniation,  and  inasmuch  as  his  hand  had  offended  in  signing 
it,  so  should  his  hand  first  suffer  the  doom  which  only  that  single  weak- 
ness and  insincerity  had  made  him  deservin<r.  The  rage  of  the  court  a.;-' 
vis  sycophants  at  hearing  a  public  avowal  so  different  from  that  which 


508 


TI.E  TllEAStrilY  OH"  HfST(JR 


;  ■'!« 


Ur\ 


they  expev'tcd,  scarcely  left  Ihem  as  miicti  decency  of  patience  as  would 
allow  them  to  hear  him  to  the  em)  of  his  discourse;  and  the  instant  that 
he  ceased  to  spcsik  he  was  led  away  to  the  slake. 

True  to  his  prumise,  Craiimcr  when  the  fiijjgols  were  lighted  held  out 
his  hand  into  the  rising  flames  until  it  was  consumed,  repeatedly  exclaim- 
ing as  he  (lid  so, '^T/iii  uiiworlhi/ hand!"  "  This  hiind  has  offended!"  Tho 
fierce  fl.inies,  as  ihey  readied  his  body,  were  not  able  to  subdue  the  sub- 
lime serenity  to  which  he  had  wrouifhl  his  cliristian  courage  and  endurance, 
and  as  long  as  his  countenance  was  visible  to  he  appalled  bystanders,  it 
wore  the  character  not  of  agony  but  of  a  holy  sacrifii-e,  not  of  despair  but 
of  an  assured  and  eternal  hope.  U  is  said  by  some  Protestant  writers  of 
the  time,  that  when  the  sad  scene  was  at  an  end,  his  heart  was  found  cu- 
tire  and  uninjured  ;  hut  probably  this  assertion  took  its  rise  in  the  singular 
constancy  and  calmness  with  which  the  martyr  died.  Cardinal  Pole,  on 
the  death  of  Cranmer,  was  made  arclibishop  of  Canterbury.  But  though 
this  ecclesiastic  was  a  man  of  great  humanity  as  well  as  of  great  ability, 
and  though  he  was  sincerely  anxious  to  serve  the  great  interests  of  religion 
not  by  ensnaring  and  destroying  the  unhappy  and  ignorant  laity,  but  by 
elevating  the  clergy  in  the  moral  and  intelleclual  scale,  to  render  them 
more  efficient  in  their  awfully  important  service,  there  were  circumstances 
which  made  his  power  far  inferior  to  his  will.  He  was  personally  disliked 
at  Rome,  where  his  tolerance,  his  learning,  and  his  addiction  to  studious 
retirement,  had  caused  him  to  be  suspected  of,  at  least,  a  leaning  to  the 
new  doctrines. 

A.  n.  1557. — In  the  midst  of  Mary's  fierce  persecutions  of  her  protestant 
subjc'cts,  she  was  self-tortured  beyond  all  that  she  had  it  in  her  power  to 
inflict  on  others,  and  might  have  asked,  in  the  words  of  the  dying  Inca  to 
his  complaining  soldiers,  "Think  you  that  /,  then,  am  on  a  bed  of  roses  1" 
War  raged  between  France  and  Spain,  and  next  lo  her  desire  firmly  to  re- 
establish Catholicism  in  ICngland,  was  her  desire  to  iavisli  the  blood  and 
treasures  of  her  people  on  the  sidi'  of  Spain.  Some  oppo.'ilion  being  made 
Philip  visited  London,  and  the  queen's  zeal  in  liis  cause  ivas  increased, 
instead  of  being  as  in  the  case  of  a  nobler  spirit  it  would  h;;ve  been,  utterly 
destroyed,  by  bis  sullen  declaration,  that  if  Kngland  did  not  join  him  ajrainst 
France.  \w  would  see  Kngland  no  more.  Kveii  this,  however  much  it  af- 
fected the  queen,  did  not  bear  down  the  opposition  to  a  war  which,  as  the 
clearer-headed  members  discerned,  would  be  intolerably  exjiensive  in  any 
case,  and,  if  successful,  would  tend  lo  make  Kngland  a  mere  dependency 
of  Spain.  Under  the  circumstances,  a  true  Knglish  patriot,  indeed,  must 
have  wished  to  sec  Spain  hninbled,  not  exalted ;  crippled  in  its  finances, 
not  enriched.  It  iinfori'niately  happi'iicd,  however,  that  an  attempt  was 
made  to  seize  Si^arborongh,  and  Siairord  and  his  fellows  in  this  aiteinpt 
confessed  that  they  wen;  incited  to  il  by  Henry  of  Krance.  This  declar- 
ntion  called  up  all  the  dominant  national  antipathy  lo  Prance  ;  the  prudence 
of  the  opposition  was  at  once  laid  asleep;  war  was  declart  il,  and  every 
preparation  that  ihe  wretched  financial  slate  of  Kngland  would  permit, 
was  made  for  carrying  it  on  with  vigour,  liy  dint  of  a  renewal  of  the 
most  shameless  and  excessivi^  exiorlion,  the  .|iieeii  contrived  to  raise  and 
equip  an  army  of  ten  thousand  men,  whowerr  sent  to  Klainlcrs  under  tiie 
earl  of  Pembroke.  To  prevent  disliirbaiiceH  ,ii  home,  Mary,  in  obedience 
probably  to  the  advice  of  her  cold  and  cruel  hnsii.ind,  caused  many  of  the 
first  men  in  KiiRland,  from  whom  she  h,id  any  reason  lo  fear  opposition, 
to  bn  seized  and  im|)risoned  in  [daces  where  even  their  nearest  fricndi 
could  not  find  them. 

The  details  of  the  mihliiry  aflfairs  liotwcen  Krance  and  Spain  with  her 
Knglish  auxiliaries  h'loiiir  to  the  history  of  Kraiicc,  In  this  place  it  may 
■iidice  to  say,  tlial  the  talenis  of  (Jiiise  remlered  all  attempts  useless;  and 
and  that,  so  far  from  benefiting  Pliilii),  the  Knylisli  lost  Calais,  ihui  key  ti' 


!).i  . 


H^'  ■,  -h    . 


'(|f,  Iff 


1 

m 

1 

1 

.^i  ^-t! 


THE  TREASURV  Of  HI8T0KY. 


509 


France,  of  which  Kngland  was  so  chary  and  so  proud.  Kveii  ilie  cold  and 
unpatriotic  heart  of  Mary  was  touched  by  lliis  cipiial  niisroriiinc;  and  she 
was  often  heard  to  say,  in  the  a^onccs  of  her  uxoriDUs  jjiief,  thai,  after 
lier  death  "Calais"  would  be  found  visibly  graven  upon  her  briiiteu  heart. 
Hut  regrets  were  vain,  and  wisdom  eanie  loo  late.  France  improved  iier 
success  by  stirnng  up  the  Scotcii;  and,  witii  sueli  a  diiiiger  tlirealening 
her  very  frontier,  Kngland  was  obliged  sulleidy  and  silently  Id  withdraw 
from  an  onerous  warfare,  which  she  liad  most  unwisely  er)tere(i  upon. 

Philip  continued  the  war  for  some  time  after  Kngland  had  virtunlly  with- 
drawn from  it;  and  he  was  negotiating  a  peace  and  insisting  upon  the  res- 
toration of  Calais  as  one  of  its  conditions,  when  Mary,  long  labouring  un- 
der a  dropii/,  was  seized  with  ntortal  illness  and  died,  in  the  year  1588, 
after  a  most  wretched  and  mischievous  reign  of  five  years  and  four  months. 
This  miserable  woman  has  been  allowed  the  virtue  of  sincerity  m  the 
sole  good,  the  one  oasis  in  the  dark  desert  of  her  character.  Hut  even 
this  vi-'ue  must,  uncareful  examination,  bo  denied  to  her  by  the  impartial 
'listorian.  As  a  whole,  indeed,  her  course  is  iiot  marked  by  insincerity, 
But  vvhyl  Her  ferocity  and  despotism  were  too  completely  unresisted 
by  her  tame  and  aghast  people  to  leave  any  room  for  the  exercise  of  false- 
hood, after  the  very  first  days  of  her  disgraceful  reign.  But  i>i  those  first 
days,  while  it  was  yet  uncerlam  whctlntr  she  could  resist  the  power  and 
ability  of  the  ambitious  and  unpriniripled  Northuiiiberland,  she  proved 
that  she  could  use  guile  where  force  was  wantnig.  Her  prouiijcs  to  the 
protestants  were  in  many  cases  voluntary,  and  in  all  profuse  and  positive  i 
yet  she  no  sooner  grasued  the  sceptre  firmly  in  her  hand,  llim  she  scat- 
tered her  promises  to  the  winds,  and  conuneneed  thai  course  of  bigotry 
and  (iruclty  which  has  forever  affixed  to  her  memory  the  lo.iilied  name, 
which  even  yet  no  Knghsliiiuiu  can  pronounce  without  horror  and  disgust, 
of  the  Bunonv  QuKEN  Makv. 


CHAPTER  XIAI. 

THK    ItKION    OF    EI.IZAHKTH. 

A.  D.  1558. — So  completely  had  the  arbitrary  and  ernnl  reign  of  Mary 
disgusted  her  sidijccts,  almost  without  dislinctioii  of  r:iiik  or  religious 
o|iiiiious,  that  the  acceSMon  of  Khzabeth  was  h;uled';is  a  hles^ioL;  unalloy- 
ed and  almost  too  great  to  have  been  hoped  for.  The  pirliiinient  had 
been  called  together  a  few  days  before  the  death  of  M.iry,  .lud  when 
Heath,  as  chancellor,  announced  that  event,  he  was  hardly  allowed  to 
conclude  ere  both  houses  burst  into  the  joyful  ciy  of  "<!od  save  Queen 
r.lizidieth!     Long  and  happdy  may  she  reign!" 

l)(('p  and  deadly  indeed  unist  have  been  the  oflTences  of  the  deceased 
queen  to  have  reiulered  her  death  an  actual  subject  of  Joy.  instead  of  grief, 
to  a  nation  provrrbinlly  so  lo\  d  and  aflTeclionate  as  Kngland  ! 

Khzabeth,  when  she  reeened  the  news  of  her  sisler'x  death  was  at  llaf- 
fii'ld,  where  she  had  for  some  time  resided  in  studious  iuiil  close  n  lire 
incut;  for,  even  to  the  last,  Mary  had  shown  that  her  malignity  ag.iinst  her 
younger  sister  had  'uiffered  no  (d)at<'menl,  and  reipiired  only  the  slightest 
occasion  to  burst  out  in  fatal  violence.  When  slui  had  devoted  a  few  days 
to  the  iippcaraiu'c  of  UKUirning,  she  proceeded  to  F.ondon  and  took  up  hei 
abode  ill  the  Tower.  The  rememiiranee  of  the  \cry  diftVrent  circum- 
Btances  under  whiel  she  liad  formerly  visited  that  blood-stained  fortrt'ss, 
when  she  was  n  pr  soner,  and  her  life  in  danger  from  the  nialigniiy  of 
hir  then  nll-powprfiil  sister,  afTecled  her  so  miirli,  that  she  fill  upon  her 
knees  ami  returned  thanks  anew  to  the  Almighly  for  her  safe  didivi-ranee 
from  I  iiger,  which,  sho  truly  said,  was  scarcely  inferior  to  (hat  of  D.uiiel 


t  ^Mi  . 


ul 


5tO 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


lit  tho  .dii  of  lions.  Her  immediately  subsequent  cundiu-i  showed  thut 
i.  T  heart  was  properly  aflTected  by  tlie  emotions  which  called  forth  this  act 
01  piety.  She  had  been  much  injured  and  much  insulted  during  the  life 
of  her  sister;  for  such  was  the  hateful  and  petty  cast  of  Mary's  mind, 
that  there  were  few  readier  ways  to  win  her  favour  than  by  insult  or  in- 
jury to  the  then  friendless  daughter  of  Anne  Boieyn.  But  Elizabeth  now 
seemed  determined  only  to  remember  the  past  in  her  thankfulness  for  her 
complete  and  almost  miraculous  deliverance  from  danger.  She  allowed 
neither  word  nor  glance  to  express  resentment,  even  to  those  who  had 
most  injured  her.  Sir  H.  Bedingfield,  who  had  for  a  considerable  time 
been  her  host,  and  who  had  both  harshly  and  disrespectfully  caused  tier 
to  feel  that,  though  nominally  his  guest  and  ward,  she  was  in  reality  his 
jealously-watched  prisoner,  might  very  reasonably  have  expected  a  cold 
if  not  a  stern  reception;  but  even  this  man  she  received  with  aflTability 
when  he  first  presented  himself,  and  never  afterwards  inflicted  any  severer 
punishment  upon  him  than  a  good-humoured  xarcasm.  The  sole  case 
in  which  she  manifested  a  feeling  of  dislike  was  that  of  the  brutal  and 
blood-stained  Bonner,  from  whom,  while  she  addressed  all  the  other 
bishops  with  almost  affectionate  cordiality,  she  turned  away  with  an  ex- 
pressive and  well-warranted  appearance  of  horror  and  disgust. 

As  soon  as  the  necessary  attention  to  her  private  affairs  would  allow 
her,  t4ie  new  queen  sent  off  messengers  to  foreign  courts  to  announce  her 
sister's  death  and  her  own  accession.  The  envoy  to  Philip,  who  at  this 
time  was  in  Flanders,  was  the  lord  Cobham,  who  was  ordered  to  return 
the  warmest  thanks  of  his  royal  mistress  for  tlie  protection  he  had  afforded 
her  when  she  so  much  needed  it,  and  to  express  her  sincere  and  earnest 
desire  that  their  friendship  might  continue  unbroken.  The  friendly  ear- 
nestness of  Elizabeth's  message  strengthened  Philip  in  a  determination  he 
had  made  even  during  the  illness  of  Mary,  of  whose  early  death  he  could 
not  but  have  been  expectant,  and  he  immediately  instructed  his  ambassa- 
dor to  the  court  of  London  to  offer  the  hatul  of  Philip  to  Elizabeth. 
Blinded  by  his  eager  dcaire  to  obtain  that  dominion  over  England  which 
his  marriage  with  Mary  had  failed  to  secure,  Philip  forgot  that  there 
were  many  olijectii.'n8  to  this  measure;  objuclions  whii;h  he,  indeed, 
would  easily  have  overlooked,  hut  which  the  sagacious  Elizabeth  coulii 
not  fa  1  to  notice.  As  a  catholic,  I'hilip  w  la  necessarily  disliked  by  the 
proteslants  who  had  so  lately  tasted  of^  caihotic  (jersecution  in  its  worst 
form ;  as  a  Spaniard,  hi;  was  cordially  detested  by  Englishmen  of  either 
creed.  Uut  apart  Irom  and  beyond  these  \  eighty  olyections,  wliieh  of 
themselves  would  have  been  fatal  to  his  pretensions,  he  stood  in  precisely 
the  same  relationship  to  Elizabeth  that  her  father  had  stood  in  to  (\ith- 
arine  of  Arr.igoii,  and  in  tnarrving  Philip,  Elizabeth  would  virtually,  and 
in  a  manner  which  the  world  wotdil  surely  not  overlook,  pronounce  her 
mother's  marriage  illc;r;il  nnd  her  own  liirlh  illegitimate.  This  last  con- 
sidi-ration  alone  wimld  liave  decided  Elizabeth  against  Philip;  but  while 
in  her  heart  she  was  folly  and  irrevocably  determined  never  to  marry  him, 
she  even  thus  early  brought  into  use  that  duplicity  for  which  shi;  was 
afli'rwards  as  remarkable  as  for  her  higher  and  nobler  qualities,  and  sent 
him  so  uijuivocal  aiwl  uiideeideil  an  answer,  that,  so  far  from  dcsiiainiii.' 
of  success,  P'lilip  actu.iUy  sent  to  Home  to  solicit  tin;  dispensauon  that 
would  be  necessary. 

With  her  characteristic  prudence,  Elizabeth,  through  her  ambassador  at 
R(une,  announced  her  accession  to  the  pope.  Th;it  exalted  pcrsoiiaije 
wa-i  grieved  at  the  early  death  of  Mary,  not  only  as  it  deprived  Koine  o* 
ilic  beiK'lit  of  her  bii;otry,  but  as  it  made  way  for  a  princess  who  was 
already  lookeij  up  to  with  pride  and  confiience  by  the  protcstaii'.s ,  and 
he  sull'cred  his  double  vexation  to  manifest  itself  with  a  very  iiidiscfccl 
enerKy.      He  treated  Elizabeth's  assuniption  of  the  crown  without  hu 


n'"essi(  I 
aied  ten 
chiefly 
stood 
say,  th;i 
stored 
The 
were   s( 
course, 
without 
vailcij  II 

The 
cure   tht 
conragin 
die  Jtoiii 
'"  desjH'i 

IlilCOIl,    \ 

IJoiiiaiiis 
li'o  olisti 
it  was  (ji 
'I'liphaiil, 
^''•l>\  aiK 
liturgy  ( 
"K^iinsi  ,1 
■fnn  ih,. 
"le  parli,i 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


fill 


hich 
tliere 

Iced, 

could 

by  llif 

worst 

illier 

I'll  of 

,;is('ly 

Ull- 

11  y,  •.illd 

ce  liiT 

coil- 

while 

ry  liiiiii 

ic  was 

id  sent 

m  thai 

sudor  at 
rsoiia^e 
oinc  o' 
lio  was 
Is ,  and 
dlscTi'i't 
loul  Ills 


permission  as  being  doubly  wrong ;  wrong,  as  treating  witn  disrespect 
the  holy  see,  to  which  he  still  deemed  England  subject,  and  wrong,  as  the 
holy  see  had  pronounced  her  birth  illegitimate.  This  sort  of  conduct 
was  by  no  means  calculated  to  succeed  with  Elizabeth  ;  she  immediately 
recalled  her  ambassador  from  Rome,  and  only  pursued  her  course  with 
the  more  resolved  and  open  vigour.  She  recalled  home  all  who  had  been 
exiled,  and  set  at  liberty  all  who  had  been  imprisoned  for  their  religious 
opinions  during  the  reign  of  her  sister;  she  caused  the  greater  part  of 
the  service  to  be  performed  in  English,  and  she  forbade  the  elevation  of 
the  host  in  her  own  chapel,  which  she  set  up  as  the  standard  for  all  other 
places  of  worship.  But,  always  cool  and  cautious,  Elizabeth,  while  she 
did  thus  much  and  inus  judiciously  to  favour  the  reformers,  did  not  neg- 
lect to  discourage  those  who  not  only  would  have  fain  outstripped  her  in 
advancing  reform,  but  even  have  inflicted  upon  the  Romanists  some  of 
the  persecutions  of  which  they  themselves  had  complained.  On  occasion 
of  a  petition  being  presented  to  her,  it  was  said,  in  that  partly  quaint  and 
partly  argumentative  style  which  in  that  age  was  so  greatly  affected,  that 
having  graciously  released  so  many  other  prisoners,  it  was  to  be  hoped 
that  she  would  receive  a  petition  for  the  release  of  Matthew,  Mark,  Luke 
and  John.  Being  as  yet  undetermined  as  to  the  extent  to  which  it  would 
be  desirable  to  permit  or  encourage  the  reading  of  the  Scriptures,  she 
readily  replied,  that  previous  to  doing  so  she  must  consult  those  prison- 
ers, and  learn  whether  they  desired  their  liberty.  To  preaching  she  was 
never  a  great  friend ;  one  or  two  preachers,  she  was  wont  to  say,  were 
enough  for  a  whole  county.  And,  at  this  early  period  of  hor  reign,  she 
deemed  that  the  indiscreet  zeal  of  many  of  the  most  noted  of  the  pro- 
teslunt  preachers  was  calculated  to  promote  that  very  perse(;ution  of  the 
Romanists  which  she  was  especially  anxious  to  avoid  ;  and  she,  conse- 
quently, forbade  all  preaching  save  by  special  license,  and  took  care  to 
grant  licenses  only  to  men  of  discretion  and  moderation,  from  whose 
preaching  no  evil  was  to  be  apprehended. 

The  parliament  was  very  early  employed  in  passing  laws  for  the  sup- 
nressi(  n  of  the  recently  erected  monasteries,  and  restoring  the  alien- 
ated tenths  and  first  fruits  to  the  crown.  Sundry  other  laws  were  passed 
chiefly  relating  to  religion;  hut  those  laws  will  be  sufliciently  under- 
stood by  those  who  have  attentively  accompanied  us  thus  far,  when  we 
say,  that  they,  substantially,  abolished  all  that  Mary  had  done,  and  re- 
stored all  that  she  hud  abrogated  of  the  laws  of  Edward. 

The  then  bishops,  owinij  everything  to  her  sister  and  to  Catholicism, 
were  so  greatly  offended  by  these  clear  indications  of  her  intended 
course,  that  they  refused  to  officiate  at  her  coronation,  and  it  was  not 
without  stnne  difliciilty  that  the  bisiiop  of  Carlisle  was  at  length  pre- 
vaded  upon  to  perforin  I>h'  ceremony. 

The  most  prudent  and  effectual  steps  having  thus  been  taken  to  se- 
cure the  protestaiit  interests  wiihout  in  any  degree  awakening  or  en- 
couraging whatever  there  iniglif  On  of  i)rotestaiit  '.■Icoiry,  and  to  despoil 
the  Uonianisls  of  wh.il  they  Ir.d  violently  acquired  without  driving  thi'in 
to  desperaluMi,  the  queen  cauKcd  a  solemn  disputation  to  he  held  liefore 
Ilacoii,  whom  she  had  made  lord  keeper,  between  the  protcstant  and  the 
Hoinanist  divines.  The  latter  wen-  vanquished  in  argument,  hut  were 
too  olistinate  to  eonfesn  it  ;  and  some  (d  them  were  so  n  fraetory  thai 
it  was  deemed  necessary  to  iini>risoa  lliein.  Having  been  thus  far  tri- 
umphant, the  prolestaiits  proceeded  to  their  nlliiiiale  and  most  iin|ii)rtarit 
step;  and  a  i)ill  was  [lassed  by  which  the  mass  was  abolished,  and  ihe 
liturgy  of  king  Edward  re-eslalditihed ;  and  penalties  were  enacieii 
Hgiinsl  all  who  slionid  I'lther  absent  themselves  from  worship  or  depart 
friiii  the  order  here  laid  down.  Heforr  'lie  ronclusion  of  the  sessiini, 
the  parliament  gave  a  still  farlli  r  proof  ni  its  uttachin''ut  to  the  queen. 


m 


%l% 


512 


'I HE  TRViASURY  '<?   I'ISTO'.tV. 


and  of  it«  desire  to  -vA  her  in  licr  desiurs,  by  voting  her  ;i  ^uLsidy  ft 
four  3iiil)ins[8  in  ilia  pound  on  ;  iiid,  and  t  .vo-aii.l-ei^lil-pence  on  goods 
wild  two  lifleenlhs.      'A  ell  JtiKnvi;,:?  ali  ilie  fiangers  of  !i  dispuiei)  sue 
cessioii.  •Ju^  parliainei  t  at  the  saniu  lime  petilioned  lii;r  to  choose  a  hus 
baiid.     liul   the  queen,  though   she  aekiU'ivlf'dijed  that  the  peliiion  was 
couehe  1  in  terms  so  gciieri;!   '111(1  so  respiiciful  th't  she     juli     )l  take 
any  offence  at  it,  prott.-i';d  ilni,  ;ii'va>s  iiiidesirous  ol"  cls.iiging  iier  eoii- 
diisoii,  siic  was  anxious  only  I'l  lie  tlie  \v,fe  of  Kii);ianiJ  jckI  ihe  mother 
of  the  Kiiglish,  and  had  no  liii.'her  riniLilion  ti,  in  tt<    "ve  I'ui  tier  epitaph, 
"  Here  lies  Elizabeth,  who  li,  i  d  aai  died  a  r.^nideu  mU  (ji)." 

A,  !>.  15.'>!t. — 'i'he  parliaiiiei!'  ills'  proroijiui!  had,  as  we  have  shown, got 
ihr  I'.ich  a  vast  deal  of  important  business  iii  liie  session;  but  though  that 
w  '<  \w  lirstsessioii  of  a  new  reiftii,  a  reign,  too,  iiiimediHtely  following  one 
ill  which  such  horrors  of  lyraiinoii^  oriii'lly  had  been  enacted,  it  is  to  be  re- 
marked, to  tile  praise  of  llie  moderauon  of  both  queim  and  parliament,  that 
iioi  a  single  bill  of  attainder  was  |iissed,  thcingh  some  attiinis  by  former 
parliaments  were  mercifully  or  justly  removed. 

While  tiic  queen  had  been  iIium  ■.isely  busy  at  home,  she  had  been  no 
less  active  abroad.  Sensible  lliiii  li  t  kiugdoin  required  a  long  season  of 
repose  to  enable  it  to  regain  its  ;')wer,  she  ordered  her  ambassadors, 
Lord  I'^fTmgham  and  the  bishop  of  Ivv,  to  conclude  peace  with  France  on 
any  terms;  and  peace  was  acconlii.niy  concluded.  But  as  the  marriage 
of  Henry  and  Anne  Uoleyn  had  bciii  coiicluded  in  open  opposition  to 
Koiiie,  France  chose  to  deem  Klizulietli  wrongfully  sealed  upon  the 
throne;  and  the  duke  of  (Juise  and  In-  brothers,  seeing  that  Mary,  queen 
of  Scots,  the  wife  of  the  danpiiin,  wmild — sufiposiiig  Hhzabeth  out  of  the 
qui'Stioii — he  the  rightful  heir,  persu;ided  the  king  of  France  to  order  his 
son  and  his  daiight(!r-iii-law  to  assu'ie  boili  the  tilh;  and  liie  arms  of 
Kiiglai' '.  The  death  of  Hiniry  of  France  at  a  tournament  not  being  fol- 
lowed .  y  any  abandonment  on  the  part  of  .Mary  and  her  husband,  then 
Francis  II.  of  France,  of  this  most  iinwarranlable  and  insiiliiug  assunif)- 
tioii,  F.lizabeth  was  sluiig  into  the  ciiiiiMieiircmeiit  of  that  deadly  hatred 
whiidi  subsequently  proved  so  fatal  to  the  fairer  but  less  prudent  Mary  of 
Scotland. 

A.  n.  1501. — The  situation  of  Scotland  and  the  circumstances  whicji 
occurred  there  at  this  period  will  be  found  in  all  iiecc^ssary  detail  under 
the  pruper  liea<l.  It  will  stillicc  to  say,  her(\  lliai  tlu!  theological  and  civil 
ilispnies  that  raged  fiercely  aiiioiiir  t||c  turbulent  and  warlike  nobility  ol 
.Scotland  and  their  respective  followers,  plunged  thatcouiury  into  a  stale 
of  confusion,  which  encoiiragc(l  Flizaheih  iii  her  ho:  ii  cxiorling  froiii 
Mary,  now  a  widow,  a  clear  ami  saiisfacinry  abaiidoiinient  of  her  a.ssuinp- 
lioii;  an  aliaiidoiimeiit  which,  inlced.  had  been  made  for  her  by  a  triiaiy 
at  l'Miiibnri;h,  which  treaty  Flizabeih  iio"  ,  throutih  Tliroirmorloii,  her 
ambissador,  demanded  ll'.at  Mary  should  r itify.  Hut  willuliiess  and  .i 
i-erlaiii  pi:tty  woiiianly  piipic  determiiieil  Mary  to  refuse  this,  alitioimh 
inn. II  diately  on  the  di'ath  of  Iwr  husband  she  had  laid  aside  both  the  title 
.-ind  the  arms  of  (|ueeii  of  lOiml  ind, 

.NIary's  residence  in  Fraiici-,  in  ■anwhile,  had  become  very  disayreeahli 
to  her  f'roiii  the  iU-offices  of  the  (jir"n  inoiher,  and  she  resolverl  to  com- 
ply with  the  invitation  of  the  slates  of  Scoilaiid  to  return  to  that  kiiii;iloiii 
Sh(!  accordiiiu'ly  ordered  her  auihiss.idor,  D'Oisel,  to  iippiv  to  Fli/.ahctI, 
for  a  safe  comliict  thnuigli  lOi.^laiid;  but  lllizalieth,  through  'rhrogiiiorinii 
refuse  I  (!ompliaiice  wilh  lliat  re(|i|i'>,i,  except  on  condition  of  Mary's  rit- 
ificiilion  of  th(!  treaty  of  Kdininiryh.  Mary  lenioiistrafed  in  severe  thoiiu'li 
chastened  terms,  and  imnierlialely  deti-r'niiied  upon  [iroceediiig  to  S'-dl- 
land  by  sea,  for  which  purpose  she  r",./:irki  d  at  Caliiis.  lOlizaheth  at  tin' 
same  time  sent  out  cruisers,  ostensiily  lo  pursue  pirates,  bill,  as  itshoiil! 


§eem,  with  the  inteniion  of  seizing  upon  ilie  person  of  Mary,  "ho,  I 


lOW- 


'loiil 


"lldllir  J 


I>ll(l|(M 

'■'■'ff'l  of 
'Mst  caiisj 
Ills  act 
"•  i's  Fli, 
'  'HVoure 
V'  o  t,| 


THE  TREASURY  OF  hISTOKY. 


513 


I  goods 
iiei)  sue 
3  a  hus 
won  Wd9 
)l  lake 
r  iier  ooii- 
e  mother 
(•  epiiaplii 

shown,  got 
lOUgh  lliat 
lowing  one 
is  10  be  re- 
[iinenl,  that 
by  former 

,ad  been  no 
,r  season  of 
ilibassadors, 
,  France  on 
\io  marriage 
ipposilion  to 
,1    vipon  tlie 
Mary,  q»ie;'" 
■ih  onl  of  ilie 
J  to  order  Ins 
\\\e  arms  of 
„ot  being  [ol- 
(uisband,  ibcn 
Umg  assnmp- 
,l,Maiy  batrol 
jilcui  Mary  of 

nances  whi''b 

y  aeiail""''*''', 
.ricil  and  civil 

?;,.  nobility  ol 
rv  n,lo  ii  «'-'"■ 
..•iiorlinji  from 
„f  lu'ra^snuiii- 
i.-rbvaireaiy 

;„„m)rton,  b'-f 
lulnoss  and  ;i 
,1),^,  iilibinm'i 
,  Imlb  Vlie  tide 

rv  (UsairvcoaM' 
,;olvcd  to  <'nHi- 
otUal  kimi'loni 
,,lv  to  Kb/.ilbrll, 

I'l'lirognv'ii"" 
of  Miry-s  rit- 

,,  M'VOT  ibOU'ill 

• bill?  to  S'-"i 

iKl./.ibelb  ;U  tli' 
ll.nl.  as  ilsboiil'. 
Ilary,  -t'o.  bo«- 


I 


1  o 


ever,  passed  through  the  English  squadron  in  a  fog,  and  arrived  srifoly  at 
Leith.  But  though  safe,  Mary  was  far  froin  happy.  She  had  h)ved  France 
with  even  move  than  a  native's  love,  and  only  ceased  to  gaze  upon  its  re- 
ceding sliores  when  they  were  hidden  by  the  darkness  of  iiigiit.  The 
manners  of  the  French  were  agreeable  to  Iter;  she  had  become,  as  it  were, 
"native  and  to  the  manor  born,"  iu  that  land  of  gaiety  and  frivolity  ;  and 
all  that  she  heard  of  the  stern  harsh  bigotry  of  the  predominant  parly  in 
Scotland,  led  her  to  anticipate  nothing  but  the  most  wearisome  and  "mel- 
ancholy feelings.  Her  youth,  her  beauty,  her  many  accomplislunents, 
and,  above  all,  the  novelty  of  seeing  their  sovereign  once  more  among 
them,  caused  the  Scots  to  give  her  a  most  joyful  and  aflPectionate  recep- 
tion. Her  first  measures  were  we'l  calculiited  to  confirm  the  favourable 
opinion  which  her  people  appeared  toentc^rtain.  She  gave,  at  least  osten- 
sibly, all  her  confidence  and  nearly  all  her  attention  to  the  leaders  of  the 
reformed  parly,  who,  indeed,  had  now  complete  power  over  tlie  great 
mass  of  the  Scottish  people.  Secretary  Liddington  and  her  brother,  Ijord 
James,  whom  she  created  earl  of  Murray,  ably  seconded  her  endeavours 
to  introduce  something  like  order  into  that  land  so  long  and  so  grievously 
lorn  by  faction  and  strife,  and  as  the  measures  taken  were  at  once  firm 
and  conciliatory,  everything  seemed  to  promise  success. 

But  there  was,  amidst  all  this  seeming  promise  of  better  times,  one 
fatal  element  which  rendered  her  success  nearly  impossible.  Bigotry  ip 
England  was  personified  mildness  and  moderation,  compared  to  the  in- 
tense and  envenomed  bigotry  which  at  that  time  existed  in  Scotland. 
Mary  on  her  first  entrance  into  Scotland  had  issued  an  oider  that  every 
one  should  submit  to  the  reformed  religion.  But  she  herself  was  still  a 
papist ;  and  scarcely  was  the  first  joy  of  her  arrival  subsided  when  the 
reformed  preachers  began  to  denounce  her  on  that  account.  The  celelira- 
tioii  of  catholic  rites  in  her  own  chapel  would  have  been  sternly  refused 
her  by  the  zealous  preachers  and  their  zealous  followers,  had  nol  the  mul- 
tilude  been  induced  to  side  by  her  in  that  matter,  for  fear  of  her  returnmg 
to  France  in  disgust.  But  even  that  consideration  did  not  prevent  the 
preachers  and  some  of  their  followers  from  proceeding  to  the  most  out- 
rageous lengths  ;  and  tliis  single  consideration  sufficed  to  throw  the  wiiole 
Scottish  r'"'>ple  into  confusion  and  uneasiness. 

Wisely  chary  of  expense,  and  profoundly  politic,  Elizabeth  saw  that 
the  bigotry  of  Mary's  subjects  would  find  that  princess  other  employment 
than  that  of  making  any  attempt  to  disturb  the  peace  of  England.  She 
tiierefore  turned  her  attention  to  improvmg  the  arts,  commerce,  navy,  and 
artillery  of  England  ;  and  with  so  much  judgment,  and  with  such  great  as 
well  ;is  rapid  success,  that  she  well  meriteil  the  title  that  was  bestowed 
upon  her,  of  "  the  restorer  of  naval  glory  and  queen  of  the  northern  seas." 
llrr  spirit  and  prudence  had  naturally  enough  eicouraged  foreign  princes 
to  believe,  that  though  she  had  in  soiuo  sort  pltnlged  herself  to  a  maiden 
life,  it  was  not  inipos.sible  to  dissuade  her  from  persevering  in  that  reso- 
lution. The  archduke  Charles,  second  son  of  the  emperor ;  Casimir,  son 
of  the  (doctor  palatiiu' ;  Fric,  king  of  Sweden  ;  Adolph,  duke  of  Holstein  ; 
and  the  earl  of  Arraii,  presumptive  heir  to  the  crown  of  Scotland,  were 
among  the  suitors  feu-  her  hand.  Nor  were  there  wanting  aspirants  to  that 
higii  and  envied  honour  even  among  her  own  siibje<'ts.  The  earl  of  Arun- 
del, thoiigb  old  enough  to  bi;  her  father,  and  Sir  William  Pickering  were 
:iiniMig  those  who  Haltered  themselv(\s  with  hope;  as  was  Lord  Robert 
Dudley,  a  sou  of  the  aini)itious  duke  of  Northumberland,  beheaded  in  tlio 
iiigii  of  M;iry  ;  and  as  the  (ine  person  and  showy  accoinplisliiMenls  of  this 
iii^l  caused  the  queen  to  treat  him  with  i..  >re  favour  and  confidence  than 
his  actual  talents  seemed  to  warrant  frinn  so  acute  a  judge  of  men's  mer- 
its as  Elizabeth,  it  was  fcr  some  time  very  generally  imagined  that  h"  was 
'»  favoured  lover.  But  the  (lueen  answered  all  addresses  with  ti  refusal. 
Vol.  1 ri 


914 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


and  yet  not  such  a  refusal  as  to  utterly  destroy  tliiit  feeling  of  attachment 
which  was  so  useful  toiler  as  a  queen,  and — can  we  doubt  it  ' — so  agree- 
able as  well  as  flattering  to  her  as  a  woman?  But  though  Elizabeth  ap- 
peared to  be  decidedly  disinclined  to  marriage,  notiiing  appeared  to  offend 
her  more  than  the  marriage  of  any  who  iiad  pretensions  to  succeed  her. 
A  remarkable  instance  of  tiiis  occurred  in  the  case  of  tiie  lady  Catherine 
Gray,  youngest  sister  of  tiie  hapless  lady  Jane.  This  lady  married,  in 
secoinl  nuptials,  the  earl  of  Hertford,  son  of  the  protector  Somerset,  and, 
tiie  lady  (iroviiig  pregnant,  Elizaheth  confined  both  husband  and  wife  in 
the  Tower,  where  Ihey  remained  for  nine  years.  At  the  end  of  that  time 
the  countess  died,  and  then  the  queen  at  length  gave  the  persecuted  earl 
his  liberty. 

A.  D.  15C3. — Besides  all  considerations  of  his  personal  and  ineradicable 
bigotry,  Philip  of  Spain  had  yet  anotlier  motive  for  fidfilling  tlie  vow 
which,  on  escaping  from  a  violent  tempest,  he  iiad  made,  to  do  all  that  in 
him  lay  for  the  extirpation  of  heresy.  Of  tliat  "  heresy"  Elizabeth,  by 
the  common  consent  not  only  of  lier  own  subjects  but  of  tlie  protestaiits 
of  all  Europe,  was  looked  upon  as  the  child  and  champion  ;  and  her  rejec- 
tion of  I'liilip's  hand,  and  her  consequent  baffling  of  all  his  liofies  of  ob- 
taining sway  over  England,  had  excited  his  glopmy  and  vindictive  nature 
to  a  fierce  and  personal  hatred.  In  every  negotiation,  under  every  circum- 
stance, he  made  his  hatred  to  the  queen  appear  in  his  virulent  and  obsti- 
nate o[)po3ition  to  the  interests  of  England.  Not  content  with  the  most 
violent  persecution  of  the  protcstants  wherever  his  own  aulliority  could 
be  stretched  to  reach  them,  he  lent  his  aid  to  the  queen  mother  of  KraiuM;. 
That  aid  so  fearfully  turned  the  scale  against  the  French  Huguenots,  that 
their  chivalrous  leader,  tlie  prince  of  (Jonde,  i.\as  fain  to  apply  for  aid  to 
the  protestaiit  queen  of  England.  TiiDiigli  during  the  whiije  ol'  iitr  long 
and  glorious  reii,'i!,  Eliz.ii)eth  was  wisely  chary  of  involving  herself  in 
great  expenses,  the  (uiuse  of  protestantism  would  proliably  of  itself  liave 
been  too  dear  to  her  to  allow  of  lier  hesitating.  But  tin-  prince  of  Ooiid^ 
appealed  to  her  interest  as  well  as  to  her  r(diifious  syiupathies.  The  Hu- 
guenots possessed  nearly  the  whole  of  Norm.iidy  ;  and  CdiuIc  iJrofTcrcd 
ti  (xive  Elizabeth  possession  of  Ilavre-de-Giace,  on  condition  that  she 
Bhould  put  a  garrison  of  three  thousand  men  into  that  place,  send  three 
thousand  men  to  garrison  Dieppe  and  Hoiieii,  and  supply  money  to  the 
amount  of  a  hmulrcd  tlionsaiul  crowns.  The  offer  was  tempting.  True 
it  was  that  the  French  were  by  treaty  bound  to  restore  Calais,  but  there 
were  many  reasons  for  doubting  whether  that  agreement  would  be  I'lilfil- 
led.  Possessed  of  Havre,  and  thus  comnianding  the  mouth  of  the  Seine, 
England  would  be  the  more  likely  to  be  able  to  command  the  restitution 
of  Calais;  the  offer  of  Coiide  was  accordingly  accepted.  Havre  and 
Dieppe  were  ininiediately  garrisoned,  but  the  latter  [ilaee  was  speedily 
found  to  be  untenable,  and  evacuated  aceordiniily.  To  Rouen  the  catholics 
were  laying  siege,  and  it  was  witli  great  dillu  uliy  that  I'oynings  threw  in 
II  small  reinforceinent  of  English  to  aid  the  Huguenot  garrison.  Thus 
aided  the  Huguenots  fought  bravely  and  well,  but  were  at  length  over- 
powered and  put  to  the  sword.  About  the  same  time  thrive  thousand  more 
English  arrived  to  the  siip|)ort  of  Havre,  iindt^r  the  coiiii.iaiid  of  the  e.irl 
of  Warwick,  eldest  brother  of  the  Lord  Robert  Dudley.  With  tins  aid 
and  a  sei'ond  sum  of  a  hundred  tli(nisaiid  crowns,  the  Huguenots,  ihoHgli 
sevi'rely  beaten  near  Dreiix,  wlu'ri!  dnehi  and  MontmonMicy  were  taken 
prisoners  by  the  catholics,  still  kept  well  together,  and  even  took  some 
considerable  towns  in  Normandy. 

A.  D.  1.5^3.— How  sincendy  desirous  Eli/.iiielh  was  of  cITc^ctual'v  aidiiir; 
the  llugueiiols  will  appear  fro.ii  the  fact  that,  while  she  had  thus  assistei! 
lie  111  Witt,  a  numerous  body  of  admirable  tv^ips  and  with  two  huiidrt'd 
thousand  crowns,  as  well  as  proffered  li  :r  bond  for  another  hui.jred  tl»oi:- 


Af 

catlii 
the 
his  ; 

and 

entire 

so  iioIj 

he  re[: 

as  hef 

so  evi 

and  III 

seciiii 

disda 

to  d.-f, 

W; 

place, 

"oiirag 

l"'lMnei 
Wiek, 
niak( 
break i 
Seeing 
by  :he 

foil'l  111 

FrencI 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


5l5 


»?n(l  if  mercliants  could  be  found  to  lend  the  amount,  she  was  now  so 
poor  tiiat  she  was  obliged  to  summon  a  parliament  and  demand  assistance. 
This  demand  led  to  a  renewal  of  the  parliament's  request  that  she  would 
marry.  She  had  been  dangerously  ill  of  the  small-pox,  and  her  peril  had 
re-awakened  all  the  national  terrors  of  the  evils  inseparable  from  a  dis- 
putetl  succession.  Tiie  parliament,  consequently,  now  added  to  its  peti- 
tion, that  she  would  marry,  the  alternative,  that  she  would  at  least  cause 
her  successor  to  be  clearly  and  finally — save  in  the  event  of  her  marrying 
and  having  issue — named  by  an  act  of  parliament. 

Nothing  could  have  been  less  agreealile  to  the  queen  than  this  petition. 
Slie  well  knew  tlie  claim  of  Mary  of  Scotland,  and  shrewdly  judged  that 
the  being  named  as  iier  successor  would  not  dimmisli  the  inclination  of 
that  queen  to  give  her  disturbance.  On  the  oiherliand,  to  deny  that  claim 
and  to  decide  in  favour  of  the  house  of  Suffolk,  would  be  to  incite  Mary 
to  instant  enmity,  and  at  the  same  time  to  i-reale  in  ai'.other  quarter  the 
impatience,  rarely  unmixed  with  enmity,  of  the  declared  successor.  In 
this  dilemma  she  acted  with  her  usual  caution  and  policy;  gave  the  par- 
liament to  understand  that  she  had  by  no  means  irrevocably  made  up  her 
mind  against  marriage,  and  assure  "  them,  in  general  terms,  that  she  could 
not  die  with  any  satisfaction  unt!  had  settled  the  succession  on  solid 

anil  satisfactory  foundations. 

The  parliament,  sincerely  attached  to  the  queen,  and.  besides,  well 
aware  that  her  temper  would  but  ill  boar  aught  that  bore  the  appearance 
of  iniporlunity  or  of  dictation,  was  obliged  to  be  contented,  or  seemingly 
so,  witii  tins  reply;  and  proceeded  to  busy  itjclf  in  passing  needlessly 
severe  laws  against  the  catholics,  and  rid'  ndously  severe  laws  aguir.it 
ibiise  iniiiginary  and  impossible  offenders,  vitches  and  wizards.  A  sub- 
sidy and  two  rif*"(ntiis.  and  a  subsidy  of  ':\  shillings  in  the  pound,  the 
last  to  be  paid  '-.i  three  years,  were  then  '.  oted  to  the  queen,  and  parlia- 
ment was  again  prorogued. 

After  long  and  mmnally  cruel  butchcies  the  French  Huguenots  and 
catholics  came  to  an  agreement.  An  ;,.nnesty  and  partial  toler.iiion  of 
tiie  Huguenots  was  pulilished  by  the  'lO'.irt,  and  Conde  was  reinstated  in 
his  appointments.  To  the  great  discreuit  of  this  gallant  leader,  his  own 
and  liis  party's  iiitoresis  were  never  attended  to  by  tiim,  almost  to  the 
entire  forgetfidness  of  his  agreements  made  with  I'^lizabeth  when  she 
so  nol)ly  and  liberally  assisted  him.  He  stipulated,  mdeed,  that  she  should 
he  repaid  her  expenses,  but  in  relm-n  she  was  to  give  up  Havre,  and  trust, 
as  before,  for  the  reslitulion  of  Calais  to  that  trt^aty  which  the  French  had 
so  evidently  resolvcil  upon  breaking.  Knraged  at  Conde's  breach  of  faith, 
and  helieviiig  the  possession  of  Havn^  to  be  her  best  if  not  her  solo 
security  fo,  the  restitution  of  Ciilais,  Klizabelli  rejected  tiiese  terms  with 
disdain,  anil  snit  orders  to  the  earl  of  Warwick  to  take  every  precaution 
to  d;^feiid  Havre  from  tin-  attacks  of  the  now  united  French. 

Warwirk,  in  obedience  to  liiese  orders,  expelled  all  French  from  that 
place,  and  prepared  to  defeiul  himself  against  a  large  t'rencii  army,  en- 
"oiiraged  by  tlie  presence  of  the  queen  mother,  ihe  king,  the  constahls  of 
i''r;iiwe,  and  Conile  iiimself.  Hut  the  courage,  vigour  and  ability  of  War- 
wick, which  [iroinised  to  baffle  al!  attempts  upon  Havre,  or  at  least  In 
make  it  a  right  dear  purchase  lo  the  enemy,  were  (rounterbalanced  by  the 
lacaking  out  among  his  men  of  a  most  fatal  and  pestilential  sickness. 
S(<eiiig  them  die  daily  of  I  his  terrible  disease,  which  w  i }  much  aggravated 
by  ;iu!  grp:u  scarcity  of  provi:-.ioiis,  Warwick  urgently  demanded  a  rcin- 
finci  ment  and  supplies  from  Kiigland.  Hut  these  being  withheld,  and  the 
French  havin;?  succeeded  in  making  two  pra.'iical  i)reaches.  the  earl  bad 
no  alternaiive  but  to  capitnlalf ,  and  lie  w,is  obhged  '.fi  surrender  the  place 
upon  the  sole  condition  of  iieing  allowed  life  and  safe  conduct  for  his 
Iroop.s.    He  bad  hardly  surrendt  red  when  a  reinforcement  of  three  thou 


H 

j!; 

W 

Kv. 

li 

■  I 

r 

in 

,1! 

m 

61(5 


THE  TllE/VSURY  OP  HISTORY. 


u 

>  I 


ll     i 


sand  men  arrived  from  Englar.c  under  Lord  Clinton,  but,  besides  that  tliey 
were  too  late,  they  also  were  suffering  under  the  plague  wliich  at  that 
period  raged  in  England.  As  a  consequence  of  the  loss  of  Havre,  Eliza- 
beth was  glad  to  consent  to  restore  the  hostages  given  by  France  for  tlie 
restitution  of  Calais,  on  receiving  two  hundred  and  twenty  thousand 
crowns;  but  it  was  stipulated  that  nothing  in  this  transaction  should  be 
held  to  prejudice  the  claim  of  either  nation. 

Though  in  reality  the  hatred  and  jealousy  that  subsisted  between  Eliz- 
abeth and  Mary  queen  of  Scots  were  bitter  and  constant,  nothing  of  quarrel 
had  as  yet  been  openly  allowed  to  appear.  They  corresponded  weekly 
and  assumed  quite  a  sisterly  tone  of  affection.  So  far  was  this  deceptive 
conduct  carried  on  the  part  of  Elizabeth,  that  Hales,  a  lawyer,  having 
published  a  book  opposing  the  title  of  Mary  as  Ehzabeth's  successor,  was 
fined  and  imprisoned ;  and  Bacon,  the  lord  keeper,  on  the  mere  suspicion 
of  having  encouraged  that  publicatron,  was  visited  for  some  time  witli  the 
queen's  displeasure.  An  interview  was  even  appointed  to  take  place  be- 
tween the  two  queens  at  York,  but  Elizabeth,  probably  not  very  anxious 
to  let  her  subjects  see  Mary's  superiority  of  personal  beauty,  pleaded 
public  affairs,  and  the  meeting  was  abandoned. 

A  new  source  of  care  arose  for  Elizabeth.  Mary,  young  and  lovely, 
and  of  no  frigid  temperament,  was  naturally  not  disinclined  to  a  second 
marriage  ;  and  her  uncle's  restless  ambition  would  scarcely  have  iillowed 
her  to  remain  unmarried  even  had  she  been  so,  T-:  prevent  Mary'.s  in;ir- 
riage  was  obviously  not  in  BJlizabeths  powej ;  bjl  as  she,  at  li  ist,  had 
the  power  of  getting  her  formally  excluded  from  the  English  succession, 
she  thought  it  not  so  impossible  in  the  first  instance  to  procrastinate 
Mary's  choice,  and  then  to  cause  it  to  fall  on  the  least  likely  person  to  aid 
and  encourage  her  iu  any  attempts  prejudicial  to  England.  Witli  tliis 
view  she  raised  objections,  now  of  one  and  now  of  another  sort,  against 
the  aspirants  to  Mary's  hand,  and  at  lengtli  named  Lord  Robert  Dudley, 
her  own  subject,  and,  as  some  thought,  her  own  unfavoured  suitor,  as  the 
person  upon  whom  it  would  be  most  agreeable  to  her  tliat  Mary's  choice 
should  fall. 

The  Lord  Robert  Dudley — as  the  render  has  hitherto  known  him,  but 
who  had  now  been  created  earl  of  Leicester — was  handsome,  greatly  and 
generally  accoiniilished,  and  possessed  the  art  of  flattery  in  its  utmost 
perfection  ;  an  art  to  which,  far  more  than  to  his  solid  merits,  he  owed 
his  power  of  concealing  from  Elizabeth  his  ambition,  rapacity,  and  intoki- 
able  haughtiness,  or  of  reconciling  her  to  tiiem.  Tiie  great  and  continuetl 
favour  shown  to  him  by  the  queen  liad  made  iiimself  as  well  as  tlie  multi- 
tude imagine,  that  ho  might  reasonably  hope  to  be  honoured  with  her 
hand ;  and  it  was  even  believed  that  the  early  death  of  his  youug  and 
lovely  wife,  the  daughter  of  a  wealthy  gentleman  named  Robsart,  had 
been  [ilamicd  and  ordered  by  the  earl,  in  order  to  remove  what  lie  deemed 
the  sole  obstiicle  to  the  success  of  his  loftier  views.  To  so  ainbiiious  a 
man.  whatever  the  personal  su[)eriority  of  Mary  over  Elizabeth,  the  crown 
matrimonial  of  Scotland  must  have  seemed  a  poor  substitute,  iiuUu'd,  to 
that  (if  Enjrl.iiid  ;  and  Leicester  not  only  objected  to  the  proposal,  Ijut 
attributed  it-<  concepiion  to  a  deep  scheme  of  his  able  and  bitter  enemy, 
Cecil,  to  df^^rive  him  of  liis  influence  by  weaning  Elizabeth  from  all  per- 
sonal feeling  for  him,  and  causing  iier  to  identify  iiim  with  her  rival  Mary. 

The  queen  of  Scotland,  on  the  other  iiand,  wearied  with  the  long  and 
vexatious  delays  and  vacillations  of  Elizabeth,  and  influenced  pcrliaps,  by 
the  personal  beauty  and  accomplislnnents  of  ihe  earl,  as  we'll  as  anxious 
by  her  marriage  witli  him  to  remove  Elizabeth's  evident  reluctance  In 
naming  her  to  the  Knglisli  succession,  intiiiiated  her  willingness  to  iiccepl 
the  powerful  favourite.  Hut  Elizabeth  had  named  him  only  in  tlie  lio|if 
that  he  would  be  rejected;  he  was  too  gr.nit  a  favourite  to  be  parted  wi  h 


THE  TREASUEY  OF  HISTORY. 


517 


hoicc 

im,  but 

lly  uuJ 

uimosl 
owuil 
iUoIlt- 

ntinued 
iiuilti- 
ih  her 

ig    IUVj 

rt,  hail 
ccmud 
itious  a 
iTOwn 
foil,  to 
isal,  but 
enuniV, 
all  pt'V- 
,1  Mary, 
oiig  aud 
laps,  by 
aiixiiiii^ 
nice  til 

tin;  luijit 
L'J  wi  !i 


imi  though  she  had  herself  distinctly  named  tlie  earl  as  the  only  man 
whom  she  should  choose  to  see  the  hushand  of  Mary,  she  now  coldly  and 
Buddenly  withdrew  her  approbation. 

The  high,  and  never  too  prudent,  spirit  of  Mary  naturally  revolted  from 
this  new  proof  of  duplicity  and  unfriendly  feeling ;  the  correspondence 
between  the  rival  queens  grew  less  frequent  and  more  curt  and  formal, 
ind  at  length  for  a  time  wholly  ceased."  But  Mary,  probably  under  the 
advice  of  her  friends  in  France,  resolved  to  make  yet  another  effort  to 
avoid  a  final  and  irremediable  breach  with  Elizabeth,  and  for  that  purpose 
sent  Sir  James  Melvil  on  a  mission  to  London. 

Englishiiisn  are  greatly  and  justly  proud  of  queen  Elizabeth;  taken  as 
ft  whole  her  reign  was  one  of  the  greatest  and  wisest  in  our  history.     But 
even  making  all  allowance  for  the  prejudice  Melvil  may  be  supposed  to 
have  felt  against  Elizabeth,  the  account  he  gives  of  what  he  saw  of  her 
conduct  on  this  occasion  places  her  in  so  weak,  so  vain,  so  puerile  a  light, 
that,  W'uld  rigid  impartiality  allow  it,  one  would  gladly  overlook  this  por- 
tion of  our  great  Elizabeth's  reign  altogether.     Every  day  she  appeared 
in  sor.ie  new  style  of  dress,  every  interview  was  marked  by  some  question 
as  to  the  difTerence  in  feature,  person,  or  manner  between  herself  and  her 
far  lovelier,  far  more  accomplished,  but  far  less  worthy  and  less  estimable 
rival,  which  is  infinitely  more  characteristic  of  the  petty  but  aching  envy 
of  some  iD-natured  school-girl,  with  vanity  made  only  the  more  restless 
and  craving  of  flattery  from  the  occasional  suggestions  of  shrewder  sense 
on  the  score  of  personal  inferiority,  than  of  that  high-souled  and  calm- 
lirowed  queen  who  knew  how  to  endure  a  dungeon  and  to  dare  an  armada. 
An  accomplished  courtier,  Melvil  was  iilso  a  shrewd  and  practised  man 
of  the  world ;  and  it  is  quite  dear,  from  his  inomoirs,  that  he  saw  through 
",lizabeth  alike  in  tlu;  weakness  of  her  vanity,  and  in  the  strength  of  her 
deep  and  iron  detennination.     His  report,  and  probably  both  her  friends' 
ulvice  and  her  own  inclination,  determined  Mary  no  longer  to  hesitate 
dinut  choosing  a  husband  for  herself.     Lord  D^irnley,  son  of  the  earl  of 
I.enox,  cousin-gcrnian  to  Mary  by  the  lady  Margaret  Douglas,  luecc  of 
Henry  VIII.,  was  by  all  parties  in  Scotland  considered  a  very  suitable  per- 
son.   He  was  of  the  same  family  ad  Mary ;  was,  after  her,  next  heir  to 
the  crown  of  England,  and  would  preserve  the  crown  of  Scotland  iji  the 
house  of  Stuart.     While  these  considerations  made  him  eligible  in  the 
eyes  of  Mary's  family  and  of  all  Scotchmen,  he  had  been  born  and  edu- 
cated in  England,  and  it  was  therefore  not  to  be  supposed  that  Elizabeth 
could  have  miy  of  that  jealousy  towards  him  which  slie  might  liavij  felt  in 
the  ease  of  a  foreign  prince  and  a  papist.     And,  in  truth,  perceivin;,'  tijut  it 
was  not  to  be  hoped  that  Mary  would  remain  single,  Elizabeth  wa-;  no;,  ill 
pleased  that  Mary's  choice  should  fall  upon  Darnley.      He  Cinild  add 
nothing  in  the  way  of  power  or  alliance  to  the  Scottish  queen,  wlmse  iiiar- 
ringe  with  him  would  at  once  release  Elizal)eth  from  the  half-defined 
jealousy  she  felt  as  to  Leicester's  real  sentiments,  and  would,  at  the  same 
time,  do  away  with  all  dread  of  the  queen  of  Scots  forming  any  one  of  the 
aumerous  foreign  alliances  which  were  open  to  her,  and  any  o*;e  of  which 
•.')uld  be  dangerous  to  England. 

i.enox  had  been  long  in  exUe.  Elizabeth  now  secretly  advised  Mary 
to  ri  "all  him,  reverse  his  attainder,  and  restore  his  forfeited  possessions; 
but  uo  sooner  was  this  done  than  she  openly  blamed  the  proceedings, 
with  the  view  at  once  of  emliarrassing  Mary  and  of  keeping  up  her  own 
interest  with  the  opposite  faction  in  Scotland.  Her  duplicity  did  not  stop 
here.  When  the  negotiations  for  the  marriage  were  far  advanced.  Darn- 
ley  asked  Elizabeth's  permission  to  go  into  Scotland  ;  and  that  permission 
was,  to  all  appearance,  cheerfully  granted.  Hut  when  she  learned  lliat 
liis  haiidsouie  person  was  admir(,Ml  by  Mary  and  that  the  marriage  was 
fiillv  determined  on,  she  sent  tu    .'der  Darnley  on  no  account  to  go  on 


Il-:','.i 


1^ 


'M 


518 


THE  TIIEASIJRY  OF  HISTORY. 


witli  the  marriage,  but,  on  liis  allegiance,  to  return  to  Euglaud  foitliwitn, 
Compliaucu  with  such  caprice  and  tyranny  was  out  of  tin;  quiisiion  ;  ami 
Elizabeth  threw  the  countess  of  Lenox  and  lier  second  sou  into  prison, 
and  seized  all  Lenox's  Knglisli  property  without  ttie  shadow  of  a  plea 
beyond  the  conduct  ol  young  Uarnley,  to  which  she  had  deliberately  given 
her  sanction  !  The  insulting  vacillation  of  Klizal)eth's  conduct  in  a  matter 
of  such  delicate  interest  to  .Mary,  can  only  be  reconciled  witti  ht.'r  usual 
shrewdness  by  supposing  thai,  independent  of  any  small  feminine  spiteful- 
ness  of  which  we  fear  tliat  even  the  utmost  partiality  can  hardly  acquit 
her,  she  deliberately,  and  as  a  matter  of  deep,  though  merciless  policy, 
sought  thus  to  obtain  a  plea  upon  which  to  repudiate  Mary  as  her  succes- 
sor in  Kngland,  and  a  ready  means  of  stirring  up  discontents  among  Mary's 
own  subjects,  and  thus  preventing  them  from  being  troublesome  to  Eng 
land. 

A.  D.  15C5. — Mary's  relationship  to  the  house  of  Guise,  whose  detesta 
Hon  of  the  reformed  religion  was  so  widely  known  and  so  terribly  attested, 
was  very  unfortunate  for  her;  inasmuch  as  it  converted  her  warm  attach- 
ment to  her  own  religion  into  something  like  bigotry  and  intolerance. 
She  not  only  refused  to  ratify  the  acts  estal)lishing  the  reformed  religion, 
and  endeavoured  to  restore  civil  power  and  jurisdiction  to  the  catliolin 
bishops,  but  was  i.  ven  imprudent  enough  to  write  letters  to  the  council  of 
Trent,  in  which  siie  professed  her  hope  not  merely  of  one  day  su(!ceeding 
to  the  crown  of  1'.  igland,  but  also  of  so  using  her  power  and  iulluenee  as 
to  bring  about  the  reconciliation  of  the  whole  of  her  dominions  to  the 
holy  see.  Considering  her  knowledge  of  I'^lizabeth's  temper  and  feelings 
towards  her,  and  (Huisidering,  too,  how  much  advantage  Elizabeth  would 
obviously  obtain  from  every  circumstance  which  could  cause  the  Scotch 
zealots  to  sympathize  with  Elizabeth  against  their  own  queen,  noihing 
could  well  have  been  more  imprudent  than  this  missive.  Under  any  cir- 
cumstances, probably,  Mary,  a  zealous  catholit.',  wouhl  have  had  but  an 
uneasy  reigii  among  the  fiercely  bigoted  Scottish  protestaiils;  but  there 
is  little  reason  to  doubt  that  this  very  communication  to  the  council  of 
Trent  was  a  main  first  cause  of  all  her  subsequent  misfortniK^s.  The 
protestants  of  Scotland  were  at  that  time  no  whit  behind  the  catholics  of 
any  part  of  the  world,  either  in  self-rightcousness,  or  in  bitter  and  bigoted 
detestation  of  all  who  chanced  to  difTer  from  them.  Alarmed  as  well  as 
indignant  at  the  queen's  ostentatious  aitachmeiil  to  her  own  creed,  the 
protestants  not  only  murmured  at  her  exercise  of  its  rites,  even  in  her 
own  private  residence  and  chapel,  but  abused  her  faith  ui  the  grossest 
terms  while  importuning  her  to  abjure  it.  The  queen  answered  these 
rude  advisers  with  a  temper  vvhicii,  had  she  always  displayed  it,  iniiilit 
have  spared  her  many  a  sorrowful  day  ;  .issnred  them  that  besides  that 
her  apostacy  would  deprive  Scotland  of  her  most  powerful  friends 
on  the  continent,  she  was  sincerely  attached  to  her  own  faith  and  con- 
vinced of  its  truth.  With  the  self-complacency  peculiar  to  narrow 
minded  bigotry,  the  remonstrants  assured  her  that  they  alone  had  truth  on 
their  side,  and  bade  her  prefer  that  truth  to  all  earthly  supfiort  and  alli- 
ances. The  rude  zeal  of  the  reformed  was  still  farther  increased  by  tlit 
belief,  carefully  encouraged  by  the  agents  of  Klizabeth,  that  the  Lenox 
family  were  also  papists.  It  was  in  vain  that  Darnley,  now  King  Heary, 
endeavoured  to  show  that  he  was  no  papist  by  frequently  inakiug  his  ap- 
pearance at  the  established  church;  this  conduct  was  attribuied  to  a  Jesu- 
itical and  profound  wiliness,  and  the  preachers  often  publicly  insulted  Inn) 
Knox,  especially,  not  scrupling  to  tell  him  from  the  pul|)it  that  boys  and 
women  were  only  put  to  rule  over  nations  for  the  punishment  of  their  s.iis. 

While  the  violence  of  the  clergy  and  the  arts  of  Elizabeth's  emissaries 

were  thus  irritating  the  common  people  of  Scotland  against  their  que 

ihu  discontents  of  her  nobility  began  to  threaten  her  with  a  yet  nearer  i.uii 


'\    I 


THK  TREASUIIY  OF  HISTORY. 


519 


more  ruinous  opposition.  Tiie  duke  of  Ciiaterault  and  the  earls  of  Mur- 
ray and  Argyle,  with  other  malcontent  nobles,  actually  raised  forces,  and 
soon  appeared  in  arms  against  the  king  and  queen,  instigated  to  this 
treasonable  conduct  merely  by  their  paltry  fears  of  being  losers  of  influ- 
ence and  power  by  the  rise  of  the  Lenox  family  consequent  upon  Darn- 
ley's  marriage  to  the  queen.  The  reformed  preachers  openly,  and  En- 
glish emissaries  secretly,  aided  the  malcontent  lords  in  endeavouring  to 
seduce  or  urge  the  whole  Scottish  population  from  its  allegiance.  Uut  the 
people  were,  for  once,  in  no  humour  to  follow  the  seditious  or  the  fanati- 
cal ;  and  after  but  very  trifling  show  of  success,  the  rebels,  being  pursued 
6y  the  king  and  queen  at  the  head  of  an  army  of  eighteen  thousand,  were 
fain  to  seek  safety  in  Kngland. 

We  dwell  more  upon  the  aflTairs  of  Scotland  just  at  this  period  than  we 
generally  do,  because  thub  much  of  Scottish  history  is  necessary  here  to 
the  understanding  of  that  portion  of  English  history  with  which  Mary, 
queen  of  Scots,  is  so  lamentably,  and  so  disgracefully  to  England,  con- 
nected. 

The  event  of  the  Scottish  revolt  having  thus  completely  disappointed 
all  the  hopes  of  Elizabeth,  she  now  strenuously  disavowed  all  concern  in 
it ;  and  having  induced  Murray  and  Chaterault's  agent,  the  abbot  of  Kil- 
winning, to  make  a  similar  declaration  before  the  Spanish  and  French 
ambassadors,  she,  with  a  bitter  practical  satire,  added  to  the  force  of  their 
declaration,  by  instantly  ordering  them  from  her  presence  as  detestable 
and  unworthy  traitors ! 

A.  D.  1666.— Hard  is  the  fate  of  princes!  Rarely  can  they  havesincero 
friends ;  still  more  rarely  can  they  have  favourites  who  do  not,  by  their 
own  ingratitude  or  the  envy  of  others,  call  up  a  storm  of  misfortune  for 
both  sovereign  and  favourite. 

Hitherto  the  conduct  of  Mary  had  been  morally  irreproachable  ;  for  the 
coarse  abuse  of  Knox  is  itself  evidence  of  the  strongest  kind,  that,  save 
her  papacy  and  her  sex — of  which  he  seems  to  have  felt  an  about  equal 
detestation — even  he  had  not  wherewithal  to  reproach  her.  Having  for 
her  second  husband  a  handsome  and  youthful  man  of  her  own  choice,  it 
might  have  been  hoped  that  at  least  her  domestic  felicity  was  secured. 
But  Darnley  was  a  vain,  weak-minded  man;  alike  fickle  and  violent;  am- 
bitious of  distinction,  yet  weary  of  the  slightest  necessary  care;  easily 
offended  at  the  most  trivial  opposition,  and  as  easily  governed  by  the 
most  obvious  and  fulsome  flattery.  Utterly  incapable  of  aiding  the  queen 
in  the  government,  he  was  no  jot  the  less  anxious  to  have  the  c-rown- 
niatrimonial  added  to  the  courtesy-title  of  king  which  Mary  had  already 
bestowed  upon  him.  In  this  temper  he  was  inclined  to  detest  all  who 
seemed  able  and  willing  to  afford  the  queen  counsel ;  and  among  theso 
Was  an  Italian  mus'cian,  by  name  David  Rizzio.  He  had  attended  an 
embassy  sent  to  Scotland  by  the  duke  of  Savoy,  and  was  retained  at  the 
Scottish  court,  in  the  first  instance,  merely  on  account  of  his  musujal  tal- 
ents. But  he  was  both  aspiring  and  clever,  and  he  soon  testified  so  much 
shrewdness  and  inclination  to  be  useful,  that  he  was  made  French  secre- 
tary to  the  queen.  Drought  thus  intiimitely  into  contact  with  the  queen, 
he  so  rapidly  improved  on  his  advantages,  that  in  a  short  time  lie  was 
universally  looked  upon  not  only  as  the  queen's  chief  confidant  and  coun- 
sellor, but  also  as  the  cliief  and  most  powerful  dispenser  of  her  favours. 
As  is  usually  the  case  with  favourites,  the  ability  which  had  enabled  Rizzio 
to  conquer  court  favour  did  not  teach  him  to  use  it  with  moderation  ;  and 
he  ha.i  scarcely  secured  tiie  favour  of  the  queen,  ere  he  had  incurred  the 
deadly  hate  of  nearly  every  one  at  court.  The  re  "ormed  hated  him  as  a 
papist  and  the  reputed  spy  and  pensionary  of  the  p.>pe  ;  the  needy  hated 
liim  for  his  wealth,  tlie  high-born  for  his  upstart  insolence;  the  aspiring 
detested  his  ambition,  and  many  men— probably  not  too  pure  in  tiieir  own 


I 


520 


THE  TllKASUHY  OF  HISTORY. 


I'l     I 


uL 


h    m 


Tiorah — could  find  no  other  supposition  on  which  to  account  for  Mary 
protection  of  him,  save  a  criminal  connection  between  them.  It  is  true 
that  liizzio  was  ugly  and  by  no  means  very  young  even  when  he  first 
came  to  court,  and  some  years  had  now  passed  since  that  event ;  and, 
moreover,  liizzio,  whose  ability  had  done  much  to  clear  away  the  ubsta- 
clus  to  the  marriage  of  Mary  and  Darnley,  had  at  one  time  ,  at  least,  been 
as  much  in  tiie  favour  of  iIk;  king  as  of  tiie  queen.  But  Darnley,  soured 
by  the  queen's  coldness,  wiiich  Ik;  was  willing  to  attribute  to  any  cause 
rather  than  to  his  own  misconduct,  easily  fell  inlu  llie  snare  set  by  the 
enemies  alike  of  himself,  his  queen,  and  Rizzio,  and  becvne  furiously 
jealous  oi"  an  ugly  and  almost  deformed  secretary.  Yet  Darnley  was  one 
of  the  handsomest  men  of  the  age  and  a  vain  man  too! 

Among  llie  extravagant  reporis  to  wiiicli  the  excessive  favour  already 
enjoyed  by  Rizzio  had  given  rise,  was  one,  tliat  it  was  the  intention  of 
Mary  to  make  him  chancellor  in  the  room  of  tiie  earl  of  Morton !  It  was 
true  that  Kizzio  kne\/  nothing  of  the  language  or  of  tlie  laws  of  Scotland ; 
but  the  report  wis  creditcnl  even  by  the  astulc  Morton  himself,  who  forth- 
with exerted  himself  to  persuade  Darnley  that  nolliing  but  the  dealb  of 
Rizzio  could  ever  restore  peace  and  safety  to  either  king  or  kingdom. 

The  earl  of  Lenox,  the  king's  father,  George  Douglas,  natural  t)rollier  to 
the  counlcss  of  Lenox,  and  tlie  lords  Lindesay  and  nuthven,  readily  joined 
in  the  (conspiracy  againnt  the  uiifortiiiiale  foreigner,  and,  to  guard  tliein- 
selves  against  llie  known  fickleness  of  the  king,  tiiey  got  him  to  sign  a 
paper  autliorizing  and  making  liiiiiself  responsible  for  tlie  assassinalion  of 
Hi;E.zio.  as  being  "an  undertaking  lending  lo  tlie  gloiy  of  (lod  and  the  ad- 
vancement of  religion."  Tlii.'  banished  lords  who  were  ever  hovering  on 
the  borilers  in  hope  of  sonic  event  productive  of  disturbance,  were  invited 
by  the  king  to  relnrii,  and  every  preparation  biing  made,  a  night  was  at 
length  ajipoiiited  for  the  murder  of  Kizzio. 

.\Iary,  now  in  the  sixth  inoiilh  of  her  pregnancy,  was  at  supper  in  linr 
private  apartiiient",  altendeii  by  Rizzio,  lliit  counless  of  Argyle,  her  natu- 
ral sisler,  ami  oliiers  of  lier  personal  iitlendanl.s,  when  ttit!  king  suddenly 
entered  the  room  and  pi  ,ceil  liimsidf  beliiiul  il,,^  (pieen's  cliair.  Innnedi- 
ately  anei«:'rds  Lord  Kulliven,  eased  in  aiiiioiir  and  gliaslly  from  long 
illness  anil  anxiety,  (!eorge  Douglas,  ami  others,  rushed  in  and  seized 
upon  the  luiforiiiiiali'  Uiz/.io  as  he  sprang  up  to  llie  ipieen  and  clung  to 
her  garments,  shrieking  the  while  for  |)rotec-tion.  'I'lie  queen,  with  tears, 
entri'aties,  and  even  tlireais,  emleavoincMl  to  save;  her  secretary,  but  the 
resolved  coiispirilois  f(  reed  htm  into  the  anleidiamber,  where  he  died 
beneaih  no  fewer  than  fifty-six  wounds! 

The  coiidiiion  of  the  cpieen  being  eoiisidere  ",  the  presence  of  her  hus- 
band while  shi'  was  thus  limribly  outraged  l)\  '  'iiig  made  witness  of  the 
atrociims  niur'ler  of  her  servant,  mnsi  necessarily  have  luriied  her  forincr 
coldness  to'.vanls  Darnley  into  actual  loathing.  On  learning  that  liizzio 
was  indeed  dead,  she  iinmedi,ilely  dried  her  tears,  saynig  "  1  will  weep  no 
more;  heni'efoilli  I  will  only  think  of  reveiig"." 

Assiimiii),'  Mary  to  he  guilty  of  !lir  p.iriieipalion  in  the  innrdi  r  of  her 
'  >tbnid  Willi  which  she  was  afterwanis  so  disaiitroiisly  charged,  ihoiigii 
i.ven  this  outraue  upon  her  both  ax  ipieen  and  woman  would  he  no  exeii.so 
for  her  iniscondii'  t  as  queen,  woman,  and  wife,  yet  it  ouuhl  not  wholly  tii 
Im'  left  out  of  si;;lit  while  we  jiidi;e  of  the  charailt  r  of  .Mary.  In  a  court 
Bticli  as  Iheecirt  of  .Seoi!.  nil  clearly  was  at  that  time,  nothing  short  of  the 
purity  of  atiReli  cuuld  iiave  etteapei  the  general  |)ollulion  uf  eruidty,  deceit 
and  we  i":;ality. 

All  resentments  felt  ty  Mary  were  now,  it  should  seem,  merijed  into 
(leteNiitioii  of  l|i<  erni'lly  and  insolently  savaue  eiMidncI  of  her  lins!<aiid 
She  xhowed  hiin  every  mark  of  eonti'inpt  in  paldie,  and  avoiiled  Imii  in 
pnvMie  ah  thougii  III  iniiiKled  hate  and  terror.      \t  length,  huwevei,  iht 


v.    ii:K 


THE  TllEASUllY  OF  HISTORY. 


521 


.liU'iily 


•r  liUR- 
of  iho 
I'trmi'r 
Ur/,/.io 

I"  lirr 

DtXfllSO 

lii.'ily  ti» 
II  ;i  Kiurl 
Ml  of  Uic 
ly,(lcci'i*. 

,B(m1  into 

liiin  in 
(over,  »U» 


*as  confined  at  Edinburgh  castle  of  ii  son ;  and  as  Darnley  had  apartments 
tliere,  they  were  at  least  apparently  reconciled  and  living  together. 

A  messenger  was  inatanily  sent  to  Elizabeth,  who  received  the  news 
while  at  a  ball  at  Greenwich.  She  was  much  cast  down  at  first,  and  even 
complained  to  some  of  her  attendants  tliat  she  was  but  a  barren  stock, 
wliile  Mary  was  the  glad  mother  of  a  fair  boy.  But  she  soon  recovered 
her  wonted  self-possession,  and  on  the  following  day  she  publicly  congrat- 
ulated Melvil,  Mary's  envoy,  and  sent  the  earl  of  Bedford  and  George 
Gary,  son  of  her  kinsman  the  earl  of  Ilunsdon,  to  attend  the  christening 
of  the  young  prince,  and  to  carry  some  rich  presents  to  his  mother. 

But  whatever  cordiality  Elizabeth  might  afl'ect  upon  this  occasion,  the 
birth  of  a  son  to  the  queen  of  Scots,  as  it  increased  the  zeal  of  her  parli- 
zans  in  England,  so  it  made  even  the  best  friends  of  Elizabclli  desirous 
that  she  should  take  some  eflTectual  steps  for  the  settlement  of  the  suo 
cession. 

It  was  proposed  by  some  leading  members  of  parliament  that  the  ques- 
tion of  the  succession  and  that  of  the  supply  sliould  go  together.  Sir 
Ralph  Sadler,  in  order  to  elude  this  bringing  of  the  question  to  a  point,  af- 
firmed that  ho  liad  heard  the  queen  say  that  for  the  good  of  her  pi^opie  she 
had  come  to  tlie  resolution  to  marry.  Others  of  the  court  ;iminied  tiic 
same,  and  then  ttu;  house  bc^an  to  consider  about  joining  the  (jucslion  of 
tlie  queen's  marriage  to  that  of  the  settienient  in  general,  wlicn  a  message 
wns  brought  from  the  queen  ordering  the  house  to  proceed  no  farther  in 
the  matter.  She  pledged  her  queenly  word  as  lo  her  sincere  intention  to 
inary ;  and  she  said  that  to  name  any  successor  i)revi<nisly  would  I)e  to 
inerease  her  already  great  personal  dangers.  This  messiigo  by  no  means 
satisfied  ihe  house,  and  I'eter  Wentworth,  a  popular  tneinher,  bluntly  snid 
that  such  a  prohihition  was  a  breach  of  the  privileges  of  ihe  houses ;  while 
some  of  the  members  on  the  same  side  added,  that  unless  the  queen  would 
pay  some  regard  lo  their  future  security  by  fixing  a  successor,  she  would 
show  herself  rather  as  the  siepinother  than  as  the  natural  parent  of  her 
people.  The  ilelntes  still  continuing  in  this  strain,  the  queen  sent  for  ihe 
speaker,  and  her  remonslrain-es  witli  him  having  failed  to  produce  the  de- 
sired efl'eet  upon  the  house,  she  shortly  afterwards  dissolved  llw  parliament, 
sharply  rclleeting,  at  the  same  time,  ui)on  the  pertinacity  with  which  they 
had  pressed  lier  to  many  or  fix  the  succession. 

A.  Ti.  !.')()?, — The  debates  in  parliament  had  inoro  than  ever  awakened 
the  zeal  of  the  partizans  of  tiie  qii.'en  of  .'^cots.  Tin;  catholics  of  Kngland 
were  to  a  man  really  t(i  rise  on  her  liehalf,  should  Elizabeth's  death  or 
any  national  calamity  aflford  an  inviting  opportunity  ;  and,  moreover,  the 
court  of  Elizabeth  was  ite(df  full  of  Mary's  |iarlizans.  Itiit  while  Kliza- 
hi'ih  and  her  sagacious  friend  and  eoiincillor  Cecil — to  whom  il  is  not  too 
niiii'h  to  K\y  that  Elizalielh  owed  more  than  half  the  glory  sli:  aeipiired, 
and  owed  tliU  more  freedom  from  the  oblocpiy  her  temper  would  but  for 
him  hav(!  caused  her  to  incur — were  using  every  <'Xi)edicnt  lo  avoid  llie 
ncceRHitv  of  deidaring  so  dangerous  a  siieci'ssor  as  the  queen  of  Scots, 
that  lUf.iteil  |>tiiiceHs  was  in  tlie  very  act  of  plunging  hersell'  into  a  lis-iiie 
of  horrors  and  infamies,  which  were  lo  render  her  Ihe  prisoner  and  Ihe 
vicKiiii  of  the  princess  whom  she  had  dareil  to  rival  and  liopeil  to  :»iicceed. 

After  the  death  of  Uizzio,  Mary's  perilous  and  perplexed  siin  ilioii  had 
mndi  some  eonfiilaiil  and  assisl.inl  iiidispeiisalily  necessary  (o  her,  e(»pi'ci- 
ally  silimtc'  as  she  was  with  her  frivolous  and  .<ul!en  Imsband.  The  per- 
lon  who  at  this  time  stood  highest  i:i  lier  I'onfidcnee  was  the  earl  of  Itoih- 
well,  a  man  of  deb.iuclied  char.ii'li  r  and  great  lariin',  but  whose  forlune 
«'»•  much  ii'.v.dved,  and  wh.)  was  more  noted  for  his  opposition  In  Murray 
and  the  rigid  reformers,  than  lor  any  great  c  vil  or  milii.iry  laleiiis  This 
noblcinan,  it  is  believed,  suj^'gofted  to  lior  the  e.x()«Mlicnt  of  beiiiK  divorced 


1 1 1 


till-) 

'W 

M^r 

ji 

■Jlj 

li 

W\ 

1 

t\ 

^■' 

"'J 


:^i 


;"^ff!-   'V 


533 


THE  TIlEASUilV  OF  HISTORY. 


from  Darnloy,  but  from  some  difficulties  wliicli  arose  to  its  execution  ilial 
project  was  laid  aside. 

'i'liP  iulimate  frieiulsliip  of  Mary  with  Botlnvell,  and  her  aversion  to  lier 
husband,  made  observant  persons  niucii  asloiiished  when  it  wasannouin-ed 
that  a  sudden  return  of  the  queen's  ad'ection  toiler  husband  had  taken  place; 
tiiat  she  liad  even  journeyed  to  Glasgow  to  attend  his  sick  bed  ;  that  she 
tended  him  with  the  utmost  kindness;  and  that,  as  soon  as  he  could  safely 
travel,  she  had  brouy;lit  iiim  with  iier  to  Holyrood-iiouse,  in  Edinburgli. 
On  tlieir  arrival  there  it  was  found,  or  pretended,  that  the  low  situation  of 
the  piaee,  and  the  noise  of  tlie  persons  continually  f,'oing  and  coming,  de- 
nied iIk"  king  the  re[)ose  necessary  to  his  infirm  stale.  A  solitary  house, 
called  the  Kirk  o'  Field,  at  some  distance  from  tiie  palace,  but  near  enough 
to  admit  of  Mary's  frc([uei)t  attetulanee,  was  accordingly  taken,  and  iiere 
she  continued  her  atteiitioi.s  to  him,  and  even  slept  for  several  nights  in  a 
room  immediately  below  his.  On  tlie  iiinili  of  Febru;iry  idie  excused  her- 
self to  him  for  not  sleeping  at  the  place,  as  one  of  her  attendants  was 
going  lo  be  married,  and  she  had  promised  to  grace  the  I'eremony  wiih  her 
presence.  AI)oul  two  o'clock  in  the  morning  an  awful  explosion  was 
heard,  and  it  was  soon  afterwards  discovered  that  the  Kirk  o'  Field  was 
blown  up,  and  the  body  of  the  unforlimale  Henry  Uiriiley  was  found  in  a 
field  at  sDiiic  distaiu'e,  but  with  no  marks  of  violence  upon  it. 

It  is  a  >iiigui.ir  (act  (hat,  amidst  all  the  disputation  tliat  has  taken  place 
n«  to  till'  ^Miill  or  iiiiiocencc  of  Mary  in  this  i!!.)sl  nudanclioly  afTair,  no  one 
of  the  di>piilaiils  lias  noticed  Mary's  selection  of  a  room  'iiimi:ili(iUli/ helow 
tliat  of  the  king  for  several  iiigii!  i  before  the  murder.  Was  l/iv i-un-txiicdir 
dfli/i(  ralrli/,  III  SHKill  (jiKiiiliiic.i  and  at  inli mils,  ili/msitid  and  ai  laiif^id  in  that 
apariinent  > 

'I'liat  Darnley  had  been  most  foully  murdered  no  sane  man  could  doubt- 
and  I  he  previous  intimacy  of  .Mary  and  llolhwell  caused  the  public  .suspi- 
cion at  once  to  be  turned  upon  tliciii ;  and  the  conduct  of  Mary  was  ex- 
actly calculated  to  connrin,  instead  of  refutiiiEi,  the  liorrilih'  suspicion 
which  all.iched  lo  her.  A  proelainalion  was  iiidrcd  made,  olTcriiig  a  re» 
vard  for  the  discovery  of  the  king's  murderers  ;  hut  the  pcii|ile  observed  that 
far  iiioic  anxiety  was  displayed  to  discover  those  who  attributed  llial  ter- 
rible (U'cd  to  ilitihwidl  and  the  ipieen.  With  a  perfectly  infatuated  folly, 
till"  ipiceii  iicLilected  even  the  external  deceiw  les  which  would  liavt'  been 
expected  I'liiin  her,  even  had  she  been  less  do.'-  dy  connecled  in  the  |)iiblic 
eye  vv  ilh  the  supposed  murderer,  H()lli\>ell.  For  the  earl  of  I-euox,  lather 
oi"  tlie  iiiiirilcred  king,  wrote  ii  letter  to  the  (|Ueeii,  in  wbii'll,  .ivoidnig  all 
acciis.itiDii  of  liie  (pieen,  be  ini|i|iiied   her  justice  upon  those  whom   he 

rilainU  eliaii;ed  with  the  iiiurder.  namely,  llothwell,  Sir  .lames  Halfoii:' ami 
lis  briillier  <iill'ert  Balfour,  I)  mil  ('h.iliiiers,  ainl  foin  ,:t|ier  persons  rf 
the  ipii  rii's  hcMiseholl;  Init  .^l.lry,  thiiiigh  she  cited  I,eiiox  lo  appear  at 
roiirl  aiiil  siippoii  his  ch.irge,  and  i-o  I'.ir  seenu'd  lo  enlcrlain  it,  Icl'i  the 
iin|iori';'>t  fmtress  of  F.ilinlinitth  in  'he  bands  of  Bothwtdl  an  governor,  ,iiid 
of  bis  ere  itiire  llalfoiir  as  his  c|i'|iiity. 

A  day  for  the  trial  of  the  idiarue  made  liy  I.enox  was  ajipoiiited  ;  and 
that  nidijeiniii,  with  a  very  small  attendance,  Iik'  ready  rcaeheil  .*itirliiig 
<Mi  his  way  lo  I'ldiiihurifii,  wlieii  Ins  informalio  le  exiraorilinary  conii- 

lenaiice  siiowii  lo  ilolliwell.  and  the  vast  power  cnlrilsteil  to  linn,  ms|iii<  d 
I,eniix  wilh  f  ars  as  lo  even  Ins  personal  s.ifeiv  should  he  .ip|iear  in  F.d- 
inbintjli  ;  he  iheri  fore  sent  C'niiilinghail^oiieofliis  suite,  lo  prolest  against 
so  hiirned  an  invesliuation  of  lhi<  imporianl  all'iir,  and  'ii  enlre.il  .^lary, 
for  her  own  s  ike  af  well  as  for  the  >,  ike  of  iusiiee,  to  take  lime,  an  I  lo 
make  arraiiHeineiiN  tor  a  full  ami  imparlial  trial,  wliiidi  ob<'ion«iy  could 
not  be  had  while  llolhwell  was  not  only  al  liberty,  but  m  issession  ol 
oxorbiiant  an  I  overwheliunis;  power,  Not  Ihe  sjiijhtetl  !leiition  «ai< 
tiaid  lo  this  iiiaiiifesily  jiisl  demand  uf  Ijeim.v;  a  jury  win*  .  .\oriK  an  <  ai 


•itiowii  th 
M'lingpii 
iiifl     "II  . 


THI5  TRKASUHY  OF  HISTORY. 


533 


no  prnsrcutor  'ir  witness  was  presniit,  that  jmy  (.'ould  only  arc|iiit  tlic  m-. 
ciiscil — the  venlict  biiiig  aci'()in|)iniiinl  by  a  prolcst.  id  winch  ilicy  slated 
llic  sitnaiiun  in  whicli  the  very  nalmo  of  the  prociM'Llings  had  pliici'd  theni. 
But  even  /mil  witnesses  been  presi'nt,  their  evidence  could  have  ivailed 
little  towards  furthering  the  ends  of  justice,  for,  by  a  very  evident  w  ilfiil- 
iicss,  those  who  drew  the  indictnient  had  cdiargod  the  crime  as  liaviny;  been 
comiiiiited  on  the  tenth  day  of  the  inoiilh.  while  the  evidence  niiist  have 
proved  it  to  have  been  the  ninth,  and  this  siijnilicant  ciri'iimstanei'  increased 
the  odium  of  both  .Mary  and  Uothwell.  Two  days  after  this  shameful  trial 
a  iiarliaiiient  was  held,  and  Hothwcll,  whose  acquittal  was  such  as  must 
have  convinced  every  impartial  man  of  his  guiltiness,  was  actually  chosen 
'lO  carry  the  royal  sceptre ! 

Sill  h  indecent  but  unequivocal  evidence  of  the  lengths  to  which  Mary 
was  prepared  to  go  in  securintf  impunity  to  BolhwHdl,  awed  even  those 
who  most  detested  the  proceedings;  and  a  bond  of  association  was  signed, 
by  whiidi  all  the  subscrilu'rs,  consisting  of  all  the  chief  nobdily  present  at 
this  parliament,  referred  to  the  accpiiltal  of  Hothwcll  as  a  legal  and  com- 
plete one,  engaged  to  defend  him  against  all  future  imputation  of  the  mur- 
der of  the  late  king,  and  recoinnu'iided  Mary  to  marry  liothwelll  De- 
graded, indeed,  by  long  and  shameless  factiim  must  ihe  nation  have  been, 
wlieii  the  (diief  of  its  nobles  could  insult  public  justice  and  public  decency 
by  the  publication  of  such  a  document  as  this! 

Having  thus  paved  the  way  towards  his  ultimate  designs,  Bothwell  an- 
semhled  a  troop  of  eight  hundred  cavalry  on  pretence  of  pursuing  some 
armed  robbers  who  infesi(>d  the  borders,  and  waylaid  Mary  on  her  return 
from  Stirling,  where  she  had  been  paying  a  visit  to  her  infant  son.  .Mary 
was  seiiitl  near  Kdnibnrgh  ,  but  Sir  James  .Midvil,  her  attached  and  faith- 
ful servant  who  was  witli  her  at  tlie  time,  not  only  ctmfessed  that  he  saw 
no  surprise  or  iiinvilliiisiness  on  her  part,  but  add^,  that  some  of  Huthwell'M 
ofTcers  openly  laughed  at  the  notion  of  seizure  of  .Mary's  perscm,  and 
stati'd  the  wlnde  matter  to  have  been  arraiii;e  i  hctv  i  the  parties  thein- 
Kelves.  Uothwell  carried  his  prisoner  to  Dunbar,  aii.  iCre  made  himself 
master  of  her  person,  evi'ii  if  he  had  not  be.  n  so  before.  Some  of  the  no- 
hility,  either  still  doubtful  of  her  guilty  consent,  or  desirous,  at  the  least, 
uf  forcing  her  into  a  mori'  i  xphcii  declaration  of  it,  now  sent  to  ofl'cr  tli'dr 
services  to  rescue  her;  but  she,  w  iih  infinite  cixdiK  ss,  replied,  that  though 
lloihvvell  had  orignially  obtained  possession  of  her  person  l>\  \  ndenre, 
he  had  siiu'c  treated  her  so  well  thai  she  w  "W  quite  willing  to  remain 
with  hull. 

Th.it  no  circunistaiico  of  infamy  and  ctrroiitnry  might  bn  wai  'ing  to 
this  (lis^>ustiiig  liusiness,  lloliiwell,  when  h,  had  himself  propose. I  ,ih  the 
queen's  hiisb.nul  and  seized  ;ijioii  her  person  was  already  a  married  man! 
Hut  a  divorce  was  now  sued  lor  and  obiaiued  in  four  days  from  the  eoin- 
meneei  leni  of  the  suit;  the  que.  ii  was  then  i  ikeu  to  Kilinburgh,  and  tin; 
lianns  of  inarriaye  put  up  between  her  and  i he  duke  of  Orkiipy,  v.  hicli 
title  l)othw(dl  now  bore. 

iiioit  exhihuod  by  the  Scottish  nutiun 

it  rraia.  a  clorgyman.  being  desired 

uiiKilily  broufhi  aboii'.  iio»  only  refti- 


lii  tlie  midst  of  the  awful  ile  ■. 
at  this  lime,  it  is  pleasing  to  iion 
to  sidemiiize  the  ntaviage  thus 


Bed  to  perform  the  eercmonv,  In.  qieiily  reprobated  it,  wHh  a  vo\tr.\ge 
wdilch  so  put  the  coiiiieil  to' sh.iau  thiit  it  iLind  not  punish  him  l*!ie 
hishopof  Orkney,  n  prolestaiit,  wax  <i^n'-ecoinplt.'tnt,  and  waK  subs,,jiir,.ily 
very  .leservedly  'eposed  by  his  chu-'  ■  llnwarm  d  by  the  disgust  of  ln*r 
own  people  aiid  bv  t..  reinouctr  •-■  ••■  of  her  relation.",  the  (Jiiises  o/ 
Frame,  the  infatuated    Mary   th"  ■  d  her  designs,  and  it    beeaine 

known  thii  Uothwell,  with  Ikt  i  .\  ■»!•  taking  ineamire*  to  get  ilii; 

Vmmg  prince  .lainen  into  Ins  powi-  t'ins  at  Icnsjih  f-tirly  aroimrd  piibiie 
iiid       n   iiii  the  chief  iiobili'y,  h*    -iiu^  !»'»•*' u I  ilio««  who  hud  uij^iied 


jtfdl 


f 


>i8  ! 


^ 


594 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


the  ever  infamous  bond  in  favour  of  Bothwell,  now  formed  an  zssociation 
for  tlie  protection  of  the  young  prinre  and  for  the  punishment  of  the  mur- 
derers of  tiie  king.  Tlie  army  of  the  associated  lords  and  tlie  roya. 
troops  under  Dolhwell  met  at  Carbery-hill ;  but  it  was  so  clear  both  that 
BothwcU  had  no  capacity  equal  to  the  occasion,  and  that  her  own  troops 
looked  upon  their  ca  ise  with  disgust,  that  Mary,  after  making  certain 
stipulations,  put  herself  into  the  hands  of  the  confederates  and  was  taken 
to  Edinburgh,  the  populace  reproaching  her  in  the  coarsest  terms,  and 
holding  up  banners  representing  the  murder  of  her  husband  and  the  dis- 
tress of  her  iiifant  son.  Bothwell,  in  the  meantime,  escaped  to  the  Ork- 
neys, and  for  some  time  lived  by  actual  piracy;  he  at  length  went  to  Den- 
mark, where  lie  was  thrown  into  prison :  maddened  under  the  severity 
of  his  confinement  and  the  horror  of  his  reflections,  he  died  about  ten 
years  afterwards,  so  miserably,  that  even  liis  atrocity  cannot  deprive  him 
of  our  pity. 

Thongii  treated  with  scorn  and  humbled  by  ihe  indignities  to  which  she 
was  now  d.iily  exposed.  IMary  was  still  so  infatuated  in  her  affection  for 
the  imworthy  Bothwell,  that  she  is  reported  to  have  said  in  a  letter  to 
him,  that  she  would  surrriider  her  crown  and  dignity  rather  than  his  affec- 
tions ;  and  as  nhe  appcaiod  to  be  thus  determiniid,  the  confedenites,  to 
decrease  the  chance  of  her  once  more  getting  power  i'.ito  her  hands,  sent 
her  to  a  sort  of  houDurable  imprisonment  in  the  castle  of  Lochlevin  lake. 
Tlie  owner  of  this  pl.ifi-  was  motlu;r  of  the  earl  of  Murray,  and  as  she 
preti'iided  to  have  been  the  inotlicr  and  not  the  mere  mistress  of  the  late 
King,  she  bore  M;iry  a  hatred  which  fully  insured  her  vigilaiu'e. 

Klizalx'th  was  acrnirately  mritrincd  of  all  that  had  passed  in  Scotland, 
and  her  eagle  vision  could  not  fail  to  percfive  the  advantages  to  her  own 
security  to  be  obtained  l>y  her  interfffciice  between  Mary  and  lier  enra- 
ged subjects.  She  ac(,'onlingly,  Ihroiigh  Throckmorton,  sent  a  remon- 
strance to  the  confederated  lords,  and  advice,  mingled  wilii  some  severity, 
to  Mary,  to  whom  she  ofTered  assif-tancc,  and  protection  at  the  Mnghsli 
court  for  her  infant  son,  but  on  cundilion  that  she  -should  lay  aside  all 
tlioughis  of  revcage  or  punislinient,  »>xce|it  as  far  as  related  to  the  murder 
of  her  !,;t'  husband.  .As  boili  quf  en  and  wom:in,  Klizabcth  acted  well  in 
both  her  renioiistrani'e  to  the  lords  and  her  advice  to  Mary ;  but,  judging 
from  lier  whole  course  of  policy  at  other  times,  il  is  no  breach  of  charily 
to  *'ippose  ih;it  even  her  womanly  ,.ity  for  Mary's  present  distressed  and 
peril 'MS  situation,  did  not  prevent  lir  from  deterniiiimg  lo  make  it  'vail- 
al)le  towanls  lier  own  s(  eiiriiy  and  |»»aee  for  the  nine  to  eonie. 

In  the  meantime  the  eoirti'deratecl  lords  proceeded  to  arrange  ii  alters 
willi  very  liitle  deference  to  either  itn'  rights  of  iheiii"  c»wn  (jueen  or  the 
remonstrances  of  the  ([ueen  of  Kngltiiil.  After  mueh  iitiriy^ee  and  dis- 
pute. It  was  :tgreei|  that  tlH»  regeiiev  of  the  kingdom  slxinld  in-  placed  in 
the  IuukIs  of  Mnrr.iy.  and  ilia'  Mary  stbould  resign  the  crown  in  favour  of 
her  son  ;  nay,  so  de-perale  were  her  r.r(  umsi.uiees,  that,  ihougli  "with 
.ibundance  of  tear*."  she  ad  lally  sitiu-d  the  deeds  that  inadc!  these  ex- 
lenitive  alteralicmB,  wilhuut  iHuking  hur»elf  ai-iiirately  mistres?  of  tlieit 
contents. 

The  ^ainee  .lames  was  unmediately  ^roel. dined  king  *ud  crowned  al 
Htirliii((,  and  in  the  oath  winch  the  earl  of  .Morton  took  i»  Inn  behalf  al 
that  eTt'nvwiy,  an  oath  to  entjrpate  hi  ^fsy  was  iii'dnded.  Kbaabelh  \v  ii- 
so  iiitK't;  iniioyed  at  the  (hfire;^  ird  tvitti  wlijrh  h<  r  remonstrance  bad  bei'i 
treated,  th.<»  she  forbade  Throckfuoruin  to  atfeml  the  youiHr  kins':*  coro 
nation. 

As  Moon  as  Murray  ln»^  M«*iiiiied  tlie  rejfeiw')  i  parliaim m  wis  a.s?irin- 
bleil,  in  which  it  was  im'^wnly  vole''  'hnt  »he  v.  is  an  undciilited  a<'coni- 
plie(^  III  llie  luinder  of  Mr  iimbrind,  «•(  inighi  not  !o  'ie  iinpn-ined.  Her 
«hiii>tlion  and  her  wn'a  nree«isiw»  Wffe  at  Uir  «saine  tune  riUifled. 


s 


^  X  ^  ■'€?'■ 


iiinler 
icll  ill 

id^rillg 

liiwity 
"1  iind 
•  vail- 

■iltc'r:< 

or  thi; 
ml  ih^- 
act'ii  in 

vonr  o( 
.vilh 

>sr  ex- 
of  thi'ii 

.  llCil  Hi 

h:ilf  ai 
•111  \v;i? 
,;i(l  lu'i'r 
uoro 

asiscin- 

H<MMim- 


k^'M 


0iii 


t* 


f 

'0\ 

'1 

m 

-i 

ji 

■'i 

m 

aU'ly  soiK 
lilitwcr  tlii 
iin  iiU('r\  II 
'|ii(iii  ('(III 
I  lU'i'  a  \v,i 
uiuhr  r\r< 

lisuiilly  III 

"II    Micl,     ; 

imicli  I  I'd 
1  Uilrnily 

fl'llltl  M'l  |< 

i'i'zalicih 
ilcti  riiMii.' 
alli.wiii ,  > 

Willi  ll.ivill 

L'Miniiiaiiil 


THE  TttKASUIlY  OF  HISTORY. 


525 


Murray  proved  himself  equal  to  his  high  post.  He  obtained  possession 
of  the  fortresses  which  held  out  for  Marj'  or  Both  well,  and  everywhere 
compelled  at  least  external  obedience  to  his  authority.  But  he  had  many 
enemies  even  among  liis  seeming  friends ;  many  of  those  who  had  been 
most  enraged  against  Mary,  while  she  had  thus  lived  in  what  was  no 
better  than  open  adultery  with  Boihwell,  were  softened  by  the  contem- 
plation of  her  sorrows  now  that  he  was  a  fugitive  upon  the  face  of  the 
earth,  without  the  possibility  of  ever  regaining  his  guilty  power.  To  all 
these  persons  were  added  the  eminent  cutliolirs  and  the  great  body  of  the 
people,  who  p'tied  her  sorrows  now  with  the  merely  instinctive  and  un- 
reasoning in' pulse  with  wiiich  recently  they  had  heaped  me  coarsest  con- 
tempt upon  her  misconduct.  Even  yet,  then,  it  was  quite  within  the 
Oounds  of  possibility  that  she  migiit  recover  her  power,  and  so  exert  it  as 
to  cause  the  past  to  be  forgiven. 

A.  n.  15G8. — But  Mary's  own  conduct  even  when  least  blameworthy, 
was  ever  to  be  inimical  to  lier.  The  constant  insults  and  vexations  that 
she  endured  from  the  lady  of  Lochlevin  determined  her  to  attempt  her 
escape  from  that  melancholy  confinement;  and  by  those  artful  and  win- 
ning blandishments  which  no  beautiful  woman  ever  better  knew  how  to 
employ,  slie  induced  George  Douglas,  brotlier  of  the  laird  of  Lochlevin, 
to  aid  in  Iter  escape.  After  many  vain  endeavours  the  enamoured  youth 
at  length  got  her  from  the  house  in  disguise,  and  rowed  her  across  the 
lake  in  a  small  boat. 

As  soon  as  her  escape  was  known  many  of  the  nol)iiity  hastened  to 
offer  lier  their  aid,  and  to  sign  a  bond  to  defend  her  against  all  comers. 
Among  those  that  thus  signed  wciu  tlie  earls  of  Argyle,  Huntley,  Eglin- 
toun,  Cassilis,  Crauford,  Uolhes,  Montrose,  Sunderland,  and  Errol, besides 
luinierous  barons  and  nine  bishops,  and  in  a  very  few  days  slie  found  her 
stainkud  surrounded  by  upwards  of  six  thousand  men.  Elizabeth,  'ou, 
offered  to  assi.st  her,  on  condition  that  slie  would  refer  tlie  quarrel  to  iier 
arbitraiion  and  allow  no  French  troops  to  enter  the  kingdom,  but  the  ofier 
was  too  late ;  Murray  hastily  drew  together  an  army,  and  attacked  her 
forces  at  Langsi.le,  near  (-rlasirow  ;  and  though  the  regent  was  somewhat  in- 
ferior in  force,  his  superior  ability  inflicted  a  complete  defeat  upon  .Mary, 
who  hastily  fled  to  a  lishing-boat  in  tJalloway,  and  landed  the  same  day 
at  Wokingion,  m  Cumberland,  whence  she  immediately  sent  a  rmssen- 
ger  to  crav(!  the  protection  aiul  hospitality  of  Elizabeth.  The  nialiiy  and 
exlrnt  of  the  generous  sympathy  of  that  princess  were  now  to  he  devcl- 
up(  (1 ;  interest  was  now  straighily  and  sternly  opposed  to  real  or  preten- 
ded gfiiciosily. 

Mary  hail  evidently  relied  upon  'ho  power  of  her  insinuation  and  elo- 
(]ueiKi'  to  be  of  service  to  her  in  a  personal  interview,  which  she  iinniedi- 
fttely  solicited.  But  the  able  and  tried  ministers  of  Elizabeth  wre  not 
Hlower  than  .^lary  herself  in  periciviug  tlie  probable  (•(iiiseciuencr  of  such 
au  interview,  and  Elizabeih  was  advised  by  them  that  .she  as  .1  maiden 
<|ii('i'ii  eoiild  not iisistently  even  with  mere  decency,  admit  to  !;;'r  pres- 
ence a  wiiman  who  was  charged  wiili  iniirdi  r  and  adultery,  and  that,  too, 
tiiidir  cireunisliinces  \\liichmade  even  these  horrible  <tiiiiis  more  than 
usually  iKMriblf.  The  (jueeii  of  Scots  was  vi-ry  111  liguaiil  .it  lieiiig,  and 
(Ml  such  a  plea,  deprived  of  the  interview  upon  whieli  she  had  so  very 
much  reck(Mieil.  She  '-eplied  to  llie  ministers  with  great  spirit,  and  so 
cvideiiily  showed  her  determination  to  consider  herself  ;is  a  sister  sovt?- 
reigiiselkini;  Elizabeth's  friendship,  and  not  as  a  charged  i-riinnnil  wiiom 
i;i'Z:ih(!th  eoiild  have  any  earthly  right  to  sit  in  judt;meiit  v,\xm.  thai  Cecil 
det(  riiiined  to  force  her,  mdireclly  at  least,  upon  an  Iiim  stigaiHiii,  by 
sllowiinr  Murray  and  his  party  to  cliaru'c  her  before  the  ipieen  111  1  onn-d 
Willi  li.ivnig  been  "  of  f(H'e-kilowledy;e,  eoiinnel,  and  (cviee,  permiii.ler  and 
i:oiniiiaiider  of  the  minder  uf  her  hiisliaiid,  and  had   aiendcd  to  cansr  Uip 


536 


THE  TUEASUIIY  OF  IIISTOIIY. 


i'l    1 


innoeeiit  prince  to  fol  jwliis  father  and  so  transfer  the  crown  from  the 
right  line  to  ;i  liloody  murderer  and  goiiless  tyrant."  To  this  point  of  this 
intrie;iii:  ai. '  li  .'St  painfnl  ;tfr.iir  tiie  attention  of  gentiral  readers  lias  never 
been  sufficiently  direeted.  The  usual  narrative  of  historians  leaves  the 
eareless  or  siipi  rruial  reader  to  fancy  that  the  condnet  of  Klizabeth  nnist 
throiiciliout  have  heeii  unjustifiable,  as  to  even  the  distention  of  Mary,  the 
whole  question  beiiifr  .Mary's  guilt  and  I'JIIzabeth's  riglit  to  jjunish.  We 
have  already  sufficiently  siiown  that  we  ire  not  inclined  to  sacrifice  truth 
to  our  admiration  of  the  many  adiniralih!  (juaiities  of  KlizabeMi.  For 
much  of  her  treatment  to  Mary  .she  is  deserving  of  tlie  highest  blame,  and 
as  regards  her  execution  (svery  one  must  feel  the  utmost  Indignation;  but 
the  nnMC  detention  of  her,  and  iiujuiry  into  lu'r  guilt  as  to  her  liusband, 
and  her  intentions  as  lolu'i  uif<mt  son,  were  justified  alike  by  the  laws  of 
nations  and  by  every  feeling  of  humanity  .nid  of  morality.  That  Mary 
was  "an  independent  sovereign"  can  only  be  affirmed  by  a  mere  play 
upon  words. 

Stained  with  the  deei'  charges  of  murder  and  adultery,  beaten  on  the 
battle-ficdd,  and  fugitive  (n  'li  l-er  enraged  and  horrified  subjects,  Mary 
was  in  no  conditKjii  to  exercise  her  sovereignty  until  she  should  have  re- 
establisiied  it  by  arms  or  treaty.  Uy  arms  she  could  not  proceed  with- 
out great  peril  to  Kngland,  (ov  s!ie  must  have  relied  upon  aid  from  I'' ranee; 
by  treaty  siie  could  not  pioi.-eed  but  by  tlie  aid  of  Elizabeth,  whose  terri- 
tory might  be  periled  by  some  clause  of  such  treaty.  Situated  as  Eng- 
land was,  both  a.3  to  France  and  as  to  Spain,  it  is  (jtiite  clear  to  all  who 
pay  due  atlenliop  to  the  whole  of  the  circumstances,  that  in  an  honoura- 
ble detention  of  Mary,  and  a  full,  fair  and  impartial  inquiry  into  her  con- 
duct, Illizabeth  would  have  been  fully  justified. 

The  siibseipient  coiidi.ict  shown  to  Mary,  her  close  imprisonment  and 
unkind  treatnuMit,  rellect  no  credit  u|)i>n  eitlu-r  lOlizaheth  or  her  minis- 
ters ;l)ut  it  must  be  remembered  that  Mary,  besides  those  v('rbal  insults 
Avhich  wound  women  more  painfully  than  the  sword  itnelf,  greatly  pro- 
voked the  harsh  feeling  of  KlizabeUi  by  her  perpetual  readiness  to  leiu) 
her  name  and  influence  to  plots  involving  the  life  as  well  the  crown  of 
Elizabeth. 

It  seems  quite  c(ntain  that,  at  the  outset  of  the  business,  the  main  desire 
of  both  I'Miz.ibeih  and  her  minister.s  was  to  place  Mary  in  such  a  |)ositio!i 
that  she  would  be  unable  praetleally  to  rcn'oke  her  settlement  of  the  crown 
upon  ler  iiil'aiil  sun,  whose  regi'ncy,  Ix.'ing  protestant,  would  have  a  eom- 
•11011  interest  with  l'!iiglaiid,  instead  of  a  temptation  to  aid  France  or  Spain 
to  h  r  aniiiiyaiiee.  One  schinne  for  this  purpose  was  to  give  her  in  mar- 
riage to  an  Kiiglish  nobleman,  aii'l  Elizabeth  proposed  the  alliance  to  the 
duke  of  Norfolk,  who  bluntly  replied.  "That  wom.ni,  madam,  shall  lu^ver 
be  my  wife  who  bus  been  your  competitor,  and  whose  husband  cannot 
sleep  In  security  u|ion  his  pillow."  liiiforlimately  for  the  duke,  his  iirac- 
tiecs  was  by  no  means  governed  by  the  S(niiid  sense  of  Ins  theory,  aiiil  hti 
very  soon  al"tiMwards  eoiisent(!rl  to  oiler  himself  to  .\Iary,  m  a  letter,  which 
was  also  signed  by  .\rundel,  l*eml)n>ke,  and  liCicester.  .Mary  pleailed 
that  "  woeful  expenenee  Irnl  taught  her  to  prefer  a  single  llfi,"  mil  she 
hinted  pretty  plainly  that  Elizalii  tli's  consent  might  remove  such  reliic- 
tatiee  as  alw  felt.  Norfolk,  through  tlu!  bishop  of  Itoss,  kept  up  tin!  ciu'- 
resjxHidi'iice  with  Mary.  Kllzabi'th  was  fn>in  tlu;  very  (irsl  aware  of  it, 
nidi  i«he  at  length  sigi  ilicantly  quoted  .Norl'idk's  own  words  to  him,  warii- 
ilii!  him  to  "  beware  on  w  hat  pil.ow  be  slioiihl  rest  his  head."  Shoilly 
afterwards  the  iliike,  for  eoiitinnlnir  the  eorrespondenee,  was  eominilli'il 
to  till'  Tower.  Leicester  was  pardoned  for  the  sleiii!  he  had  had  in  the 
origin  il  eiirrespondeiiee  ;  but  tliei' seemed  sit  niuci  danger  thai  bo'h  .Nor- 
folk and  the  queen  iif  Scots  would  be  severely  de.il'  with,  that  all  the  Jireat 
eallioii';  families  of  tin'  lenth  joined  in  a  loiniiilabie  insinrectiiii,     M.nv 


W  11 


'mm 


w 

B 

111 

m 

m  1  !  ■ 

'  w  i'^' 

1*1 


fife 


^ 


i  I  k 


nil  the  bre 
tent  was  s! 
defeated  a 
countess,  i 
safe  ainoiij 
against  the 
Upon  the 
this  hopele 
8ive.     The 
affirmed  th; 
and  forty  n 
not  the  scei 
the  ordinal- 
forfeitures  ' 
her  to  put  d 
A.  D.  1570 
of  Scotland 
for  Mary :  ; 
for  safely  ri 
it  is  most  p 
her  eountry 
authority,  bi 
variety  of  p 
^vhi(■h  had  b 
sedulously  s 
mistress  in 
eventual  resi 
I'Mgland,  wh 
her,  as  a  zea 
of  a  bull  by 
merely  "  p^ 
from  their  a 
Mary,  severa 
and  a  catholi 
to  priidenee 
this  doeume. 
It  must  be 
rebellion  and 
urge  some  g| 
as  to  any  nat 
.  the  papal  bul 
ablest  eaihol 
promised  him 
have  (lisappo 
thunders  of 
powers  the 
t'atliolies  it  s 
contended  th 
't  eould  not  . 
tion  by  some 
prudent  and  ( 
of  disloyalty, 
the  name  of 
ridicule  the  sc 
•larm." 

'I'he  parlian 
^'■ry  naturally 
tarerl  to  bi 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


527 


.11.' 


oil  the  breaking  out  of  this  affair,  was  removed  fo  Coventry  ;  but.  tlie  con- 
test was  short;  the  earl  of  Nonlnimberlantl,  wtio  hcaiknl  the  revolt,  was 
defeated  and   taken  prisoner,  and  tiirown   nito   I.ochlevin  casiio.      His 

ome  other  fugitives,  were 
'->>  protect  ilieni  equally 
"iipth. 

L-en  beguiled  into 

crrilile  and  cxten- 

irtial  law,  and  it  is 

ict  sixtj'  miles  long 

a  vilhiije  which  was 


.,1 


countess,  with  the  ea-rl  of  Westmoreland 
safe  among  he  Scottish  borderers,  who 
against  the  regent  Murray  and  the  cinis 
Upon  the  English  of  the  northern  coi 
this  hopeless  revolt,  the  vengeance  of 
sive.  The  poor  were  handed  over  to  lli 
affirmed  that  from  Newnastle  to  Netherliv,  >ii  ,.  .ii 
and  forty  miles  wide,  there  was  not  a  town  or  even 
not  the  scene  of  execution !  The  weiillliier  offenders  were  reserved  for 
the  ordinary  course  of  condemnation  by  law,  it  beinganticipat'  d  that  their 
forfeitures  would  reimburse  the  queen  the  large  sums  which  it  had  cost 
her  to  put  down  the  revolt. 

A.  D.  1570. — The  vigour  of  the  regent  Murray  had  kept  the  greater  part 
of  Scotland  perfectly  quiet,  even  while  the  nortli  of  Kngland  was  in  arms 
for  Mary:  and  as  among  the  numerous  projects  suggested  to  I'llizabeth 
for  safely  ridding  herself  of  Mary  was  tiiat  of  delivering  her  up  to  Murray, 
it  is  most  probable  that  the  Scottish  queen  would  liave  been  restored  to 
her  country  and — though  partially  and  under  strong  restrictions — to  her 
authority,  but  for  the  death  of  the  regent.  Wliile  amusing  .Mary  with  a 
variety  of  proposals  which  came  to  nothing,  varied  by  sudden  olijections 
which  had  been  contrived  from  the  very  first,  Klizabctii's  ministers  were 
sedulously  strengthening  the  hands  and  establishing  the  interests  of  their 
mistress  in  Scotland;  they,  however,  seem  really  to  have  iiuendeci  the 
eventual  restoration  of  Mary  under  the  most  favourable  circumstances  to 
Kngland,  when  the  enmity  and  suspicion  of  the  English  cabinet  against 
her,  as  a  zealous  papist,  were  made  streniger  than  ever  by  the  |)iil)lication 
of  a  bull  by  Pius  V.,  in  which  he  insultingly  spoi.e  of  Klizabeth's  as  a 
merely  "  pretended"  right  to  the  crown,  and  absolved  all  her  subjects 
from  their  allegiance.  Of  this  hull,  insolent  in  itself  and  cruel  towards 
Mary,  several  copies  were  published  both  in  S(;olland  and  in  Kngland; 
and  a  catholic  gentleman,  named  FYdton,  whose  zeal  bade  defiance  alike 
to  prudence  and  decency,  was  capitally  punished  for  affi.ving  a  copy  of 
this  document  to  the  gates  of  the  bishop  of  London. 

It  must  be  clear  that  no  sovereign  coulil  overlook  such  an  invitation  to 
rebellion  and  assassination.  It  would  in  any  stati'  of  society  be  likely  to 
urge  some  gloomy  and  half  insane  fanatic  to  the  crime  of  miiider;  though 
as  to  any  national  eflfect,  even  while  the  catholics  were  still  so  inimerous, 
the  papal  bull  had  now  become  a  mere  hrutcmfulinen.  Lingard,  even,  the 
ablest  catholic  historian,  says,  upon  this  very  transaction,  "If  the  pontiff 
promised  himself  any  partiiudar  benefit  from  this  measure,  the  result  must 
have  disappointed  his  expectations.  The  time  was  gone  b)'  when  the 
thunders  of  the  Vatican  could  shake  the  thrones  of  princes.  By  forcngn 
powers  the  bull  was  suffered  to  sle(^p  in  silence ;  ainong  the  Knglish 
catholics  it  scrv(!d  only  to  breed  doubts,  dissensions,  and  dismay.  .Niany 
contended  that  it  had  been  issued  by  incompetent  authority  ;  others,  that 
it  could  not  bind  the  natives  until  it  should  be  carried  into  actual  (!xecu- 
tion  by  some  foreign  power :  all  agreed  that  it  was,  in  tlK'ir  regard,  an  im- 
prudent and  cruel  expedient,  which  rendered  them  liable  to  the  suspicion 
of  disloyiilty,  and  afforded  their  enemies  a  pretence  to  brand  them  with 
the  name  of  traitors.  To  Elizabeth,  liowtwer,  though  she  affc^'tod  to 
ridicule  the  sentence,  it  proved  a  source  of  considerable  uneasiness  and 
«larm." 

The  parliament,  ut  once  alarmed  and  indignant  at  the  bull  of  Pius  V., 
very  naturally  laid  some  heavy  restrictions  upon  the  catholics,  who  wimc 
Y'Uied  to  be  ready  at  any  moment  to  rise  in  favour  of  the  queen  of  Scots 


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33  WIST  MAIN  STMIT 

WHSTIR.N.Y    14SaO 

(716)  173-4303 


533 


THE  TRKASUttY  OF  HISTORY. 


and  for  the  deposition  of  Elizabeth,  should  Philip  of  Spain  or  his  genera. 
Alva,  governor  of  the  Netherlands,  land  a  sufficiently  numerous  army  ol 
foreign  papists  in  England.  And  these  fears  of  the  parliament  and  the 
ministry  had  but  too  solid  foundation.  The  duke  of  Norfolk  from  hi« 
confinement  was  constantly  intriguing  with  Mary;  and  that  unhappy 
princess,  wearied  and  goaded  to  desperation  by  her  continued  imprison- 
ment, and  the  constant  failure  of  all  attempts  at  gaining  her  liberty,  even 
when  she  the  most  frankly  and  completely  agreed  to  all  that  was  de- 
manded of  her,  sent  Rudolphi,  an  Italian,  who  had  her  confidence,  to  solicit 
the  co-operation  of  the  pope,  Philip  of  Spain,  and  Alva.  Some  letters 
from  Norfolk  to  the  latter  personage  were  intercepted  by  the  English 
ministry,  and  Norfolk  was  tried  for  treasonable  leaguing  with  the  queen's 
enemies,  to  the  danger  of  her  crown  and  dignity.  Norfolk  protested  that 
his  aim  was  solely  to  restore  Mary  to  her  own  crown  of  Scotland,  and 
that  detriment  to  the  authority  of  Elizabeth  he  had  never  contemplated  and 
would  never  liave  abetted. 

A.  D.  ir)72. — His  defence  availed  him  nothing ;  he  was  found  guilty  by 
his  peers  and  condemned  to  death.  Even  tiien  the  queen  hesitated  to 
carry  the  sentence  into  effect  against  the  premier  duke  of  England,  who 
was,  also,  her  own  relative.  Twice  she  was  induced  by  the  ministers  to 
sign  the  warrant,  and  twice  she  revoked  it-  This  state  of  hesitation 
lasted  for  four  months.  At  the  end  of  that  time  the  parliament  presented 
an  address  strongly  calling  upon  her  to  make  an  example  of  the  duke,  to 
which  she  at  length  consented,  and  Norfolk  was  beheaded ,  dying  with 
great  courage  and  constancy,  and  still  protesting  that  he  had  no  ill  design 
towards  his  own  queen  in  his  desire  to  aid  the  unhappy  queen  of  Scots 
We  are  inclined  to  believe  that  the  duke  was  sincere  on  this  head ;  bii' 
certainly  iiis  judgment  did  not  equal  his  sincerity  ;  for  how  could  he  ex 
pect  to  overturn  the  vast  power  of  Elizabeth,  so  far  as  to  re-establish  Mar) 
on  the  tlirone,  bnt  by  such  civil  and  international  fighting  as  must  have 
periled  Klizalielh's  throne,  and,  most  probably,  would  have  led  to  the 
sacrifice  of  her  life. 

Burleigh,  devoted  to  the  glory  of  his  royal  mistress  and  to  the  welfare 
of  her  people,  and  plainly  perceiving  tliat  the  catholics,  both  at  home  and 
abroad,  would  cither  find  or  feign  a  motive  to  mischief  in  the  detention  of 
the  qucM'u  of  Scots,  resolutely  advised  tiiat  the  unhappy  queen  should  he 
violently  de:i!t  witii,  as  being  at  the  bottom  of  all  Hcneinc.1  anil  attempts 
against  the  peace  of  Eimlaiid.  Hut  Elizabctii  was  not  yet — would  that 
ilie  had  never  been! — so  far  irritated  or  alarmed  as  to  consent  to  aiiylit 
more  than  the  detention  of  Mary  ;  and  to  all  the  suggestions  of  Durlcigh 
she  contented  herself  with  replying,  witii  a  touch  of  that  poetic  feciiii;^ 
whicli  cv('n  intrigues  of  state  never  wholly  banished  from  her  mind,  tliiit 
*'she  couhl  not  put  to  death  the  bird  that,  to  escape  the  lure  of  the  hawk, 
had  llitvvn  to  iter  feet  for  protection." 

Uurli'Igh  was  aided  in  Ids  endeavours  against  Mary  by  the  parliament ; 
but  Kli/iil)('lh,  though  biJth  her  anxiety  and  her  anger  daily  grew  stroiiifcr, 
pursonally  interfered  to  prevent  a  bill  of  aflaindor  against  Mary,  and  eviii 
anoilicr  hill  which  merely  went  to  exclude  her  from  the  succession. 

Towiinls  the  friends  of  Mary,  Elizabeth  was  less  merciful.  'I'ho  e:irl 
of  Norlhuinberlaiid  was  delivered  by  Morton — who  had  succeeded  FiCiiiiX 
in  the  Scotch  regency— into  the  hands  of  the  Kniflish  ministers;  and  tli.il 
chivalrous  and  iinrortunnte  nobleman  was  beheaded  at  York. 

The  stale  of  Kranee  at  this  time  w;is  suidi,  from  the  fierce  enmity  of  llin 
catholics  to  the  lliik'iicnots  or  protesiimts,  as  to  give  serious  niieitsliii's<i  in 
Ehzabctli.  Thiileci)  enmity  of  (-harli^s  IX.  of  France  towards  ihe  Icaiicri 
of  his  protestant  subjects  wasdisguised,  indeed,  by  the  miomI  artful  cares^rs 
bestowed  ii|iiiii  (^ohgni,  the  king  of  Navarre,  and  otberh  adiii;;  Ifiigiieiiplt! 
but  cin  umsiances  occurred  to  show  that  tiie  king  of  France  not  only  '!«• 


THB  TUEASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


S29 


is  genera. 
18  army  ol 
It  and  the 
t  from  hi» 
t  unhappy 
.  imprison- 
berty,  even 
lat  was  de- 
ie,  to  solicit 
ame  letters 
he  English 
the  queen's 
otested  that 
sotland,  and 
mplaled  and 

nd  puiUy  by 
hesitated  to 
;ngland,  who 
ministers  to 
of  hesitation 
ent  presented 
f  the  duke,  to 
I  ^  dying  with 
1  no  ill  design 
leen  of  Scots 
his  liead ;  bu' 
iT  could  he  ex 
jstaWish  Mar> 
as  must  have 
ive  led  to  the 

to  the  welfare 
h  at  home  and 
\c  detention  nl 
Rcn  should  bo 
iMxl  altempls 
et — would  tliiit 
i,s(M\t  to  auijlit 
IS  of  HurlciKh 
poetic  ftH'lm'4 
her  iniud,  thai 
of  the  hawk, 

..I  parliament ; 

(jnnv  blromriTi 
Mary,  and  even 

•(•(■Nsion. 
piful.     'I'tiofirl 

islrrs;  and  Uiit 

IrW. 

•(•  enmity  of  "I" 
.isuneasini-"*!" 
ards  ilie  Icailii'^ 
luirifiilcari's^i' 
liii.„rllii«iieiv>Hi 

nee  not  only  'le- 


leitod  thoie  personages  and  their  French  followers,  but  that  he  would 
Iflftdly  leiae  anv  good  opportunity  to  aid  Pliilip  of  Spain  in  the  destruction, 
If  p()Niibie,  of  llie  proteslant  power  of  England. 

The  pttfAdious  Charles,  in  order  to  plunge  the  Huguenots  into  the  more 
profoundly  futai  security,  offered  to  give  his  sister  Margaret  in  marriage 
tu  the  prince  of  Navarre ;  and  Coligni,  with  other  leaders  of  the  Huguenot 
party,  iirrived  in  Paris,  to  celebrate  a  marriage  which  promised  so  much 
lowitrdii  the  reconciliation  of  the  two  parties.  But  so  far  was  peace  from 
bttiiig  the  real  meaning  of  the  conn  of  France,  tiiat  the  queen  of  Navarre 
will  poisoned.  This  suspiciously  sudden  death,  however,  of  so  eminent 
a  pnrsuti  did  not  arouse  the  doomed  Coligni  and  the  other  protestants  to  a 
iiiiiiu  of  their  real  situation.  The  marriage  was  concluded ;  and  but  a  few 
diiyi  aflur,  un  the  eve  of  St.  Bartholomew,  the  designs  of  Charles  IX.,  or, 
niurt!  ilricily  speaking,  of  his  execrable  mother,  burst  forth.  The  vetiera- 
blu  ('ollgni  was  murdered  almost  by  the  king's  side;  men,  women,  and 
cliildren  alike  were  butchered  by  the  king's  troops,  so  that  in  Paris  alone 
ftlioiit  live  hundred  persons  of  rank  and  above  ten  thousand  of  the  lower 
orilttr  tire  known  to  have  perished  in  this  most  sanguinary  and  cowardly 
nil'itir.  Orders  were  at  the  same  time  sent  to  Rouon,  Lyons,  and  other 
Krttiit  towns  of  France,  where  the  same  detestable  buictieries  were  coin- 
initli'd  on  H  pronortionably  large  scale. 

Tim  king  of  Navarre  and  the  prince  of  Conde  narrowly  escaped.  The 
diikii  of  Oulse  advised  their  destruction,  but  the  kiii»;  had  contracted  as 
iniii'li  piirsotial  alTei^tion  for  them  as  he  could  feel  fur  any  one  but  the  she- 
wolf.  Ills  miitlior,  and  he  caused  their  lives  to  be  spared  on  condition  of  their 
i)i!Uiiiiiiu[  conversion  to  popery. 

Tim  frightful  massacre  of  St.  Bartholomew  could  not  but  be  greatly 
iiliii'iniiiir  lis  well  as  disgusting  to  Elizabeth.  She  could  nut  but  perceive, 
friiin  a  hiilclii'ry  so  frightful  and  excessive,  that  there  was  among  the 
I'lilliollc  priiictm  of  the  continent  a  determiiiutioii  to  extormiiiate  protest- 
iiiiliNiii)  iinr  could  she  but  feel  that  she,  as  the  champion  of  that  faith, 
wiiM  liiMieeforlli  mure  cuiispii-uously  than  ever  marked  out  for  destnuuion, 
riiulil  it  be  ai'i'oiii|iliNlied  either  by  warfare  or  in  the  more  dastardly  way 
nrjiriviitii  iiKftassinatioii. 

C'liHrli'K  IX.  was  himself  conscious  of  the  oflencc  this  atrocious  mas- 
micrii  of  Ills  protcstant  Hubjects  must  necessarily  give  to  Elizabeth,  and  he 
*i*iit  a  Ntroiig  apology  to  licr  through  Keiielon,  his  ambassador.  Tu  us  it 
liiiM  t'ver  iippivired  that  this  apology  did,  in  reality,  only  make  the  offence 
lliii  bliickcr;  (.'liiirles  now  I'aluiiiniated  the  unfoitiiiiate  persons  whom  he 
had  iniirdcreil.  He  pretended  that  he  had  disL'overed,  just  as  it  was  about 
to  III' i^iirrii'il  into  ext'ciition,  a  Huguenot  conspiracy  to  seize  bis  person, 
mill  tliiU  It  will  as  a  necessary  matter  of  self-dtifeiie-c  tbat  Ins  catholic  sol- 
diery bail  acted.  The  single  fact  that  orders  for  wboji'salc  massacre  were 
Hi'ltil  Upon  at  dinlant  provincia.  cities,  as  well  as  at  Paris,  would  at  once 
mid  for  ever  give  the  lie  to  this  statement.  Even  C'liarlcs's  own  ambas- 
•iiiliir  I'ojifi'SNi'd  that  be  was  aHhained  alike  of  Ins  country  and  of  the 
ii|ii)liiuy  wbii'li  lie  was,  by  his  ollb'e,  compelled  to  make  for  so  outrageous 
»  rriiiin,  Ills  ollhc,  however,  left  bini  no  choice,  and  be  went  to  court. 
ll'Tii  lilt  foiiiiil  every  one.  male  and  female,  attireil  in  llie  deepest  mourn- 
1111/1111111  belling  ill  their  features  the  marks  of  profound  grief  and  alarm. 
No  iiiiit  Mpoke  to  him,  even,  until  bo  arrivcil  at  the  throne,  where  the 
iliiei'ii,  who  rei<pi'('led  Ills  iiersoiml  character,  beard  bis  apology  with  all 
llm  I'liliniieNK  that  she  conbl  ninslcr.  Elizabeth  very  plainly,  in  her  reply, 
•liuwi'il  iliiti  %\u>  wliidly  disbelieved  Charles's  ealiiiiiiiy  upon  his  proteslant 
•abjei'l^,  but  iilie  i-oiicliiiled  that  she  would  defer  iiiakliiu  up  her  mind  upon 
tliK  rniil  feeliiiits  of  Cliuiles  until  she  should  see  bow  he  would  act  in 
riiliirr,  mill  iliit  in  the  ineaniiine,  as  requested  by  bis  own  ambassador, 
iliu  W'liilil  rather  pity  than  blame  him. 
Vol..  I.-3I 


SM  THE  TRBASURY  OF  HISTORY. 

The  massacres  in  France,  joined  to  the  Spanish  massacres  and  perse- 
cutions  in  the  Low  Countries,  and  the  favour  into  which  Charles  IX.  now 
visibly  took  the  Guises,  made  it  evident  to  F^lizabeth  that  nothing  but  op- 
portunity was  wanting  to  induce  the  French  and  Spaniards  to  unite  for 
ner  destruction,  and  she  took  all  possible  precautions.  She  fortified 
Portsmouth,  paid  all  requisite  attention  to  her  militia  and  fleet,  and,  while 
she  renewed  lier  open  alliances  with  the  German  princes,  she  lent  all  the 
aid  that  she  secretly  could  to  the  people  of  the  Low  Countries  to  assist 
them  against  their  Spanish  tyrants. 

A.  D.  1579. — Beyond  what  we  have  just  now  said  of  the  foreign  policy 
of  Elizabeth  we  need  not  here  say  anything;  the  events  that  took  place, 
whether  in  Spain,  the  Netherlands,  or  France,  falling  properly  under  those 
heads.  The  attention  of  Elizabeth,  as  to  foreigners,  was  addressed  chiefly 
to  aiding  the  protestants  with  secrecy  and  with  as  rigid  economy  and 
stringent  conditions  as  were  consistent  with  effectual  aid ;  and  to  keeping 
up  such  a  constant  demonstration  of  vigour  and  a  prepared  position,  as 
might  intimidate  catholic  princes  from  any  such  direct  hostility  to  her  as 
would  be  likely  to  provoke  her  into  openly  encouraging  and  assisting  their 
malcontent  subjects. 

Tliis  policy  enabled  Elizabeth  to  enjoy  a  profound  peace  during  years 
whicii  saw  nearly  all  the  rest  of  Europe  plunged  in  war  and  misery. 

A.  n.  l.'JSO. — The  afTiiirs  of  Scotland  just  at  this  time  gave  Elizabeth 
some  uneasiness.  During  several  years  the  regent  Morton  had  kept  that 
kingdom  in  the  strictest  amity.  But  the  regent  had  of  late  wholly  lost  the 
favour  of  the  turbulent  nobles,  and  he  found  himself  under  the  necessity 
of  giving  in  his  resignation ;  and  the  government  was  formally  assumed 
by  King  James  himself,  though  he  was  now  only  eleven  years  of  age. 
The  count  D'Aubigny,  of  the  house  of  Lenox,  was  employed  by  the  diike 
of  Guise  to  deta('h  .lames  from  the  interests  of  Elizabeth,  and  to  cause 
him  to  espouse  those  of  his  mother.  Elizabeth  endeavoured  to  support 
and  reinstate  Morton,  but  D'Aubigny  had  now  obtained  'mch  inllu- 
ence  with  the  king,  that  he  was  able  to  have  Morton  imp  i  and  sub- 

sequently beheaded,  as  an  accomplice  in  the  murder  of  tl  king. 

With  Spain,  too,  Elizabeth's  relations  were  at  this  period  uneasy  and 
threatening.  In  revenge  for  the  aid  which  he  knew  Elizabeth  to  have 
given  to  his  revolted  subjects  of  the  Netherlands,  Philip  of  Spain  sent  ;i 
body  of  troops  to  aid  her  revolted  subjects  of  Ireland  ;  and  her  complaints 
of  this  interference  were  answered  by  a  reference  to  the  piracies  com- 
mitted by  the  celebrated  Admiral  Drake  who  was  the  first  Engiisliinan 
who  sailed  round  the  world,  and  who  obtained  enormous  booty  from  the 
Spaniards  in  the  New  World. 

A.  n.  l.'iBl. — The  Jesuits,  and  the  scholars  generally  of  the  coiitinentHl 
seminaries  which  the  king  of  Spain  had  e8lal)lislii'il  tu  ci)inpcnsat(!  to  tlie 
catholics  for  the  loss  of  tlie  universities  of  England,  were  so  obvloii'^iy 
and  so  intrusively  hostile  to  tlu;  qne(!n  and  the  protestant  faith,  that  some 
stringent  laws  against  them  and  the  catlioliirs  generally  were  now  passed. 
And  let  any  who  feel  inclined  to  condenni  the  severity  of  those  laws  first 
reflect  upon  the  continual  alarm  in  which  both  the  queen  and  her  protest- 
nnt  sul)j(!Ct8  had  been  kept,  by  the  pernicious  (ixertlons  of  men  who  novir 
•eemcd  at  a  loss  for  a  subtle  casuistry  to  induce  or  to  justify  a  brutal  cru- 
elty or  a  violent  sedition. 

Campion,  a  Jesuit  who  had  been  sent  over  to  explain  to  the  catholics  of 
England  that  tlniy  were  not  liound,  in  obedience  to  the  bull  of  Plus  V.,  lo 
rebel  until  the  pope  should  give  them  a  second  and  exjilicit  order  to  that 
ofTect — I.  c,  not  until  the  slate  of  England  slniiild  by  accident,  or  by  jp- 
iuitlcal  practices,  be  placed  in  convenient  confusion ! — being  detectcil  In 
treasonable  jiractlces  directly  ojjposcd  to  his  professed  errand,  was  first 
put  to  the  rack  and  then  executed. 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


SSI 


Elizabeth  had  formerly  been  addressed  with  offers  of  marriage  by  Alen- 
goii,now  duke  of  Anjou,  brother  to  the  late  tyrant,  Charles  IX.,  of  Prance, 
and  he  now  renewed  his  addresses  through  his  agent  Simier,  a  man  of 
great  talent  and  most  insinuatmg  manners.  The  agent  so  well  played 
his  part  in  the  negotiation  that  he  excited  the  jealousy  of  the  powerful  and 
unprincipled  Leicester,  who  offered  him  every  possible  opposition  and 
insult.  The  queen,  whom  Simier  informed  of  Leicester's  marriage  to  the 
widow  of  the  earl  of  Essex,  formally  took  Simier  under  her  especial  pro 
tection,  and  ordered  Leicester  to  confine  himself  to  Greenwich. 

Simier  so  well  advocated  the  cause  of  Anjou,  that  Elizabeth  went  so  far 
as  to  invite  that  prince  to  England ;  and,  after  making  stipulations  for  the 
aid  of  France,  should  the  interests  of  Anjou  in  the  Netherlands  involve 
her  in  a  quarrel  with  Philip  of  Spain,  Elizabeth,  in  presence  of  her  whole 
court  and  the  foreign  ambassadors,  placed  a  ring  on  Anjou's  finger,  and 
distinctly  said  that  she  did  so  in  token  of  her  intention  to  become  his 
wife.  As  she  was  now  nine-and-forty  years  of  age,  and  might  be  sup- 
posed to  have  outlived  all  the  youthful  fickleness  imputed  to  her  sex,  and 
as  she  gave  orders  to  the  bishops  to  regulate  the  forms  of  the  marriage, 
every  one  supposed  that  it  was  certain.  Despatches  were  sent  to  notify 
the  approaching  event  abroad,  and  in  many  parts  of  England  it  was  anti- 
cipatively  celebrated  by  public  holiday  and  rejoicing. 

But  the  marriage  of  Elizabeth  to  Anjou  was  looked  upon  with  great  dis- 
like by  the  leading  men  of  the  English  court.  The  duke,  as  a  catholic, 
and  a  member  of  a  most  persecuting  family,  could  not  but  be  viewed  with 
fear  and  suspicion  by  sound  statesmen  like  Walsingham  and  Hatton ; 
while  Leicester,  conscious  that  with  the  queen's  marriage  his  own  vast 
power  and  influence  would  end,  heartil.  wished  her  not  to  marry  at  all. 
These  courtiers  employed  her  favourite  ladies  to  stimulate  her  pride  by 
hinting  the  probability  of  her  husband,  instead  of  herself,  becoming  the 
first  personage  in  her  dominions ;  and  to  appeal  to  her  fears  by  suggesting 
the  dangers  to  which  she  would  be  exposed  should  she  have  children ;  the 
latter,  surely,  a  danger  not  very  probable  at  her  time  of  life.  However, 
the  courtiers'  artifices  were  fully  successful.  Even  while  the  state  mes- 
sengers were  on  their  way  to  foreign  courts  with  the  news  of  the  queen's 
approaching  marriage,  she  sent  for  Anjou,  and  told  him,  with  tears  and 
protestations  of  regret,  that  her  people  were  so  much  prejudiced  against 
her  union  with  him,  that  though  her  own  happiness  must  needs  be  sacri- 
fit'ed  slie  had  resolved  'o  consult  the  happiness  of  her  people,  and,  there- 
fore could  not  marry  nim.  The  duke  on  leaving  her  presence  tlircw  away 
tlie  costly  ring  she  had  given  him,  and  declared  that  English  women  were 
as  capricious  as  the  waves  that  surround  their  island.  He  soon  after  de- 
parted,  and  being  driven  from  Belgium  to  France,  died  tiiere;  deeply  and 
sincerely  regretted  by  Elizabeth. 

A.  D.  1584. — Several  attempts  having  been  made  to  raise  new  troubles  in 
h'ngland  in  favour  of  tiie  queen  of  3cots,  the  ministers  of  Elizabeth  made 
every  exertion  to  detect  the  conspirators.  Henry  Piercy,  carl  Northuin- 
btrlaud,  brothcT  to  that  earl  who  was  some  time  before  bciieaded  for  his 
coiinoctloii  witli  Mary's  cause  ;  Howard,  earl  of  Arundel,  son  of  tiie  duke 
of  Norfolk,  that  princess'  late  suitor;  Lord  Paget  and  Charles  Arutidel 
and  Francis  Tiirogmorton,  a  private  gentleman,  were  implicated.  Most 
of  tliem  escaped,  but  Throgmorton  was  executed.  Mendoza,  the  Spanish 
Ambassador,  wiio  had  been  the  prime  mover  of  this  nlot,  was  sent  home 
lU  disgrace.  Some  further  proofs  of  a  widely-spread  and  dani;erous  con- 
lynracy  havinjr  been  discovered  in  some  papers  seized  upon  Crcighton,  a 
Scottish  Jesuit,  the  Englisii  ministers,  who  found  Mary  connected  with  all 
these  attempts,  removed  her  from  liie  custody  of  the  carl  of  Shrewsbury, 
who  seemed  not  to  have  bvvn  sudlciently  watidiful  of  her  conduct,  and 
•iommilted  her  to  that  o'  Sir  Amias  Paulet  and  Sir  Drue  Drury,  men  of 


'i 


632 


THE  THKA8UEY  OF  HISTORY. 


character  and  humanity,  but  too  much  devoted  to  Elizabeth  to  allow  any 
unreasonable  freedom  to  their  prisoner. 

Further  laws  were  at  the  same  time  passed  against  Jesuits  and  popish 
priests,  and  a  council  was  named  by  act  of  parliament  with  power  to 
goveri*  the  kingdom,  settle  the  succession,  and  avenge  the  queen's  death, 
should  that  occur  by  violence.  A  subsidy  and  two  fifteenths  were  like- 
wise granted  to  the  queen. 

During  this  session  of  parliament  a  new  conspiracy  was  discovernd, 
which  greatly  increased  the  general  animosity  to  the  catholics,  and  pro- 
portionably  increased  the  attachment  of  the  parliament  to  the  queen,  and 
their  anxiety  to  shield  her  from  the  dangers  by  which  she  seemed  to  be 
perpetually  surrounded.  A  catholic  gentleman  named  Parry,  who  hud 
made  himself  so  conspicuous  in  the  house  of  commons  by  his  intemperate 
opposition  to  a  bill  for  restraining  the  seditious  practices  of  Romish  priests, 
that  he  was  committed  to  the  custody  of  the  serjeant-at-arms  and  only 
liberated  by  the  clemency  of  the  queen,  was  now,  in  but  little  less  than 
six  weeks,  charged  with  high  treason.  This  man  had  been  employed  as 
a  secret  agent  by  Lord  Burleigh,  but  not  deeming  himself  sufficiently  well 
treated  he  went  to  Italy,  where  he  seems  to  have  deeply  intrigued  with 
both  the  papal  party  at  Rome  and  the  ministers  of  his  own  sovereign  at 
home.  Having  procured  from  the  Romish  authorities  a  warm  sanction 
of  his  professed  design  of  killing  Queen  Elizabeth  with  his  own  hand,  this 
sanction  he  hastened  to  communicate  to  Klizabeth,  and  being  refused  a 
pension  he  returned  to  his  old  vocation  of  a  spy,  and  was  employed  to 
watch  the  pernicious  Jesuit  Persons,  in  conjunction  with  Nevil.  Though 
actually  in  the  service  of  the  government,  both  Nevil  and  Parry  were 
men  of  desperate  fortune,  and  their  discontent  at  length  grew  so  desperate 
that  they  agreed  to  shoot  the  queen  when  she  should  be  out  riding.  Tlie 
carl  of  Westmoreland,  under  sentence  of  exile,  chanced  to  die  just  at  this 
period,  and  Nevil,  who,  though  a  salaried  spy,  was  also  in  exile  in  Nor- 
mandy, thought  it  very  likely  that  he,  as  next  heir  to  the  deceased  ciiri, 
would  recover  the  family  estate  and  title  by  revealing  the  plot  to  which 
he  was  a  party.  Ncvil's  rcvealments  to  the  government  were  confirmoii 
by  Parry's  own  confession,  and  the  latter,  a  double  traitor— alike  traitor 
to  his  native  land  and  to  his  spiritual  sovereign — was  very  deservedly 
executed. 

A  fleet  of  twenty  sail  umler  Admiral  Sit  Francis  Drake,  with  a  land 
force  of  two  thousand  three  hundred  volunteers  under  Christopher  Car- 
lisle, did  the  Spaniards  immense  mischief  this  year,  taking  St.  Jago,  near 
Cape  Verd,  where  they  gut  good  store  of  provision,  but  little  money  ;  St. 
Domingo,  where  they  made  the  inhabitants  save  their  houses  by  the  pay- 
ment of  a  large  sum  of  money  ;  and  (^arihagena,  whicii  they  similarly 
held  to  ransom.  0»  the  coast  of  Florida  they  burned  the  towns  of  St. 
Antiiony  and  St.  Helen's;  and  thence  they  went  to  the  coast  of  Virgiiiiii, 
where  they  found  the  miserable  remnant  of  the  colony  so  long  before 
planted  there  by  Sir  Walter  Raleigh.  The  poor  colonists  were  at  this 
lime  lediiced  to  utter  misery  and  despair  by  lon^  continued  ill  success, 
:ni(l  ul;idly  abiindoned  their  setlleinents  and  returned  home  on  boiinl 
Drake's  fleet.  The  enorindiis  wealth  that  was  brought  home  l)y  that  gal- 
lant conimander,  and  the  aeeoniits  given  by  his  men  of  both  the  riclies 
and  the  weakness  of  llie  Spaniards,  made  the  notion  of  piracy  upon  the 
Spiimsh  main  extremely  pupnliir,  and  eaused  much  evil  energy  to  he  em 
ployed  in  that  (lireetioii,  \vlii(rli  would  iithcrwisc  have  been  of  serious  an 
noyanee  to  tlie  guverinnent  at  liDine. 

Meanwhile  the  earl  of  f.eicestcr.  who  had  been  sent  to  Holland  in  eom 
mand  of  the  Knglish  auxiliary  forces  to  aiil  the  Htales  against  Spain 
proved  himself  to  be  nn(it  lor  any  extensive  niiliiaiy  power.  His  rctiiin' 
was  princely  in  splendour,  and  Ins  courHy  manners  and  intriguing  spin 


THB  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


533 


.•aused  hitn  to  be  named  captain-general  of  the  United  Provinces,  and  to 
have  the  guards  and  honours  of  a  sovereign  prince.  But  here  his  achieve- 
ments, which  gave  deep  offence  to  Ehzabeth,  began  to  diminish  in  bril- 
liancy. Though  nobly  aided  by  his  nephew,  Sir  Philip  Sidney,  one  of  the 
most  gallant  and  accomplished  gentlemen  who  have  ever  done  honour  to 
England,  he  was  decidedly  inferior  to  the  task  of  opposing  so  accomplish- 
ed a  general  as  the  prince  of  Parma.  He  succeeded  in  the  fiist  instance 
in  repulsing  the  Spaniards  and  throwing  succours  into  Grave;  but  the 
cowardice  or  treachery  of  Van  Hemert— who  was  afterwards  put  to  death 
pursuant  to  the  sentence  of  a  court  martial — betrayed  the  place  to  the 
Spaniards.  Venlo  was  taken  by  the  prince  of  Parma,  as  was  Nuys,  and 
the  prince  then  sat  down  before  Rhimberg.  To  draw  the  prince  from  be- 
fore this  last  named  place,  which  was  garrisoned  by  twelve  hundred  men 
well  provided  with  stores,  and  upon  which,  consequently,  Leicester  should 
have  allowed  the  prince  to  have  wasted  his  strength  and  Men  have  brought 
him  to  action,  Leicester  laid  siege  to  Zutphen.  The  prince  thou<;ht  this 
place  far  too  important  to  be  allowed  to  fall  into  the  hands  of  tiie  English, 
and  he  hastened  to  its  aid,  sending  an  advanced  guard  under  the  marquis 
of  Cuesto  to  throw  relief  into  the  fortress.  A  body  of  English  cavalry 
fell  in  with  this  advance,  and  a  gallant  action  commenced,  in  which  the 
Spaniards  were  completely  routed,  with  the  loss  of  the  marquis  of  Gonza- 
go,  an  Italian  noble  of  great  military  reputation  and  ability.  In  this  ac- 
tion, however,  the  Eogl'sh  were  so  unfortunate  as  to  lose  the  noble  Sir 
Philip  Sidney,  whose  accomplishments,  humanity,  and  love  of  literature 
made  him  the  idol  of  the  great  writers  of  the  age.  The  humanity  which 
had  marked  his  whole  life  was  conspicuous  even  in  the  last  sad  scene  of 
his  death.  Dreadfully  wounded,  and  tortured  with  a  raging  thirst,  he  was 
about  to  have  a  bottle  of  water  applied  to  his  parched  lips,  when  he  caught 
the  eyes  of  a  poor  private  soldier  who  lay  near  him  in  the  like  fevered 
state,  and  was  looking  at  the  bottle  with  the  eager  envy  which  only  the 
wounded  soldier  and  the  desert  wanderer  can  know.  "  Give  him  the  wa- 
ter," said  the  dying  hero,  "  his  necessity  is  still  greater  thaM  mine." 

While  Leicester  was  barely  keeping  ground  against  Spain  in  the  Neth- 
erlands, and  Drake  was  astounding  and  ruining  the  Spaniards  in  various 
pvrtsof  the  New  World,  Elizabeth  was  cautiously  securing  herself  on  the 
side  of  Scotland.  Having  obtained  James's  alliance  by  a  dexterous  ad- 
mixture of  espionage  and  more  open  conduct,  Elizabeth  fell  that  she  had 
but  little  to  fear  from  foreign  invasions;  it  being  stipulated  in  their  league 
"that  if  Elizabeth  were  invaded,  James  should  aid  her  witli  a  body  of  two 
thousand  horse  and  five  thousand  fool ;  that  Elizabeth,  in  the  like  case, 
should  send  to  his  assistance  three  thousand  horse  and  six  tliousand  foot ; 
that  the  charge  of  these  armies  should  be  defrayed  by  the  prince  who  de- 
niunded  assistance;  that  if  the  invasion  should  he  made  upon  England, 
within  sixty  miles  of  the  frontiers  of  Scotland,  this  latter  kiiigd(mi  should 
march  its  whole  force  to  the  assistance  of  the  former;  and  that  the  pres- 
ent league  should  supersede  all  former  alliances  of  either  state  with  any 
foreign  kingdom  so  far  as  religion  was  concerned." 

And,  in  truth,  it  was  requisite  that  Elizabeth  should  be  well  prepared  at 
home,  for  her  enemies  abroad  grew  more  and  more  furious  against  her, 
as  every  new  occurrence  more  strongly  displayed  the  sagacity  of  her 
ministers  and  her  own  prudence  and  firmness  in  supportiiio  tlu'in.  Partly 
on  account  of  the  imprisonment  of  the  queen  of  Scots,  but  chielly  on  ac- 
jounl  of  those  rigorous  laws  which  their  own  despcriite  and  shameful 
conilucl  daily  maile  more  necessary,  the  foreign  papists,  and  still  more 
he  English  seminary  at  Rheims,  hatl  become  wroujrht  up  to  so  v  K)lent  a 
fury,  that  nothing  short  of  the  assassination  of  Elizabeth  was  now  deemed 
Worthy  thc^ir  contemplation. 

lohn  Uallard,  a  priest  of  the  seminary  at  Rhcims,  having  been  engaged 


534 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


in  noticing  and  stirring  up  the  fanatical  zeal  of  the  catholics  of  En^'bnd 
and  Scotland,  proposed,  on  his  return  to  Rheims,  the  attemijl  to  dethrone 
Elizabeth  and  to  re-establish  papacy  in  England,  an  enterprise  which  he 
pretended  to  think  practicable,  and  that,  too,  without  any  extraordinary 
difficulty.  At  nearly  the  same  time  a  desperate  and  gloomy  fanatic,  John 
Savage,  who  had  served  for  several  years  under  the  prince  of  Parma  in 
the  Low  Countries,  and  who  was  celebrated  for  a  most  indomitable  reso- 
lution, offered  to  assassinate  Elizabeth  Vt'ith  his  own  hands.  As  that  deed 
would  greatly  facilitate  the  proposed  revolution  in  England,  the  priests  of 
Rheims,  who  had  long  preached  up  the  virtuous  and  lawful  character  of 
the  assassination  of  heretical  sovereigns,  encouraged  him  in  his  design, 
which  he  vowed  to  pursue,  and  the  more  fanatical  catholics  of  England 
were  instructed  to  lend  him  all  possible  aid.  Savage  was  speedily  fol- 
lowed to  England  by  Ballard,  who  took  the  name  of  Captain  Fortescue, 
and  busied  himself  night  and  day  in  preparing  means  to  avail  himself  of 
the  awe  and  confusion  in  which  the  nation  could  not  fail  to  be  plunged  by 
the  success  of  the  attempt  which  he  doubted  not  that  Savage  would 
speedily  make. 

Anthony  Babington,  a  Derbyshire  gentleman,  had  long  been  known  to 
the  initiated  abroad  as  a  bigoted  catholic  and  as  a  romantic  lover  of  the 
imprisoned  queen  of  Scots.  To  this  gentleman,  who  had  the  property 
and  station  requisite  to  render  him  useful  to  the  conspirators,  Ballard  ad- 
dressed himself.  To  restore  the  catholic  religion  and  place  Mary  on  the 
throne  of  England,  Babington  considered  an  enterprise  that  fully  warrant- 
ed the  murder  of  Elizabeth  ;  but  he  objected  to  entrusting  the  execution 
of  so  important  a  preliminary  to  the  proposed  revolution  to  one  hand. 
The  slightest  nervousness  or  error  of  that  one  man,  Babington  truly  re- 
marked, would  probably  involve  the  lives  or  fortunes  of  all  the  chief 
catholics  in  England.  He  proposed,  therefore,  that  five  others  should  be 
joined  to  Savage  in  the  charge  of  the  assassination.  So  desperate  was 
the  villainy  of  Savage,  and  he  was  so  angry  at  this  proposed  division  of  a 
cruel  and  co.wardly  treason,  that  it  was  only  with  some  difficulty  that  his 
priestly  colleague  induced  him  to  share  what  the  wretch  impiously  termed 
the  "  glory"  of  the  deed,  with  Barnwell,  Charnock,  Tilriey,  and  Tichborne ; 
all  of  them  gentlemen  of  station,  character,  and  wealth;  and  Babington, 
also  a  man  of  wealth,  character,  and  station,  which  he  owed  to  the  former 
service  of  his  father  as  cofferer  to  the  very  queen  whom  it  was  now  pro- 
posed to  slay !    Such  is  that  terrible /on*  criminis,  fanaticism  ! 

It  was  determined  that  at  the  very  same  hour  at  which  Savage  and  his 
colleagues  should  assassinate  Elizabeth,  the  queen  of  Scots  should  be  out 
riding,  when  Babington,  with  Edward,  brother  of  Lord  Windsor,  and  sev- 
eral other  gentlemen,  at  the  head  of  a  hundred  horse,  should  attack  her 
(Tuards  and  escort  her  to  London,  where  she  would  be  proclaimed  amid 
the  acclamations  of  the  conspirators,  and,  doubtless,  all  catholics  who 
should  see  her. 

That  this  hellish  plot  would  have  succeeded  there  can  be  little  doubt 
but  for  the  watchful  eye  of  Wa'.singham,  which  had  from  the  first  been 
upon  Ballard  ;  atid  while  that  person  was  busily  plotting  a  revolution 
which,  commencing  with  the  assassination  of  the  queen,  would  almost 
infallibly  have  ended  with  a  general  massacre  of  the  protestants,  he  was 
unconsciously  telling  all  his  principal  proceedings  to  Walsingham,  that 
able  and  resolute  minister  having  placed  spies  about  iiini  who  reported 
evprything  of  importance  to  the  secretary.  (Jifl'ord,  another  seminary 
priest,  also  entered  the  pay  of  the  minister,  and  enabled  him  to  obtain 
copies  of  correspondence  between  Babington  and  the  queen  of  Scots,  in 
which  he  spoke  of  the  murder  of  EHzai>elli  as  a  Iraninil  exeruiinn  whicli 
he  would  willingly  undertake  fur  Mary's  sake  iiiul  service,  and  slii!  replied 
that  she  highly  approved  of  the  whole  plan,  including  the  assassination  ol 


she 


THE  TEKA8URY  OP  HISTORY 


535 


(he  queen,  a  general  insurrection  aided  by  foreign  invasion,  and  Mary's 
ovfti  deliverance.  Nay,  the  queen  of  Scots  went  still  farther ;  she  said 
that  the  gentlemen  engaged  in  this  enterprise  might  expect  all  the  reward 
it  should  ever  be  in  her  power  to  bestow ;  and  reminded  them  that  it 
would  be  but  lost  labour  to  attempt  an  insurrection,  or  even  her  own  re- 
lease from  her  cruel  imprisonment,  until  Elizabeth  were  dead. 

We  have  not  scrupled  to  declare  our  dislike  of  the  original  conduct  of 
Elizabeth,  so  far  as  we  deem  it  criminal  or  mean.  But  we  cannot  there- 
fore shut  our  eyes  to  the  fact,  that  though  party  writers  have  made  many 
and  zealous  attempts  to  show  that  the  whole  plot  was  of  Walsingham's 
contrivance,  the  evidence  against  Mary  was  as  complete  and  satisfactory 
as  human  evidence  could  be.  That  Walsingham  employed  spies,  that 
these  were  chiefly  priests  who  were  false  to  their  own  party,  and  that 
some  of  them  were  men  of  bad  character — what  di»  these  things  prove! 
Circumstanced  as  Walsingham  was,  knowing  his  queen's  life  to  be  in 
perpetual  danger  from  restless  and  desperate  plotters,  we  really  cannot 
see  how  he  was  to  avoid  that  resort  to  spies,  which  under  any  other  cir- 
cumstances we  should  be  among  the  first  to  denounce.  But  with  whom, 
then,  did  these  spies  act  ^  With  catholics  of  station  and  wealth,  whom 
no  spies  could  possibly  have  engaged  in  perilous  and  wicked  proceedings, 
but  for  their  own  fierce  fanaticism.  And  how  and  from  whom  did  these 
spies  procure  Walsingham  the  important  letters  which  divulged  all  the 
particulars  of  the  intended  villainy  ?  By  letter  carrying  from  Mary  to  the 
enamoured  Babington,  and  from  Babington  to  Mary.  What  film  bigotry 
may  throw  over  the  eyes  of  fierce  political  partisans  we  know  not,  but 
assuredly  we  can  imagine  nothing  to  be  clearer  than  the  guilt  of  Mary, 
as  far  as  she  could  be  guilty  of  conspiring  against  the  life  of  Elizabeth — 
who  had  so  long  imbittered  her  life  and  deprived  her  of  all  enjoyment  of 
her  crov.'n  and  kingdom,  who  had  mocked  her  with  repeated  promises 
which  she  never  intended  to  fulfil,  and  who  had  carried  the  arts  of  policy 
so  far  as  to  outrage  nature  by  making  the  utter  neglect  of  the  imprisoned 
mother  a  tacit  condition,  at  the  least,  of  friendship  and  alliance  with  the 
reigning  son.  The  commissioners  on  their  return  from  Fotheringay  cas- 
tle pronounced  sentence  of  death  upon  Mary,  queen  of  Scots,  but  accom- 
panied the  sentence  with  what — considering  that  from  the  moment  of  her 
abdication  in  his  favour,  his  right  to  reign  became  wholly  independent  of 
his  mother— seemed  a  somewhat  unnecessary  clause  of  exception  in  fa- 
vour of  James ;  which  said  that  "  the  sentence  did  in  no  wise  derogate 
from  the  title  and  honour  of  James,  king  of  Scotland  ;  but  that  he  was  in 
the  same  place,  degree,  and  right,  as  if  the  sentence  had  never  been  pro- 
nounced." 

It  is  an  extraordinary  fact,  and  one  which  is  unnoticed  not  only  by  the 
partial  writers  who  have  endeavoured  to  throw  the  deserved  degree  of 
blame  upon  Elizabetli,  and  also  to  represent  Miiry  as  altogether  free  from 
Dlame  even  where  her  criminality  was  the  most  glaringly  evident,  but 
even  by  the  impartial  Hume,  that  when  the  sentence  on  Mary  was  pub- 
lished in  London,  the  people  received  it,  not  with  the  sadness  and  silence 
or  the  fierce  and  fiery  remonstrance  witli  which  the  English  are  wont  to 
rebuke  or  restrain  evil  doing,  but  by  the  ringing  of  bells,  lighting  of  bon 
fires,  and  all  the  ordinary  tokens  of  public  rejoicing.  Does  not  this  sin 
gle  fact  go  to  prove  that  it  was  notorious  that  Mary,  during  her  confine- 
ment, was  perpetually  plotting  against  the  life  of  the  queen,  and  endeav- 
ouring to  deliver  England  and  Scotland  over  to  the  worst  horrors  that 
could  befall  them — the  restoration  of  papacy  and  the  arbitrary  rule  of 
Philip  of  Spain  1  We  repeat,  whatever  the  former  conduct  of  Elizabeth. 
Mary  of  S(;otland  was  now  notoriously  a  public  enemy,  prepared  to  slay 
the  queen  and  expose  the  protestants  of  the  nation  to  massacre,  so  that 
»he  might  obtain  lier  own  personal  liberty,  and  take  away  the  liberty  (rf 


•36 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


conscience  from  the  whole  nntion.  That  this  was  the  true  state  of  the 
case  was  made  evident  not  merely  by  the  rejoicings  of  the  multitude  out 
of  doors,  but  by  the  solemn  application  of  the  parliament  to  Elizabeth  to 
allow  the  sentence  to  be  executed.  The  king  of  France,  chiefly  by  the 
compulsion  of  the  house  of  Guise  and  the  league,  interceded  for  Mary ; 
and  James  of  Scotland,  who  had  hitherto  been  a  most  cold  and  neglectful 
son,  whatever  might  be  the  errors  of  his  mother,  now  sent  the  master  of 
Gray  and  Sir  Robert  Melvil  to  try  both  argument  and  menace  upon  Eliz- 
abeth. 

Most  historians  seem  to  be  of  opinion  that  the  reluctance  which  Eliza- 
beth for  some  time  exhibited  to  comply  with  what  was  undoubtedly  the 
wish  of  her  people,  the  execution  of  Mary,  was  wholly  feigned.  We 
greatly  duubt  it.  That  Elizabeth  both  hated  and  feared  .Mary  was 
inevitable ;  Mary's  position,  her  bigotry,  the  personal  ill-feeling  she 
had  often  shown  towards  Elizabeth,  and  her  obvious  willingness  to 
sacrifice  her  life,  were  surely  not  additions  to  the  character  of  a  woman 
who  had  connived  at  her  husband's  death  and  then  married  his  murderer, 
which  could  have  engendered  any  kindly  feelings  on  the  part  of  a  princess 
60  harrassed  and  threatened  as  Elizabeth  was  by  the  faction  of  which 
Mary,  in  England  at  leasr,  was  the  recognised  head.  But  apart  from  all 
womanly  and  humane  relenting,  Elizabeth  could  not  but  be  conscious 
that  the  death  of  Mary  would  cause  a  great  accession  to  the  rage  of  the 
catholic  powers  ;  and  apathetic  as  James  had  shown  himself  hitherto,  it 
was  but  reasonable  to  suppose  that  the  violent  death  of  his  mother  would 
rouse  him  into  active  enmity  to  England.  However,  the  queen's  hesita- 
tion, real  or  assumed,  was  at  length  overcome,  and  she  signed  the  fatal 
warrant  which  Davison,  her  secretary,  acting  under  the  orders  and  advice 
of  Lord  Burleigh,  Leicester,  and  others  of  the  council,  forthwith  dispatch- 
ed to  Fotheringay  by  the  earls  of  Shrewsbury  and  Kent,  who  were  charged 
with  seeing  it  executed. 

A.  D.  1587. — Immediately  on  the  arrival  of  the  two  earls,  they  read  the 
warrant,  and  warned  Mary  to  be  prepared  for  execution  at  eight  on  the 
following  morning.  She  received  the  news  with  apparent  resignation; 
professed  that  she  could  not  have  believed  that  Elizabeth  would  have  en- 
forced such  a  sentence  upon  a  person  not  subject  to  the  laws  and  jurisdic. 
tion  of  England,  but  added,  "  As  such  is  her  will,  death,  which  puts  an 
end  to  all  my  miseries,  shall  be  to  me  most  welcome ;  nor  can  I  esteem 
that  soul  worthy  the  felicities  of  heaven  which  cannot  support  the  body 
under  the  horrors  of  the  last  passage  to  those  blissful  mansions." 

She  then  asked  for  the  admission  of  her  own  chaplain,  but  the  earl  ol 
Kent  said  that  the  attendance  of  a  papist  priest  was  unnecessary,  as 
Fletcher,  dean  of  Peterborough,  a  most  learned  and  pious  divine,  would 
afford  her  all  necessary  consola'ion  and  instruction.  She  refused  to  see 
him,  which  so  much  angered  thi  earl  of  Kent,  that  he  coarsely,  though 
truly  told  her  that  her  death  would  be  the  life  of  the  protestant  religion, 
as  her  life  would  have  been  the  death  of  it. 

Having  taken  a  sparing  and  early  supper,  the  unhappy  Mary  passed  the 
night  in  making  a  distribution  of  her  effects  and  in  religious  ofhces,  unti 
her  usual  hour  forretiriiig,when  she  went  to  bed  and  slept  for  some  hours 
She  rose  very  early,  and  resumed  her  religious  exercises,  using  a  conse- 
crated liimt  which  had  been  sent  to  her  by  Pope  Pius. 

'As  al  hour  approached  she  dressed  herself  in  a  rich  habit  of  vel- 

vet and  silk.  Scarcely  had  she  done  so  when  Andrews,  sheriff  of  tlie 
county,  entered  the  room  and  summoned  her  to  the  last  dread  scene,  to 
which  she  was  supported  by  two  of  Sir  Amias  Paulel's  guards,  an  infirm- 
ity in  her  limbs  preventing  her  from  walking  without  aid.  As  she  entered 
the  hall  adjoining  her  room  she  was  met  by  the  earls  of  Shrewsbury  and 
Kent,  Sir  Amias  Paulet,  Sir  Drue  Drury,  and  other  gentlemen ;  and  here 


with , 


THE  TaBASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


537 


Sir  Andrew  Melvil,  her  attached  steward,  threw  liimseir  upon  his  knees 
before  her,  lamenting  her  fate  and  wringing  his  liands  in  an  agony  of  real 
and  deep  grief.  She  comforted  him  by  assurances  of  her  own  perfect  re- 
signation, bade  him  report  in  Scotland  that  she  died  a  true  woman  to  her 
religion,  and  said,  as  she  resumed  her  way  to  the  scaffold,  "  Recommend 
me,  Melvil,  to  my  son,  and  tell  him  that,  notwithstanding  all  my  distresses, 
I  have  done  nothing  prejudicial  to  the  state  and  kingdom  of  Scotland. 
And  now,  my  good  Melvil,  farewell;  once  again,  farewell,  good  Melvil, 
and  grant  the  assistance  of  thy  prayers  to  thy  queen  and  mistress." 

She  now  turned  to  the  earls,  and  begged  that  her  servants  might  freely 
enjuy  the  presents  she  had  given  them  and  be  sent  safely  to  their  own 
country  ;  all  which  was  readily  promised.  But  the  earls  objected  to  the 
admission  of  her  attendants  to  the  execution,  and  some  difficulty  was 
even  made  about  any  of  them  being  present  in  her  last  moments.  This 
really  harsh  refusal  roused  her  to  a  degree  of  anger  she  had  not  previ- 
ously shown,  and  she  indignantly  said  to  the  earls,  "  1  know  that  your 
mistress,  being  a  maiden  queen,  would  vouchsafe,  in  regard  of  woman- 
hood,  that  I  should  have  some  of  my  own  people  about  me  at  my  death. 
I  know  that  her  majesty  hath  not  given  you  any  such  strict  command  but 
that  you  might  grant  me  a  request  of  far  greater  courtesy,  even  though  I 
were  a  woman  of  inferior  rank  to  that  which  I  bear.  I  am  cousin  to 
your  queen,  and  descended  from  the  blood  royal  of  Henry  Vlll.,  and  a 
married  queen  of  France,  and  an  anointed  queen  of  Scotland." 

This  remonstrance  had  due  effect,  and  she  was  allowed  to  select  four 
of  her  male  and  two  of  her  female  servants  to  attend  her  to  the  scaffold  ; 
her  steward,  physician,  apothecary,  and  surgeon,  with  her  maids  Curie 
and  Kennedy. 

Thus  attended,  she  was  led  into  an  adjoining  hall,  in  which  was  a 
crowd  of  spectators,  and  the  scaffold,  covered  with  black  cloth.  The 
warrant  having  been  read,  the  dean  of  Peterborough  stepped  forward  and 
addressed  her  in  exhortation  to  repentance  of  her  sins,  acknowledgment 
of  the  justice  of  her  sentence,  and  reliance  for  mercy  and  salvation  only 
upon  the  mediation  and  merits  of  Christ.  During  the  dean's  address 
Mary  several  times  endeavoured  to  interrupt  him,  and  at  the  conclusion 
she  said,  "  Trouble  not  yourself  any  more  about  the  matter,  for  I  was 
born  in  this  religion,  I  have  lived  in  this  religion,  and  I  will  die  in  this 
religion." 

She  now  ascended  the  scaffold,  saying  to  Paulet,  who  lent  her  his  arm, 
"I  thank  you,  sir;  it  is  the  last  trouble  I  shaU  ^,ve  you,  and  the  most 
acceptable  service  that  you  have  ever  rendered  me."  The  queen  of  Scots 
now,  in  a  firm  voice,  told  the  persons  assembled  that  "  She  would  have 
them  recollect  that  she  was  a  sovereign  princess,  not  subject  to  the  par- 
liament of  England,  but  brought  there  to  suffer  by  violence  and  injustice. 
She  thanked  God  for  having  given  her  this  opportunity  to  make  public 
profession  of  her  faith,  and  to  declare,  as  she  often  before  had  declared 
that  she  had  never  imagined,  nor  compassed,  nor  consented  to  the  death 
of  the  English  queen,  nor  even  sought  the  least  harm  to  her  person.  Af- 
ter  her  death  many  things,  which  were  then  buried  in  darkness,  would 
come  to  light.  But  she  pardoned,  from  her  heart,  all  her  enemies,  nor 
should  her  tongue  utter  that  which  might  chance  to  prejudice  them." 

At  a  sign  from  the  earls  the  weeping  maid  servants  now  advanced 
to  disrobe  their  mistress.  The  executioners,  in  their  sordid  fear  lest  they 
should  thus  lose  their  perquisites,  the  rich  attire  of  the  queen,  hastily  in 
terfered.  Mary  blushed  and  drew  back,  observing  that  she  had  not  been 
accustomed  to  undress  before  such  an  audience,  or  to  be  served  by  such 
valets.  But,  as  no  interference,  was  made  by  the  earls  she  submitted; 
lier  neck  was  bared ;  her  maid,'  Kennedy,  pinned  a  handkerchief,  edged 
with  gold,  over  her  eyes ;  and  an  executioner  taking  hold  of  each  of  her 


S38 


THE  TREASI/RY  OF  HISTOat^ 


arms,  led  her  to  the  block,  upon  which  she  laid  her  head,  saying  audibly 
and  in  firm  tones,  "  Into  thy  hands,  0  God,  I  commend  my  spirit." 

The  executioner  now  advanced,  but  was  so  completely  unnerved  that 
his  first  blow  missed  the  neck, deeply  wounding  the  skull;  a  second  was 
likewise  ineffectual ;  at  the  third  the  head  was  severed  from  the  body. 
The  unhappy  lady  evidently  died  in  intense  agony,  for  when  he  exhibited 
the  head  to  the  spectators,  the  muscles  of  the  face  were  so  distorted  that 
the  features  could  scarcely  be  recognised. 

When  the  executioner,  on  exhibiting  the  head,  cried  "  God  save  Queen 
Elizabeth,"  the  dean  of  Peterborough  replied, "  And  so  perish  all  her  ene 
mies ;"  to  which  the  earl  of  Kent  added,  "So  perish  all  tho  enemies  of  the 
gospel." 

The  body  was  on  the  following  day  embalmed  and  buried  in  Peter- 
borough cathedral,  whence,  in  the  next  reign,  it  was  removed  to  West- 
minster abbey. 


CHAPTER  XLVII. 

THE  RKION  or  BLIZABGTH  (conttnucd.) 

A.  D.  1687. — The  tragical  scene  we  have  just  described  must  have  con- 
vinced even  the  most  devoted  of  Elizabeth's  subjects  that  their  "  virgin 
queen"  was  not  over-abundantly  blessed  with  the  " god-like  quality  of 
mercy,"  whatever  opinion  they  might  entertain  of  Mary's  participation  in 
the  crime  for  which  she  suffered.  But  there  are  many  circumstances  con- 
nected with  the  history  of  this  period  which  may  be  pleaded  in  extenua- 
tion of  conduct  that  in  less  critical  times  could  only  be  viewed  with  un- 
alloyed abhorrence  and  disgust.  The  massacre  of  St.  Bartholomew  was 
still  fresh  in  the  recollection  of  every  one,  and  the  bigoted  zeal  which  the 
queen  of  Scots  ever  displayed  in  favour  of  the  catholics,  whose  ascend- 
ancy in  England  she  ardently  desired,  gave  a  mournful  presage  of  what 
was  to  be  expected  by  the  protestant  population  should  their  opponents 
succeed  in  their  desperate  machinations.  Neither  must  we  disregard  the 
assertion,  so  often  made  and  never  disproved,  that  when  Elizabeth  signed 
the  warrant  of  execution,  she  not  only  did  so  with  much  apparent  reluc- 
tance, but  placed  it  in  the  hands  of  Davison,  her  private  secretary,  ex- 
pressly charging  him  not  to  use  it  without  farther  orders.  Whatever,  in* 
deed,  may  have  been  her  secret  wishes,  or  real  intentions,  her  subsequent 
behaviour  had  the  semblance  of  unfeigned  sorrow.  Could  it  be  proved  to 
have  been  otherwise,  no  one  would  deny  that  her  conduct  throughout  was 
characterized  by  unparalleled  hypocrisy — a  profound  dissimulation  written 
in  characters  of  blood. 

Elizabeth,  in  fact,  did  what  she  could  to  throw  off  the  odium  that  this 
sanguinary  transaction  had  cast  upon  her.  She  wrote  to  the  king  ot 
Scotland  in  terms  of  the  deepest  regret,  declaring  that  the  warrant  she 
had  been  induced  to  sign  was  to  have  lain  dormant,  and,  in  proof  of  her 
sincerity,  she  imprisoned  Davison,  and  fined  him  in  the  sum  of  10,000/, 
which  reduced  him  to  a  state  not  far  removed  from  actual  beggary. 

One  of  the  most  memorable  events  in  English  history  was  now  near  at 
hand ;  one  which  called  for  all  the  energy  and  patriotic  devotion  that  a 
brave  and  independent  people  were  capable  of  making ;  and,  conseouently, 
every  minor  consideration  vanished  at  its  approach.  This  was  the  pro 
iected  invasion  of  England  by  Philip  of  Spain.  This  monarch,  disap- 
pointed in  his  hopes  of  marrying  Elizabeth,  returned  the  queen  her  collar 
of  the  garter,  and  from  that  time  the  most  irreconcilable  jealousy  appears 
to  have  existed  between  them.  In  all  the  ports  throughout  his  extensive 
dominions  the  note  of  preparation  was  heard,  and  the  most  powerful  navy 


THE  TRKA8UHY  OF  HISTORY. 


63t 


that  had  ever  been  collected  was  now  at  his  disposal.  An  army  of  50,003 
men  were  also  assembled,  under  experienced  generals,  and  the  command 
of  the  whole  was  given  to  the  celebrated  duke  of  Parma.  The  catholics 
on  the  continent  were  in  an  ecstacy  of  delight ;  the  pope  bestowed  his 
benediction  on  an  expedition  that  seemed  destined  once  more  to  restore 
the  supremacy  of  the  holy  see,  and  it  was  unanimously  hailed  by  all  who 
wished  it  success  as  the  invincible  armada. 

To  repel  this  mighty  array,  no  means  within  the  reach  of  Elizabeth  and 
her  able  ministers  were  forgotten,  nor  could  anything  exceed  the  enthusi- 
astic determination  of  her  subjects  to  defend  their  altars  and  their  homes. 
Among  the  newly  raised  levies  the  militia  formed  a  very  important  item ; 
the  nobility  also  vied  with  each  other  in  their  efforts  of  assistance ;  and 
Lord  Huntingdon  alone  raised  40,000  foot  and  10,000  horse.  The  royal 
navy  had,  fortunately,  been  on  the  increase  for  a  long  time  previous,  and 
the  successful  exertions  of  Admiral  Drake  in  the  Indies  had  infused  a  de- 
gree of  confidence  into  our  sailors,  before  unknown  in  the  service. 

The  views  of  the  Spanish  king  having  been  fully  ascertained  by  the 
emissaries  of  Elizabeth,  she  ordered  20,000  troops  to  be  cantoned  along 
the  southern  coast  of  the  kingdom,  in  such  a  manner  that  in  forty-eight 
hours  the  whole  might  be  assembled  at  any  port  where  there  was  a 
probability  of  the  enemy's  landing.  A  large  and  well-disciplined  corps, 
also,  amounting  to  34,000  men,  was  encamped  at  Tilbury  f^rt,  near  the 
mouth  of  the  Thames,  under  the  immediate  command  of  the  earl  of  Lei- 
cester, who  was  appointed  generalissimo  of  the  army.  These  troops  the 
queen  reviewed,  and  having  harangued  them,  rode  through  the  lines  with 
the  general — her  manner  evincing  great  firmness  and  intrepidity,  which 
while  it  gave  eelat  to  the  scene,  filled  every  breast  with  patriotic  ardour. 
The  residue  of  her  troops,  amounting  to  34,000  foot  and  2,000  horse,  re- 
mained about  the  queen's  person ;  and  the  militia  were  in  readiness  to 
reinforce  the  regular  troops  wherever  there  might  be  occasion. 

All  the  ports  and  accessible  points  on  the  coast  were  fortified  and  strong- 
ly garrisoned ;  but  though  orders  were  given  to  oppose  the  enemy's  de- 
scent, wherever  it  might  be,  the  respective  commanders  were  directed  not 
to  come  to  a  general  engagement  in  the  event  of  their  landing,  but  to  re- 
tire and  lay  waste  the  country  before  them,  that  the  Spaniards  might 
meet  with  no  subsistence,  and  be  perpetually  harassed  in  their  march. 
Nor  was  anything  left  undone  that  might  be  likely  to  contribute  to  the 
defeat  of  the  armada  by  sea.  Lord  Howard  of  Effingham  was  created 
lord  high  admiral,  and  Sir  Francis  Drake  vice-admiral,  who,  together  with 
Hawkins  and  Frobisher,  were  stationed  near  Plymouth,  to  oppose  the 
enemy  as  he  entered  the  channel ;  while  Lord  Henry  Seymour  commanded 
another  fleet  upon  the  coast  of  Flanders,  to  prevent  the  duke  of  Parma 
from  bringing  over  troops  from  that  quarter. 

A.  D.  1588. — The  armada  sailed  from  Lisbon  on  the  30th  of  May,  but 
being  dispersed  by  a  storm,  rendezvoused  at  Corunna  and  did  not  enter 
the  English  channel  until  the  19th  of  July,  when  Effingham  suffered  them 
to  pass  him,  but  kept  close  in  their  rear  until  the  21st.  'l^he  duke  of  Me- 
dina Sidonia  (the  Spanish  admiral)  expected  to  have  been  here  joined  by 
the  duke  of  Parma  and  the  land  forces  under  his  command,  but  the  latter 
had  found  it  impracticable  to  put  to  sea  without  encountering  the  fleet  ol 
Lord  Seymour,  by  which  he  justly  feared  that  both  his  ships  and  men 
would  be  put  in  the  utmost  jeopardy. 

For  four  days  a  kind  of  brisk  running  fight  was  kept  up,  in  which  the 
English  had  a  decided  advantage ;  and  the  alarm  having  now  spread  from 
one  end  of  the  coast  to  the  other,  the  nobility  and  gentry  hastened  out 
with  their  vessels  from  every  harbour,  and  reinforced  the  English  fleet, 
which  soon  amounted  to  140  sail.  The  earls  of  Oxford,  Northumberland, 
iiid  Cumberland,  Sir  Thomas  Cecil,  Sir  Robert  Cecil.  Sir  W.ilii'r  Ralnigh. 


540 


THE  TilEASURYOF  HISTORY. 


Sir  Thomas  Vavasor,  Sir  Tiiuinas  Gerrarrd,  Sir  Charles  Blount,  and  manjr 
others  distinguiiihed  themselves  by  this  generous  and  seasonable  proof  of 
their  loyalty.  On  the  24th  the  turd  admiral  divided  the  fleet  into  four 
squadrons,  the  better  to  pursue  and  amioy  the  enemy;  the  first  squadron 
he  himst^irconwnanded  ;  the  second  he  assigned  to  Sir  Francis  Drake; 
the  third  to  Sir  John  Hawki:\s ;  and  the  fourth  to  Sir  Martin  Frubisher. 
The  result  of  this  was,  that  in  the  three  succeeding  days  the  armada  had 
become  so  shattered  by  the  repeated  skirmishes  in  which  it  had  been  en- 
gaged, that  it  was  compelled  to  take  shelter  in  the  roads  of  Calais. 

The  Knglish  admiral  having  been  informed  that  10,000  men  belonging 
to  the  >Uike  of  Parma's  army  had  marched  towards  Dunkirk,  and  appre- 
hending serious  consequt  ices  from  the  enemy's  receiving  such  a  rein- 
forcement, determined  to  spend  no  more  time  in  making  dessiltory  attacks 
on  the  huge  galleons  with  his  comparatively  smad  vessels.  Accordingly, 
in  the  night  of  the  28lh  of  July,  he  sent  in  among  them  eight  or  ten  (ire- 
ships  ;  and  Ntnh  was  the  terror  of  the  Spanish  sailors,  that  they  cut  their 
cables,  hoisted  sail,  and  put  to  sea  with  the  utmost  hurry  and  confusion. 
In  their  anxiety  to  escape,  victory  was  no  longer  thought  of.  The  duke 
of  Medijia  Sidcmia,  dreading  again  to  encounter  the  English  fleet,  attempt- 
ed to  return  home  by  sailing  round  the  north  of  Scotland  ;  but  the  elements 
were  now  as  fatal  to  the  Spanish  fleet  as  the  skill  and  bravery  of  the 
English  sailors.  Many  <if  the  ships  were  driven  on  the  shores  of  Norway, 
Ireland,  and  the  north  of  Scotland ;  and  out  of  that  vast  armament  which, 
from  its  magnitude  and  apparent  completeness,  had  been  styled  invincible, 
only  A  few  disabled  vessels  returned  to  tell  the  tale  of  its  disastrous  issue. 
In  the  several  engagements  witli  the  Knglish  fleet  in  the  channel,  in  July 
and  Auuiist,  the  Spaniards  lost  fifteen  great  ships  and  4,791  men;  seven- 
teen ships,  and  5,304  men  (kllleil,  taken,  and  drowned)  upon  the  coast  ul 
Ireland,  in  September;  and  another  large  ship,  with  700  men,  cast  away 
on  the  coast  of  Scotland.  Uut  this  enumeration  by  no  means  inclmled 
their  total  loss.  On  the  part  of  the  Fnglish  the  loss  was  tto  trifling  ai 
scarcely  to  deserve  mention. 

The  deslrnctlon  of  the  Spanish  armada  inspired  the  nation  with  feelings 
of  intense  delight;  the  people  were  proud  of  their  country's  naval  siiperi 
ority,  proud  of  their  own  marti:il  appearance,  and  proud  o(  iheir  queen 
A  medal  was  struck  on  the  occasion  witli  this  inscription  "  Vemt,  ndil, 
fugU'" — It  came,  saw,  and  fled  ;"  another,  with  fire-ships  aiid  a  fleet  in  Ciii- 
fusion,  with  this  motto,  "  Dux  famina  facti.'^ — '•  A  woman  conducted  the 
enterprise."  Uut  on  the  fatal  news  being  conveyed  to  IMnlip,  he  ex- 
claimed, in  real  or  afl^ected  resignation,  "  I  sent  my  fleet  to  combat  the 
English,  not  the  elements.     God  be  praised,  the  calamity  is  not  greater." 

If  the  destruction  of  the  Spanish  armada  had  saved  Lnglaiid  from  tlic 
domination  r)f  a  foreign  power,  whose  resentment  for  past  indignilii's  was 
not  likely  to  be  easily  appeasetl.  It  was  no  less  a  triumph  for  the  protestaiit 
cause  throughout  Kurojie  ;  the  Huguenots  In  France  were  encom'agcd  by 
it,  and  it  virtually  establishe  I  the  independence  of  tin;  Dutch;  while  tlic 
excessive  infliieiM.'e  which  Spain  had  acqulrc^d  over  other  nations  was  nut 
only  lost  by  this  event,  but  it  paralyzed  the  energies  of  the  Spanisli  iicople 
aiuf  Iclt  them  In  a  state  of  utK^r  hopi.lessni'ss  as  to  the  future.  \  tia) 
of  pulillc  tlianksglvlng  having  been  appointed  for  tliis  great  delivcraiit'e, 
the  ({uceii  went  In  state  to  St.  I>. nil's  in  a  grand  trininpiial  car,  decorated 
with  fl.igs  and  other  troplnes  taken  from  the  Spaniards. 

The  public  rejoicings  for  ilie  defeat  of  the  armada  were  scarcely  over 
when  an  event  occurred,  wliirli,  in  whati^ver  light  it  might  be  felt  by  Kliz«< 
betii  herself,  certainly  ca..l  im  d.iinp  on  the  spirits  of  the  nation  at  hii')(e; 
we  mean  the  death  of  Leii-i-sttir.  I'lie  |iowerfnl  f.ii'tiou  of  which  tin!  In- 
vonrlle  had  been  iIh!  head  ackiiowledgiMl  a  new  leader  In  the  earl  of  lOsjiix, 
whom  his  Btep-futhor  had  brought  forward  at  court  as  a  coiiiiicii.oi-i!  ' 


THE  THEASUEY  OF  H  [STORY 


C41 


rtie  influence  of  Raleigh,  and  who  now  stood  second  to  none  in  her  majes- 
ty's good  graces.  Out  Essex,  however  gifted  with  noble  iiiid  brilliant 
qualities,  was  confessedly  inferior  to  Leii-e»ler  in  several  endowments 
highly  essential  to  the  leader  of  a  court  party.  Though  not  void  of  art, 
he  washy  no  means  master  of  the  dissiiiiuhiiion,  addri'ss,  and  wary  cool- 
ness by  which  his  predecessor  well  knew  how  to  accomplish  his  ends. 
The  character  of  Lssex  was  frank  and  impetuous,  and  experience  had  not 
yet  taught  him  to  distrust  either  himself  or  otiicrs. 

A.  D.  1589. — After  the  defeat  of  the  armada,  a  thirst  for  military  achiev. 
ments  against  the  Spaniards  pervaded  the  mind  of  the  Knglish  pul)li(-.  The 
queen  encouraged  this  spirit,  but  declared  tier  treasury  was  too  poor  to 
sustain  the  expenses  of  a  war.  An  association  was  soon  formed  by  tlic 
people,  and  an  army  of  21,000  men,  under  the  (-(mimand  of  Norris  and 
Drake,  sailed  from  Plymouth  to  avenge  the  insult  off-  .;'d  to  KiigUiiid  hy 
Philip  of  Spain.  The  young  earl  of  Kssex,  without  co.'^v'ting  the  pleasure 
of  his  sovereign,  made  a  private  journey  to  Plymouth,  and  joined  the  ex- 
pedition. No  sooner  was  the  queen  made  acquainted  with  his  aliitcncc, 
than  she  dispatched  the  lord  Huntingdon  to  bring  the  fugitive  to  her  feet ; 
but  he  had  already  sailed. 

It  was  the  queen's  order  that  the  armament  should  first  proceed  to  Por- 
tugal, and  endeavour  to  join  the  army  of  Don  Antonio,  who  ooiitei)'l<  1 
with  Philip  for  the  possession  of  the  throne  of  Portugal ;  but  Drake  \vu  I 
not  be  restrained  by  instructions,  and  he  proceeded  to  (^orunna,  where  i.o 
lost  a  number  of  men,  without  obtaining  the  slightest  advantage.  In  Por- 
tugal they  were  scarcely  more  successful ;  but  at  their  return  their  los 
were  concealed,  their  advantHges  magnified,  and  the  public  were  satisfied 
hat  the  pride  of  Spain  had  been  humbled. 

Elizabeth  might  probably  have  expected  that  the  death  of  the  queen  of 
^(•ots  would  put  an  end  to  conspiracries  against  her  life  ;  but  plots  were 
still  as  rife  as  ever;  nor  can  we  feel  surprise  that  it  should  be  so,  consid- 
ering that  Elizabeth,  as  well  as  Philip  of  Spain,  employed  a  great  number 
ol"  spies,  who,  being  men  of  ruined  fortunes  and  bad  principles,  betrayed 
llie  secrets  of  either  party  as  their  own  interests  led  them  ;  and  sometimes 
were  the  fabricators  of  alarming  reports  to  enhance  the  value  of  their  .ser 
vices. 

lOngland  and  France  were  now  in  alliance,  and  the  French  king  called 
for  Knglish  aid  in  an  attack  upon  Spain,  but  tlie  queen  had  bi'gim  to  re 
jiciit  of  the  sums  she  had  already  advanced  to  Henry,  and  demanded  Ca- 
lais ns  a  security  for  her  future  assistani-e;  for  the  preparations  on  the 
peninsula  alarmed  her  majesty  lest  Philip  should  make  a  second  attempt 
to  invade  England.  At  length  the  English  council  adopieil  a  measure, 
proposed  hy  the  lord  admiral,  Howard  of  Kdliigham,  to  send  out  an  expe- 
dition that  should  anticipate  the  design  of  the  enemy,  and  destroy  his  ports 
and  shipping;  Essex  had  the  command  of  the  Ian. I  forces,  ami  Howard 
that  of  the  navy.  When  the  English  troops  entered  Cadiz,  the  coniicil  of 
war  was  divided  in  opinion  as  to  the  fitness  of  that  step,  which  ended  in 
the  possession  of  the  city  and  fleet,  from  which  the  troops  reiiinied  with 
glory  for  their  bravery,  and  with  honour  for  their  hninanity,  as  no  hlood 
had  been  wantonly  spilt,  nor  any  dishoiiouraliU'  act  committed.  Though 
Es.sex  had  been  the  leading  coiiqucrer  at  ('adiz,  the  victory  was  reported 
as  chiefly  attributable  to  Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  and  to  have  been  in  itself  a 
i'heap  and  easy  tonqnest. 

A.  n.  LWl.— The  maritime  war  with  Spain,  notwithstanding  the  rnn- 
Hous  temper  of  the  oneen,  was  stremioiisiy  waged  at  this  tune,  and  pro- 
duced  some  striking  indications  of  tlie  rising  spirit  of  the  English  navy. 
A  squiidr.m,  under  L<ird  Thomas  Howard,  which  hail  been  waiting  cix 
inonihs  lit  the  Azores  to  intercept  the  honieward-hoiind  ships  fiom  Span- 
ish Aniirica,  was  there  surprised  by  the  enemy's  fleet,  which  had  beuii 


■>43 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


h 


V 


sent  out  for  thpir  convoy.  The  English  admiral,  who  had  a  inunii  smaller 
force,  put  to  sea  in  all  haste,  and  got  clear  oiT,  with  the  exception  of  one 
ship,  the  Revenge,  the  captain  of  which  had  the  temerity  to  confront  the 
whole  Spanish  fleet  of  flfty-six  sail  rather  than  strike  his  colours.  It  was, 
nowever,  a  piece  of  bravery  as  needless  as  it  was  desperate ;  for  after  his 
crew  had  displayed  prodigies  of  valour,  and  beaten  off  fifteen  boarding 
parties,  his  ammunition  being  gone  and  the  whole  of  his  men  killed  or 
disabled,  the  gallant  commander  was  compelled  to  strike  his  flag,  and 
soon  afterdied  of  his  wounds  on  board  the  Spanish  admiral's  ship. 

A.  D.  1593. — In  those  days,  when  an  English  sovereign  required  money, 
and  then  only,  the  services  of  a  parliament  were  called  for ;  and  Kliza- 
beth  was  now  under  the  necessity  of  summoning  one.  But  she  could  ill 
brook  any  opposition  to  her  will ;  and  fearing  that  the  present  state  of 
her  finances  might  embolden  some  of  the  members  to  treat  her  mandates 
with  less  deference  than  formerly,  she  was  induced  to  assume  a  more 
haughty  and  menacing  style  than  was  habitual  to  her.  In  answer  to  the 
three  customary  requests  made  by  the  speaker,  for  liberty  of  speech,  free- 
dom from  arrests,  and  access  to  her  person,  she  replied  by  her  lord  keep- 
er, that  such  liberty  of  speech  as  the  commons  were  justly  called  to— lib- 
erty, namely,  of  aye  and  no,  she  was  willing  to  grant,  but  by  no  means  a 
liberty  for  every  one  to  speak  what  he  listed.  And  if  any  idle  heads 
should  be  found  careless  enough  of  their  own  safety  to  attempt  innova- 
tions  in  the  state,  or  reforms  in  the  church,  she  laid  her  injunctions  on  the 
speaker  to  refuse  the  bills  offered  for  such  purposes  till  they  should  have 
been  examined  by  those  who  were  better  qualified  to  judge  of  these  mat- 
ters. Out  language,  however  imperious  or  scornful,  was  insutTiuicnt  lu 
restrain  some  attempts  on  the  part  of  the  commons  to  exercise  their 
known  rights  and  fulfil  their  duty  to  the  country.  Peter  Wentworlii,  a 
member  whose  courageous  and  independent  spirit  had  already  drawn  uputi 
him  repeated  manifestations  of  the  royal  displeasure,  presented  to  the 
lord  keeper  a  petition,  praying  that  the  upper  house  wmild  join  with  tlie 
lower  in  a  supplication  to  the  queen  for  fixing  the  suciiossion.  Klizabmli, 
enraged  at  the  bare  mention  of  a  subject  so  offensive  to  her,  iusiaiuly 
committed  Wentworth,  Sir  Thomas  Bromley,  who  secoudoil  him,  ami 
two  other  members,  to  the  Fleet  prison  ;  an<l  such  was  the  general  dread 
of  offended  majesty,  that  the  house  was  afraid  to  petition  for  their  release. 

A.  D.  1590. — Kssex,  whose  vanity  was  on  a  par  with  his  impetuosity,  had 
now  attained  the  zenith  of  his  prosperity  ;  but,  confident  in  the  atfectliiim 
of  Klizaheth,  ho  frequently  suflfered  himself  to  forget  that  a  subject's  duli- 
ful  n-spiM't  was  due  to  her  as  his  queen.  On  one  memorable  o(!casion,  it 
is  related,  that  he  treated  her  with  indignity  uncalled  for  and  wholly  iii 
d"fen8il)l(! ;  a  dispute  had  arisen  between  them  in  tiie  |)resi'neo  of  the  lord 
high  admiral,  the  secretary,  and  the  clerk  of  the  signet,  respectiiifr  llm 
choice  of  a  commander  for  Ireland,  where  Tyrone  at  that  lime  gave  tlu! 
Kuglish  much  trouble.  The  queen  had  resolved  to  send  Sir  William 
Knolles,  the  uncle  of  Kssex  ;  whili!  the  earl  with  unbecoming  wariiiiri 
urged  the  propriety  of  sending  Sir  (ii!or<f«  Oarew,  whose  presence  ii 
court,  it  appears,  was  displeasing  to  him,  and,  therefore,  with  c»nrticr  like 
sincerity,  he  thus  souiilit  to  riMUove  him  out  of  the  way.  Unalde,  ciiliir 
by  argument  or  persuasion,  to  prevail  over  the  resolute  will  of  her  ma- 
jcity,  the  favourite  at  last  forgot  himself  so  far  as  to  turn  his  l>ack 
upon  her  with  a  laugh  of  e()ntnn|)l ;  an  indiijiiity  which  she  revcii^fiil  iii 
the  true  "  I'llizahethan  style,"  liy  boxing  his  earn,  and  bidding  him  "(in  in 
the  devil,"  or  "  (Jo  and  be  hanged  !" — for  our  chroniclers  differ  a.<  to  ilic 
fXici  phrase,  tliouijh  all  agree  that  she  suited  the  word  lo  the  acium 
This  reiitrl  so  inflamed  the  blood  of  Kssex,  that  he  iiislanlly  grasped  i  > 
swcrd,  and  while  the  lord  admiral  interposr-d  lo  iirevenl  a  fiirilier  eliulli- 
lion  of  passion  the  earl  swore  that  not  from  her  father  would  he  liavn 


mile 

lam 
lialil 
liotv 
Heiii 
larilr 
of 
iIcmi 
\. 
a|i|.o 

the 

frieir 

riiiic, 

Vciii' 
linir 
Ilia  I 
i|lleei 
'.I  UN 

r'n.d 
Hie  i; 
I'diiii 
I'll  hi 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


643 


inkon  BUch  an  insult,  and,  foaming  with  rage,  he  rushed  out  of  the  palace 
¥or  a,  timo  this  affair  furnished  ample  scope  for  idle  gossip  and  conjec- 
ture; the  friends  of  Kssex  urged  him  to  lose  no  time  in  returning  to  his 
ftimndance  at  court  and  soliciting  her  majesty's  forgiveness.  This,  how 
over,  he  could  not  he  prevailed  on  to  do;  but,  like  many  other  quarrels 
among;  individuals  of  an  humbler  grade,  it  was  at  length  patched  up,  and 
the  reconciliation  appeared  to  the  superficial  observer  as  perfect,  as  it  was, 
in  nil  probability,  hollow  and  insincere. 

Kiisex  had  long  thirsted  for  military  distinction,  and  had  often  vehe- 
mently argued  with  Burleigh  on  the  propriety  of  keeping  up  a  perpetua 
hoHlllity  against  the  power  of  Philip;  but  the  prudent  and  experienced 
ininiiler  contended  that  Spain  was  now  sufficiently  humbled  to  render  an 
i»C(!omn)odation  both  safe  and  honourable ;  and  his  prudential  counsel  was 
mlliercd  to  by  the  queen.  Economy  in  the  public  expenditure  was,  in  fact, 
il»R'0»«ary ;  and  one  of  the  last  acts  of  Burleigh's  life  was  the  completion 
of  nil  arrangement  with  the  states  of  Holland  for  the  repayment  of  the 
mituN  which  Kllzabcth  had  advanced  to  them,  whereby  the  nation  was 
ruiiDved  of  a  considerable  portion  of  its  former  annual  expense. 

After  exorcising  very  considerable  influence  in  the  administration  of 
Rffalrs  in  Kngland  for  forty  years,  the  faithful  Burleigh,  whose  devotion  to 
the  (luren  and  attacliment  to  the  reformed  faith  were  constant  and  sincere, 
iliod  in  the  7Bth  year  of  his  age;  and  in  about  a  month  after,  his  great  op- 
jiOMcnt,  Philip  II.,  also  bowed  to  death's  stern  decree.  Under  his  succes- 
Kor  liin  Npanish  monarchy  declined  with  accelerated  steps ;  all  apprehen- 
Hioim  of  m  invasion  ceased,  and  the  queen's  advisers  had  an  opportunity 
(if  liirning  their  whole  attention  to  the  pacification  of  Ireland. 

A.  ».  1508. — The  Irish  rebel,  Tyrone,  had  successfully  resisted  the  En- 
BliNli  forces  in  several  encounters  ;  and  at  length  the  whole  province  ol 
Milliliter  declared  for  him.  It  was  evident  tliat  much  time  had  been  spent 
(Ml  minor  objects,  while  the  great  leader  of  the  rebels  was  in  a  manner  left 
til  overrun  the  island  and  subjugate  it  to  his  will.  This  subject  was  ear- 
iii'Hlly  canvassed  by  Elizabeth  and  her  council;  by  ti\e  majority  of  whom 
l.iinl  Miuinljoy  was  considered  as  a  person  fully  equal  to  the  office  ol 
IdriI'dcpiily  at  so  critical  a  juncture.  Essex,  however,  offered  so  many 
iilijiM'llotis  to  his  appointment,  arguing  the  point  with  so  niucli  warmth 
mill  (ili:4tiinu-y,  and  withal  intimating  his  own  superior  fitness  for  the 
oincn  with  so  much  art  and  address,  that  the  queen,  notwilhstHiiding  cer- 
liiiii  Him|iiciiiiis  which  had  been  infus.'d  into  her  mind  respecting  the  pro- 
Inilili"  iliiiigcr  of  committing  to  Essex  the  chief  command  of  an  army,  and 
iiiilwillisliindiiig  her  presumed  unwillingness  to  deprive  herself  of  his  pre- 
ni'iii'i',  iip|ii'iirs  to  have  adopted  his  sugijeslion  with  an  nniisinl  ilcy:ree  of 
rMriH'Nl  liaslo,  The  earl  of  Essex  was  accordingly  made  lurdlieiitciinut 
■if  Iri'liiiil,  and  with  30,Uon  choice  troops  he  went  forward  on  his  long- 
<li<Niri'il  mission. 

\.  II.  I.')!!!!.— Iliiviny  landed  at  Dublin  in  the  sprina,  Essex  immediately 
iiIi|ioiiiliM|  liJK  frieiiil,  the  carl  of  Southampton,  to  tlic  olliro  of  srcncral  of 
llii'  Inline;  lint  iiislcail  of  opening  the  campaign,  as  vv;is  cxpccicd  by  his 
frii'iuls  ill  Enitlaiid,  wilti  some  bold  and  decisive  opcnilion  aa^uiist  Ty- 
riiiu',  llie  Slimmer  was  spent  in  temporising,  iiiid  licfdrc  the  close  of  the 
yi'iir  II  siiHplcidiin  inii'c  between  the  parties  put  m  end  to  all  ills  anticipa- 
lliiii<»  of  micccss.  Nay,  so  unexpected  was  the  issue  of  tins  expedition, 
lliiil  It  itlTorded  the  best  possible  opportunity  to  bis  eiicniics  to  shake  the 

|iii'cii'h  ciinflclcnce  even  in  his  loyalty.     An  iiiinry  Icllcr  from  licr  nvijcsty 


Willi  tile  immi'diate  conseqiK 


and   Essex,   wiilimil  waitinir  for  the 


niyiil  iiermission,  hurried  over  to  England  in  order  to  throw  liiinself  at 
llii'  I'cei  iifliiH  exasperated  soverci«ii.  The  sudden  appearance  of  her  fa- 
viiiinie,  iii«t  afler  she  had  risen  from  her  bed,  imploriiin  her  forgiveneji 
I'll  hill  kiii'cs,  disarmed  the  queen  of  her  anger ;  and  on  leaving  the  aoart 


544 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


■ 

I 

M 

1 1 

1 1 

w 

ft 

i  t 

i 

I 

meat,  he  exdaimed  exultingly,  "  that  though  he  had  encountered  much 
trouble  and  many  storms  abroad,  he  thankeii  God  he  found  a  perfect  calm 
at  home." 

The  earl  of  Essex  doubtless  thought  the  troubled  waters  were  at  rest; 
his  vanity  favoured  the  notion,  and  self-gratulalion  followed  as  a  matter 
of  course  ;  but  he  soon  found  that  the  tempest  was  only  hushed  for  the 
moment,  for  at  night  he  found  himself  a  prisoner  in  his  own  house  by  the 
peremptory  orders  of  Elizabeth.  Heart-sick  aiid  confounded,  a  severe 
illness  was  the  quick  result  of  this  proceeding;  and  for  a  br.ef  interval  the 
queen  not  only  showed  some  signs  of  pity,  but  administered  to  his  com- 
fort. A  warrant  was,  however,  soon  afterwards  made  out  for  his  com- 
mittal to  the  Tower,  and  though  it  was  not  carried  into  effect,  yet  his 
thance  of  liberty  seemed  too  remote  for  prudence  to  calculate  on.  But  the 
fiery  temper  of  Essex  had  no  alloy  of  piudence  in  it :  he  gave  way  to  his 
natural  violence,  spoke  of  the  queen  in  peevish  and  disrespectful  terms, 
and,  among  other  things,  said,  "she  was  grown  an  old  woman,  and  was 
become  as  crooked  in  her  mind  as  in  her  body." 

A.  D.  leoo.— Shortly  after  his  disgrace,  Essex  wrote  to  James  of  Scot- 
land, informing  him  that  the  faction  who  ruled  the  court  were  in  league 
to  deprive  hint  of  his  right  to  the  throne  of  England,  in  favour  of  the  infanta 
of  Spain ;  and  he  offered  his  servii^es  to  extort  from  Elizabeth  an  acknowl- 
edgment of  his  claims.  It  appears,  indeed,  from  concurrent  testimony, 
that  the  conduct  of  Essex  had  now  become  highly  traitorous,  and  that  he 
was  secretly  collecting  together  a  party  to  aid  him  in  some  enterprise  dan- 
gerous to  the  ruling  power.  But  his  plans  were  frustrated  by  the  activity 
of  ministers,  who  had  received  information  that  the  grand  object  of  the 
conspirators  was  to  seize  the  queen's  person  and  take  possession  of  the 
Tower.  A  council  was  called,  and  Essex  was  commanded  to  attend;  hut 
he  refused,  assembled  his  friends,  and  fortified  Essex-house,  in  which  he 
Had  previously  secreted  hired  soldiers.  Four  of  the  privy  council  being 
sent  thither  to  inquire  into  the  reason  of  his  conduct,  lie  imprisoned  them 
and  sallied  out  into  the  city ;  but  he  failed  in  his  attempt  to  excite  the  peo- 
ple in  his  favour,  and  on  returning  to  his  house,  he  and  his  friend  the  carl 
of  South^imptou  were  with  some  difficulty  made  prisoners,  and  after  having 
been  first  taken  to  Lambeth  palace,  were  committed  to  the  Tower. 

A.  D.  1001. — The  rash  and  aspiring  Essex  now  only  begged  that  he  might 
have  a  fair  trial,  still  calculating  upon  the  influence  of  the  queen  to  protect 
him  in  the  hour  of  liis  utmost  need.  Proceedings  were  commenced  against 
him  instantly  ;  his  errors  during  his  administration  in  Ireland  were  rcprc- 
sentrd  in  tin;  most  odious  colours;  the  undutiful  expressions  he  had  used 
in  some  of  his  IcttfM's  were  greatly  exaggerated  ;  and  his  recent  treasonalilo 
ntlein|)t  was  dwelt  on  as  culling  for  the  exercise  of  the  utmost  severity  of 
the  law.  His  condemnation  followed  ;  judgment  was  pronounced  against 
liiu),  and  against  his  friend,  the  earl  of  Sonlhaniplon.  'I'liis  nobleman  was, 
however,  spareil ;  but  Essex  was  conducted  to  the  fatal  block,  where  he 
met  his  death  with  great  fortitude,  being  at  the  time  only  in  tin;  thirty 
fourth  year  of  his  age.  His  most  active  accomplices  wen;  CulT,  his  sec- 
retary, Merrick,  his  steward.  Sir  Christopher  Illoiml,  his  father-in-law, and 
Sir  HobiTl  Uavers,  who  were  executed  some  few  days  after. 

The  piirliitincritary  proceedings  of  this  year  were  more'  elaborate  tliiiti 
liefiire,  particularly  as  regarded  the  finaiK^al  state  of  the  country.  It  was 
stateil  that  the  whole  of  the  last  subsidies  amounted  to  no  more  ilinn 
l(i(),n;)0/,,  while  the  exticiise  of  the  Irish  war  alone  was  300,000/.  On  lliis 
occasion  it  was  observed  by  Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  that  the  estates  of  the  no- 
bility and  geiiiry,  which  were  charged  at  thirty  or  forty  pounds  in  the 
ijueiMt's  lioiiks,  we-e  not  charged  at  a  hundredth  part  of  their  real  value. 
He  also  mnved,  tlist  BBScaicely  any  justices  of  the  peace  were  rated  al)o»e 
vight  or  ten  DiUiiids  a  year,  they  might  be  advanced  to  twenty  pounds  al 


inipid 
viole 
order 
itself 
terint! 
ses  foi 
rary  i 
Ihe'dii 
We 
'lie  pfi 
ilie  Kii 
sioiis, 
as  rc[r; 
heail 
ineiitK 
b(  eiiii 
near 
fiilldwr 
■Mi)iinii 
and  eni 
other  I 
eaptive, 

A.   I). 

this  yv: 
of  V.tigl 
'mviiiir 

V'i»i.. 


THE  TREA8UR\  OF  HISTORY. 


545 


i  much 
ictcaltn 

at  rest; 
,  mattei 

for  the 
e  by  the 
1  severa 
>rval  the 
(lis  com- 
his  com- 
.,  yet  his 

But  the 
ay  to  his 
[ul  terms, 

and  was 

I  of  Scot- 
ill  league 
ilie  iiifrtnta 
I  acknowl- 
lestimony, 
iiid  that  he 
rprise  dan- 
he  activity 
ject  of  the 
sion  of  the 
attend;  but 
n  whicli  he 
uncil  bein(r 
Isoncd  them 
'iie  the  peo- 
end  the  carl 
rifler  having 
wer. 

lat  he  might 
jn  to  protect 
need  ajj.iinst 
were  rcpre- 
K!  hud  usi'd 
treasouiiblt! 
,.  severity  o! 
need  iiijiiinsl 
il)lcman  was, 
■It,  where  lie 
the  iliirly 
.ii(T,  liiH  SIM'- 
T-in-hi\v,!iiiil 

iiborale  than 
iitry.  It  "as 
,„ore  iliau 
on/.    On  tliis 

u<s  of  the  no- 
iinnuiH  in  llie 

ir  re;d  viiliie. 
re  raleil  idiove 

ily  pinuidn  al 


(east,  which  was  the  qualifjcation  required  by  the  statute  for  a  justice  of 
peace ;  but  the  commons  declined  to  alter  the  rate  of  taxation  and  leave 
themselves  liable  to  be  taxed  at  the  rack-rent.  Monopolies  upon  various 
branches  o*"  trade  were  next  brought  under  consideration ;  and  as  they 
were  generally  oppressive  and  unjust  (some  obtained  by  purchase  and 
others  piv,en  to  favourites),  many  animated  discussions  followed,  which 
ended  in  a  motion  that  the  monopolies  should  be  revoked,  and  the  pa- 
tentees punished  for  their  extoitions.  Of  course  there  were  members 
present  who  were  venal  enough  to  defend  this  iniquitous  mode  of  en- 
riching certain  individuals  at  the  expense  of  the  public.  A  long  list  of  the 
monopolizing  patents  being,  however,  read — among  which  was  oiie  on 
salt,  an  article  lliat  had  thus  been  raised  from  fourteen  pence  to  fourteen 
shillings  a  bushel — a  member  indignantly  demanded  whether  there  was 
not  a  patent  also  for  making  bread ;  at  which  question  some  courtiers  ex- 
pressing their  resentment,  lie  replied  that  if  bread  were  not  already  among 
the  patented  luxuries,  it  would  soon  become  one  unless  a  stop  was  put  to 
such  enormities.  That  the  arguments  of  the  speakers  were  not  lost  upon 
the  queen  seems  certain ;  for  although  she  took  no  notice  of  the  debates, 
she  sent  a  message  to  the  house,  acquainting  them  that  several  petitions 
had  been  presented  to  her  against  monopolies,  and  declared  "she  was  sen- 
sibly touched  with  the  people's  grievances,  expressing  the  utmost  indig- 
nation  against  those  who  had  abused  her  grants,  and  appealed  to  God  how 
careful  she*  had  ever  been  to  defend  them  against  oppression,  and  prom- 
ised they  should  be  revoked."  Secretary  Cecil  added  "her  majesty  was 
not  apprised  of  the  ill  tendency  of  these  grants  when  she  made  them,  and 
hoped  there  would  never  be  any  more ;"  to  which  gracious  declaration 
the  majority  of  the  house  responded,  "Amen." 

In  this  memorable  session  was  passed  the  celebrated  act,  to  which  al- 
lusion is  so  often  made  in  the  present  day,  for  the  relief  and  employment 
of  the  poor.  Since  the  breaking  up  of  the  religious  eslablishnu-nts,  the 
country  had  been  overrun  with  idle  mendicants  and  thieves.  It  was  a 
natural  consequence  that  those  who  sought  in  vain  for  work,and  as  vairdy 
implored  charitaiilc  aid,  should  be  induced  by  the  cravings  of  hunger  to  lay 
violtMit  hands  upon  the  property  of  others.  As  the  distress  of  the  lower 
orders  increased,  so  did  crime ;  till  at  length  the  wide-spreading  evil  forced 
itself  on  the  attention  of  parliament,  and  provision  was  made  for  the  bet- 
tering of  their  condition,  by  levymg  a  tax  upon  the  middle  and  upper  <'la8- 
ses  for  the  support  of  the  aged  and  infirm  poor,  and  for  afTording  tempo- 
rary relief  to  the  destitute,  according  to  their  several  necessities,  under 
the  direction  of  parochial  otTlcers. 

We  must  now  briefly  revert  to  what  was  going  on  in  Ireland.  Though 
ilie  power  of  \\w.  Spaniards  was  considered  as  at  too  low  an  ebb  to  give 
ilie  I'lnglish  government  any  great  uneasiness  for  the  safety  of  its  posses 
sioiis,  it  was  thought  sulTiciently  formi<laliIc  to  be  the  means  of  annoyance 
as  regarded  the  assistance  it  might  afl'oid  Tyrone,  who  was  still  at  the 
head  of  the  insurgents  in  Ireland.  And  the  occurrence  \\v,  are  about  to 
nientinn  shows  that  a  reasonable  apprehension  on  that  head  might  well 
()(  entertained.  On  the  i.Mril  of  September  the  Spaniards  landed  4000  men 
near  Kinsale,  and  having  taken  possession  of  the  town,  were  sfjeedily 
followed  by  2000  more.  They  effected  a  junction  with  Tyrone ;  but 
Moiniijoy,  who  was  now  lord-deputy,  surprised  their  army  in  the  night. 
and  cnliiely  defeated  them.  This  led  to  the  surrender  of  Kinsale  and  ali 
other  places  in  liicir  possession;  and  it  was  not  Imig  before  Tyrone,  as  a 
captive,  graced  the  triumpiial  return  of  Mounljoy  to  Onblin. 

A.  n.  IflO'j. — The  most  remarkable  among  the  domestic  occurrences  of 

thiii  year  was  a  violent  quarrel  between  the  Jesuits  and  the  secular  priests 

of  I'fngland.     The  latter  accused  the  former,  and  not  without  reason,  o! 

huvlnur  hecti  the  occasion,  by  their  assassniations,  plots,  and  conspiracici 

Vou.  1 :jr, 


b46 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


ngainst  the  queen  and  government,  of  all  the  severe  enactments  unuer 
which  the  English  catholics  had  groaned  since  the  fulmination  of  the  papal 
bull  against  her  majesty.  In  the  height  of  this  dispute,  intelligence  was 
conveyed  to  the  privy  council  of  som:j  fresh  plots  on  the  part  of  the  Jesuits 
and  their  adherents ;  on  which  a  proclamation  was  immediately  issued, 
banishing  this  order  from  the  kingdom  on  pain  of  death ;  and,  the  same 
penalty  was  declared  against  all  secular  priests  who  should  refuse  to  take 
the  oath  of  allegiance. 

That  Queen  Elizabeth  deeply  regretted  the  precipitancy  with  which  she 
signed  the  warrant  for  the  execution  of  her  favourite  Essex  there  is  every 
reason  to  believe.  She  soon  became  a  victim  to  hypochondria,  as  may 
be  seen  from  a  letter  written  by  her  godson,  Sir  John  Harrington ;  and  as 
it  exhibits  a  curious  example  of  her  behaviour,  and  may  be  regjiided  as  a 
specimen  of  the  epistolary  style  of  the  age,  we  are  induced  to  quote  some 
of  the  sentences:  "She  is  much  disfavoured  and  unattired,  and  these 
troubles  waste  her  much.  She  disregardeth  everie  costlie  cover  that 
Cometh  to  her  table,  and  taketh  little  but  manchet  and  succory  pottage. 
Every  new  message  from  the  city  doth  disturb  her,  and  she  frowns  on  all 
the  ladies."  He  farther  on  remarks,  that  "The  many  evil  plots  and  de- 
signs hath  overcome  her  highness'  sweet  temper.  She  walks  much  in 
her  privy  chamber,  and  stamps  much  at  ill  news;  and  thrusts  her  rusty 
sword,  at  times,  into  the  arras  in  great  rage."  And  in  his  postscript  he 
says,  "So  disordered  is  all  order,  that  her  highness  has  worn  but  one 
change  of  raiment  for  many  daies,  and  swears  much  at  those  who  cause 
her  griefs  in  such  wise,  to  the  no  small  iliscoaifiture  of  those  that  are  about 
her;  more  especially  our  sweet  Lady  Arundel."  Her  days  and  niglits 
were  spent  in  tears,  and  she  never  spoke  but  to  mention  some  irritating 
subjects.  Nay,  it  is  recorded,  that  having  experienced  some  hours  of 
alarming  stupor,  she  persisted,  after  her  recovery  from  it,  to  remain  sealed 
on  cushions,  from  which  she  could  not  be  prevailed  upon  to  remove  dur- 
ing ten  days,  but  sat  with  her  finger  generally  on  her  mouth,  and  her  eyes 
open  and  fixed  upon  the  ground,  for  she  apprehondi-d  th.it  if  she  lay  down 
in  bed  she  should  not  rise  from  it  again.  Having  at  length  been  nut  into 
bed,  she  lay  on  her  side  motionless,  and  ap|iar(Milly  insensible.  The  lords 
of  the  council  being  summoned,  Nottingliam  reminded  her  of  a  former 
speech  respecting  her  successor;  she  answered,  "I  told  you  my  seat  had 
been  the  seat  of  kings,  and  I  will  have  no  rascal  to  succeed  me.  Who 
should  succeed  nie  but  a  king  !"  Cecil,  wishing  a  more  explicit  declara- 
tion, requesting  her  to  explain  what  she  meant  by  "  no  rascal,"  she  rnplied 
tliat  "a  king  should  succeed,  and  who  could  tliat  be  hut  her  cousin  of  Scot. 
land?"  Early  the  following  morning  the  queen  traiKpiilly  breatlnnl  her 
last ;  she  was  in  the  70th  year  of  her  age  and  the  45th  of  her  reign. 

Elizabeth  was  tall  and  portly,  but  never  handsome,  though  from  the  ful- 
some compliments  which  slie  tolerated  in  thosi;  wlio  had  access  to  tmr 
person,  she  appears  to  have  entertained  no  mean  opinion  of  her  beauty. 
Her  extravagant  love  of  finery  was  well  known,  ami  tlie  presents  of  jew- 
nlry,  fee,  she  received  from  such  of  her  loving  8ubje(;ls  as  hoped  to  gaii) 
the  royal  favour  were  both  numerous  and  costly.  Like  her  father,  slio 
was  irritable  and  passionate,  ofti-n  venting  her  rage  in  blows  and  oaths 
Her  literary  acquirements  were  very  (Considerable;  and  in  those  accoin 
plishments  which  are  in  our  own  day  termed  "fashionable,"  namely,  am 
sic,  singing,  and  dancing,  she  also  greatly  excelled.  The  charges  wliiclr 
have  been  made  against  the  "virgin  qnecMi"  for  indulging  in  amatory  in- 
trigues are  not  suffieifntly  sustained  to  render  it  the  duly  of  an  historian 
to  repeat  them;  and  when  it  is  considered  that  though  she  possessed  n 
host  of  sturdy  friends,  yet  that  she  had  many  bitter  enemies,  wo  need  not 
be  surprised  that  in  the  most  vulnerable  point  her  character  as  a  female 
hM  often  been  unjustly  assailed. 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


S47 


CHAPTER  XLVIII. 

THB    RUION     OF    JAMES   1. 

»..  o.  1603. — The  advanced  age  to  which  the  late  queen  lived,  and  the 
;  .nstaiU  attention  which  her  remaining  unmarried  had  caused  men  to  pay 
lo  the  subject  of  the  succession,  had  made  the  succession  of  James  be- 
come a  thing  as  fully  settled  in  public  opinion  as  though  it  had  been  set' 
tied  by  her  will  or  an  act  of  parliaitient.  All  the  arguments  for  and  against 
him  had  been  canvassed  and  dismissed,  and  he  ascended  the  throne  of 
England  with  as  little  opposition  as  though  he  had  been  Elizabeth's  eldest 
son. 

As  the  king  journeyed  from  Edinburgh  to  London  all  ranks  of  men  hail- 
ed him  with  the  thronging  and  applause  which  had  been  wont  to  seem  so 
grateful  to  his  predecessor.  But  if  James  liked  flattery,  he  detested 
noise  and  bustle ;  and  a  proclamation  was  issued  forbidding  so  much  con- 
gregating of  the  lieges,  on  the  ground  that  it  tended  to  make  provisions 
scarce  and  exorbitantly  dear.  It  was  only  shyness,  however,  and  not  any 
insensibility  to  the  hearty  kindness  of  his  new  subjects,  that  dictated  the 
king's  proclamation.  So  pleased,  indeed,  was  he  with  the  zealous  kind 
ness  shown  to  him  by  the  English,  that  he  had  not  been  two  months  be- 
fore them  when  he  had  honoured  with  the  order  of  knighthood  nearly  two 
lunidred  and  forty  persons!  Peerages  were  bestowed  pretty  nearly  in  the 
same  proportion ;  and  a  good  humoured  pasquinade  was  posted  at  St. 
Paul's  promising  to  supply  weak  memories  with  the  now  very  necessary 
art  of  remembering  the  titles  of  the  new  nobility. 

It  was  not  merely  the  king's  facility  in  granting  titles  that  was  blamed, 
lliough  that  was  in  remarkable,  and,  as  regarded  his  judgment,  at  least,  in 
hy  no  means  favourable  contrast  to  the  praittice  of  his  predecessor ;  but 
Hie  English,  already  jealous  of  their  new  fellow-subjects,  the  Scots,  were 
•jf  opini(m  that  he  was  more  than  fairly  liberal  to  the  latter.  But  if  James 
made  tiie  duke  of  Lenox,  the  earl  of  Mar,  Lord  llunie,  Ijord  Kinross,  Sit 
(reorge  Hume,  and  Secretary  Elphinstone,  members  of  the  English  privy 
council,  and  gave  titles  and  wealth  to  Sir  George  Hume,  Hay,  and  Ram- 
say, he  at  least  had  the  honour  and  good  sense  to  leave  nearly  the  whole 
of  ilic  ministerial  honours  ami  political  power  in  the  hands  of  the  able  En- 
glish who  had  so  well  served  his  predecessor.  Secretary  Cecil,  especially, 
who  had  kept  up  a  secret  correspomlcnce  with  James  towards  the  dose  of 
the  late  reign,  had  now  the  ciiief  power,  and  was  created,  in  succession, 
Lord  Efliingdon,  Viscount  Cranborne.  and  earl  of  Salisbury. 

It  is  not  a  little  surprising  that  wiiile  James  was  so  well  received  by  the 
nation  at  large,  and  had  the  instant  support  of  the  ministers  and  friends  of 
tlie  late  queen,  he  had  scarcely  (inisiicd  renewing  treaties  of  peace  and 
friendship  with  all  the  great  foreign  powers,  when  a  conspiracy  was  dis- 
covered for  placing  his  cousin,  Arabella  Stuart,  upon  the  throne.  Such  a 
conspiracy  was  so  absurd,  and  its  success  so  completely  a  physical  inipos- 
siliility,  that  it  is  difficult  not  to  suspect  ihiit  il  ong{natedii\  the  king's  own 
excessive  and  uiniecessary  jealousy  of  the  title  of  Arabella  Stuart,  who, 
equally  with  himself,  was  descenilvd  from  Henry  VIII.,  but  who  in  no 
oilier  respect  could  have  the  faintest  chance  of  competing  with  him.  Hut, 
liowcver  it  originated,  such  a  conspiracy  existed  ;  ami  the  lords  Grey  and 
Cobhiim,  and  Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  Lord  (^obham's  brother,  Mr.  Hroke,  Sir 
(iriffin  Markh.im,  Sir  I'Mward  I'arhiiin,  and  Mr.  Copley,  together  with  two 
catholic  priests  named  Watson  and  (Harke,  were  apprehended  for  being 
concerned  in  it.  Tlie  catholic  jjriesls  were  executed,  Cobhain,  Grey  and 
Mhrkham  were  pardoned  while  their  heads  were  upon  the  block,  and 
Ualeigh  was  also  reprieved,  but  no/ pardoned  ;  a  fact  which  was  f;ii;tl  to 
him  many  years  after,  as  will  he  [lerceived.     Even  at  present  it  was  mis- 


348 


THE  TKEA3URY  OF  HISTORY. 


chievous  to  him,  for,  though  spared  from  death,  he  was  confined  m  the 
Tower,  where  he  wrote  his  noble  work,  the  History  of  the  World. 

A.  D.  1604. — A  conference  was  now  called  at  Hampton  court  to  decide 
upon  certain  differences  between  the  church  and  the  puritans,  and  gen- 
erally to  arrange  that  no  injurious  religious  disputes  might  arise.  As 
James  had  a  great  turn  for  theological  disputation  he  was  here  quite  in 
his  element;  but  instead  of  showing  the  puritans  all  the  favour  they  ex- 
pected from  him  in  consequence  of  his  Scottish  education,  that  very  cir- 
cumstance induced  the  king  to  side  against  them,  at  least  as  far  as  he 
prudently  could ;  as  he  had  abundant  proof  of  the  aptness  of  puritanical 
doctrine  to  produce  seditious  politics.  He  was  importuned,  for  instance, 
by  the  puritans  to  repeal  an  act  passed  in  the  reign  of  Elizabeth  to  sup- 
press societies  called  prophesyings,  at  which  there  was  usually  mure  zeal 
than  sense,  and  more  eloquence  than  religion.  The  reply  of  James  was 
at  once  so  coarsely  practical,  and  so  indicative  of  his  general  way  of 
thinking  upon  such  points,  that  we  transcribe  it  literally.  "  If  what  you 
aim  at  is  Scottish  presbytery,  as  1  think  it  is,  I  tell  you  that  it  agrees  as 
well  with  monarchy  as  the  devil  with  God.  There  Jack,  and  Tom,  and 
Will,  and  Dick,  shall  meet  and  censure  me  and  my  council.  Therefore  I 
reiterate  my  former  speech ;  the  king  s'avisera.  Stay,  I  pray  you,  for 
seven  years  i)efore  you  demand,  and  then,  if  I  be  grown  pursy  and  fat,  I 
may,  perchance,  hearken  to  you,  for  tiiat  sort  of  government  would  keep 
me  in  breath  and  give  me  work  enough !" 

Passing  over  the  business  of  parliament  at  the  commencement  of  this 
reign,  as  concerning  matters  of  interest  rather  to  the  statesman  and 
scholar  than  to  the  general  reader,  we  have  now  to  advert  to  one  of  the 
most  striking  and  remarkable  events  in  our  history — tlie  gunpowder  plot. 

The  affection  which  the  catholii's  had  ever  shown  towards  his  mo- 
ther, and  their  interpretation  of  some  obliging  expressions  that  he  had 
either  artfully  or  in  mere  carelessness  made  use  of,  had  led  them  to  hope 
that  he  would  greatly  relax,  if  not  wholly  repeal  the  severe  laws  passed 
against  them  during  the  reign  of  his  predecessor.  But  James  had  clearly 
and  unequivocally  shown  that  he  had  no  intention  of  doing  aught  tlii<t 
could  diminish  the  authority  and  security  of  the  crown;  and  the  more  en- 
thusiastic catholics  were  in  consequence  very  greatly  excited  agaiiitit 
him. 

Catesby,  a  gentleman  of  good  birth  and  excellent  character,  first  looked 
upon  thu  subject  as  one  demanding  the  absolute  punishment  of  the  kiiijS!, 
and  he  communicated  his  feelings'  to  his  friend  Piercy,  a  descendant  ui 
the  time-honoured  house  of  Northumberland.  Piercy  proposed  simply  lo 
assassinato  the  king,  but  in  the  course  of  tlicir  discussion  of  the  plan 
Catesby  suggested  a  wider  and  more  effectual  plan,  by  whicli  they  wonM 
rid  Catholicism  not  merely  of  the  king,  but  of  the  whole  prutcstant  strenirtli 
of  the  kingdom.  He  pointed  out  that  the  mere  d(;ath  of  the  king,  inid 
even  of  bis  children,  would  be  of  little  avail  while  the  protestanl  nobles 
and  gentry  (H)tdd  niise  another  king  to  the  tiironc  who,  in  addition  to  all 
the  existing  causes  of  the  protcstant  severity,  would  bo  urged  to  new 
rigour  by  the  very  circumstance  to  wliich  he  would  owe  his  power  to  in- 
dulge it.  To  make  the  dc^ed  effectual,  Catesby  continued,  it  would  be 
necessary  to  take  the  opportunity  of  the  first  day  of  |)arlianu'iit, 
when  king,  lords,  and  commons  would  be  all  assembli^d,  and,  by  ineaii.s  ul 
a  mine  bidow  the  house,  blow  the  whole  of  their  enemies  up  at  once  witli 
gunpowder. 

"Nothing  but  a  fierce  and  mistaken  fanaticism  could  allow  one  man  to 
luggest  so  dreadful  a  seheiiie,  or  another  man  to  approve  of  it  ;  but  Pienv 
at  once  entered  into  Catcsby's  plan,  and  tiiey  took  means  for  preparing.' 
fcir  its  execulion.  Tliomas  Winter  was  sent  over  to  Flaiiilens  iiise.iiih 
ul  Guido  Vuux,  ac  oflicer  in  the  Spanish  service,  and  well  known  allki  a* 


less  I 

"  .My 
"Oi 
ynnr 
>ife  to 
.i;inier) 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HI.-^TOHY 


5-19 


d  in  the 

1. 

[)  (leciilti 
mrt  gen- 
ise.    As 
quite  in 
they  ex- 
very  cir- 
far  as  he 
uritanical 
instance, 
\i  to  sui>- 
nore  ^eal 
imes  was 
,1  way  of 
what  you 
agrees  as 
Tom,  and 
lierefore  I 
^'  you,  for 
and   fat,  I 
ivould  keep 

lent  of  this 
,esman  and 
one  of  the 
iwder  plot. 
■ds  his  mo- 
that  he  liad 
em  to  hope 
aws  passed 
had  clearly 
aughl  lliiil 
he  more  eii- 
ited  against 

,  first  looked 
of  the  king, 
scendanl  ol 
ud  simply  10 
of  t\\e  pliii* 
\  ihey  would 
tant  slrenytli 
le  king,  luid 
slant  nobles 
Idilion  to  all 
rged  to  new 
power  to  ill- 
it  would  be 
parliament, 
by  means  ol 
at  ouee  with 

V  one  man  to 
1  ;  bntPien'V 
for  prepariii;-' 
It-rs  m  seiii'li 
uown  aliki  ''* 


a  bigoted  catholic  and  a  cool  and  daring  soldier.  Calesby  and  Piercy  in 
the  meantime,  aided  by  Desmond  and  Garnet,  Jesuits,  and  the  latter  the 
superior  of  the  order  in  England,  were  busily  engaged  in  communicating 
their  awful  design  to  other  catholics ;  and  every  ncwly-enksted  confed- 
erate had  the  oath  of  secrecy  and  faithfulness  administered  to  him,  in  con- 
junction with  the  communion,  a  rite  peculiarly  awful  as  understood  by  the 
catholics. 

The  destruction  of  protestants  all  the  confederates  seem  to  have  con- 
sidered to  be  a  quite  unexceptionable  act ;  but  some  of  the  more  thoughtful 
and  humane  among  them  suggested  the  certainty  that,  besides  several  cath- 
olic peers  who  would  attend,  there  might  be  many  other  catholics  present, 
either  as  mere  spectators  or  as  official  attendants.  Even  this  suggestion, 
which  one  might  suppose  effectual  as  to  forbidding  the  execution  of 
Catesby's  wholesale  scheme,  was  silenced  by  the  truly  Jesuitical  remark 
of  the  two  Jesuits,  that  the  sacrifice  of  a  few  innocent  among  the  guilty 
many,  was  lawful  aiid  highly  meritorious,  because  it  was  required  by  the 
interests  of  religion!  Alas!  in  abusing  that  sacred  name  how  many 
crimes  have  not  mistaken  men  committed  ! 

A.  D.  1605. — Towards  the  end  of  summer  Piercy  hired  a  house  adjoining 
to  that  in  which  parliament  used  to  assemble  ;  and  having  instruments, 
arms,  and  provisions  with  them,  they  laboured  hard  in  it  for  many  hours 
each  day,  and  had  already  mined  three  feet  through  the  solid  wall  when 
they  were  stopped  and  alarmed  by  plainly  hearing  on  the  other  side  a 
noise  for  which  they  could  give  no  account.  On  inquiry  it  seemed  that 
the  noise  arose  from  the  sale  of  the  stock  of  a  coal  dealer  who  had  oc- 
cupied a  vault,  next  to  their  own,  and  immediately  below  the  house  of 
lords.  The  opportunity  was  seized  ;  Pieicy  hired  the  vault,  and  six-and- 
thirty  barrels  of  gunpowder  were  clandestinely  conveyed  thither  and  con- 
coaled  beneath  the  loads  of  wood,  for  the  reception  of  which  alone  Piercy 
pretened  to  need  the  place. 

Having  thus  surmounted  all  the  great  and  apparent  obstacles  to  the 
success  of  their  design,  the  conspirators  distributed  among  themselves  the 
several  parts  they  were  to  act  on  the  eventful  day.  Guido  Vaux  was  to 
fire  the  fatal  train  ;  Piercy  was  to  seize  or  slay  the  infant,  duke  of  York  ; 
and  the  princess  Elizabeth,  also  a  mere  infant,  who  would  be  a  powerless 
instrument  in  the  hands  of  the  catholics,  was  to  be  seized  and  proclaimed 
queen  by  Grant,  Rookwood,  and  Sir  Everard  Digby,  three  of  the  leading 
conspirators,  who  were  to  have  a  large  armed  party  in  readiness  on  pre- 
tence of  a  hunting  match. 

The  dreadful  scheme  had  now  been  on  foot  for  above  a  year  and  a  half, 
and  was  known  to  more  than  twenty  persons,  but  neither  fear  of  punish- 
ment, the  hope  of  reward,  or  any  of  the  motives  which  ordinarily  make 
eonspirators  untrue  to  carM  other,  had  caused  any  one  of  the  desperate 
band  to  falter.  A  personal  feeling  of  gratitude  now  did  what  no  other 
feeling,  perhaps,  could  have  done,  a'ld  caused  one  of  the  conspirators 
to  take  a  step  which  saved  the  nation  from  horrors  of  which  even  at 
this  distance  of  time  one  cannot  contemplate  the  mere  possibility  but 
with  a  shudder. 

Some  one  of  the  conspirators,  lying  under  obligations  to  Lord  Monteagle, 
a  catholic  and  a  son  of  Lord  Morley,  sent  him  the  following  letter, 
which  evidently  was  intended  to  a<'t  upon  his  personal  prudence  and 
secure  his  safety,  without  enabling  him  in  any  wise  to  oppose  the  ruth- 
less butchery  that  was  designed : 
"  My  Lord, 

"  Out  of  the  love  I  bear  to  sctme  of  your  friends  I  have  a  care  of 
your  preservation,  ilierefore  1  woidd  advise  you  as  you  tender  your 
life  to  devise  some  excuse  to  shift  oflf  your  attendance  upon  this  par- 
. lament.    For  God  and  man  have  concurred  to  punish  the  wickednesn 


S50 


THR  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


of  the  time.  Think  rot  lightly  of  this  advertiiseitient,  but  retire  youi 
self  into  your  country,  where  you  may  expect  the  event  in  safety.  Foi 
though  there  be  no  appearance  of  any  stir,  yet,  I  say,  tiiey  will  receivs 
a  terrible  blow  this  parliament,  and  yet  tiiuy  sli.tll  not  see  who  hurts  them. 
This  counsel  is  not  to  be  contemned,  because  it  may  do  you  good, 
and  can  do  you  no  harm,  for  the  danger  is  past  as  soon  as  you  burn 
this  letter.  And  I  hope  God  will  give  you  the  grace  to  make  good 
use  of  it,  unto  whose  holy  protection  I  commit  you." 

Cecil,  now  earl  of  Salisbury,  was  the  principal  and  most  active  of  the 
king's  ministers,  and  to  that  nobleman  Monteagle  fortunately  determined 
to  carry  the  letter,  though  he  was  himself  strongly  inclined  to  think  it 
nothing  hut  some  silly  attempt  to  frlghttm  him  from  his  attendance  in 
parliament.  Salisbury  professed  to  have  the  same  opinion  of  the  letter, 
but  laid  it  before  the  king  some  days  before  the  meeting  of  parliament. 
James,  who,  amid  many  absurdities,  was  in  the  main  a  shrewd  man, 
saw  the  key  to  the  enigma  in  the  very  style  of  the  letter  itself:  and  Lord 
Suffolk,  the  lord  chamberlain,  was  charged  to  examine  the  vaults  beneath 
the  houses  of  parliament  on  the  day  before  thai  appointed  for  opening  the 
session.  He  did  so  in  open  day,  and,  as  if  as  a  simple  matter  of  form, 
went  through  the  cellars  and  came  out  without  affectmg  to  see  anything 
amiss.  But  he  had  been  struck  by  the  singularity  of  Piercy,  a  private 
gentleman  who  lived  but  little  in  town,  having  amassed  such  an  inordinate 
store  of  fuel ;  and  he  read  the  conspirator  in  the  desperate  countenance 
of  Guido  Vaux,  who  was  lurking  about  the  place  in  the  garb  and  charac- 
ter of  a  servant  to  Piercy.  Acting  on  these  snsp.cions,  the  ministers 
caused  a  second  search  to  be  made  at  midnight  by  a  well-armed  pnrty 
under  Sir  Thomas  Knivet,  a  justice  of  peace.  At  the  very  door  of  the 
vault  they  seized  Vaux,  who  had  made  all  his  preparations  and  even  had 
his  tinder-box  and  matches  ready  to  fire  the  train  ;  the  fag^ois  of  wood 
were  turned  over,  and  the  powder  found.  Vaux  was  sent  under  an  escort 
to  the  Tower,  but  was  so  far  from  seeming  appalled  by  his  danger,  that 
he  sneeringly  told  his  captors  that  if  he  had  known  a  little  earlier  that 
they  intended  to  pay  him  a  second  visit,  he  would  have  fired  the  train  and 
sweetened  his  own  death  by  killing  them  with  him.  He  behaved  in  the 
same  daring  style  when  examined  by  the  council  on  the  following  day; 
but  two  or  three  days'  residence  in  the  'i'ower  and  a  threat  of  putting  him 
on  the  'ack  subdued  him,  and  he  made  a  full  discovery  of  his  confederates. 
Catesby.  Piercy,  and  their  other  friends  who  were  to  act  in  Londim,  heard 
not  only  of  a  letter  being  sent  to  Lord  Monleagic,  but  also  of  the  first 
search  made  in  the  vault;  yet  were  they  so  infatuattul  and  so  resolute  lo 
persevere  to  the  last,  that  it  was  only  when  Vaux  was  actually  arrested 
that  they  left  London  and  hurried  down  to  VVarwickshire,  where  Digby 
and  his  friends  were  already  in  arms  to  seize  the  princess  Elizabeth.  Uut 
the  sheriff  raised  the  county  in  time  to  convey  the  young  princess  to  Co- 
ventry ;  and  the  baffled  conspirators,  never  more  than  eighty  in  number, 
had  now  only  to  think  of  defending  themselves  until  they  could  make  their 
escape  from  the  country.  But  the  activity  of  the  sheriff  and  other  gentry 
surrounded  them  by  such  immbers  that  escape  in  ajiy  way  was  out  of  the 
question,  and  having  confessed  themselves  to  each  other,  they  prepared 
to  die  with  a  desperate  gallantry  worthy  of  a  nobler  cause.  They  fouglil 
with  stern  determination,  but  some  of  their  powder  took  fire  and  disabled 
them;  Catesby  and  Piercy  were  killed  by  a  single  shot;  Digby,  Uook- 
wood,  and  Winter,  with  Garnet  the  Jesuit,  were  taken  prisoners,  and  soon 
after  perished  ')y  the  hands  of  the  executioner.  It  is  a  terrible  proof  oi 
of  the  power  of  superstition  to  close  men's  eyes  to  evil,  that  though  (Gar- 
net's crime  was  of  the  most  ruffianly  description,  though  he  had  used  his 
priestly  influence  to  delude  his  confederates  and  tools  when  their  better 
nature  prompted  them  to  shrink  from  such  wholesale  and  uiispaiing  atru- 


cernin 
The 
obtain 
iiess  I 
iiiofTeii 
ever  i 
while 
suppor 

A. 
to  phi; 

speed 

self  ail 

seculai 

bestov 

cathoii 

of  (he 

obligin 

hardsh 

al'j.ifei 


THE  TEEASUEY  OF  HI8T0EY. 


551 


city,  the  catholics  imagined  miracles  to  be  wrought  with  this  miserable 
miscreant's  blood,  and  in  Spain  he  was  even  treated  as  a  martyr !  Through- 
out  this  whole  affair,  indeed,  the  evil  nature  of  superstition  was  to  blame 
for  all  the  guilt  and  all  the  suffering.  The  conspirators  in  this  case  were 
not  low  ruffians  of  desperate  fortune;  they  were  fur  the  most  part  men  of 
both  property  and  character ;  and  Catesby  was  a  man  who  possessed  an 
especially  and  enviably  high  characrer.  Digby  also  was  a  man  of  excel- 
lent reputation,  so  much  so,  that  his  being  a  known  and  rigid  papist  had 
not  prevented  him  from  being  highly  esteemed  and  honoured  by  Queen 
Elizabeth. 

When  the  punishment  of  the  wretches  who  had  mainly  been  concerned 
In  this  plot  left  the  court  leisure  for  reflection,  some  minor  but  severe  pun- 
ishments were  inflicted  upon  those  who  were  thought  by  connivance  or 
negligence  to  have  been  in  any  degree  aiding  the  chief  off"enders.  Thus 
the  earl  of  Northumberland  was  fined  the  then  enormous  sum  of  thirty 
thousand  pounds,  and  imprisoned  for  seven  years  afterwards,  because  he 
had  not  exacted  the  usual  oaths  from  Piercy  on  admitting  him  to  the  office 
of  gentlemin  pensioner.  The  catholic  lords  Stourton  and  Mordaunt,  too, 
were  fined,  the  former  four  and  the  latter  ten  thousand  pounds  by  that  ever 
arbitrary  court,  the  star-chamber,  for  no  other  offence  than  their  absence 
from  parliament  on  this  occasion.  This  absence  was  taken  as  a  proof  of 
their  knowledge  of  the  plot,  though  surely,  if  these  two  noblemen  had 
known  of  it,  they  would  have  warned  many  other  catholics ;  while  a  hun- 
dred more  innocent  reasons  might  cause  their  own  absence. 

Of  the  conduct  of  James,  in  regard  to  the  duty  he  owed  to  justice  in 
punishing  the  guilty,  and  confining  punishment  strictly  to  those  of  whose 
guilt  there  is  the  most  unequivocal  proof,  it  is  not  easy  to  speak  too 
warmly.  The  prejudice  shown  against  catholics  in  the  case  of  the  lords 
Stourton  and  Mordaunt,  and  the  infinite  brutalities  inflicted  upon  the 
wretched  conspirator,  were  the  crimes  of  the  age;  but  the  severe  and  dig- 
nified attention  to  a  just  and  large  charily  of  judgment  as  a  general  prin- 
ciple, which  is  displayed  in  tlie  king's  speech  to  this  parliament,  is  a  merit 
all  his  own. 

He  observed,  says  Hume,  "  tliat  though  religion  had  engaged  the  con- 
spirators in  so  criminal  an  attempt,  yet  ought  we  not  to  involve  all  the 
Roman  catholics  in  tiie  same  guilt,  or  suppose  them  equally  disposed  to 
commit  such  enormous  barbarities.  Many  holy  men,  and  our  ancestors 
among  the  rest,  had  been  seduced  to  concur  with  that  church  in  her  scho- 
lastic doctrines,  who  yet  had  never  admitted  her  seditious  principles,  con- 
cerning the  pope's  power  of  dethroning  kings  or  sanctifying  assassination. 
The  wrath  of  heaven  is  denounced  against  crimes,  but  innocent  error  may 
obtain  its  favour;  and  nothing  can  be  more  hateful  than  the  uncharitable- 
ness  of  the  puritans  who  condemn  alike  to  eternal  torments  even  ilie  most 
iiioflensive  partisans  of  popery.  For  his  own  part,  tiiat  conspiracy,  how- 
ever atrocious,  should  never  alter,  in  the  least,  his  plan  of  government ; 
while  with  one  hand  he  would  punish  guilt,  with  the  other  he  would  still 
support  and  protect  innocence." 

A.  D.  1606.— The  protestants,  and  especially  the  puritans,  were  inclined 
to  plunge  to  a  very  great  extent  into  that  injustice  of  which  the  king's 
speech  so  ably  warned  them.  But  the  king,  even  at  some  hazard  to  him- 
self and  at  some  actual  loss  of  popularity,  persisted  in  looking  at  men's 
secular  conduct  as  a  thing  quite  apart  from  their  ghostly  opinions.  He 
bestowed  employment  and  favour,  other  things  being  equal,  alike  on 
catholic  and  protcslant :  and  the  only  hardship  caused  to  the  great  body  . 
of  the  papists  by  the  horrible  gunpowder  plot  was  the  enactment  of  a  bill 
obliging  every  one  without  exception  to  take  oath  of  allegiance.  No  great 
hardship  upon  any  good  subject  or  honest  and  humane  man,  since  it  onlv 
abjured  the  power  of  the  pone  to  dethrone  the  king  ! 


162 


THE  TUEASUHY  OV  HISTORY. 


il 

'    a 

ilf^ 

ij 

1 

i 

Almost  as  soon  as  James  arrived  in  England  he  showed  himself  ii» 
one  respect,  at  the  least,  very  far  more  advanced  in  true  statesmanship 
than  most  of  iiis  subjectn.  They  for  u  long  time  displayed  a  small  and 
spiteful  jealousy  of  the  Scots;  he,  almost  as  soon  as  he  mounted  the  En- 
glish throne,  endeavoured  to  merge  England  and  Scotland,  two  separate 
nations,  always  sullen  and  sometimes  sanguinary  and  despoiling  enemies, 
into  a  Great  Britain  that  might  indeed  bid  defiance  to  the  world,  and  thai 
should  be  united  in  laws  and  liberties,  in  prosperity  and  in  interests,  as  it 
already  was  by  the  hand  of  natnre.  There  was  nothing,  however,  in  the 
earlier  |)art  of  his  reign,  by  which  so  much  heart-burning  was  caused  be- 
tween the  king  and  his  parliament,  as  by  tlie  wisdom  of  the  former  and 
the  ignorance  and  narrow  prejudice  of  the  latter  on  this  very  point.  All 
the  exercise  of  the  king's  earnestness  and  induencc,  aided  by  the  eloquence 
of,  perhaps,  all  things  considered,  the  greatest  man  England  has  ever  had. 
Sir  Francis  Bacon,  could  not  succeed  over  the  petty  nationalities  of  the 
Scotch  and  English  parliaments  any  farther  for  the  present,  than  to  procure 
an  ungracious  and  reluctant  repeal  of  the  directly  hostile  laws  existing  in 
the  two  kingdoms  respectively.  Nay,  so  averse,  at  the  onset,  was  the 
English  parliament  to  a  measure,  the  grand  necessity  and  value  of  which 
no  one  could  now  dispute  without  being  suspected  of  the  sheerest  idiocy, 
that  the  bishop  of  Bristol,  for  writing  a  book  in  favour  of  the  measure 
which  lay  ignorance  thus  condemned,  was  so  fiercely  clamoured  against, 
that  he  was  obliged  to  save  himself  from  still  harder  measures  by  making 
an  humble  submission  to  these  ignorant  and  bigoted  legislators. 

A.  D.  1607. — The  practical  tolerance  of  the  king  as  opposed  to  his  arbi- 
trary maxims  of  government,  and  the  p:irliament's  lust  of  persecution  as 
contrasted  with  its  perpetual  struggh  -  to  obtain  more  power  and  liberty 
for  itself,  were  strongly  illustratotl  this  year.  A  bill  was  originated  in  the 
lower  house  for  a  more  strict  oljservaii'^o  of  the  laws  against  popish  recu- 
sants, and  for  an  abatement  towards  »uch  protestant  clergymen  as  should 
scruple  at  the  still  existing  church  ceremonials.  This  measure  was  doubly 
distasteful  to  the  king ;  as  a  highly  liberal  protestant  he  disliked  the  at- 
tempt to  recur  to  the  old  severities  against  the  catholics :  and  as  a  high 
prerogative  monarch  ho  was  still  more  hostile  to  the  insidious  endeavour 
of  the  puritans,  by  weakening  the  church  of  England,  to  acquire  the  power 
to  themselves  of  bearding  and  coercing  the  civil  government. 

In  this  same  year,  however,  the  very  parliament  which,  on  the  remon- 
strance of  the  king,  obediently  stopped  the  progress  of  that  doubly  dis- 
agreeable measure,  gave  a  striking  proof  of  its  growing  sense  of  self  im- 
portance by  commencing  a  regular  journal  of  its  proceedings. 

A.  D.  1610. — James  was  so  careful  to  preserve  peace  abroad  that  much 
of  his  reign  might  be  passed  over  without  remark,  but  for  '■'(  frr  luent 
bickerings  which  occurred  between  1iini  and  his  parliament  ou  tlio  .-.oj-c! 
of  money.  Even  in  the  usually  arbitrary  reign  of  Elizabe'!.  fh.'  p  :  i- 
ment  had  already  learned  the  power  of  the  purse.  The  pu'  :•  '..:  ,■;  m\  v. 
now  gradually  acquiring  that  at  once  tyrannical  and  repuiM'  .ji  leehiig 
which  was  to  be  so  fatal  to  the  monarchy  and  so  disgraceful  to  the  nation, 
and  although  James  was  allowed  a  theoretical  despotism,  a  mere  tyranny 
of  maxims  and  sentences,  some  merely  silly,  and  others — could  he  have 
a'^ted  upon  them — to  the  last  degree  dangerous,  the  true  tyranny  was  that 
ol  .''-^  parliiinient  which  exerted  their  power  with  the  merciless  and  fitful 
in.lit  •  •'■,  of  «  dwarf  which  has  suddenly  become  possessed  of  a  giant's 
str.'  .:i.  T'v"  earl  of  '•'  ilisbury,  who  was  now  treasurer,  laid  before  both 
houses,,  «hi'' r.bfcsion,  th.  very  peculiar  situation  in  which  the  king  was 
pai;?c'.  Queen  Elizab'ii,  ihongh  she  had  received  large  supplies  during 
ttt'j  lat',<'i  part  of  her  ro  ,,'0,  had  made  very  considerable  alienations  of  the 
< ..own  l,..ids;  the  crown  was  now  burdened  with  debt  to  the  amount  of 
300,000  pounds,  and  the  king  was  obliged,  instead  of  a  single  court  as  in 


THE  TREASL'IIV  OF  HISTORY. 


553 


the  late  reign,  to  keep  three  courts,  Jiis  own,  that  of  the  queen,  and  thai 
of  the  prince  of  Wales.  But  though  these  really  strong  and  most  reason 
able  arguments  were  also  urged  by  the  king  himself  in  his  speech  to  pur 
liament,  they  granted  him  only  one  hundred  thousand  pounds — his  debts 
alone  being  iliric.  Lhal  sum!  It  cannot,  after  this  statement  of  the  s.tu- 
ation  of  tht  lii;i?,;  .i,\d  the  temper  in  which  parliament  used  the  power  we 
havesf'  t  ii  oi.  bf  '««onishing  that  henceforth  there  was  one  perpetual 
strufji.le  ■.:  i.ucn  M"  111,  he  slrivnig  for  the  means  of  supporting  the  national 
d'gnii),  ar.u  indulging  a  generosity  of  temper  which,  imprudent  in  any 
kinrr.  waj  ilmibly  so  m  one  who  had  to  deal  with  so  close-fisted  a  parlia- 
ment, ail  1  t'loy  striving  at  once  to  abridge  the  king's  prerogative,  and  to 
I  scape  froiii  s;upplying  even  his  most  reasonable  demands. 

An  incident  occurred  this  year  which,  taken  in  contrast  with  the  ex- 
(reme  horror  of  foreign  disputes  which  James  usually  displayed,  affords 
a  rather  anusing  illustration  of  the  extent  to  which  even  so  petty  a  "  ruling 
passion"  as  pedantry  may  domineer  over  all  others. 

Vorstius,  a  divinity  professor  of  a  German  university,  was  appointed 
to  the  chair  of  a  Dutch  university.  He  was  a  disciple  of  Arminius,  and 
moreover  had  the  presumption  to  be  opposed  in  argument  to  King  James, 
who  did  not  think  it  beneath  his  royal  dignity,  or  too  manifest  and  dan- 
gerous a  departure  from  his  pacific  foreign  policy,  seriously  to  demand 
of  the  states  that  they  should  deprive  and  banish  the  obnoxious  professor. 
The  procedure  was  at  once  so  absurd  and  so  severe,  that  the  Dutch  at 
first  refused  to  remove  Vorstius ;  but  the  king  returned  to  the  charge  with 
such  an  earnest  fierceness,  that  the  slates  deemed  it  politic  to  yield,  and 
the  poor  professor,  who  was  luckless  enough  to  differ  from  King  James, 
was  deprived  of  both  his  home  and  employment.  In  the  course  of  this 
dispute,  James,  who  had  so  creditably  argued  for  charity  in  the  case  of  the 
attempt  of  his  puritans  to  oppress  their  catholic  fellow-subjects,  made  use 
of  this  revolting  observation : — "  He  would  leave  it  to  the  stales  themselves 
as  to  the  burning  of  Vorstius  for  blasphemies  and  atheism,  but  surely  never 
heretic  better  deserved  the  flames  /" 

Of  James'  (rondui^t  in  and  towards  Ireland  we  have  given  a  full  account, 
which  is  very  creditable  to  him,  under  the  head  of  liiat  country.  We  now, 
therefore,  pass  forward  to  the  domestic  incidents  of  Kngland,  commencing 
with  the  death  of  Henry,  prince  of  Wales,  an  event  which  was  deeply 
and  with  good  reason  deplored. 

A.  D.  l-eia. — This  young  prince,  who  was  only  in  his  eighteenth  year, 
was  exceedingly  beloved  by  the  nation,  having  given  every  promise  of  a 
truly  royal  manhood.  Generous,  high-spirited,  brave,  and  anxious  for 
men's  esteem,  perhaps,  in  the  turbulent  days  that  awaited  England,  even 
his  chief  fault — a  too  great  propensity  to  things  military  would  have 
pioved  of  <  nrvice  to  the  nation,  by  bringing  thi-  dispute  between  thecrown 
^nd  the  puritans  to  an  issue  before  the  sour  ambition  of  the  latter  could 
iiave  sulliciently  matured  its  views.  Dignified  and  of  a  high  turn  of  mind, 
he  seems  to  have  held  the  finessing  and  the  somewhat  vulgar  familiarity 
of  his  father  in  something  too  nearly  approaching  contempt.  To  Raleigh, 
who  had  so  long  been  kept  a  prisoner,  he  openly  and  enthusiastically 
avowed  his  aitachment,  ami  was  heanl  to  say,  "  Sure  no  king  except  my 
father  would  keep  such  a  bird  in  a  cage."  So  sudden  was  the  young 
prince's  deatii  that  evil  tongues  attributed  it  to  poison,  and  some  even 
liinted  that  the  prince's  popularity  tnd  free  speech  had  become  Intolerable 
to  his  father.  But  the  surgn-al  examination  of  the  body  clearly  proved 
that  tiiere  was  no  poison  in  the  case  ;  and  moreover,  if  James  failed  at  all 
in  the  parental  character,  it  was  by  an  excessive  and  indiscriminate  fond- 
ness and  indulgence. 

A.  D.  1613. — The  marriage  of  the  princess  F.li/,abefh  to  Frederic,  the 
elector  oalatinc,  took  place  this  year,  and  the  eniertainmcnts  in  honour  of 


vm 


65i 


THE  THKASUllY  OF  HISTORY. 


that  evoiit  served  to  dispel  the  deep  gloom  which  had  been  caused  by  the 
death  of  Prince  Henry.  But  this  event,  so  much  rejoiced  at,  was  one  of 
the  most  unfortunate  that  occurred  during  the  whole  generally  fortunate 
reign  of  James,  whom  it  plunged  into  expenses  on  account  of  [lis  son-in- 
law  which  nothing  could  have  induced  him  to  incur  for  any  warlike  eiUer- 
prize  of  his  own. 

But  before  we  speak  of  the  consequence  of  this  unfortunate  connec- 
tion, we  must,  to  preserve  due  order  of  time,  refer  to  an  event  which  cre- 
ated a  strong  feeling  of  horror  and  disgust  tiiroughout  the  nation — the 
murder  of  Sir  Thomas  Overbury  at  the  ii:stance  of  the  earl  and  countess 
of  .Somerset. 

K()l)ert  (^arre,  a  youth  of  a  respectable  but  not  wealthy  family  in  Scotland, 
arrived  in  London  in  the  year  IfiO!),  bringing  with  him  letters  of  recom- 
mendation to  Lord  Hay.  Carre,  then  quite  a  youth,  was  singularly  hand- 
some and  possessed  in  perfection  all  the  merely  external  accompllsments; 
though  his  education  was  so  iin[)orfect,  that  it  is  stated  that  long  after  his 
introduction  to  the  king's  notice  he  was  so  ignorant  of  even  the  rudiments 
of  the  tlicn  almost  indispensable  Latin,  that  .Fames  was  wont  to  exchange 
the  sceptre  for  tiic  bind),  and  personally  to  play  the  pedagogue  to  tiie  boy- 
favoiM'ite.  Noting  tlic  comidy  aspect  and  graceful  bearing  of  youiig  Carre, 
Lord  May  look  an  opportunity  to  place  him  in  the  king's  sight  at  a  tilting 
niiitcli,  and  it  chanced  that  on  that  very  occasion  ,I;iines'  attention  was 
the  more  strongly  drawn  to  him  by  an  accident  occurring  by  which  young 
Carre's  leg  was  brok(ui.  The  sight  of  this  so  affected  the  king,  that  in  the 
course  of  the  day  he  went  to  the  yoinig  patient's  chamber,  consoled  him 
with  many  kind  words,  and  became  so  pleased  with  his  spirit  and  general 
behaviour,  that  he  instantly  adopted  him  as  an  especial  and  favoured  per- 
sonal attenilant.  Attentive  to  the  lessons  of  the-  kingly  pedagogue,  and 
skiiliil  Ml  discovering  and  manajjing  his  weaknesses,  young  Carre  also 
possessed  the  art  so  many  favourites  have  perishe(i  for  l.K^kof;  he  was  a 
courtier  notoidy  to  the  king  but  to  all  who  approached  theking.  By  thus 
prMilcntly  aiding  the  preddection  of  the  king,  Carre  vapidly  rose.  He  was 
kniglittMl,  then  crealcil  earl  of  Rochester  and  K.  (i.,  and  introduc('d  into 
tlie  |irivy  conned.  \Ve;dlh  and  power  accompanied  this  rapid  rise  in  rank, 
and  in  a  slKU't  time  this  new  favourite,  without  any  delinite  ofTice  in  the 
miiiisli\ ,  actiiiilly  had  more  real  inlhience  in  the  management  of  affairs 
than  till'  wisi'  Salislinry  himsi'lf. 

Miicli  of  his  success  Carre  owed  to  the  wise  counsels  of  Sir  Tliomns 
Overhuiy,  wliosi'  rrieMilslii|)  he  cl.umed,  anil  who  became  at  once  his  ad- 
viser and  his  clif'iit,  and  connsillcd  none  the  less  eainestly  and  well  be- 
cause he  felt  that  his  own  cliief  h'lpe  of  rising  at  court  rested  upon  the 
success  ol'  (larre.  Tims  guided,  ilie  nitiirally  sai/acions  and  lle.xilile 
youth  soon  ripened  into  llii'  iiowerfiil,  admired,  and  singularly  prosperous 
man.  Unfortunatidy  he  liecame  passionately  attached  to  the  yoniiif  eoiiii- 
tesH  of  Kssex,  who  as  iinforlunaiely  returned  his  passion.  Tins  lady  when 
onl\'  thirteen  years  of  age.  as  Lady  Krances  Howard,  daughter  of  the  eiil 
of  SulVnlk,  was,  liy  the  king's  r-quesi.  married  to  the  young  earl  of  Ks- 
»(!X,  then  only  I'ourleen.  In  consideration  of  their  extreme  youth  the  cer- 
emony was  no  sDoiK  r  conipleieil  than  I'le  youlhl'iil  bridegroom  ileparteil 
|o  the  cmilini'iii,  and  diil  not  return  iVoin  Ins  travels  nulil  I'inir  years  aftir 
111  the  ini'antiine  the  \  ouiig  countess  of  Kssex  and  Viscount  Uoeliesli'i 
had  met,  love(l,  and  snmcil ;  and  when  the  young  e.irl,  with  the  Impatieiil 
ardour  of  eighteen.  Mew  to  his  f.iir  couiiiess,  he  was  tlmnlerstrnck   at  he 

ill"/  received  not  wuli  iner iidness,  Imt  with  souietliing  approaeliiinj  ti 

aetn.il  liMtliiii;;  and  horror.  The  coimless'  p.ission  for  and  guilty  coniiei' 
lion  with  Uoeliester  were  not  even  suspeeled,  anil  every  im.iginahle  mean' 
were  resorled  to  for  the  purpose  of  overi'ommg  what  was  di-emed  to  he  ) 
ini're  uxci.'ss  of  maidenly  coyness.     All  means,  however,  were  alike  vain 


TUP!  TKEAfA'P  t  OF  HISTORY. 


ffS6 


Tliomns 
•e  lii»  iiil- 

M|lilll    tllC 

,1   ili'Xiblr 
Ird-'pennis 

Ulllir  COIlll- 

[liiifv  when 

f^f  the  (Mil 

iirl  «<l'  V.*- 
Iili  tlK'fcr- 
1)  ilrpirlcil 
l(>;irs  iltl'T 

Itochcxlcl 

iin|);itii'iil 

luck   111  lie 

fiiirlmm  I' 

jly  CiilllU'C 
lltllc  lllPllll!' 

IiimI  to  hi-  > 
uliko  vam. 


nothing  could  induce  ber  fj  \iv  i  w.lh  her  husband,  and  she  and  Rocliestcr 
now  determined  to  n-.a'ie  v,  ay  (o-"  their  marriage  by  a  divorce  of  the  lady 
from  llie  earl  of  Ksne-£. 

Rochester  coiis'iUed  t'lr  Thomas  Overbnry  ;  but  that  prudent  courtier, 
though  he  iiad  been  priify  to  and  had  even  encouragtid  their  criminal  (ion- 
ncction,  was  too  Riiicorely  anxious  for  the  character  and  iia|)piness  of  his 
friend  not  to  dirisuade  iiim  from  the  Ignominy  of  procuring  this  divorce, 
and  the  folly  of  committing  liis  own  peace  and  honour  to  the  keepint;  of  a 
wonian  of  w'lcse  harlotry  he  had  personal  kuowledire.  Conuci-tiil-as 
Roclu'ster  and  tlie  countess  were,  the  latter  was  not  long  ignorant  of  tliis 
advice  given  by  Overhury,  and  with  the  rage  of  an  insulted  w(<uiaii  and 
tile  artful  bl'ii'.dishments  of  a  beauty,  she  easily  persuaded  the  enamoured 
Rochester  that  he,  too,  was  injured  by  that  very  conduct  in  which  Over- 
bury  had  undoubtedly  most  proved  tiie  siaceri-ty  and  the  wisdom  of  his 
friendship  Having  brought  Rochester  to  this  point,  tlie  countess  found 
little  d'lf.c'jlty  in  (leteriniiiiiig  him  to  the  ruin  of  that  friend  to  whom  he 
ow'.'rl  'io  much,  and  by  artfully  getting  Overhury  a  mission  from  the  king 
and  i'.irii  privately  counselling  Overbnry  to  reject  it,  he  managed  so  ti- dune 
»n;l  eainge  James  that  the  unfortunate  Overbury  was  committed  to  the 
Towei',  where,  however,  it  does  not  appear  tliat  James  meant  him  long  to 
remain.  Hut  the  instant  he  entered  there.  Sir  Thomas  was  fully  m  the 
power  of  his  arch  enemies.  The  lieutenant  of  the  Tower,  a  mere  crea- 
ture and  dependant  of  Rochester,  conlined  Overbury  with  such  strictness, 
tiiat  for  six  luonths  the  unfortunate  man  did  not  see  even  one  of  his  near- 
est relatives. 

Having  got  rid  of  the  grav(!  and  troublesome  opposition  of  Overbury, 
the  giulty  lovers  now  pushed  forward  luatlers ;  and  the  earl  of  Kssex, 
completely  cured  of  his  love  for  the  lady  by  what  appeared  to  him  tho 
unaccountable  capriciousness  of  her  conduct,  very  gladly  consented  to  a 
ridiculously  indecent  plea,  which  induced  the  proper  authorities  to  pro- 
niMinco  a  divorce  between  the  earl  and  coimtess  of  Kssex.  The  latter 
was  immediately  n)arrie(l  to  her  paramour,  Rorhesler,  upon  whom,  that 
the  lady  miglit  not  lose  a  step  in  rank  by  her  iievv  marriage,  the  king 
now  conferri!d  the  title  of  earl  of  {Somerset. 

'I'liough  the  imprisonment  of  Overbury  had  thus  completely  served  lier 
piii|)')se  as  to  her  divorce  and  re- marriage,  it  had  by  no  means  satiated 
tlie  revenjjc  of  the  countess.  TIk;  fincible  and  bitter  contenipl  witli 
which  Overbury  had  spoken  of  her  was  still  farther  envenomi'd  by  her 
own  consciousness  of  its  justice,  and  she  now  exerted  all  thi'  power  of  her 
beauty  and  her  blandishments,  until  she  persuaded  tht>  uxorious  Somerset 
that  llieir  secret  was  too  iniicli  in  danger  while  Overbury  still  iived,  and 
that  tindr  safety  deinandeil  his  death  I'oison  was  resorted  to;  both  Som- 
erset and  his  countess' uncle,  llie  earl  of  Northampton,  joining  in  the  cow- 
ardly crime  Willi  some  accoinpiices  of  lower  rank.  Sligiit  doses,  only, 
were  given  to  the  doomed  victim  in  the  (irst  place,  but  these  failing  of  the 
iesireil  elVect,  the  base  ironspiraiors  gave  liiin  a  dose  so  violent  that  he 
Jied,  and  with  such  evidi^nt  marks  of  the  foul  treatment  that  he  had  n^'t 
with,  that  an  instant  dis<'overy  was  only  avoided  by  burying  the  body  with 
ill  imlecent  liaste. 

Kvea  in  this  worhl  of  imperfect  knowledge  and  often  mistaken  jiidg- 
meiii,  the  plotting  and  cold-blooded  murderer  never  escapes  pnnislimeiit. 
rile  HcalToid  or  the  g.illows,  the  galicjs  or  the  gaol,  nideeil,  he  may, 
thotiuli  til  It  l)ut  rarely  happens,  contrive  to  elude.  Hut  the  tortures  of  a 
giiiliy  conscience,  a  constant  remorse  iniii<jlei|  with  a  constant  dread,  a 
coiiiimiccl  and  haunting  rcuiieinbrance  of  the  wrong  ihnie  to  the  dead,  and  a 
vmisiMiii  horror  of  the  dread  relribniKUi  which  at  any  instant  the  slighlest 
tiiil  most  unforeseen  acculciit  may  bring  upon  his  own  guilty  bead — 
*liesc  punishments  the  miirdirer  never  did  and  never  can  escape.     From 


I 


4^ 


b56 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTOaV. 


the  moment  that  the  unfortunate  Overbury  was  destroyed,  the  whole  feel- 
ing and  aspect  of  the  once  gay  and  brilliant  Somerset  were  changed.  Ho 
became  sad,  silent,  inattentive  to  the  humours  of  the  king,  indifferent  to 
the  fatal  charms  of  the  countess,  morose  to  all,  shy  of  strangers,  weary 
of  himself.  He  had  a  doomrd  aspect ;  the  wild  eye  and  hasty  yet  uncer- 
tain gait  of  one  who  sees  himself  surrounded  by  the  avengers  of  blood 
and  is  every  instant  expv'cting  to  feel  their  grasp. 

As  what  was  at  first  attributed  to  temporary  illness  of  body  or  vexation 
of  mind  became  a  settled  and  seemingly  incurable  habit,  the  king,  almost 
boyish  in  his  love  of  mirth  in  his  hours  of  recreation,  gradually  grew 
wearied  of  the  presence  of  his  favourite.  All  the  skill  and  policy  of 
Somerset,  all  the  artful  moderation  with  which  he  had  worn  his  truly  ex- 
traordinary fortunes  had  not  prevented  him  from  making  many  enemies ; 
and  these  no  sooner  pen^eived,  with  the  quick  eyes  of  courtiers,  that  the 
old  favourite  was  falling,  than  they  helped  to  precipitate  his  fall  by  the  in- 
troduction of  a  young  and  gay  candidate  for  the  vacant  place  in  the  royal 
favour. 

Just  at  this  critical  moment  in  the  fortunes  of  Somerset,  George  Villiers, 
the  cadet  of  a  good  English  family,  returned  from  his  travels.  He  was 
barely  twenty-one  years  of  age,  handsome,  well  educated,  gay,  possessed 
of  an  audacious  spirit,  and  with  precisely  that  love  and  aptitude  for  per- 
sonal adornment  whi(th  became  his  youth.  This  attractive  person  was 
placed  full  in  the  king's  view  duriuf/  tlii!  performance  of  a  comedy.  James, 
as  had  been  anticipated,  no  sooner  saw  Inm  than  he  became  anxious  for 
his  jiersonal  attt-ndance.  After  some  very  ludicrous  coquetting  between 
his  desire  for  a  new  favourite  and  his  unwillingness  to  cast  off  the  old  one, 
James  had  the  young  man  introduced  at  court,  and  very  soon  app()int(;d 
him  his  cupbearer.  Thouirti  tlie  ever-speaking  conscience  of  Somerset 
had  long  made  him  unfit  for  his  former  gaity,  he  was  by  no  means  pre- 
pared to  see  himself  supplanted  in  the  royal  favour;  but  before  he  c(udd 
make  ;iny  rlfort  to  ruin  or  otliciwise  dispose  of  young  Villier8,a  discovery 
Was  made  which  very  efle(;tn;dly  ruined  himself. 

Among  many  persons  whom  Sonlerset  and  his  guilty  countess  had 
found  it  necessary  to  employ  in  the  execiuiou  of  their  atrocious  design, 
was  an  apothecary's  apprentice  who  had  been  enii)loyed  in  mixing  up  tli(( 
poisons.  This  man,  now  living  at  riiishinu:,  made  iio  scruple  of  openly 
staling  that  ()verl)ury  had  died  of  fioison,  and  that  he  had  himself  liccn 
.;in|iloyed  in  preparing  it.  The  re|)ort  reached  the  ears  of  the  Kngjisli 
envoy  ill  tlic  l,ow  Coiiiitries,  and  was  l)y  him  transmitted  to  the  secretary 
of  state,  Wiiiwood,  who  at  once  coininunicatcd  it  to  the  king.  However 
wi'ary  of  his  favourite,  .lames  was  struck  with  horror  and  surprise  on  re- 
ceiviuy,  this  rc|iori,  but  nitli  a  rigid  iinparliahly  which  does  honour  to  In-i 
memory,  he  at  oikm-  sent  Tor  .Sir  Kdward  Coke,  the  chief  justice,  and  i  nm- 
mandeil  him  to  examine  into  the  matter  as  carefully  and  as  iins|)ariiiglv 
as  if  the  accused  persons  were  the  lowest  and  the  least  eared  lor  in  llm 
laud.  TI.e  stern  nature  of  Cuke  scarcely  neecjed  this  injiiiictiou ;  the  in- 
quiry was  steadily  and  searcliiiigly  carried  on,  and  it  resiillcd  in  the  coin. 
plete  proi>f  of  the  guilt  of  the  earl  and  countess  of  SounTset.  Sir  Jervin 
Klviii,  lieiilenant  of  the  Tower,  l''raiikliii,  Wesioii,  and  Mrs.  'I'lirner.  (K 
lh(^  teinpi'r  of  Cok(!  this  very  'rial  alfonls  a  remarkihle  and  not  very 
creililalile  instance.  AildresHinij  Mrs.  Turner,  he  told  her  that  sIk!  win 
"guilty  of  the  seven  deadly  .«ius;  henisf  a  harlot,  a  bawd,  a  sorceresn,  a 
witch,  a  papist,  a  felon,  and  a  murderer''* 

The  licMiourahle  impartiality  with  which  the  kin(f  had  ordered  an  inquiry 
Into  the  murder  of  Sir  I'lHunas  Overhnry  was  not  ei|iially  observed  after- 
wards. All  the  accused  were  very  properly  eondemueil  to  death;  hut  the 
sentence  was  executed  only  on  the  aci'oiiipliees ;  by  tar  :he  worst  ( riiiii- 
lials,  the  ear]  and  countess  were  pardoned !    A  very  brief  itiipriiionnu'lil 


I'Vein 

tlllllus 

Mint 

lUieei 

/)llli 
't|ijieiir 

A. 
Willi  il 
liiilijy 
I"  loiilii 
Ills  ni\ 
'ereiiH 

I'lVlj 

llut 
ll'lllll  1 1 

llle  S, 
lliey  Ii,i 
«le(il,  II 
I"  slum 

"|>|IIIH|| 
'M||||iI|0| 

Ihe  ill  I, 
"«  Jiiliii 
ilill,  .'i« 
lireJiKli 
allioiiie 
i'hHl  ill 


THE  TilEASUUY  OF  HISTORY. 


557 


and  tli«  forfeiture  of  their  estates  were  allowed  to  expiate  tTicir  enormous 
r'riitlfiM,  and  they  were  then  assigned  a  pension  sufTicient  for  their  support, 
mid  iilh)wed  to  retire  to  the  country.  But  the  pardon  of  man  could  not 
Mccuro  llieni  the  peace  of  heart  which  their  crime  had  justly  forfeited, 
'I'lrcy  lived  in  the  same  house,  but  they  lived  only  in  an  alternation  of  suU 
Innni'MM  and  ciiidrng,  and  thus  tiiey  dragged  on  many  wretched  years,  a 
iniitual  torment  in  tiieir  old  age  as  they  iiad  been  a  mutual  snare  in  their 
youth,  until  they  at  length  sank  unregretted  and  m  honoured  into  the  grave. 

A<  n.  1016. —  The  fall  of  Somerset  necessarily  tacilitated  and  hastened 
llld  rise  of  young  George  Villiers,  who  in  a  wonderfully  short  time  ob- 
liiineil  promotions — which,  that  the  regularity  of  narrative  may  be  pre- 
Nerved,  we  insert  here — as  Viscount  Villiers,  earl,  marquis,  and  finally 
(hike  of  Ihlckingham,  knight  of  the  garter,  master  of  the  horse,  chief  jus- 
lice  ill  eyre,  warden  of  the  cinque  ports,  master  of  the  king's  bench  oflice, 
Hti'Wiird  of  WcMlminister,  constable  of  Windsor,  and  lord  high  admiral  of 
l')ii)tliin(l>  iliB  mother  was  made  countess  of  Buckingham,  his  brother 
Viicoiiiil  I'lirbeck,  and  a  whole  host  of  his  previously  obscure  and  needy 
fii"'Minte«  obtained  honours,  places,  patents,  or  wealth. 

'I'lic  profusion  of  the  king — to  which  justice  demands  that  we  add  tho 
|iiirxiiiHiiiy  of  the  parliament — made  him  throughout  his  whole  reign  an 
I'Miliiinimsed  man ;  and  he  incurred  great,  though  undeserved  odium  by 
llii'  riMirne  he  took  to  supply  his  pressing  and  immediate  wants.  When 
Kli/alielh  aided  the  infant  slates  of  Holland  against  the  gigantic  power  of 
S|iiiin,  nhe  had  tlu!  iinporlant  towns  of  Flushing,  the  Urille,  and  Kamme- 
kiiiH  placed  in  her  hands  as  pledges  for  the  repayment  of  the  money  to 
i'liiulaiid.  Various  payments  had  been  made  which  had  reduced  the  debt 
U)  .ilUdO.OOO,  which  HUin  the  Dutch  were  under  agreenienl  to  pay  to  .Fames 
III  the  rate  of  >i:4(),0(iO  per  annum.  This  annual  sum  would  doublless 
liave  been  of  vast  service  to  the  king — but  i£2C,000  per  annum  were  spent 
III  iiiiuiiliiiiiinu  his  garrisons  in  the  caulionary  or  mortgaged  towns.  Unly 
.fll.doo  leinniiied  clear  to  England,  and  even  tli  '  would  cease  in  tho 
event  of  new  warfare  between  Holland  and  Spam.  Considering  these 
tliinun,  and  lieiiiif  pressed  on  all  sides  for  money  to  satisfy  just  dcmanda 
Uliil  llie  incessant  cravings  of  his  favourite  and  the  court,  the  king  gladly 
uuiied  lo  Niineiider  the  cautionary  towns  on  the  instant  payment  by  the 
Diilch  of  ,t;'.'i0,00();  and,  under  all  the  circumstances  of  the  case,  James 
iippcars  to  have  aete<l  witli  sound  policy  in  making  the  bargain. 

A.  II.  Ifil7. — In  llie  course  of  this  year  .l.imes  paid  a  visit  to  Scotland 
Willi  llie  view  lo  It  favourite  scheme  which  he  had  long  pondered — pro. 
Iiiilily  even  before  he  iiseeiided  the  Knglifh  throne,  and  while  he  .siill  was 
prrKoiiiilly  annoyed  by  the  rude  ami  intrusive  |iresuinption  of  tlic  puritans. 
Ills  nrhii'iie  was  "  l'»enlarg(!  the  episcoiiiil  anthorily  ;  to  establish  a  few 
uereinoiiiiN  in  iinbllf  worship,  .iiid  to  settle  and  lix  the  superiority  of  the 
civil  lit  llie  eccleM^B'itical  jnnsdicticn." 

Hut  lliouuh  Iho  king's  peisonal  inlliicnce  was  now  very  high,  as  wel' 
I'roiii  Ihr  iicacr  he  dad  preserved  Ihroiigliont  his  dominions  ami  the  pride 
llie  Seolih,  Ihciruclvcs  a  i>edantic  people,  fell  in  hearing  the  kiiiif  whom 
lliey  h.nl  itiven  »o  Kiigland,  ciieil  as  "  llie  Drilish  .Solomon,''  as  from  Iho 
ureal,  imt  loM'y  niijiist,  preference  which  llic  king  took  every  opporlnniiy 
lo  nIiiiw  to  Ni'i,ttisli  suilors  for  promotion,  even  his  inthieiice,  al'ler  inneh 
oppoNilioii  on  the  part  of  the  I'lergy,  eeuld  only  procnie  him  a  sullen 
mioplioiiof  lull  a  small  portion  of  his  pliiii.  "Kpiseopacy"  was  so  inncli 
llie  d>  leslHlloii  of  ihe  Scotch,  tliat  it  is  surprising  that  so  shrewd  a  kin|j 
UN  JanicM  Mhoiild  have  made  a  point  of  eiidcavonringto  fonc  ii  upon  them 
tliil,  :iii  if  he  bad  not  ilonc  snincicnt  in  ihc  way  of  alTronlinu  the  nligionj 
prelmlii'iis  ol  llie  iScolcli,  James  no  sooner  returned  home  ilian  he  eipiaily 
.illioiiieil  ihice  of  llial  large  parly  of  his  Knglish  snbjccls,  the  I'uiitans. 
riirtl  dark,  nulleii,  joyless,  and  joy  haling  set  of  men  had,  by  degrees, 


558 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


brought  the  original  decorous  Sunday  of  England  to  be  a  day  of  the  most 
silent  and  intense  gloom.  Tim  was  noticed  by  the  king  in  his  return  from 
Scotland,  and  he  immediately  issued  a  proclamation  by  which  all  kinds  ot 
lawful  games  and  exercises  were  allowed  after  divine  service.  However 
imprudent  this  proclamation  on  the  part  of  the  king,  we  are  inclined  to  be- 
lieve that  in  spirit  his  extreme  was  wiser  than  that  of  the  puritans.  But 
whatever  may  be  the  good  or  the  bad  policy  of  the  practice,  it  is  certain 
that  the  king  chose  a  wrong  time  for  recommending  it.  Even  liis  authority 
was  as  nothing  against  superstitious  fanaticism.  But  while  he  failed  to 
I'lieck  or  persuade  the  puritans,  did  he  not  irritate  them  1  Might  not  the 
sharpening  of  many  a  sword  that  was  bared  against  Charles  I.  be  traced 
to  the  vexation  caused  in  puritan  bosoms  by  this  very  proclamation  of 
his  father  1 


I 


CHAPTER  XLIX. 
THE   REIGN  OF  JAMES  I.  {continued), 

A.  D.  1618. — Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  the  favourite  of  Elizabeth,  the  opponent 
and  enemy  of  Essex,  to  whom  he  had  shown  at:  implacable  and  savage 
jpirit  which  makes  us  doubt  svhether  the  world  had  not  been  greatly  mis- 
taken in  deeming  him  a  good  as  well  as  a  great  man,  had  now  been  for 
thirteen  years  Inigeri.ig  in  his  prison.  Though  advanced  in  years  and 
•uined  in  fortune,  even  imprisonnuMit  could  not  break  his  unquestionably 
iaring  and  resolved  spirit.  Solilier,  seaman,  courtier,  and  man  of  intrigue 
Juring  so  much  of  liis  life,  it  was  when,  amid  the  yells  of  the  public  fe- 
locity,  which  his  own  cruelly,  however,  had  provoked  and  exemplared, 
le  was  led  to  the  Tower  of  London,  that  he,  instead  of  resigning  himself 
.o  despair,  commenced  his  elaborate  and  really  learned  History  of  the 
vVorld!  Thirteen  years  of  conlinement  could  not  quell  that  enduring  and 
hiring  spirit ;  and,  as  :h(>  report  of  his  friends  informed  liim  that  public 
>piiii(in  was  very  favoiiralily  and  greatly  changed  on  his  behalf,  he  now 
Degaii  to  sclieine  fur  oblaiiiiiiK  liis  enlargement.  He  caused  it  to  be  noised 
ibroid  that,  during  one  of  Ins  voviigcs,  he  had  discovered  a  gold  mine  in 
Gniana,  so  rich  that  it  would  atTiird  enormous  wealth  not  only  to  any 
gallant  adventurers  who,  under  proper  guidance,  should  seek  it,  but  also 
to  till!  entire  nation  at  large.  These  reports,  as  Raleigh  from  the  first 
iileniled,  readied  the  ears  of  the  king;  but  JaiiU'S  doubted  the  existence 
of  liie  mine,  and  the  more  so  because.'  it  was  clear  that  a  man  in  the  sad 
situation  of  Hali'igh  imirlit  be  ex|)ecled  to  say  aliuosi  anytliing  to  obtain 
freeiloin.  Hut  the  report  was  so  far  servicealile  to  Raleigh,  tiiat  it  rc- 
niiiided  the  king  of  the  lung  dreary  years  the  once  gall'tnt  soldier  and  gay 
cipiirlier  of  Eliz  ihelh  had  passed  m  the  gloom  of  a  dungeon,  and  he  IIIm'I'. 
iti'd  liiin  fri'iu  lilt!  Tiiwer,  hut  refui^ed  to  release  him  from  the  origiiiiil 
K'liti'iic'e  of  death,  which.  111!  said,  hi!  considered  a  necessary  check  upon 
a  man  of  |{aleii;l)'s  I'liaracter,  which  assuredly  had  more  of  talent  ami 
audacity  than  of  either  probity  or  mercy. 

Tlioiiifli  Janii's  was  by  no  means  inclined  to  give  credit  to  the  insigiii- 
tir.iiit  tale  of  Ualeiiih.  he  gave  full  le;ive  to  all  private  adventurers  wlm 
iMi>!ht  choose  to  jiiiii  him  ;  anil  Raleigh's  ii^repid  assertions,  hackeil  hy 
hi--  L'leat  repute  ("or  bolli  talcit  and  eiiioMgc,  soon  |)lai'ed  him  at  the  licitd 
of  twfdve  ships,  well  arini'd  and  lUiiniied,  and  provided  willi  everytliiiis,' 
ri'i'SMiiry  for  piracy  and  plumler,  but  with  nothing  calculated  fordiggini} 
111  prriendi'd  treasure. 

On  tlie  river  Oromiko,  in  (tni.ina,  the  Spaniards  had  hnilt  a  town  cnlli'd 
Si.  Tiiomas,  which,  at  this  lime,  was  exceedingly  \v<'allliy.  Raleigh  li'id 
taken  possession  of  the  whole  district  above  twenty  years  before  in  tiit 


suhj 

ces, 

will) 

ncr  li 

was 

of  .s 

of  St' 

Kak 

ing  I 

der. 

alicai 

aiKiiht' 

tioii  fi 

will 

tliiriiM 

liravai 

feigiic 

doom 

guise, 

had  so 

Was  ill 

it  is  al 

Ihj  1)1, 

been 

llie  con 

I'Xeeiiti 


111 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


559 


name  of  Queen  Elizabeth  ;  but  as  he  had  immediately  left  the  coast,  his 
claim  on  behalf  of  England  was  totally  unknown  to  the  Spaniards.  It 
was  to  this  wealthy  Spanish  settlement  that  Raleigh  now  steered,  and  on 
arriving  there  he  stopped  at  the  mouth  of  the  Oronoko  with  five  of  his 
largest  ships,  sending  the  remainder  of  the  expedition  up  to  St.  Thomas' 
under  the  command  of  his  son  and  his  fellow-adventurer,  Captain  Kemyss, 
The  Spaniards,  seeing  the  English  adventurers  approach  St.  Thomas  in 
such  hostile  guise,  fired  at  them,  but  were  speedily  repulsed  and  driven 
into  the  town.  As  young  Raleigh  headed  his  men  in  the  attack  on  the 
town,  he  exclaimed,  "  This  is  the  true  mine,  and  they  are  but  fools  zfhn  lock 
for  any  other  P^  He  had  scarcely  sjjoken  the  words  when  he  received 
a  shot,  and  immediately  fell  dead  ;  Kemyss,  however,  still  continued  the 
attack  and  took  the  town,  which  they  burned  to  ashes  in  their  rage  at 
finding  no  considerable  booty  in  it. 

Raleigh  had  never  averred  that  he  had  himself  ever  seen  the  wonder- 
fully rich  mine  of  which  he  gave  so  glowing  an  account,  but  that  it  had 
been  found  by  Kemyss  on  one  of  their  former  expeditions  together,  and 
that  Kemyss  had  brought  him  a  lump  of  ore,  which  proved  the  value  as 
well  as  the  existence  of  it  the  more.  Yet,  now  that  Kemyss,  by  his  own 
account,  was  within  two  hour's  march  of  the  mine,  he  made  the  most  ab- 
surd excuses  to  his  men  for  leading  them  no  farther,  and  iinnu'diately 
returned  to  Raleigh,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Oronoko,  wilh  the  melanclioly 
news  of  the  death  of  the  younger  Raleijih,  and  the  utter  failure  of  all  thrir 
hopes  as  far  as  St.  Thomas  was  concerned.  The  scene  between  R;ih'iyh 
and  Kemyss  was  probably  a  very  violent  one  ;  at  all  events  it  had  *iirh 
an  effect  upon  Kemyss  that  he  immediately  retired  to  his  own  cabin  and 
put  an  end  to  his  existence. 

The  other  adventurers  now  perceived  that  they  had  entered  into  both 
a  dangerous  and  luiprofitable  speculation,  and  tliey  inferred  from  all  that 
had  passed  that  Raleigh  from  the  outset  had  relied  upon  piracy  and  jiiun- 
dering  towns— a  kind  of  speculation  for  which  their  ill  success  at  St. 
Thomas  gave  them  no  incliiuilion,  whatever  their  moral  feelings  upon  the 
subject  might  have  been.  On  a  full  consideration  of  all  the  circumstan- 
ces, the  adventurei's  determined  to  return  to  England  and  take  Hiileigh 
with  iheni,  leaving  it  to  him  to  justify  himself  to  the  king  in  the  best  man- 
ner he  could.  On  the  passage  he  repeatedly  endeavoured  to  escafii',  hut 
was  brought  safely  to  England  and  delivered  up  to  the  king.  The  court 
of  Spain  in  the  meantime  lomlly  anil  justly  coinplained  of  the  destruction 
of  St.  Thomas;  and,  after  a  long  examination  before  the  privy  coiuuil, 
Raleiiih  w  as  |)ronouni'ed  guilty  of  wilful  deceit  as  to  tiie  mine,  and  of  hiv- 
ing from  the  beginniuir  intended  to  make  booty  by  piracy  and  laud-plun- 
der. The  hnvyers  held,  however,  as  a  universal  rtile,  that  a  iinii  who 
alrcaiK  lay  uiider  attaint  of  treason  could  iii  no  form  be  tried  anew  for 
another  crime  ;  the  king,  therefore,  siirneil  a  warrant  for  Raleigh's  execn- 
tUMi  for  that  partirip.ition  in  tiie  setting  up  of  the  lady  Arabella  Stuart,  for 
wliicli  lie  had  already  suffered  imprisonment  during  t'le  dreary  period  of 
iliirtccn  years'.  lie  died  with  courage,  with  gaycty  almost,  but  witliout 
l)r,ivaiio  or  indecency.  While  there  was  yet  a  faint  liope  of  his  escipe  he 
feigned  a  variety  of  illnesses,  even  including  madness,  to  protract  his 
dixiin;  but  when  .all  hope  was  at  length  at  an  cud,  he  threw  olT  all  (lis- 
guise,  and  [irepared  to  die  with  that  courace  (Ui  the  scaffold  with  which  ho 
had  so  often  dared  death  on  the  field.  Taking  up  the  axe  with  w'lich  lie 
was  about  to  be  beheaded,  he  felt  the  edce  nf  it.  and  said, "  'Tis  a  sharp,  but 
it  is  also  a  sure  remedy  for  all  ills."  He  then  calmly  laid  his  head  upon 
th-!  block,  and  was  dead  at  the  first  stroke  of  the  axe.  Few  men  had 
been  more  unpopular  a  few  years  earlier  than  Sir  Walter  Raleigh  ;  imt 
till'  courage  he  displayed,  the  long  iinprisoniiieiit  he  had  suffereil,  and  Ins 
I'Xiculion  on  a  sentence  pronounced  so  long  before,  merely  to  give  satis- 


560 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


faction  to  Spain,  rendered  this  execution  one  of  the  most  unpopular  acts 
evor  performed  by  the  ki:  ,'. 

It  will  be  remembered  that  we  spoke  of  the  marriage  of  the  princess 
Klizabeth  to  the  elector  palatine  as  an  event  which  in  the  end  proved 
mischievous  both  to  England  and  to  the  king. 

A.  D.  1619.— The  states  of  Bohemia  being  in  arms  to  maintain  their  re- 
volt from  tiic  hated  authority  of  the  catholic  house  of  Austria,  the  mighty 
preparations  made  by  Ferdinand  II,,  and  the  extensive  al'-ances  he  had 
succeeded  in  forming  to  the  same  end,  made  the  states  very  anxious  to 
obtain  a  counterbalancing  aid  to  their  cause.  Frederick,  elector  palatine, 
being  son-in-law  to  the  king  of  England  and  nephew  to  tiie  prince  Man 
rice,  who  at  this  time  was  possessed  jf  almost  unlimited  power  over  the 
United  Provinces,  the  states  of  Bohemia  considered  that  were  he  elected 
to  their  crown — which  they  deemed  elective — their  safety  would  be  in 
sured  by  iiis  potent  connections.  They  therefore  offered  to  make  Fred- 
erick their  sovereign ;  and  he,  looking  only  at  the  honour,  accepted  the 
offer  witiiout  consulting  either  his  uncle  or  father- in-law, probably  because 
he  well  knew  that  they  would  dissuade  him  from  an  honour  so  costly  and 
onerous  as  tliis  was  certain  to  prove.  Having  accepted  the  sovereignty 
of  lloheniia,  Frederick  immediately  marched  all  the  troops  he  could  com- 
mand to  the  defence  of  his  new  subjects.  On  the  news  of  this  event  ar- 
riving in  England  tlic  people  of  all  ranks  were  strongly  excited.  As  we 
hav(!  elsewhere  said,  the  people  of  England  are  extremely  affectionate 
towards  their  sovereigns  ;  and  F'rederick,  merely  as  the  son-in-law  of  the 
king,  would  have  had  their  warmest  wishes.  But  they  were  stdl  further 
interested  on  his  behalf,  because  he  was  a  protestant  prince  opposing  the 
ambition  and  the  persecution  of  the  detested  Spaniard  and  Austrian,  and 
there  was  a  general  cry  for  an  English  army  to  be  sent  forthwith  to  Bo 
hcmia.  Almost  the  only  man  in  the  kingdom  who  was  clear-sighted  and 
unmoved  fiinid  all  this  passionate  feeling  was  James.  He  was  far  too 
deeply  impressed  with  tlie  opinion  that  it  was  dangerous  for  a  king's  pre- 
rogative and  for  his  subjects'  passive  obedience,  to  look  with  a  favonral)le 
eye  upon  revolted  stales  conferring  a  crown  even  upon  his  own  son-in- 
law,  lie  would  not  acknowledge  Frederick  as  king  of  Boiieinia,  and 
forbade  bis  being  prayed  for  in  the  chuiclies  imder  that  title. 

A.  n.  Ui'JO. — However  wise  the  reasonings  of  James,  it  would,  in  the 
end,  iiavt'  bi.'cn  profitable  to  him  to  have  sent  an  English  army,  even  npiiii 
a  vast  scale,  to  liie  assistance  of  Frederick  in  tiie  tirst  instance.  Ferdi- 
nand, with  the  (hike  of  Bavaria  and  the  count  of  Biicqnoy,  and  Spinola, 
with  thiily  thousand  vett^ran  troops  fnnn  tin;  Low  Countries,  not  only 
defeated  Frederick  at  th(^  great  ballh;  of  Prague,  and  sent  him  and  \m 
family  fiitiilives  into  Holland,  but  also  look  possession  of  the  |)alalinate. 
'I'liis  laticr  disaster  might  surely  have;  Ix'en  prev('iite(l,  had  James  at  llio 
very  outset  so  far  departed  from  his  pacific  [xilicy  as  to  siMid  a  consider- 
ablr  ariiiv  to  occupy  the  palaliiiate,  in  iloiiig  winch  he  would  by  no  means 
have  stepped  beyond  tiie  most  strictly  legal  sujiport  of  the  legitimate  rigid 
of  ills  son  ill-law. 

Now  that  Frederii'k  was  expelled  even  from  his  palatinate,  James  still 
de|iiiidcd  upon  Ins  tact  in  negotiation  to  spare  him  the  neci'ssily  for  an 
actual  reciiiirse  to  arms  ;  bill  lie  at  the  same  time,  with  the  turn  for  dissiin- 
ulalioii  aliich  was  natiir.il  to  him,  detcrmiiied  to  use  the  warlike  entliusi- 
asiii  o(  his  .subjects  as  a  means  of  ohiainiiig  moni'y,  of  wliicli,  us  usual, 
he  was  painrnlly  in  want.  Urging  the  necessity  of  instant  recourse  to 
that  fo'ciliio  interference,  which  in  truth  he  intended  never  to  m.ike,  lia 
tried  to  i;  1111  a  hencvoleiicc,  but  even  the  present  concern  for  llie  palaliiie 
A'oiil'I  not  blind  ilie  piH)ple  to  llie  arbitrary  nature  of  that  way  of  lev\iiig 
heavy  taxes  upon  them,  and  James  was  reluctantly  obliged  to  call  u  p  ir« 
lament. 


Kind- 
ptirarie.s 
lor  of  Kn 
wretched' 
einolunu 
could  be 
"liui,  who 
Vet  liis 
hitle  ill 
bribes  ill 
that  tlioii 
niciits  wl 
pf'irs  tha 

ll'ds   to   III; 

piisoiiniei 
iiicapaciij 
M  as  isdfiii 
peil;  a  Ici 
lioa  to  ihi 
his  consei 
•V.iiiv  di 


IllK 


[larliai 


I'lidips,  .S 


THE  TaEASUHY  OF  HISTORY. 


Ml 


ill  ilic 
n  upiiii 
Fi-nli- 
Spinolii. 
only 
lul  liis 
aiiialc. 
ill  111" 
isiiliir- 
iiicaus 
itu  riglil 

mcs  still 

for  an 

<iii*'<m\- 

■lUliii-*'- 

IS  usual, 

;()(llSl'tO 

nuke,  Ii3 
piiliiinio 

IfVVlUg 

ill  ;i  r  "■" 


A.  D.  1621. — The  unwise  inclination  of  the  people  to  plunge  into  war 
on  behair  ot  the  palatine  was  so  far  serviceable  to  James,  that  it  caused 
this  parliament  to  meet  him  witli  more  than  usually  dutiful  and  liberal 
dispositions.  Some  few  members,  indeed,  were  inclined  to  make  com- 
plaint and  redress  of  certain  gross  grievances  their  first  subject  of  atten- 
tion. But  the  general  feeling  was  against  them,  and  it  was  with  some- 
thing like  acclamation  that  the  parliament  proceeded  at  once  to  vote  the 
king  two  subsidies. 

This  done,  tliey  proceeded  to  inquire  into  some  enormous  abuses 
of  the  essentially  pernicious  practice  of  granting  patent  monopolies  of 
particular  branches  of  trade.  It  was  proved  that  Sir  Giles  Mompesson 
and  Sir  Francis  Michel  had  outrageously  abused  their  patent  for  licensing 
inns  and  ale-houses ;  the  former  was  severely  punished,  and  the  latter 
only  escaped  the  same  by  breaking  from  prison  and  going  abroad. 

Still  more  atrocious  was  the  conduct  of  Sir  F.dward  ViUiers,  brother  of 
the  favourite,  Buckingham.  Sir  Edward  had  a  patent,  in  conjunction  with 
Mompesson  and  Michel  for  the  sole  making  of  gold  and  silver  lace.  This 
patent  had  not  only  been  abused,  to  the  great  oppresssion  of  the  persons 
engiigeri  in  that,  then,  very  extensive  trade,  but  also  to  the  downright  rob- 
bery of  all  who  used  the  articles,  in  which  the  patentees  sold  a  vast  deal 
more  of  copper  than  of  gold  or  silver.  ViUiers,  instead  of  being  dealt  with 
as  severely  as  his  accomplices,  was  sent  abroad  on  a  mission,  and  entrust- 
ed with  the  care  of  the  national  interests  and  honour,  as  a  moans  of 
screening  him  from  the  punishment  due  to  his  shameless  e.xtortion  and 
robbery  at  home.  Hume,  somewhat  too  tenderly,  suggests  that  the  guilt 
of  ViUiers  was  less  enormous  or  less  apparent  than  that  of  his  accompli- 
ces. But  the  true  cause  of  his  impunity  was  the  power  of  his  insolent 
and  upstart  brotiier. 

The  king  having  expressed  himself  to  be  well  pleased  tliat  the  parlia- 
ment had  enabled  him  to  discover  and  punish  this  enormous  system  of 
cruelly  and  fraud,  the  commons  now  ventured  to  carry  their  inquiries 
nito  the  practices  of  a  hijrher  offender.  That  oflender,  alas !  for  poor 
human  nature,  was  the  illustrious  Bacon  ; 

"The  wisest,  greateel,  meanest  of  mnnkind.' 

Kind-hearted,  learned,  wise,  witty,  eloquent,  and  beyond  all  his  contem- 
piirarii's  deep-thoughted  and  sagacious,  tlie  viscount  St.  Albans,  chancel- 
lor of  I'^ngland,  vvas  greedy  almost  to  insanity  ;  greedy  not  with  the  miser's 
wreti'hed  love  of  hoarding,  but  with  the  reckless  desire  of  lavishing.  His 
cniohiinenls  were  vast,  his  honours  and  apnaintments  many,  and  no  one 
cDiilil  be  more  eloquent  in  behalf  of  justice  and  moderalioii  than  this  great 
miin,  who  may  justly  be  styled  the  apostle  of  common-sense  in  n  asonlng. 
Vet  his  profusion  was  so  vast  and  so  utterly  reckless,  and  his  practice  so 
little  in  acconlaiice  with  his  preaching,  that  Ik;  look  tlic  most  enormous 
bribes  in  iiis  t)(Iice  of  judge  in  equity.  Ilu.ne  suggests  the  odd  a[)ology 
that  though  he  took  bribes  he  still  diil  juslice,  and  even  gave  hostile  judg- 
nicnts  where  he  had  been  paid  for  giving  favourable  ones  !  To  us  it  ap- 
pears that  this,  if  true,  was  nicndy  adiling  the  offence  of  robbing  individ- 
uals to  ihat  of  abusing  ins  olTice.  He  was  very  justly  senteni'ed  to  im- 
pnsonnu'nt  (iiirnigthe  roy.d  pleasure,  or  fuie  of'ttMi  tliunsaiid  jioinids,  and 
incapacily  for  airain  holilmi;  any  ollice.  The  fine  was  reinltled,  and  he 
w  as  nonu  releaseil  fmui  imprisonment  and  allowed  a  pension  for  Ins  sup- 
jioit ;  a  lenity  which  we  tliink  he  was  undes(^rving  of,  in  precise  piopor- 
tiiKi  to  iiic  vastiii'ss  of  his  atiiiity,  which  ought  to  have  taught  him  to  keep 
Ins  conscience  clear. 

Many  disputes  now  <iecurred  from  time  to  time  between  the  king  and 
his  parliament,  and  at  length  the  king  dissolved  them,  imprisoned  t'oke, 
I'liilips,  Seidell,  and  I'ym  ;  and,  in  his  whimsical  way  of  punishing  refrae 


4^f^ 


II 

1 

i 


S62 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


H  ' 


tory  people,  sent  Sir  Dudley  Digges,  Sir  Thomas  Crew,  Sir  Nathaniel 
Rick,  and  Sir  James  Perrot,  on  a  commission  to  Ireland,  a  couniry  to 
which  a  scholar  and  a  fme  gentleman  of  that  time  would  about  n!s  readily 
go  as  a  club-lounger  of  our  day  would  to  Siberia,  or  the  salt  mines  of  Po 
land. 

We  do  not  deem  it  necessary  to  dwell  at  all  minutely  upon  this  parlia- 
menlary  opposition  to  the  king,  because  it  is  less  important  in  itself  than 
in  its  consequences,  which  we  shall  have  to  develope  in  the  succeeding 
reign.  The  seed  of  the  civil  war  was  now  being  sowed.  The  commons  were 
daily  gaining  power  and  the  consciousness  of  power,  but  without  the  largn 
and  generous  as  well  as  wise  spirit  which  knows  how  to  reform  gradually/. 

Even  the  king  himself,  with  all  his  high  opinions  of  prerogative  and  his 
only  too  great  readiness  to  exert  it,  perceived  that  the  day  was  past  foi 
governing  with  the  high  hand  alone.  A  curious  instance  of  this  occurs  in 
his  buying  off  from  the  gathering  opposition  Sir  John  Saville.  While 
others  were  sent  to  prison,  or,  which  was  but  little  better,  to  Ireland,  Sii 
John,  whose  opposition  had  been  eager  and  spirited,  made  his  talent  so 
much  feared,  that  the  king  made  him  comptroller  of  the  household,  a  privy 
councillor,  and  a  baron.  If  his  successor  could  but  have  been  induced 
to  ponder  this  fact,  and  to  take  it  in  conjunction  with  the  nature  of  man- 
kind, how  much  misery  had  been  spared  to  himself  and  his  people,  and 
how  many  a  name  that  has  come  down  to  us  in  conjunction  with  the  most 
exalted  patriotism,  forsooth !  would  be  forgotten  in  the  lordly  titles  be- 
stowed upon  parliame-  lary  usefulness! 

A.  1).  1C22.— VVha;  er  intention  James  might  have  professed  of  going 
to  war  on  !  ehalf  of  his  son-in-law,  his  real  intention  was  to  secure  the 
friendship  of  Spain,  and  thus  secure  the  accomplishment  of  his  own  and 
the  nation's  wishes  by  marrying  his  son.  Prince  Charles,  to  the  Spaniard's 
sister.  Upon  this  marriaj,'e,  besides  his  looking  upon  it  as  a  master-stroke 
of  policy,  he  was  passionately  bent,  as  a  matter  of  personal  feeling,  as  lie 
deemed  no  one  below  a  princess  of  Spain  or  France  a  fitting  match  for  his 
son. 

The  war  between  the  emperor  and  the  palatine  was  still  vigorously 
kept  up,  the  latter  prince,  in  spite  of  all  his  misfortunes  making  the  most 
'.wro'ic  exertions.  The  details  of  this  w;ir  will  be  found  in  their  proper 
place.  Here  it  suffices  to  say,  that  though  James  greatly  aided  his  gallant 
■on-in-law  with  money,  he  did  him  almost  equal  injury  by  his  negotiations, 
which  every  one  saw  through,  and  of  course  treated  with  disrespect  pro- 
portioned to  their  knowledge  that  they  originated  in  the  most  intense 
political  prudence,  carried  to  the  very  verjre  of  actual  cowardice.  This 
excesfive  caution  of  the  king,  and  his  e(|U'dly  excessive  addiction  to  per- 
petual negotiation  always  ending  in  nothing,  was  made  the  subject  of 
much  merriment  on  the  continent.  At  linisscls  a  farce  was  acted,  in  the 
course  of  which  a  messenger  was  imde  to  announce  the  sad  news  th;it 
the  palatinate  was  at  length  on  the  eve  of  being  wrested  from  the  house 
of  .Vustria.  Nothing,  the  messenger  said,  could  resist  the  aid  whicli 
Frederick  was  now  about  to  receive;  the  king  of  Denmark  having 
agreed  to  send  him  a  hundred  thousand  pickli'd  herrings,  the  Dutch  a  hiiii- 
dred  tliousand  butler-boxes,  and  the  king  of  Kngland — a  liunc^red  thousaiid 
dispatches ! 

But  though  James  was  in  reality  somewhat  ridiculously  profuse  in  hif 
efforts  to  "  negotiate"  the  duke  of  Itavaria  into  restoring  ilie  palatinate,  he 
really  was  resting  his  main  hope  upon  the  Spanish  match. 

Digby,  afterwards  earl  of  Uristol,  was  sent  to  Madrid  to  endeavour  to 
hasten  tlie  negotiation,  which,  with  more  or  less  earnestness,  had  now 
beerj  carried  on  for  live  years.  Thi!  princess  being  a  catholic,  a  dispen- 
sation from  t!ie  pope  was  necessary  for  tii(^  marriage  ;  and  as  various  nn'- 
tives  of  policy  inailo  Spain  anxious  to  avoid  a  total  and   instant  breacii 


THE  TREASUEY  OP  HISTORY. 


563 


iniei 

y  to 

idily 

Po 

irlia- 
than 
cding 
were 
largfi 
lually. 
nd  his 
,st  fo« 
;\irs  in 
While 
nd,  Sit 
enl  so 
a  privy 
nduced 
)f  man- 
[Ae,  and 
he  most 
ties  be- 

)f  going 

jure  the 

jwn  and 

paniard'8 

er-stri)ke 

ng,  as  he 

eh  for  his 

« 

igorously 
the  most 
ir  proper 
is  gallant 
foliations, 
ipecl  pro- 
t  intense 
|co.    'I'his 
|)n  to  per- 
kubjiu-l  of 
ted, in  the 
Inews  thill 
the  house 
laid  wliicti 
irk  having 
itch  a  Ini"- 
d  thousand 

(fuse  in  hi? 
latiuatc,  he 

Ideavoiir  to 

Is,  had  now 

1;,  a  dispell- 

fcarious  nv- 

kaiil  breaeli 


with  James,  this  circumstance  was  dexterously  turned  to  advantage. 
Spain  undertook  to  procure  the  dispensation,  and  thus  possessed  the  pow- 
er of  retarding  the  marriage  indefinitely  or  of  concluding  it  at  any  moment, 
should  circumstances  render  that  course  advisable.  Suspecting  at  least 
a  part  of  the  deception  that  was  practised  upon  him,  James,  while  he  sent 
Digby  publicly  to  Spain,  secretly  sent  Sage  to  Rome  to  watch  and  report 
the  state  of  affairs  and  feeling  there.  Learning  from  that  agent  that  the 
chief  difficulty,  as  far  as  Rome  was  concerned,  was  the  difference  of  re- 
ligion, he  immediately  discharged  all  popish  rescusants  who  were  in  cus- 
tody. By  this  measure  he  hoped  to  propitiate  Rome;  to  his  own  subjects 
he  stated  his  reason  for  resorting  to  it  to  be— his  desire  to  urge  it  as  an 
argument  in  support  of  the  application  he  was  continually  making  to  for- 
eign princes  for  a  more  indulgent  treatment  of  their  protestant  subjects. 

Digby,  now  earl  of  Bristol,  was  incessant  in  his  exertions,  and  seems 
to  have  been  minutely  informed  of  the  real  intentions  and  feelings  of 
Spain ;  and  the  result  of  his  anxious  and  well-directed  inquiries  was  his 
informing  James  that  there  was  no  doubt  that  the  princess  would  shortly 
bestow  her  hand  upon  his  son,  and  that  her  portion  would  be  the  then 
enormous  sum  of  eight  hundred  thousand  pounds  sterling.  Pleased  as 
Tames  was  with  the  news  as  regarded  the  anticipated  marriage,  he  was 
enraptured  when  he  considered  it  in  conjunction  with  the  restoration  of 
the  palatinate,  which  undoubtedly  would  instantly  follow.  Nothing  now 
remained  but  to  procure  the  dispensation  from  Rome;  and  that,  supposing, 
as  seems  to  have  been  the  case,  that  Spain  was  sincere,  was  not  likely  to 
be  long  delayed  when  earnestly  solicited  by  Spain — when  all  James' 
hopes  were  shipwrecked  and  his  finely-drawn  webs  scattered  to  the  winds 
by  Buckingham.  Did  a  prince  ever  fail  to  rue  the  folly  of  making  an  up- 
start too  great  for  even  his  master's  control ! 

A.  D.  1623. — It  would  have  been  comparatively  a  small  mischief  had  the 
king  made  Buckingham  merely  an  opulent  duke,  had  he  not  also  made 
liim,  practically,  his  chief  minister.  Accomplished,  showy,  and  plausible, 
he  was,  however,  totally  destitute  of  the  solid  talents  necessary  to  the 
statesman,  and  was  of  so  vindictive  as  well  as  impetuous  a  nature,  that 
he  would  willingly  have  plunged  the  nation  into  the  most  destructive  wai 
for  the  sake  of  avenging  a  personal  injury  or  ruining  a  personal  enemy. 
Importunate  and  tyrannical  even  with  the  king  himself,  he  was  absolute, 
arrogant,  and  insulting  to  all  others ;  and  he  had  even  insulted  the  prince 
of  Wales.  But  as  the  king  grew  old,  and  evidently  was  fast  sinking, 
liiickingliam  became  anxious  to  repair  his  past  error,  and  to  connect  him- 
self in  such  wise  with  Charles,  while  still  only  prince  of  Wales,  as  to  con- 
tinue to  be  the  chief  minion  at  court  when  the  prince  should  have  expand- 
ed into  the  king. 

I'ereeiving  that  the  prince  of  Wales  was  greatly  annoyed  by  the  long 
(ind  seemingly  inlerminalile  delays  tiiat  had  taken  place  in  bringing  about 
the  Spanish  match,  Buckingham  resolved  to  make  that  circumstance  ser- 
viceable to  his  views.  Accordingly,  though  the  prince  had  recently  shown 
a  decided  coolness  towards  the  overgrown  favourite,  Buckingham  ap- 
proached his  niyal  highness,  and  in  his  most  insinuating  manner— and 
no  one  could  be  more  insinuating  or  supple  than  Ihickingham  when  he 
iiiul  an  object  in  view — professed  a  great  desire  to  be  serviceable.  He 
descanted  long  and  well  upon  the  unliappy  lot  of  princes  in  general  in  the 
important  article  of  marriage,  in  which  both  husband  and  wife  were  usual- 
ly the  victims  of  mere  state  policy,  and  strangers  even  to  each  other's  per- 
sons until  they  mH  at  the  altar.  From  these  undeniable  premises  h 
passed  to  the  conclusion,  so  well  calculated  to  inflame  a  young  and  en- 
thusiastic man,  that,  for  the  sake  both  of  making  the  acquaintance  of  his 
future  wife,  and  of  hastening  the  settlement  of  the  affair  by  interesting 
her  feelings  in  behalf  alike  of  his  gallantry  and  of  his  personal  accomplish 


n 

rr, 


564 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


ments,  Cnarles  would  act  wisely  by  going  incognito  to  the  Spanish  court. 
A  step  80  unusual  and  so  trusting  could  not  fail  to  flatter  the  Spanish  pride 
of  Philip  and  his  court,  while,  as  seeming  to  proceed  from  his  passion- 
ate eagerness  to  see  her,  the  infanta  herself  must  inevitably  be  delighted. 

Charles,  afterwards  so  grave  and  so  melancholy — alas!  good  prince, 
how  much  he  had  to  make"  him  so! — was  then  young,  ingenuous,  and  ro- 
mantic. He  fell  at  once  into  Buckingham's  views,  and,  taking  advantage 
of  an  hour  of  unusual  good  humour,  they  so  earnestly  importuned  the 
king  that  he  gave  his  consent  to  the  scheme.  Subsequently  he  changed 
his  mind ;  cool  reflection  enabled  him  to  see  some  good  reasons  agninst 
the  proposed  expedition,  and  his  natural  timidity  and  suspicion  no  doubt 
suggested  still  more  than  had  any  such  solid  foundation.  But  he  was 
again  importuned  by  the  prince  with  earnestness,  and  by  the  duke  '>vith 
that  tyrannous  insolence  which  he  well  knew  when  to  use  and  when  v> 
abstain  from,  and  again  the  king  consented. 

Kndymion  Porter,  gentleman  of  the  prince's  chamber,  and  Sir  Francis 
Cottington  were  to  be  the  only  attendants  of  the  prince  and  duke,  except 
their  mere  grooms  and  valets.  To  Sir  Francis  Cottington  the  king  com- 
municated the  scheme  in  the  duke's  presence,  and  asked  his  opinion  of  it. 
The  scene  that  followed  is  so  graphically  characteristic  of  thp  terms  upon 
which  the  duke  lived  with  his  benefactor  and  sovereign,  that  we  transcribe 
It  in  full  from  the  pages  of  Hume. 

".lames  told  Cottington  that  he  had  always  been  an  honest  man,  and, 
therefore,  he  was  now  about  to  trust  him  with  an  afluir  of  the  highest  im- 
p(>.rt<mce,  which  he  was  not,  upon  his  life,  to  disclose  to  any  man  what- 
ever. '  Cottington,'  added  he,  'here  is  Daby  Charles  P^g  Steenie  (these 
ridiculous  appellations  he  usually  gave  to  the  princo  and  Buckingham), 
who  have  a  great  mind  to  go  past  into  Spain  and  fetch  home  the  infanta. 
They  will  have  but  two  more  in  their  company,  and  they  have  chosen  you 
for  one.  What  think  you  of  the  journey  ?'  Sir  Francis,  who  was  a  pru- 
dent man,  and  had  resided  some  years  in  Spain  as  the  king's  agent,  was 
struck  with  all  the  obvious  objections  to  such  an  enterprise,  and  .seruplcti 
not  to  declare  thetn.  The  king  threw  liimseif  upon  his  bed  and  cried,  'I 
told  you  all  this  before,'  and  fell  into  a  new  passion  and  new  lamentations, 
complaining  that  hn  was  undone  and  should  lose  Baby  Charles. 

"The  prince  showed  by  his  countenance  that  he  was  extremely  dis- 
satisfied with  Cottingtnn's  dis(!ourse,  but  Buckingham  broke  into  an  open 
passion  against  him.  The  king,  he  told  him,  had  asked  him  only  of  the 
journey,  and  of  the  manner  of  travnlling,  particulars  of  which  he  might  be 
a  competent  judge,  having  gone  the  road  so  often  by  post ;  but  that  he, 
without  being  called  to  it,  had  th('  presuinplion  to  give  his  advice  upon 
matters  of  stale  and  against  the  prince,  wliicii  he  should  repent  as  long  as 
he  lived. 

"  A  thousand  other  reproaches  he  added  which  put  the  poor  king  into  a 
new  agony  on  behalf  of  a  servant  who,  he  foresaw,  would  sutf(!r  for 
answering  him  'honestly,  upon  which  he  said,  with  some  emotion,  "  Nay, 
hy  Ood,  Steenie,  yon  are  much  to  blame  for  using  him  so.  He  answered 
me  directly  to  the  question  which  I  asked  liim,  and  very  honestly  and 
wisely  ;  :ind  yet  yon  know  ho  said  no  mon;  than  I  told  you  before  he  was 
calii'd  in.'  However,  after  all  this  passion  on  both  sides,  .lames  renewed 
his  consnnt,  and  proper  directions  were  given  for  the  journey.  Nor  was 
he  at  any  loss  to  discover  that  the  whole  intrigue  was  originally  contrived 
by  Uuckiiigham,  as  well  as  pursued  violently  by  his  spirit  and  i'-'pclniisiiy.'' 

The  prince  and  Buekingliam,  with  their  attendants,  passed  tlinuiL''! 
France;  and  so  well  w(M'e  iliey  disguised  that  they  oven  ventured  to  louk 
Ml  at  a  court  ball  at  Paris,  wliere  ihe  priive  siw  ilie  princess  Heiiiii;ti:i 
his  afterwards  unfortunate  and  lieroiiMJIy  iiit;iehed  queen. 

In  eleven  days  they  ar'^vud  »••  Madrid,  where  they  threw  o(T  their  de 


THE  TREASUaV  OF  HISTORY. 


565 


on, 

•.UlSWlTCli 

iii'jiUv  and 
ire  lie  was 
riMit'weii 
Nor  was 
y  coiitrivi'il 
pcuuisiiy. 
h1   ilifouii'i 
ired  lo  Ulll^' 
Hi;lirii:li'i 


gnises  and  were  received  with  the  utmost  cordiality.  The  highest  honours 
were  paid  to  Charles.  The  king  made  him  a  visit  of  welcome,  cordially 
thanked  him  for  a  step  which,  unusual  as  it  was  among  princes,  only  the 
more  forcibly  proved  the  confidence  he  had  in  Spanish  honour — gave  him 
a  gold  passport  key  that  he  might  visit  at  all  hours,  and  ordered  the 
council  to  obey  him  even  as  the  king  himself.  An  incident  which  in 
Kiigland  would  be  trivial,  but  which  in  Spain,  so  haughty  and  pertinacious 
of  etiquette,  was  of  the  utmost  importance,  will  at  once  show  the  temper 
in  which  the  Spaniards  responded  to  the  youthful  and  gallant  confidence 
of  (Miarles.  Olivarez,  a  grandee  of  Spain — a  haughtier  race  far  than  any 
king,  out  of  Spain — though  he  had  the  right  to  remain  covered  in  the  pre- 
sence of  his  own  sovereign,  invariably  took  off  his  hat  in  presence  of  the 
prince  of  Wales! 

'I'hus  far,  in  point  of  fact,  whatever  obvious  objections  there  might  be 
to  Buckingham's  scheme,  it  had  been  really  successful ;  the  pride  and  the 
fine  spirit  of  honour  of  the  Spaniard  had  been  touched  precisely  as  he 
anticipated.  But  if  he  had  done  good  by  accident,  he  was  speedily  to  undo 
it  by  his  selfish  wilfulness. 

Instead  of  taking  any  advantage  of  the  generous  confidence  of  the  prince, 
the  Spaniards  gave  way  upon  some  points  which  otherwise  they  most  pro- 
bably would  have  insisted  upon.  The  pope,  indeed,  took  some  advantage 
of  the  princt's  position,  by  adding  some  more  stringent  religious  condi- 
tions to  the  dispensation;  but,  on  the  whole,  the  visit  of  the  prince  had 
done  good,  and  the  dispensation  was  actually  granted  and  prepared  for 
delivery  when  Gregory  XV.  died.  Urban  Vlll.,  who  succeeded  him, 
anxious  once  more  to  see  a  catholic  king  in  Englsnd,  and  judging  from 
Cli;irl('s'  romantic  expedition  that  love  and  impatience  would  probably 
work  his  conversion,  found  some  pretexts  for  delaying  the  delivery  of  the 
ilispensation,  and  the  natural  impatience  of  Charles  was  goaded  into 
downright  anger  by  the  artful  insinuations  of  Buckingham,  who  affected 
lo  feel  certain  that  Spain  had  been  insincere  from  the  very  first.  Charles 
at  length  grew  so  dissatisfied  that  he  asked  permission  to  return  home, 
and  asked  it  in  such  evident  ill-humour,  that  Philip  at  once  granted  it 
without  even  the  affectation  of  a  desire  for  any  prolongation  of  the  visit. 
But  the  princes  parted  with  all  external  friendship,  and  Philip  had  a  monu- 
ment erected  on  the  spot  at  which  they  bade  each  other  adieu. 

That  the  craft  of  Urban  would  speedily  have  given  way  before  the 
united  influences  of  James  and  Philip  there  can  be  no  doubt,  and  as  little 
can  there  be  of  the  loyal  sincerity  of  the  Spaniard.  Why  then  should 
Buckingham,  it  may  be  asked,  overset  when  so  near  its  completion  the 
project  lie  had  so  greatly  exerted  himself  to  advance  ?  We  have  seen  that 
lis  objec  in  suggesting  the  journey  to  the  prince  was  one  of  purely  selfish 
policy,  lie  then  was  selfish  with  respect  to  future  benefit  to  himself.  His 
sowing  discrd  between  Charles  and  the  Spaniard  was  equally  a  selfish 
procedure.  His  dissolute  and  airy  manners  disgusted  that  grave  court, 
and  his  propensity  to  debauchery  disgusted  that  sober  people.  He  in- 
sulted the  pride  of  their  proud  nobility  in  the  person  of  Olivarez,  the  almost 
omnipotent  prime  minister  of  Spain ;  and  when  by  all  these  means  he  had 
worn  out  his  welcome  in  Spain,  and  perceived  that  even  respect  to  th 
prince  could  not  induce  tiie  Spaniards  t^  endure  himself,  he  resolved  to 
breiik  off  the  amity  between  the  prince  and  Philip,  and  succeeded  as  we 
have  seen.  When  Buekiiigliani  was  taking  leave  of  Spain  he  had  the 
wanton  insolence  to  say  to  the  proud  Olivarez,  "  With  regard  to  you,  sir 
in  particular,  you  must  not  consider  me  as  your  friend,  but  must  ever  ex- 
pect from  me  all  possible  enmity  and  opposition."  To  this  insolent 
»pe(.'ch,  the  grandee,  with  calm  sj.-ealncss.  iiuM'ely  replied  tliat  he  very 
willingly  accepted  the  offer  of  enmity  so  obligiiiLdy  made. 

On  their  return  to  Kngland  both  Charles  and  Huckingham  used  all  their 


HI 


ill 


666 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


influence  with  the  king  to  get  him  to  break  off  all  further  negotiating  the 
Spanish  match,  Charles  being  actuated  by  a  real  though  erroneous  belief 
of  the  insincerity  of  the  Spaniard,  and  Buckingham,  by  a  consciousness 
that  he  could  expect  nothing  but  ruin  should  the  infanta,  after  being  stung 
by  so  much  insult  shown  to  herself  and  her  country,  become  queen  ol 
England.  In  want  of  money,  and  looking  upon  the  Spanish  match  as  a 
sure  means  by  which  to  get  the  palatinate  restored  without  going  to  war, 
James  was  not  easily  persuaded  to  give  up  all  thought  of  a  match  he  had 
had  so  much  at  heart  and  had  brought  so  near  to  a  conclusion.  But  tiie 
influence  of  Buckingham  was  omnipotent  in  parliament,  and  his  insolence 
irresistible  by  the  king;  the  Spanish  match  was  dropped,  enmity  to  the 
house  of  Austria  was  henceforth  to  be  the  principle  of  English  polity,  and 
a  war  was  to  be  resorted  to  for  the  restoration  of  the  palatinate.  It  was 
in  vain  that  the  Spanish  ambassador  endeavoured  to  open  James'  eyes. 
The  deluded  monarch  was  entirely  in  the  hands  of  the  haughty  duke,  and 
moreover,  from  growing  physical  debility,  was  daily  growing  less  fit  to 
endure  scenes  of  violent  disputation. 

The  earl  of  Bristol,  who  throughout  this  strange  and  protracted  affair 
had  acted  the  part  of  both  an  honest  and  an  able  minister,  would  most 
probably  have  made  such  representations  in  parliament  as  would  have 
overcome  even  Buckingham;  but  he  had  scarcely  landed  in  England,  ere, 
by  the  favourite's  influence,  he  was  arrested  and  carried  to  the  Tower. 
The  king  was  satisfied  in  his  heart  that  the  minister  was  an  honest  and  an 
injured  man  ;  but  though  he  speedily  released  him  from  the  Tower,  Buck- 
ingham only  suflTered  him  thus  far  to  undo  his  involuntary  injustice  on 
condition  that  Bristol  should  retire  to  the  country  and  abstain  from  all 
attendance  on  parliament ! 

From  Spain  the  prince  turned  to  France  in  search  of  a  bride.  He  had 
been  much  struck  by  the  loveliness  of  the  princess  Henrietta,  and  he  now 
demanded  her  hand ;  negotiations  were  accordingly  immediately  entered 
into  on  the  same  terms  previously  granted  to  Spain,  though  the  princess 
could  bring  no  dowry  like  that  of  the  infanta. 

James,  in  the  meantime,  found  himself,  while  fast  sinking  into  the  grave, 
plunged  into  that  warlike  course  which  during  his  whole  life  he  had  so 
sedulously,  and  at  so  many  sacrifices  of  dignity  and  even  of  pretty  certain 
advantage,  avoided. 

The  palatinate,  lying  in  the  very  midst  of  Germany,  possessed  by  the 
emperor  and  the  duke  of  Bavaria,  and  only  to  be  approached  by  an  English 
army  through  other  powerful  enemies,  was  obviously  to  be  retaken  by 
force  only  at  great  risks  and  sacrifices.  But  the  counsels  of  Buckingham 
urged  James  onward.  Count  de  Mansfeldt  and  his  army  were  subsidized, 
and  an  English  army  of  two  hundred  horse  and  twelve  thousand  foot  was 
raised  by  impressment.  A  free  passage  was  promised  by  France,  but 
when  the  army  arrived  at  Calais  it  was  discovered  that  no  formal  orders 
had  been  received  for  its  admission,  and  after  vainly  waiting  for  such 
orders  until  they  actually  began  to  want  provisions,  the  commanders  of 
the  expedition  steered  for  Zealnnd.  Here,  again,  no  proper  arrangements 
had  been  made  for  the  disembarkation  ;  a  sort  of  plague  broke  out  among 
the  men  from  short  allowances  and  long  confinement  in  the  close  vessels, 
nearly  one  half  of  the  troops  died,  and  Slansfeldt  very  rightly  deemed  the 
remainder  too  small  a  force  for  so  mighty  an  attempt  as  that  of  the  re- 
conquest  of  the  palatinate. 

A-  D.  1625. — Long  infirm,  the  king  had  been  so  much  harrassed  of  late 
by  the  mere  necessity  of  looking  war  in  the  face,  that  this  awful  loss  ol 
life  and  the  complete  failure  of  the  hopes  he  had  been  persuaded  to  rest 
upon  the  expedition,  threw  him  into  a  tertian  ague.  From  the  first  attack 
he  felt  that  his  days  were  numbered ;  for  when  told,  in  tlie  old  I]ngli9li 
adafe,  that 


THE  TttEASURY  OP  HISTORY 


567 


"  An  ugue  in  spring, 
Is  health  to  a  Icing," 

he  replied,  wilh  something  of  his  old  quaintness — "  Hoot  men '    Ye  forget 
it  means  a  young  king." 

He  was  right.  Every  successive  fit  left  him  still  weaker,  till  he  sank 
into  the  arms  of  death,  on  the  27th  March,  1625,  in  the  fifty-ninth  year  of 
his  age,  the  fifty-eightli  of  his  reign  over  Scotland,  and  the  twenty-third  of 
his  reign  over  England. 

Few  kings  have  been  less  personally  dignified,  or  less  personally  or 
royally  vicious  than  James.  As  a  husband,  a  fatiier,  a  friend,  master,  and 
patron,  he  was  unexceptionable  save  upon  the  one  point  of  excessive 
facility  and  good  nature.  As  a  private  man  he  would  have  been  prized 
the  more  on  account  of  this  amiable  though  weak  trait  of  character.  But 
as  a  king  it  weakened  him  both  at  home  and  abroad,  and  would  assuredly 
have  conducted  him  to  the  scatTold,  had  puritans  been  as  far  advanced  in 
their  fanatic  and  mischievous  temper,  and  in  their  political  and  misused 
power,  as  they  were  during  the  reign  of  his  more  admirable  but  less  for 
tunate  son. 


entered 


sed  of  late 
irful  loss  of 
ided  to  rest 
first  attiick 
»ld  English 


CHAPTER  L. 


THB   HEION  OF  CHARLES  I. 


A.  D.  1625. — The  singular  suhmissiveness  with  which  James  had  been 
obeyed,  even  when  his  principles  and  practices  were  the  most  exorbitantly 
arbitrary,  was  well  calculated  to  mislead  his  son  and  successor  Charles  1. 
into  a  very  fatal  mistake  as  to  the  real  temper  and  inclination  of  his  people. 
Authority  had  not  as  yet  ceased  to  be  obeyed,  but  it  had  for  some  time 
ceased  to  be  respected.  Even  as  early  as  the  reign  of  Elizabeth,  a  sturdy 
and  bitter  spirit  of  puritanism  had  began  to  possess  considerable  influence 
both  in  parliament  and  among  the  people  at  large,  and  that  spirit  had 
vastly  increased  during  the  long  reign  of  James  I.,  whose  familiar  man- 
ners and  undignified  character  were  so  ill  calculated  to  support  his  claim 
to  an  almost  eastern  submission  on  the  part  of  subjects  towards  their 
anointed  sovereign. 

But  the  real  temper  of  the  people  was,  as  it  seems  to  us,  totally  misun- 
derstood both  by  Charles  1.  and  his  councillors.  Charles  had  imbibed 
very  much  of  his  father's  extravagant  notion  of  the  extent  of  the  royal 
prerogative;  and  while  the  bitter  puritans  were  ready  to  carry  out  their 
fanatical  feelings  to  the  extent  of  crushing  alike  the  throne  and  the  church, 
the  king  commenced  his  reign  by  the  exaction  of  a  benevolence,  an  arbi- 
trary mode  of  raising  money  which  had  been  denounced  long  before. 
The  pecuniary  situation  of  the  king  was,  in  fact,  such  as  ought  to  have  ex- 
cited the  sympathy  and  liberality  of  his  subjects,  and  even  the  unconstitu- 
tional and  arbitrary  conduct  of  the  king  in  issuing  privy  seals  for  a  benev- 
olence must  not  blind  us  to  the  cause  of  that  conduct.  In  the  reign  of 
James,  as  we  have  seen,  the  cause  of  the  prince  palatine  was  unreasonably 
popular,  and  England  iuid  entered  into  a  treaty  to  keep  up  the  war  on  be- 
half of  that  prince.  Bound  by  that  treaty,  Charles  appealed  to  his  parlia- 
ment, which  gave  him  only  two  subsidies,  thougii  well  aware  that  sum 
would  be  quite  unequal  to  the  military  demonstrations  which  both  the  cause 
of  his  brother-in-law  and  ilie  credit  of  the  English  nation  required  at  his 
hands. 

An  inefficient  expedition  to  Cadiz  plainly  showed  that,  even  with  the 
aid  of  the  forced  benevolence,  the  king  was  very  insufiiciently  supplied  with 
money,  and  a  new  parliament  was  called.    Warned  by  the  experience  he 


568 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY 


if-f 


I'      % 


now  tiad,  the  king  exerted  himself  to  exclude  the  more  obstinate  and  able 
of  tlie  opposition  members  from  the  new  parliament.  Something  like 
what  in  later  times  has  been  called  the  management  of  parliament  had  aU 
ready  been  tried  in  the  reign  of  James.  But  the  chief  step  now  taken  was 
arbitrarily  to  name  the  popular  members  of  the  late  parliament  sheriffs  of 
counties,  by  which  means  they  were  effectually  excluded  from  sitting  in 
the  new  parliament.  But  the  puritanical  spirit  was  too  widely  spread, 
and,  while  the  expedient  of  the  king  aggravated  the  excluded  and  their 
friends,  the  members  who  were  returned  proved  to  be  quite  as  obstinate 
and  unreasonable  as  their  predecessors.  The  king  and  his  friends  and 
advisers  fairly  stated  to  parliament  the  great  and  urgent  necessity  of  the 
crown ;  but  in  the  face  of  the  fact  that  those  necessities  were  in  a  great 
measu'-e  created  by  the  former  enthusiasm  of  parliament  and  the  people 
in  favour  of  the  palatine,  the  new  parliament  v/ould  only  grant  three  sub- 
sidies, or  something  more  than  a  hundred  thousand  pounds,  a  sum  really 
paltry  as  compared  to  the  king's  need.  It  cannot  be  too  emphatically  im- 
pressed upon  the  reader,  that  here,  at  the  very  outset  of  the  king's  reign, 
the  foundation  of  all  its  subsequent  troubles  was  laid.  Measures  over 
which  the  king  had  had  no  control  made  a  vigorous  and  offensive  course 
of  action  imperative  upon  him;  but  the  parliament,  while  looking  to  him 
!.<r  tliat  course,  doled  out  the  sinews  of  war  with  a  paltry  and  inefficient 
spirit,  that  left  the  king  no  choice  save  that  between  disgrace  abroad  or 
arbitrary  conduct  at  home.  Charles,  unfortunately,  looked  rather  at  the 
abstract  nature  and  privileges  of  his  royalty  than  at  the  power  and  fierce- 
ness of  real  popular  feeling  which  he  had  to  combat  or  to  elude.  He 
openly  authorized  commissioners  to  sell  to  the  catholics  a  dispensation 
from  all  the  penal  laws  especially  enacted  against  them ;  he  borrowed 
large  sums  of  money  from  the  nobility,  many  of  whom  lent  theni  witli 
great  reluctance;  and  he  levied  upon  London,  and  upon  other  large  towns, 
considerable  sums,  under  the  name  of  ship-money,  for  the  equi|)ment  and 
support  of  u  fleet.  Wholly  to  justify  this  conduct  of  the  king  is  no  part 
of  our  business  or  desire  ;  but  again,  and  emphatically,  we  say,  that  the 
chief  blame  is  duo  to  the  niggardly  and  unpatriotic  conduct  of  the  parlia- 
ment ;  an  unjust  extortion  was  the  natural  and  inevitable  result  of  a  no 
less  unjust  and  unprincipled  parsimony. 

War  being  declared  against  France,  the  liaughty  Buckingham,  who  was 
as  high  in  favour  with  the  dignified  and  rclined  Charles  as  he  had  been 
with  the  nlain  and  coarse  James,  was  intrusted  with  an  expedition  for  tiiu 
relief  of  Hochelle,  which  at  that  time  was  garrisoned  by  the  oppr(!sscd 
protestanls  and  besieged  by  a  formidable  army  of  the  opposite  persuasion. 
Buckingham's  talents  were  by  no  means  enual  to  his  power  and  ambition. 
He  took  not  even  the  simplest  precaution  l^or  securing  the  concert  of  the 
garrison  that  he  was  sent  to  relieve,  and  on  his  arrival  before  RocIk^Hc  he 
was  refused  admittance,  the  beseiged  very  naturally  suspecting  the  sin- 
cerity of  a  commander  who  had  sent  no  notice  of  his  intention  to  aid  them. 
This  blunder  was  immediately  followed  ui)  by  another  no  less  glaring  and 
capital.  l)('iiied  admittance  to  Hochelle,  he  disregarded  the  island  of  Olc- 
ro';  which  was  too  weak  to  have  resisted  him  and  abundantly  well  pro- 
vided to  have  suljsisted  his  force,  and  sailed  for  the  isle  of  Hhc,  winch  was 
strongly  fortified  and  held  by  a  powerful  and  well|)rovisionc(l  garrison. 
He  s^at  down  In-fore  the  castle  of  St.  Martin's  with  the  avowed  inientloii 
of  starving  the  garrison  into  submission  J  but  abundant  provisions  were 
thrown  into  the  fortress  by  sea,  and  the  French  effected  a  landing  in  a 
distant  part  of  the  island.  All  that  mere  courage  could  do  was  now  done 
by  Buckingham,  who,  liowever,  lost  nearly  two-thirds  of  Ins  army,  and 
was  oblige(l  to  inakf!  a  hurried  retreat  with  the  reinaimler.  His  friends, 
quite  truly,  claimed  for  him  the  prais<'  of  personal  courage,  he  liaving 
been  the  very  last  man  to  get  on  shipboard.     But  mere  courage  is  but  i 


and  able 
hing  like 
U  had  al- 
aken  was 
iheriffs  of 
sitting  in 
y  spread, 
and  their 

obstinate 
lends  and 
iiy  of  the 
in  a  great 
lie  people 
three  sub- 
\i\n  really 
tically  ini- 
>g's  reign, 
sures  over 
ive  course 
ing  to  liiin 

incfficieiu 

abroad  or 
ther  at  tiie 
and  fiercc- 
.■lude.  He 
spensation 
I  borrowed 

iheni  with 
irge  towns, 
[ipnuMit  and 
T  is  no  part 

y,  that  the 

the  parlia- 
ult  of  a  no 

who  was 
had  been 
ion  for  the 
oppressed 
rsuasion. 
and)ilion. 
rt  of  the 
ichclle  lie 
;  the  sin- 
aid  tluMn. 
glaring  ami 
and  of  01c- 
werl  piii- 
which  was 
li  garrison, 
inii'iilioii 
sioiis  wcri' 
nding  ni  n 
H  now  done 
at  my,  and 
lis  friends, 
he  having 
go  is  lint  I 


(H 


«I1 
va 

im 

W( 

nf 

I 

Mil 
did 
Ion 

III!' 

hnil 

thr-j 

rnll 

brci 

Ihn 

flrfi 

p«»rt; 
Hint 

A. 

mrin 

lidii, 

llic  q 

iifori 

riiis 

ilii'in, 

tVIIM  jl 

nml  til 
Cdiido 

NOUN  r 

'Iriiiiii 


'I'l 

lown 
liny 

of  HI 

^ioiiii 

OVCII 

|ir|N(iri 

tHllllfl 

llr 
(If 
''OlMKK 
lIlK  III 
llllIlT 

f'triii 

fllTKOII 

«'ltllll( 
from  n 
•ln'ir  fti 
III  I'tr.' 
oilicru' 
t'opiihi 
"■"nllil 
hii'n  ,<n 

''IIVCIIOI 
•llllll'N  t 

liiiii 
No  ni 


I'll! 

nil 

"li 


ilif), 
hit 


tier 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


569 


•mall  part  of  the  quality  of  a  great  general ;  probably  there  waa  not  a  pri- 
rate  Koldier  in  his  whole  force  who  was  not  personally  as  brave  as  Bnck- 
intflinin  himself— certainly  there  could  have  been  but  few  of  them  who 
would  have  failed  more  disastrously  and  disgracefully  in  the  main  objects 
nf  thi<  expedition. 

The  failure  of  this  expedition  could  not  but  increase  the  mischievous 
hints  between  the  king  and  parliament.  The  latter,  without  considering 
Itin  dilemma  in  which  their  own  illiberal  conduct  had  placed  the  king, 
hnidly  exclaimed  aganist  those  certainly  very  arbitrary  measures  to  which 
llii'V  tliemselveB  had  compelled  him.  Duties  called  tonnage  and  poundagr 
hftcf  bnrn  levied,  and  for  refusal  to  pay  them  many  merchants  had  had 
their  i)roperty  seized  by  the  officers  of  the  customs.  The  parliament  now 
called  those  officers  to  account,  alledging  that  tonnage  and  poundage  had 
hem  illegally  demanded,  and  the  sheriff  of  London  was  actually  sent  to 
Ihn  'I'ower  fur  having  officially  supported  the  king's  officers.  To  these 
I'lrrnmstHnnes  of  ill  feeling  the  more  zealous  puritans  added  religious 
Hrlcvnncos,  and  every  day  produced  some  new  proof  that  a  very  large  pro- 
portion of  the  nation  was  infected  with  a  feeding  of  intolerance  and  bigotry 
that  could  not  but  prove  ruinous  to  both  church  and  state. 

A.  D.  l<)29. — Alarmed  at  the  zeal  and  obstinacy  with  which  the  popular 
mrinbers  seemed  determined  to  prosecute  the  tonnage  and  poundage  ques- 
tion, the  king  determined  at  least  to  postpone  the  discussion;  and  when 
ilie  qiipslion  was  brought  forward,  Sir  John  Finch,  the  speaker,  rose  and 
iifnrmed  the  house  that  the  king  had  given  him  a  command  to  adjourn  it. 
I'lils  intelligence,  instead  of  alarming  the  popular  members,  infuriated 
liirin.  Sir  John  Finch  was  forcibly  held  in  the  speaker's  chair,  which  he 
WHS  In  the  act  of  vacating,  by  two  members  named  Valentine  and  Hollis, 
und  thus  compelled  to  sanction  by  his  presence  a  short  resolution  which 
riinileinned  tonnage  and  poundage  as  being  contrary  to  law,  and  all  per- 
Niins  concerned  in  collecting  those  duties  as  guilty  of  high  crimes,  and 
'Irnouuced  Arminians  and  papists  as  capital  enemies  to  the  state. 

This  scene  of  violence  and  passion  on  the  part  of  the  commons  was  fol- 
lowed hy  the  king's  committal  to  prison  of  Sir  Miles  Hobart,  Sir  Peter 
llnyiunn,  the  learned  Selden,  with  Coriton,  Strode,  and  Long,  on  charget 
nf  sedition.  At  this  period  Charles  seems  to  have  acted  rather  upon  pas- 
kIiiiuiIo  Mud  perplexed  impulse  than  upon  any  settled  and  defined  principle, 
even  of  n  despotic  character.  He  nad  scarcely  sent  these  members  to 
prinon  upon  Lis  own  authority,  when  he  set  them  free  again  without  further 
jiinilshmenl.  To  other  members  he  was  just  as  inconsistently  severe. 
Ilolli*,  Valentine,  and  Sir  John  Elliot,  wri'^  summoned  before  the  court 
<if  the  king's  bench  to  answer  for  their  vio'ent  conduct  in  the  house  of 
••(untnims.  They  pleaded,  and  it  should  see.  >  quite  reasonably,  too,  that 
(lie  house  of  commons  being  a  superior  court  to  the  king's  bench,  the 
liitler  could  not  take  cognizance  of  an  alledged  offence  committed  in  the 
former.  The  judges,  however,  treated  this  plea  with  contempt ;  the  three 
pcrwiMis  above  named  were  found  guilty  in  default  of  appearance  and 
tiiMdennu'd  to  be  imprieoned  during  the  king's  pleasure,  to  pay  fines  ol 
from  five  hinulrcd  to  a  thousand  poimds  eacli,  and  to  give  security  foi 
llicir  future  conduct.  The  arbitrary  severity  of  this  sentencp  h;id  a  doubly 
ill  effect  J  it  exalled  in  the  public  mind  men  whose  own  rash  anger  would 
()llii<rwlsc  have  been  ihi'ir  most  efficient  opponent,  nml  it  a<Mi  d  to  the  un- 
popularity  of  the  king  just  at  the  precise  moment  when  nothing  but  a 
lorditl  and  friendly  expression  of  public  opinion  was  iit  all  likely  to  h;ivo 
been  cffrclimlly  serviceable  to  him  in  his  contest  with  the  oliitinate  and 
envenomed  purly — men  who  denied  him  the  means  of  performing  those 
duties  which  the  popular  outcry  had  mainly  contributed  to  impose  upon 
liim 

No  entirely  had  Ihickiiigham  obtained  the  ascendancy  over  the  mind  oi 


570 


THE  TREA8UKY  OF  HISTORY. 


Charles,  itiat  the  favourite's  disgraceful  failure  in  the  Rochelle  expedition, 
though  it  caused  a  loud  and  general  indignation  in  the  nation,  did  not  seem 
to  injure  him  with  the  king.  Another  expedition  for  the  relief  of  Rochelle 
was  determined  upon,  and  the  command  was  bestowed  upon  Buckingham. 
His  brother-in-law,  the  earl  of  Denbigh,  had  failed  in  an  attempt  to  raise 
the  siege.  Buckingham,  naturally  anxious  to  wipe  off  the  disgrace  ot 
two  failures,  exerted  himself  to  the  utmost  to  make  the  new  expedition 
under  his  own  command  a  successful  one.  To  this  end  he  went  to  Ports- 
mouth and  personally  superintended  the  preparations.  He  was  at  this 
moment  decidedly  tlie  most  unpopular  man  in  the  kingdom — denounced 
on  all  hands  as  the  betrayer  and  at  the  same  time  the  tyrant  of  both  king 
and  country-  The  libels  and  declamations  which  were  constantly  circu- 
lated found  a  ready  echo  in  the  breast  of  one  Felton,  an  Irish  soldier  of 
fortune.  By  nature  gloomy,  bigoted,  and  careless  of  his  own  life,  this 
man  had  been  rendered  desperate  by  what  appears  to  have  been  very  un- 
just treatment.  He  had  served  bravely  at  St.  Rhe,  where  his  captain  was 
Killed,  and  Buckingham,  whether  in  caprice  or  mere  indolence,  had  re- 
fused to  give  Lieutenant  Felton  the  vacant  place.  This  personal  injury 
aggravated  his  hatred  to  the  duke  as  a  public  enemy,  and  he  determined 
to  assassinate  hmi.  Having  traveled  to  Portsmouth,  this  resolute  and 
violent  man  contrived  to  approach  the  duke  as  he  was  giving  some  orders, 
and  struck  him  with  a  knife  over  the  shoulder  of  one  of  the  surrounding 
officers.  The  duke  had  only  strength  enough  to  say,  "the  villian  has 
killed  me,"  when  he  fell  dead  upon  the  spot.  In  the  confusion  that  en- 
sued the  assassin  might  easily  nave  escaped,  for  the  blow  was  so  sudden 
that  no  one  saw  by  wnum  it  was  struck.  But  the  assassin's  hat  had  fallen 
among  the  astounded  spectators  and  was  found  to  contain  some  of  the 
strongest  lines  of  a  very  violent  remonstrance  which  the  house  of  com- 
mons had  voted  against  the  duke's  conduct ;  and  while  some  persons  were 
remarking  that  no  doubt  the  villain  must  be  near  at  hand,  and  would  be 
recognis  '  by  the  loss  of  his  hat,  Felton  deliberately  stepped  forward  and 
avowed  his  crime.  When  questioned  he  positively  denied  that  any  one 
had  instigated  him  to  the  murder  of  the  duke.  His  conscience,  he  si'il, 
was  his  only  adviser,  nor  could  any  man's  advice  cause  him  to  act  against 
his  conscii-nce ;  he  looked  upon  the  duke  as  a  public  enemy,  and  therefore 
he  had  slain  him.  He  maintained  the  same  constancy  and  self-compla- 
cency to  the  last,  protesting  even  upon  the  scaffold  that  bis  conscience 
acquitted  him  of  all  blame.  A  melancholy  instance  of  the  extent  to  which 
men  can  shut  their  eyes  to  their  own  wickedness  in  their  detestation  ol 
the  real  or  imputed  wickedness  of  others. 

A.  D.  1 639. — Ciiarles  received  the  tidings  of  the  assassination  of  his  fa- 
vourite and  minister  with  a  composure  which  led  some  persons  to  imag- 
ine that  the  duke's  death  was  not  wholly  disagreeable  to  the  too  indul- 
gent master  over  whom  he  had  so  long  and  so  unreasonably  exerted  his 
influence.  But  this  opinion  greatly  wronged  Charles ;  he,  as  a  man, 
wanted  not  sensibility,  but  he  possessed  to  a  remarkable  extent  the  viil- 
uable  power  of  controlling  and  concealing  his  feelings. 

The  first  consequence  of  the  cessation  of  the  p<'rnicion8  counsel  and 
influence  of  Hiickitigham  was  the  king's  wise  resoluticni  to  diminish  his 
need  of  the  aid  of  his  unfriendly  subjects,  by  concluding  peaci;  with  the 
foreign  foes  against  whom  he  had  warreil  inider  so  many  disadvantages 
and  with  so  lutle  glory.  Having  thus  fn'vA  himself  from  the  heavy  and 
constant  drain  of  foreign  warfare,  thi;  king  selected  Sir  Thomas  Went- 
worth,  afterwards  earl  of  StralTord,  and  Land,  afterwards  an-hbisliop  of 
('aiitcriiury,  to  aid  him  in  the  ta.  k  of  regulating  the  internal  affairs  of  hit 
kiiigdoni ;  a  task  which  tlie  king's  own  love  of  pn^rogutive  and  tlie  uh- 
■tiiiate  ill-humour  and  disafTcctiun  of  the  leading  puritans  rendered  al* 
must  impracticable. 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


571 


linsel  am! 

Iiiuisli  tii» 

Willi  111" 

llvantuKi'S 

|)p»vy  mid 

Tias  Went- 
li\)isliop  of 
liirx  of  hii 
1(1  the  ul»- 
lidtri'd  »l« 


Unfortunately,  Laud,  who  had  great  influence  over  Charles,  was  by  no 
means  inclined  to  moderate  his  propensity  to  arbitrary  rule.  Ton- 
nage and  poundage  were  still  levied  on  the  king's  sole  authority  ;  papists 
were  still  compounded  with  as  a  regular  means  of  aiding  the  king's  rev- 
enue; and  the  custom-house  officers  were  still  encouraged  and  protected 
in  the  most  arbitrary  measures  for  the  discovery  and  seizure  of  goods  al- 
ledged  to  be  liable  to  charge  with  the  obnoxious  and  illegal  duties.  These 
errors  of  the  king's  goveinment  were  seized  upon  by  popular  declaimers, 
and  the  violence  of  libellers  provoked  the  king  and  Laud  to  a  most  arbi- 
trary extension  of  the  always  too  extensive  powers  of  the  high  commis- 
iion  and  star-chamber  courts,  the  sentences  of  which  upon  all  who  were 
accused  of  opposing  the  government  were  truly  iniquitous,  and  in  pre- 
cisely the  same  degree  impolitic.  This  court,  though  really  authorised 
by  no  law,  inflicted  both  personal  and  pecuniary  severities,  which  to  us 
who  are  accustomed  to  the  regular  and  equitable  administration  of  law 
cannot  but  be  revolting.  For  instance,  a  barrister  of  Lincoln's  Inn,  named 
Prynne,  a  man  of  considerable  talent,  though  of  a  factious  and  obstinate 
temper,  was  brought  before  this  arbitrary  court,  charged  witli  having  at- 
tacked and  abused  the  ceremonies  of  the  church  of  England.  Burton,  a 
divine,  and  Bastwick,  a  physician,  were  at  the  same  time  charged  with  a 
similar  oflbnce ;  and  these  three  gentlemen  of  liberal  professions,  for  libels 
which  now,  if  punished  at  all,  would  surely  not  cost  their  authors  more 
than  two  months'  imprisonment,  were  condemned  to  be  placed  in  the  pil- 
lory, to  have  their  ears  cut  oft",  and  to  pay  each  a  fine  of  five  thousand 
pounds  to  the  king. 

The  impolicy  of  this  and  similar  severe  sentences  was  the  greater,  be- 
cause there  were  but  too  many  indications  already  of  extensive  and  de- 
termined disalTection  to  the  crown.  Refused  the  really  requisite  pecu- 
niary assistance  by  his  parliament,  the  king  continued  to  levy  ship-money, 
and  iigainst  this  tax  an  especial  and  determined  opposi'ion  was  raiseJ; 
though  it  ought  to  be  observed  that  it  had  often  been  levied  in  former 
reigns,  not  because  of  so  reasonable  a  motive  as  the  factious  refusal  of 
parliament  to  provide  for  the  necessities  of  the  state,  but  in  sheer  des- 
potic preference  on  the  part  of  sovereigns  to  act  on  their  own  will  rather 
than  on  that  of  parliament.  The  puritans  and  the  popular  leaders  in  gen- 
eral, however,  made  no  allowance  for  the  king's  really  urgent  and  dis- 
tressing situation. 

Among  the  most  determined  opponents  of  the  ship-money  was  Mr. 
John  Hampden,  a  gentleman  of  some  landed  property  in  the  county  of 
Buckingham.  The  moral  character  of  this  gentleman  was,  even  by 
those  whom  his  polili<'al  conduct  the  most  ofi'midcd  or  injured,  admitted 
to  be  excellent;  but  Ills  very  excellence  as  a  private  man  served  only  to 
make  him  the  more  mischievous  as  a  public  leader.  If,  instead  of  lending 
himself  to  the  support  of  that  bitter  and  gloomy  party  whose  i)iely  not 
seldom  approached  !o  an  impious  familiarity,  and  whose  love  of  liberty 
degenerated  into  a  licentiousness  quite  incompatible  with  good  govern- 
ment, .lohn  Hampden  had  thrown  the  weight  of  his  own  high  character 
nto  the  scale  against  the  insanity  of  genius  as  displayed  liy  Vane,  and 
the  insanity  of  liato  to  all  above  them  and  contempt  of  aM  below  them 
which  WIS  manifested  by  nineteentwenticths  of  the  puritan  or  re|)ublican 
army,  how  sternly,  Ik'w  justly,  and  how  elTH'ienlly  might  he  not  have  re- 
bukeil  that  sordid  piirliameiil  which  so  fiercely  and  capriciously  com- 
plained of  the  king's  extortion,  while  actually  compi'lling  him  to  it  by  a 
long  and  ohsiinate  parsimony,  as  injurious  to  the  people  as  it  w;is  insult- 
ing to  the  sovereign  !  But  he  took  the  opposite  eotirse.  Being  rated  at 
twenty  shillings  for  his  lliickiiigliamsliire  estate,  he  refused  payment,  and 
finiseil  ihe  (lueslioii  iielween  himself  ami  the  I'lowii  to  be  carried  into  ilie 
•xchequer  court.     For  twelve  days  the  ablest  lawyers  in  Knglui.'!  argued 


;       l^i  : 


572 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


this  case  before  the  whole  of  the  judfres,  all  of  who:;.,  with  the  excep* 
tioii  of  four,  decided  in  favour  of  the  king's  claim. 

Without  entering  into  the  intricacies  of  legal  argumentation,  we  must 
briefly  remark,  that  all  the  writers  who  have  treated  of  this  celebrated 
case  appear  to  us  to  have  bestowed  very  undeserved  praise  upon  Hamp- 
den, and  quite  to  hHve  misunderstood  or  misrepresented  the  case  as  be- 
tween the  king  and  the  people  at  large.  Was  it  the  king's  duty  to  sup- 
port the  peace  of  the  kingdom  and  the  dignity  of  the  crown  1  By  sf 
much  as  he  might  have  fallen  short  of  doing  so,  by  so  much  would  he 
have  fallen  short  of  the  fulfilment  of  his  coronation  oath.  But  parlia- 
ment, the  power  of  which  was  comparatively  recent  and  in  itself  to  a 
very  (;ousJderable  extent  a  usurpation,  denied  him  the  necessary  supplies. 
An  odious  and  insolent  tyranny,  surely,  to  impose  responsibility,  yet  deny 
the  means  of  sustaining  it!  The  king,  then,  was  thus  driven,  insolently 
and  most  tyrannously  driven,  to  the  necessity  of  choosing  between  a 
crime  and  an  irregularity;  between  perjury,  violation  <tf  his  coronation 
oath,  and  a  direct  levy  of  that  money  which  he  could  not  obtain  through 
the  indirect  and  constitutional  means  of  parliament. 

It  is  quite  idle  to  dwell  upon  th»  irreguiarity  of  the  king's  mode  of  levy- 
ing money  without  charging,  primarily,  that  irregularity  to  the  true  cause, 
the  shameful  niggardliness  of  parliament.  Then  the  question  between 
Charles  and  the  sturdy  patriot,  Hampden,  becomes  larrowed  to  this 
point — were  the  twenty  shillings  levied  upon  Hampden's  properly  an  un- 
reasonable charge  for  the  defence  and  security  of  that  property  1  No 
one,  we  should  imagine,  will  pretend  to  maintain  that,  and  therefore  the 
refusal  of  Hampden  to  pay  the  ta.v — unaccompanied  as  that  refusal  was 
by  a  protest  against  the  vile  conduct  of  parliament — evidenced  far  more 
of  the  craftiness  and  factious  spirit  of  his  party  than  of  the  sturdy  and 
single-minded  honesty  which  the  generality  of  writers  so  tenaciously  af- 
ffect  to  attribute  to  the  man. 

We  have  dwelt  the  longer  upon  the  pecuniary  disputes  between  Charles 
and  his  narrow-minded  parliament,  because  the  real  origin  of  all  the  sub- 
sequent disorders  was  the  wanton  refusal  of  the  parliament  to  provide  for 
the  legitimate  expenses  of  the  state.  Later  in  order  of  time  the  dis- 
putes became  complicated,  and  in  the  course  of  events  the  parliament  be- 
came better  justified  in  opposition,  and  the  king  both  less  justified  and 
less  moderate  ;  but  even  in  looking  at  thos(!  .sad  passages  in  English  his- 
tory  which  tell  us  of  royal  insincerity,  and  of  Englishmen  leagued  under 
opposing  banners,  and  upon  their  own  soil  spilling  each  other's  blood, 
never  let  the  reader  forget  that  the  first  positive  inju.sticie,  the  first  provo- 
cation, the  first  ^fuilt,  belonged  to  parliament,  which  practised  tyranny 
and  injustice  while  exclaiming  aloud  for  liberty. 


CHAPTKK  LI. 

THE  REioN  or  cnAni.Gs  I.  (continued). 

A.  n.  lt)40. — Thocoh  there  was  a  most  bitter  spirit  existing  against  the 
church  of  England,  and  the  press  teemed  with  puritan  libels  as  vulgar  and 
silly  as  they  were  malicious,  Charles,  a  sincere  friend  to  the  cliur(!h,  most 
unhiipi  ily  saw  not  the  storm-cloud  that  hovered  over  him.  Insteail  oi 
roii'L'iitniting  his  energies,  his  friends,  and  his  prcuiiiary  resources,  to 
elude  or  smile  down  the  gloomy  and  bitter  puritans  of  FIngland,  and  to 
awaken  again  the  cheerful  and  loyal  spirit  of  his  English  yeomanry,  lit; 
mi/st  unwisely  diitermined  to  introduce  episcopacy  into  Scotland  Ar 
order  was  given  for  reading  the  liturgy  in  the  principal  church  of  Eilin 
Imrgh,  which  so  provoked  iIk!  congregation,  that  the  very  women  ioined 


if  1^^  ^ 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HIS  I'ORY. 


573 


Haiiisl  the 
nilgin"  '■""' 
ircli,  most 
Insioiitl  01 
ourccs,  to 
11(1,  aiul  to 
iiiiiiiry,  Ik' 
iHiul  ^i" 
1  of  Ivli" 
,,.11  ioiiii'il 


in  an  attack  on  the  officiating  minister,  and  the  place  ol"  pub  c  worship 
was  profaned  by  furious  and  ('i«i;'isting  iinprecatioiis  Long  inured  to 
actual  warfare  with  England,  anu  always  jealous  «''  a  nation  so  much 
wealthier  and  more  powerful  than  themselves,  the  Scotch  gladly  siMzed 
upon  tlie  attempt  to  introduce  episcopacy  among  (neni  as  a  pretext  for 
having  recourse  to  arms,  and  the  whole  of  lliat  c;;sa<Tecled  and  warlike 
population  was  instantly  in  a  state  of  insurrection.  Kven  now,  could  the 
king  have  been  induced  to  perceive  the  rea.  irveeracy  and  detenninatioa 
of  the  Scottish  hatred  of  episcopacy,  he  in.'gli-,  have  escaped  from  this 
portion  of  his  embarrassments  with  but  little  worse  evi.  than  some  dimi- 
nution of  his  cherished  notion  of  the  abisolute  supremacy  of  anointed  sov- 
ereigns. A  negotiation  was  resorted  to,  and  a  treaty  of  peace  quickly 
succeeded  a  mere  suspension  of  arms,  each  party  agreeing  to  a  di.><band- 
onment  of  their  forces.  Unhappilv,  neiilier  parly  was  quite  earnest  in 
desiring  petice ;  the  king  cou.d  not  give  up  his  long  cherished  ideas  of 
their  absolute  monarchy,  and  .he  rig'd  Scottish  presbyterians  were  not  a 
jot  more  inclined  to  yield  up  any  portion  of  their  entire  freedom  and 
eelf-governmenl  in  matters  of  re.igion.  The  negotiations  and  treaties 
were  in  consequence  marked  by  mutual  insincerity;  mutual  charges  of 
oad  faith  were  made,  and  both  Charles  and  his  Scotti.sh  people  speedily 
resumed  their  hostile  attitude. 

The  dispute  in  which  the  king  had  thus  needlessly  and  unwisely  in- 
volved himself  seriously  increased  his  difficulties.  Although  he  siill 
continued  to  levy  ship-money  and  other  arbitrary  taxes,  he  was  dread- 
fully distressed  for  money;  and  the  tlisaffijcled  of  England  saw,  with 
scarcely  dissembled  pleasure,  that  their  cause  was  virtually  being  se- 
cured by  the  disaffection  of  Scotland.  It  was  while  the  people  were  in 
this  ominous  temper  that  Charles,  having  exhausted  all  other  means, 
even  to  forced  loans  from  his  nobility,  was  obliged  to  call  a  parliament 
and  make  one  more  appeal  for  pecuniary  aid.  But  this  parliament  was 
even  less  than  the  former  one  inclined  to  aid  the  king.  He  had  been  re- 
fused aid  for  the  ordinary  expenses  of  the  kingdom,  and  he  was  still 
less  likely  to  be  fairly  treated  when  lie,  in  terms,  demanded  aid  to  quell 
und  chastise  the  Scottish  rebels  whose  principles  were  so  near  akin  to 
those  of  the  English  purita'is,  who  now  were  numerically  powerful 
enough  to  constitute  themselves  the  national  purse-holders.  Instead  ol 
the  aid  he  asked  for,  the  king  received  nothing  but  remonstrance  and  re- 
buke, on  the  score  of  the  means  by  which,  when  formerly  refused  aid  by 
parliament,  he  had  supplied  himself.  Finding  the  parliament  (juiic  im- 
practicable, the  king  now  dissolved  it.  Hut  the  mere  dissolution  of  this 
arbitrary  and  unjust  assembly  could  not  diminish  the  king's  ui;i:('s.slties, 
and  he  soon  called  another  parliament — that  fatal  one  whose  bitter  and 
organised  malignity  pursued  him  to  his  deatli.  The  puritan  parly  was 
preponderant  in  this  p.irliament,  and  so  systematic  and  serried  were  the 
exertions  of  those  resolute  and  gloomy  men,  that  they  at  once  fell  and 
indicated  their  confidence  of  success  at  the  very  commencement  of  the 
lession.  Instead  of  granting  the  8U|)plles  wliich  the  king  dennnded, 
ihey  passed  at  once  to  the  impeachment  of  the  earl  of  StralTord,  the 
faithful  minister  and  the  personal  friend  of  the  king.  Strafford  at  a  for- 
mer period  had  to  a  certain  moderate  extent  acted  with  the  puritans  ;  but 
they  resented  his  opposition  to  their  more  insolent  proceedin/;s  so  deeply, 
that  nothing  but  the  unfortunate  iioblemanVs  blood  could  appease  their 
malignity. 

It  was  well  known  that  Charles  required  no  one  to  urge  him  to  support 
the  prerogative  of  the  crown  to  its  fullest  legal  extent,  al  least ;  ami  it  was 
r'nualiy  well  known  that  Laud  was  of  a  far  more  arliitrary  turn  tli.m  Straf- 
ford, and  had  fully  as  much  inllueiue  with  tlu;  king.  Hut  SiralVunl,  a.i 
we  hive  said,  luid  given  deep  offence  to  the  puritans,  and  deep  an.l  ileadiv 


I 


hi 


■  i   • 


r 


^ 


•» 

!l?l' 


!ir 


»74 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY 


was  their  revenge.  He  was  solemnly  impeached  of  liigli  iieason  beiore 
the  peers.  His  defence  was  a  perfect  model  of  touching  and  manly  elo- 
qnence.  With  a  presence  of  mind  not  to  be  surpassed,  he  took  up  and 
refuted  each  accusation  in  the  exact  order  in  which  it  had  been  made ; 
and  he  concluded  by  assuring  the  peers  that  he  would  not  have  troubled 
them  so  long,  had  he  not  felt  the  defence  of  his  life  to  be  a  sacred  duty 
towards  his  children,  "pledges  of  a  dear  saint  now  in  heaven."  But 
neither  the  cogent  logic  of  his  defence,  nor  the  unimpeached  excellence 
of  his  private  character,  could  avail  aught  against  the  political  fury  of  the 
time.  He  was  pronounced  guilty  by  Both  houses  of  parliament,  and  his 
death  was  clamoured  for  with  an  eagerness  that  reflects  but  little  credit 
upon  the  English  character  at  that  period.  There  was  but  one  thing  that 
could  have  saved  the  earl  of  Strafford,  and  it  is  with  pain  that  we  record 
that  that  one  thing  was  sadly  absent — a  just  firmness  of  character  on  the 
part  of  the  king. 

On  a  fair  and  careful  examination  of  the  proceedings  against  Strafford, 
we  can  only  discover  one  serious  fault  that  was  committed  by  that  minis- 
ter; he  allowed  his  personal  attachment  to  the  king  to  induce  him  to  in- 
.  cur  ministerial  responsibility  for  measures  which,  both  as  minister  and 
private  man,  he  greatly  disapproved  of.  But  this  great  fault  was  one 
bearing  no  proportion  to  the  dread  penalty  of  death;  moreover,  however 
faulty  Strafford  on  this  point  was  towards  himself  and  the  nation,  he  had 
committed  no  fault  against  the  king.  Contrariwise,  he  had  given  the  ut- 
most possible  proof  of  personal  and  loyal  feelings  ;  and  Charles,  in  aban- 
doning  a  minister  whose  chief  fault  WHS  that  of  being  too  faithful  to  his 
sovereign,  acted  a  part  so  uuchivalric,  so  totally  unworthy  of  his  general 
character,  that  we  scarcely  know  how  to  speak  of  it  in  terms  sufficiently 
severe.  A  truly  futile  apology  has  been  attempted  to  be  made  for  Charles' 
abandonment  of  his  too  devoted  minister.  That  ill-fated  nobleman,  while 
confined  in  the  Tower,  heard  of  the  clamour  that  was  artfully  and  perse- 
veringly  kept  up  by  his  enemies,  and  in  a  moment  of  unwise  exaltation 
he  wrote  to  the  king  and  advised  him  to  comply  with  the  sanguinary  de- 
mand that  was  made.  Tiie  advice  was  unwise,  but,  such  as  it  was,  it 
ought  to  have  liad  the  effect  of  only  increasing  the  king's  resolution  to  save 
sucli  a  man  and  such  a  minister  from  destruction.  But  Charles  took  the 
advice  literally  ait  pied  de  la  lelire,  and  signed  tiie  warrant  for  the  execu- 
tion of,  probably,  after  his  queen,  the  most  sincerely  devoted  friend  thai 
he  possessed.  "  Put  not  your  trust  in  princes !"  was  the  agonized  com- 
mentary of  Strafford  upon  this  most  shameful  compliance  of  the  king; 
and  he  submitted  to  his  undeserved  execution  with  the  grave  and  equable 
dignity  which  had  marked  his  whole  course.  From  this  unjust  murder  o( 
the  king's  friend  and  minister,  the  parliament  passed  to  a  very  righteous 
and  wise  attack  upon  two  of  the  most  iniquitous  of  the  king's  courts. 
The  high  commission  court,  and  tlie  court  of  star-chamber  were  unani- 
mously abolished  by  act  of  parliament. 

While  the  protestanis  of  Kngland  were  divided  into  churchmen  and 
puritans,  and  while  the  latter  were  busily  engaged  in  endeavouring  to 
throw  discredit  upon  the  church,  papacy  saw  in  these  disputes  a  new 
temptation  for  an  attack  upon  protestantism  as  a  whole.  The  king's 
finances  were  well  known  to  be  in  such  a  state  as  must  necessarily  pre- 
vent hiui  from  anything  like  vigour  in  military  operations  ;  and  the  papists 
Df  Ireland,  aided  and  instigated  by  foreign  emissaries,  resolved  upon  a 
general  massacre  of  ihtMr  i)ri)testant  fellow-subjects.  A  simultaneous  at- 
tack was  made  iipon  these  latter;  no  distinction  was  made  of  age  or  o( 
sex  ;  neighbour  rose  upon  neighbour,  all  old  obligations  of  kindness  were 
forgotten,  all  old  animosities,  how  trifling  soev(;r  tlieir  origin,  were  terri- 
bly reninmlicred,  and  upwards  of  forty  thousand  persons  were  'iiim- 
manly  slaughtered.    The  king  made  every  exertion  to  suppress  and  p.m- 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


5T5 


ish  this  infamous  massacre,  and,  feeling  that  the  chief  obstacle  to  his  suc- 
cess lay  in  h<s  crippled  finances,  he  once  more  appealed  to  his  Knglish 
parliament  for  a  supply.  But  not  even  the  massacre  of  their  protestant 
fellow-subjects  could  alter  the  factious  temper  of  the  puritans;  they  not 
only  refused  the  aid  he  asked,  upon  the  absurd  plea  that  England  was  itself 
in  too  much  danger  to  spare  any  aid  to  Ireland,  but  even  added  insult  to 
injustice  by  insinuating  that  the  king  had  himself  fomented  the  disturb 
ances  in  Ireland ;  as  though  the  unfortunate  monarch  had  not  already  too 
nunurous  claims  on  his  impoverished  finances ! 

A.  D.  1641. — The  attachment  of  the  king  to  the  church  was  well  known, 
and  both  he  and  his  opponents  well  knew  that  on  the  support  and  atfcction 
of  the  church  rested  the  chief  hope  of  preserving  the  monarchy.  The 
puritan  party,  therefore,  determined  to  attack  the  monarchy  througli  the 
church,  and  thirteen  bishops  were  accused  of  high  treason,  in  having 
enacted  canons  for  church  government  without  the  authority  or  consent 
of  the  parliament.  The  opposition,  or,  as  they  are  commonly  called,  "  the 
popular  members,"  at  the  same  time  applied  to  the  peers  to  exclude  the 
prelates  from  speaking  and  voting  in  that  house ;  and  the  bishops,  with 
more  discretion  than  dignity,  deprecated  the  puritan  animosity  by  ceasnig 
to  attend  their  duty  in  the  house  of  lords.  The  king  was  thus,  at  the 
very  moment  when  he  most  required  aid  in  parliament,  deprived  of  the 
talents  and  the  voles  of  precisely  those  peers  of  parliament  upon  whose 
assiduity  and  devotion  he  had  the  most  dependance. 

Posthumous  blame  is  both  cheap  and  easy.  The  writer,  sitting  calmly 
in  his  closet,  can  easily  and  safely  point  out  the  errors  of  the  great  men 
of  a  bygone  age  ;  it  is  a  nobler  and  more  necessary  task  to  ascertain  and 
hold  up  to  view  the  circumstances  that  rendered  those  errors  excusable, 
at  least,  if  not  actually  inevitable.  Goaded,  insulted,  and  straitened  as 
Charles  was,  he  would  have  possessed  something  more  than  human  firm- 
ness if  he  had  not  at  length  deviated  into  rashness.  His  most  devoted 
friend  slain,  the  prelates  of  his  church  silenced,  and  himself  made  a  mere 
cipher,  except  as  to  the  continuance  of  a  vast  and  fearful  responsibility, 
he  resolved  to  try  the  effect  of  severity ;  and  he  gave  orders  to  the  attorney- 
general,  Herbert,  to  accuse  before  the  house  of  peers,  Lord  Kimbolton, 
together  with  the  prominent  commoners,  Hollis,  Hampden,  Pyni,  Strode, 
and  Sir  Arthur  Haslerig,  of  high  treason  in  having  endeavoured  to  subvert 
the  laws  and  government  of  the  kingdom,  to  deprive  the  king  of  his  regal 
power,  and  to  substitute  for  it  an  arbitrary  and  tyrannical  authority,  inju- 
rious to  the  king  and  oppressive  to  his  liege  suiijects.  Thus  far  we  are 
by  no  means  unprepared  to  approve  of  the  king's  proceedings,  for  surely 
the  conduct  of  the  accused  persons  had  been  marked  by  all  the  tendency 
attributed  to  it  in  the  terms  of  the  accusation.  But,  unfortunately,  Charles, 
instead  of  allowing  the  proceedings  to  go  forward  with  the  grave  and  de- 
/iberatecarnestnessof  a  great  judicial  matter,  was  so  wilful  or  so  ill-ad- 
vised as  to  take  a  personal  step,  which,  had  it  b(.'en  successful,  would 
have  exposed  him  to  the  imputation  of  a  most  unconstitutional  tyraimy, 
and  which,  in  being  unsuccessful,  exposed  him  to  that  ridicule  and  con- 
tnmpt  which,  injurious  to  any  man  under  any  circumstances,  c^ould  be 
nntliing  less  than  fatal  to  a  king  who  was  in  dispute  with  a  majority  of 
liis  people,  and  who  had  alre;idy  seen  no  small  portion  of  them  in  actual 
battle  array  against  his  authority. 

On  the  very  day  after  the  attorney-general  h;id  coinmonced  justifiable 
proceedings  against  these  factious  hiadcrs,  the  king  (Mitcred  tin'  house  of 
commons,  without  previous  notice  and  without  :iltciid;ini;e.  On  liis  maj- 
esty's first  appearance,  the  members  to  a  man  respectfully  stood  up  to  re- 
ceive him,  and  Iicnthal,  the  speaker,  vacated  his  chair.  His  majesty 
seated  himself,  anil,  after  looking  sternly  round  for  some  monieiils,  said, 
tiiiit  understanding  that  the  house  had  refused  or  neglected  to  give  up  five 


^BUk' 

■    ■ 
1 

1 

m 

UStn- 

676 


THE  TB£A8i;aY  OF  HISTORY. 


'h 


your 


of  its  members  whom  he  had  ordered  to  be  accused  of  high  treason,  he 
had  personally  come  tliere  to  seize  them,  a  proceeding  to  which  he  was 
sorry  to  be  compelled.  Perceiving  that  the  accused  were  not  present,  he 
called  upon  the  speaker  to  deliver  them  up;  when  that  officer,  with  great 
presence  of  mind  and  justice,  replied  that  he  was  the  mere  organ  and  ser- 
vant of  that  house,  and  that  he  had  neither  eyes  to  see,  nor  ears  to  hear, 
nor  lips  to  utter,  save  what  that  house  commanded.  Finding  that  he 
could  in  no  other  respect  gain  by  a  procedure  in  which  he  was  so  great  a 
loser  in  dignity,  his  majesty,  after  sitting  silent  for  some  moments  longer, 
departed  from  the  house.  He  now  proceeded  to  the  common  council  of 
the  city,  and  made  his  complaint  of  the  conduct  of  the  house  of  commons. 
On  his  road  he  was  saluted  by  cries  of  "  privilege,"  not  unmixed  with  still 
more  insulting  cries  from  many  of  the  lower  sort,  and  his  complaint  to  the 
common  council  was  listened  to  in  a  contemptuous  and  ominous  silence. 
Irritated  and  alarmed  at  this  new  proof  of  the  unpopularity  of  his  proceed- 
ings, he  departed  from  the  court,  and  as  he  did  so  was  saluted  by  some 
low  puritan  with  the  seditious  watchword  of  the  Jews  of  old — "  To  y 
tents,  O  Israel !" 

It  is  utterly  inconceivable  how  a  sovereign  possessed  of  Charles'  good 
sense,  and  aware,  as  from  many  recent  occurrences  he  needs  must  have 
been,  of  the  resolved  and  factious  nature  of  the  men  to  whom  he  was  op- 
posed, could  have  compromised  himself  by  so  rash  and  in  every  way  un- 
advisable  a  proceeding  as  that  which  we  have  described.  In  truth,  he 
had  scarcely  returned  to  the  comparative  solitude  of  Windsor  before  he 
himself  saw  how  prejudicial  this  affair  was  likely  to  be  to  his  interests, 
and  he  hastened  to  address  a  letter  to  parliament,  in  which  he  said  that 
his  own  life  and  crown  wcic  not  more  precious  to  him  than  the  privileges 
of  parliament.  This  virtual  apology  for  his  direct  and  personal  inter- 
ference with  those  privileges  was  rendered  necessary  by  his  previous  pre- 
cipitancy, but  this  ill-fated  monarch  now  ran  into  another  extreme.  Hav- 
ing offended  parliament,  his  apology  to  parliament  was  necessary,  nay, 
m  the  truest  sense  of  the  word,  it  was  dignified ;  for  a  persistence  in  error 
is  but  a  false  dignity,  whether  in  monarch  or  in  private  man.  But  here 
his  concession  should  have  stopped.  His  offence  was  one  against  good 
manners,  but  the  offence  with  which  Pym  and  the  members  were  charged 
was  one  of  substance,  not  of  form.  Their  offence  was  not  in  the  slightest 
degree  diminished  or  atoned  for  by  the  king's  folly;  yet,  as  though  there 
had  been  some  close  logical  connection  between  them,  he  now  informed 
the  house  that  he  should  not  farther  prosecute  his  proceedings  against  its 
accused  members!  Could  inconsequence  or  want  of  dignity  go  farther, 
or  be  more  fatally  shown?  If,  while  apologizing  to  the  house  for  his  un- 
questionable offence  against  its  privileges,  he  still  had  calmly  and  with 
dignity,  but  sternly  and  inexorably,  carried  on  his  proceedings  against  the 
accused  inemliers,  it  is  quite  within  the  pale  of  probability  that  ho  would 
have  saved  himself  from  an  untimely  end,  and  his  country  from  the  stigma 
of  a  most  barbarous  murder.  The  opposite  conduct,  though  in  no  wise 
efficient  in  softening  the  slern  hearts  of  his  enemies,  taught  them  the  fa- 
tally iu)portant  truth  tuat  their  king  knew  how  to  yield,  and  that  if  un- 
wistdy  rash  in  a  moment  of  irritation,  he  could  be  no  less  unwisely  abject 
in  a  moment  of  calculation  or  timidity.  It  was  a  fatal  lesson  ;  and  from 
this  iiuiment,  in  spite  of  any  seeming  and  temporary  advantages,  Charles 
of  Hiigland  was  virtually  a  dethroned  monarch  and  a  doomed  man. 

Tliere  was  a  deep  art,  beyond  what  was  at  first  apparent,  in  the  insolent 
insinuation  of  tiie  popular  declaimers  that  the  king  had  himself  fomented 
lilt;  recent  horrors  In  Ireland.  The  awful  massacre  among  the  protes- 
tanis  of  that  country  had  naturally  raised  a  new  horror  and  dread  of  papacy 
111  ilie  minds  of  the  protcstants  of  England.  The  artful  popular  leaders 
look  advantage  of  this  very  natural  fueling,  and  worked  upon  it  as  miglil 


pror 
nora 

testa 

disat 

simij 

tion  1 

rep  re 

ofwJi 

rates 

thorit 

no  opi 

ed  as 

clear  ( 

his  trc 

ment  i 

could  } 

orljitan 

Jation  0 

their  OH 

of  their 

ecstacy 

urged  t( 

"louth,  1 

the  conf 

'"suiting 

'lands  m 

resented 

Embolf 

and  incre 

that  H  ne 

well  as  tl 

Parliamon 

(^Rcle  safe! 

mand  of 

"No!  not 

Qom  had 

by  it  not 

A.  D.  164 

off  the  m.) 
supplied 
by  his  nat 
that  the  , 
side,  and 
dupps  oil 
civil  war. 
lated  in  vas 
"i«  faults  , 
whether  as 
'or  the  in  OS 
fiPrs,  wliilf. 
uiff  their  ha 
'U'ljority  of 
"'''^^'■ythiinr  I 
fc-uii.ary.      ' 

r,.'"  .-idditio 
"igby,  the  , 
••■ivalry,  and 
t-fall  (lie  ,"\-, 
Vol.  I.: 


tio) 


THE  TREASniY  OF  HISTORY. 


577 


prom  se  oest  to  aid  their  own  ambitious  and  blood-thirsty  views.  The  ig- 
norant and  the  timid  were  tanght  to  believe  that  the  massacre  of  the  pro- 
testants,  though  the  deed  of  bigoted  papists,  was  far  enough  from  being 
disagreeable  to  the  king  and  his  friends,  who  would  probably  cause 
similar  proceedings  in  England  unless  due  power  and  means  of  preven- 
tion were  placed  in  time  in  the  hands  of  parliament,  which  was  constantly 
represented  as  an  integer  that  necessarily  loved  and  watched  over,  instead 
of  what  it  really  was,  an  aggregate  eomposed  of  various  dispositions  and 
rates  of  talent,  having  but  one  common  bond  of  union,  a  hatred  of  all  au- 
thority save  that  of  the  aggregate  in  question,  and  having  a  deference  for 
no  opinion  save  that  of  each  individual  member  of  that  aggregate.  Treat- 
ed as  Charles  had  been  almost  from  the  first  day  of  his  reign,  it  must  be 
clear  to  the  most  superficial  observer,  that  nothing  but  his  fortresses  and 
his  troops  remained  to  him  of  the  substance  of  monarchy.  The  parlia- 
ment now  determined  to  deprive  him  of  these.  They  had  seen  that  he 
could  yield,  they  calculated  upon  a  passionate  resistance  to  their  first  ex- 
orbitancy and  insolence  of  demand  ;  but  they  doubted  not  that  the  vacil- 
lation of  the  king's  mind  would  begin  long  ere  the  resolute  obstinacy  of 
their  own  would  terminate.  The  result  but  too  well  proved  the  accuracy 
of  their  reasoning.  The  people  were  skilfully  worked  up  into  an 
ecstacy  of  horror  of  the  designs  and  power  of  the  papists,  and  thus 
urged  to  petition  tha'  the  Tower,  the  fortresses  of  Hull  and  Ports- 
mouth, and  the  fleet,  should  be  committed  to  the  hands  of  officers  in 
the  confidence  of  parliament.  Demands  so  indicative  of  suspicion,  so 
insultingly  saying  that  the  king  would  place  such  important  trusts  in 
hands  unfit  to  use  them,  were,  as  the  opposition  had  anticipated,  warmly 
resented  at  first,  and  then  unwisely  complied  with. 

Emboldened  by  this  new  concession,  the  popular  party  affected  new 
and  increased  fears  of  the  designs  of  the  Irish  papists,  and  demanded 
that  a  new  militia  should  be  raised  and  trained,  the  commanders  as 
well  as  the  merely  subaltern  officers  of  which  should  be  nominated  by 
parliament.  Charles  now,  when  too  late,  perceived  that  even  to  con- 
cede safely  reqtiires  judgment;  and  being  urged  to  give  up  the  com- 
mand of  the  army  for  a  limited  s  lace  of  time,  he  promptly  replied, 
"No!  not  even  for  a  single  hour!"  Flappy  for  himself  and  his  king- 
dom had  it  been  if  he  had  earlier  known  how  to  say"  No,"  and  to  abide 
by  it  not  only  with  firmness  but  also  with  temptir. 

A.  D.  164'2. — In  making  this  demand  parliament  had  completely  thrown 
off  the  mask;  and  as  the  very  extremity  to  which  the  king  was  driven 
supplied  him  in  this  one  case  with  the  firmness  which  in  general  and 
by  his  natural  temper  he  so  sadly  wanted,  it  at  once  became  evident 
that  the  disputes  between  the  king  and  his  loyal  subjects  on  the  one 
side,  and  the  puritans  and  their  only  too  numerous  and  snthnsiastic 
dupes  on  the  other,  ccnld  only  be  decided  by  the  saddest  of  all  means,  a 
civil  war.  On  either  sid-;  ai.-^als  to  the  people  were  printed  and  circu- 
lated in  vast  numbi  rs,  and,  as  usual  in  such  eases,  each  side  exaggerated 
the  faults  of  the  other,  and  was  profounilty  silent  as  to  its  own  faults, 
whether  as  to  past  conduct  or  present  views.  The  king's  friends,  being 
for  the  most  part  of  the  more  opulent  ranks,  assumed  the  title  of  the  cava- 
liers, while  tile  puritan,  or  rebel  party,  from  their  affected  habit  of  wear- 
ing their  liair  closely  cut,  were  called  roundheads,  and  in  a  short  time  the 
miijority  of  the  nation  ranked  under  the  one  or  the  other  appellation,  and 
cvei-yihing  portended  that  the  civil  strife  would  be  long,  fierce  and  san- 
guuiary. 

In  addition  to  the  train-bands  assembled  under  the  command  of  Sir  .lohn 

Dighy,  the  king  had  barely  three  hundred  infantry  and  eight  hundred 

cavalry,  and  he  was  by  no  means  well  provided  with  arms.     But,  in  spile, 

^-f  all  \}u\  exertions  of  the  puritans,  thcrt!  was  still  an  extensive  feelinjj  >( 

Vol.  I — 37 


r, 


678 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


loyalty  among  the  higher  and  middle  orders ;  and  as  the  king  with  his  lit- 
tle army  marched  slowly  to  Derby  and  thence  to  Shrewsbury,  large  addi- 
tions were  made  to  liis  force,  and  some  of  the  more  opulent  loyalists  af- 
forded him  liberal  and  most  welcome  aid  in  money,  arms,  and  ammunition 

On  tlie  side  of  tiie  parliament  similar  preparations  wore  made  for  the 
impending  struggle.  VViien  the  important  fortress  of  Hull  was  surren- 
dered inio  their  liaiids,  they  made  it  their  depot  for  arms  and  ammunition, 
and  it  was  held  for  them  by  a  governor  of  their  own  appointment,  Sir  Joiin 
Hothatn.  On  the  plea  of  del'ending  England  from  the  alledged  designs 
of  the  Irish  papists,  great  numbers  of  troops  had  been  raised;  and  llieee 
were  now  openly  enlisted  and  officered  for  the  parliament,  and  placed 
under  tiie  command  of  the  earl  of  Essex,  who,  however,  was  supposed  to 
be  anxious  rather  to  abridge  ihe  power  of  the  existing  monarch  than  act- 
ually to  annihilate  the  monarchy,  which,  doubtless,  had  from  the  very  first 
been  the  design  of  the  leaders  of  the  popular  party.  So  great  was  the  en- 
thusiasm of  the  roundheads,  that  they  in  one  day  enlisted  above  four  thou 
8and  men  in  London  alone. 

Tired  of  the  occupation  of  watching  each  others'  manceuvres,  the  hos- 
tile troops  at  leuglli  met  at  Edge-hill,  on  the  borders  of  the  counties  of 
Warwick  and  Siaflbrd,  A  furious  engagement  took  place,  which  lasted 
several  hours  ;  upwards  of  five  tliousand  men  fell  upon  the  fiehi,  and  the 
contending  armies  separated,  wearied  with  slaying  yet  not  satiated  with 
Blaughter,  and  each  claiming  the  victory. 

The  whole  kingdom  was  now  disturbed  by  the  incessant  marching  and 
countermarching  of  the  two  armies.  Neitiier  of  them  was  disciplined, 
and  the  disorders  caused  by  their  march  were  consequently  great  and 
destructive.  The  queen,  whose  spirit  was  as  high  as  her  affection 
for  her  husband  was  great,  most  opportunely  landed  from  Holland 
witli  a  large  quantity  of  ammunition  and  a  considerable  reinforcement  of 
men,  and  she  immediately  left  England  again  to  raise  farther  supplies. 
In  the  manoeuvring  and  skirmishes  which  were  constantly  going  on,  the 
king,  from  the  superior  rank  and  spirit  of  his  followers,  had  for  some  time 
a  very  marked  advantage  ;  but  the  parliamentarians,  so  far  from  being  dis- 
couraged, actually  seemed  to  increase  in  their  pretensions  in  proportion 
to  the  loss  and  disgrace  they  e.\[)('rienced  in  the  field.  Tliat  Ihe  king 
was  at  this  time  sincere  in  his  (-xpressed  desire  to  put  a  stop  to  the  out- 
pouring of  his  sul)jects'  blood  appears  clear  from  the  fact,  that  on  obtain- 
ing any  advantage  he  invariably  sent  pacific  proposals  to  the  parliament 
This  was  especially  the  case  when  he  lay  in  al!  security  in  the  loyal  city 
of  Oxford,  whence  he  conducted  a  long  neg'iiation,  in  which  the  inso- 
lence of  the  leaders  of  the  other  party  was  so  great  and  conspicuous,  that 
even  the  most  modirate  writers  have  blamed  the  king,  as  having  carried 
his  desire  for  pacific  measures  to  an  extreme,  injurious  alike  to  his  ilii:- 
nity  and  to  the  very  cause  he  was  anxious  to  serve. 

But  if  he  bore  somewhat  too  meekly  with  the  insolence  of  his  opponents 
in  the  cabinet,  the  king  in  his  first  campaign  of  the  disastrous  civil  war 
was  abundantly  successful  in  the  field,  in  spite  of  the  savage  severity  of 
his  opponents,  who  treated  as  traitors  liie  governors  of  those  strong  places 
which  from  time  to  time  were  ope  led  to  their  sovereign. 

Cornwall  was  thoroughly  subjected  to  the  king;  at  Stratton-hill,  in 
Devonshire,  a  fine  army  of  the  parliamentarians  was  routed;  and  at 
Kdiiiuhvay-down,  near  Devizes,  in  Wiltshire,  another  great  victory  was 
gained  over  them  by  the  royal  troops,  who  were  again  successful  in  tlie 
still  more  iniporlant  battle  of  (,'lialgrave-ficld,  in  niickiiighamshire.  The 
important  city  of  Bristol  was  taken  by  the  royalists,  and  Gloucester  was 
closely  invested.  Thus  far  all  looked  in  favour  of  the  royal  cause  during 
llie  first  campaign,  and  at  its  close  great  hopes  of  farther  success  werf 


,  The  firJ 
'"r  a  secJ 
^  great  hi 

'li«  old  ,,,.)] 
^'"g  wisel 
'■Id  his  ,j|I 
y»'fs  u;,|| 
than  a  iajnT 
'^'•s  intistj 
oeis  Were 
""ii-  pow(| 
of  voting 
"'•■'iilv.s  :,^,|| 
Uut  any 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


679 


ipponents 

civil  wat 

III  verily  o( 

)nii-  pliices 

\m-h\\\,  in 
Vl;  and  at 
Ictory  was 

sful  ill  tl>e 
iirc.  The 
Icestei  was 
luse  during 

Icess  were 


founded  upon  the  fine  army  that  was  ruised  for  the  king  in  the  north  of 
England  by  tlie  loyal  and  high-hearted  inurquis  of  Newcastle.  Nor  was 
il  the  loss  only  of  battles  and  stron?-hoids  that  the  parliamentarians  had 
now  to  deplore. 

John  Hampden,  who  had  made  so  sturdy,  although,  in  our  opinioti,  so 
ill-foundec  an  opposition  to  the  ship-money,  while  acting  with  the  per- 
verse men  vhose  conduct  made  that  undoubted  extortion  inevitable,  touk 
tlie  field  with  the  parliamentarians  at  the  head  of  a  well-appointed  troop 
whicli  chiefly  consisted  *jf  his  own  tenants  and  neighbours.  On  several 
oircasions  he  displayed  ^reat  courage,  and  it  being  proposed  to  beat  up 
the  quarters  of  the  king's  gallant  relative.  Prince  Huperl,  Hampden  was 
foremost  in  the  attack.  When  the  parliamentary  troops  were  subse- 
quently mustered  Mr.  Hampden  was  missed,  and  it  was  then  remarked 
tiiat  he  had  been  seen,  contrary  to  liis  usual  custom,  to  leave  the  field 
before  the  fight  was  ended,  and  it  was  noticed,  too,  that  he  was  leaning 
forward  on  his  saddle-bow  as  if  exhausted  and  in  pain.  The  fears  thus 
excited  were  soon  realized ;  he  had  been  severely  wounded.  The  king 
would  have  sent  his  own  surgeon  to  endeavour  to  save  this  inflexibly 
honest  though  mistaken  foe  ;  but  the  ill-fated  gentleman  was  injured  be- 
yond human  remedy,  and  died  soon  after  the  action. 

This  loss  on  the  parliamentary  side  was  even  nmre  than  balanced  by 
the  death  of  the  royalist  oflHcer,  Lucius  Gary,  Lord  Falkland,  one  of  the 
purest  characters  that  grace  our  national  history.  As  a  statesman  he 
had  opposed  the  errors  of  the  king  with  all  the  boldness  and  inflexibility 
of  Hampden,  but  with  a  grace  and  moderation  of  which  Hampden's  stern 
and  severe  nature  was  incapable.  But  though  Lord  Falkland  ardently 
desired  liberty  for  the  subject,  he  was  not  prepared  to  oppress  the  sov- 
ereign; and  the  moment  that  the  evil  (IfsiMn  of  the  popular  leaders 
were  fully  d(!veloped,  the  gallant  nn  '  Ki-onipiised  nobleman  took  his 
stand  beside  liis  royal  master.  Leai  ..  il,  wiity,  elegant,  and  accomplish- 
ed, he  was  indignant  and  disgusted  .11  the  evident  desire  of  the  popular 
leaders  to  deluj;e  their  country  i  bj.xid,  rather  than  stop  short  of  the 
full  accomplishment  of  tlR'ir  anjbaioi.^  and  evil  designs.  From  the  com- 
mencement of  the  civil  war  ho  betMime  possessed  by  a  deep  and  settled 
melancholy,  the  more  rem.trk't^Je  from  contrast  with  his  natural  vivacity. 
He  neglected  his  person,  iits  -ountenance  became  anxious  and  haggard, 
and  he  wouhi  remain  in  silent  tliought  for  hours,  and  then  cry,  as  if  un- 
ronsciously,  "  Peace  !  peace  !  Let  (Uir  unhappy  country  have  peace  !"  On 
the  morning  of  the  battle  of  Newbury  he  told  his  friends  that  his  soul 
was  weary  of  the  world,  and  that  he  felt  confident  that  ere  nightfall  he 
should  leave  them.  His  sad  prediction  was  accomplished ;  he  was 
mortally  wounded  by  a  musket  ball  in  the  abdomen,  and  it  was  not  until 
the  following  inoniing  thai  his  mourning  friends  rescued  his  body  from 
aiiii>l  t!;e  "iieiiiu'r  slain. 

The  first  campaign  being  en.lc',  the  king  made  vigorous  prepruations 
for  a  second.  As  it  was  evident  that  il.c  "erv  name  of  a  parliauKiil  had 
a  great  influence  upon  the  minds  of  many,  and  as  aii  uegoiiaiion  with 
tlie  old  parliament  sitting  at  VViislminisier  led  only  to  new  insult,  the 
king  wisely  deti'rmined  to  call  another  [lariiaineiit  at  Oxford,  where  he 
had  his  (juarters.  The  peers  being  for  tiie  nio-t  part  firmly  loyal,  the 
king's  upper  house  was  well  filled,  but  his  lower  house  had  mil  more 
tliaii  a  liuiiilred  and  forty  members,  being  scarcely  half  the  number  that 
>vi%s  mustered  by  the  rebellious  house  of  commons.  J'nt  the  king's  mem- 
oers  were  niosily  men  of  wcMJih  and  influence,  and  thus  they  ji.id  it  in 
thfir  power  to  di  the  king  the  chief  service  he  really  required,  thai 
of  voiiug  him  sujiplies.  llaving  done  this  they  were  dismissed  wiib 
thanks,  imd  never  again  ealli'd  together. 

Uul  any  supplies  winch  the  king  could  procure  from  what  may  almost 


580 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


be  called  individual  loyalty  were  but  small  in  comparison  to  those 
which  the  factious  parliamentarians  could  command  by  the  terror  which 
they  could  strike  into  nearly  every  district  of  the  country.  As  if  to  show 
at  once  their  power  in  this  way,  and  the  extent  to  which  they  were  pre- 
pared to  abuse  it,  they  issued  an  arbitrary  command  that  all  the  inhabi- 
tants of  London  and  the  surrounding  neighbourhood  should  substract  one 
meal  in  every  week  from  their  accustomed  diet,  and  pay  the  full  price  ol 
provision  thus  saved  as  a  contribution  to  the  support  of  vvhat  these  im- 
pudent and  ambitious  men  affected  to  call  the  public  cause.  The  sedi- 
tious Scots  at  the  same  time  sent  a  large  supply  of  men  to  the  parlia- 
mentarians, who  also  had  fourteen  thousand  men,  under  the  earl  of  Man- 
chester, ten  thousand  under  the  earl  of  Essex,  and  eight  thousand  and 
upwards  under  Sir  William  Waller.  And  though  this  force  was  numeri- 
cally so  much  superior  to  the  king's,  and,  by  consequence,  so  much  more 
onerous,  the  parliamentary  troops  were,  in  fact,  far  better  supplied 
with  both  provision  and  ammunition  than  the  royalists  ;  the  majority  uf 
men  being  so  deluded  or  so  terrified  by  the  parliamentarians  that  an  or- 
dinance of  parliament  was  at  all  times  sufficient  to  procure  provisions  for 
the  nlicl  force,  when  the  king  could  scarcely  get  provisions  for  money 

A.  I).  ICAi. — Thougli,  in  the  ordinary  style  used  in  speaking  of  military 
affairs  we  have  been  obliged  to  speak  of  the  termination  of  the  first  cam- 
paign, at  the  period  when  the  contending  parties  went  into  winter  quar- 
ters, hostilitieis  in  fact,  never  wholly  ceased  from  the  moment  when  lliey 
rirst  commenced.  Kven  when  liie  great  armies  were  formally  lying  idle 
a  constant  and  most  destructive  partizan  warfare  was  carried  on.  The 
viilagc-grecn  became  a  battle-field,  the  village  church  a  fort;  now  this, 
now  that  party  plundered  the  peasantry,  who  in  their  hearts  learned  tu 
curse  the  fierceness  of  both,  and  pray  that  one  or  the  other  might  be  su 
efTectually  beaten  as  to  put  a  stop  at  oni:e  and  forever  to  scenes  which 
had  all  the  ghastly  horrors  of  war  without  any  uf  its  glory,  and  all  its 
pn^scnt  riot  and  spoilation  witlioiit  even  the  chance  of  its  subsequent 
gain.  Whether  cavalier  or  roinidliead  were  triumphant  the  peaceable  deni- 
zen V  as  equally  the  sufTercr;  and  when  the  war-cry  and  the  blasphemy 
rang  through  the  villagi^-strect,  and  re-echoed  through  the  trees  that 
waved  above  the  graves  of  the  long  generations  of  the  former  occu|)anl8 
of  the  village,  what  mattered  it  whether  cavalier  cheered  or  roundhead 
prostituted  the  words  of  llic  book  of  life— were  they  not  English  accents 
that  issued  from  the  iiassion-ciirlcd  li|)s  of  boih  parties  ! 

That  the  system  of  teriorisni  which  the  parliamentarians  acted  upon 
had  very  much  to  do  with  prolonging  this  unnatural  contest  seems  iii- 
disi)nlal)le.  Counties,  and  lesser  districts,  even,  as  soon  as  tliey  were 
for  a  brief  lime  freed  from  the  presence  of  the  parliamentary  forces,  al- 
nU'St  invariably  and  iiiianinionsly  declared  for  the  king.  Nay,  in  the  very 
towns  that  were  garrisoneil  by  the  parliiuncniariaiis,  inclndiiiu  even  thuir 
strong-hold  and  chief  reliance,  liiiiulinr,  there  was  at  length  a  loud  and 
j.'iier.il  eehoof  the  eariu^sl  cry  of  the  good  !,ord  I'alkland,  "Peace  !  |)eaie! 
el  our  country  have  |)eace  !  '  From  many  placesilie  parliament  rcH'eiveil 
f  rinal  jielitions  to  this  ellVet  ;  and  in  London,  wliicli  at  the  outset  had 
been  so  furiously  seditnuis,  tlie  very  women  asseinlilcd  to  the  number  ul 
upwards  of  four  thousand,  and  sinroniided  llie  oiise  of  common.s.  exelaiin- 
ing.  "  Peace  !  give  ns  peace  !  or  those  traitoi  ,  who  deny  us  peace,  thai 
we  mav  tear  ihcin  to  pieces."  So  finioiis  wen'  the  women  on  this  occa 
sum,  that,  in  tln^  violence  used  by  the  guards,  some  of  these  wives  ami 
mothers  who  wished  their  hnsbanils  and  smis  no  longer  to  lie  the  prey  ul 
a  handful  of  aiiihitioiiH  mpii  were  actually  killeil  n|ioii  th<'  spot! 

lint  they  who  liiid  so  joyoiiNly  aided  in  Novviiig  tlie  whirlwind  were  not 
yet  to  cease  to  reap  tiie  sliniii.  War,  to  the  eoinplcte  destiucin'ii  el 
ihu  alt  r  and  the  throne,  was  thi:  design  of  the  iclf-elcclcd  and  rcbolvi.  J 


1' 


rUicrs,  ai 

tloud  am 

Before 

we  must 

Rxed  the 

present  d 

more  sinj 

Oliver 

a  second 

«ed  of  but 

iiig  in  the 

Cromwell 

very  smal 

his  excess 

pare  in  pnl 

denly  cha 

ind  rigid  c 

«equence  I 

Just  as 

warm,   Oli 

Huntingdo 

earliest  ex 

should  but 

"  Proteoto 

liness,  hesi 

coloured  si 

tailor,"  the 

scarcely  sii 

cd  that 'in  t 

saw  the  vas 

all  the  fien-i 

mass,  and,  % 

K'lglish  nat! 

iiamc  stand 

it  had  been 

the  lawful  sr 

As  a  mer 

making  hiini 

advise,  to  ac 

ai:d  mind,  w 

fused  no-nn 

thought  clear 

urous  concep 

and  the  clank 

'.age  towards 

ft  is  to  thi.'^ 

T  wholly  H  d 

"llier.     To  Uf 

as  developed 

aR'T'ity,  his 

''"iiht.  poor  n 

power  are  est 

he  saw  that   i 

>'<"n|  'iancn  wi 

•'I'liiation  and 

"lat  he  lit  the 

"mikiiKi  Willi 

"If  from  the  II 

h»iiiem,  wheih 


THE  TREASUBY  OF  HISTORY. 


58i 


ul 
uiin- 

Kill 

aiiil 
yol 

iioi 
I'll  t'l 
,)lvi  1 


tUiers,  and  it  was  in  vain  that  their  lately  enthusiastic  dupes  now  cried 
jiloud  and  in  bitter  misery  for  the  blessings  of  peace. 

Before  we  proceed  to  speak  of  the  second  campaign  of  this  sad  war, 
we  must  introduce  to  the  attention  of  the  reader  a  man  who  henceforth 
fixed  the  chief  attention  of  both  parties,  and  whose  character,  even  in  the 
present  day,  is  nearly  as  much  disputed  as  his  singular  energy  and  still 
more  singular  and  rapid  success  were  marvelled  at  in  his  own  time. 

Oliver  Cromwell  was  the  son  of  a  Huntingdonshire  gentleman  who,  ns 
a  second  son  of  a  respectable  but  not  wealthy  family,  was  himself  posses- 
sed of  but  a  small  fortune,  which  he  is  said  to  have  improved  by  engag- 
ing in  the  trade  of  a  brewer.  At  college,  and  even  later  in  life,  Oliver 
Cromwell  was  remarkable  rather  for  dissipation  than  for  ability,  and  the 
very  small  resources  that  he  inherited  were  pretty  nearly  exhausted  by 
his  excesses,  long  before  he  had  any  inclination  or  opportunity  to  take 
pan  in  public  affairs.  On  reaching  mature  manhood,  however,  he  sud- 
denly changed  his  course  of  life,  and  affected  the  enthusiastic  speech 
ind  rigid  conduct  of  the  puritans,  whose  daily  increasing  power  and  con- 
sequence his  shrewd  glance  was  not  slow  to  discover. 

Just  as  the  disputes  between  the  king  and  the  popular  party  grew 
warm,  Oliver  Cromwell  repiesented  in  parliament  his  native  town  of 
Huntingdon,  and  a  sketch  left  of  him  by  a  keen  observer  who  saw  his 
earliest  exertions  in  that  capiicity,  represents  a  man  from  whom  we 
should  but  little  expect  the  energy,  talent,  and  success  of  the  future 
"Protkotor"  Cromwell.  Homely  in  countenance,  almost  to  actual  ug- 
liness, hesitating  in  speecii,  ungain'y  in  gesture,  and  ill  clad  in  a  sad 
coloured  suit  "which  looked  as  it  iud  been  made  by  some  ill  country 
tailor,"  the  future  statesnimi  and  warrior  addressed  the  house  amid  tlic 
scarcely  suppressed  wiiiapers  of  both  friciuls  and  foes,  who  liitle  dream- 
ed that  in  that  uncouth,  ill  nurtured,  and  slovenly-looking  person  they 
saw  the  vast  and  terrible  (rcnius  who  was  to  slay  his  sovereign,  knead 
all  the  fierce  fai-tions  of  Kiiulislimen  into  one  irampltHl  and  submissive 
mass,  and,  while  wielding  a  most  usurped  and  lawless  authority  over  the 
Knglisli  nation  at  home,  so  <lirect  her  cncriiies  abroad  as  to  make  her 
name  stand  fully  as  high  among  tht;  astounded  and  (gazing  nations  as  ever 
it  had  been  carried  or  maintained  by  the  most  forturate  and  valiant  uf 
the  lawful  sovereigns  of  Kiigland. 

As  a  mere  senator  ('roiiuvcll  would  proliably  never  '.  ave  succeeded  m 
making  himself  a  great  name;  he  required  to  command  rather  than  to 
advise,  to  a(;t  ratlu'r  than  to  argue.  Gifted  with  an  iron  frame,  the  body 
ai'.d  mind,  with  liim,  aided  each  other,  and  he  who  stainmcred  mit  coii- 
fi.isrd  no-meanings  to  the  half  wearied  and  half  wondering  senate, 
thought  clearly  and  brightly  as  the  ligliliiing  flash,  and  shouted  his  vig- 
orous coiu'eptioiis  with  the  dread  vehemence  of  thunder,  amid  the  fury 
and  the  claiiK  of  the  battle,  and  as  lie  guided  his  war-steed  through  car- 
iiage  towards  carnage  more  terrible  still. 

It  is  to  this  day  a  imidled  point  whether  Cromwell  was  wholly  deluded 
or  wholly  a  deluder ;  ()r  whether  lie  was  o.irtly  the  one  and  partly  the 
ollii^r.  Tu  us  it  seems  that  there  was  noihliig  natural  in  his  character, 
as  developed  by  history,  save  his  nienial  and  bodily  energy,  his  priifiuind 

agacily,  his  decision  and  his  inasierpassioii — ambition.  Me  saw,  no 
ildiibt,  poor  men  become  rich,  and  mean  men  powerful,  as  riches  and 
power  are  estimated  m  the  petty  alTairs  of  ob.^ciire  i-ouiiiry  towns,  and 
lie  saw  that  they  acliieved  ihe'ir  personal  asisiraiidizeinent  by  a  supple 
'■<im|  'ianee  with  the  c.iiit  and  ttrimai-e  of  the  day.    He  had  sutVered  boili  m 

epulation  aiiil  fortune  by  Ins  free  if  not  prolligate  life,  and  ii  is  pniii.ihle 
(hat  he  at  the  lMll^^et  a(lo|ili-(l  the  diitward  appearance  of  aimilier  w.u'  (if 
Ihiiikiiiij  with  no  deeper  or  limre  extensive  desjijiithan  lh;il  i>(  s'lviiii,'  Inm. 
*i  If  from  the  inevitable  ill  eonseqneiices  of  poverty.  Once  .irnveil  m  |,;ir. 
Ijaiiieni,  wheitier  e(»ndneted  thither  liv  mere  accide-t  or  skilful  intriguing, 


583 


THE  TUEA8UIIY  OF  HISTORY. 


ii  iiinglc  glHiicc  must  liavc  s)io\vn  even  a  fnr  less  sagat'ioiis  person  ttmn 
he  was,  lliat  the  puritans  would,  sooner  or  later,  be  in(;oni|)anil)ly  tlio 
most  powerful  party  in  the  slate.  JoininjT  witti  lliein  from  inien-si,  apinj^ 
their  manners  from  necessity,  lie  would  from  mere  habit  continue  to  aj)e 
them  lona;  after  he  could  afford  to  be  more  ofien  in  his  conduct.  Out  tlie 
frequent  profanity  of  his  remarks,  and  the  occasional  coarseness  and 
jollity  of  his  "  horseplay  "  among  his  si>idi(!r-saints,  appear  to  us  to  savour 
very  much  of  unconscious  and  uiicoiitrollabie  breakiii<>s  forth  of  the  old 
Adam  of  the  natural  man  ;  fever  fits  of  the  natural  heart  and  temper  tli.i', 
were  too  strong  for  the  artificial  trainin;,' of  rescdved  liypocri.sy.  Such, 
upon  repeated  and  most  impartial  examination,  appears  to  us  to  have  been 
the  real  character  of  Cromwell. 

Tlimigh  forlyfonr  ytsirs  old  before  he  drew  a  sword,  Cromwell  at  tlio 
very  outset  of  the  rebellion  showed  himself  what  has  been  emphatii  iilly 
called  a  born  .soldier.  Kialwart  though  cinmsy  in  frame,  a  bohl  and  a 
good  rider,  and — as  most  men  of  any  respectibility  of  that  time  wen — a 
perfei't  master  of  the  ponderous  sword  then  in  use,  he  was  the  very  mail 
for  a  [larlizaii  captain  <>f  heavy  cavalry.  His  troops  was  Himost  enlirely 
composed  of  the  sons  of  respectable  fanners  and  yeomen,  and  as  tiny 
were  deeply  tinctured  wiiii  tiie  ivIiLiioiis  fcelintf  of  piniianism,  and  lilleil 
to  overflowing  with  the  physical  daring  of  well-born  and  wcll-nurini'Hd 
Knglislimen,  bis  assnined  sympathy  with  them  in  the  former  resuect  and 
his  genuiiK^  equality  or  superiority  in  the  latter,  shortly  gave  him  iliu 
most  unbouiidiMl  power  of  leading  them  into  any  d.inger  that  hiimuii 
being's  could  create,  and  throiiL'li  or  over  any  obstacles  that  liuiiian 
prowess  and  daring  c^)uhl  surmount. 

Indefatigable,  active,  pulienl  of  fatigiie,  Cromwell  .speedily  attracleil  the 
tioti(u.-  of  the  parliamentary  leaders,  who  bestowed  praise  and  disliiic. 
tion  upon  him  none  the  less  idieerfully  because  as  yet  be  did  not  alVect 
to  aim  at  aiiylliing  higher  than  the  eliaracier  of  a  bold,  stern,  and  active 
parlizaii  captain,  who  was  ever  ready  with  sword  in  liainl  and  font  in  stir- 
rup when  the  enemy's  night  quariers  were  to  iie  beaten  up,  a  coiivov  seiz- 
ed, or  any  other  real  thougli comparatively  obscure  service  wan  to  he  nil. 
dered  to  the  aond  cnuse.  .Such  was  the  itstimatt^  (Cromwell's  commaiid. 
ers  formed  of  him  ;  such  the  estimate  he  wished  them  to  form  of  the 
man  who  was  one  day  to  dictate  to  the  pnmdest  and  to  laugh  to  Hcorn 
the  wiliest  among  them  I 

The  too  I'amous  and  disastnms  hatlle  of  hong  Marston  Mo<n',  as  it  whh 
the  first  great  military  calamity  of  the  king,  so  it  was  the  I'lrsi  great  uc 
casion  upon  which  Cnimwell  had  the  opportunity  (wliii'h  he  so  well  kiietv 
liow  to  sel/,e)  of  openly  and  signally  dis|ihi)ing  himself.  A  jimitioii  liiul 
b(!en  formed  lietwciMi  the  Scotch  army  and  the  English  parliamentary  fur- 
ces,  and  ihis  combined  host  invested  York.  This  city,  both  from  Ms  own 
wealth  and  from  its  sitii.ition  as  the  capital  of  the  northirn  coniitii  h,  ^\'.\» 
too  iinportHiit  to  the  niyal  cause  to  be  lost  without  a  struggle;  and  I'liiiii' 
Kupert  and  the  marquis  of  Newcastle  joined  their  foncs  in  onler  to  r.iiM 
the  seige  of  the  ancient  city.  The  o|iposinu|  forces,  in  nnmber  aboiil  (Illy 
thousand,  met  im  l.img  Marston  Moor,  and  a  long  and  olistiniite  coiitisi 
eiiMied.  The  right  wing  of  the  royalist  trooiis,  cmnmandcd  by  I'riiiii' 
Kupert,  was  broken  and  driven  off  ilii>  field  by  the  highly  Iraiiicl 
cavalry  under  Cnnnwell,  who,  after  having  di.^persed  the  royalists'  imlit 
wing,  promptly  galloped  bark  to  the  fielil,  and  very  materially  aidnl  iii 
putting  to  (light  the  mam  Ixidy  of  the  niyalisis  under  the  miirquis  'I'hc 
rrsnii  of  this  liaid  day's  nghiini!  w.is  the  cajitiire  by  the  parliamentarnii* 
(>r  till' whole  of  Itiipert's  adinir.dile  train  of  artillery,  mid  a  Ions  of  iiiiii, 
reputation,  and  self-ronlideiiee,  from  which  it  may  safely  be  averred  lliiil 
l*ie  royalists  nevi  ■  recovered. 

The  Bucci'sses  of  the  parliiitnoiitariaMi  made  them  all  the  liaiighiier  il 


THE  TREASURY  OK  HISTORY 


583 


rson  Ihati 
ir;i\)ly  ill*, 
■i-sl,  aiVnm 
uii)  to  il))t! 

.     nm  the 

ii-nuxs  and 
s  to  siivour 

of    lilt!    (ill) 

cinper  lli.>' 
sy.     Sui'h, 

I  iVavo  been 

wfW  at  the 
niplr.ni' iiUy 
\)olil  and  a 
iiu'  wi'it— a 
\ti  very  niau 
i(i»i  inlindy 
;ind  M  lli'y 
n,  and   lillfd 
,v(ll-nurun«d 
r  vi'su'i'l  ami 
live  nim  llii-' 

that  Iniinuu 

t\ial   human 

auracti'd  ilie 
,  nnd  distnif. 
,\id  ni)l  alVi'cl 
111,  and  aelivf 

1(1  foul  in  Hiu'- 

II  fdiivoy  hi'i/- 

svaM  li>  '•''  ''''"• 

's  coimiiaiid- 

fiirni  of  llio 

iiyli  l«  >t''"fi> 

loor,  an  it  WiiH 
fiisi  pri'al  111'- 
,  J,,,  well  knew 
\  jiini'ii'"'  '""' 

iiineiitiuy  fiif- 
li  fiiini  lHll^»l' 
1  cnuiilii ".  '*■" 

1,.;  and  I'min' 
;,  ortler  111  I'll"! 
Lber  ali.'Ul  liHy 
liHlinille  rilllli>l 

lulrd  li\  Vrnin' 

luKldv    iroi""' 

ri.yaliHlh'  iiu''l 

Lrially   anlid  I" 

iniininift     T'"' 

.irhannniarnii'" 

11  i(i-s  (if  ni'  " 

111'  averred  lli.i' 

Ue  \mu|ilili«r  i» 


Hieir  pretensions  and  all  the  more  unsparing  in  their  resoivea.  Land, 
nnliblshop  of  Canterbury,  had  for  a  long  time  been  confined  in  the  Tower ; 
hiK  devotion  to  his  master  beinof  the  only  crime  with  which  he  eould 
lie  Justly  charged,  except  the  itindred  crime  of  still  warmer  devotion,  if 
possible,  to  the  rights  and  supremacy  of  the  church  of  England.  This 
iMiiincnt  man  was  therefore  brought  to  trial  by  his  bitter  enemies,  the  puri- 
tans, condemned,  and  executed.  As  if  to  set  a  peculiar  and  characteris- 
tically puritanical  mark  upon  this  dastardly  act  of  vulgar  and  ignorant 
ven(?eanco,  the  now  dominant  power  ordered  the  abolition — by  what  they 
failed  law — of  the  church  of  England  liturgy  on  the  very  day  of  the  exe- 
I'Ulion  of  the  learned  and  energetic  prelate  whose  devotion  to  his  duty  was 
indoinitnblo.  By  this  act  of  abolition  the  English  church  was  reduced,  as 
regarded  power  in  the  state,  to  the  same  level  as  the  newest,  meanest,  and 
iiiool  insane  of  numerous  petty  sects  into  which  conceit,  or  ignorance,  or 
rdieer  knavery  had  by  this  time  split  tho  puritans ;  and  the  Scottish  rebel 
iirniy  appropriately  enough  joined  the  London  rebel  citizens  in  giving 
public  (hanks  foi  an  alteiation  of  which  not  one  of  them  could  have  pointed 
out  a  suhstrii.  'vantage,  while  its  instant  and  perspective  disadvan- 

ln){p  might  i.  i  perceived  by  a  tolerably  edui^ated  child.     Hut  fac- 

(lon  loves  a  fr  r.  -oven  though  it  certainly  be  not  for  the  better,  and 
|irobal)ly  nui.  ,   ..  e  to  be  for  the  worse  I 

A.  i>.  lf!'15.--Tliough  the  royalists,  as  related  above,  were  seriously  in- 
lured  and  depressed  l*y  the  result  of  the  battle  of  Long  Marston  Moor, 
neilher  the  king  niir  his  friends  despaired  of  ultimate  success.  While  tho 
piirlimiienlarians  «  xerted  themselves  to  crush  the  royalists  whenever  Hi" 
next  general  acr  -ihould  ensue,  the  king  and  his  friends  made  equally 
olreiiiKius  pffortH  redeem  their  forliine  and  character  on  the  like  eon- 
(ingeiiey.  A  variety  of  counter-marcliing  and  mere  partizan  skirmishing 
(link  place  during  the  earlier  months  of  the  year  I64.'>,  and  at  length,  on 
the  mil  of  .Iniie  of  mat  year,  the  main  strength  of  the  two  parties  met 
near  Nnseby,  n  village  in  Northamptonshire.  The  right  wing  of  the 
royal  army  was  commanded  hy  the  gallant  and  impetuous  Rupert,  tho 
left  wing  by  Sir  Marmaduke  Langdale,  and  the  main  body  iiy  the  lord 
Aslley,  while  a  choitie  force  was  commanded,  as  a  reserve,  by  the  king 
in  person.  The  left  wing  of  the  parliamentarians  was  commanded  by 
Inloii,  who  had  married  ('romwell's  daughter,  the  right  wing  hy  (;rom- 
well  liiiiiNeir,  whose  gallant  and  skilful  charges  at  Long  Marston  Moor 
were  not  forgotten,  and  the  main  body  by  generals  Fairfax  and  Skippnn. 
Till'  parliamentary  left  wing  was  no  hotly  charged  by  the  iinpcMions  and 
diiKliing  |{npert,tliat  it  was  fairly  broken  and  driven  through  the  sireels 
of  Niitebv.  Hut  this  success  was  rendered  of  comparatively  little  advan- 
liilte,  fur  Unpert  lost  so  much  time  in  allempting  to  seize  Ireton's  artillery 
lliiii  ("rum well,  meanwhile,  broke  tho  royal  horse  under  Sir  Marina- 
diike  Liingdale,  beyond  aU  liie  elVorts  of  that  ofUcer  for  its  re-formal  ion. 
Willie  the  cavalry  on  cither  side  was  thus  ocinipiod,  tho  infantry  were 
Imily  engiiged,  and  so  iiuKth  to  the  advantage  of  the  royal  side  that  the  bai- 
tiillioiis  of  ilie  piirliainent  were  actually  falling  back  in  disorder.  Tlie 
wlioje  fiile  of  the  day  now  mainly  depended  upon  which  side  slioul  (irsi 
•ee  iiw  eiivalry  reiiiin.  If  Rupert,  instead  of  employing  himself  iii  si  /.\ng 
»r  sinking  artillery,  had  at  this  time  returned  and  inadn  one  of  hi,  'ear- 
fiillv  >iiipeiiiouN  charges  upon  tlie  (lank  of  tin.  filtering  roundheads,  whom 
llielii'*!  etrorts  of  Kairfax  and  .Skippon  could  scarcely  keep  from  falling 
mill  ,1  rout,  the  fortiiiii>  of  thai  day,  and  most  prolialily  the  issue  of  the 
•vlmlc  struggle,  would  have  been  in  favour  of  the  king.  Miit  the  mar- 
rflliMiN  good  fortune  of  Cromwell  attended  him  ;  lie  returned  to  the  Held 
(Villi  Ins  iron  troopers  elated  with  llieir  success  over  .Sir  M.irinadnke  Lang- 
li»li<'»  (livisinii,  and  cliarged  the  (link  of  tin'  iiiain  body  of  the  royalists  -o 
U  n  uly  Hs  to  throw  llii-in  into  iiopidess  and  irreinediablu  eonfusion.     \ln» 


684 


THK  TKEASUttY  0*'  HISTOKV 


per*  now  returned  witli  liis  cavalry  and  joined  the  king's  reservo ,  but 
tiie  fiite  of  the  day  was  sealed  ;  not  even  the  gallantry  of  that  able  com- 
mander could  lead  the  reserve  to  the  support  of  the  beaten  and  fugitive 
host  of  the  royalists,  and  the  king  was  obliged  to  fly  from  the  field,  leav- 
ing his  artillery  and  valuable  baggage,  as  well  as  five  thousand  prisoners, 
in  the  liands  of  the  victorious  parliamentarians. 

Nor  did  the  advantat,„j  lo  the  victor  end  even  thers.  The  defeat  of  the 
kinjr  and  the  magnitude  of  the  losses  he  iiad  sustained  greatly  aided  the 
parli.iinentarians  in  reducing  'he  chief  fortified  places  in  the  kingdom, 
liristol,  Uridgewater,  Chester,  6>herbonie,  and  Bath  fell  into  their  hands; 
ExciiT  was  closely  invested  by  Fairfax,  and  held  out  gallantly,  but  at 
length  was  obliged  to  surrender  at  discretion,  all  the  western  counties 
being  so  completeljr  cleared  of  the  king's  troops  that  there  was  not  the 
slii^lilcst  chance  of  its  being  relieved. 

In  ;ill  the  aspects  of  his  fortune  Charles  had  found  the  city  of  Oxford 
loyal  and  devoted.  As  well  became  that  city  of  science  and  learning,  it 
had  constantly  shown  itself  "glad  in  his  prosperity  and  sad  in  his  so''- 
roiv,"  and  thither  he  retreated  in  his  present  misfortuiiB,  well  knowinir 
liiat  there  he  would  be  loyally  received,  and  hoping  that  even  yet  he  might 
by  negotiation  retrieve  some  of  the  sad  loss  he  had  experienced  in  iho 
field.  Hut  the  unfortunate  king  was  closely  pursued  by  Fairfax,  at  the 
head  of  a  victorious  army  eager  for  yet  farther  triumph  over  the  defeatcl 
sovereign;  and  as  the  parliamentarians  loudly  expressed  their  intention 
of  hiving  siege  to  Oxford,  and  were  abundantly  supolied  with  everythmg 
.--iiujsite  for  that  purpose,  Charles  had  several,  and  very  cogent  reasons 
for  not  abiding  there.  That  the  loyal  inliai)itaiit3  of  Oxford  would  defend 
lum  to  the  utmost,  Charles  had  no  room  to  doubt ;  but  neither  could  there 
be  any  doubt  that  the  well  known  loyalty  of  the  city  would,  on  that  very 
sciue,  be  most  signally  [luuished  liy  the  parliamentarians.  Moreover, 
CliMiles  bad  a  most  justifial)l(!  and  well-grouuiled  horror  of  falling  into  the 
'iiiiiiis  (>f  the  English  puritans,  from  whom,  espeeinlly  now  that  they  were 
full  and  freslily  flushed  with  victory,  hi'  might  fear  every  insult,  even  to 
tlie  extent  of  personal  violence.  Reasoning  t'lUS,  and  believing  that  the 
Scott  isli  army  was  less  personally  anil  inveterately  hostile  to  him,  Charles 
tipnk  wlial  ])roved  to  be  the  fatal  resolution,  of  delivering  himself  into  the 
liauils,  of  the  Scots.  To  their  eternal  dis.frace,  they  received  him  as  a 
distressed  king  only  to  treat  him  as  a  malefactor  and  a  prisoner.  They 
worried  and  ins'iltcd  him  with  saniMimonious  remonstrances  and  re/lec- 
tions.  by  every  possible  iiegleirt  of  the  respectful  ceremonials  due  to  a 
sovereign;  they  reminded  him  of  and  imhittered  his  misfortunes;  and,  to 
complete  the  infamy  of  their  conduct,  tiiey  added  gross  venality  to  faith- 
lessness and  disloyalty,  ami  literally  sold  him  to  the  rebellious  Knglish 
parliament  for  the  sum  of  two  hundreil  thousand  poimds ! 

Willi  this  atrocious  act  the  Scots  returned  to  their  country,  laden 
with  ill  earned  wealth,  but  laden  iilso  with  the  execnition  of  all  good  men, 
and  with  the  contempt  even  of  those  bold  bad  men  lo  whom  they  bad 
haseU-  sold  the  unfortunate  prince.  Wholly  ;md  helplessly  in  the  powt  r 
of  Ins  foes,  Charles  had  no  course  left  to  so  liononralile  a  mind  as  Ins,  but 
lo  absolve  his  still  faithrni  followers  ;nid  subjeets  from  the  duty  of  firther 
striving  m  his  behalf,  and  to  trust  for  the  safety  of  even  his  life  to  the 

mercy  of  men 

"  Wtiopo  mrrcy  win  n  nlckniimp  t'cir  the  rnpo 
DI'lniiicli'fK  tii,-i-rii  liiini{i'iiiii<  tni'  liliinil.  ' 

Hut  if  the  rebellious  parhamenlarians  were  trinmpb:int  over  their  kinjr 
they  had  yet  to  deal  with  n  more  lormnlable  eiieinv.  Tli"  parliainent  had 
been  made  unaiiiiniius  in  iiself  ;iii  I  with  the  luniy  iiy  the  olivioiis  and 
pressiim  lieeessilv  lor  iniltiial  di'leiiee,  iis  Ion  .'  ;is  liie  king  Wiisin  the 
lieUI  and  at  the  beail  of  an  iiiiposiii;;  force.     Hui  now  thai  the  loriune  ul 


Ill   niM" 

Iry.   la<^f'i'> 

L'oDil  men, 

tlicy  liiiil 

ihi"  i»owt  r 

IS  Ills.  1)11' 

of  f:\rllu'i 

\if(>  to  tl»o 


■  tlii'lr  kiiilt 
iMiiiriiihail 
itiviiiiiH  and 

\N  IS  III    lU" 

lOlllIlK!  Ill 


mm 

flr! 

m 


1 

1'' 

m 

1 

r 

'  1 

7*!- 

war  and  tht 

and  almost  l 

position  of  tl 

ful  monarch 

against  each 

needless  anc 

bond  of  unio 

most  part,  pi 

ance  to  the  k 

but  who  were 

lay  and  clerii 

army  took   ( 

thought,  with 

were  ready  tc 

being  qijalifie( 

low.     The  in 

any  conceivat 

for  the  mere  i 

further  and  d 

and  secret,  pr( 

himself  the  m( 

as  vvilljnu-  and 

the  well-fough 

command  und( 

commander,  ai 

own  hands.    I 

the  military  lo 

scurity  after  a) 

to  believe,  perr 

Without  appt 

artful  intriguer 

dence  in  the  pa 

about  the  consi( 

and  ill-used  bod 

4  rude  but  eflici 

acting  as  a  hous 

acting  as  a  hoii; 

army."    Of  the: 

■■".ppearance  he  v 

Ins  duty  to  the  \ 

required  to  sngg 

tion  of  his  own  ; 

While  Oromvv 

and  seemingly  ft 

as  yet,  owing  to 

Parliiuient,  not  s 

comparative  trail 

wai'f,  highly  chai 

wtill-     He  demoi 

of  lliu  king's  pen 

fXIStJIlg  p;i|-(ies. 

King  rally  round 
|oriniiig  such  ajii 
king,  when  the  a 
'lisiidvantugcous  | 
•nent,  mclu.ijng  v 
existence.  \s  ns 
wiio  «t  the  breaki 


THE  THEASUilY  OF  HI6T0HV 


585 


war  and  the  base  venality  of  the  Scotch  had  made  Charles  a  powerless 
and  almost  hopeless  captive,  the  spoilers  began  to  quarrel  about  tlie  dis- 
position of  the  spoil ;  and  they  who  had  united  to  revolt  from  their  law- 
ful monarch  were  ready  with  equal  eagerness  and  animosity  to  cabal 
against  each  other.  There  is  a  sure  retributive  curse  attendant  upon  all 
needless  and  groundless  dissent — its  destitution  of  a  real  and  an  abiding 
bond  of  union.  The  civilians  of  the  parliamentary  party  were,  for  the 
most  part,  presbyterians,  who  were  eager  enough  to  throw  off  all  allegi- 
ance to  the  king  and  all  submission  and  respect  to  the  church  of  England, 
but  who  were  not  the  less  inclined  to  set  up  and  exact  respect,  both  from 
lay  and  clerical  authorities  of  their  own  liking.  The  fanaticism  of  the 
army  took  quite  another  turn;  they  were  mostly  independents,  who 
thought,  with  Dogberry,  that  "  reading  and  writing  come  by  nature,"  and 
were  ready  to  die  upon  the  truth  of  the  mosi,  ignorant  trooper  among  them 
being  qualified  to  preach  with  soul-saving  effect  to  his  equally  ignorant  fel- 
low. The  independents,  armed  and  well  skilled  in  arms,  would  under 
any  conceivable  circumstance  have  been  something  more  than  a  match 
for  the  mere  dreamers  and  declaimers  of  parliament ;  but  they  had  a  still 
further  and  decisive  advantage  in  the  active  and  energetic,  though  wily 
and  secret,  prompting  and  direction  of  Cro'r.wtU,  v/ho  artfully  professed 
himself  the  most  staunch,  independent  of  them  of  all,  and  si.owed  himself 
as  willing  and  able,  too,  to  lead  them  t  tlie  charg  and  the  victory  upon 
the  well-fouglit  field.  He  was,  in  a'  ranee,  nideed,  only  second  in 
command  under  Fairfax,  but,  in  reali*  ,  ..e  was  supreme  over  his  nominal 
commander,  and  had  the  fate  of  both  king  and  kingdom  completely  in  his 
own  hands.  He  artfully  and  carefully  fomented  the  jealousy  with  which 
the  military  looked  upon  their  own  comparative  powerlessnes?  and  ob- 
scurity after  all  the  dangers  and  toils  by  which  they  had,  as  they  aiiected 
to  believe,  permanently  secured  the  peace  and  comfort  of  the  country. 

Without  appearing  to  make  any  exertion  or  to  use  any  influence,  the 
artful  intriguer  urged  the  soldiery  so  far,  that  ihey  openly  lost  all  confi- 
dence in  the  parliament  for  which  they  had  but  too  well  fought,  and  set 
about  tlie  consideration  and  redress  of  their  own  grievances  as  a  separate 
and  ill-used  body  of  the  community.  Still,  at  the  instigation  of  Cromwell, 
i  rude  but  efficient  military  parliament  was  formed,  the  principal  officers 
acting  as  a  house  of  peers,  and  two  men  or  officers  from  each  regiment 
acting  as  a  house  of  commons,  under  the  title  of  the  "  agitators  of  the 
army."  Of  these  Cromwell  took  care  to  be  one,  and  thus,  while  to  all 
.".ppearance  he  was  only  acting  as  he  was  authorized  and  conunanded  by 
his  duty  to  the  whole  army,  he  in  fact  enjoyed  all  the  opportunity  that  he 
required  to  suggest  and  forward  measures  indispensable  to  the  gratifica- 
tiun  of  his  own  ambition. 

While  Cromwell  was  thus  wickedly  but  ably  scheming,  the  king,  forlorn 
and  seemingly  forgotten,  lay  in  llolmby  castle,  strictly  watched,  tiiough, 
as  yet,  owing  to  the  dissensions  that  existed  between  the  army  and  the 
parliimeiit,  not  subjected  to  any  fiirtiier  indignities.  From  this  state  of 
comparative  tranquillity  the  untiap|)y  Charles  was  aroused  by  a  coup  de 
main,  liighiy  characteristic  alike  of  thi;  boldness  and  shrewdness  of  Crom- 
well. He  demonstrated  to  his  coiiliduiiis  of  the  army  that  the  possession 
of  the  kiiiir's  person  must  needs  give  a  vast  preponderance  to  any  of  the 
existing  parties.  The  royalists,  it  was  obvious,  would  at  the  order  of  the 
king  rally  round  him,  even  in  conjuiictii)ii  with  the  parliament,  which  by 
forming  sncli  a  junction  could  at  any  nioineiii  coinmand  the  pardon  of  the 
king,  when  the  army,  besides  other  difficulties,  would  be  |)laced  in  the 
disadvantageous  position  of  fighting  against  all  br.iiiciies  of  the  govern- 
ment, nu'luJing  t-ven  that  one  to  whose  will  and  authority  it  owed  its  own 
exiBteiice.  \s  usual,  his  arguments  were  successriil,  and  Cornel  Joyce, 
who  «i  the  breaking  out  of  the  rebellion  had    leer,  jnly  h  tailor,  was  diu. 


iiifif 


f 


586 


THE  TKEASUllY  OF  HISTORY. 


patched  with  fiv6  hundred  cavalry  to  seize  the  king's  person  at  Holinhy 
castle.  Though  strictly  watched,  the  king  was  but  slenderly  guarded,  dx 
the  parliament  liad  no  suspicion  of  the  probability  of  any  such  attempt  on 
the  part  of  the  army.  Cornet  Joyce,  therefore,  found  no  difficulty  in  oi>. 
taining  access  to  the  king,  to  whom  he  made  known  the  purport  of  his 
mission.  Surprised  at  this  sudden  determination  to  remove  him  to  the 
head- quarters  of  the  armj,  the  king,  with  some  anxiety,  asked  Joyce  to 
produce  his  commission  for  so  extraordinary  a  proceeding,  and  Joyce, 
with  tlie  petulenee  of  a  man  suddenly  and  unexpectedly  elevated,  pointed 
to  his  troops,  drawn  up  before  the  win'Viw.  "  A  goodly  commission,"  re- 
plied Charles,  "  and  written  in  fair  characters ;"  he  then  accompanied 
Joyce  to  Triplo-heath  near  Cambridge,  the  head-quarters  of  the  army. 
Fairfax  and  other  discerning  and  moderate  men  had  by  this  time  begun  to 
see  the  danger  the  country  was  in  from  the  utter  abasement  of  thu  kingly 
power,  and  to  wish  for  such  an  acc(»tnmodation  as  might  secure  the  peo- 
ple without  destroying  the  king.  But  Cromwell's  bold  seizure  of  liis 
majesty  had  enabled  him  to  throw  off  the  mask;  the  violent  and  fanatical 
spirit  of  the  soldiery  was  wholly  subjected  to  him,  and  on  his  arrival  at 
Triplo-heath,  on  the  day  after  ilie  king  was  taken  thilher  by  Joyce,  Crom- 
well was  by  acclamation  elected  to  the  supreme  command  of  the  army. 

Though,  at  the  outset,  the  parliament  was  wholly  opposed  to  tlie  e.\or- 
bitanl  pretensibiis  of  the  army,  the  success  of  Cromwell's  machinations 
rendered  that  opposition  less  unanimous  and  compact  every  day,  and  at 
length  there  was  a  considerable  majority  of  parliament,  including  the  two 
speakers,  in  favour  of  tiie  army.  To  encourage  this  portion  of  the  par- 
liament, the  h(!ad-quarters  of  the  army  were  tixed  at  Ilounslow-heath ; 
and  as  llie  debates  in  the  house  daily  grew  more  violent  ;ind  threatening, 
sixty-two  meinlicrs,  witli  the  two  speakers,  fled  to  the  camp  at  Hoimslow, 
and  I'orinally  tiirew  themselves,  officially  and  personally,  upon  the  protec- 
tion of  th(!  army.  This  accession  to  his  moral  force  was  so  welcome  to 
Cromweii,  that  he  caused  the  ineml)ers  to  be  received  with  a  jjcrfect  tu- 
mult of  iiiplause  ;  and  he  ordt.'red  that  tlie  troops,  twenty  thousand  in  num- 
ber, shi  I  move  upon  Liuidon  to  restore  these  fugitives  to  the  place 
whieii  they  had  voluntarily  ceded  and  the  duties  they  had  timorously  tied 
from. 

While  the  one  portion  of  the  house  had  fled  to  the  protection  of  the 
soldiers,  the  otlier  portion  had  made  some  demonstrations  of  bringing  Clio 
struggle  against  the  prcieusions  of  the  army  lo  an  issue  in  the/ield.  New 
jpeak(^rs  were  chosen  in  the  place  of  the  fugitives,  orders  were  given  to 
eidist  ufsw  troops,  and  tJK!  train-tiands  were  ordered  to  the  defence  of  the 
lines  that  enclosed  the  ciiy.  lint  when  Ooniwell  with  twenty  thousand 
traiiied  and  un^^p.iriiig  troops  arrived,  the  inii)ossibility  of  any  hastily  or- 
ganized der(!nce  being  available  against  him  became  painfully  evident. 
The  g.ites  were  thrown  open,  Cromwell  restored  the  si)eakers  anil  the 
members  of  pailiaiiKMit,  several  of  the  opposite  members  were  arbitrarily 
ex|)idled  ilie  house,  the  mayor  of  Londdii,  wiih  three  Hhlermen  and  tlie 
iheritTs,  «ere  eoininiiled  to  the  Tower,  otlier  prisons  were  crowded  with 
citizens  ;ind  niiliti.i  oHieers,  and  the  city  lines  were  levelled,  Jie  more 
efTeetiially  to  prevent  any  future  resistaiiee  lo  the  sovereign  will  and  pleas- 
ure of  the  armyi  or,  Mther,  of  its  master-s[)irit,  Cromwell 


CHAPTKR  I.ir. 

TIIK    RKION    in'   CU.Mll.KS  I.   (eONf;I,l' HE)). 

The  king  on  being  seized  by  the  army  was  sent  as  a  prisoner  to  hi? 
palace  ai  llam|)ton  court.     Hen.',  though  closely  vvalehed,  lie  wcsallowid 


der  the 
Forty.oi 
iinprisoi 
leiilly  o, 
only  r,|), 
tliose  be 
mies  of 
army, 
purge,' 
deeiiieil 
"  the  rui 
With  . 
to  Itself 
ihat  had 
"nd  that 


THE  TRKA3UIIY  OF  HISTOllY. 


687 


lolniby 
led,  (<>t 
nipl  on 

ill  ol>- 
[  of  his 

lo  the 
jycc  to 

Joyce, 
pointed 
ion,"  re- 
iiipanied 
e  army, 
begun  to 
\f.  kiiisjly 
the  peo- 
re  of  his 
fanatical 
irrival  al 
;e,  Crom- 
1  army- 
ihe  exor- 
ihinaiions 
ly,  ai\J  at 
ig  the  two 
f''i\ii!  par- 
i)\v-lu!alh  i 
ireatening, 
Hounslow, 
the  proloc- 
.•elcome.  to 
perfect  lu- 
md  in  nnm- 

the  phico 

irously  fled 

llion  of  the 
iriusing  tlio 
lield.     New 
le  (riven  to 
Icnce  of  the 
,y  ilions»i>'l 
liaslily  or- 
|lly   evident. 
Vis  and  lt>e 
e  arbiliarily 
len  and  Hie 
■owded  vvilti 
jd, -lie  n\ore 
ill  and  pleas- 


Isoner  m  '''' 
I  wn.sallowi'J 


tKe  access  of  his  friends  and  all  facilities  for  iiegoti^.iiig  with  parliament, 
lint,  in  truth,  the  negotiating  parties  had  stood  upon  terms  wiiich  ahnost 
necessarily  caused  distrust  on  the  one  hand  and  incincerity  on  the  other. 
Completely  divested  <;f  power  as  Charles  now  was,  it  seems  probable 
enougli  that  he  would  promise  more  than  h?,  had  any  intention  of  perform- 
ing, while  the  leading  men  on  the  oiher  side  could  not  but  feel  that  their 
very  lives  would  depend  upon  his  sincerity  from  the  instant  that  he  should 
be  restored  to  liberty  and  the  exercise  of  his  authority.  Here  wonid  have 
been  quite  siifficieiii  difficulty  in  the  way  of  successful  negotiation ;  but, 
Dcsides  that,  Cromwell's  plans  were  perpetually  traversing  the  efTorts  of 
ihe  king  when  his  majesty  was  sincere,  whtle  Cromwell's  active  espion- 
age never  allowed  any  flagrant  insincerity  to  escape  dctectioi).  The 
king  at  length  perceived  the  inutility  of  negotiation,  and  made  his  escape 
to  the  Isle  of  VVigln.  Here  he  hoped  to  remain  uiidistuibed  until  he 
could  either  escape  to  the  continent  or  receive  such  succours  thence  as 
might  enable  him,  at  least,  to  negotiate  with  the  parliament  upon  more 
equal  terms,  if  not  actually  to  try  his  forlnne  anew  in  the  lield.  But 
Colonel  Hammond,  the  governor  of  the  Isle  of  Wight,  though  he  in  some 
respects  treated  the  unfortunate  king  wiih  humanity,  made  him  prisoner, 
and  after  being  for  some  '.line  (confined  in  Carisbrook  castle,  the  unfortu- 
nate Charles  was  sent  in  custody  to  his  royal  castle  of  Windsor,  where  he 
was  wholly  in  the  power  of  the  army. 

Cromwell  and  those  who  acted  with  him  saw  very  plainly  that  the 
mere  anxiety  of  the  parliament  to  depress  the  praetorian  bands  which 
themselves  had  called  into  evil  and  gigantic  power,  was  very  likely  to 
lead  to  an  accommodation  with  the  king,  whoso  own  sense  of  his  immi- 
nent danger  could  not  fail  to  render  him,  also,  anxious  for  an  early  settle- 
ment of  all  disputes.  The  artful  leaders  of  the  army  faction,  therefore, 
now  encouraged  their  dupes  and  tools  of  the  lower  sort  to  throw  off  the 
mask  ;  and  rabid  yells  for  the  punishment  of  the  king  arose  on  all  sides. 
Peace  and  security  had  hitherto  been  the  cry ;  it  was  now  changed  to  a 
cry  for  vengeance.  From  Windsor  the  unli  ippy  king  was  conveyed  to 
Hurst-castle,  on  the  coast  of  Hampshire,  and  opposite  to  the  Isle  of  Wight, 
chiefly,  it  should  seem  to  render  commuiiicatioii  between  him  and  the  par- 
liameiilarj  leaders  more  dilatory  and  difl^cult.  But  the  parliament,  grow- 
ing tnore  and  more  anxious  for  an  accoininodation  in  precise  proportion 
as  it  was  rendered  more  and  more  impracticable,  again  opened  a  negotiation 
with  the  iil-lreated  monarch,  and  despite  the  id.imours  and  ihreats  of  the 
fanatical  soldiery,  seemed  upon  the  very  point  of  bringing  it  to  a  conclu- 
sion, when  a  new  coup  tie  main  on  the  part  of  Cromwell  extiiiguishid  all 
hope  in  the  bosoms  of  the  loyal  and  the  just,  Perceiving  that  tlie  obsti- 
nacy of  the  parliament  and  the  unhappy  vacillation  of  tlie  king  could  no 
longer  be  relied  upon,  Cromwell  sent  two  regimiMUs  of  his  soldiery,  un- 
der the  command  of  Colonel  Piide,  to  blockade  the  house  of  commons. 
Foity-one  members  who  were  favourable  to  accommodation  were  actually 
imprisoned  in  a  lowir  room  of  the  house,  a  hundred  and  sixty  were  inso- 
lently ordered  to  go  to  their  homes  and  attend  to  their  private  aft'airs,  and 
only  about  sixty  members  were  allowed  to  enter  the  house,  the  whole  of 
those  being  furious  and  bigoted  independents,  the  pledged  and  deadly  ene- 
mies of  tlie  king,  and  the  mere  and  servile  tools  of  Cromwell  and  the 
army.  This  parliamentary  clearance  was  facetiously  called  "Pride's 
purge,"  and  the  members  who  had  the  disgraceful  distinction  of  being 
deemed  fit  for  Cromwell's  dirty  work,  ever  after  passed  under  the  title  o( 
"the  rump." 

With  a  really  ludicrous  impudence  this  contemptible  assembly  assumed 
to  itself  the  whole  power  and  character  of  the  parliament,  voted  that  all 
that  had  been  done  lowiirds  an  aicommodation  with  the  king  was  illegal, 
und  that  his  seizure  and  iinprisonmeat  by  "the  general  "—so  Cromwell 


m 


!)88 


THE  TREA8UUY  OF  HISTOUY. 


was  now  termed,  par  excellence — were  just  and  praiseworthy.  All  moder> 
ation  was  thrown  to  the  winds,  and  us  the  actual  private  murder  of  the 
king  was  thought  likely  to  disgust  the  better  men  even  among  the  fanati* 
eal  soldiery,  a  committee  of  "  the  rump"  parliament  was  formed  to  digest 
a  charge  of  high  treason.  It  would  seem  that  the  subtlest  casuist  would 
be  puzzled  to  make  out  such  a  charge  against  a  king ;  and  especially  in 
an  age  wiien  monarchy  in  England  was  so  newly  and  so  imperfertly  lim- 
ited. But  "the  rump"  was  composed  of  men  who  knew  no  difficulty  ol 
the  moral  sort.  The  king,  most  rightfully,  and  supported  by  the  most 
illustrious  of  his  nobles  and  the  wealthiest  and  most  loving  of  his  gentry, 
had  drawn  the  sword  to  reduce  to  order  and  peace  a  rabid  and  greedy 
faction,  which  threatened  his  crown  and  tore  the  vitals  of  liis  country. 
And  this  justifiable,  though  sad  and  lamentable  exertion  of  force,  after  all 
milder  means  had  failed,  "  the  rump"  now  charged  against  the  king  as 
treason ;  a  treason  of  a  kind  never  before  dreamed  of,  a  levying  war 
against  his  parliament !  Surely,  the  unhappy  Charles  had  now  but  too 
much  reason  to  regret  that  he  had  not  by  a  just  severity  to  Lord  Kimbol- 
ton  and  his  live  co-accused  fire-brands,  crushed  this  venomous  parliament 
while  yet  he  had  the  power  to  do  so ! 

As  there  was  now  no  longer,  thanks  to  "  Pride's  purge,"  a  chance  of 
further  negotiation,  it  was  determined  that  the  hapless  king  should  be 
brought  from  Hurst-castle  to  Windsor.  Colonel  Harrison,  a  half  insane 
and  wholly  brutal  fanatic,  the  son  of  a  butcher,  was  entrusted  with  this 
commission ;  chiefly,  perhaps,  because  it  was  well  understood  that  he 
would  rather  slay  the  royal  captive  with  his  own  hand  than  allow  him  to 
be  rescued.  After  a  brief  stay  at  Windsor,  the  king  was  once  again  re- 
moved to  London,  and  his  altered  appearance  was  such  as  would  have 
excited  commisseration  in  the  breasts  of  any  but  the  callous  and  inexor- 
able creatures  in  whose  hands  he  was.  His  features  were  haggard,  his 
beard  long  and  neglected,  his  hair  blanched  to  a  ghastly  whiteness  by  suf- 
ferings that  seemed  to  have  fully  doubled  his  age ;  and  the  boding  melan- 
choly that  had  characterised  his  features,  even  in  his  happier  days,  was 
now  deepened  down  to  an  apparent  yet  resigned  sadness  that  was  painful 
to  all  humane  beholders. 

Sir  Philip  Warwick,  an  old  and  broken  man,  but  faithful  and  loyal  to 
the  last,  was  the  king's  chief  attendant ;  and  he  and  the  few  subordinates 
who  were  allowed  to  approach  the  royal  person  were  now  brutally  ordered 
to  serve  the  king  without  any  of  the  accustomtd  forms;  and  all  external 
symbols  of  state  and  majesty  were,  at  the  same  time,  withdrawn  with  a 
petty  yet  malignant  carefulness. 

Even  these  cruelties  and  insults  could  not  convince  the  king  that  his 
enemies  would  bo  guilty  of  the  enormous  absurdity  of  bringing  their 
sovereign  to  a  formal  trial.  Calm,  just,  and  clear-sighted  himself,  he 
could  not  comprehend  how  even  his  fanatical  and  boorish  enemies  could, 
in  the  face  of  day,  so  manil'estly  bid  defiance  not  only  to  all  law  and  all 
precedent,  but  also  to  the  plainest  maxims  of  common  sense.  But  though 
almost  to  the  very  day  of  his  trial  the  king  refused  to  believe  that  his 
enemies  would  dare  to  try  him,  he  diJ  believe  that  they  intended  to 
assassinate  him,  and  in  every  meal  of  \vr\ich  he  partook  he  imagined  that 
he  saw  the  instrument  of  hia  death. 

A.  D.  1618. — In  the  meantime,  the  king's  enemies  were  actively  making 
preparations  for  the  most  extraordinary  trial  ever  witnessed  in  England. 
These  preparations  were  so  extensive  that  they  occupied  a  vast  number  of 
persons  from  tlie  sixth  to  the  twentieth  of  January.  As  if  the  more  fully 
to  convince  the  king  of  their  earnestness  in  the  matter,  Cromwell  and  the 
rump,  when  they  had  named  a  high  court  of  justice,  consisting  of  a  hun- 
dred and  thirty-three  persons,  ordered  the  duke  of  Hamilton,  whom  they 
had  doomed  to  death  for  his  unshaken  loyalty  to  his  sovereign,  to  be  ad* 


THE  TllEASURY  OF  lIlriTOilY. 


689 


loder* 
of  the 
fanali- 
digest 
would 
illy  in 
ly  lim- 
illy  ol 
3  most 
gentry, 
greedy 
ountry. 
ifter  all 
king  as 
ng  war 
but  too 
Kimbol- 
rliament 

hance  of 
[lould  be 
f  insane 
with  this 
that  he 
w  him  to 
again  re- 
luld  have 
(1  inexor- 
ggard,  his 
ss  by  suf- 
ig  melan- 
]ays,  was 
as  painful 

il  loyal  to 
lordinates 
y  ordered 

I  external 
with  a 

jg  that  his 
ting  their 
Hiiself,  he 
^i(;s  could, 
iw  and  all 
>ut  though 
le  that  his 
Itendcd  to 
Igined  that 

lly  making 

II  England. 
1  number  of 
I  more  fully 
lell  and  the 

of  a  hun- 
vhom  they 
,tobe  ad- 


mitted to  take  leave  of  the  king  at  Windsor.  The  interview  was  a  har- 
rowing one.  The  duke  had  ever  been  ready  to  pour  out  his  bliod  like 
water  for  his  sovereign;  even  now  he  felt  not  for  himself,  but,  moved  to 
tears  by  the  sad  alteration  in  the  person  of  Charles,  threw  himself  at  the 
royal  victim's  feet,  exclaiming,  "  My  dear  master !"  "  Alas !"  said  the 
weeping  king,  as  he  raised  up  his  faithful  and  devoted  servant,  "  Alas  !  I 
have,  indeed,  been  a  dear  master  to  you !"  Terrible,  at  this  moment,  must 
have  been  the  king's  self-reproaches  for  the  opportunities  he  had  neglected 
of  putting  down  the  wretches  who  now  had  hia  faithful  servant  and  him- 
self in  their  power! 

Of  the  persons  named  to  sit  in  the  high  court  of  justice,  as  this  shame 
fully  unjust  and  iniquitous  coterie  was  impudently  terme<l,  only  about 
seventy,  or  scarcely  more  than  one  half,  could  be  got  together  at  any  one 
time  during  the  trial.  Low  citizens,  fanatical  members  of  the  rump,  and 
servile  officers  of  tlie  army,  composed  the  majority  of  tiiose  who  did  at- 
tend, and  it  was  before  this  wretched  assembly  that  the  legitimate  sov- 
ereign of  the  land,  now  removed  from  Windsor  to  St.  James,  was  placed 
to  undergo  the  insulting  mockery  of  a  trial. 

The  court,  "thebigli  court  of  justice"  thus  oddly  constituted,  mot  in 
Wesiniinster-hall.  The  talents  and  firmness  of  Charles  were  even  now 
too  much  respected  by  Cromwell  and  the  slirewder  members  of  "  the 
rump"  to  allow  of  their  opposing  this  miserable  court  to  him  witliout  the 
ablest  procurable  aid;  Bradshaw,  a  lawyer  of  considerable  ability,  was 
therefore  appointed  president,  and  Coke,  solicitor  for  the  people  of  Eng 
land,  with  Steel,  Aske,  and  Dorislaus  for  his  assistants. 

Wiieu  led  by  a  mace-bearer  to  a  seat  within  the  bar,  the  king  seated 
himself  with  his  hat  on,  and  looked  sternly  around  him  at  the  traitors  who 
affected  to  be  his  competent  judges.  Coke  then  read  the  charge  against 
him,  and  the  king's  melancholy  countenance  was  momentarily  liglit(;<l  up 
witli  a  manlv  and  just  scorn  as  he  heard  himself  gravely  accused  of  hav- 
ing been  "  the  cause  of  all  the  bloodshed  which  had  followed  since  the 
commencement  of  the  war!" 

When  Coke  had  finished  making  his  formal  charge,  the  president,  Brad- 
shaw, addressed  the  king,  and  called  upon  him  to  answer  to  the  accusation 
which  he  had  heard  made  against  him. 

Though  the  countenance  of  Charles  fully  expressed  the  natural  and 
lofty  indignation  that  he  felt  at  being  called  upon  to  plead  as  a  mere  felon 
before  a  court  composed  not  merely  of  simple  commoners,  but,  to  a  very 
great  extent,  of  the  most  ignorant  and  least  honourable  men  in  their  ranks 
of  life,  lie  admirably  preserved  his  temper,  and  addressed  himself  to  his 
task  with  earnest  and  grave  argument.  He  said  that,  conscious  as  lie  was 
of  innocence,  he  should  rejoice  at  an  opportunity  of  justifying  his  coiuiuct 
ill  every  particular  before  a  competent  tribunal,  but  as  lie  was  not  inclined 
to  bciroine  the  betrayer  instead  of  the  defender  of  the  constitution,  he  must 
at  this,  the  very  first  stage  of  the  proceedings,  wholly  and  positively  re- 
pudiate tlie  autiiority  of  the  court  i)of()re  whicli  he  had  been  as  illegally 
brought,  as  the  court  itself  was  illegilly  constituted.  Where  was  there 
even  tlie  shadow  of  the  upper  house  !  Without  it  tiiere  (;ould  be  no  just 
tribunal,  parliamentary  or  appointed  by  parliament.  He  was  interrupted, 
too,  for  the  purposes  of  this  illegal  trial  just  as  he  was  on  the  point  of  cim- 
(•hiding  a  treaty  with  both  houses  of  parliament,  a  moment  at  which  he 
surely  had  a  right  to  expect  anything  rather  than  the  violent  and  unjust 
treatment  that  he  had  ex.ierienced.  lie,  it  could  not  be  denied,  was  the 
king  and  fountain  of  law,  and  could  not  be  tried  by  laws  to  wliicii  he  had 
not  given  his  autluftity  ;  and  it  would  ill  become  him,  who  was  entrusted 
with  the  liberties  of  the  people,  to  betray  them  by  even  a  formal  and  tacit 
recognition  of  a  tribunal  which  could  not  possibly  possess  any  other  than 
1  merely  usurped  powei. 


'^, 


590 


THE  THEASUKY  OF  HISTORY. 


Bradsliaw,  tlie  president,  affected  much  surprise  and  indignation  at  Hip 
king's  repudiation  of  the  mock  court  of  ju3ti(;c  which,  he  said,  received 
its  power  and  aulliority  from  the  source  of  all  right,  the  people.  VVheii 
tile  king  altenipled  to  repeat  his  clear  and  cogent  objection,  Hradshaw 
rudely  interrupted  and  despotically  overruled  liim.  But,  if  silenced  by 
clamour,  the  king  was  not  to  be  turned  aside  from  his  course  by  the  mere 
repetition  of  a  hold  fallacy.  Again  and  again  he  was  brought  before  thi? 
mock  tribumil,  and  again  and  again  he  baffled  all  attempts  at  making  him, 
by  pleading  to  it,  give  it  some  shadow  of  lawful  authority.  The  conduct 
of  the  rabble  without  was  fully  worthy  of  the  conduct  of  their  self-con- 
stituted governors  within  the  court.  As  the  king  proceeded  to  the  court, 
he  WHS  assailed  with  brutal  yells  for  what  the  wicked  or  deluded  men 
called  "justice."  But  neither  the  mob  nor  their  instigators  could  induce 
him  to  plead,  and  the  iniquitous  court  '^  length  called  some  complaisant 
witnesses  to  swear  that  the  king  had  appeared  in  arms  against  forces  com- 
missioned by  parlianient ;  and  upon  tins  fallacy  of  evidence,  sentence  of 
death  was  pronounced  against  him.  We  call  the  evidence  a  mere  fallacy, 
because  it  amounted  to  nothing  unless  backed  by  the  gross  and  monstrous 
assumption  that  the  parliament  could  lawfully  commission  any  forces 
without  the  order  and  permission  of  the  king  himself,  and  the  no  less 
glaring  assumption  that  the  king  could  act  illegally  in  putting  down  rebel- 
lious g.ilherings  of  born  subjects. 

After  receiving  his  sentence  Charles  was  more  violently  abused  by  the 
rabble  outside  than  he  had  even  formerly  been.  "  Execution"  was  loudly 
demanded,  and  one  filthy  and  unmanly  ruffian  actually  spat  in  his  face, 
a  beastly  indignity  which  the  king  bore  with  a  sedate  and  august  pity, 
merely  ejaculating,  "  Poor  creatures,  they  would  serve  their  generals  in 
the  same  manner  for  a  sixpence  !" 

To  the  honour  of  the  nation  be  it  said,  these  vj.e  insults  of  the  baser 
rabble  were  strongly  contrasted  by  the  respectful  compass'on  of  the  better 
informed.  Many  of  tliem,  including  some  of  the  m'litary,  openly  ex 
pressed  their  regret  for  the  sufferings  of  the  king  and  the  disgust  at  the 
conduct  of  his  persecutors.  One  soldier  loudly  p:ayed  a  blessing  on  the 
royal  head,  and  the  honest  prayer  being  overhears  by  a  fanatical  officer, 
lie  struck  the  soldier  to  the  ground.  The  king,  moie  ifiigaant  at  this 
outrage  on  the  loyal  soldier  iliaii  he  had  been  at  ai.  the  unmanly  insults 
that  had  been  heaped  upon  himself,  turned  to  the  officer  and  sharpiy  told 
him  that  the  punishment  very  much  extreeded  the  offence. 

On  returning  to  VVhiiehall,  where  he  had  been  lodged  during  the  mock 
trial,  Charles  wrote  to  the  so-called  house  of  commons,  and  requested 
that  iie  might  be  allowed  to  see  those  of  his  children  who  were  in  Eng- 
land, and  to  have  the  assistance  of  Dr.  Juxon,  the  deprived  bishop  of  Lon- 
don, in  preparing  for  the  fate  which  he  now  clearly  saw  awaited  him. 
Even  his  fanatical  enemies  dared  not  refuse  these  requests,  but  at  the 
same  time  that  they  were  granted  he  was  informed  that  his  execution 
would  take  phwe  in  three  days. 

Tli(!  queen,  the  prince  of  Wales,  and  the  duke  of  York  were  happily 
abroad ;  hut  the  primness  Elizabeth  and  the  duke  of  Gloucester,  a  cliild 
not  much  more  than  three  years  old,  were  brought  into  the  presence  o( 
their  unhappy  parent.  The  interview  was  most  affecting,  for,  young  as 
the  children  were,  they  but  too  well  comprehended  the  sad  calamity  that 
was  about  to  befal  them.  The  king,  among  tlu!  many  exhortations  which 
he  endeavoured  to  adapt  to  the  understanding  of  his  infant  son,  said,  "  My 
cliild,  they  will  cut  off  my  head,  and  when  ih('y  have  done  that  they  will 
want  to  make  you  king.  But  now  mark  well  what  I  say,  you  must  never 
consent  to  he  king  while  your  brothers  Charles  and  James  are  alive 
They  will  cut  off  their  heads  if  they  can  take  them,  and  llicy  will  aflrr 
wards  cut  off  your  head,  and  therefore  I  charge  you  do  not  be  made  -i 


THE  TUEASUIIV  01'  lUdTOllY. 


A91 


I  at,  thP 
Bceived 

When 
adshaw 
\co(l  by 
lie  mere 
ore  thif 
ing  him, 
oonduet 
seU-eon- 
he  court, 
(led  men 
1(1  induce 
nplaisant 
•CCS  com- 
ntcncc  of 
re  fallacy, 
nonstrous 
ny  forces 
e  no  less 
jwn  rebel- 
fled  by  the 
was  loudly 

II  his  face, 
ugust  pity, 
generals  in 

f  the  baser 
)f  the  belter 
openly  ex 
isgust  at  the 
psing  on  tha 
[lical  ofiiccr, 
nant  at  this 
,anlv  insults 
[Sharply  told 

|)g  the  mock 
Id  requested 
,cre  in  ''■ng- 
shop  of  Lon- 
[waited  him. 
!,  but  at  tlie 
lis  exfculiou 


king  by  them."  The  noble  little  fellow,  having  listened  attentively  to  all 
that  Ilia  father  said  to  him,  burst  into  a  passion  of  tears  and  exclaimed, 
"  I  won't  be  a  king ;  I  will  be  torn  in  pieces  first." 

Short  as  the  interval  was  between  the  conclusion  of  the  mock  trial  of 
the  king  and  his  murder,  great  efforts  were  made  to  save  him,  and  among 
others  was  that  of  the  prince  of  Wales  sending  a  blank  paper,  signed  and 
sealed  by  himself,  accompanied  by  a  letter,  in  which  he  oTered  permis- 
sion  to  the  parliament  to  insert  whatever  terms  it  pleased  for  the  redemp- 
tion of  his  father's  life.  But  there  was  an  under-current  at  work  of  which 
both  the  king  and  his  attached  friends  were  fatally  ignorant.  The  real 
cause  of  the  murder  of  Charles  I.  was  the  excessive  personal  terror  of 
Ohver  Cromwell.  This  we  state  on  an  indisputably  legitimate  dcihiction 
from  an  anecdote  related  by  Cromwell  himself;  and  the  anecdote  is  so 
curious  and  so  characteristic  of  Cromwell  tliat  we  subjoin  it.  In  truth,  how 
broad  a  light  does  this  anecdote  throw  on  this  most  shameful  portion 
of  Knglish  history  I 

While  the  king  was  still  at  Windsor  and  allowed  to  correspond  both 
with  the  parliament  and  his  distant  friends,  it  is  but  too  clear  that  lie  al- 
lowed the  vile  character  and  proceedings  of  iiis  opponent  to  warp  ills  nat- 
urally high  character  from  the  direct  and  inflexible  honesty  which  is  pro- 
verbially and  truly  said  to  bo  the  best  policy.  Vacillation  and  a  desire  to 
make  use  of  subterfuge  were  apparent  even  in  his  direct  dealinos  with 
the  parliament,  and  woidd  have  tended  to  have  prolonged  thi;  negotiations 
even  had  the  parliament  been  earnest  in  its  wish  for  an  acconuuod.ition 
at  a  far  earlier  period  than  it  really  was.  Out  it  was  in  his  private  cor- 
respondence, especially  with  the  queen,  that  diaries  displayed  the  real  in- 
sincerity of  much  of  his  public  profession.  Seeing  the  great  power  of 
Cromwell,  and  to  a  considerable  extent  divining  that  darnig  and  subtle 
man's  real  character,  Charles  had  not  only  wisely  but  even  successfully 
endeavoured  to  win  Cromwell  to  his  aid.  There  was,  as  yet,  but  lit- 
tle probability  that  even  if  Charles  himself  were  put  out  of  the  way,  a 
high-hearted  nation  would  set  aside  the  wiiole  family  of  its  legitimate 
king,  merely  to  give  a  more  than  regal  despotism  into  tlu  coarse  hands 
of  the  son  of  a  provincial  brewer !  At  this  period  the  grasping  ambition  of 
the  future  protector  would,  in  the  absence  of  all  probabiiiiy  of  illegirniiate- 
ly  acquired  sovereignty,  iiave  been  satisfied  with  tiie  trust,  lioiioi"-^,, 
wealth,  and  power  which  the  gratitude  of  iiis  sovereign  could  have  Iv-- 
stowed  on  him.  Cromwell,  consequently,  was  actually  pondering  t.U^: 
propriety  of  setting  up  the  king  and  becoming  "  viceroy  over"  him,  when 
ti\e  startling  truth  was  revealed  to  him,  that  the  king  was  merely  (!u|)ing 
him,  and  intended  to  sacrifice  him  as  a  traitor  when  he  should  have  d.mi! 
with  him  as  a  tool.  Effectually  served  by  his  spies,  Cromwell,  v  im  had 
already  some  grounds  for  suspecting  Charles'  real  designs  towpids  him, 
received  information  that  on  a  certain  night  a  man  would  hin  ve  the  Hlue 
lioar  in  Holborn  for  Dover,  on  his  way  to  the  conlineni,  and  that  in 
the  flap  of  his  saddle  a  most  important  packet  would  be  found,  contain- 
ing a  voluminous  letter  from  the  king  to  the  queen.  On  the  night  in 
question,  Cromwell  and  Ircton,  in  the  disguise  of  troopers,  lounged  into 
the  Blue  Boar  tap,  and  there  passed  away  the  time  in  drinking  lieer 
and  watching  some  citizens  playing  at  shovel-board,  until  they  saw  the 
man  arrive  of  whom  they  had  received  an  exa(;t  deseiiption.  Following 
the  man  into  the  stable  they  ripped  open  the  saddle  and  found  the  packet, 
and,  to  his  dismay  and  rage,  Cromwell  read,  in  the  hand- writ  ing  of 
Charles,  the  monarch's  exultation  at  having  tickled  his  vanity,  and  his 
expressed  determination  to  raise  him  for  a  time,  only  to  crush  him  when 
the  opportunity  should  occur.  From  that  nionicnt  terror  made  Cromwell 
inexorable  ;  he  saw  no  security  for  his  own  safety  exei-pt  in  llie  complete 
destruclioa  of  the  king.     Heiice  the  indecent  and  determii";d  trial  and 


m 


992 


THE  THKASUllYOF  HISTORY 


sentence;  and  hence,  too,  the  absohite  contempt  that  was  shown  for  aU 
efforts  at  preventing  the  sentent-e  from  being  executed. 

Whatever  want  of  resolution  Charles  may  have  shown  in  other  pas- 
sages of  his  life,  the  time  he  was  allowed  to  live  between  sentence  and 
execution  exhibited  him  in  the  not  unfrequently  combined  characters  of 
the  christain  and  ihe  hero.  No  invectives  against  the  iniquity  of  which 
he  was  the  victim  escaped  his  lips,  and  he  slept  the  deep  calm  sleep 
of  innocence,  though  on  each  night  his  enemies,  with  a  refinement  upon 
cruelty  more  worthy  of  fiends  than  of  men,  assailed  his  ears  vith  the 
noise  of  men  erecting  the  scaffold  for  his  execution. 

When  the  fatal  morning  at  length  dawned,  the  king  at  an  early  hour 
called  one  of  his  attendants,  whom  he  desired  to  attire  him  with  more 
than  usual  care,  as  he  remarked  that  he  would  fain  appear  with  all  pro- 
per preparation  for  so  great  and  so  joyful  a  solemnity.  The  scaffold  was 
erected  in  front  of  Whitehall,  and  it  was  from  the  central  windows  of  his 
own  most  splendid  banqueting  room  that  the  king  stepped  on  to  the  scaf- 
fold on  which  he  was  to  be  murdered. 

When  his  majesty  appeared  he  was  attended  by  the  faithful  and  attach- 
ed Dr.  Juxon,  and  was  received  by  two  masked  executioners  standing 
beside  the  block  and  the  axe.  The  s(;affold,  entirely  covered  with  fine 
black  doth,  was  densely  surrounded  by  soldiers  under  the  command  of 
Colonel  Tonilinson,  while  in  the  distance  was  a  vast  multitude  of  people. 
The  near  and  violent  death  that  awaited  him  seemed  to  produce  no  effect 
on  tiie  king's  nerves.  He  gazed  gravely  but  calmly  around  him,  and  said, 
to  all  to  whom  the  concourse  of  military  would  admit  of  his  speaking,  that 
the  late  war  was  ever  deplored  by  him,  and  was  commenced  by  the  par- 
liament. He  had  not  taken  up  arms  until  compelled  by  the  warlike  and 
illegal  conduct  of  the  parliaivcnt,  and  had  done  so  only  to  defend  his  peo- 
ple from  oppression,  and  to  preserve  intact  the  authority  winch  had  been 
transmitted  to  him  by  his  ancestors.  But  though  he  positively  denied  that 
there  was  any  legal  authority  in  the  court  by  wiiich  he  had  been  tried,  or 
any  truth  in  ihe  charge  upon  which  he  liud  been  condemned  and  sentenced, 
he  ndd-'(l  that  his  fite  was  a  just  punishment  for  his  weakly  and  criminal- 
ly coiisiiiting  to  the  equally  unjust  execution  of  tlie  earl  of  Strafford. 
lie  einphaiically  pronounced  liis  forgiveness  of  all  his  enemies,  named 
his  son  a.s  his  successor,  and  expri'ssed  his  lio|)e  that  the  people  would 
now  nUurn  to  their  duty  under  that  prince ;  and  he  concluded  his  brief 
and  manly  addn^ss  by  calling  upon  all  present  to  bear  witness  that  he 
died  a  sincen;  protestant  of  the  church  of  Hngland. 

No  one  heard  this  address  without  lieing  deeply  moved  !)y  it,  and  even 
Colonel  Tondinson,  who  liad  the  unenviable  task  of  superintending  the 
munler  of  his  prince,  confessed  that  that  address  had  made  him  a  convert 
10  tlu!  royal  cause. 

The  roy.il  martyr  now  began  to  disrobe,  and,  as  tie  did  so,  Dr.  .luxon 
said  to  liiin,  "  Sire!  there  is  but  one  stage  inor<s  which,  tlioiiiih  a  tiirlni- 
lent  and  troublesome  one,  is  still  but  a  short  one  ;  it  will  soon  carry  vmi 
a  grc:it  way;  it  will  carry  yon  fDin earth  to  heaven,  and  there  ynu  sliiiil 
find,  to  your  great  joy,  the  prize  to  which  yon  arc  hastening,  a  crown 
of  iilory." 

"  I  ii""  replied  the  kini.', "where  no  disturbance  can  take  place,  from  a 
corrii|itil>le  to  an  incorriiptihlc!  crown." 

"You  exilinnge,"  rejoined  Cho  bishop,  "a  temporal  for  an  eleriial 
crown — a  good  exchange." 

riiiirles,  having  now  coin;iletc(l  liij<  preparations,  delivered  his  decora- 
tions i.i  .'^1,  (;('org('  to  Dr.  .luxon,  and  cmphaliiMlly  pronounced  the  sin- 
gle wind  •' Rcmeinber!''  ili!  then  Cidinly  l.nd  his  head  upon  the  block 
Hiid  It  WIS  severi'd  from  his  body  at  one  blow ;  Ihe  second  executiniiei 
iminciliately  held  it  up  by  the  hair,  and  said,  "  Heboid  the  head  of  t 
tritttor  !" 


itius, 

ninth  yi 

execute( 

vacillatji 

stern  en 

erted  at 

tne  traitc 

to  increa 

subjectin 

The  bl( 

lately  fur 

vile   shot 

tlie  powfii 

With  fl 

and  his  fn 

so  emphai 

•'iixoii,  am 

ed  to  give 

of  the  Wo 

the  doctor 

iiier  and  pa 

mid  at  the 

murderers ! 


WlHTEVE 

ccNses,  llir 
"'ill  more  (h 

ll^Ollcllt    to   I 

ii.'ilC  Miiv  ill 

I'lii'oiiiidcd , 

■'1  the  (Jrcii. 
"'•'  first  iii.st 
during.  I,., 
'I'i'ler  (ho  ,|„ 
'^l  'lie  Kiiiiic 
'^'oiiiwi'll  pr 

bulll  IlicK,,  |, 

Vielnry  vm.  | 

A  ')'.  lf).')n._ 
•"••III  fonihi 

"didlls  cnil'lly 

nioinciii  ()r,.,s( 
[ii'c   advciiliir 
Muds  of  |,is 
'".V'lliv,  as  III, 
'■|'''d  Cli.iilfs 
''"ii'i'l  lli.il  111,., 

"Ill'  l/Klssil, 
"I'V     fllllllNll,., 

''""'■itiiv,  for, 

tfl'"s8i|CNs    iiM'l 

""•  i:'''.'i.     Mm 

"       'S^     .111,1       |„|,y 

^'OL.  I.—.'M 


THE  TIIEASIJRY  OF  HISTORY.  fgy 

inu8,  Oil  the  30th  of  January,  1649,  perished  Charles  I.,  in  the  forty- 
ninth  year  of  his  age,  and  the  twenty-fourth  of  iiis  reign,  lie  was  not 
executed  but  murdered ;  he  was  guilty  of  no  crime  but  weakness  or 
vacillation  of  judgment ;  his  greatest  misfortune  was  his  want  of  the 
Btern  energy  of  a  Henry  VIll.  or  an  Eiizaljeth;  such  an  energy  sx 
erted  at  the  beginning  of  his  reign  would  have  enabh.'d  him  to  crush 
tne  traitorous,  and  would  have  warranted  and  enabled  him  subsequently 
to  increase  and  systematize  the  liberties  of  liis  country,  vvilhout  danger  of 
subjecting  it  to  the  rude  purification  of  a  civil  war. 

The  blood  of  the  royal  martyr  had  scarcely  ceased  to  flow,  before  the 
lately  furious  multitude  began  to  repent  of  tiie  violence  which  their  own 
vile  shouts  had  assisted.  But  repentance  came  too  hite;  more  than 
the  power  of  their  murdered  monarch  had  now  fallen  ii.  o  sterner  hands. 

Wiih  that  suspicion  which  "ever  haunts  the  guilty  inind,"  Cromwell 
and  his  friends  attached  much  mysterious  imporlaiicc  to  the  "  [iKMKMnK.tt" 
so  emphatically  pronounced  by  Charles  on  delivt'ring  his  Ceorge  to  Dr. 
.luxon,  and  that  learned  and  excellent  man  was  authoritatively  command- 
ed to  give  an  'ccouiit  of  the  king's  meaning,  or  his  ovmi  uiulerstauding 
of  the  word.  To  llie  inexpressible  mortilication  of  tiios(>  base  minds, 
the  doctor  informed  them  that  the  king  only  impressed  upon  him  a  for- 
mer and  particular  request  to  deliver  the  (JJcorge  to  the  prince  of  Wales, 
and  at  the  same  time  to  urge  the  command  of  his  faliier  to  forgive  his 
murderers  1 


CHAPTER  LIII. 


THB   COMMONWEALTH. 


Whatever  miuht  have  been  Cromwell's  original  views,  his  military  sue- 


cr>sc^,  the  vast  iiitlucnce  he  had  obtained  ov<'r  the  armv 


lii'rh.ipi 


H\\\  more  than  eiiiier  of  these,  the  base  and  evident  readiuc.ir  of  ihe  pai 
lianii'iil  to  inirklf  to  his  military  pcnver  and  meet  him  cveii  more  than 
iiidt'  » iiy  iu  his  most  nujusi  and  exorbitant  wisiics,  opcne  1  a  iirosiiccl  too 
iinl'onndiMl  anil  templing  for  his  ambition  lo  rcsi-it.  Hut  p.ili"y,  as  well 
as  the  circumsiaiices  of  tlii^  time,  made  it  iucunibent  U|.i."'.  ('ro'iiwi'll,  m 
the  first  instance,  to  exalt  still  higher  his  chanu'lcr  for  milil;uT  skill  and 
daring.  Ireland  had  a  discipliiu'd  host  in  arms  for  the  nnal  cause 
under  the  iluke  of  (Innond,  and  large  multiludis  of  the  n.iinc  Irish  were 
at  the  same  lime  in  o|i('n  rrvidl  under  the  restless  and  hiiiiiy  O'Neal 
Crouiwi'll  pi'ocuri'd  tlie  command  of  the  army  appointed  to  put  down 
biiili  these  piriiis,  and  fully  sui-ceedcd.  How  mercilessly  hi!  used  his 
victiU'V  we  hav(!  related  under  the  proper  head. 

A  n.  1().')0. — On  the  return  of  Cromwell  lo  I'uglaiid  his  I'oeket  parlia« 
meiii  formally  relnnied  him  the  ihmks  whii  h,  exeept  for  his  needless  and 
ii(lieu«;  ei'ueliy,  he  had  well  merited,  A  new  (iii|'orluiiiiy  at  ihe  sanio 
ninineui  presented  ii^ell"  for  till' a(;grandizeiiient  of  this  bidil  .oid  fortii- 
iiile  adventurer.  The  Seois,  who  had  basely  sidd  ChaiUs  1.  into  tin* 
li.iiiils  of  his  enemies,  were  now  endeavouring  to  niak(!  n'i.M"y  by  venal 
li'valiy,  as  lliey  liad  formerly  made  it  by  venal  iri'ason.  'I'iiey  had  iii- 
viicd  Charles  jl.  into  Seollaiid,  where  that  gay  young  p.iiii-  s|'«'edily 
I'MiiiiJ  that  they  lookid   upon  him  rather  I'.s  a  pnsimer  Ihai,  ,is  '.'ij-ir  king. 


Tl 


e  i[io>iSiiess  ii 


(  (heir  mauuei's,  aiiil  the  rude  aeeommodiilion  u  uli  wluell 


till  V   fiiiiiished  hini,  he  could   probably  have    passed  ov<  r  Willi'mi   much 


iliihi 


li\',  for,  yoiiiig  lis  Cliarhs  II.  was,  he  liad  alri^ady 


SI  I'll  more  «il 


f 


tfiiwiiiiess  and  |io\eily  than  comilionly  eoines   willun    tile   kei.i,  leilue  of 
till'  nil  it.     Hill  Charles  was  frank  as  he  was  gay  ;  and  Ihe  Mi'-teie  man* 
n  IN    aii'l  long   and  unseaRonublo  discourses   which   they  ii.lleMe  I  up«),i 
Vou.  I.— :lrt 


594 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


him  did  not  iinnoy  him  more  than  their  evident  determination  to  maun 
him  at  the  least  siffcdt  to  agree  with  them.  As,  however,  the  Scon 
were  his  only  present  hope,  Charles  did  his  utmost  to  avoid  quarreling 
with  them ;  and  however  they  might  annoy  him  while  among  them,  what" 
ever  might  be  their  ultimate  views  respecting  him,  certain  it  is  that  they 
raised  a  very  considerable  army,  and  showed  every  determination  to  re- 
instate liitn  in  his  kingdom. 

Even  merely  as  being  Presbyterians  the  Scotch  were  detested  by  Crom- 
well and  his  independents  :  hut  now  that  they  had  also  embraced  ihe  cause 
of  "the  man  Charles  Stuart,"  as  these  boorish  English  independents  af- 
fected to  call  their  lawful  sovereign,  it  was  determined  that  a  signal  chiid- 
tisement  should  bo  inflicted  upon  them.  The  command  of  an  army  for 
that  purpose  was  oflFered  to  Fairfax,  but  he  declined  it  on  the  honourable 
ground  that  he  was  unwilling  to  act  against  Presbyterians.  Cromwi'll 
had  no  such  scruple,  and  he  innnediately  set  out  for  Scotland  with  an  army 
of  sixteen  thousand  men,  which  received  accessions  to  its  iiumbitrH  mi 
every  great  town  through  which  it  inarched.  Hut  notwithstanding  even 
the  military  fame  of  Cromwell,  and  his  too  well  known  cruelly  to  all  who 
dared  to  resist  him  and  wvrt'  unfor;uiiale  enough  to  bo  vaiKpiished,  tlii* 
Scots  boldly  met  his  invasion.  Hut  !)oldne8s  alone  was  of  little  avail 
against  such  a  leader  as  Cromwell,  backed  by  such'iricd  and  cnthuhiaHtu; 
soldiers  as  his;  the  two  armies  had  scarcely  joined  battle  when  the 
Scots  were  pii!  to  flight,  their  loss  in  killed,  wounded,  and  prisoners  being 
very  great,  while  the  total  loss  of  Cromwell  did  not  exceed  forty  men. 

As  Cromwell  after  this  battle  jiursued  his  course  northward,  with  the 
drterniination  not  only  to  chastise,  but  completely  and  iierinanenlly  to 
subdue  the  Scots,  the  young  king,  as  soon  as  he  could  r  illy  the  ScoitJNii 
army,  took  a  resolution  which  showed  him  to  have  an  iiiuiive  knowledge 
of  military  tactics.  Making  a  detour  to  get  completely  char  of  any  oiii- 
lying  parties  of  Cromwell's  troops,  ho  commenced  a  forcfnl  march  into 
England,  the  northern  (rouniies  of  whiidi  lay  completely  o|ien  and  defence 
less.  The  boldness  of  this  course  alarmed  a  portion  of  tin?  Scottish  army, 
and  niiinerons  desertions  took  place  from  the  very  (U)inineii(!emeiit  of  ilie 
march  southward  ;  hut  as  (Miarles  still  liad  a  minierous  and  imposing  forre, 
there  was  every  reason  to  believe  that  long  ere  he  should  reach  l.onddii 
the  great  object  of  his  ex|)edition,tli(?  gentry  and  middle  orders  would  lloeli 
to  him  in  such  numbers  as  would  render  altogetlier  out  of  the  ijuestioii  any 
resistance  on  the  jiarl  of  the  parliament,  espceiidiy  in  the  ahsence  of  ( 'loiii 
W(dl  and  the  flower  of  the  English  troops.  Iliit  the  hold  maiKiMivre  of  the 
young  priu'  was  doomed  to  iiave  none  tif  tic  succ(?ss  which  it  ho  ciiii 
iicntly  descned.  Uefori^  his  progress  was  siillicieiit  to  counterhahiiice  in 
the  minds  of  his  suhjects  the  terror  in  which  Ijiey  lielil  Cromwell,  lliil 
active  commander  ha(i  received  news  of  tin-  yiMiiig  king's  niiino'uvre,  ami 
had  instantly  retrograded  in  pinHint  ofhiin,  leaviiiti:  Monk,  his  second  in 
command,  to  completi!  and  inaiiitain  the  suliiei'lion  of  tiie  Scotch. 

There  lia.s  always  appeared  to  us  to  lie  a  sinkinn  resemhiaiice,  which 
we  do  not  rcmcml>er  to  have  seen  noticed  by  any  other  writer,  bi'lweeii 
the  Cromwellian  and  the  lloimparlean  systems.  'I'o  cunip.ire  Ihe  batllcM 
of  Oomwtdl  to  th<;  battles  of  l)on:tparte  would  be  Iileraily  to  make  nioiiii 
tains  of  molehills  ;  yet  the  princi|des  of  these  two  eoimnaiiders  ncciii  to 
IIS  to  have  ln'i  n  the  same,  and  to  he  siiinined  up  in  two  general  inaxiiiiH, 
march  mpullij,  and  atlach  in  nxifies.  The  |ihrases  are  siinpje  eiioiii^li  iii 
themselves,  yet  no  one  who  has  studied  a  single  liattle-niap  uilh  ev<  ii  the 
slighlest  assistance  from  in;ilhemali(Ml  science,  can  fiil  lo  jieiceive  tlic 
immense,  we  had  almost  sanI  the  mihoiinded,  powers  of  their  applii'.ilioil. 
On  the  present  occasion  the  cidcrity  of  ('romwclj  was  the  desiriiclioii  nf 
llie  young  king's  hopes.  Willi  an  army  increaHed  by  the  terror  of  Inn 
name  to  nearly  forty  thoumand  men,  (-"romw(  11  in  arched  southward  so  nip 


"lly,  tl 

ccster 

imttlo  I 

Cromw 

every  si 

I'itehcr 

tinged  \ 

f<nig\ii  a 

himself 

"poll  th( 

lurned  h 

It  nppeai 

Accident 

liiriiod  oj 

»vcll'g  in, 

'•harh's  j 

sought  sa 

'I^io  tri 

hilt  Ins  vc 

I'litiriiig  g 

yoiiiig  kiii 
^foin  the  f 
money  am 
"ither  on  i 
"I'liged  to 
••mint  of  hi 
''•'iidereil, 
"i«ht,  and 
''lllhflllly  ,] 
''•ly-linie  acj 
Oil  oiieoec 
'limhcd  iiii( 
fohagi!,  ho 
""•III  expn 
'"»  eapturo 
minierous 
Irnih,  ChnrI 

'"Ml    ;iii|| 
'"'oil   of  Ji 

""'  .ilmogt 
"ii'<ed  lo  n. 
dlfleieiil  di« 
'"•'lit  from 
'"'ventures 
li'lliaiiee  th,,, 
liiiiiiaii  lieiiijr 

Ihlie  he  \v(|s 

"'''  ly  <iii  III 

"'  I'liveiKiin 
""'"  and  woi 
dining  that  i 
•he  Hccrct,  tl 
""'  life,  and 
^  ''roinweli, 

'''OHriiinK  II 

"'"•ni  hi  I,„„ 
■'"«".  I'y  the 


XV  i 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


806 


idly,  that  he  absolutely  shut  up  the  forces  of  Cliarles  in  the  city  of  Wor- 
iTster  ore  they  had  time  to  break  from  tlieir  quarters  and  form  m  order  of 
linltlo  it)  some  more  favourable  situation.  The  irresistible  cavalry  ol 
Cromwell  burst  suddenly  and  simultaneously  in  at  every  gate  of  the  town ; 
rvvry  street,  almost  every  house  became  tne  instant  scene  of  carnage ;  the 
I'itchcroft  was  literally  strewed  with  the  dead,  while  the  Severn  was 
tinged  with  the  blood  of  the  wounded ;  and  Charles,  after  having  bravely 
fought  as  a  common  soldier,  and  skilfully,  though  unsuccessfully,  exerted 
himself  as  a  commander,  seemed  to  have  no  wish  but  to  throw  himself 
upon  the  swords  of  his  enemies.  It  was  with  difficulty  that  his  friends 
turned  him  from  his  desperate  purpose,  and  even  when  tiiey  had  done  so 
It  appeared  to  be  at  least  problematic'l  whether  he  would  be  able  to  escape. 
Accident,  or  the  devotion  of  a  peasant,  caused  a  wain  of  hay  to  be  over- 
turned opposite  to  one  of  the  gales  of  the  city  in  such  wise  that  Crom- 
well's mounted  troops  could  not  pasa,  and,  favoured  by  this  circumstance, 
Cliarles  mounted  a  horse  that  was  held  for  him  by  a  devoted  friend,  and 
gougiit  safety  in  flight. 

'nio  triumph  of  Cromwell  was  completed  with  this  battle  of  Worcester, 
but  Ins  vengeful  desire  was  not  yet  laid  to  rest;  and  under  his  active  iind 
untiring  superintendance  prodigious  exertions  were  made  to  capture  the 
young  king,  whose  difficulties,  in  fact,  only  commenced  as  he  escaped 
from  the  confusion  and  the  carnage  of  Worcester.  Almost  destitute  of 
money  and  resources  of  every  kind,  and  ir.iving  reason  to  fear  an  enemy, 
"ither  on  principle  or  from  lucre,  in  every  man  whom  he  met,  Charles  was 
obliged  to  trust  for  safety  to  disguise,  wliich  was  the  more  difficult  on  ao 
count  of  his  remarkable  and  striking  features.  Three  poor  men,  named 
I'enderell,  disguised  him  as  a  woodcutter,  fed  him,  concealed  him  by 
night,  and  subsequently  aided  iiiin  to  rcacrh  wealthier  though  not  more 
liiitlifiiUy  devoted  friends.  While  with  these  poor  men,  Charles  in  the 
day-lime  accompanied  them  to  their  place  of  labour  in  Boscobel  wood. 
On  0111!  occasion,  on  hearing  a  party  of  soldiers  approach,  the  royal  fugitive 
I'liinbrd  into  a  large  and  spreading  oak,  where,  s'ueltered  by  its  friendly 
foliage,  ho  saw  the  solders  nass  and  repass,  and  quite  distinctly  heard 
tlieiii  (^xpr(!ss  their  rude  wishes  to  obtain  the  reward  that  was  offered  for 
Ills  capture.  Thanks  to  the  incorruptible  fidelity  of  the  Penderelis  and 
iniinerous  other  pi^rsons  who  wen;  neccH.sarily  made  acqu.iinted  with  the 
(riilii,  t'liarles,  though  he  endured  great  occasional  hardship  and  priva- 
tum and  was  necessarily  exposed  to  consi;iiil  anxiety,  eluded  every 
ellort  of  his  almost  innumerable  pursuers,  urged  on  tlioush  lliey  were  to 
till!  iitmost  activity  by  the  malignant  liberality  with  which  (  roinwell  pro 
iiilHed  to  reward  tlie  traitor  who  should  arrest  his  fugitive  king.  Under 
liillereiil  tlmguises,  and  protected  by  a  variety  of  persons,  tli<'  young  king 
went  from  place  to  place  for  six  weeks,  wanting  only  one  day,  and  his 
iiiiveiilures  and  liair-breadth  eseajjcs  during  that  time  read  fir  more  liko 
nnnaiH'e  than  the  history  of  what  aetii.illy  was  endured  and  survived  by  a 
liiiiuiin  lieiiigjiersccuti'il  by  evil  or  inisgiiided  men.  At  the  end  of  this 
lime  Ui\  wuM  fortunate  enough  to  get  on  board  a  viissi  I  which  landed  liiin 
H  i'  ly  (III  llie  coast  of  Norn.atidyi  an  is.iue  to  so  long  and  varied  a  series 
■  'I  ailveiitiireH  which  is  more  remarkable  when  it  is  considered  that  forty 
men  and  women,  of  various  stations,  eireiimstanees,  and  dispositions,  were 
dining  lliiit  terrible  season  of  his  fliulii,  iieeessarily  maije  acquainted  vith 
'lie  secret,  the  betrayal  of  which  would  have  made  any  one  of  them  opulent 
TiM'  life,  and  infamous  forever. 

Cromwell,  in  the  meantime,  after  having  achieved  what  he  called  the 
"eiowiiing  meiey"  of  the  victory  of  Worcester,  made  a  sort  of  triiimphii 
reliirii  to  rioiidoii,  where  he  was  met  with  the  pomp  due  only  to  a  sovc 
I'lgii,  by  the  speaker  and  principal  i»  u.ucrs  nf  the  houco  of  eommui./ 


69G 


THii^  TKB,ASU11Y  OF  HISTORY. 


and  the  mayor  and  other  nin  ;istratos  of  London  in  their  state  habits  and 
paraphernalia. 

General  Monk  had  been  left  in  Scotland  with  a  suffitrient  force  to  keep 
that  turbulent  people  in  awe ;  and  both  their  presbytorianism  and  the  in:- 
minent  peril  in  which  (Charles'  bohl  nuinrli  of  the  Scottish  army  had 
placed  Cromwell  himself  and  that  "coimnonwealth"  of  which  he  was  iv.fW 
fuUv  determined  to  be  the  despot,  had  so  enraged  Cronnvell  against  that 
country,  that  he  seized  upon  his  first  hour  of  leisure  to  (jomplete  its  de- 
gradation, as  well  as  submission.  Ilis  complaisant  parliament  only  re- 
quired a  hint  from  him  to  pass  an  act  which  might  have  been  fitly  (Miouifh 
entitled  "an  act  for  the  belter  punishment  and  prevention  of  Scottish  loy- 
ally." Hy  this  net  royalty  was  declared  to  be  abolished  in  Scotland,  a? 
it  had  previously  li^i  n  in  Kngland,  and  Scotland  itself  wns  declared  to  be 
then  annexed  to  Kn^'iand  as  a  couciiiest  and  a  |)rovin('e  of  "tiie  coinnion- 
wealth."  Cromwell's  hatred  of  the  Scoicli,  however,  proceeded  no  farilu^ 
than  insult;  fortimately  lor  Ilieui,  Monk,  who  was  left  as  their  rrsi- 
dent  g"neral  or  military  governor,  was  a  prudent  and  in)|)artlal  man,  Ircc 
fro"'  all  the  worst  fanaticism  and  wickedness  of  the  time;  and  his  rii;ld 
impartiality  at  once  disposed  the  people  to  peace,  and  intimiilated  the 
English  judges  who  were  entrusted  wiili  the  distribution  of  justice  in  thai 
country,  from  beinjr  guilty  of  any  injustice  or  tyranny  to  which  ihey  might 
otherwise  have  been  inclined.  Knoland,  Scotland,  and  Ireland — where 
Ireton  and  Ludlow  had  completed  the  very  little  that  Cromwell  had  left 
undone— were  thus  eirectually  subjected  to  a  parliament  of  sixty  men, 
many  of  whom  were  the  weakest,  as  many  more  of  them  were  the  wick- 
edcsi,  the  most  ignorant,  and  the  most  fanatical  men  that  could  have  Immii 
found  in  Kngland  even  in  hat  age.  So  says  history,  if  we  look  at  it  with 
a  merely  superficial  glance.  Bui,  in  trulli,  the  hats  which  covered  the 
heads  of  thos(>  sixty  men  had  fully  as  much  concern  as  the  men  themselves 
in  the  wonderfully  riipid  and  coiiiplele  subjugation  of  tlire<!  eouutries,  Iwo, 
of  which  had  next'r  been  otherwise  than  turbulent  and  sanguinary,  and 
the  third  of  which  liiid  jiisl  mnrdcred  its  sovereign  and  driven  his  legal 
successor  into  exile.  .\o;  il  was  not  by  tiie  fools  and  the  fanatics,  care- 
fully  weeded  out  of  the  most  foolish  and  I  uialiiMl  of  parliaments,  that  all 
this  great  though  evil  work  was  iloiie.  Ilnscen.  save  hy  the  few,  but  felt 
throMgliout  the  whole  lliiglish  doiiuiiioii,  Cromwell  dictat'-d  every 
measure  and  inspired  every  s|ieeeli  of  that  parliament  which  to  li^e  eyes 
of  the  vulgar  sei'uied  so  omiii|io!eiii.  Mis  s;ii,'aeily  ami  his  em  rgy  did 
nmch,  anil  his  known  viiidictiveiiess  ;iiid  iiidoniit.ihle  lirtnnesg  did  the  rest . 
those  who  op|)osed  failed  befori^  his  powers,  and  their  failure  mlimidated 
others  into  voluntary  submission.  The  eli;iniiel  isIhiuIs  and  the  .Scottish 
isles  were  easily  subilued  on  accoiini  of  ilieir  proximity;  the  .\nierican 
colonies,  though  some  of  them  at  tlie  outset  declared  for  tin-  royal  c;iiise, 
immhered  so  many  enlhiisinstii'  religious  disseiiirrs  aiiioug  their  po|iula- 
tioiiJ,  iIkiI  they,  loo,  speedily  siibinilled  to  and  roMowcd  the  example  and 
oriiers  of  the  new  ly  am'  gmliily  foiiiKJcd  "('oininoinve.ilih"  of  Knglaiiil. 

While  :dl  Ibis  was  being  aehieved,  the  real  "xovernnirnt  of  I'liiglaud  was 
ni  llie  bauds  of  Croinweil,  though,  iii  form,  there  w.is  a  ciniin'il  of  ihirly- 
I'iglil,  to  wlioin  all  adilres>-es  and  pelilions  were  presented,  and  who  bad. 
nominally,  the  inanatnin;  of  (lie  army  ami  navy,  and  the  right  and  respon 
»ibility  of  making  war  and  peace.  The  real  moviiig-priucipje  of  this  po- 
'.enl  council  was  the  mmil  of  Ciomwell.  /iiid,  while  we  deiioiini'e  ihe 
flagrant  bypoensy  of  Ins  preleusions  lo  a  superior  sanctity,  ami  his  iraiio. 
rous  eonteiupt  ef  all  his  ilulies  as  a  siiUji  >'t,  niipiriial  triilh  demands  that 
we  admit  that  never  was  ill  olil  iiiied  power  better  w  iejdcd.  NeM  after 
the  petty  and  cruel  |ierseeiiiiou  of  iiidix  idiials,  iiouiinallv  on  pullic  groiie.iN 
but  really  in  revenge  of  private  inpnies,  a  political  speciil.itor  woiilil  in- 
rallibly  and  very  mitur.dly  predict  thai  a  poor  and,  riMuparativciy  spi  akiiig 


i^      'M^f 


THE  TRKASUHY  OF  HISTOUY. 


597 


and 


keep 

\e.  ini- 
y  had 
9  I:  -w 
il  Ihat 
lift  <\e- 
nly  re- 

sh  l»'y- 
iiiiuU  as 
.i\  to  be 

,  f,\ril»«r 
Ml-  rcsi- 
\MU  li'-f 
li\s  ri«i<l 

illtM\   tli>' 

.,.  ill  Hull 

icv  i"iS*>l 
l__\v\»i'r*". 

I  ha>l  I'fl 
iXiy  »»''"' 
U\e  wiok- 

li-.ive  liifi* 
!U  il  wiU) 
,voro<\  till! 
hcnisflvos 
nirn's.  tw(s 
binary,  «"' 

II  his  h'^'» 
;iUfs.  fi'r''- 
iits,  tlv.il  all 
•vv,  h«l  f''lt 
[il.a  t'Vfvy 
|,o  li"'  ••v'-'; 

cm  rgy  i"'» 
ihatU'-ri-slj 
iniiiuulatod 

L,  MiwTH-an 

Voval  <••»"*"■• 
Ihcir  p<M"i'"- 

x.dui'l"'  '"'" 
Kntllaivl. 

.-.iiulaii'l  ^^■•"' 
•il  of  ili'rty- 
l„,l  who  li.i.l. 
;inil  vi'-^l'oa 
.,•  of  ll'is  |«)- 
||,.i\ouin'<'  o"' 
nil  hi-*  <<aiii«- 
Mri\i;iii'l''  "'■'* 
Next   nlli't 

.mllu'tir"'"''''' 
U,r  woiilil  II'- 
k,lvHi»akiM'; 


low-born  private  man,  like  Cromwell,  bcinjf  suddenly  invested  with  so 
vast  a  jmwer  over  a  gnvdt  and  \v(!altliy  nation,  would  make  his  illuequired 
Hiillioriiy  an  infaniuns  and  es|)"cial  scourge  in  tiie  finHiicial  departniunt. 
But,  to  llie  honour  of  Cromwell  he  it  said,  there  is  nu  sinurlu  period  in  our 
history  duriny;  wliieli  the  public  (iuanees  have  been  so  well  managed,  and 
administered  with  so  entire  a  freedom  from  ffreedy  dishonesty  and  waste, 
lis  diirinu;  this  strange  man's  strange  administration.  It  is  quite  true  that 
the  crown  revenues  and  the  lands  of  the  bishops  were  most  viohiiitly  and 
shamefully  seized  tipon  by  tliis  government,  but  they  were  not,  as  miulit 
have  been  anlicipated,  squandered  upon  'lie  gratification  of  private  individ- 
uals. These,  wiili  a  farther  l(!vy  upon  the  national  resources  thai  amounted 
to  only  a  hundred  and  twenty  tliousanil  pounds  |)er  month,  supplied  tlie 
wliole  demands  of  a  government  which  not  only  maintained  peace  In  its 
own  oommonwealth  and  dependencies,  but  also  taught  foreigners  that, 
under  whatever  form  of  government,  England  still  knew  how  to  make 
herself  f<'ared,  if  not  respected. 

Holland,  by  ils  protection  of  the  royal  party  of  Kngland,  had  given  deep 
offence  to  Cromwell,  who  literally,  "as  the  hart  pantetli  for  cool  v.aleis," 
panted  for  the  blood  of  Charles  II.  "Whom  wt;  have  injured  we  nevej 
forgive,"  says  a  |>liilosophic  satirist ;  and  <'roinweirs  haired  of  Charles  11. 
was  a  good  exemplification  of  the  sad  truth.  Hating  Holland  for  her  gen- 
erous shelter  of  llie  royalists,  Cromwell  eagerly  seized  upon  two  events, 
wbicli  might  just  as  W(!ll  have  happened  in  any  other  country  under  the 
liciiven,  as  a  pretext  for  making  war  upon  that  country. 

'I'lu'  cireniiistances  to  wliieh  we  allude  were  these.  At  the  lime  of  the 
mock  trial  that  preceded  the  shameful  murder  of  tiie  late  king,  Doctor  l)o- 
rislaiis,  the  reader  will  remembi^r,  was  one  of  the  "assistants"  of  (;oke, 
llie  "solicitor  for  the  people  of  Kngland."  Undi-r  the  governinenl  of  the 
"eomnionweallir'  this  mere  hireling  was  sent  as  its  envoy  to  Holland.  A 
royalist  whose  own  fierce  passions  made  him  forget  that  it  is  written 
"  vengeance  is  mine.  I  will  repay,  saitii  the  Lord,"  and  who  would  set;  no 
(lilVerence  betwee  .lie  rnltian  who  actually  wields  the  instruinciit,  and  the 
mure  ariful  but  no  icss  aliominahle  rulU.in  who  instigal<'s  or  hires  the  ac- 
lu.il  assassin,  put  Dorislaus  to  death.  No  sane  man  of  sound  (Christian 
pniiciples  can  justify  this  act;  but  how  was  llulland  concerned  mil! 
'I'lie  saiiK'  man  with  the  same  opportunity  would  doubtless  havi;  commit- 
ted the  saiiK^  act  in  the  puritan  stale  of  New-Kiigland  :  and  to  make  a 
wlioU)  nation  answerable  in  their  blood  ami  their  treasure  for  tlie  miinler- 
oiis  act  of  an  individual  who  had  taken  shelier  among  them  was  an  ab- 
suniiiy  as  well  us  an  alrocily.  The  other  case  winch  served  ('romwell 
as  a  pretext  for  ileclaring  war  agiinst  Holland  w.is,  that  Mr.  St.  John, 
wlio  was  subse(|Ui  ntly  sent  on  an  embassy  to  Holland,  received  some 
priiy  insult  from  the  friends  of  the  prince  of  OiM'igi' I  Ihit,  alas!  it  is 
not  alone  iisur/i<il  tiovernmenis  that  funiish  us  with  t.iese  practical  com- 
mentaries on  the  fable  of  the  wolf  and  the  lamb! 

The  great  naval  commander  (d  tins  iiiiie  w  is  Admiral  Ulake.  Though 
he  did  not  enter  the  s,a  service  until  very  late  in  life,  he  was  a  |>erfe(l 
master  of  i.:i^'al  tactics,  and  Ins  daring  and  firmness  of  character  could 
not  be  mipassed.  When  the  w.ir  was  declared  against  Holland  he  pro- 
reeded  to  sea  to  oppose  tlie  powei  of  the  Diileli  admiral,  Von  Tromp. 
The  actnms  bftweeii  them  were  numerous  ami  in  in.my  cases  tolerably 
e(|iial,  but  tlie  general  result  of  the  war  w,is  so  nil is  to  tlie  trading  in- 
terests of  the  Dmeli.  that  they  anxiouslv  ilesired  Ihe  return  of  peace. 
Uui  thoiigli  II  was  ehielly  the  personal  fi'elmg  and  personal  energy  of 
Cromwell  thai  had  eoiniireneed  llns  war,  his  hUherlo  patieiil  iiid  obsetpn 
mis  Utit's.  the  p.nli.iment,  now  exerled  thenisidves  lo  pridon  the  w,ir  at 
»rH,  hoping  thus  to  weaken  thai  power  of  the  army,  wielded  by  Cromwell 
wliicli  of  late  they  had  felt  to  a  seiircelv  tulerable  degree. 


HH..I 


! 


p 


r: 


'I! 


698 


THE  TREASUllY  OK  II'STOIIY 


But  effectual  resistance  o:;  tlie  part  oi  rhu  pvrliainnht  Wiis  iu>v,  whoU]' 
out  of  the  question;  they  hiil  too  well  done  iiio  work  (<f  t\w  usur-  r,  who 
was  probably  not  ill-pleased  Ui.it  their  pr^  st  ti'  petty  an  !  futile  alt<  .npt  at 
opposing  hmi  gave  him  :•■  pretext  for  crus)iui<-  "ven  the  last  leniblance  of 
their  free  will  out  of  exislencr.  jiut  though  ho  had  fully  deternniied  upon 
a  new  and  decisive  mode  of  overrulinij  them,  Oromwell  initiated  it  vith 
his  usual  art  and  tortuous  procs  dure.  He  well  kne\v  that  tho  commons 
hated  the  arniy,  wtu'id  fain  have  t!'  ibanded  it,  if  possible,  and  u'juht  on 
no  account  do  aught  that  could  increase  either  its  powrror  its  well-bejiii'; 
on  the  oUii'r  hand,  ii';  was  equally  aware  that  the  aoMier^  I. ad  maDv  real 
grievHi;oes  to  complain  of,  ar/'.  also  entertained  noi  a  l.-v  prejiHlices 
again:  i\n-  cop-imons.  To  (,'inbriil  them  in  an  open  .juiiir''!,  iiiul  Jiftii, 
seemiiiu;!/  as  II  ,  merely  cympathizing  redresser  of  iho  wronged  sol- 
diery, to  use  tliciu  to  crush  liie  parliament  was  the  course  he  determined 
upon. 

A.  D.  165.!.  -i'romwtll,  with  that  rugged  but  efficient  eloquence  which 
ho  -'»  well  ".new  how  V.i  use,  urged  the  officers  of  the  armv  no  longer  to 
suili  r  'hi-niielves  and  their  men  to  labour  under  grievanc-s  unredressed 
and  ari'^ars  unpaid,  at  the  mere  will  an  I  pleasure  of  the  s-  Ifish  civilians 
for  whom  they  had  fought  and  conquered,  but  remonstrate  ui  terms  which 
those  se!fi-!h  persons  could  not  misunderstand,  and  whii ';  would  wring 
justice  froin  their  fears.  Few  things  could  have  been  suirjjiisted  which 
would  have  been  more  entirely  agreeable  to  liie  wishes  ol  ilie  ofliccr.-i. 
T';ey  drew  up  a  petition — if  we  ought  not  rather  to  call  it  a  K'litonstraiuc 
—  n  which,  after  demanding  redress  of  grievan(';'s  and  payment  >)f  arrcar.s, 
thty  taunted  the  parliament  with  having  formerly  made  fine  j)rofessi()ns 
of  their  determination  so  to  remodel  that  assembly  as  to  extend  and  in 
sure  liberty  to  all  ranks  of  men,  and  with  having  for  years  continued  to 
sit  without  making  a  single  advance  towards  the  performance  of  these  vol- 
untary pledges.  The  house  acted  on  this  occasion  with  a  spirit  which 
would  have  been  admirable  and  honourable  in  a  genuine  house  of  com- 
nions,  but  which  savoured  somewhat  of  the  ludicrous  when  shown  by  lui'ii 
who,  (ionsciously  and  deliberately,  had,  year  after  year,  been  the  men;  and 
servile  tools  of  (Cromwell  and  his  pretorians.  It  was  voted  not  only  thai 
this  petition  should  not  be  complied  with,  but  also  that  any  person  who 
shmild  in  future  present  any  sucli  petition  should  be  deemed  guilty  of  lii;;li 
treason,  aiul  a  committee  was  appointed  imiuedialely  to  prepare  an  ai'l  in 
conforujity  to  this  resoluiion.  Tlu;  officers  nresiMited  a  warm  reniDii- 
8tranc(!  upon  th;s  treatment  of  their  petition  ;  the  house  still  more  warmly 
replied  ;  and  it  was  soon  very  eviilent  tli;ii  both  partes  were  aniinatcil  by 
the  utmost  aiiiino  ity  to  each  other.  Cromwell  now  saw  that  his  hour 
for  action  had  arrived.  Me  svas  sitting  in  council  with  some  of  his  oili- 
cers  when,  doubtless  in  obedience  to  his  own  secret  orders,  inttdligeiicc 
was  brought  to  him  of  the  violent  temper  and  designs  of  the  house.  *  /uh 
well  acted  astoiiisliinent  and  uncontrollable  rage  he  started  from  In.-^  scat, 
and  exclaimed  that  the  misconduct  of  these  men  at  leiiyth  comiiellnl  liiiii 
to  do  a  thing  which  made  the  hair  to  stand  on  end  upon  his  head.  II, is 
lily  assembling  three  liiiiu'red  soldiers  he  iinmedialely  proceeded  to  the 
house  of  commons,  which  he  entercil,  irovcred,  and  followi ''  liy  as  inaiiv 
of  the  troops  as  could  enter.  Uefore  any  rcinonstranci^  could  be  oUcre  I, 
Cromwell,  stanij  iig  upon  the  ijround,  as  in  an  (\:stacy  of  sudden  passion, 
exclaimed,  "For  .shame!  (Jet  ye  gone  and  uive  place  to  honest'T  imn' 
y<ni  are  mi>  '  '..gcr  a  parliament,  I  tell  ye  ynu  are  no  longer  a  parliamrni." 
Sir  Harry  Vane,  a  bold  and  honest  man,  tlioiigli  a  half  insane  enilni.siisi, 
now  rose  and  denoiini'ed  ('romwell's  conduct  as  indecent  and  tyraiiii  a  . 
"  Ha!"  exclaimed  Cromwell,  "  Sir  Harry  '  Oh!  Sir  Harry  V-,,,!  the 
Lord  deliver  me  fnun  Sir  Harry  Vam  I"  Then  Inrniii^'  (irsl  !•  oiii  prom- 
inent member  of  this  lately  siirvile  parliaineni   ami  llieii  to  luiotlicr,  lie 


■n 


?1 

1 

\" 

Ih 

Jij 

H 

if; 

u 

1 

1 

^1 


'i^: 


f 

ffiw| 

^h)^ 

if 

1 

Ir 

'    t: 

[i 

«s>'  I 

kf 


t' 


ii.  i 


dealt  ou 
whoreriK 
men  by  \ 
Buffering 
the  doors 
A  serv 
poses  of 
"the  ruin 
sible,  surf 
fanuticisii; 
words,  an 
lions  of  til 
was   the  1 
Barebones 
wiiole  of  ti 
own  house 
incapacity 
periously  i 
multitude, 
ashamed  ol 
concurrene 
hail,  and  w 
But  many  o 
their  incap; 
not  to  be  hu 
one  of  their 
one  way  of 
guards,  nndi 
nouse.     Oh 
rtud  profanil 
'ion.     Coloi 
-hair,  add  res 
Joing  there. 
"Xeckinir 
"Tiien,"r 
ban  tile  otb 
certain  know 
Having-  n 
<ary  to  his  pc 
arbitrary  an 
sense  must 
meat,  boldly 
establish  a 
at  once  the 
was  highly 
usual  agents  i 
of  the  conin-,( 
''tauding'  as  tc 
llie  appointm 
'lie  formality 
Tiie  militai 
mere  name,  I 
his  council  fr, 
'he  then  very 
iVow  that  h 
dually,  at  the 
army  should 
of  the  people 


THE  TKEASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


S09 


dealt  out  in  suecessinn  the  titles  of  rrluttoii,  drunkard,  adult^irer,  and 
whoremonger.  Iluving  given  this,  probably,  very  just  description  of  the 
men  by  whose  means  he  had  so  long  and  so  tyranniciilly  governed  the 
BufTering  nation,  he  literally  turned  "  the  rump"  out  of  the  house,  locked 
the  doors,  and  carried  away  the  key  in  his  pocket. 

A  servile  parliament  being  the  most  convenient  of  tools  for  the  pur- 
poses of  despotism,  Cromwell,  when  lie  had  thus  summarily  got  rid  of 
"  the  rump,"  very  soon  proceeded  to  call  a  new  parliament,  which,  if  pos- 
sible, surpassed  even  that  in  the  qualities  of  brutal  ignorance  and  ferocious 
fanaticism.  A  practice  had  now  become  general  of  taking  scriptural 
words,  and  in  many  cases,  whole  scriptural  sentences  or  catiting  imita- 
tions of  tiiem,  for  Christian  names ;  and  a  fanatical  leather-seller,  who 
was  the  leading  man  in  this  fanatical  parliament,  named  Praise-God 
Barebones,  gave  liis  name  to  it.  The  utter  ignorance  displayed  by  the 
whole  of  the  members  of  Barebones' parliament  even  of  the  forms  of  their 
own  house,  the  wretched  drivelling  of  their  speeches,  and  their  obvious 
incapacity  to  understand  the  meaning  of  what  tiiey  were  secretly  and  im- 
periously instructed  to  do,  excited  so  much  ridicule  even  from  the  very 
multitude,  that  the  less  insane  among  the  mem'  rs  themselves  became 
ashamed  of  their  pitiable  appearance.  A  small  ..  ler  of  these,  with  the 
concurrence  of  Rouse,  their  speaker,  waited  upon  Jromwell  at  White- 
hall, and  wisely  tendered  their  resignation,  which  he  willingly  received. 
But  many  of  this  precious  parliament  were  far  from  being  convinced  of 
their  incapacity  or  willing  to  resign  their  authority.  They  determined 
not  to  be  hound  by  tiie  decision  of  the  seceders,  and  proceeded  to  elect 
one  of  their  number,  named  Moyer,  as  their  speaker.  Cromwell  had  but 
one  way  of  diialing  with  this  sort  of  contumacy,  and  he  s  ;nt  a  party  of 
guards,  under  the  command  of  Colonel  White,  to  clear  ;ie  parliament 
nouse.  On  this  occasion  astri-.ng  instance  occurred  of  tf)3  mingled  cant 
and  profanity  which  then  so  disgustingly  abounded  in  conirnon  conversa- 
tion. Colonel  White,  on  entering  the  house  and  seein t  Moyer  in  the 
ihair,  addressed  him  and  asked  what  he  and  the  other  members  were 
loing  there. 

"  Seeking  the  Lord,"  replied  Moyer,  in  the  cant  of  his  tribe. 

"  Then,"  replied  the  colonel,  wiili  a  profane  levity  still  more  disgusiing 
han  the  other's  cant,  "you  had  better  go  seek  him  elsewhere,  for  to  my 
:ertain  knowledge  he  has  not  been  here  these  many  years." 

Having  now  fully  ascertained  the  complete  devotion  of  the  mili- 
tary to  his  person,  and  sufflciently  accustomed  the  people  at  large  to  his 
arbitrary  and  sudden  caprices,  Cromwell,  whoso  clear  and  masculine 
sense  must  have  loathed  tiic,  imbecility  and  fanaticism  of  the  late  parlia- 
ment, boldly  proceeded  to  lispcnse  with  parliaments  altogether,  and  to 
establish  a  pure  and  open  mihiary  government,  of  which  he  was  himself 
at  once  the  head,  heart,  and  hand.  The  formation  of  the  new  government 
was  highly  characteristic  of  (Cromwell's  peculiar  policy.  Through  hi,« 
usual  agents  he  induced  the  officers  of  the  army  to  declare  him  protector 
of  the  comn-onwcalth  of  Kngland  ;  and  that  there  might  be  no  mlsunder- 
stamJmg  as  to  tl.^j  substantial  royalty  of  the  office  thus  conferred  on  him, 
the  appointment  was  proclaimed  in  London  and  other  chief  towns  with 
(he  formality  and  publicity  usual  on  proclaiming  the  accession  of  a  king. 

The  military  officers  having  thus  made  Cromwell  king  in  all  but  (he 
mere  name,  he  gratefully  proceeded  to  make  them  his  ministers,  choos.ug 
his  council  from  among  the  griieral  officers,  an('!  allowing  each  councillol 
the  then  very  lioeral  .salary  of  one  thousand  pounds  per  annum. 

Now  that  he  was  ostriu'ibly,  as  for  a  long  time  before  h"!  had  been  vir- 
lually,  at  the  head  of  affairs,  the  policy  of  Cr'-mwell  required  that  the 
army  should  be  well  taken  care  of.  While  there  was  yet  any  possibility 
of  the  people  clamouring  for  a  parliament,  and  of  a  parliament  making 


«00 


THE  TllEASUHY  OF  HI3T0HY. 


any  show  of  n  sislaiiue  to  his  inordinate  pretensif  ns,  the  discontent  of  the 
army  was  ii  wcajjon  of  price  to  him.  Now  me  case  was  completely 
alt(u-ed,  ;)iiii  instead  of  allowing  the  pay  of  the  i.rmy  to  fall  into  arrears, 
he  had  .very  olHcer  and  man  constantly  paid  one  month  in  advance. 
Libera'  in  all  that  rilated  to  real  public  service,  as  the  providing  of  arms, 
furnisliinfT  the  magazines,  and  keepiiig  tl\e  fleet  in  serviceable  repair,  he 
yet  was  the  deteriniiied  fo(!  of  all  useless  expense. 

But  llionsfh  liie  iron  hand  of  Cromwell  kept  the  people  tranquil  at 
nonie,  and  maintained  tlie  hi<rh  character  of  the  nation  abroad,  he  h  id 
not  long  obtained  the  protectorate  ere  he  began  to  suffer  the  penalty  of 
ins  crimmal  ambition.  To  the  royalists,  as  the  murderer  of  their  fortner 
king,  iind  as  the  chief  obstacle  to  the  restoration  of  their  present  one,  he 
was  of  course  halcl'ul;  and  the  sincere  republicans,  including  not  otily 
Fairfax  and  many  other  nieti  of  public  ituportance  and  (^laracter,  but  also 
a  tnultitude  of  persons  in  all  ranks  of  private  life,  and  some  of  his  own 
nearest  and  dearest  cotme.\ions,  saw  in  him  otily  a  worse  than  legitimate 
king.  The  consequence  was,  that  numerous  plots,  of  more  or  less  im- 
porlaiK'e  and  extent,  were  formed  against  him-  Hut  he  was  himself  ac- 
tive, vigilant,  and  penetrating;  atid  as  he  was  profiice  in  his  rewards  to 
those  wiK)  afforded  iiim  valuable  infortnation,  no  one  was  ever  more  ex- 
actly served  by  spies.  He  seemed  to  know  men's  very  thoughts,  so 
rapid  and  minute  was  the  information  which  he  in  fact  owed  to  this,  in 
his  circumstances,  wise  liberality.  No  sootier  was  a  plot  fortned  than  he 
knew  who  were  coticertied  iti  it;  no  sooner  had  the  consnir-'prs  .!>  l.  i  ■ 
mined  to  proceed  to  action  than  they  letirned  to  their  cost,  that  their  own 
lives  were  at  the  disposal  of  him  whose  life  tliey  had  aimed  :it. 

With  regard  to  the  war  in  which  the  nation  was  eng:'.ged,  it  may  be  re- 
marked, tliat  all  the  efl'orts  of  the  Dutch  failed  to  save  them  fioin  suffer- 
ing sinirely  uiidfr  the  vigorous  and  determined  attacks  of  Blake.  De- 
feated  again  and  again,  and  finding  their  trade  paralyzed  in  e-  ery  direc- 
tion, tliey  at  length  became  so  dispirited  that  they  sued  for  peace,  and 
treated  as  a  soveretgn  the  man  whom,  hitherto,  they  had  very  justly  treat- 
e<l  as  a  usurper.  Iti  order  to  oiitain  peace,  tliey  agreed  to  restore  consid- 
erable terri'.ory  which,  during  the  reii;n  of  Cliarles  I.,  they  had  torn  from 
the  East  India  Coin[)any,  to  cease  to  advocate  or  advaiii^e  the  cause  of 
the  nnfortuiiate  Chiulcs  II.,  and  to  [lay  homage  on  every  sea  to  the  flag 
of  the  comtnoDwealth. 

While  we  give  all  due  credit  to  Cromwell  as  the  ruler  under  whom 
the  Dutch  wi;re  thus  huiribled,  and  make  due  allowance  for  the  value  of 
his  prompt  and  liberal  supplies  to  the  admiral  and  fleet,  we  must  not, 
either,  omit  to  remember  tiiat  the  nnil  humbler  of  the  Dutch  was  the 
jrtiilant  Admiral  lilake.  Tliis  fine  English  seaman  was  avowedly  and 
notoriously  a  repiililicaii  in  primiple,  and.  being  so,  he  could  not  but  be 
opposed  to  the  usurpation  by  ('romwtdl  of  a  more  than  kingly  power. 
But  at  sea,  and  with  ;ui  enemy's  lleet  in  sight,  the  gallant  Blake  I'cmein- 
bert'd  only  his  country,  and  caicd  nnihiiig  about  who  rul"d  it.  On  such 
occasions  he  would  say  to  his  seamen,  "  No  matter  into  whose  hands  the 
iaverninent  may  fall,  our  duly  i>.  still  to  fight  lor  our  country." 

With  France  in  negotiation,  as  with  llollaud  in  open  war,  England  un- 
der Cromwell  was  successful  The  sagacious  Cardinal  Mazarine,  who 
was  then  in  power  in  France,  clearly  saw  that  the  protector  was  moie 
easily  to  be  managed  by  fialtery  and  deference  than  by  any  attempts  at 
violence,  and  there  wer<'  few  crowned  heads  tli;it  w(.'re  treated  by  Krance, 
uii(l(!r  Mazarine,  with  lialf  the  respect  which  it  la\  ished  upon  "  Protector" 
('romw(dl  of  Fnoland.  This  prudent  conduct  of  the  French  minister 
probably  sav(.'(l  nuicli  blood  and  treasure  to  both  nations,  for  alllioiiuh 
(Cromwell's  discerning  mind  and  steadfast  temper  would  not  allovv  ol 
his  sacrificing  any  of  the  Bubatantial  advantages  of  England    to  thi 


ftlie 

eiely 
•ears, 

UlU'P- 

iirms, 
lir,  liP 

uW   ut 
le  Vi  »il 

lUy  of 
[oriner 
)i>e,  lie 
)i  o\\\y 
111  also 
is  own 
riiimiiie 
ess  im- 
sflf  ac- 
,av(is  to 
u>re  ex- 
g\its,  so 
this,  in 
1  tliaii  be 
;r5  ,;.  U.r- 
heir  own 

lay  be  ro- 
)in  sufTer- 
iike.  1>L'- 
diroc- 


pry 
eace, 


8tly 


imd 

treat- 

ill- 


cons 
torn  from 


e  i: 


aiise 


to  the  flag 

|der  whom 

,;  value  of 

nuist  not, 


Ih  was 
Iwedly 


the 
and 


not  but  be 
[crly  pow 


er. 


Ike  icinem- 
On  such 
hands  the 

1 

i;n<Tland  un- 
ho 
inoie 
lit 


;anne, 

was 
altiMupl*^ 

liv  Kr.ini'i'i 
•  Proti'Ctor" 
eh  niinislcr 
for  alllumgr' 


lot  allow 
land    to 


thi 


11 

ffl' Mr 


¥ 


WLi 

HJ|iHMr<    1 

1  Iffilh:  1 

IB' 

si^ml  ^ 

d' 

iif 

p. 

& 

Boothings  antl 
tlispused  liiiiir 
taiU  pniuis,  ii|| 
hKve  rt'siaied 

Spain,  wliid 
powerful  as  tl 
come  considul 
considered  it  t| 
the  caune  of 
and  the  protecl 
depressing  SpJ 
of  the  Nelherll 
tiie  Spaniards ; 
pnt  Dunkirk,  lal 

But  the  victol 
experienced  m 
ilie  Dutcii  war 
spread  his  pers( 
ably  supported 
where  the  Engl 
the  crusaders,  1 
it  witii  him,  and 
and  reputation 
injuries  which  h 

A.  D.  1655.— T 
pean  countries, 
Blake  now  proci 
Algiers  was  sooi 
attention  of  Bla 
bade  him  look  at 
slaiitly  took  him 
of  the  shipping  t 
the  Spaniards.     . 
of  the  enormous 
for  tlie  Canaries, 
sixteen  sail.    Aft 
he  sank  so  rapidl 
he  expired  just  a 

While  Blake  h 
self  in  one  quartt 
rying  about  four  i 
ject  of  this  expe( 
Spaniards  were  i 
failed.  Resolvet 
the  admirals  now 
pletely  surprised 
sioii  of  by  our  tn 
tie  was  the  value 
been  drawn — at  t 
compensation  for 
sent  to  the  Tow 

A.  D.  16.58.— Bi 
ing  to  a  close.  1 
must  have  appea: 
orate,  been  one  1 
we  iiave  already 
royalists,  detesle 
itv  and  life.     H 


THE  THKA3URY  OF  HISTORY. 


601 


soothings  and  fliittories  of  the  FnMicli  iniiiisler,  tliey,  unquestionably, 
disposed  him  to  docility  and  coinphiisnnco  upon  ninny  not  vitally  impor- 
tant points,  upon  which,  had  they  been  at  all  haughtily  pressed,  he  would 
have  resisted  even  to  the  extremity  of  going  to  war. 

Spain,  which,  in  the  reign  of  Elizabeth,  and  even  later,  had  been  so 
powerful  as  to  threaten  to  unite  all  Europe  in  submission,  had  now  be- 
come considerably  reduced.  Hut  Cromwell,  wisely,  as  we  think,  still 
considered  it  too  powerful,  and  as  far  more  likely  than  France  to  espouse 
the  caufie  of  Charles  II.,  and  thus  be  injurious  to  the  common  wealth 
and  the  protector.  Accordingly,  being  solicited  by  Mazarine  to  join  in 
depressing  Spain,  he  readily  furnished  six  thousand  men  for  the  nivasion 
of  the  Netherlands,  and  a  signal  victory  was  with  this  aid  obtained  over 
the  Spaniards  at  Dunes,  In  return  for  this  important  service  the  French 
put  Dunkirk,  lately  taken  from  the  Spaniards,  into  his  hands. 

But  the  victory  of  Dunes  was  the  least  of  the  evils  that  the  Spaniards 
experienced  from  the  enmity  of  Cromwell.  Blake,  whose  conduct  in 
the  Dutch  war  had  not  only  endeared  him  to  Kiiglund,  but  had  also 
spread  his  personal  renown  throughout  the  world,  was  most  liberally  and 
ably  supported  by  the  protector.  Having  sailed  up  the  Mediterranean, 
where  the  English  flag  had  never  floated  above  a  fleet  since  the  time  of 
the  crusaders,  he  completely  swept  that  sea  oif  all  that  dared  to  dispute 
it  with  him,  and  then  proceeded  to  Leghorn,  where  his  mere  appearance 
and  reputation  caused  the  duke  of  Tuscany  to  make  reparation  for  divers 
injuries  which  had  been  inflicted  upon  tlie  English  traders  thfere. 

A.  D,  1655. — The  trading  vessels  of  England,  as,  indeed,  of  all  Euro 
pean  countries,  had  long  suffered  from  the  Tunisians  and  Algerines,  and 
Blake  now  proceeded  to  call  those  barbarians  to  account.  The  day  ol 
Algiers  was  soon  brought  to  reason;  but  the  dey  of  Tunis,  directing  the 
attenticMi  of  Blake  to  the  strong  castles  of  Goletta  and  Porto  Farino, 
bade  him  look  at  them  and  then  do  his  worst.  The  English  admiral  in- 
stantly took  him  at  his  word,  sailed  into  the  harbour,  burned  the  whole 
of  the  shipping  that  lay  in  it,  and  sailed  triumphantly  away  in  quest  of 
the  Spaniards.  Arrived  at  Cadiz  he  took  two  galleons,  or  treasure-ships, 
of  the  enormous  value  of  two  millions  of  pieces  of  eight,  and  then  sailed 
for  the  Canaries,  where  he  burned  and  sunk  an  entire  Spanish  fleet  of 
sixteen  sail.  After  this  latter  action  he  sailed  for  England  to  refit,  where 
he  sank  so  rapidly  beneath  an  illness  which  had  long  afflicted  him,  that 
he  expired  just  as  he  reached  home. 

While  Blake  had  been  thus  gallantly  and  successfully  exerting  him- 
self in  one  quarter,  another  fleet  under  admirals  Venables  and  Feiiii,  car- 
rying about  four  thousand  land  forces,  left  the  British  shores.  The  ob- 
ject of  this  expedition  was  to  capture  the  island  of  Hispaniola,  but  the 
Spaniards  were  so  well  prepared  and  superior,  that  this  object  entirely 
failed.  Resolved  not  to  return  home  without  having  achieved  something, 
the  admirals  now  directed  their  course  to  Jamaica,  where  they  so  com- 
pletely surprised  the  Spaniards,  that  that  rich  island  was  taken  posses- 
sion of  by  our  troops  without  the  necessity  of  striking  a  blow.  So  lit- 
tle was  the  value  of  the  island — from  which  so  much  wealth  has  since 
been  drawn — at  that  time  understood,  that  its  capture  was  not  deemed  a 
compensation  for  the  failure  as  to  Hispaniola,  and  both  the  admirals  were 
sent  to  the  Tower  for  that  failure. 

A.  D.  1658. — But  the  splendid  successes  of  Cromwell  were  now  draw- 
ing to  a  close.  His  life,  glorious  as  to  the  unthinking  and  uninformed  it 
must  have  appeared,  had  from  the  moment  of  his  accepting  the  protect- 
orate, been  one  long  series  of  secret  and  most  harassing  vexations.  As 
we  have  already  pointed  out,  both  extremes,  the  republicans  and  the 
royalists,  detested  him,  and  were  perpetually  plotting  agaiiisil  hia  author- 
ity and  life.     His  own  wife  was  thought  to  detest  the  guilty  stale  in 


sO''- ■ 


603 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


which  thoy  lived ;  and  it  is  certain  that  both  his  eldest  daughter,  Mrs 
Fleetwood,  and  iiis  favourite  child,  Mrs.  Claypole,  took  every  opportunity 
of  maintaining  tiie  respective  principles  of  their  husbands,  even  in  the 
presence  of  their  father.  Mrs.  Fleetwood,  indeed,  wont  beyond  her  hus- 
band in  zeal  for  republicanism,  while  Mrs.  Claypole,  whom  the  protector 
loved  with  a  tenderness  little  to  have  been  expected  from  so  stern  a  man, 
was  so  ardent  in  the  cause  of  monarchy,  that  even  on  her  death-bed  she 
upbraided  her  sorrowing  father  with  the  death  of  one  sovereign  and  the 
usurpation  which  kept  his  successor  in  exile  and  misery.  The  soldiery, 
too,  with  whom  he  had  so  often  fought,  were  for  the  most  part  sincere, 
however  erring,  in  their  religious  professions,  and  could  not  but  be  deeply 
disgusted  when  they  at  lengtii  perceived  that  his  religious  as  well  as  re- 
publican professions  had  been  mere  baits  to  catch  men's  opinions  and 
support.  Tie  was  thus  left  almost  without  a  familiar  and  confidential 
friend,  while  n  the  midst  of  a  people  to  \,'hom  he  had  set  the  fearful  ex- 
ample of  achieving  an  end,  although  at  the  terrible  price  of  shedding  in 
noeent  blood. 

Frequent  conspiracies,  and  his  knowledge  of  the  general  detestation  in 
which  his  conduct  was  held,  at  length  shook  even  his  resolute  mind  and 
iron  frame.  He  became  nervous  and  melancholy;  in  whichever  direc- 
tion he  turned  his  eyes  he  imagined  he  saw  an  enemy.  Fairfax,  whose 
lady  openly  condemned  the  proceedings  against  the  king  in  Westminster 
Hall  at  the  time  of  the  mock  trial,  had  so  wrought  upon  her  husband, 
that  he  alloweii  himself  to  league  with  Sir  William  Waller  and  other 
cniiuent  men  at  the  head  of  the  presbytcriim  parly  to  destroy  the  pro- 
tector. With  all  parlies  in  the  state  thiw  furions  against  him,  Cromwell 
now,  too,  for  the  first  time,  found  himself  fearfuhy  straiu'htened  for  money. 
His  successes  against  the  Spaniards  had  been  splendid,  indeed,  but  such 
splendours  were  usually  expensive  in  the  end.  With  an  exhausted  treas- 
ury, and  debts  nf  no  inconsiderable  amount,  he  began  to  fear  the  conse- 
quence of  what  seemed  inevitable,  his  falling  in  arrears  with  ;lie  soldiery 
to  whom  he  owod  all  his  past  success,  and  upon  whose  good  will  alojic 
rested  his  slender  hope  of  '"uture  security.  Just  as  he  was  tortured  wel 
nigii  to  insanity  by  these  threatening  circumstances  of  his  situation.  Col- 
onel Titus,  a  zealous  republican,  who  had  bravcdy,  however  erioneously 
fought  against  the  late  king,  and  who  was  now  thoroughly  disgusted  uik' 
indignant  to  see  tl:e  plebeian  king-killer  practising  more  tyranny  than  the 
murdered  monarch  had  ever  been  guilty  of,  sent  forth  his  opinions  in  a 
most  bitterly  eloquent  pamphlet,  bearing  the  ominous  title  of  "  Killing 
NO  MuHDEH. '  Seltii f  out  with  a  brief  reference  to  what  b  d  been  done 
in  the  case  of  (what  lie,  as  a  reiuiblican,  called)  kinglu  tyra  ■  :y,  tlie  col- 
onel vehemently  insisK  d  that  it  was  not  merely  a  right,  but  a  positive 
dey  to  slay  the  plebeian  usurper.  "  Shall  we,"  said  the  idoqueiit  de- 
claiiiier,  "shall  wc,  who  struck  down  the  lion,  cower  before  the  wolfl" 

Cromwell  read  this  eloquent  and  immoral  reasoning — iiirnoral,  we  siy, 
for  crniie  can  r -vcr  justify  more  criirie — and  never  was  again  seen  to 
snnlo.  TIk!  i  vonsiiess  of  his  body  and  the  horror  of  his  mind  weri' 
now  redoul'li'd.  He  doubted  not  that  this  feiirless  and  plausible  pamphint 
woiilil  fall  into  the  hands  of  some  cnthiiitiuii  who  would  he  nerved  tu 
frenzy  l>y  it.  He  wore  armour  beneath  his  clothed,  and  constantly  car- 
riiil  pistols  with  him,  never  travelled  twice  by  the  same  road,  and  rarely 
uleiit  more  than  a  second  night  in  the  same  ch.imiter.  Tlioiigli  he  was 
always  stroni^ly  guanleil,  such  was  the  wretcheiliiess  of  Ills  siliiaiion  tliat 
even  this  did  not  insure  his  safety;  for  where  more  probably  than  ainDim 
the  faimliciil  soldiery  could  an  asHassin  Ix-  fniiiid  1  Alone,  he  fell  into  iiii'l- 
anelioly ;  in  eoinpany,  he  was  iiiich.'ered  ;  and  if  strangi^rs,  of  howcvcf 
high  eharai'tor,  appro:ti'lied  somewhat  close  to  his  person,  it  was  in  a  tout 


THE  TRRA8URY  OF  HISTORY. 


603 


r,  Mrs 
3riuniiy 
\  in  the 
her  hus- 
irotector 
11  a  mail, 
-bed  she 
I  and  the 
soldiery, 
I  sincere, 
be  deeply 
^ell  as  re- 
nions  and 
onfidential 
fearful  ex- 
ledding  in 

estalion  in 
}  mind  and 
ever  direc- 
•fax,  whose 
Vestminsiei 
er  husband, 
r  and  olhci 
:oy  the  pro- 
n,  CroinweU 
.1  for  money, 
ied,  but  such 
ausied  treas- 
ir  the  eonsc- 
I  the  soldiery 
od  will  alone 
tortured  we 
iilualion.  Col- 

rr.oneously. 

lisjrustcd  an' 
idiiiiy  tlian  the 
[opinions  in  a 
'   of  "  KlU.lNO 
J  been  done 

.  •  .y.  i'-^'  '■''^' 

,ut  a  positive 
floquoiil  _de- 
\\w  wolfV 
Inoral,  wo  aiy- 
Uain  seen  to 
L  minil  wetc 
siblo  panip  d" 
'  be  iHTved  ii» 
poiwlaiilly  eat- 
|;,ul,  and  rarely 
'honnh  he  «'« 
,sHiuiaiionUi;i> 

,\y  ih:m  ain>"'« 
be  fell  "It"  ""''• 
hrs,  of  howv' 
,t  was  in  a  i"»« 


less  indicative  of  anger  than  of  actual  and  ajronizing  terror  that  he  bade 
them  stand  off. 

The  strong  constitution  of  Cromwell  at  length  gave  way  beneath  this 
iccumulation  of  horrors.  He  daily  became  thinner  and  more  feeble,  and 
ire  long  was  seized  with  a  tertian  ague,  which  carried  him  off  in  a  week,  in 
:he  ninth  year  of  his  unprincipled  usurpation,  and  in  the  fifty-ninth  of  his 
ige,  on  the  third  of  Septeruber,  1659. 

A.  D.  1659. — Though  Cromwell  was  delirious  from  the  effects  of  his 
mortal  illness,  he  had  a  sufficiently  lucid  interval  to  allow  of  his  putting  the 
crowning  stroke  to  his  unparalleled  treason.  This  slayer  of  his  lawful 
•overeign,  this  mere  private  citizen,  who  had  only  made  his  first  step 
from  extreme  obscurity  under  pretence  of  a  burning  and  inextinguishable 
Hatred  of  monarchy,  now,  when  on  the  very  verge  of  death,  had  the  cool 
audacity  and  impudence  to  name  his  son  Richard  as  his  successor — for- 
doolh ! — as  though  his  usurped  power  were  held  by  hereditary  right,  or  as 
.hough  his  son  and  the  grandson  of  a  small  trader  were  better  qualified 
•han  any  other  living  niiiu  for  the  office,  on  the  supposition  of  its  being 
elective !  In  the  annals  of  the  world  we  know  of  no  instance  of  impudence 
»eyond  this. 

But  though  named  by  his  father  to  the  protectorate,  Richard  Cromwell 
hiid  none  of  his  father's  energy  and  but  little  of  his  evil  ambition.  Ac- 
customed to  the  stern  rule  and  sagacious  activity  of  the  deceased  n.iurper, 
the  army  very  speedily  showed  its  unwillingness  to  transfer  its  allegiance 
to  Richard,  and  a  committee  of  the  leading  officers  was  assembled  at 
Kleetwood's  residencn,  and  called,  after  it,  the  cabal  of  Wallingford.  The 
first  step  of  this  association  was  to  present  to  the  young  protector  a  rc- 
inoiisiraiice  requiring  that  the  command  of  the  army  should  be  intrusted 
to  some  person  who  possessed  the  confidence  of  the  officers.  As  Richard 
was  thus  plainly  informed  that  he  had  not  that  confidence,  he  had  no 
choice  but  to  defend  his  title  by  force,  or  to  make  a  virtue  of  necessity 
ami  give  in  his  resignation  of  an  authority  to  the  importance  of  which  ho 
WHS  signally  unequal,  He  chose  the  latter  course  ;  and  having  signed  a 
formal  abdication  of  an  otfico  which  ho  ought  never  to  have  filled,  he 
liv('d  for  some  years  in  France  and  subsequently  settled  at  Chesliunt,  in 
Hertfordshire,  where  as  a  (irivate  gentleman  he  lived  to  a  very  i  Ivaneod 
iigp,  in  the  enjoyment  of  competence'  and  a  degree  of  happiness  which 
wag  never  for  an  instant  the  companion  of  his  father's  guilty  greatness. 
The  cabal  of  Wallingford,  having  thus  readily  and  quietly  disposed  of  Pro- 
tector Richard,  now  saw  the  necessity  of  establishing  something  like  u 
formal  government;  and  the  rump  parliament,  wirch  Oliver  Cromwell 
hail  so  uiicercmoiiiously  turned  out  of  doors,  was  invited  to  reinstate  it- 
self in  authority.  Unt  noon  these  thorcughly  inciipablo  men  the  experi- 
ence of  past  (lays  was  wliolly  thrown  away.  Korgctting  that  the  sourco 
of  tlicir  power  was  the  brute'  force  of  tho  armv,  their  very  first  measures 
were  aimed  at  lessening  the  power  of  the  ciibal.  The  latter  body,  per- 
ceiving that  the  parliam  'lit  proceeded  from  less  to  greater  proofs  of  ex- 
treme hostility,  determined  to  send  it  back  to  the  fitting  obscurity  of  pri- 
vate life.  Lambert  with  a  largo  body  of  troops  accordingly  went  to  West- 
niiiisicr.  Having  coinplc'ely  surriHiiided  the  parliament  house  with  his 
men,  the  general  patiently  awaited  the  arrival  of  the  f;>eaker,  Leiitiial,aiid 
when  that  (icrsoiiage  made  Ins  ajipearain'';  the  general  )riiered  the  liorsei 
of  the  Ktate  (-arriage  to  bi^  tiirneil  rouiul,  and  Leiitlial  was  conducted  Icnne. 
The  like  civility  was  exlendeil  to  *'ie  various  members  as  they  siieccs'^ive. 
ly  made  their  appearance,  ami  the  army  proceeded  to  keep  a  solemn  I'.i-l 
t>y  w,iy  of  cch'britiiiK  the  aiinihilalioii  of  ihis  (li«uraccfiil  [Mrliaineiit. 

Hi;l  iiit»  triiiinpli  of  ihe  army  was  short.  If  I'Meetwood,  l.ainliert.  and 
llie  o'hi'r  lending  otlicers  'ititici'pated  the  pos-^ibility  of  placing  one  of  Iheiii- 
delves  in  the  stule  of  evil  pre-ciiiiiicnce  occupied  by   the  lalo  protector 


604 


THli  TRKASlilY  OF  HISTOaY. 


(I 


iliey  li;i(|  egrcwi.uislv  cin'il  in  nverlookiii",''  iliu  power  and  possible  iiiPliim 
tioii  of  (iL'iieral  .Monk.  Tliis  able  aiifl  poliiic  officer,  it  will  be  re('olleitt»'i|, 
had  been  inlrusied  by  Cromwell  wiili  the  task  of  keeping;  Seotland  in 
subservience  to  tiie  cominonwealth  of  England.  He  had  an  army  ol  up. 
wards  of  eight  thon^^aiid  veteran  troops,  and  the  wisdom  and  moderidjoii 
witii  wiiich  lie  had  governed  Scotland  gave  him  great  moral  ihtliience  ami 
a  proporiionate  command  of  pecuniary  resources;  and  whL'ii  the  <liHiiiiNNid 
of  till!  rump  p.irliiiinent  by  the  army  threw  the  inhabitants  of  Lcnidon  iniu 
alarm  lest  an  absolute  military  tyranny  should  succeed,  the  eycN  of  nil 
were  turned  upon  Monk,  and  every  one  was  anxious  to  know  whethir  he 
woulil  tlirow  his  vast  power  into  this  or  into  that  scale. 

Uiit  '•  honest  (Jeorge  .Vhnik,"  as  his  soldiers  with  affectionalo  familiarity 
were  wont  to  term  him.  was  as  rool  and  silent  as  he  was  d(!Xlerouii  ,iiii| 
resolute.  As  soon  as  he  was  made  aware  of  the  proceedings  lliiil  limi 
taken  placid  in  London  he  put  his  veteran  army  in  molimi.  As  he  nmrrli- 
ed  siniiliward  upon  I^on  on  he  was  met  by  messenger  after  ineHseiiKcr, 
each  |).(riy  being  anxious  to  ascertain  for  which  he  intemled  to  deeliire  ; 
but  lie  strictly,  and  with  an  admirable  firmness,  replied  to  all,  that  he  wan 
on  his  way  lo  imiuin!  iiiio  the  state  of  aff.iirs  and  aid  in  remedying  wliiii. 
ever  iniglit  be  wrong.  Stdl  niai.itaining  this  politic  reserve,  he  rcieliiMl 
St.  Albans,  and  lher(!  fixed  his  head-quarters. 

Tlu!  rump  parliament  in  the  meantime  had  re-assembled  without  oppo. 
lilinn  from  ttie  Wallingford  i-abal,  the  members  of  which  prolmbly  I'.'iircil 
to  act  while  in  ignorance  of  the  intentions  of  Monk,  wiio  now  sent  ii  rnniiiil 
request  lo  the  parliament  fo;-  the  instant  reiTDval  to  .•i)iinlry-(|uariers  nj 
all  troops  stationed  in  Londtm.  'J'hisdone,  the  parliaineiii  dissolved,  iil'liM 
taking  measures  for  the  immediate  election  of  new  members. 

Sag.tcious  public  men  now  began  to  judge  that  Monk,  weary  of  llie  ex. 
isting  slate  of  things,  had  resolved  to  restore  the  exiled  kiim,  but  Monk 
still  preserved  the  most  profound  silence  untd  the  asseinbling  of  a  new 
parliament  si'.ould  enable  him  r-ipidly  and  cITectually  to  acconipliNh  lim 
desitjns. 

The  only  person  who  seems  to  have  been  in  the  conlidence  of  iIiin  aUW 
man  was  a  Devonshire  gentleman  named  .Morr'ce,  who  was  of  iih  l.ieiiurii 
and  (irudent  a  disposiiion  as  the  general  hims.'lf.  All  jiersonK  wliosiinijM 
the  generars  contideiKM!  were  referred  to  Morrice,  and  aiming  thi  iiiiiii!i(r 
was  Sir  .lolm  (Iranville,  who  was  the  servant  and  personi.!  friend  ol   iIh 

exiled  king,  who  now  sent  him  over  to  Kngland  to  endi^aviuir  lo  iiillui' 

Monk.  Sir  John  when  referred  to  Morrici'  more  than  once  replied  ilmi 
he  held  i)  comnnssion  from  the  king,  and  tiiat  he  could  open  Iiin  bu^llH'>lll 
to  no  one  but  (teiieral  Monk  in  person.  This  pertinacity  and  caiit;'<i|  wrp' 
precisely  wli,it  >fonk  reeuired  ;  and  tiiongh  even  now  lie  would  not  e  ii|. 
mit  himself  by  any  wriiien  document,  he  personally  gav(«  (iranville  nihIi 
information  as  inihiced  the  king  to  hasten  from  Kredit,  the  governor  il 
which  would  fain  have  made  him  a  jyrisoner  ii...!:'r  the  |iretenre  of  p.iMii;) 
him  honour,  ami  settled  himself  ii:  jiolhiiid,  where  hi;  anxioiiMly  iiw:iil>'<l 
further  tidings  from  .Monk. 

The  parliament  at  length  assembled,  and  it  beeainn  vof  '•,,»«riillv  mi' 
derstood  that  Ihi!  restoration  of  the  inonarehy  was  the  ri  .  iiileniioii  nf 
Monk  ;  but  so  great  and  obvious  were  the  perils  of  the  lime,  ihiil  foi  nli  iv 
days  the  parli.inienl  occiipieit  itsilf  in  ini'ridy  routine  businoH,  no  niic 
daring  to  utter  H  word  upon  tli.it  very  snbjeel  winch  every  iiiiiii  bn'l  ilir 
most  (1,'eply  at  heart.  Monk  'Mring  all  this  lime  had  lost  no  onpi  niiiiv 
of  ohsi'rviiig  the  senliments  of  the  new  parliament,  ami  he  at  i.i«i  Im  Ki* 
through  his  (Militie  ami  well-sustaini'd  reserve,  and  direcleil  \nnenli  v,  lli 
president  of  the  council,  lo  inform  the  hoiKe  that  Sir  .lolin  Ornnt'illc  n 

.it  Its  door  with  a  letter  from  li..«i  majesty.     Tl iFect  of  Ihese  I'eM  »<     ' 

was  electrical  ,  the  whole  of  the  inemh«'rs  rose  from  their  seain  ;»ii'iii.<'i.',i 


the  II 

now 

resloi 
gl'.U'M 

been  1 
nil  tin 
parlK'i 
llic  rei 
ill  Iioi 
|i!eled 

iiiiiis  o 

iliJdresi 

I'    IIIIISl 

'IK  It  wi 
Wislllllj 

trill V  p(i 
bide,  w 
I'iaiiio  a 


«■  n.  1i 
fill  and  a 
I'iiiciii  el( 
^iiice  of  M, 

"( '."nwlaii 
lllciil.      /) 

l"'i'illlse  II 
'III''  Wiis  : 
I'lc  llloil  I 
'  !•  il  IVcly 
'  [  '•■  elle 
■' ■  Mill  I 


ofl 


M||( 
■  'I-   III  II, 
yid  (hrei 
'I'liiv,.  (,/■ 
Wi  re  i|,., 
"lIl^lll  lo 

llmllll,.,-,, 
'"""I.    Ill 

"cferrly 
III  III  III  u, 
""■1,11  iiiiIk 

•'llllirs, 

■I'  lie  r>iii| 

'""'III  of  Ills 

«IMll«e,|  I 
'l"ll  Hilt  ( 
"f  Hie  u,,|| 

•Icrii.  r  ,,  I, 

'li.nr,||lvi„ 
""■Im.iij,,,, 

"I'll    0,|,.    ,,, 

'"'    •   llMII,, 

■'■line   uli 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


60S 


incUni* 

)ll;illil  iu 
ly  of  up- 
Dili-r.iticm 
KMU'i'  mill 

(liHllllHHlll 
iIIiIdII  inIO 
yCH  of    till 

familiiiflty 

.(•roll"*  •mil 

H  ilml  li'iil 

tic  luiui'li- 

to  ilcclitro  ■, 

I  lull  111'  wilt 
lyillH  Wlllll' 

III,  ri'.iflii'il 

ilhoiii  oppn- 
ilmlilv  l''"'f'''l 
g(.iil  iil'i'ii"''' 
r.inr.irli'is  III 
HmtlvtMl.iilli'i 

'ry  of  111.'  i'X- 
iiiu,  liii'  ^1""'* 
„iK  of  a  iii;^^ 
...oinpliHli  In* 

r  of  Uiiit  iil'l'' 
of  lilt  l;u'.iliirii 
|iu.  wliiiKiiiin'i' 
,^  lUi  niiiiil''i' 
Iriciiil  'i'  "''' 
,r  lo  iiinni'iii'' 
,.  i(.|>llt'il  iImI 
,  tiiH  liUMI""^" 
l(,.,,„l;.HlVVir' 

mid  mil  «'  III 
Jriinvilli'  "iii'i 
,.  noviTimi'   '' 
.HOC  of  |i.i\iiiU 
dumIv  iiw;iil'"l 

.■..criillv  iiii; 

I,  tliiill'iM  alrw 
|,m„r«H.  110  .Hlf 
Itt.OI   I'-l''  ''"' 

l„0    0|1|M        I'lll'^' 
I.     „»     la«l    l"l  '»• 

[l    Miiii'i'liV.  ill 
(»r/tiivilli'  " 
ItirNr  IV^»  "' 


Ini'iilx  M'' 


hi."i"'i 


Ihc  nnws  with  a  burst  of  eiiltiiisiHslic(;lipering.  Sir  John  Oraiivillr'  was 
now  called  iii.  the  king's  letter  was  rend,  and  the  proposals  it  oiaiic  lor  the 
ri"<toration  of  Charles  were  agreed  to  with  a  new  hurst  of  cheering.  The 
i;i',ii'ioii8  letter,  ofTering  an  imieniiiity  far  more  extensive  Ihaii  eniild  have 
lu'cn  hopiid  for  after  all  the  evil  that  had  beeii  done,  was  at  once  entered 
on  Ihc  journals,  and  ordered  to  be  published,  that  the  |)eopleat  largf  inigiit 
parlicipatc  ill  the  joy  of  the  house.  Nothing  now  rcMuaiiicd  lo  ohslniet 
llic  rcliirn  of  Charles,  who,  after  a  short  and  prosperous  passage,  arrived 
III  iKUiihMi  on  the  tweiity-iiinth  of  May,  being  the  day  on  which  lif  coin- 
pii'led  his  thirlicth  year.  Everywhere  he  was  received  with  the  acelaina- 
lioiin  of  aHBcinbled  multitudes  ;  and  so  numerous  were  ihe  congr.iialatory 
addresses  that  were  presented  to  him,  that  he  pleasantly  remarked,  that 
it  iniisi  sundy  liavc  oeeii  his  own  fault  that  he  had  not  returned  sooner, 
n!«  it  was  plain  there  was  not  one  of  his  subjects  who  had  not  bciii  long 
wiHJiiiig  for  him  !  Alas!  th(mgh  good-humouredly,  these  words  but  too 
truly  paint  the  terribly  and  disgracefully  inconstant  nature  of  the  multi- 
tude, who  are  ever  as  ready  to  jiraise  and  rtatler  without  measure,  as  to 
blame  and  injure  without  just  cause. 


CIl.VPTER  LIV. 


TIIF.    RKKl.V    or   CUARLKS  II. 


A.  1).  IfUiO. — Handsnmo,  accomplished,  young,  and  of  a  singularly  cheer 
fill  aiid  alVable  temper,  Charles  II,  ascended  Ins  ihione  with  all  the  ap- 
piinnl  clemnits  of  a  just  and  universal  popularity,  e>pecially  as  the  ignor- 
ance of  smne  and  Ihe  tyranny  of  others  had  by  this  lime  ta'ighi  t'lc  people 
of  i;ii|{l mil  to  understand  the  full  value  of  a  wise,  regular,  and  just  goveni- 
iiiciil.  lint  Charles  had  some  faults  which  were  none  the  less  niiscli.'evou« 
lintiiise  they  were  the  mere  excesses  of  amiable  ijiialities.  His  t'ood  na 
tiirc  was  attended  by  a  levity  and  carelessness  winch  c.iused  hi"!  lo  leave 
|iie  mott  faithful  services  and  the  most  serious  sacrilices  unrewarded,  and 
liM  Hivity  denenerated  into  an  indolence  and  .self  indulgence  more?  (iited 
ii  till-  eireminale  si  If-worship  of  a  Sybanlc  than  to  th''  public  and  respou- 
>'|ii|e  Mill  ilioii  ol  the  king  of  a  frei!  and  active  people. 

One  (d'lhe  (nst  cares  of  the  parliament  was  to  pass  ;in  act  of  m  '  innily 
I. ir  all  that  h. Ill  passed  ;  but  a  special  excepiniii  was  made  of  ihn.--"  who 
'i  il  directly  and  personally  t.iken  part  in  the  murder  of  tin?  Ii:c  king. 
Tlncc  of  liie  most  |)roiiiinciil  of  these,  Cromwill,  Hiadshaw,  ai:  '  Irctou, 
ivi  re  dead.  Dill  ai  It  Was  ijiought  thit  some  signal  and  public  obloijuy 
ainlit  lobe  thrown  I  ion  crime  so  ennrnions  as  th.  ns,  ilieir  bodies  were 
!i''iiiti'rred,  sn<<pendcd  from  tlie  gallows,  and  siibscipiently  bunct,  at  its 
I  "i|  IMliers  of  the  rignides  were  proceeded  ay  iin-.i,  and  more  ir  lOM 
'in  rely  punishiMl ,  but  Cliarh^sshowed  no  more  cine  >intss  la  vengiMiice 
III  III  111  gia'iiude,  and  llii're  never,  prub.ibly,  has  lii'cn 
iii'iit  inilictnl  for  crime  so  extensive  and  so  frichtrnl. 


lilt 


e  of 


pm 


iiah- 


<  li  irlrs,  in  I'.icl,  had  but  one  passion,  Ihe  love  of  pie  .sure ;  and  so  liing 


i'<  I mild  CO 


I  the  means  of  gratifying  lliai,  he,    k  liie  ■  ommence- 


I'lit  of  hiK  reigi  'spi'cially,  seemed  to  c. ire  but  little  how  Ins  minitiluni 
luriiiyei!  Ihc  pnlilic  all'nrs.  Il  was,  m  !<ome  degree,  happy  for  the  na 
liiiil  III  it  Charles  was  llius  careless  ;  bir  so  excessive  w.>*  'lie  jfl  idiiuss 
I'f  the  nalMm's  loyalty  just  at  ihis  pi'riod,  1;  it  liai'  CIi.t"  -s  In  iii  of  u 
•tiTin  r  iinil  more  imiiiitioiiK  eh. trader  iie  Mould  liavi'  i  ,  i  iiiilc  or  no 
iliilli'iilly  III  rendermu  himself  ai  absolnle  monarch,  I^o  e  enl  w  is  the 
iiu'liiiaiiiin  of  Ihe  commons  lo  go  lo  exirenics  m  order  lo  /i  .ul'y  I  ic  king. 


Hi.it  one  of  the  minislcru,  Si>i'ili.impion,seilousiy  (■oiil('"n»i.iie'l  r<  i|iiirilig 

lie  I  iiMimoiis  amount  of.  .o   eiillio  is  an  ll'.e  km/'-    <(•«*•  fv'' nie.  i 

•  eiiue  vvhiidt  would  liu>      -iv        him  wholly   iiiilepi  ^i  ■  nt  inik  •  -i'"  'i- 


it 


r 


606 


THE  TttKASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


!  ■ 


people  and  the  law.  Fortunately  the  wise  and  virtuous  Lord  Clarenaon, 
attuclied  as  he  was  to  the  royal  master  'vhose  exile  and  privations  he  had 
faithfully  shared,  opposed  this  outrageous  wisli  of  Southampton,  and  the 
revenue  of  the  king  was  fixed  more  moderately,  but  with  a  liberality 
which  rendered  it  impossible  for  him  to  feel  necessity  except  as  th«  -jon- 
sequenco  of  the  extreme  imprudence  of  profusion. 

But  Charles  was  one  of  those  persons  whom  it  is  almost  impossible  to 
preserve  free  from  pecuniary  necessity  ;  and  he  soon  became  so  deeply 
involved  in  difficulties,  while  his  k  ve  of  expensive  pleasure  remained 
unabated,  that  he  at  once  turned  his  thoughts  to  marriage  as  a  means  ot 
procuring  pecuniary  aid.  Catherine,  the  infanta  of  Portugal,  was  at  this 
time,  probably,  the  homeliest  princess  in  Europe.  Hut  she  was  wealthy, 
her  portion  amounting  to  three  hundred  thousand  pounds  in  money,  to- 
gether witli  Bombay  in  the  East  Indies,  and  the  fortress  of  Tangier  in 
Africa ;  and  such  a  portion  had  too  many  attractions  for  the  needy  and 
pleusure-loving  Charles  to  allow  him  to  lay  mucli  stress  upon  the  infanta's 
want  of  personal  attractions.  The  dukes  of  Ormond,  Southampton,  and 
the  able  and  clear-headed  Chancellor  Clarendon  endeavoured  to  dissuade 
the  king  from  this  niat(!l)  chiefly  on  th(!  ground  of  tiie  infanta  being  but 
little  likely  to  have  ciiiluien  ;  but  Cluirl"3  was  resolute,  and  the  infanta 
becanu;  queen  of  England,  an  honour  it  la  to  be  feared  that  she  dearly 
purchased,  for  tUv  numerous  mistresses  of  the  king  were  permitted,  if  not 
actually  encouraged,  to  insult  her  by  their  familiar  presence,  and  vie 
with  her  in  luxury  ol)taii>ed  at  her  cost. 

As  a  means  of  procuring  large  sums  from  his  parliament,  Charles  de- 
clared war  against  the  Dutch.  The  hostilities  were  very  fiercely  carried 
on  by  both  particg,  but  after  the  sacrifice  of  blood  ;!nd  treasure  to  an  im- 
mense amount,  the  Dutch,  by  a  treaty  signed  at  B*eda,  procured  peace 
by  ceding  to  England  the  American  colony  of  New  York.  Though  this 
colony  was  justly  considered  as  an  important  Hcquisilioii,  the  whole  terms 
of  th<!  peace  were  not  considered  sufficiently  honouraiile  to  Kiiglaud, 
and  the  public  mind  became  mucii  exasperated  against  Clarendon,  who 
was  said  to  have  commenced  w.ir  uiineccHNnrily,  and  to  have  concluded 
peace  disgracefully.  vv'I.;!t'jver  inigl't  be  tin;  private  opinion  of  (/harles, 
who,  probably,  had  far  more  than  Clarendon  to  do  with  ilic  commence- 
ment of  the  war,  he  showed  no  desire  lo  dhield  his  minisier,  whose  stead- 
l^ist  and  high-principled  character  had  long  been  so  distasteful  at  court 
that  he  had  been  siii)jccted  to  the  insultf<of  the  cutirliers  and  the  slights  (if 
the  king.  Undersuch  circumsiances  tli«  fate  of  Mraffnrd  sn  nied  by  no 
means  unlikely  to  become  that  of  Clarci»rlon,  Mr.  S<yinour  brmgma  sev- 
enteen arti('les  of  impeachment  agaiimt  him.  But  •'larcndon  pi-rfimviip; 
the  peril  in  which  he  was  [ilaced,  and  rightlv  jiidiring  that  it  was  in  vain  t 
oppose  (he  popular  clamoii>r  wlwii  that  «a»  aided  by  the  ungrateful  cosi- 
ness of  the  court  went  into  voluntary  exile  m  Fraii''*'.  where  he  dev(»t«d 
himself  to  literature. 

Freed  from  the  presence  of  Qarfiiidoii,  whose  f'mkc  he  feared,  and 
whose  virlite  he  admired  but  could  not  imitate,  ('Imrles  now  gave  the 
rliicf  (lircctKMj  of  piililii;  atlairs  into  tlie  li.oidi(  of  certnn  part.ikers  of  Im 
pUMMures.  Hir  Thoniiis  (nilfonl,  Lord  Acldey,  aftwrwardBcarlof  Sliati/ j. 
iitify,  tl',<'  duke  of  linekinghain,  Lord  Arlington,  aii4  the  <Uike  of  l„i  - 
lei'dale,  were  llx  persons  to  whom  (;harl«-«  now  iiiiiiui't^d  lii«  alTairs,  ami 
from  their  iniliaU  this  iiiinlMtry  was  known  by  tltr*  litb^  iff  the  >  4.11AI.. 

A.  D.  I<i70. — Tli/;  nM'nibcri  of  (he  cubiti  were  uixlo'ibteilly  Hit's  •}(  ability, 
learniii;;.  wit,  xiid  iCi-omp.ishmeiit  beiiiit  a'i«olute  rcqin^iter  to  the  cpi>- 
lainiiiif  of  Vitv.tU'ft'  Uv>nw,  But  unhuiipii)!  iliat  wjh  iilj — ^tri<  .s'  was  tli« 
iibilil/  of  ciMirtierx  rather  than  of  mmivtersi  ()»•■.  were  beiv.!-  lilted  iii 
»e  i\oii  the  pIcasiiii'K  of  ihe  ,>ritici',  than  io  iiroiid'  i^r  the  decurity  <d  th( 
throiie  or  (lie  welfire  of  the  pcoph'      Tlie  pu!»)»c  •iiscoiiienl  wm,  coti!«' 


II 


THE  TREASURY  OK  IIISTOllY. 


607 


llareiwoiii 
ns  he  had 
1,  and  the 
liberality 
LB  the  -jon- 

possiWe  to 

so  deeply 
.  remained 
a  means  ot 
was  at  this 
as  wealthy, 
money,  lo- 

Tangier  in 

needy  and 
the  infanta's 
ampton,  and 
i  lo  dissuade 
ta  being  but 
I  the  infanta 
I  she  deiirly 
rmitted,  ifnot 
jnce,  and  vie 

,  Charles  de- 

crcely  carrifd 

ure  to  an  nn- 

rocnred  peace 

'iniough  tins 

lie  whole  terms 

e  lo  Kngland, 

Ilarend.Mi,  who 

avo  concludctl 

,„n  of  Cliarles, 

\i,.  commencn- 

r.  whoso  Hii  iid- 

strful  at   eourt 

,1„.  slights  III 

...  .ned  by  no 

r  linnj;in<r  «ev- 

jdon  pi-f'^'^" 
iiwasinvmn 

ungrateful  .■"'l'.; 
K,re  he  '1^'^'"^"^ 

1  he  feared,  and 
J  now  giive  \1'^ 
■narukersof  hi* 
■..•..flofSUai 
.Hike  of  I- 

|l  \^^^   iffairs,  am. 

111.    ■   vHAl.. 

„„.,„f  Midiiy. 

f..lr.   to  llie  ""^ 

-tM  .V  was  ll;« 

l,ei-T  lUt.-d  in 

H.H-urHy  ot  iw 

„(  WW,  con^i' 


qucntly,  very  great ;  it  was  but  loo  deeply  and  widely  felt  that  such  a 
ministry  was  little  likely  to  put  an  eflTectual  check  upon  the  profligate 
pleasures  wh'ch  made  the  English  court  nt  once  the  gayest  and  the  most 
vicious  court  in  all  Europe. 

Nor  was  it  merely  from  the  character  of  the  ministry  and  the  dissipa 
ted  course  of  the  king  that  the  people  felt  discontented.  The  duke  of 
York,  the  presumptive  heir  to  the  throne,  though  a  brave  and  a  high- 
minded  man,  was  universally  believed  to  be  a  very  bigoted  papist ;  and 
enough  of  the  puritan  spirit  still  remained  to  make  men  dread  the  possible 
accession  of  a  papist  king. 

The  alarm  and  uneasiness  that  were  felt  on  this  point  at  length  reached 
to  such  a  heiglit  that,  in  August  of  this  year,  as  the  king  was  walking  in 
St.  James'  park,  disporting  himself  with  some  of  the  beautiful  little  dogs 
of  which  he  was  (piite  troublesomely  fond,  a  chemist,  named  Kirby,  ap- 
proached his  majesty,  and  warned  him  that  a  plot  was  on  foot  against  him. 
"Keep,  sire,"  said  this  person,  "within  your  company;  your  cnoinics 
design  to  take  your  life,  and  you  may  be  shot  even  iutliis  very  walk." 

News  so  startling,  and  at  the  same  time  so  consonant  with  the  vague 
fears  and  vulgar  rumours  of  the  day,  naturally  i.'d  to  farther  inquiries ; 
and   Kirby  stated  tliat  he  had  his  information  from  a  Doctor  Tonge,  a 
clergyman,  wiio  had  assured  him  that  two  men,  named  Grove  and  I'ick- 
erinir,  were  engaged  to  sliooi  the  king,  and  tliiit  the  (juocn's  physician. 
Sir  (Tcorge  Wakeling,  liad  agreed,  if  they  failed,  to  [int  an  end  to  his 
majesty  by  poison.     The  matter  was  now  referred  to  Danby,  the   lord 
treasurer,  who  sent  for  Doctor  Tonge.    That  person  not  only  ihowed 
all  readiness  to  attend,  but  also  produced  a  bundle  of  papers  relative  to 
llie  supposed  plot.     Questioned  as  to  the  manner  in  which  he  became 
pnss(!ssod  of  these  papers,  he  at  first  stated  that  they  were  thrust  under 
liis  door,  and   subsequently  that  he  knew  llie  writer  of  Ihem,  who   re- 
quired liis  name  to  be  concealed  lest  he  sliould  incur  the  deadly  aiig(>r  of 
tiie  Jesuits.     TIk'  reader  will  do  well  lo  remark  the  gross  inconsisleney 
of  these  two  accounts  ;  it  is  chietly  by  the  careful  noting  of  sucli  incon- 
sistencies   that    'he    wise    see   tiirough    the    snblly-woven    falsehoods 
wliich  are  so  co'iimonly  believed  by  the  credulous  or  the  careless.     Hiid 
ilio  papers  really  been  llirnst  beneath  the  man's  door,  as  he  at  first  pro- 
Iciided,  how  should  'i(i  know  the  author!     If  tlu?  author  was  known  to 
hull,  to  what    (lurpose    the    stealthy   way  of    forwarding  the  papers] 
Charles  himself  was  fi.r  too  acute  a  reasoner  to  ov(  ilook  this  gross  in. 
ciuisistcney,  and  he  llativ  gave  i(,  as  his  opinion  that  the  whole  atFair  was 
L  'hiinsy  liclion.     Hut  Tonge  was  a  tool  in  the  hauils  of  miscre.Mils  who 
would  not  so  readily  be  disconcerted,  and  lie  w  is  now  sent  ayiiin  to  Iho 
liird  trtiasnrer  Dinby,  to  inform  Imn  that  a  [nu  kel  of  irea'sonable  liHIers 
was  on  lis  way  totlii?  Jesuit   Uediii'j;lieldi  the  duke  of  York's  conferisor. 
Dvsoiiie  chance  Toiiire  gave  this  inl'onnation  soirte  hours  al'icr  the  duke 
if  York  had  hnnself  been  put  in  possession  of  these  letters,  which  he  had 
shown  to  the  king  as  a  vulgar  and  ridiculous  forgery  of  which  he  eoiihl 
not  discover  the  drift. 

Ililherlo  all  atiempls  at  producing  any  elTect  l>y  means  of  these  alledgpil 
ireasoualile  designs  had  failed,  and  the  i  liief  inamilacinrer  of  Ihem,  Titus 
Dales,  now  came  forw;ird  will  a  well-fei;;iied  uiiwdliiigness.  'I'liis  man 
h:id  from  his  yoMlli  ninvanl  l-een  an  ahaudoiied  ciiaraeter.  He  had  hr-n 
iiuhcled  for  uross  jienurv  j.imI  had  subsequently  been  dismissed  from  the 
•tiapliiiiiey  of  a  man  (ifw.ir  lor  a  yet  more  dis>.rraeefnl  crime,  and  In;  then 
professed  to  lie  i  convert  to  papacy,  and  aeiimlly  was  for  some  lime  inain- 
I  lined  Ml  the  Kiigiish  scminarv  at'Si.  Oiner's.  Keduced  lo  actual  desli- 
liitioii,  he  (teems  to  have  f.isieiied  upon  Knliy  and  T(m;fr,  as  weak  and 
rfdiiloiis  men,  wliiis(>  very  weakness  ami  eredidily  would  make  llieiii  ic- 
mpid  111  the  assertion  of  sneh  falsehoods  as  ho  might  choose   to  instil 


If" 
lb 

i 


1l 

4 

n 

1 


tmmw 


f 


608 


THE  TilEASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


into  tl  >:/  minds  Of  his  own  motives  we  may  form  a  shrewd  guess  Irom 
the  fact  that  he  was  supporiiHl  hy  ihe  actual  charity  of  Kirby,  at  a  mo- 
ment when  lie  alTect  jd  to  iiave  Ihe  due  to  mysteries  closely  touching  the 
king's  life  and  UiVilving  the  lives  of  nniiieroiis  persons  of  consequence. 

Tlioiigh  vulgar,  illiterate,  and  rnfFianly,  this  man,  Gates,  was  cunning  and 
daring.  F'inding  that  his  pretended  information  was  of  no  avail  in  pro- 
curing liiniself  court  favour,  he  now  resolved  to  see  what  effect  it  would 
have  upon  the  already  alarmed  and  anxious  minds  of  the  people.  He  ac- 
cordingly wi'ut  before  Sir  Kdmondbury  Godfrey,  a  I'l-ntleinan  in  great 
celebrity  for  nis  activity  as  a  magistrate,  aiid  de.sir'>(;  ri  make  a  deposi- 
tion to  ihe  effect  that  the  pope,  judging  the  lierery  of  the  king  and  people 
a  suflii'ieiit  ground,  inid  assumed  the  sovereignty  of  Kngland,  Scotland, 
and  Ireland,  atid  had  condemned  the  king  as  a  heretic  ;  the  d  aUi  to  be 
indicted  by  (irove  and  Pickering  who  were  to  slioot  him  vvith  sur,r  bul- 
lets. The  Jesuits  and  the  pope  havinif  thus  disposed  of  the  kiiij;,  whom, 
accordiiig  to  tiiis  veritable  deposition,  they  styled  the  black  bastard,  the 
crown  was  to  be  offered  to  the  duke  of  York  on  ^^H  coiidi'ion  that  he 
should  wholly  extirpate  the  protestant  religion  :  but  if  the  duke  refused 
to  comply  with  that  condition,  then  .lames,  too,  'i;  s  to^o  lo  pni. 

The  nunc  vulgarity  of  this  deposition  might  have  led  the  people  to  im- 
ply its  falsehood;  for  whattiver  might  be  the  other  faults  of  the  Jesuits, 
they  W(!re  not,  as  educated  men,  it  all  likely  to  use  tlie  style  of  speech 
which  so  (  oi  se  and  illiterate  a  wretch  as  Gates  attributed  to  them.  Hut 
popular  terror  not  nnconinionly  produces,  temporarily,  at  least,  a  popular 
madness  ;  and  the  at  once  atrocious  and  clumsy  falsehoods  of  this  man, 
whose  viry  destitution  was  the  conse(;uenee  of  revolting  crimes,  wereac 
cepted  hy  the  peopli:  as  irrefragable  evidein-e,  and  he  was  himself  hailed 
and  caressed  as  a  friend  and  protector  of  protestantism  and  protestantsl 
Uefore  the  council  he  repeatedly  and  most  grossly  contradicted  hiinsel'", 
but  the  eirect  his  statements  had  upon  the  public  mind  was  such,  th;- 
was  deemed  necessary  to  order  the  a[)prcheiision  of  (!ie  principal  persons 
named  as  being  cognizant  of  this  plot,  among  whom  were  several  Jesuits, 
and  (^(demaii,  secrt'tary  to  the  duke  of  York. 

A  siii|jiilar  circumstaiK  e  now  occurred,  whiidi  gives  hut  too  much  rea- 
S(m  to  Tear  that  perjury  was  by  no  means  the  worst  of  the  crimes  to  whirli 
Gates  resor'.iil  to  |)rociire  the  success  of  his  vile  scheme.  Sir  Kdmoiid- 
hury  liodfrey,  the  magistrate  who  first  gave  Gates  importance  by  allowing 
hnn  to  rcdiic"  his  lying  siatemcnts  into  a  formal  aiul  regular  deposition, 
was  suddenly  missed  from  his  house,  iiid,  al'ter  a  lapse  of  several  days, 
found  barliarously  nmrdcrffd  in  a  ditch  at  F'rimrosc-hill,  near  Loiidon. 
No  sooner  wa;  this  known  than  the  pcoph'  came  to  the  conclusion  that 
iSir  Kilinoinllniry  had  been  murdered  ly  the  Jesuits,  in  revenge  for  the 
williiigne>s  he  had  shown  to  receive  'uMiiformation  of  Gates,  Idit,  Iock- 
iiigat  ihf  desperate  character  of  the  latter,  does  it  not  serin  far  more  |ii-oli,i- 
lili'  that  he  caused  the  murder  of  the  erediilouH  magistrate,  trust iiii; 
that  It  wiMild  have  the  very  effect  which  it  did  produce  u[ioii  the  creilii 
ImiN  people  1  11','  that  as  it  may,  the  discovery  of  the  ileeeiiseil 
gentl' 111  Ill's  body  greatly  inereased  the  public  agitation;  the  corpsi 
was  earned  in  p'ocessiim  by  seventy  clergymen,  and  no  one  who  valiied 
Ins  per^olllll  safi:ty  ventured  to  bint  that  the  murder  might  jirobably  not 
have  been  the  work  of  the  .le'ested  Jesuits. 

Fnmi  the  mere  viilgir,  the  alarm  "and  agitation  soon  spread  to  the  bet- 
ter iiironiied  elasM's,  and  at  length  it  was  moved  in  iinrliament  that  a  sol 
emu  fist  slieiilil  be  appointed,  iliat  tie  house  •should  have  all  p^ipers  tint 
were  eah'iilateil  to  throw  a  light  upon  the  horrid  |i|ot,  thai  all  known  pii- 
pi  's  should  be  ordered  to  leave  l.midoii,  nild  all  llllklliiwn  or  siispirioiDi 
persons  loiliiddeii  to  present  Ihemselvis  at  court,  ami  th;it  the  iiaiii  hainl' 
if  Loinli  II  and  \\'<Hiininster  should  be  kept  inconstant  readiness  lin-aetion 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


60< 


Irom 

I  mo- 

g  the 
ice. 
ig  and 

II  pro- 
would 
[le  ac- 

great 
(leposi- 
peoplo 
;oiland, 
I  to  be 
•,r  bul- 

whom, 
ard, the 

that  he 

refused 

e  to  iin- 
.  Jesuits, 
if  speech 

3111.      15"' 

I  popuhir 
this  man. 
,  were  ue 
;clf  hailed 
oloslaiils '. 
(i  hinisoi'', 
ich,  th;'     ■ 
;,!  persons 
ral  Jesuits, 

much  rea- 

s  to  whu'h 
VMiiiDiul- 
Ly  ullowiniJl 
ilcposili'ii'i 
•cral  da>^, 
j„-  l.ondiiii. 
•lusion  tli.il 
Lu-  for  till' 


for 
"nut,  1< 


liiore  proii  1- 
\\c,  trushii-: 
llic   creilii 
,,    (loceiisi'il 
I  the    eorpw*; 
Iwho  V 


ahii' 
)hnhly  1" 


[\  to  the  het- 

,t  ilr.it  a  ""1 

|,:.pi'rt"  tli'ii 

111  Known  |i''- 

,  Kiisiiici"!"' 

tram  liaiu'- 

^|■„riutl>•l' 


The  miscreant  whose  falsehoods  had  raised  all  this  alarm  and  anxiety 
was  thanked  by  parliament  ;ind  recommended  to  the  favour  of  the  king, 
who  conferred  upon  him  a  pension  of  twelve  hundred  pounds  per  annum, 
snd  a  residence  in  Whitehall.  Such  reward  bestowed  upon  such  a  char- 
acter and  for  such  "public  services"  naturally  produced  a  rival  for  public 
favour,  and  a  fellow  named  William  Bedloe  now  made  his  appearance  in 
the  cliaracter  of  informer.  He  was  of  even  lower  origin  and  more  infa- 
mous note  tlian  Oale.«,  having  been  repeatedly  convicted  of  theft.  Being 
nt  Bristol  and  in  a  state  of  destitution,  he  at  his  own  -equest  was  arrested 
and  sent  to  London.  When  examined  before  the  council  he  stated  that 
he  had  seen  the  body  of  the  murdered  Sir  Eilmondbury  Godfrey  at  the 
then  residence  of  the  cpieen,  Somerset-house,  and  thu  a  servant  of  the 
Lord  Bellasis  had  offered  him  four  thousand  pounds  to  carry  it  off  and 
ronceal  it !  Improbable  as  the  tale  was  it  was  jjreedily  received,  and  the 
ruffians,  Gates  and  Bedloe,  finding  that  credit  was  given  to  whatever  they 
chose  to  assert,  now  ventured  a  step  farther,  and  accused  the  queen  01 
being  an  aecompli(;e  in  all  the  evil  doings  and  designsof  the  Jesuits.  The 
luiMsc;  of  commons,  to  its  great  disc>race,  addressed  the  king  in  support  of 
tills  scandalous  attack  upon  Iiis  alriNuly  but  too  unhappy  queen  ;  but  the 
lords,  with  better  judgment  and  more  manly  feeling,  rejected  the  accusa- 
tion with  the  contempt  which  it  merited. 

The  conjunction  of  two  such  intrepid  perjurers  as  Oates  and  Bedloe 
was  ominous  indeed  to  the  unfortunate  persons  whom  they  accused  ;  and 
it  is  but  little  to  the  credit  of  the  publico  men  of  that  day  that  'hey  did  not 
inferi'ere  to  prevent  any  prismner  being  tried  upon  their  evidence  as  to  the 
fabled  plot,  until  the  pulilic  mind  should  have  been  allowed  a  reasonable 
time  in  which  to  recover  from  its  heat  and  exacerbation.  No  such  delay 
VMS  even  proposed,  and  while  I'unning  was  still  triumphant  r.nd  credulity 
still  agape,  Kdward  Coleman,  the  dnki;  of  York's  secretary,  wis  put  upon 
his  trial.  Here,  as  before  the  council,  Oates  and  Bedloe,  though  incon- 
slsient  with  each  other,  and  each  with  himself,  yet  agreed  in  their  main 
statements,  that  Coleman  had  not  only  leagued  for  the  assassination  of  the 
kuig,  hut  had  even,  as  iiis  reward  for  so  d(/  ng,  received  a  commission, 
signed  by  the  superior  of  the  Jesuits,  appoii.ting  him  papal  secretary  of 
siat(?  nf  these  kingdoms.  Coleman,  who  behaved  with  equal  modesty 
uid  lliiiuiess),  denied  all  the  guilt  that  was  laid  to  his  charge.  But  he 
could  not  prove  a  negative,  and  his  mere  denial  avalleil  nothing  agiilnst 
the  positive  swearing  of  the  informers.  He  was  condenined  to  death  •, 
ami  theti  several  members  of  both  houses  of  parliament  offered  to  inter- 
pose  to  procure  liim  th(^  king's  pardon  on  condition  that  he  would  make 
I  fidl  confession.  But  tin;  iinfortiniiitc  gentleman  was  innocent,  and  was 
f;ir  loo  hi;;h-niinde(l  to  save  his  life  liy  falsrly  accnsmg  himself  ind  others. 
He  sllll  (irmly  denied  his  guilt,  and,  to  the  eternal  disgrace  of  Charles, 
was  executed. 

The  blood  of  f'oleman  satiated  neither  the  Informers  nor  the  public. 
Piikerlng,  Grove,  ;md  Ireland  were  next  put  upon  their  trial,  c'liulemned, 
;iiiil  exei'Uted.  Tiiat  they  were  iiniocent  we  have  no  doubt;  but  tliey 
were  Jesuits,  and  tliat  was  sulficlcnt  to  bhint  all  sympathy  with  their  fite 

lldi,  (Jreeii,  and  Berry  wi're  nov  clmrged  with  beliii;  the  aetiipl  mur- 
Icrcrs  of  Sir  l<'.niondlmr\  (lodfrcn'.  In  this  case  the  inlorinatlon.  which 
vas  hod  by  Bedloe,  was  wliollv  Irreconcilal.Ie  with  the  evidence  which 
vas  given  by  a  fellow  named  Praaci',  and  there  was  good  evidence  that 
Viis  at  variance  with  them  liotli.  But  the  prisoners  were  found  guilty 
iiid  cxeeuled,  all  three  in  their  dyiiiff  moments  professing  their  mno- 
THiice.  .\s  Uerry  was  a  protestant,  this  made  some  Impression  upon 
the  iniiiils  of  the  more  reasonablo,  but  the  public  was  not  even  yet  pro- 
I'lari'd  to  he  disabused. 

Wliitbrcdd.  provincial  of  the  Jesuits,  and  Gavnn.  Friiwick,  Turner, 
Vol    1.-3!) 


f:; 


B  iB^' 

m 
^    '? 

ii|K| 

SI 

1 

ll 

1  J*-  ^ 

i*    1 


tiii 


THE  TREASURY  OF  UlSTOay. 


and  Harcourt,  brethren  of  the  sami'  ,rder,  were  next  tried.  BosidRj 
Oiitfs  and  Bfdloc,  a  wretch  named  Dugdale  appeared  against  these 
prisoners,  and  in  atldition  t(;  .1.  '  in  snppnrt  of  ;he  incredible  and  mon- 
strous assertions  of  Oafes  and  Biiiloe,  he  deliUerately  swore  that  there  were 
two  hundred  thousand  papists  at  that  very  moment  ready  to  tal<e  arii<3. 
And  yet  the  alledged  leadiTS  and  insiigators  of  this  huge  army  of  armed 
and  maiij^nanl  papists  were  daily  benijf  brought  to  trial,  condemned,  and 
butchered,  under  the  guard  of  a  score  or  two  of  (lonsiables  !  Hut  rea- 
soning could  not  possibly  be  of  any  avail  in  that  veritable  reign  of  terror, 
for  even  direct  and  sworn  evidence  in  favour  of  tlie  aci-nsed  persorjs  was 
treated  wifh  contempt.  For  instance,  on  this  very  trial  siriceii  toiin'Sfes 
proved  that  lliinj  and  Oalr.s  itwre  tagel/ier  in  lln:  seminary  of  St.  Omr7-'s  on 
the  very  day  in  which  that  rnffian's  /eslimoiiy  hud  staled  him  to  have  been  in 
London.  But  these  witnesses  were  papists — their  evidence  rec^eived  not 
the  slightest  altenti'rn,  and  tin;  uiifortiiiiate  prisoners  were  condemned 
and  executed,  protesting  in  their  last  moments  their  entire  innocence  of 
the  crimes  laid  to  tlnnr  charge. 

Sir  George  Wakeman,  the  queen's  physn  'an.  was  now  bronglil  to  trial, 
but  was  more  fortunate  than  the  persons  |)<-eviously  accused.  The  vile 
informers,  it  is  true,  swore  with  Uunr  accustomed  and  dauntless  fluency  ; 
but  to  have  convicted  8ir  George,  would,  under  all  the  circumstan(!es  of 
the  case,  have  inferred  the  guilt  of  the  qutHMi.  The  judge  and  jury  were 
probably  apprehensive  that  even  the  culpable  and  cruel  indolence  of 
Charles  would  not  allow  the  prevalent  villainy  to  proceed  to  that  extent, 
and  Sir  G(M)rgc  was  honourably  acquitted. 

A.  D.  IGT'J. — For  upwards  of  two  years  the  horrible  falsehoods  of  Oales 
liad  deluded  the  mind  of  the  p\iblic,  and  sluid  the  blood  of  the  iinioccut. 
But  he  and  his  abominable  associate  were  not  yet  weary  of  evil  doing. 
Hitherto  the  victims  had  been  chiefly  (iricsts  and  s(;liolars,  to  wlitise  title 
of  Jesuits  till!  vulgar  attributed  everything  that  was  most  dangerous 
and  terrible.  But,  as  if  to  show  that  rank  the  most  rmiiieu  and  age 
the  most  reverend  were  as  worthless  in  their  eves  as  the  piety  and 
leaniing  of  sincere,  liouever  erroneous,  religionists,  the  informing  luis- 
creants  now  In'. uglit  forward  a  last  victim  in  the  person  of  the  earl  of 
Stiifford.  The  fiercest  wild  beast  is  not  fiercer  or  inore  nnreasoiiing 
than  a  delud,'(l  and  enraged  mnlliliide.  The  cry  against  the  venera- 
ble earl  of  Sialford  was  even  louder  than  it  had  been  against  the  former 
prisoners.  )aies  positively  swore  that  he  saw  one  of  the  Jesuits  who 
liad  lately  b'^en  condemned,  Fenwick,  deliver  to  the  earl  o(  Stafford  a 
commission  s  gned  ':.y  the  general  of  the  Jesuits,  enustituiing  the  earl  p.i)'- 
master-gencral  of  the  Jesuit  or  papal  arm).  1;  was  in  vain  that  the  ven 
er  itilr  iioidenian  asserted  his  iiiiKicence,  and  pointed  out  the  ini()riiha- 
bility  ofbis  feeble  age  being  crnii-eriiecl  in  jilols;  he  was  cimdemned  to 
be  Iniiig  .a'jd  (|iiarlere(l.  Charles  eliaiiged  the  srntence  to  beheading,  and 
the  earl  suffered  accordingly  upon  Tower-hill. 

The  parliament,  which  bad  now  sat  sivent  en  years,  was  dissolved, 
hut  a  new  one  was  called,  whudi  will  ever  be  memorable  on  acciMint  of 
one  law  which  it  passed;  we  allude  to  the  }\\Viihy,i\)\i'  hahens  nirpns  ,\r\. 
By  this  act  the  jailor  who  is  snnnnoned  must  have  or  produce  I  lie  body 
of'  a  prisoni'rin  court  and  certify  the  cause  of  his  detention,  within  lliree 
days  if  wiihin  twentv  miles  of  the  judge,  and  so  on  for  greater  distiuices ; 
no  prisoner  to  be  sent  to  prison  lieymid  the  sea  -.  every  prisoner  to  he  in- 
dicted the  fir^t  term  after  commitnieni  and  tried  in  the  next  term,  and  no 
man  to  be  rci  oinmilted  for  the  same  offence  after  being  cnlarired  fiv  court; 
luMvy  penalties  upon  any  judge  refiisinj:  any  prisimer  his  writ  of  hnhrai 
cnr/'?M,  HuMiau  wisdom  could  scan-ely  devise  a  'ilore  effectual  sareyiiind 
to  I'le  suliject  than  tins  act.  On  the  oiher  hand,  it  can  never  he  periloin 
I0  the  throne,  because  in  times  of  sedition  or  violence  oarliainciil  t  in 


Ne 
ast 
the 
of  P, 
moi( 
tion 
sent 
\V 
com 
cruel 
tot:; 
lip  of 
iieccs 
parci 
testiin 
thoiiy 
had  III 
(he  I' 
Willi  w 
James 
■skilCul 
the    U,r 
and  ,„j 
terrors 
'Jay  Wii 
«iid  rui 
"nily  n 

UlC  III  ol 


THE  TREA3UKY  OF  HISTOttY. 


611 


Uiese 

mon- 
e  were 
'  arii'S- 

armed 
;d,  and 
»ii  rea- 
r  terror, 
Ills  was 
nin'sses 
rnn's  Oil 
!  bei:ii  11 
ived  not 
idemned 
cence  ot 

1  to  trial, 
The  vile 
I  fluency ; 
liinces  of 
iury  wfre 
lolenre  of 
vat  extent, 

9  of  O.Ues 

;  iiinorcnt. 

evil  (loins?. 

.vlv.se  uUe 
dang»'iou9 
;iml   itgR 
pioty   ami 

rminjj  ntis- 
tlic  earl  of 
nircasoning 
tie  veucra- 
ihe  former 
Jesuits  who 
■   Stafford  a 
he  earl  p^iy 
i\at  the  ven 
|he  imprnba- 
iiidenined  10 
tieadmi,',  and 

U  dissiiived, 
ji  aecininl  of 
Is  nirp"^  ai't. 
Jiee  the  I'ody 

vviihin  three 
Lr  disianees; 
l.iier  to  he  in- 

term,  ami  no 
[tred  hv  eoiir! ; 

rii  of  'i"'""' 
liial  safejiniU'd 
Lr  he  penli'ii'^ 
larliaMienl  i  ■"> 


»■  j^eu']  the  execution  nf  this  act  for  a  short  and  definite  time,  at  the  end 
of  winch  time  this  greit  safeguard  of  our  liherties  returns  to  its  fidl  force. 

'IMie  ci'  linal  and  disgraceful  complaisance  with  which  the  governtiient 
had  allowid  kic  perjured  informers  to  flourish  unchecked,  caused  a  new 
ploi-discoverer  to  present  himself  in  the  person  of  a  worth;  ,  named  Dan- 
f  .;rrield,  whose  previous  life  had  been  diversified  by  experience  of  the 
.lillor  the  Hcourge,  the  branding- iron,  and  a  residence,  as  a  convict,  in 
the  plaiUalioas.  Tliis  fellow,  in  conj  mction  with  a  midwife  of  bad  char- 
acter, named  Collier,  came  forward  to  denounce  a  >'\>l,  of  wiiich  he  al- 
ledged  the  exi  tence,  for  removing  the  king  and  roy  '  fantily  and  setting 
up  a  new  form  of  government.  Tliis  fellow  took  his  information  direct 
to  the  king  and  t*ie  duke  of  York,  who  weakly,  if  we  must  not  rather  say 
wickedly,  snp[)lied  him  with  money,  and  thus  |)atronJzed  and  encouraged 
him  in  his  course.  Determined  to  make  the  most  of  his  fortune,  Danger 
field  deposited  some  writings  of  a  most  sediiious  diaracter  in  the  house 
of  a  military  officernameU  Mansel.  Having  so  placed  the  papers  that  they 
were  certain  to  be  discovered  by  any  one  searching  the  apartments,  Dan- 
gerfield,  without  ■•:iy  nig  a  word  about  the  papers,  went  to  the  custom-house 
and  sent  ofTiceis  to  Mansel's  to  search  for  smuggled  goods.  There  were 
no  such  goods  there,  as  Dangerfield  well  knew,  but,  exactly  as  he  had  an- 
ticipated, the  officers  found  the  concealed  papers,  examined  them,  and  felt 
it  to  be  their  duty  to  lay  them  before  the  council.  Kither  Daiiiferfield  was 
already  suspected,  or  something  iii  the  papers  themsclvi,.-,  in  licated  for- 
gery ;  for  the  counml  were  so  convinced  that  the  documents  were  Dan- 
gerfield's  own  production,  that  they  issued  an  order  that  a  strict  search 
.should  immediately  be  made  in  all  places  which  he  had  been  known  to 
frequent.  In  the  course  of  thi!  searcli  the  house  of  the  midwife  Collier 
was  visited,  and  there,  concealed  in  a  meal-tub,  the  officers  found  a  paper 
which  contained  the  whole  scheme  of  the  conspiracy  to  the  most  minute 
particulars.  Upon  this  discovery  the  wretch,  D  '.ngcrfielii,  was  sent  to 
Newgate,  where  he  made  a  "confession,"  which  probably  v.as  ;is  false 
as  the  former  statement  that  he  bad  made,  for  he  now  repn?;  nted  that  to 
the  lying  laie  iie  had  formerly  told  he  had  been  instigated  by  the  countess 
of  Powis.  the  earl  of  Castleniain,  and  others.  And  though  it  was  so  much 
more  probable  that  the  miscreant  had  all  along  lied  from  his  own  invei;. 
tion  and  in  UW  own  greediness  of  gain,  the  earl  and  countess  were  actually 
sent  to  the  Tower. 

What  has  always  made  us  attach  deep  blame  and  disgrace  to  Charles' 
conduct  in  allowing  so  many  innocent  lives  to  be  sacrificed  to  the  venal 
cruelty  of  informtTS,  is  the  fact,  that  while  the  informers  attributed  plots 
to  t!;e  Jesuits,  and  stated  the  objects  of  those  plots  to  be  tli<!  setting 
up  of  the  papist  duke  of  York  in  the  place  of  the  king,  C  .irles  must 
necessarily  have  known  that  the  jesuiis  were  a  mere  handul,  as  com- 
p.ired  lo  the  proiestanls,  and  that  the  very  last  man  whom  either  pro- 
teslaiit  or  papist  throughout  P^igland  would  have  substituted  for  the  easy, 
thoiiuh  profligate  Charles,  waji  James,  duke  of  York.  In  Scotland  .lames 
had  made  himself  piM-fectly  hated,  and  both  the  Knglish  parliament  and 
llie  Knglish  people  every  year  gave  new  and  stronger  proof  of  iie  dread 
with  which  ihey  contemplated  even  the  possibility  of  the  succ<'ssjon  of 
James.  In  the  war  with  the  Dutch  he  had  shown  himself  a  brave  and 
skilful  oflirer,  hilt  his  gloomy  temper,  his  stern,  unsparing  disposition,  and 
the  liigoiry  which  he  w.is  uiii"ersally  known  to  possess,  made  courage 
and  military  condnct,  however  admirahh!  in  other  ineti.  In  liini  only  two 
terrors  the  more.  ("Ih  irlcs  well  knew  this;  so  well,  that  wlu'ii  .lames  one 
■lay  warned  hini  against  exposing  himself  too  much  wliile  -••i  many  plots 
mid   rumours  of   phtls  disturbed   the   general  mind,  <  '  'rits.  as.  gayly  as 


truly  replied,  "Tillv  vallv,  .limes  !     There  be  n^me 


'Iv  as   to  slioot 


uie  in  order  to  make  you  king!"     This  unpoDularitv  ol  j.iines  led  to  inorP 


- 


¥•¥*_■ 


;!^ 


m 


riI2 


THE  TKKASUllY  OF  Hlr-TOHY. 


tlian  one  attempt  on  the  part  of  the  house  of  coinmons  to  procure  the  ex 
elusion  of  him  from  the  throne  on  the  ground  of  his  being  a  papist.  Tliv 
new  parliament  had  scarcely  sat  a  week  ere  it  renewed  a  bill,  termed  ihe 
exclusion  bill,  which  the  former  house  had  voted,  but  which  had  noi 
passed  the  upper  house  at  the  time  of  tiie  dissolution  of  parliament.  The 
party  of  the  duke,  though  influential,  was  numerically  weak  out  of  doors  ; 
for  besides  those  who  hated  him  as  a  papist,  and  dreaded  him  as  a  stern 
disciplinarian,  there  were  great  numbers  who  hoped  that  the  exclusion  of 
the  duke  would  procure  the  throne  for  the  duke  of  Monmouth,  the  hand- 
some and  highly  popular  sou  of  the  king  by  one  of  iiis  numerous  mis- 
tresses, named  Lucy  Waters.  Hut  tlie  iuHuence  of  the  king  was  powerful 
in  the  house,  and  after  a  long  debate,  not  too  temperately  conducted  upon 
either  side,  the  exclusion  bill  was  thrown  out  by  a  rather  considerable 
majority. 

With  informers  and  "plots,"  libellous  pamphlets  had  increased  in  num- 
ber to  an  extent  that  could  scarcely  be  credited.  Each  party  seemed  to 
think  that  tiie  hardest  words  and  the  most  severe  imputations  were  only 
too  mild  for  its  opponents,  and  the  hired  libeller  now  vied  in  industry  and 
importance  with  the  venal  and  perjured  informer. 

An  idle  and  profligate  fellow,  a  sort  of  led  captain  in  the  pay  of  the 
king's  profligate  mistress,  the  duchess  of  Portsmouth,  was  employed  to 
procure  her  the  piquant  libels  which  were  occasionally  published  upon  the 
king  and  ^'-.^  luke  of  York.  This  man  not  finding  the  existent  libels  suf- 
ficienth  iil''.';:  e,  determined  to  surpass  them,  and  he  called  to  his  aid  a 
Scot(  1  nwr.  fianed  Everard.  Between  them  they  composed  a  most  ran- 
coroii  v.-d  Sf.  I'rrilous  libel,  which  Fitzharris  hastened  to  get  printed.  But 
tii!j  .■■  .  v'?im;i;.,  Everard,  imagined  that  his  Irish  fellow-libeller, as  a  hanger- 
on  oi  t';r  king's  mistress,  could  have  had  no  possible  motive  for  employ- 
ing him  l>i:i  the  wish  to  betray  him.  Indignant  at  the  supposed  design, 
Everard  went  and  laid  information  before  Sir  William  Waller,  a  justice 
of  the  peace,  and  Fitzharris  was  apprehended  with  a  copy  of  the  libel 
actually  in  his  possession.  Finding  himself  placed  in  considerable  peril 
of  the  pillory,  Fitzharris,  who,  be  it  observed,  was  an  Irish  papist,  turned 
round  upon  the  court,  and  stated,  not  witiiout  some  appearance  of  truth, 
that  he  had  been  employed  by  the  court  to  write  a  libel  so  foul  and  vio- 
lent, that  the  exclusion  party,  to  whom  it  would  be  attributed,  would  be 
injured  in  the  estimation  of  all  people  of  sober  judgment.  In  order  to 
render  this  tale  still  more  palatable  to  the  exclusionists,  Fitzharris  added 
to  it  that  a  new  popish  plot,  more  terrible  than  any  former  one,  was  in 
agitation  under  the  auspices  of  the  duke  of  York,  whom  he  also  accused 
of  being  one  of  the  contrivers  «if  the  murder  of  Sir  Edmondbury  Godfrey. 
The  king  sent  Fitzharris  to  prison ;  the  commons,  instead  of  looking  with 
contempt  upon  the  whole  affair,  voted  that  this  hired  libeller  and  led  cap- 
tain of  a  court  harlot  should  be  impeached!  It  was  so  obvious  that  the 
real  intention  of  the  commons  was  to  screen  Fitzliarris  from  publishment 
altogether,  that  the  lords  very  properly  rejected  the  impeachment.  An 
angry  feeling  sprung  up  between  the  two  houses  :  and  the  king,  to  prevent 
the  dispute  from  proceeding  to  any  dangerous  length,  went  down  and  di.s- 
solved  parliament,  with  the  fixed  determination  of  never  calling  anotlici-. 

Charles  now,  'i  fact,  ruled  with  all  the  power  and  with  not  a  little  of 
the  tyranny  of  an  absolute  monarch.  He  encouraged  spies  and  informers, 
and  imprisoned  those  who  ventured  to  complain  of  his  measures  in  a 
manner  not  only  contrary  to  his  former  temper,  but  almost  indicative,  as 
was  well  remarked  at  the  time,  of  reconciling  the  people  to  the  prospect 
of  his  brother's  accession  by  making  iiis  own  rule  too  grievous  to  be  en- 
dured. To  those  who  held  bigh-cliurch  prini'lpU's,  and  professed  his  doc- 
trine of  passive  obedience  and  non-resistance,  all  tlip  royal  favour  \v;is 
shown ;  while  the  presbyterians  and  other  sturdy  oppopers  of  his  arbilruiy 


measures 

■  iients,  anc 

-On,  so  po 

made  to  fe 

party,  rlepr 

'Mission  hai 

"fiiiterferii 

bi-eii  so  wa 

c'lief  cause 

now  by  the 

"ounced  gui 

worthless  at 

•'mounted  to 

so^much  his 

The  populi 

own  lips.     H 

and  the  "  pat 

graded  host  o 

"Jesuits."    u 

with  even  tlu 

"'Id  almost  a' 

'I'nied  upon  tl 

!nem,  and  "n, 

;;p'Pist"  had 

'Jesuit"  had  b 

'"formers,  and 

"  merely  ai,ne( 

.  Ajoiner  of  I 

;-'ally  conspicui 

l.oiid  of  tongue 

nm  knowledo-c 

•'«eded  none  of 

'"s  could  not  pc 

'^«r'l.  armed  Willi 

.''«  Xing,  the  du 
tmction,  had  acd 
whose  nigUis  y\ 
i^a^'er  than  for  tl 
f  a  fit  subject  r 
found  guilty  of  ' 
(^■■^ecuted. 

A-  o.  168,3 'fl 

sti-y  struck  a  nj 

"".V  of  London  hi 
'P'"'  which  that  r 
soon  cause,!  i(,e 

lloffi  ^'  '°ok  caJ 

-''''.V  obtained  wl 
'^"'•fwhelminaiv  f 
resist,,n,.e,evenil 
«'it  there  was  | 
'■^""/■"I'al,  and  iJ 
"*'  f'ople  his  pi 

e"«'"J  hut  turbuJeJ 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTOilY. 


613 


measures  were  in  numerous  cases  deprived  of  their  places  ai;^  employ 
.limits,  and  in  some  cases  imprisoned  in  the  bargain.     The  city  of  Loii- 
tioii,  so  powerful  and  so  factious  during  the  reign  of  Chai'es  T  .  was  now 
made  to  feel  tlie  king's  resentment,  being,  for  its  leaders!  popular 

party,  deprived  of  its  charter,  which  was  not  restored  un^  ot  Bub- 

tnission  had  been  made,  and  a  most  vexatious  right  cone  "va 

'ifinicrferlng  in  the  election  of  the  city  magistrates.     F  .d 

been  so  warmly  sided  with  by  the  exclusionists,  and  w  ne 

chief  cause  of  Charles'  angry  and  final  dissolution  of  ,  .;.    vas 

now  by  the  king's  order  brought  to  trial  before  a  jury,  and,  being  pro- 
nounced guilty,  executed  I  An  abominable  stretch  of  power;  for  liouever 
worthless  and  debauched  a  fellow  he  might  be,  his  crime,  venal  as  it  was, 
amounted  to  but  libellous  writing,  for  even  the  publication  was  scarcely 
so  much  his  own  act  as  it  was  the  act  of  the  officers  who  arrested  him. 

The  popular  party  now  found  the  poisoned  chalice  commended  to  their 
own  lips.  Hitherto,  while  it  seemed  not  improbable  that  the  parliament 
and  the  "  patriots"  would  obtain  power  over  the  king,  the  great  and  de- 
qfraded  host  of  spies  and  informers  had  aimed  at  the  ruin  of  "papists"  and 
"Jesuits."  IJut  now  tliat  the  king  had  as  boldly  as  arbitrarily  dispensed 
with  even  the  shadow  or  parliamentary  aid,  and  ruled  as  independently 
and  almost  as  arbitrarily  as  an  eastern  prince,  the  spies  and  informers 
turned  upon  those  who  had  formerly  encouraged  if  not  actually  employed 
them,  and  "  presbyterian"  was  now  pretty  nearly  as  dangerous  a  title  as 
"  papist"  had  been ;  "  protestant  preacher"  scarcely  more  safe  than 
"Jesuit"  had  been  heretofore.  Charles  and  his  ministry  encouraged  the 
informers,  and  the  system  of  perjury  lost  none  of  its  infamy  and  vileness; 
;t  merely  aimed  at  a  different  class  of  victims. 

A  joiner  of  Londim,  by  name  Steplien  College,  had  made  himself  espe 
cially  conspicuous  during  the  heats  and  alarms  of  the  anti-popery  cries 
liOud  of  tongue,  and  somewhat  weak  of  brain,  this  man,  with  more  zeal 
than  knowledge,  had  taken  upon  himself  to  advocate  protestantism,  which 
needed  none  of  his  aid,  and  to  oppose  popery,  which  such  opposition  as 
liis  could  not  possibly  affect.  He  had  attended  the  city  members  to  Ox- 
f«rd  armed  with  pistols  and  sword,  had  been  in  the  habit  of  railing  against 
the  King,  the  duke  of  York  and  papacy,  and,  rather  in  derision  than  in  dis- 
tinction, had  acquired  the  title  of  the  protestant  joiner.  This  weak  man, 
whose  flights  were  fitting  matter  for  the  ministering  of  the  physician, 
rather  than  for  the  interference  of  the  law,  was  selected  by  the  ministry 
is  a  fit  subject  of  whom  to  make  an  example.  He  was  indicted  and 
found  guilty  of  sedition,  and,  to  the  disgrace  of  both  king  and  ministers, 
executed. 

A.  t).  les."}. — The  increasing  power  and  severity  of  Charles  and  his  min- 
stry  struck  a  panic  throughout  the  nation.  The  manner  in  which  the 
"•ity  of  London  had  been  deprived  of  its  charter,  and  the  humiliating  terms 
ipon  which  that  once  powerful  corporation  had  got  its  charter  restored, 
soon  caused  the  other  corporations  to  surrender  their  charters  voluntarily  ; 
and  not  on./  were  considerable  sums  extorted  for  their  restoration,  but 
the  knig  took  care  to  reserve  in  his  own  hands  the  power  of  appointing  to 
all  offices  of  trust  and  profit.  The  patromige  which  was  thus  discredit- 
ably obtained  was  so  enormous,  that  the  power  of  the  crown  became 
overwhelmingly  vast,  and,  with  but  a  few  exceptions,  men  agreed  that 
resistance,  even  if  justifiable,  would  now  be  useless  and  hopeless. 

But  there  was  a  party  of  malcontents,  weak  as  to  number,  but  vigorous, 
influential,  and  bold ;  and  absolute  as  Charles  was,  and  unassailable  as  to 
most  (icople  his  power  must  have  seemed,  his  life,  even,  was,  at  this  time, 
in  a  most  imminent  peril. 

The  soul  of  the  malcontents  was  the  earl  of  Shaftesbury.  That  highly- 
S'ftcd  but  turbulent  and  plot-loving  person  had  engaged  with  the  duke  of 


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IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-S) 


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Corporation 


33  WIST  MAIN  STRUT 

WIISTIR.N  Y.  MSIO 

(7I«)  ITS^SOS 


v«^ 

^ 


L6> 


tfU 


THE  TIIEASURYOF  HISTORY 


Moiiinoutii,  the  earl  or  Macclesfield,  Lord  William  Russell,  nnd  several 
oilier  nohlenien,  to  raise  iiomiimlly  in  favour  of  freedom,  but  really  to  de- 
throne Charles  ;  exclude,  if  not  slay  James:  and  place  the  crown  upon 
the  head  of  ihe  duke  of  Monmouth,  the  king's  natural  son.  The  earl  of 
Macclestield,  Lord  Brandon  and  others,  were  to  effect  a  rising  in  Cheshire 
and  lianciisliire;  i.-  r  Francis  Drake,  Sir  Francis  Rowles,  and  Sir  William 
Cou.'uey  were  induced  by  Lord  William  Russell  to  head  the  insurrection 
in  Devon,  and  generally  in  the  west ;  and  Shaftesbury,  aided  by  Ferguson, 
a  prea(;her  of  the  independents,  undertook  to  effect  a  general  rising  in  the 
city  of  London,  where  the  discontent  and  disloyally,  owing  to  the  affair 
of  the  charter,  were  at  the  greatest  heiirht.  Shaftesbury  urged  on  Ihe  plot 
witli  all  his  energy,  and  it  is  most  probable  that  the  kingdom  would  have 
been  plunged  into  all  the  confusion  and  horror  of  a  civil  war  if  the  ex- 
treme eagerness  of  Shaftesbury  had  not  been  counteracted  by  the  extreme 
caution  of  Lord  William  Russell,  who,  when  everything  was  nearly  ready 
for  an  outbreak,  urged  the  duke  of  Monmouth  to  postpone  the  enterprise 
until  a  more  favourable  opportunity.  The  usually  enterprising  and  tur- 
bulent Shafiesbury  now  became  so  prostrated  by  a  sense  of  the  danger  m 
which  he  was  placed  by  this  postponement,  that  he  abandoned  his  house 
and  endeavoured  to  induce  the  Londoners  to  rise  without  waiting  for  i tie 
tardy  co-operation  of  the  provinces  ;  but  all  his  endeavours  were  unavail- 
in^r,  and  in  despair  he  fled  to  Holland,  where  he  soon  afterwards  died 
broken-hearted  and  in  poverty. 

The  conspirators,  being  thus  freed  from  the  turbulent  Shaftesbury, 
fornied  a  committee  of  six;  Hampden,  grandsim  to  the  Hampden  who 
made  so  much  opposiliou  to  the  ship  money,  Algernon  Sidney,  Howard, 
Kssf'x,  and  Lord  William  Russel ;  Monnionlh  being  their  grand  leader  and 
centre  of  correspondence,  his  chief  adviser,  however,  being  the  dnke  ol 
Arsfyle.  There  were  numerous  subordinates  in  this  conspiracy;  and  it  is 
affirmed,  by  the  friends  of  the  memory  of  Lord  William  Russell,  that  he 
and  ihe  leaders  did  not  encourage  and  were  not  even  peil'ertly  cogiiixani 
of  the  more  atrocious  part  of  the  plan  of  those  conspirators  who  had  agreed 
to  a.isassiiiitie  the  king  on  his  way  to  Newmarket.  We  confess  that  ii 
appears  to  us  to  be  making  a  large  demand  indeed  upon  our  credulity  lo 
suppose  anything  of  the  kind,  but  we  have  not  space  to  go  into  the  argii- 
meiiiN  which  might  be  adduced  in  favour  of  the  supposition  that,  however 
willing  the  (diief  conspirators  might  be  to  leave  Ihe  horrible  crime  of 
assiissiiiation  to  subordinates,  they  were  at  least  quite  willing  that  such 
crime  should  be  perpetrated  to  the  profit  of  their  main  design. 

The  plan  of  the  conspirators  against  the  life  of  the  king  was  lo  secrete 
'.heinselves  on  a  farm  belonging  to  one  of  them,  the  Rye-house,  sitiiMled 
)n  the  road  lo  Newmarket,  overturn  a  cart  there  to  obstruct  the  royal 
.arriage,  and  then  ileliberately  fire  upon  the  king.  After  much  consiiJlH- 
ion  it  was  delermined  to  carry  this  dastardly  plot  into  exe<'Ution  on  llie 
niiiu's  return  to  Newmarket.  About  a  week  before  the  time  at  which  his 
majesty  was  to  do  so,  the  house  in  which  he  resided  at  Newmarket  look 
flrc,  Hiid  he  was  obliged  to  remove  to  Ijondon.  This  circumstance  would 
nerely  have  posiponed  the  "  fate"  of  his  majesty,  but  in  the  course  of  the 
tine  that  was  thus  lost  to  the  conspirators,  one  of  their  numhcr,  named 
fieiling,  found  himseir  in  danger  of  prosei  iition  fi>'  having  arrested  the 
Old-mayor  of  London,  and  to  save  himsrif  from  ihe  consequence''  he 
wailed  upon  the  kinu's  minisiers  and  revealed  all  that  he  knew  of  the  plot 
against  the  king,  and  Colonel  Ruinsev  and  a  lawyer  named  West  joined 
him  in  becoming  kiiig'i*  evidence.  Monmouth  and  (ircy  escaped,  Lord 
William  Rus'iell  wiis  apprehended  and  sent  lo  the.  Tower,  as  sliorllv  iiflcr- 
wards  were  Kssrx,  Sidney,  and  Hampden,  logelher  willi  Lord  llo«ard, 
who  was  found  in  a  eliiinney.  That  ignoble  nobleman,  lliougli  fiiliv  ns 
guiliy  us  the  rest,  immedinlely  agreed  to  save  his  own  recreant  lifetiy  hu- 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


SIS 


coriiing  evidence  against  his  former  associates,  who  secmnd  more  indig- 
nant and  disgusted  at  that  treachery  than  affected  by  the  peril  in  which  if 
placed  them. 

Colonel  Walcot,  an  old  republican  officer,  together  with  Stone  and 
Rouse,  were  first  put  upon  trial,  and  condtmned  upon  the  evidence  of  their 
former  associates,  Colonel  Rumsey,  and  the  lawyer.  West. 

Lord  William  Russell  and  Algernon  Sidney  were  condemned  chitfly  on 
the  evidence  of  Lord  Howard.  In  the  case  of  Sidney,  however,  the  evi- 
dence of  Howard  was  most  unconstitutionally  eked  out  by  construing  as 
treasonable  certain  writings,  merely  speculative,  though  of  republican 
tendency,  which  were  seized  at  his  house.  Both  Russell  and  Sidney 
were  condemned  and  executed.  Hampden  was  more  fortunate,  and  es- 
caped with  a  fine  of  forty  thousand  pounds.  Holloway,  a  merchant  of 
Bristol,  who  had  been  engaged  in  this  dastardly  conspiracy,  escaped  to 
the  West  Indies;  and  Sir  Thomas  Armstrong,  who  was  similarly  situated, 
escaped  to  Holland.  But  so  eagerly  vindictive  had  Charles  and  his  min 
tstry  by  this  time  been  rendered  by  the  numerous  plots,  real  and  pretended, 
that  both  of  those  persons  were  brought  over  to  Kngland  and  executed 
Lorii  Essex  would  also  probably  have  been  executed,  but,  being  impris- 
oned in  the  Tower,  he  there  committed  suicide  by  cutting  his  throat. 

.ludging  from  the  severity  with  which  Charles  proceeded  on  this  occa- 
sion. It  is  but  reasonable  to" presume  he  would  either  have  carried  his  des- 
potism to  a  frightful  pitch,  or  have  fallen  a  victim  to  the  equally  unjustifia- 
ble violence  of  some  malcontent.  But  his  naturally  fine  constitution  was 
now  completely  broken  up  by  his  ioiig  and  furious  course  of  dissipation, 
anil  a  fit  of  apoplexy  seized  him.  from  which  he  was  but  partially  recov- 
ered by  bleeding;  he  expired  in  the  fifty-fifth  year  of  his  age  and  the 
twenty-fifth  of  his  reign. 

Much  might  be  said  in  dispraise  of  Charles,  both  as  man  and  monarch; 
but  impartial  justice  demands  that  we  should  make  a  great  allowance  for 
the  unfavourable  circumstances  under  which  the  best  years  of  his  youth 
and  manhood  were  spent.  Poverty  for  months,  so  extreme  that  he  and 
his  followers  were  at  times  without  u  single  coin,  and  owed  their  very 
food  to  the  kindness  of  their  hosts,  wis  occasionally  followed  by  a 
temporary  plenty ;  and  his  companions  were,  for  the  most  pnrt.  precisely 
the  persons  to  encourage  him  in  every  extvavagaiice  to  \v!:icli  so  wreich- 
ediy  precarious  a  life  was  calculated  to  induce  him.  liven  the  cruelty 
and  despotism  of  his  latt(!r  years  visibly  had  their  chief  cause  in  the  politi- 
cal villainy  and  violence  of  considerable  bodies  of  his  people.  No  such 
excuse  can  he  made  for  his  extravagant  liberality  to  his  numerous  mis- 
tresses ;  and  for  the  wholly  cruel  and  mean  treatment  he  bestowed  upon 
his  wife  we  know  of  no  decorous  epithet  lh:it  is  sufficiently  severe. 

That  Charles  was  not  naturally  n(  a  cruel,  or  even  of  a  sufflcieiitly  se- 
vere turn,  a  remarkable  jiroof  is  afforded  by  the  story  of  a  rufflan  named 
Blood  ;  a  story  so  Bingiilar.  that  we  think  it  necessary  to  give  it  by  way 
of  appendix  to  this  reign.  Hlood,  who  had  served  in  Ireland,  had,  or  faii 
cicd  that  lie  had,  considerable  claims  upon  the  government,  and  being  re- 
fuse! satisfaction  by  the  duke  of  Ormoiid,  he  actually  waylaid  and  seized 
thiit  iiobleiuitn  on  his  return  from  an  evening  parly  in  London,  and  would 
hHvc  hanged  him  but  for  ttie  occurrence  of  a  mere  accident  which  eiuiltled 
the  duke  to  escape.  A  ilesperado  of  this  sort  could  not  fail  to  be  in  fre- 
qiicnt  iro'ible  and  diNtre»s;  and  he  iit  lennth  was  reduced  tosuchexirenie 
■trills,  that  with  some  of  hia  associates  he  formed  a  plan  for  puili)iiiing 
the  regiilii  from  the  jewel-house  in  the  Tower.  He  contrived  to  iiigra- 
tiiif  liiiinelf  with  the  old  couple  who  had  charire  of  the  val  table  jewels, 
iiwl  took  an  opportunity  to  bind  Itotli  the  man  an  I  woman  and  make  off 
wiih  Mil  tlid  most  valuable  articles,  Tbougli  fircil  at  by  the  sentry  ho  got 
•l«Bl  MM  nf  &■  To'V'jr.hill,  where  |i.e  jvas  appnln  ndod  aftoi   a  desperate 


1^.' 


816 


THE  TREASUKY  OF  HISTORY. 


Blruggle.  So  enormous  an  outrage,  it  might  have  been  anticipated,  would 
be  expiated  only  by  Uie  severest  punishment ;  but  the  king  not  only  for- 
gave Ulood,  but  even  gave  him  a  considerable  annual  pension  to  enable 
him  to  live  without  farther  criminality.  \  rare  proof  of  the  native  easi- 
ness of  the  king's  temper !  Though  it  must  be  added  that  the  duke  0/ 
Uuekiiighain,  who  detested  Ormond,  was  on  that  account  supposed  to 
have  used  his  vast  influence  in  favour  of  Blood. 


CHAPTRR  LV. 

THE    ItKIGN    or    JAMES  II. 

A.  D.  1(185. — The  somewhat  ostLiil:itii)iis  manner  in  which  the  duke  of 
V'ork  had  been  accustomed  to  go  to  mass,  during  the  life  of  his  brother, 
)iad  bi'i'ii  one  great  cause  of  the  general  dislike  in  which  he  was  held. 
Even  ('harles,  giddy  and  careless  as  he  in  general  was,  saw  the  impru- 
dence of  James'  conduct,  and  significantly  told  him  on  one  occasion  that 
he  had  no  desire  to  go  upon  his  travels  again,  whatever  James  might  wish. 
On  ascending  the  throne,  the  very  first  act  of  James  was  one  of  an  hon- 
est but  most  imprudent  bigotry.  Incapable  of  reading  the  signs  of  the 
times,  or  fully  prepared  to  dare  the  worst  that  those  signs  could  portend, 
James  immediately  sent  his  agent,  Caryl,  to  Rome,  to  apologize  to  the 
pope  for  the  long  and  flagrant  heresy  of  Kngland,  and  to  endeavor  to  pro- 
cure ihc  re-admission  of  the  English  people  into  the  communion  of  the 
catholic  cliurch.  The  pope  was  either  less  blind  or  more  politic  than 
James,  and  returned  him  a  very  cool  answer,  implying  that  before  he 
venluri'd  upon  so  arduous  an  enterprise  as  that  of  changing  the  professed 
faith  of  nearly  his  entire  people,  he  would  do  well  to  sit  down  and  calcu- 
late the  cost.  Even  this  grave  an('  "Bible  rebuke  did  not  deter  James 
from  exerting  himself  both  by  feii  /avour  to  make  proselytes  of  his 

subjects      Hated  as  he  already  w  h  coiiiluct  could  not  fail  to  en- 

courage conspiracies  against  him,  i.iiv:,  accrordiuyly,  he  had  not  been  long 
seateil  upon  tlic  throne,  when  he  fouiul  a  dangerous  rival  in  the  duke  of 
Moninouiii.  This  illegitimate  son  of  Charles  II.  had  obtained,  from  the 
easy  nature  of  his  father,  a  pardon  for  his  share  in  the  Ryt^-house  plot, 
which  was  fatal  to  so  many  better  men ;  but  Ipid  received  his  pardon  only 
on  condition  of  pen/?tiial  residence  abroad.  lie  remained  in  Holland  du- 
ring the  whole  remainder  of  his  father's  reign,  but  on  the  accession  of 
James  was  dismissed  by  the  [)rinci!  of  Orange.  This  dismissal  was  said 
to  b(^  at  the  (lirect  solicitation  of  James,  who  bore  a  great  haired  to  Mon- 
mouth ;  if  so,  the  act  was  as  impolitic  as  it  was  mean.  The  duke  now 
found  rcfufic  for  a  ^hort  time  at  IJru.xstls,  but  here  again  the  inflnencc!  of 
James  \v:is  brought  to  bear  upon  him  ;  and  Monmouth  now,  thoroughly 
exasperated,  and  relying  upon  the  dclcstaiidn  in  which  James  was  held, 
resolvcil  to  mak(!  an  attempt  to  oust  him  from  the  Knglish  throne  .4t 
this  distance  of  time  suc-h  a  project  on  the  part  of  Monmouth  seems  per- 
fectly iM>ain' ;  but  it  will  seem  far  less  so  if  we  make  due  allowance  for 
the  widely-spread  ami  intense  hatred  winch  the  p(u)ple  bore  to  James,  and 
for  the  (jreal  [lopularity  of  Monmouth,  whom  many  people  believed  to  be 
the  le<riinnate  s(Hi  of  ('harles.  it  Ix-ing  commonly  airirmed  that  Charlei 
had  privately  married  l.ucy  Waters,  the  dukt^'s  moth(;r. 

The  dnke  iif  Argylc,  who,  as  well  as  Muninotilh,  had  escaped  the  con- 
•equ(  II 'es  of  the  Kye-house  plot,  now  agreed  to  aid  liiiii ;  it  was  intended 
that  Aruyii'  i-hould  raise  Scotland,  while  Monmoiitli  was  to  take  tho  lead 
III  the  wi  St  ol  Kngland,  where  he  was  peculiarly  popular. 

'Vrgylc  promptly  coinmenced  his  part  of  the  alTiir  by  landing  in  Scot- 
,aml,  where  he  soon  found  himself  at  the  head  of  an  army  of  two  thou- 


sand a 
ture  of 
any  coi 
of  the  k 
wounde 
was  she 
water,  t 
the  sma 
every  df 
and  iapi 
ecutioii  1 
suspende 
These  in 
fonteniei 
it  well  (h 
suffered  \ 
Monmo 
lowers,  la 
iiess  of  hi 
a  retinue, 
I'e  procee( 
have  had  i 
days  to  rel 
At  Bridg 
young  men 
''"'  eiithusi 
with  good  I 
tially  uneqi 
liad  much  o 
levity  and  U 
"e  spent  pn 
"lus  fritiere 
if'viiig  time 
^or  did  the 
'^'ivoiiiiio  of 
trusted  with 
ii»o\\n  that  I 
"as  not  ovei 
a  I'rave  and 
"loiistrated  v 
finding  his  re 
"oil  ill  disgiis 
move  the  dnk 
fepeiitnnce  en 
W'hilc  Moi 
"loclferies  of 
siiil  more  usei 
Holliiiid,  and  I 
''■III.  under  l<\ 
'"••CO  took  up 
"<•  seeinci  to 
le.n  the  atia.- 
"le  royal  in  fa, 
fM  n  siiiijip  „, 
fits  favour.     M 
"'"'.  while  all 
■IIS  horse's  he;i 
""*  men.     \Vh 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


617 


sand  five  hundred  men.  He  issued  manifestos  containing^  the  usual  mix- 
ture of  truth  and  falsehood,  but  before  his  eloquence  could  procure  him 
ai\y  c()r)«i  lerable  accession  of  force  he  was  attacked  by  a  powerful  body 
of  the  king's  troops.  Argyle  himself  fought  gallantly,  and  was  severely 
wounded  ;  but  his  troops  soon  gave  way  in  every  direction,  and  the  duke 
was  shortly  afterwards  seized,  while  standing  up  to  his  neck  in  a  pool  of 
water,  and  carried  to  Edinburgh.  Here  the  authorities  and  poj)ulace,  with 
the  small  spite  of  mean  spirits,  avenged  themselves,  by  the  infliction  of 
every  description  of  indignity,  for  the  fright  their  brave  though  turbulent 
and  iaprudent  prisoner  had  caused  them.  On  his  way  to  the  place  of  ex- 
ecution he  was  jeered  and  insulted  by  the  rabble ;  and  the  ma,<jistrates 
suspended  to  his  neck  a  book  containing  an  account  of  his  former  exploits. 
These  insults,  however,  nothing  affected  the  high  spirit  of  Argyle,  who 
contented  himself  with  sarcastically  telling  his  persecutors  that  he  deemed 
it  well  that  they  had  nothing  worse  to  alledge  against  his  character.  He 
suffered  with  the  same  composure. 

Monmouth,  in  the  meantime,  with  scarcely  more  than  a  hundred  fol- 
lowers, landed  on  the  coast  of  Dorsetshire  ;  and  we  may  judge  of  the  great- 
ness of  his  popularity  from  the  fact,  that  though  he  landed  with  so  slender 
a  retinue,  he  assembled  upwards  of  two  thousand  men  in  four  days.  As 
he  proceeder?  to  Taunton  he  increased  his  force  to  six  thousand,  and  could 
liiive  had  double  that  number,  only  that  he  was  obliged  after  the  first  few 
days  to  refuse  all  but  such  as  could  bring  their  own  arms  with  them. 

At  Bridgewater,  Wells,  and  Frome  he  was  joined  by  great  numbers  of 
young  men,  the  sons,  chiefly,  of  the  better  sort  of  farmers;  and  such  was 
the  enthusiasm  Miat  was  now  excited  on  his  behalf,  that  James  begun,  and 
with  good  reason,  to  tremble  for  his  throne.  But  Monmouth  was  essen- 
tially unequal  to  the  vast  enterprise  that  he  had  undertaken.  Though  he 
had  much  of  his  father's  personal  courage,  he  had  still  more  of  his  father's 
levity  and  love  of  show  and  gayety.  At  every  town  in  which  he  arrived 
he  spent  precious  time  in  the  idle  ceremony  of  being  proclaimed  king,  and 
thus  fritterc:!  away  the  enthusiasm  and  hopes  of  liis  own  followers,  while 
giving  time  to  James  to  (  oncentrate  fonie  enough  to  crush  him  at  a  blow 
Nor  (lid  the  error  of  Monmouth  end  here.  Lord  Gray  was  the  especial 
favourite  <if  the  duke,  and  was  therefore  deemed  the  fittest  man  to  be  en- 
trusted with  the  command  of  the  insurgent  cavalry;  though  it  was  well 
known  that  he  was  deficient  in  judgment,  and  strongly  suspected  that  he 
was  not  overburdened  with  either  courage  or  zeal.  Fletcher  of  Saltoun, 
a  brave  and  direct,  though  passionate  and  free-spoken  man,  strongly  re- 
monstrated with  the  duke  upon  this  glaringly  impolitic  appointment,  and 
finding  his  remonstrances  productive  of  no  effect,  retired  from  the  expedi 
tioM  in  disgust.  Even  the  loss  of  this  zealous  though  stern  friend  did  not 
move  the  duke,  who  continued  hi^  confidence  to  Gray— to  repent  when 
repentance  could  be  of  no  avail. 

\Vhil(!  Monmouth  had  been  wasting  very  precious  time  in  these  idle 
mockeries  of  royal  pomp,  James  and  his  frieiuls  had  been  far  otherwise 
snd  more  usefully  employed.  S'x  British  regiments  were  recalled  from 
HollamI,  and  three  thousai\d  regulars  with  a  vast  numl)er  of  militia  were 
seiU,  under  Fevcrsham  and  Churclnll,  to  attack  the  rebels.  The  royal 
force  took  up  its  position  at  Sndgemoor,  near  Bridgewater.  Tliey  were, 
or  seemed  to  be,  so  carelessly  posted,  that  Monmouth  delerminiMl  to  give 
them  the  attack.  The  first  onstit  of  the  rebels  was  so  enthusiastic  that 
the  royal  infantry  gave  way.  Moinnouth  was  rattier  strong  in  cavalry, 
*n(\  a  sjuale  gond  charge  of  that  force  would  now  have  decidtMl  the  day  in 
tus  favour.  But  (iray  fully  confirnicd  all  the  suspicions  of  his  cowardice, 
i»ad,  while  all  were  loudly  calling  up"!!  him  to  charge,  he  actually  turiu-d 
nis  horse's  head  and  fled  from  the  field,  followed  hy  the  greater  number  of 
his  men.    Whatever  ware  the  previous  errors  of  the  royal  comminderi. 


tVI 


!'/!• 


618 


THB  TREASURY  OK  HISTORY 


lliey  now  amply  atoned  fur  tliein  by  the  prompt  and  able  manner  in  whi(;h 
tlu;y  availed  themselves  of  Monmouth's  want  of  generalship  and  Gray's 
want  of  manhood.  The  rebels  were  charged  in  flank  again  and  again,  and 
being  utterly  unaided  by  their  cavalry,  were  thrown  into  complete  and 
irretrievable  disorder,  after  a  desperate  fight  of  above  three  hours.  It  is 
due  to  the  rebel  troops  to  add,  that  the  courage  which  they  displayed  was 
worthy  of  a  better  cause  and  better  leaders.  Rank  after  rank  fell  and 
died  on  the  very  spot  on  wliich  they  had  fought;  but,  comnianded  as  they 
were,  valour  was  thrown  away  and  devotion  merely  another  term  for  de- 
struction 

But  ihe  real  horrors  of  this  insurrection  only  began  when  the  battle  was 
ended.  Hundreds  were  slain  in  the  pursuit;  quarter,  by  the  stern  order 
of  James,  being  invariably  ri'fiised.  A  special  comniisslon  was  al.so  issued 
for  the  trial  of  all  who  were  taken  prisoners,  and  Judsfc  Jeffreys  and  Colo 
nel  Kirk,  the  latter  a  soldier  of  rorttnie  who  had  served  much  among  the 
Moors  and  become  thoroughly  brutali-ed,  carried  that  commi.ssion  into 
effect  in  a  manner  which  has  rendereil  their  names  eternally  detei-table. 

The  terror  which  these  brutally  severe  men  inspired  so  qnic^keiicil  the 
zeal  of  the  authorities,  and  affcinled  so  inui-h  encouragement  to  informers, 
whether  acluiited  by  hale  or  hire,  tliat  the  prisons  all  over  Kngland,  but 
espi^i'ially  in  the  western  counties,  were  speedily  filled  with  unrortiiiiate 
people  of  both  se.\es  and  ofall  ages.  In  some  towns  the  prisoners  were 
so  numerous,  that  even  the  ferocity  of  Jeffreys  was  wearied  of  try- 
ing in  detail.  Intimation  was  therefore  given  to  great  numbers  of  prison- 
ers, that  their  only  chance  of  mercy  rested  upon  their  pleading  guilty; 
but  all  the  nnforlnnate  wretches  who  were  tliuis  beguiled  into  that  pica 
were  instantly  and  en  massi  senleni-ed  to  death  by  Jeffreys,  who  took  cure, 
too.  that  the  sentence  should  speedily  be  executed. 

'I'lie  fate  of  one  venerable  lady  excited  great  remark  and  commisera- 
tion even  in  that  terrible  time  of  general  dismay  and  widely-spread  suf- 
fering. The  lady  in  questicm,  ^irs.  (Jaunt,  a  person  of  some  fortinic, 
kiuuvn  loyally,  and  excellent  cliaracler,  was  induced  by  singer  linmaniiy 
to  give  sheller  to  <Mie  of  the  fugitives  fiiim  Scducnioiir.  It  being  uiiiler- 
Btood  that  the  slicltcreil  wmild  be  pardoned  on  coiiditii)ii  of  givin<r  evidence 
against  those  who  had  dared  to  sbclicr  tliein,  this  base  and  niiLrrateriil  man 
informed  against  Ins  benefactress,  who  was  iiihuinanly  scMitenccd  to  death 
by  Jeffreys,  and  actually  exei-nted.  Kirk,  too,  was  gtiilty  of  the  iiinst 
enormous  and  filthy  cruelties,  and  it  seemed  doulitful  whether  Jeffreys 
and  his  stern  master  intended  only  lo  liitiinidaie  the  pei>|>le  of  l'<ii;ilaiid 
into  siilimiss:iiiii,  or  actually  and  fully  to  exteriiiluate  them. 

M<Himoutli,  whose  rash  enierprise  and  uiiinsiified  ambition  had  canned 
BO  much  confusion  and  blncilslied,  inile  frHin  the  I'atal  field  of  Sedgeniiior 
at  so  rapid  a  jiaee,  that  at  abinil  twenty  .piles  ilisiain'e  his  horse  I'e  I  dead 
beneiidi  him.  'I'de  duke  hid  now  id'  all  his  niiineroiis  followers  luil  ciiie 
left  with  him,  a  (iernian  nolilenian.  Monminith  being  in  a  desidate  pnrt 
of  till!  eonniry.  and  at  so  ciMisiiler.dile  a  di>taiice  from  the  scene  of  battle 
and  bloodslieil,  entertained  some  l>  ipc  \\:;\\  lie  miirlil  escape  by  means  uf 
disguise,  and  nu'eting  with  a  pnor  .^lieplii  rd,  be  gave  the  man  smne  iruld 
t(»  exchange  eloth's  with  linn,  lie  and  Ins  (Jerinan  friend  now  tilled  ihrir 
po<'keis  with  (iejil  peas,  and,  provided  only  'villi  this  wrelidied  lonl.  pro- 
ceeileil,  towards  iiijhifall,  to  conceal  Ihemselves  among  the  liill  fern  \t  Inch 
grew  rankly  ami  aliundanlly  on  the  Mirroundiiig  moors,  liul  the  piirsuiit 
and  aveiigirs  of  lilood  were  not  so  I'u'  disi  mt  as  llie  misgniileil  duke  .'■up' 
posed.  A  party  (d'  horse,  having  followeil  elosely  in  his  track,  eani  '  up 
with  the  peasant  with  wlioiii  he  liail  eX' bauired  ilolhes.  iind  fioni  lliiS 
man's  informaiion  the  duke  was  speedily  discovered  anddraBiied  fioiii  liii 
hiding  plar(>  Ills  in;ser.fli|e  plijilit  and  the  horrors  of  the  file  that  lie  lait 
MO  correctly  aniieipaied,  h.id  now  so  coinpleit  |y  unmanned  him,  tint  lie 


burst  iiii( 
ca()tois  t( 
sioii  11;,^ 

over  , (111^ 

Drisoii.     J 

"f  C.Mlllllo 

'"'"g.  riileij 
natural  cli; 
ish,  ,j  t|„, ,. 

/''■^t  ilicse  . 

his    OWll    ;|(,, 

''■'iniipli  4V(i 
than  .f.iiii,.,^. 

"'••>  'lad  ,„ 
Of  1'^  vinile, 

of  J  1,0    s;    ;„ 
Ofler,;,!  hill)  I 

•"^'I'l-'s  ha,J  ,„ 
80"''l  affroiu 
W'ier  to  a  vol 
''0111  (lie  niun 
sealed. 

'*•"'  as  Mor 
;*''"  •■''•"'  that  J 
'"'('<'  for  mere> 
prese,,,.,.  „f  „,; 

;'''''■<•'  snhmiss 

'',"••'<'''  him  a  n 
oni.e  luier  fai; 
ned  „  Charles 
'0'''  ''im  that  hi 

qUe.s||o„        'j,,|^^ 

^"''"'■'•oin  his 
"••"'nes.,  i„  (,js  , 

,,/^''"'i  led  to, 
""".CO,,!,!  scarJ 
Haviicr  learned] 

^"l^'  gave  i(,e  „J 
more  expert  in  |l 

""'•"iinised,  thaf 

.*"•'  Mo||||,„„t|,, 

^'O'"  Hie  block.  , 
made  (wo  more  i| 

HMd  dls;i;„st.       Till 

and'  '/'  '''•'""""  "'[ 
*""  Jones,  dukil 

t^xx  due  to  ,,|,  L 
f''''"'l'-'l  into  iro'iJ 
''«:f(;^'"i'y  and  olJ 
'"'"•'"a!  fight  or  1 
comparatively  en  I 


THE  TREASURY  OH'  HISTORY. 


61» 


burst  into  an  ai'oiiy  ofl'mrs,  and  in  the  most  humble  maimer  implored  his 
capiois  to  allow  hiiii  to  liseape.  But  the  reward  offered  fur  his  apprehen- 
sion was  loo  ti'iii.itinif,  and  the  dn-ad  of  the  king's  anger  too  great,  to  be 
over  ■onieiiy  llie  unluppy  captive's  solicitations,  and  lie  was  hurried  to 
Dri.-'on.  Kven  now  his  elinging  to  life  prevaileil  over  the  inanifest  dictates 
of  ciiinnoii  sense,  anil  from  his  prison  lie  sent  letter  after  letter  to  the 
king,  tilled  wiih  the  most  abject  entreaties  to  be  allowed  to  live.  The 
natiiial  cliarai-ier  of  Jiniiis  and  the  stern  .severity  with  which  he  had  pun- 
ish.  il  ilie  reliellion  of  the  meaner  olTendurs,  might  have  warned  Monnionlh 
(hat  these  degrading  .submissions  would  avail  him  nothiiitj.  But,  in  fact, 
ids  own  absur  lly  otlensive  manner  during  his  brief  period  of  antici|iaiive 
trinmpli  would  have  steeled  the  lie-iri  of  a  far  more  placable  sovereiini 
than  .limes.  MiMimoiiih's  proclamation.',  had  not  slopped  at  callini>  upon 
tlie  |ie.i|  Id  i.f  Kuyland  lo  rebel  against  lite  r  undoubt  dly  114  nfu  s  ve'r.  isjii; 
tliey  had  in  a  ma  iner,  whi(di  wonl  I  liav  •  been  revoiti  g  if  ih  :  v  rv"  excess 
of  il(<  virulence  had  not  rendered  it  ab.surd,  vilified  the  personal  eharaeter 
of  .1  i.n  s  ;  and  while  thus  offending  him  as  a  ma.i.  had  at  the  sane  lime 
offered  liini  the  siill  more  unpardonable  offence  of  attacking  his  religion. 
James  had  none  of  ih  niii^ninimity  which  in  tliese  circumstances  of  per- 
sonal affront  would  liave  foun  I  an  argument  for  pardoning  the  treason,  in 
oriler  lo  avoid  even  liie  appearance  of  punislnng  the  personality ;  and 
from  the  moment  that  Monmouth  was  captured,  his  fate  was  irrevocably 
sealed. 

Had  as  Monnionlh's  conduct  had  been,  it  is  not  without  conleinpt  that 
we  read  that  .lames,  iliough  deiermiiied  not  to  spare  him,  allowed  him  to 
liopt!  for  inerey,  and  even  granted  him  tin  interview.  Admitted  to  the 
pre.seiii'.?  of  the  king,  Moninouih  was  weak  enough  to  renew  in  person  the 
abject  siihmissnnis  and  solieitalions  by  which  he  had  already  degraded 
himself  in  writing.  .\s  lu^  kiieli  and  implored  his  life.  James  sternly 
Irtiiied  him  a  paprr.  Il  eonlaiued  an  admission  of  his  illegitiinacy,  and 
of  the  niter  falsehood  of  the  rejinrt  that  Luey  Waters  had  ever  been  mar- 
ried to  Charles  II.  .Moiiinouili  signed  the  paper,  and  James  then  coldly 
tolil  him  thai  his  repeated  treasons  rendereil  pardon  altogether  out  of  the 
question.  'I'lie  duke  now  at  length  perceived  iliii  hope  was  at  an  end, 
ruse  from  his  siippliaiii  posture,  siiid  left  the  apartment,  with  an  assumed 
lirniiies.s  In  his  step  and  scorn  In  his  eounlenaiKte. 

Wlien  led  to  the  scaffold  Moninonlh  behaved  with  a  degree  of  fortitude 
that  could  scarcely  have  been  anticipated  from  his  previous  abjeclnesg. 
Haviiii;  learned  that  the  executioner  was  the  same  who  had  beheaded 
Lord  William  Rus>cll,  and  who  had  put  that  nobleman  to  muidi  agony,  the 
duke  irave  the  man  some  money,  and  good-liumoiiredly  warned  him  to  be 
more  expert  in  his  business  on  the  present  occasion.  The  warning  had 
an  effect  exiictly  opposiii;  to  what  Monmouth  intended.  The  man  was 
«()  confused,  that  ai  the  first  blow  he  only  wounded  that  sufferer's  neck; 
'iiid  Miiiimoiith,  bleeding  and  ghastly  with  pain  and  terror,  raised  his  head 
from  the  block.  Mis  look  of  agony  still  farther  unnerved  the  man,  who 
made  two  more  ineffectual  strokes,  then  threw  down  the  axe  in  despair 
and  disgust.  The  reproaches  and  threats  of  the  sheriff,  however,  caused 
liiin  to  resume  his  revolting  task,  whinli  at  two  strokes  more  he  completed, 
and  J. lines,  duke  of  M(mmouih,  was  a  lifeless  corpse.  Monmouth  was 
popular,  and  therefore  his  fate  was  deemed  hard.  But  his  treason  wan 
wholly  uiijustifi.dile.  his  pretended  claim  to  the  crown  as  ubsnnlly  ground- 
less  as  the  claim  of  the  son  of  a  known  harlot  could  be ;  and  pity  is  far 
less  due  to  liis  memory  thtiii  lo  that  of  the  nnfortuuato  people  whom  ht 
deluded  into  treason  by  his  rashness,  and  delivered  to  the  gallows  by  his 
incapai'iiy  and  ohslinai-y.  Snyitiif  ludliing  of  the  vast  nninbers  who  fell 
in  actual  (ighl  or  in  llie'suhsetiiient  pursuit,  for  their  fate  was  at  the  least 
comparatively  enviable,  upwards  of  twenty  were  haijed  by  the  milt<ary: 


630 


THK  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY 


and  Jeffreys  hanged  eighty  at  Dorchester,  and  two  hundred  and  fifty  at 
Taunton,  Wells,  and  Exeter.  At  other  places  still  farther  victims  were 
made;  and  whipping,  imprisonment,  or  ruinous  fines  were  inflicted  upon 
hundreds  in  every  part  of  the  kingdom.  And  all  this  misery,  let  us  not 
forget,  arose  out  of  the  rebellion,  and  the  fraudulent  as  well  as  absurd  pre- 
tensions of  the  duke  of  Monmouth. 

As  though  the  civil  dissensions  of  the  kingdom  had  not  been  sufficiently 
injurious,  the  most  furious  animosities  existed  on  the  score  of  religion. 
The  more  James  displayed  his  bigotry  and  his  zeal  for  the  re-establishment 
or,  at  the  least,  the  great  encouragement  and  preference  of  popery,  the 
more  zealously  was  he  opposed  by  the  popular  preachers,  who  lost  no  op 
portunity  of  impressing  upon  the  people  a  deep  sense  of  the  evils  which 
they  might  anticipate  from  a  return  to  the  papal  system.  The  terrors  and 
the  blandishments  which  the  king  by  turns  employed  caused  many  per- 
sons of  lax  conscience  to  affect  to  be  converted  to  papacy.  Dr.  Sharpe, 
a  protestant  clergyman  of  London,  distinguished  himself  by  the  just  sever- 
ity with  which  he  denouHced  these  time-servers.  His  majesty  was  so 
much  annoyed  and  enraged  at  the  doctor's  sermons  that  he  issued  an  order 
to  the  bishop  of  London  to  suspend  Sharpe  from  his  clerical  functions 
until  farther  notice.  The  bishop  very  properly  refused  to  comply  with 
this  arbitrary  and  unconstitutional  order.  The  king  then  determined  to 
inc'udc  the  bishop  in  his  punishment,  and  issued  an  ecclesiastical  commis- 
sion, giving  to  the  seven  persons  to  whom  it  was  directed  an  unlimited 
power  ill  matters  clerical.  Before  the  commissioners  thus  authorised, 
both  the  bishop  and  Dr.  Sharpe  were  summoned,  and  sentenced  to  be  sus- 
pended during  the  king's  pleasure. 

Though  a  bigot,  James  was  undoubtedly  a  sincere  one.  He  readily  be- 
lieved that  all  argument  would  end  in  favour  of  popery,  and  that  all  sin- 
cere and  teachable  spirits  would  become  papist  if  full  latitude  were  given 
to  teaching. 

In  this  belief  he  now  determined  on  a  universal  indulgence  of  con- 
science, and  a  formal  declaration  informed  the  people  that  all  sectaries 
should  have  full  indulgence,  and  that  nonconformity  was  no  longer  a 
crime.  He  again,  too,  sent  a  message  to  Rome  offering  to  reconcile  his 
people  to  the  papal  power.  But  the  earl  of  Castlemain,  who  was  now 
employed,  met  with  no  more  success  than  Caryll  had  met  with  at  an  ear- 
lier period  of  the  king's  reign.  The  pope  understood  governing  better 
than  James,  and  better  understood  the  actual  temper  of  the  English  peo 
pie.  He  knew  that  much  might,  with  the  aid  of  time,  be  done  in  the  wa> 
of  undermining  the  supports  of  the  protestant  church  ;  while  the  rash  and 
arbitrary  measures  of  James  were  calculated  only  to  awaken  the  people  to 
watchfulness  and  inspire  them  with  a  spirit  of  resistance. 

Not  even  Rome  could  discourage  James  from  prosecuting  his  rash 
measures.  He  encouraged  the  Jesuits  to  erect  colleges  in  various  parts 
of  the  country  ;  the  catholic  worship  was  celebrated  not  only  openly  but 
ostentatiously ;  and  four  catholic  bisnops,  after  having  publicly  been  con- 
secrated in  the  king's  chapel,  were  sent  to  exercise  their  functions  of 
vicars  apostolical  tliroughout  the  kingdom. 

But  the  king  was  not  unopposed.  He  recommended  Father  Francis,  a 
Benedictine  monk,  to  the  university  of  Cambridge,  for  the  degree  of  mas 
terofarts.  The  university  replied  by  a  petition,  in  which  they  prayed 
the  king  to  excuse  them  upon  the  ground  of  the  father's  religion.  An 
endeavour  was  then  made  to  terrify  the  university  by  summoning  the 
vice-chancellor  before  the  high  commission  court;  but  both  that  finic- 
tionary  and  his  university  were  firm,  and  Father  Francis  was  refused  his 
degrees. 

The  sister  university  of  Oxford  displayed  the  like  conscientioui  and  de- 
i  rmincd  spirit     The  presidency  of  Magdalen  college  becoming  vacant 


''ic  king 

'''arnier, 

**''",  ill  01 

'Jo  honou 

refused  to 

showed  hi 

fellowship, 

*•  D.  I6e 

consequen( 

"I  which  V 

subjects  an 

foreign  pri;] 

•^sif  toadc 

ordered  thai 

'he  conclusi, 

'and  now  cc 

warmness  A 

respect  to  th( 

'0  resist  at  t\ 

Accordiiig-i 

.Asaph,  Kenn 

bishop  of  CI, 

bishop  of  Bri. 

'•'ey  stated  th 

"y  law  establi, 

eiic'e  to  his  mi 

proaching  to  a 

•si'ops  were  s 

"'em  if  they  ve 

f'J""'  time  u,m 

'»■«;  and  were  J 

'"f!  lower  on  ti 

On  the  twam 

'''ace;  aiidasii 

"■''•■"  also,  nnd  ; 

'"ainpionsof  tl 

'nost  intense  in 

m  on  eithe'r  s 

"ftlie  bishops." 

"^'"'edin,)eJibe 

yc.s(mins(er-hal 

"'"  ''''s'dt,  and  u 

, '  «?«  to  village 
'"  "'e  c-mip  at  ^ 

'"','■' heartiness 
"".'.'r'H'hattha 
I    "  IS  nothinir. 

^'?'';";^..fhni;e 
.      A'"' do  von  <•  J 

Jlic  simnts  off 
'iTainst  the  his  ,,, 
"^'"■'^AirRomeh 


\\ 


THE  TUEA8URY  OF  HISTORY. 


631 


iicis.  a 
If  mas 

iiraye(\ 
An 

fiinc- 
ised  lii> 

land  de- 
1  vacaut 


(he  king  rerommended  for  that  lucrative  »iid  honourable  situation  a  Dr. 
Farmer,  who  was  a  new  and  merely  time-serving  convert  to  papacy,  and 
who,  in  other  respects,  was  by  no  means  the  sort  of  character  who  would 
do  honour  to  so  high  a  preferment.  The  fellows  respectfully  but  firmly 
refused  to  obey  the  king's  mandate  for  the  election  of  this  man,  and  James 
showed  his  sense  of  the  refusal  by  ejecting  all  but  two  of  them  from  theii 
fellowships. 

A.  D.  1688. — An  increasing  disaffection  to  the  king  was  the  inevitable 
consecjuence  of  his  perseverance  in  this  arbitrary  course,  many  instances 
of  which  we  might  cite.  But  heedless  alike  of  the  murmurs  of  iiis  own 
subjects  and  of  the  proljable  effect  of  those  murmurs  upon  the  niinds  ol 
foreign  princes,  James  issued  a  second  declaration  of  liberty  of  conscience. 
As  if  to  add  insult  to  this  evident  blow  at  the  established  church,  James 
ordered  that  this  second  declaration  should  be  read  by  all  clergymen  at 
the  conclusion  of  divine  service.  The  dignitaries  of  the  church  of  Eng- 
land now  considered  that  farther  endurance  would  argue  raliier  luke- 
warmness  for  the  church  or  gross  personal  timidity,  than  mere  and  due 
respect  to  the  sovereign,  and  tiiey  determined  firmly,  though  temperately 
to  resist  at  this  point. 

Accordingly,  Sancroft,  archbishop  of  Canterbury,  Lloyd,  bishop  of  St. 
Asaph,  Keim.  bishop  of  Bath  and  Wells,  Turner,  bishop  of  Kly,  Lake, 
bishop  of  Ciiichester,  White,  bishop  of  Peterborough,  and  Trelawney, 
bisiiop  of  Bristol,  drew  up  a  respectful  memorial  to  the  king,  in  which 
lliey  stated  tiiat  their  conscientious  respect  to  the  protest4nt  religion  as 
by  law  established  would  not  allow  them  and  their  clergy  to  yield  obedi- 
ence to  his  mandate.  The  king  treated  this  petition  as  something  ap- 
proaching to  a  treasonable  denial  of  his  rights.  The  archbishops  and 
bishops  were  summoned  before  him  at  the  council,  and  he  sternly  asked 
them  if  they  ventured  to  avow  their  petition.  The  question  remained  foi 
some  time  unanswered  ;  but  at  length  the  prelates  replied  in  the  afHrma- 
tive.  nnd  were  immediately,  on  their  declining  to  give  bail,  committed  to 
the  Tower  on  the  charge  of  having  uttered  a  seditious  libel. 

On  the  twenty-ninth  of  June  in  this  year  the  trial  of  the  b  ;  s  took 
l)l;ice ;  and  as  it  was  evident  that  in  defending  the  church  the  ;  relates 
were  also,  and  at  a  most  important  crisis,  boldly  standing  forwan.  as  the 
(Mianipions  of  the  whole  nation,  the  proceedings  were  watched  with  a 
most  intense  interest  by  men  of  every  rank,  and,  save  a  few  bifioied  or 
interested  papists,  by  men  of  eveiy  shade  of  religious  opinion.  The  law- 
yers on  either  side  exerted  themselves  greatly  and  ably  ;  and  two  of  the 
judges,  Powel  and  Holloway,  plainly  declared  their  opinion  to  be  in  favour 
of  the  bishops.  The  jury,  however,  even  now  had  grave  doubts,  and  re- 
mained in  deliberation  during  the  entire  night.  On  the  following  morning 
Westminster-hall  was  literally  crowded  with  spectators  anxious  to  know 
the  result,  and  when  the  jury  appeared  and  returned  a  verdict  of  "  Not 
guiliy."  a  mighty  cheer  arose  within  the  hall,  was  taken  up  by  the  crowd.s 
outside,  and  passed  from  street  to  street,  from  town  to  country,  and  from 
villaiie  to  villasie.  James  was  at  the  time  dining  with  Lord  Faversham 
iti  the  c;imp  at  Hounslow,  ten  miles  from  London.  The  cheers  of  the 
people  reached  even  to  this  distance,  and  were  re-echoed  by  the  soldiers 
with  a  heartiness  and  loudness  that  actually  alarmed  James,  who  eagerly 
iiKjiiired  what  that  noise  could  mean. 

"It  is  iiothing,  sire."  replied  one  of  the  attendants,  "but  the  soldiers 
slmminif  .It  tlie  acquittal  of  the  bishops." 

"  And  do  you  c-all  that  nothing!"'  replied  James :  "  but  it  shall  be  all  the 
worse  for  them  all." 

The  shouts  of  the  soldiers  at  the  failure  of  James'  arbitrary  attenipi 
JjTainst  the  bishops  was,  indeed,  an  ominous  sign  of  the  times.  His 
iiToits  for  Home  had  htcn  repudiated  and  discouraged  by  Rome  ;  and  now 


623 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


oven  his  very  scldiery,  upon  wliom  alone  he  could  rely  for  strength,  tps- 
tified  ''ieir  sympathy  with  the  popular  CHUse.  But  the  infatuated  monarch 
did  not  even  yet  know  ihe  full  extent  of  his  peril.  Many  of  the  leading 
men  of  the  kingdom  were  in  close  though  eantious  correspondence  with  a 
foreign  potentate,  and  tlie  most  extensive  and  formidable  preparations 
were  being  made  to  hurl  James  from  a  throne  which  he  had  so  signally 
proved  himself  unworthy  to  fill. 

Mary,  eldest  daughter  of  James,  was  married  to  William,  prince  of  Or- 
ange, who  was  at  once  the  subile  and  profound  politician  and  the  aecom- 
plislied  and  tried  soldier.  To  this  able  and  proii^stant  prince  the  malcon- 
tents of  i^nglanil,  who  now  through  James'  incurable  infatuation  included 
all  that  was  best  and  most  honourable  as  well  as  most  influential  of  the 
nation,  turned  their  eyes  for  fleliverance.  He  had  long  been  aware  of  the 
discontents  that  existed  in  England,  but  kept  up  an  appearance  of  perfect 
amity  with  the;  king,  and  even  in  Ills  correspondence  with  Ihe  leading  men 
of  the  opposition  wanly  avoided  ccnnmittiiig  himself  too  far,  and  alTccted 
to  dissuade  them  from  proceeding  to  extremities  against  their  sovereign. 
But  the  ferment  occasioned  by  the  affair  of  the  bishops  encouraged  him 
to  throw  off  the  mask  ;  he  had  long  been  making  preparations  for  siw.h  a 
crisis,  and  he  novv  resolved  to  act  He  had  his  preparations  so  complete, 
indeed,  that  in  a  short  time  after  the  acquittal  of  the  bishops,  he  dropped 
down  the  canals  and  rivers  from  Nimeugen  with  a  well  stored  fleet  of 
five  hundred  vessels  and  an  army  of  upwards  of  fourteen  thousand  men. 
As  all  William's  preparations  had  been  made  on  pretext  of  an  intended 
invasion  of  France,  he  actually  landed  in  Kiigland,  at  Torbay,  without  hav- 
ing excited  the  slightest  alarm  in  the  mind  of  James. 

William  now  marched  his  army  to  Rxeter  and  issued  proclamations,  in 
which  he  invited  the  people  to  aid  him  in  delivering  them  from  the  ty- 
ranny under  which  they  groaned  ;  but  such  a  deep  and  general  terror  had 
been  struck  into  that  neighbourhood  by  the  awful  scenes  that  had  followed 
the  affair  of  Monmouth,  that  even  the  numerous  and  well-appointed  force 
of  William  encouraged  but  few  volunteers  to  join  him.  Ten  days  elapsed, 
and  William,  contrasting  the  apatiiy  of  the  people  with  the  enthnsiasiic 
invitaiions  he  had  received  from  many  of  the  leading  men  of  the  connlry, 
began  to  despair,  and  even  to  consult  wilh  his  oflieers  on  the  propriety  of 
reeinharking,  and  l^^■lvillg  so  faithless  a  gentry  and  so  apathetic  a  populace 
to  endure  the  miseries  which  they  dared  not  rise  against.  But  at  this 
critical  moment  he  was  joined  by  some  men  of  great  influence  and  note; 
his  arrival  and  his  fonrc  became  generally  known,  and  multitudes  of  all 
ranks  now  declared  in  his  favour. 

Ti>;>  iiiovemeiit  once  eimimenced,  the  revolution  was  virtually  accom- 
plisl  cd.  Kvcntlie  most  favoured  and  cinifidential  servants  of  James  now 
abandoned  him  ;  and  whatever  might  have  been  the  faults  of  the  unforai- 
n:ite  kiiig.it  is  impossible  not  to  feel  deep  disgust  at  the  unnaturii!  and 
unaraiefnl  conduct  of  some  of  those  who  now  coldly  abaiidoneil  lilm  in 
the  moment  of  his  deepest  perph-xity  and  need.  Lord  Churchill,  for  iii- 
staiii-e,  afterwards  diike  of  Mariliorougb.  and  undoubtedly  one  of  the  great- 
est generals  Kiigland  h.is  ever  possessed,  acted  upon  this  occasion  with 
a  most  seaiidaliius  iiigratiiuile.  Originally  only  a  page  .n  the  royal  house- 
hold, be  had  by  the  king's  favour  been  raised  to  hiijh  command  and  Incra- 
iiv(!  honours.  But  now  wiien  his  talents  and  his  sword  were  most  neeiicd 
by  the  king,  he  not  only  deserted  him,  but  also  influenced  several  other 
leading  cliar.icters  to  desert  with  him,  including  the  duke  of  Grafton,  an 
illeifiiimiite  son  of  Cli.irlcs  II. 

Hilt  the  most  sliainefiil  desertion,  and  that  which  the  most  deeply  pained 
and  disgusted  the  nnfortuiiaie  kiinr,  was  that  of  the  princess  Anne,  who 
\vMi  ever  been  his  most  favoured  and,  seemingly,  his  most  attached 
daughter      But  this  illustrious  lady,  i;nd  her  husband,  the  prince  of  Deii- 


laarl 

sens 

Evci 

Vr 

ranki 

the  II 

been 

Sir  K 

inaste 

to  full 

mob,  I 
'le  wai 
detent! 
duke  o 
ceived 
he  poss 

Butt 
engage( 
meiu  up 


'"{isniiich  asi 
:".""'s,  inipol 
'"jusiiee  witl 
ereataiKl  n-rl 
'■'ff'its  „f  ihel 
"'ifious !  'pf 
""'"•red  that 
^no  was  nov 


THE  TIIEASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


623 


tPH- 

uch 

iiiig 
ilha 
iio«9 
rally 

ifOr- 
com- 
ili'on- 
:luded 
)f  the 
of  the 
)prfect 
i<r  men 
.ffffted 
B  reign- 
;ed  liim 
such  a 
mplete, 
(iropped 
fleet  of 
nd  men. 
intended 
tout  hav- 

vtions,  in 
,  ilie  ty- 
error  had 
I  followed 
ited  force 
9  eliipsed, 
llnisiasiic 
coimlfYi 
•oprifiy  ot 
ti  populace 

lul  111  iWs 

and  nolH ; 

ides  of  all 

jly  nccom- 

le  iiiifof'"- 

|r,inir-,il  and 

ipil  him  in 

j.ill,  for  '"■ 
If  the  «ri'at- 
rtsion  with 
,yal  house- 
and  lucra- 
lost  neeiU'd 
;t.rivl  othei 
[Irafio'i'  an 

loplv  P'''"f^ 

Anne,  wim 

|m  Kiiached 

Vee  of  neiv 


mark,  now  joined  the  rest  in  desertinar  the  king,  who  in  his  too  tardy 
sense  of  his  helpless  situation  passionately  fxclaiuied,  "  God  help  me'! 
Even  my  own  childfen  desert  me  now." 

Unable  to  rely  upon  his  troops,  seeing  only  enraged  enemies  among  all 
ranks  of  his  subjects,  and  so  deserted  by  his  court  that  he  had  scarcely 
the  necessary  personal  attendance,  he  sent  the  queen,  who  had  rei:enily 
been  confined  of  a  son,  over  to  Calais  ;  and  then,  with  only  one  atiendant, 
Sir  Kdward  Hales,  a  new  convert  to  popery,  whose  fidelity  to  his  unhappy 
master  cannot  be  too  highly  applauded,  he  secreP'"  left  London,  intending 
to  follow  the  queen  to  France.  He  was  rei-ogiiised  and  slopped  by  the 
mob,  but  being  confined  at  Itochester,  he  was  so  carelessly  guarded,  that 
he  was  able— probably  from  secret  orders  given  by  William,  whom  his 
detention  would  have  embarrassed — to  escape  with  his  natural  son,  tlie 
duke  of  Berwiirk,  and  they  arrived  safely  in  France.  He  was  well  re- 
ceived by  the  French  court,  and  encouraged  to  persevere  in  the  intention 
he  possessed,  of  at  least  making  an  end(!avour  to  reconquer  his  kingdom. 

But  that  kingdom  had  finally  rejected  him,  and  was  even  at  that  moment 
engaged  in  discussing  the  means  of  erecting  a  secure  and  free  govern- 
ment upon  the  ruins  uf  his  most  unwise,  gratuitous,  and  absurd  despotism. 


CHAPTER  LVI. 


THE    REION    OP   WILLIAM    III. 


A.  o.  1689 — The  most  influential  members  of  both  houses  of  parliament, 
the  privy  council,  with  the  archbishop  of  Canterbury,  the  lord  mayor  and 
other  leading  men,  now  debated  upon  the  course  that  ought  to  b(!  taken. 
King  James  was  alive  ;  he  had  not  formally  resigned  his  throne  ;  no  a(;lual 
hostilities  had  taken  place  between  him  and  his  people,  nor  had  he  by 
arms  or  by  law  been  formally  deposed.  But  he  had  fled  from  the  knig- 
doni  at  the  mere  appearance  of  an  invader,  and  on  the  bare,  however  well- 
founded,  assumption  of  the  hostility  of  his  people  and  their  concert  with 
the  invading  power.  A  clearer  case  of  constructive  abdication  it  would 
not  be  easy  to  coiKTivi;,  and  both  houses  of  parliament  at  once  proceeded 
to  vote  that  the  king  h;!d  abdicated. 

But  another  and  iim;.':  liflicult  point  now  remained  for  consideration. 
Taking  the  king's  abdication  to  be  undisputed — who  was  to  succeed  him  ? 
Could  he,  because  weary  of  the  throne  or  unable  to  maintain  himself  upon 
it,  cut  (iff  the  entail  »/  the  throne?  His  queen  was  recently  delivered  of  a 
sou  ;  that  son,  by  the  well  known  English  law  of  succession,  had  right  of 
inheritance  prior  to  the  princesses;  ought  he  not.  then,  to  be  madi;  king, 
and  a  regency  appointed  1  But,  if  so,  would  not  the  paternity  of  James 
enable  him  to  continue  his  despotism  througli  his  son  when  the  l.ilt(;r 
should  attain  his  majority  ?  The  point  was  a  most  important  one,  ;in(l  as 
ditficult  of  solution  as  it  was  important;  but  we  have  ever  been  of  opinion 
that  the  leading  statesmen  of  tliat  day  decided  upon  it  very  much  in  the 
spirit  of  the  son  of  Philip,  who  cut  the  (iordian  knot  which  he  found  him- 
self unable  to  untie.  The  revolution  was,  undoubtedly,  a  necessary  one, 
forJame.s'  tyranny  was  great  and  insensate;  and  it  was  a  glorious  one, 
inasmuch  as  it  was  accomplished  without  bloodshed.  But  these  co'isider- 
ations,  important  as  they  are,  must  not  prevent  us  from  denouncmg  the 
injustice  with  which  the  leading  men  of  England,  finding  themselves  in 
great  and  grievous  difficulty  how  to  reconcile  their  own  liberties  and  the 
rights  of  the  infant  son  of  the  abdicated  king,  pronounced  that  son  suppf"- 
liiiiious !  The  most  ridiculous  tales  were  told  and  credited  ;  it  was  evei. 
averred  that  the  queen  had  never  been  pregnant  at  all,  but  that  the  child 
who  was  now  pronounced  supposititious  had  been  conveyed  to  the  apart- 


iS'ji 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


mciUs  or  the  queen  from  those  of  its  real  mother  hi  a  wurmuig  pan  I  But 
when  men  have  determined  upon  injustice  any  pretext  will  nerve  their 
turn.  The  young  prince,  then,  v/as  pronounced  illegitiinuto,  and  the 
throne  being  vacant  it  was  then  proposed  to  raise  the  princess  of  Oriin(j;i', 
James'  eldest  daughter,  to  the  throne  as  her  hereditary  riglit.  But  to  thii 
course  there  was  an  insuperable  and  unexpected  obstacle.  The  high  him] 
Btern  ambition  of  the  prince  of  Orange  forbade  him,  in  his  own  course  btit 
Expressive  phrase  "to  accept  of  a  kingdom  which  he  was  to  hold  only  by 
his  wife's  apron  strings."  He  would  either  have  the  crown  conferred 
upon  himself,  or  ho  would  return  to  his  own  country  and  leave  the  Kn- 
glish  to  settle  their  own  difficulties  as  they  best  mi^ht ;  and  accordingly 
the  crown  was  settled  upon  William  and  Mary  and  their  heirs,  the  udinni- 
istration  of  alTairs  being  vested  in  William  alone. 

Though  the  declaration  of  toleration  issued  by  James  had  given  suuh 
deep  and  general  offence,  it  had  done  so  only  as  it  indicated  the  desire  oj 
James  to  deprive  both  the  church  of  England  and  the  dissenters  of  security 
from  the  inroads  of  papacy.  Presuming  from  this  fact  that  toleration 
would  not  in  itself  be  disagreeable  to  the  nation,  William  commenced  his 
reign  by  an  attempt  to  repeal  the  laws  that  commanded  uniformity  ol 
worship.  But  the  English,  as  has  well  been  remarked,  were  "  more  ready 
to  examine  the  commands  of  their  superiors  than  to  obey  them ;"  uiitf 
William,  although  looked  upon  as  the  deliverer  of  the  nation,  could  only 
so  far  succeed  in  this  design,  as  to  procure  toleration  for  such  dissenteri 
as  should  hold  no  private  conventicles  and  should  take  the  oaths  of  allegi- 
duce. 

The  attention  of  William,  however,  was  very  speedily  called  from  tin 
regulation  of  his  new  kingdom  to  the  measures  necessary  for  its  preserva 
tion.  James,  as  we  have  said,  was  received  in  France  with  great  friend- 
ship: and  Ireland,  mainly  catholic,  still  remained  true  to  him.  Having 
assembled  all  the  force  he  could,  therefore,  James  determinod  to  niiike 
Ireland  his  point  d'appui,  and,  embarking  at  Brest,  he  landed  ut  the  port  of 
Kinsale  on  the  22d  of  May,  1689.  Here  everything  tended  to  (latter  liis 
hopes.  His  progress  to  Dublin  was  a  sort  of  triumph.  Tyrconnel,  tlio 
lord  lieulonant,  received  him  with  loyal  warmth  and  respect  5  the  old  army 
was  not  merely  fiiitliful  but  zealous,  and  was  very  easily  increased  by  new 
levies  to  the  imposing  force  of  for^y  thousand  men. 

Some  few  towns  in  Ireland,  being  chiefly  inhabited  by  prolestants,  had 
declared  for  King  William,  and  among  these  was  Derry,  or  Londonderry, 
and  to  this  town  James  at  once  proceeded  to  lay  siege.  The  military 
authorities  would  probably  have  been  glad  to  have  deliveriul  the  place  np 
to  their  lawful  sovereign ;  but  a  clergyman,  Mr.  George  Walker,  placed 
himself  at  the  head  of  tlie  protcstant  inhabitants  of  the  town,  iind  workeil 
up  ttieir  minds  to  such  a  pitch  of  enthusiasm  that  they  resolved  to  hold 
out  the  place,  until  it  should  be  relieved  by  William,  or  piirish  in  the  at- 
tempt. The  enthusiasm  spread  to  the  very  lowest  and  w<iuk(!Ht  of  tiio 
population  ;  and  though  famine  and  fever  made  fearful  ravages,  and  nui^Ii 
loatlisome  olijccts  as  cats  and  rats  became  coveted  for  food,  tho  besieijed 
still  held  out.  This  devotion  was  at  length  rewarded.  A  slore-HJilp, 
heavily  laden  witli  provision,  broke  the  boom  which  had  Ixhui  laid  across 
the  river,  and  tlie  famished  inhabitants  of  Derry  received  at  once  an  aliiiii- 
dant  supply  of  provisions  and  a  most  welcome  addition  to  their  garrison 
of  hale  and  fresh  men.  James,  dur'.ig  this  obstinate  siege,  had  lo.st  riiiii) 
thousand  of  Ins  troops,  and  as  the  aid  now  thrown  into  the  town  rendereil 
his  success  mor(!  unlikely  than  ever,  he  witlidrew  his  army  in  the  nigiii. 
and  prepar(!(l  to  meet  William,  who  in  person  was  about  to  attack  him. 

A.  D  leno. — The  hostile  armies  came  in  sight  of  eaeii  other  u|)on  ilic 
opposite  sides  of  the  river  Boyne,  whiidi  might  easily  have  hecMi  fonlml 
but  for  ditches  and  old  houses  which  rendered  tho  banks  defensible.    Tu 


this  faciliti 
sacrifice, 
determine 
and  fired  w 
eral  of  his 
On  (he  f(j 
ading  the  m 
and  tlien  he 
without  any 
find  an  obsi 
Swiss  aides, 
and  tlie  (uric 
caused  the 
very  speedilj 
in  no  slight 
troops,  who 
sliould  have 
But  though  J 
been  signally 
on  this  oecas 
impulses  of  1 
niiuided  the  s 
even  detachii 
repulsing  the  t 
army  was  as  c 
posite  conduct 
hundred  were 
"lat  number, 
brave  and  able 
cheering  on  his 

A.  D.  1091 

't  did  not  altoj 
army  again  ini 
leaderstiip  of  t 
'i'liis  army  was 
nature  of  the  "  r 
enabled  him  !o 
But,  though  fii 
'"flexible  resolu 
'ell  mto  disord( 
nve  thousand  o( 
.  Williiiin  now 
aided  by  the  tro 
obstinate  defcnc 
'lie  horrors  wliic 
»iult,  the  Irish  1 
"or  cruel,  and  ht 
proposed  to  surn 
should  have  that 
'..and  'hat  all 
Hn,i  es  and  proj 
*'cotlaiid,      Aho, 

«'iHJ.aiion,  and 
soveinmeii!. 

*•  D.  IG92.~  w 
'estant  interests 
CHiiuged  in  oonti, 
l^iow  the  eneigie 

Vol   1.-40 


THE  TKEASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


639 


(his  facility  of  ambush,  ia  fact,  the  life  of  William  very  nearly  became  a 
sacrifice.  As  he  rude  uut  along  his  lines  to  reconnoitre  his  opponents  and 
determine  upon  his  plan  of  battle,  a  cannon  was  secretly  pointed  at  him, 
and  fired  with  such  good  aim  that  he  was  wounded  in  the  shoulder,  sev- 
eral of  his  stair  being  killed  by  his  side. 

On  the  following  morning  William  commenced  operations  by  cannon- 
ading the  masking  houses  from  which  he  had  sulTcred  so  much  annoyance, 
and  then  he  led  over  his  army  in  three  divisions.  They  crossed  the  river 
without  any  considerable  loss,  formed  in  good  order  on  the  opposite  side 
and  an  obstinate  battle  ensued.  Tlie  Irish,  as  well  as  tlicir  i'rench  and 
Swiss  allies,  fought  well  and  zealously,  but  they  were  inferior  in  cavalry  ; 
and  the  furious  charges  of  William's  cavalry,  led  on  by  himself,  at  length 
caused  the  Iri.sh  to  retreat,  and  the  mere  mercenary  Swiss  and  French 
very  speedily  followed.  Perhaps  the  victory  thus  gamed  by  William  was 
in  no  sliglit  degree  owing  to  the  fact  of  his  having  personally  led  on  his 
troops,  who  were  thus  inspired  with  a  zeal  and  courage  which  James 
should  have  lent  to  his  troops  by  a  similar  personal  devotion  and  daring. 
But  though  James'  personal  courage  was  beyond  all  question,  and  had 
been  signally  shown  during  the  Dutch  war  in  the  reign  of  his  brother,  he 
on  this  occasion  allowed  the  prudence  of  the  sovereign  to  outweigh  the 
impulses  of  the  soldier.  Posted  on  the  hill  of  Duninorc,  which  com- 
manded the  scene  of  action,  he  gazed  upon  the  eventful  battle  without 
even  detaching  a  squadron  of  the  horse  wliieh  surrounded  him  to  aid  in 
repulsing  tiie  terrible  cavalry  charges  of  William.  The  defeat  of  the  Irish 
army  was  as  complete  as  might  have  been  anticipated  from  this  very  op- 
posite conduct  of  tiie  opposing  leaders.  Of  James' troops  neaily  Kfteen 
hundred  were  killed  and  wounded,  while  William  lost  barely  a  tliird  of 
that  number.  Uut  he  sustained  a  heavy  loss,  indeed,  in  the  death  of  the 
brave  and  able  duke  of  Schomberg,  who  wai  shot  as  he  crossed  the  river, 
cheering  on  his  men. 

A.  D.  IG91. — Disastrous  as  the  battle  of  the  Boyne  had  proved  to  James, 
It  did  not  altogether  destroy  his  hopes.  By  great  exertions  he  got  an 
army  again  into  condition  for  serviL-e,  and  it  was  now  comniitie.l  to  the 
leadership  of  General  St.  Ruth,  a  man  of  known  gallantry  and  conduct 
This  army  was  met  by  that  of  the  English  at  Aughriin;  and  the  boggy 
nature  of  the  ground  in  which  St.  Uiith  had  taken  up  an  admirable  position 
enabled  him  to  repulse  the  linglish  with  great  loss  in  several  charges. 
But,  though  galled  and  weakened,  they  returned  to  the  charge  with 
indexible  resolution,  and  St.  Ruth  being  killed  by  a  cannon  ball,  his  men 
fell  into  disorder,  and  retreated  to  Limerick  with  the  loss  of  upwards  o( 
five  thousand  of  tlieir  number. 

William  now  proceeded  to  besiege  Limerick,  the  garrison  of  which  city, 
aided  by  the  troops  who  had  escaped  from  Aughriin,  made  a  gallant  and 
obstinate  defence  ;  but  the  English  gained  ground  so  rapidly  that,  to  avoid 
tiie  horrors  which  must  have  resulted  from  the  place  being  taken  by  as- 
sault, the  Irish  leaders  demanded  a  parley.  William  was  neither  bigoted 
nor  cruel,  and  he  offered  no  objection  to  the  terms  on  which  the  garrison 
proposed  to  surrender.  These  terms  were,  that  tiie  catholics  of  Ireland 
should  have  that  freedom  of  religion  which  they  had  enjoyed  under  ("liarles 
I.,  and  Miat  all  Irish  persons  should  beat  liberty  to  remove  witli  their 
•nnii/es  and  property  to  any  part  of  the  world,  excepting  England  and 
Scotland.  Above  fourteen  thousand  availeii  themselves  of  iliis  latter 
slit  u.ation,  and  were  conveyed  to  France  at  the  expense  of  the  English 
soveinment. 

A.  p.  1G92.-  William  aspired  to  the  distinction  of  being  head  of  the  pro- 

'eslanl  interests  in  Europe:  hence  tiie  country  was  almost  perpetually 

CHiiaged  in  continental  wars ;  and  if  it  were  not  absolutely  iieci^ssary  to 

Plow  the  eneigies  of  tlie  English  nation  into  the  scale,  it  suited  the  king's 

Vol   L— 40 


526 


THIC  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


warlike  disposition ;  for  tlioiijrii  he  was  by  no  meiins  uniformly  successful 
at  the  head  of  his  troops,  he  possessed  the  necessary  courage  and  forti- 
tude, and  was,  ocyond  ail  doubt,  a  superior  military  commander.  We 
shall  not,  however,  enter  the  arena  of  his  warlike  achievements,  as  gen 
eral  of  the  allied  armies,  in  the  long  and  arduous  struggle  agamst  tht 
power  and  restless  ambition  of  Louis  XIV.,  but  keep  our  attention  fixed 
on  those  matters  which  more  exclusively  refer  to  England.  Among  these 
was  the  celebrated  victory  off  La  Uogue  gained  b);  the  Knglish  and  Dutch 
fleets,  over  the  French.  The  latter  consisted  of  sixty-three  sliips,  and  the 
confederate  fleet  of  ninety-nine;  but  scarce  one  half  could  come  to  an 
engagement.  The  French  fleet  was  entirely  defeated,  and  driven  to  their 
own  coast;  and  at  La  Ilogiie  and  other  places,  no  less  than  twenty-one 
of  their  largest  men-of-war  were  destroyed,  within  two  or  three  days  after 
the  battle.  Among  the  rest,  the  French  admiral's  ship,  the  Rising  Sun, 
was  set  on  fire,  wilhin  sight  of  the  army  that  was  to  have  made  a  aes(;cnt 
upon  Kngland.  Not  a  single  ship  was  lost  on  the  part  of  the  English. 
At  this  time  William  was  in  Holland ;  but  as  soon  as  the  fleet  arrived  at 
Bpithcad,  the  queen  sent  £30,000  to  be  distributed  among  tlie  sailors,  and 
|old  medals  for  the  oflicers,  in  acknowledgment  for  this  splendid  and 
timely  victory. 

With  the  celebrated  treaty  of  Limerick  perished  the  last  hope  of  James 
to  regain  his  English  dominion  by  the  aid  of  Ireland.  The  king  of  France 
lUowrd  him  a  considerable  pension,  and  his  d.uigiitcr  an<l  English  friends 
Dccasionally  aided  him  to  a  (considerable  amount.  He  passed  his  time 
in  study,  in  chanty,  and  in  religious  duties  ;  and  even  the  poor  monks  of 
La  Trappc,  to  whom  Ik;  paid  freijueiit  visit-s,  confessed  themselves  edified 
oy  the  mildness  of  his  manners  end  lUo  humility  of  his  sentiments.  We 
especially  dwell  upon  this  lichaviour  of  .lames,  not  only  because  it  shows, 
m  a  strong  point  of  view  how  bad  a  king  a  good  man  may  be;  in  oilier 
words,  how  much  of  a  peculiar  ability  niu.st  lie  added  to  the  greatest  and 
best  virtues  of  a  private  man  to  nrevcnt  a  king  from  failing,  to  his  own 
and  liis  people's  vast  injury,  in  the  fnllilnuMit  of  the  tremendous  duties  o( 
the  throne,  but  also  because  it  goes  to  refute  a  cruel  calunniy  whicii  but 
too  many  historians  have  joined  in  perpetuating  upon  the  memory  uf 
James. 

Exi'ited  as  men's  minds  were  by  the  revolution,  wliat  could  be  nioro 
probable  than  that  l.igolcd  and  Ignorant  admirers  of  the  expelled  James 
should  resort  to  any  means,  however  wicked,  to  a.ssail  William  lipon  wlial 
they,  as  being  still  loyal  to  the  absent  king,  nmst  have  viewed  as  a  guilt- 
ily usnr|)ed  throne.  The  <laslar(ily  crime  nf  ;issassiniition  was  resorlni 
to  against  Willi.un  ;  and  the  vile  crime  of  the  foiled  asfassins,  has.  with- 
out the  shadow  of  a  proof,  been  attributed  to  tlii'  suggestion  of  James 
Ilnl,  whether  as  man  or  monarch,  every  action  of  his  life  ia  opposed  tn 
the  i)robal)ility  of  tiiis  vile  impnlat'ou.  Tyrannous,  arbitrary,  ami  bigoted 
lu)  was;  but  he  was  stern,  direct,  and  sturdy.  Even  in  his  earlier  tlayn 
he  would  have  resorted  to  open  force,  not  to  dastardly  treachery ;  and 
after  the  treaty  of  Limerick  had  deprived  him  of  all  reasonabh-  hope  o' 
recovering  his  kingdom,  his  iniii^  evidently  became  impressed  wiili  ii 
deep  sense  of  the  winMhlessnesrt  of  wurldly  pr(is|)erity  and  greatiies?. 
He  becamt!  more  a  monk  in  sjiirit  than  many  were  who  wore  the  iiionk- 
ish  cowl;  Mild  so  far,  we  think,  was  he  from  iicing  willing  to  remove  his 
gucccHsfiil  rival  by  the  hand  of  the  a^^as.«in,  lliiil  it  may  be  dmililcd 
whether  he  did  not  deem  the  nsur|ie<l  greatness  of  that  rival  far  more  in 
the  liglit  of  a  curse  than  of  a  blicssing. 

JamcH  survived  the  extinction  of  his  kingly  hopes  rnthei  more  than 
■even  years.  His  ascetii!  way  of  life,  acting  upon  a  frame  much  cii. 
feebled  by  previims  struggles  and  chagrins,  tlir(!w  him  into  a  painful  iind 
tcdiouR  (liReasc,  and  he  died  un  the  sixteenth  uf  Septeinhur,  1700  —iii^  lani 


moments 
advantage; 
before  his 
pomp,  in  tl 

A.  D.    Kil 

close  of  hi 

stepped  the 

Tiiough 

"■eign,  sufn( 

as  could  b( 

beheaded  oi 

grew  wearj 

politics  wer 

gaze  of  an  c 

filiated  rath( 

affairs  of  a  * 

required,  for 

tlierefore,  al, 

England,  on 

flisturbed  bal 

summed  up  ii 

iiial  genius  of 

autieipatiiig  tl 

in  creating  th 

'las  also  been 

gles  under  wli 

and  greatness 

treaty  of  Ryg, 

|var  with  Fran 

''"gland   by  t 

L'rcignty  by  H 

'jiiid.  III  coiiiin( 

tlio  check  give 

•  nuicc. 

,    \yitli  war  thi 
boyhood  he  ha 
imiid  and  expos 
'brown  from  hi 
listed  upon  bei 
'be  motion  of 
•>'"'  irritation  a 
■"I'l  other  skilfu 
tbirtecnth  year 
b'sl  moments  tl 
''■■'y»   liefore   hi, 
»••"«'  of  Europe 
porjaiit  iniellig, 
^•'old   and  re 
■""laMe  man.     . 
yotcd  to  war  aiK 
'or  private  vieei 
r<'iran|  to  the  f,,,. 
'lot  r.isily  refraii 
"■*""'  bis  power  i 
';•••"'  abroad,  an. 
tliey  deservcd-f 
would  allow  hini 


THh,  TREASUaY  OF  HISTORY. 


627 


moments  being  spent  in  enjoining  his  son  to  prefer  religion  to  all  worldly 
advantages,  however  allnring.  At  his  own  especial  request,  made  just 
before  his  death,  James  was  interred,  without  any  attempt  at  funeral 
pomp,  in  the  church  of  the  Knglish  Benedictines  at  Paris. 

A.  D.  1097. — In  our  desire  to  trace  the  loyal  exile,  James,  to  the  very 
close  of  his  eventful  and  unfortunate  career,  we  have  somewhat  out- 
stepped the  chronological  march  of  our  history. 

Though  an  able  politician,  and  though,  at  the  commencement  of  his 
reign,  sufficiently  well  inclined  to  use  and  preserve  so  much  prerogative 
as  could  belong  to  the  elected  monarch  of  a  people  who  h;id  recentl) 
beheaded  one  sovereign  and  driven  another  into  e.xile,  William  vory  soon 
grew  weary  of  disputing  with  his  cabinet.  In  truth,  merely  domestic 
politics  were  not  VVilliam's  forte.  He  had  the  mind  and  the  expansive 
gaze  of  an  emperor  rather  ui-ni  the  minute  views  of  a  king,  and  was  cal- 
culated rather  to  rule  natici  -  ihan  to  watch  over  the  comparatively  small 
affairs  of  a  single  stale.  He  saw  how  much  the  vast  power  of  France 
required,  for  the  welfare  of  Europe,  to  be  kept  in  check;  and  he  gladly, 
therefore,  allowed  his  ministers  to  infringe  upon  his  prerogative  as  to 
Kngland,  on  condition  of  their  affording  him  the  means  of  regulating  the 
disturbed  balance  of  power  in  Europe.  Tlie  history  of  his  reign  may  be 
summed  up  in  two  words — war  and  fundini^.  Aided  by  the  real  and  orig- 
inal genius  of  Burnett,  bishop  of  Sarum,  William  contrived  that  means  of 
anticipating  the  taxes,  of  mortgaging  the  resources  of  the  nation,  which 
in  creating  the  national  debt  has  doubtless  led  to  much  evil,  but  which 
has  also  been  the  means  of  carrying  England  triumphantly  through  strug- 
gles under  which  it  otherwise  must  have  sunk,  and  to  a  pitch  of  wealth 
and  greatness  to  which  it  ("ould  never  have  aspired,  even  in  wish.  The 
treaty  of  Ryswick  at  length  put  an  end  to  the  sanguinary  and  expensive 
war  with  France.  It  has  been  observed  that  the  only  benefit  secured  to 
England  by  that  treaty  was  the  formal  recognition  of  William's  sov- 
ereignty by  the  French  king.  But  it  should  not  bi;  forgotten  that  Eng- 
land, in  common  with  all  the  rest  of  Europe,  was  served  and  saved  by 
the  ciieck  given  to  the  gigantic  power  and  the  overweening  ambition  of 
Trance. 

With  war  the  king's  life  may  almost  be  said  to  have  terminated.  From 
boyiiuod  he  had  been  of  a  feeble  constitution,  and  long  inquietude  of 
mind  and  exposure  of  body  had  now  completely  exhausled  him.  Being 
ilirown  from  his  horse  he  fractured  his  collar-bone.  It  was  set,  but  he  in- 
<istcd  upon  being  carried  to  his  favouril(!  residence,  Kensington  pulaco. 
The  motion  of  the  carriage  disunited  tlio  fractured  bone,  imd  the  pain 
and  irritation  caused  fever  and  diarrlwia,  which,  in  spite  of  all  tliat  Bidloe 
and  other  skilful  surgeons  could  devise,  terminated  llie  king's  life,  in  the 
tinrteenth  year  of  his  reign  and  the  fifty-second  of  his  age.  Even  in  his 
last  moments  the  "ruling  passion"  was  strong  within  him,  and  only  two 
days  before  his  death  he  held  a  long  and  anxious  conference  on  the 
stale  of  Europe  with  the  earl  of  Albemarle,  who  hud  brought  some  im- 
portant intelligenee  from  Holland. 

(\)l(l  and  reserved  in  his  manners,  William  was  far  from  being  an 
amiable  num.  Hut  he  was  moderate  in  his  private  expenses,  ;;iid  so  de- 
voted to  war  and  statesmansliip  that  he  had  neither  time  nor  inclination 
for  private  vices.  As  a  sovereign  he  obtained  his  power  by  an  entire  dis- 
regard  to  the  feelings  and  interests  of  hi.t  father-in-hiw,  such  as  wo  can- 
not easily  refrain  from  taking  to  be  the  evidi'nee  of  a  bad  heart.  But  ho 
used  his  power  well,  defendnig  the  honimr  and  the  interests  of  his  sub- 
jects abroad,  and  doing  as  much  for  toleraliim  and  hberty  at  home  iks 
they  degirved— for  ho  did  all  thai  their  own  prejudices  and  Jcalousici 
would  allow  liiin. 


628 


THE  TKEASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


CHAPTlOll  LVIl. 


THE    REIGN    or    ANNG. 


A.  n  1702. — William  III.  having  survived  his  wife,  by  whom  he  left  no 
issue,  Anne,  second  daugliter  of  James  11.,  married  to  Prince  George  of 
Denmark,  ascended  the  throne  amid  a  general  satisfaction,  which  one 
might  reasonably  have  expected  to  be  greatly  checked  by  the  remem- 
brance of  her  extraordinary  and  unnatural  treatment  of  her  father  in  tlie 
darkest  hour  of  his  distress- 
Anne,  at  the  time  of  her  accession,  was  in  the  thirty-eighth  year  of  her 
age,  pleasing  in  her  person  and  manner,  domestic  in  her  habits,  and,  with 
the  dark  exception  to  which  we  have  alluded,  of  amiable  and  excellent 
character. 

One  of  the  first  acts  of  the  queen  was  to  send  a  message  to  the  house 
of  commons  announcing  her  intention  of  declaring  war  against  Franco; 
and  this  intention  was  warmly  applauded  by  the  house !  Yet  the  rc'^n 
of  this  queen  lias  been  very  truly  called  the  Augustan  period  of  literature ; 
so  true  it  is  that  the  ferocious  instincts  of  mankind  resist  even  the  soft- 
ening influence  of  letters.  For  war  at  that  period  England  h^id  none  of 
that  real  necessity,  that  impulse  of  self-preservation  as  to  either  the  pres- 
ent or  the  future,  without  which  war  is  little,  if  at  all,  better  than  whole- 
Bale  and  legitimatized  murder;  but  haired  of  the  French  natfon  contin- 
ued in  full  force,  although  the  power  of  the  French  to  be  mischievouj 
was  already  very  greatly  curtailed ;  and  the  Dutch  and  Germans  not  only 
joined  England,  but  actually  declared  war  against  France  on  the  very 
same  day.  Though  such  a  combination  of  powers  was  strong  enough  to 
portend  danger  even  m  the  wealthy  and  warlike  France,  the  French  king 
received  the  news  without  any  apparent  feeling,  except  that  of  mortifi- 
cation that  the  Dutch  should  venture  to  be  hostile  to  him ;  and  this  feel- 
ing he  expressed  by  saying,  that,  "as  for  those  pedlars,  the  Dutch,  they 
should  be  dearly  taiiglit  to  repent  their  impertinent  presumption  in  de- 
claring war  against  a  king  whose  power  they  had  formerly  felt  as  well  as 
dreaded." 

Of  the  campaigns  that  followed  this  declaration  of  war  we  shall  not 
even  attempt  to  give  the  details.  Even  where  the  historian's  pages  have 
no  limit  but  his  own  will,  there  is,  probably,  no  portion  of  his  labour  less 
useful  to  his  readers  than  his  minute  account  of  battles,  sieges,  marchiis, 
and  countermarches,  which  must  bo  unintelligible  to  all  except  military 
leaders,  without  the  aid  of  maps  so  expensive  that  few  readers  can  com- 
mand them.  Hut  in  the  present  case  such  detail^),  besides  being  beyomi 
the  limits  of  our  pages,  are  really  unnecessary.  Uleiiheim,  Kamiliies, 
Oudenard,  and  Mul|)la(|uet,  were  victories  as  useless  as  they  were  cosily 
and  decisive;  they  gratifii'd  the  splendid  ambition  and  the  sordid  avarice 
(if  Marlborough,  but  to  England  th(>y  were  entirely  unproductive  of  solid 
benefit. 

It  is  a  singular  fact,  and  one  not  very  creditable  to  the  nation,  that  while 
enormous  treasure  was  wasted  in  sanguinary  and  useless  victories,  and 
llie  most  unbounded  applause  was  bestowed  upon  the  victors,  oiu!  of  the 
most  important  and  splendid  conquests  ever  made  for  Entrland,  w.is  re- 
warded not  merely  by  neiflcct,  but  by  absolute  and  cruel  insult.  We  al 
hide  Id  the  caplmo  of  (iitiraltar  by  Sir  (ieorije  Kooke.  Sir  (Mondisliy 
Shovel  and  Sir  George  Huoke  had  been  sent  out  to  watch  a  fleet  wliicii 
the  French  were  known  to  be  eipiippiiig  at  Drest,  and  Sir  (Jeorge  ":i< 
further  ordered  to  convoy  some  lriiiis|Port-stiips  to  Barcelona,  win  re  il.i' 
prince  of  llcsse  made  an  un.siicccMsful  ati;ick.  'riie  troops  having  fiuli' I 
uii  this  point  were  rc-embarkcd,  and  the  English  cotnnianderB,  uilvkmi^  to 


turn  the  e 

raltar,  the 

nable  by  ii 

in  truth 

Spaniards  , 

'"ff  upon  a 

est  to  the  i 

prince  of  I. 

the  garrisoi 

!'"e  folJowii 

"le  defende 

tains  Hi,;|ig 

"lefortificat 

**  mine,  by  i 

wounded. 

above,  maint 

«o  fearfully 

now  landed  1 

storm.     Wlie 

Portaiice  to  1 

trade  and  sen 

'I'icd  to  annov 

loo  true,  that , 

'0   the   costly 

Ocorge  Rookt 

sliortly  aftorwi 

^'<\S  of  Spain  I 
"'"'.•'«  lie  was 
fcsides,  WHS  s 
"oi'ld  to  onlin, 
""'  emperor  of 
Slice  ssioii,  aiic 
t'  larlcs,  llieref,] 
["'"•l)it,iiit«  of  tl 
'"  "i's  detcriniil 
?"PI'I"'||  him  ul 
'"fee  of  n(Mrlv  I 
"•'^•.«'"allwl,eiJ 
f/"c/";  but  in  r 

"("'"O".    Ill,,    col 

f|'''i.s..ted  by  ,|,ol 
"'f  '  .irl  of  JV(,J 

''^"'•"  "s  Ins ,,:] 

„  ""■  <-irl  of  if 

•".It  ace      'n,      I 

it,,..    °         '  hoiij 

'"^•V-^'THses. 

!'"'■"■'•  "/"•"   if 
'"  '•"iise  „CC|,,, 

l''"iisin,|  „„.„  **  ,L 
''""'"  "tat  |„.     .J 

""""' •-•omniaiid 


THE  TIlEASUaY  OF  HISTORY. 


turn  the  expeditio:!  to  some  advantajire,  determined  upon  attacking  Gib- 
raltar, then  ill  tiie  possession  of  the  ^Spaniards,  who,  deeming  it  impreg- 
nable by  its  own  strength,  kept  it  but  inconsiderably  garrisoned. 

In  truth,  the  situation  of  Gibraltar  is  such  that  it  might  well  lead  the 
Spaniards  into  an  overweening  opinion  of  its  strength,  the  town  stand, 
iiig  upon  a  tongue  of  land  which  is-  defended  ou  every  side  but  that  nt*ar 
est  to  the  Spanish  territory  by  an  inaccessible  rock.  Upon  that  side  tho 
prince  of  Hesse  landed  eighteen  hundred  men,  and  proceeded  to  summon 
the  garrison.  The  governor  paid  no  attention  to  this  summons,  and  on 
the  following  day  the  fleet  commenced  a  warm  cannonading,  by  wh.ca 
the  defenders  of  the  south  mole  head  were  driven  from  their  post.  Cap- 
tains Hi(;ks  and  Jumper  now  led  a  numerous  party,  sword  in  hand,  int'' 
llie  fortifications,  but  they  had  scarcely  entered  when  the  Spaniards  sprung 
a  mine,  by  which  two  lieutenants  and  a  hundred  men  were  killed  and 
wounded.  The  remainder,  gallantly  headed  by  the  captains  named 
above,  maintained  their  post  in  spite  of  the  horrible  explosion  which  had 
so  fearfully  thinned  their  numbers,  and  the  rest  of  the  seamen  being 
now  landed  by  Captain  Whitaker,  the  mole  and  the  town  were  taken  by 
storm.  When  it  is  considered  that  Gibraltar  has  been  of  imnuMise  im- 
portance to  England  ever  since,  both  in  protecting  our  Mediterranean 
trade  and  serving  as  an  outfitting  and  sheltering  port  for  our  navies  des- 
tined to  amioy  an  enemy,  it  seems  in(;redible,  but  is,  unfortunately,  only 
too  true,  that  parliament  and  the  ministry,  so  lavish  of  rewards  and  praise 
to  the  costly  and  useless  services  performed  elsewhere,  refused  Sir 
George  Rooke  even  the  formal  honour  of  a  vote  of  thanks,  and  he  was 
shortly  afterwards  displacted  from  his  commiind. 

Philip  IV.,  grandson  of  Louis  XIV.  of  France,  having  been  nominat' 
king  of  Spain  by  the  will  of  the  late  king,  was  placed  upon  the  thione, 
and,  as  he  was  apparently  agreeable  to  the  majority  of  his  subjecis,  anJ, 
besides,  was  supported  by  the  power  of  France,  all  opposition  to  i^im 
would  to  ordinary  minds  have  appeared  hopeless.  But  Charles,  son  of 
the  emperor  of  Germany,  had  formerly  been  nominated  to  the  Spanish 
Slice  ssion,  and  France  herself  had  been  a  party  to  that  nomination. 
Cliarlcs,  therefore,  encouraged  by  the  promised  support  of  the  warlike 
iiiliabiiuntH  of  the  province  of  (-atalonia,  determined  to  assert  his  right. 
Ill  this  (letcmiination  he  was  strcngihened  by  Enjrland  and  Portugal,  who 
supplied  him  with  two  hundred  transports,  thirty  ships  of  -var,  and  a 
fiirce  of  ii(!arly  ten  thousand  men.  Considerable  as  tills  force  was,  it  yet 
was  small  when  compared  to  the  niigiity  resources  of  the  Spanish  king 
de  fdcio;  but  ill  the  juilgment  of  inllltary  men,  as  well  as  in  the  popular 
opiiiioii,  till!  comparative  sniallness  of  (Charles'  force  was  amply  com- 
pi'iisiited  by  tho  genius  and  romantic  bravery  of  the  commander  of  it, 
llip  c.irl  of  Peterborough,  who  gave  Charles  the  aid  of  his  vast  fortune 
as  well  as  his  personal  exertions. 

The  carl  of  Peterliorough  was  one  of  the  most  extraordinary  men  of 
that  age.  Though  very  iniu'h  dcformril  In  iiersoii,  ho  excelled  in  all  mil- 
itary exerci.ses.  At  (ifiecii  he  fmylit  as  a  vi)|iiiiteer  against  the  Moors 
in  Africa,  and  In  every  action  he  was  disliiigiiislied  for  daring  and  eoii- 
(liict.  Tlie  great  experience  he  had  a('(piir(  d,  and  llic  Intliieiice  of  his 
cluracter  iipmi  the  soldiery,  were  inncli  and  justly  relied  (Hi  to  forward 
the  cause  of  Charles.  Ills  very  first  action  justified  that  reliance,  as  he 
tiiiik  the  strong  city  of  Haiccioiia  wiili  Us  well  provided  narrls<in  of  five 
llioiisand  men.  Had  the  earl  "f  Pelerlioroiigh  now  been  lel'l  to  the  prompt- 
iii(is  of  his  own  liigh  and  chivalrous  spirit,  there  h  but  little  roiun  to 
iliMilit  that  he  would  have  achieved  still  more  brilliant  siiccesses.  lint 
ioine  petty  intngnes,  by  which  liutli  Cliarles  and  the  Kiiglisli  g((vernment 
Very  weakly  allowed  llieniselve.s  to  be  ihiiH  d,  led  to  the  recall  of  the  earl, 
wlioie  command  wui  Iransferred  to  Lord  (Jalway.    That  nobleman  soon 


'w 

wk\  1 

m 

iKi 

r  . 
■I! 

1 

1 

Pi 

t 

'i'l 

r 

i 

i 

p 


630 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


after  came  to  a  general  action  with  the  Spanish  troops,  commanded  by 
the  Duke  of  Berwick,  who  had  taken  up  a  position  on  the  phiins  near  the 
town  of  Almanza.  For  a  time  Charles'  troops,  consisting  chiefly  of 
Dutch  and  English  infantry,  seemed  greatly  to  have  the  advantage.  But 
in  the  very  heat  and  crisis  of  the  action,  the  Portuguese  horse,  which 
protected  eit^er  flank  ol  ChaJes'  line,  were  seized  with  a  sudden  and  dis- 
graceful  panic,  and  fled  in  spite  of  all  the  efforts  that  were  made  to  rally 
them.  The  ih  ke  of  Berwijk  immediately  closed  in  upon  the  exposed 
flanks,  and  Galway,  losing  men  at  every  step,  had  barely  time  to  throw 
his  army  into  a  square  and  retire  to  a  neighbouring  eminence.  Here  they 
were  comparatively  free  from  the  attacks  of  the  enemy,  but  they  were 
destitute  of  provisions  and  ignorant  of  the  country;  and  as  it  was  evi- 
dently the  design  as  it  was  in  the  power  of  the  enemy  to  starve  them 
into  submission,  the  oflicers  reluctantly  agreed  to  capitulate.  A  fine  army 
of  t°n  thousand  men  tlnis  became  prisoners  of  war;  and  Philip  was  more 
firmly  th^u  ever  seated  upon  his  throne,  not  a  voice  now  being  raised 
against  him  except  in  the  still  malcontent  province  of  Catalonia. 

We  will  now  turn  to  the  more  important  domestic  events  of  this  reign. 
Though  the  acces^^ion  of  .Tames  I.  to  the  English  throne;  had  to  a  certain 
extent  united  England  and  Scotland,  there  was  still  an  independent  Scot- 
tish parliament.  In  practice  this  was  often  inconvenient  and  always 
dangerous ;  the  votes  of  the  Scottish  parliament  often  ran  counter  to 
those  of  the  English  parliament,  and  it  required  no  remarkable  amoinit  oi 
political  wisdom  to  foresee,  that,  under  certain  circumstances,  such,  for 
instance,  as  actually  occurred  in  the  reigns  of  George  I.  and  Georsje  II., 
this  difference  might  be  fatal  by  strengthening  the  hands  of  a  pretender 
and  plunging  the  country  into  a  civil  war.  Theoretically,  the  sepante 
prtiliament  of  Scotland  was  ridiculously  indefensible.  Scotland  and  Eng- 
land being  already  united  under  one  crown,  how  absurd  it  was  that  the 
parliament  at  Westminster,  held  perfectly  competent  to  enact  laws  fur 
Cnmberland  and  Norlhnmherland,  became  legislatorially  incapable  a  few 
feet  over  the  border!  Hut  so  much  more  powerful  are  custom  and  preju- 
dice than  reason,  that  the  first  proposal  to  do  away  with  this  >it  once  ab- 
surd and  dangerous  distinction  was  received  as  though  it  had  been  a  pro- 
posal to  abridge  some  dear  and  indefeasible  liberty  of  the  Scottish  people. 
For  once  reason  prevailed  over  idle  or  interested  clamour,  and  both  par- 
liaments siinnltaneonsly  passed  an  act  appointing  atid  authorizing  com- 
missioners, named  by  the  queen,  to  draw  up  articles  for  the  parliamentary 
union  of  the  two  kingdoms — that  term  being  in  itself  an  absurdity  from 
the  very  day  of  the  death  of  Queen  Elizabeth. 

The  commissioners,  quickened  in  their  proceedings  by  the  queen's  de 
sire  for  dispatch,  speedily  jiresented  for  the  consideration  of  the  two  p  ir 
liaments  a  series  of  articles,  by  which  full  provision  was  made  for  retain- 
ing in  force  all  the  existing  laws  of  Scotland,  except  where  alteralinii 
would  manifestly  benefit  that  country;  the  courts  of  session  and  other 
courts  of  Scotlisli  judicature  were  also  preserved,  and,  in  fact,  the  main 
alteration  was  tlie  abolition  of  the  anomalous  separate  parlianiiMit  of 
Scotland,  and  giving  that  coimtry  a  representation  in  the  parliament  of 
Great  Britain  of  sixteen  peers  and  forty-five  commoners.  There  was, 
bolh  in  Scotland  and  on  the  part  of  the  tories  in  England,  consiileriblp 
opposition  made  to  these  really  wise  and  necessary  articles,  but  coiniiinn 
sense  and  the  innnence  of  the  crown  at  lem;ih  prevailed,  and  the  articles 
were  passed  into  law  by  a  great  inajority  in  both  parliaments. 

Hitherto  the  whig  niinistry,  snpporleil  by  the  powerful  iiiflnence  of  tfic 

Hiiclii'ss  of  Marlliorongh,  had  triumphed  overall  the  efforts  of  the  torie."; 

bill  the  duchess  had   been  guilty  of  two  capital  mistakes,  by  which  she 

now  found  her  infliienee  vi  ry  irreiilly  <liiniiiislied.     In  the  first  place,  fur- 

etfing  that  she  owed  her  vast  iiiflnciire  over  the  queen   far  more  to  lar 


persona, 
political  1 
those  per 
qjueen  by 
influence, 
the  persoi 
placed  it)  j 
ner  gratiti; 
and  zealoi 
was  not  01 
much  incli 
of  Mr.  Har 
favour,  and 
of  the  whig 
broke,  and 
the  persona 
Iriumph  ovc 
curred  to  di 
age  it  by  sh 
A  clergyn 
sermons  in  I 
sent  and  dii 
fluency  whic 
he  soon  beca 
appointed  to 
of  the  "giiii, 
departure  fro 
nous  and  des 
senters  was  v 
declared  to  b« 
fiUacked  by  iJ 
•Samuel  Gerrt 
theological  ct 
"C  this  .serino 
■■itTair  wouhj  h 
'"">g  of  the  a  I 
(^■oinplaiiit  of 
a  manifestly 
''ave  a  differei 
of  checking   : 
tlieir  consider; 
and  scandaloii 
of  the  house, 
'le  gloried  ill 
of  a  weak  nia 
dfiily  dragged 
nave  other  wis( 
sciirity  were 
*ui'li  a  man  as 
arlicles  of  ii„p 
agf  r  on  liehalf 
'i'he  hannle, 
of  fii-litioiis 
for  tlire.!  wee 
s<;t  aside  on  ;„ 
I  he  Lords  sat 
principal  rank, 
iHiii  the  examj. 


Ill 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY 


fi31 


tin 

pir 
't:un- 

iltioll 

main 
ji'iit  (if 

It'Ut  "f 

w.is, 

lllUltH'll 

iirtfU'' 

(if  111'' 

jell  nhf 

,.,..  f.ir- 

to  lut 


personal  complaisance  and  agreeableness  than  to  her  really  considerable 
political  talents,  she  became  so  proud  of  her  power,  that  she  relaxed  in 
those  personal  attentions  by  which  site  had  obtained  it,  and  disgusted  the 
queen  by  an  offensive  and  dictatorial  tone.  While  she  tiius  periled  lier 
influence,  she  at  the  same  time  unwittingly  raised  up  a  rival  to  herself  in 
the  person  of  a  Mrs.  Masham,  a  poor  relation  of  her  own,  whom  she 
placed  in  a  confidential  situation  about  the  queen's  person,  relying  upon 
her  gratitude,  and  expecting  to  find  her  not  a  dangerous  rival,  but  a  pliant 
and  zealous  tool.  But  Mrs.  Masham  speedily  perceived  that  the  queen 
was  not  only  personally  disgusted  by  the  hauteur  of  the  duchess,  but  also 
much  inclined  to  the  tory  opinions ;  she  consequently  took  up  the  party 
of  Mr.  Harley,  afterwards  Lord  Oxford,  who  was  personally  in  the  queen's 
favour,  and  who  was  extensively  and  constantly  intriguing  for  tlie  ruin 
of  the  whigs.  In  conjunction  with  Mr.  St.  Joiin,  afterwards  Lord  Uoling- 
broke,  and  Sir  Simon  Harcourt,  a  lawyer  of  great  abilities,  and  aided  by 
the  personal  influence  of  Mrs.  Masham,  Harley  doubted  not  that  he  should 
triumph  over  the  whigs;  and  an  event,  trilling  enough  in  itself,  soon  oc- 
curred to  develope  the  queen's  leaning  towards  the  lories,  and  to  encour- 
age it  by  showing  how  extensively  tiiat  parly  existed  among  the  people. 

A  clergyman  named  Sacheverel  had  nuii'li  distinguished  himself  by  his 
sermons  in  favour  of  high-church  prmciples  and  in  condemnation  of  dis- 
sent and  dissenters.  Imaginative,  impassioned,  and  possessed  of  that 
fluency  which  even  men  of  good  judgment  so  often  mistake  for  eloquence, 
he  soon  became  an  oracle  and  a  ftivourite  with  a  very  large  party.  Being 
appointed  to  preach  on  the  fifth  of  November,  at  St.  Paul's,  he  made  use 
of  the  "gunpov/dcr  plot"  as  an  argument  from  which  to  infer  that  any 
departure  from  the  doctrine  of  non-resistance  might  lead  to  the  most  hei- 
nous and  destructive  wickedness,  and  that  the  existing  toleration  of  dis 
senters  was  very  likely  to  be  ruinous  to  the  church  of  England,  which  he 
declared  to  be  as  ill  defended  by  its  pretended  friends,  as  it  was  fiercely 
attacked  by  its  determined  enemies.  The  lord  mayor  of  that  year,  Sir 
Samuel  Gerrard,  no  very  accurate  judge,  it  may  be  presumed,  of  either 
theologi(!al  correctness  or  literary  elegance,  allowed  the  printed  edition 
of  tills  sermon  to  be  dedicated  to  him,  And  here,  probably,  the  whole 
aflfair  would  have  ended  and  been  forgotten,  but  for  the  injudicious  med- 
dling of  the  archbishop  Dolben's  son,  who  in  his  place  in  parliament  made 
com|)laiMt  of  the  sermon  and  read  all  the  most  violent  paragraphs  of  it  j 
a  manifestly  unfair  proceeding,  inasmuch  as  the  same  passages  might 
have  a  different  effect  when  read  with  or  without  their  context.  Instead 
of  checking  Mr.  Dolben's  olFiciousness  by  voting  the  matter  unfit  for 
their  consideration,  the  committee  voted  the  passages  rea<l  to  be  seditious 
and  scandalous  libcds;  and  Sacheverel  was  ordered  to  attend  at  the  bar 
of  the  housi',  where  he  avowed  the  alledged  libels,  and  plainly  said  that 
he  gloried  in  having  published  them.  Even  this  vain  and  silly  exultation 
of  a  weak  man,  whom  an  almost  equally  weak  opponent  had  thus  sud- 
denly dragged  into  the  notoriety  he  coveted  and  would  probably  never 
have  otherwise  obtained,  did  not  instruct  the  house  that  ceniempt  and  ob- 
scurity were  llie  severest  pains  and  penalties  that  could  be  inflicted  upon 
such  a  man  as  Sacheverel ;  and  a  conimilteo  was  appointed  to  draw  up 
articles  of  iinpeactnnent  against  him,  anil  Mr.  Dolben  was  named  man- 
ager on  behalf  of  tlu!  eiMuinoiis  of  England. 

The  liariiilcris  di'olaination  of  a  vain  man  was  thus  raised  into  a  degree 
of  fictitious  iinportaiici!  which  was  really  disgraceful  to  the  people,  and 
fur  three  weeks  all  tin!  public  imsiiiess  of  both  houses  of  parliament  was 
set  asideonaccounlofairi.il  which  ought  never  to  have  commenced. 
The  Lords  sat  in  Westiniiisicr  II. ill,  whicii  was  daily  besieged  by  tlie 
principal  rank,  fashion,  and  licaiily  of  the  capital,  the  queen  herself  set- 
lui!i  the  example  by  attending  as  a  private  auditor  of  the  proceediiign. 


K.U 


THE  TREA8UKY  OF  HISTORY. 


Mr.  Uiilhpii,  whose  injudicious  meddling  Iiad  occtasioned  this  mock- 
lieroie  fmce,  was  assisted  in  his  absurd  prosecution  by  Sir  Joseph  Jekyll, 
Solii-iior-general  Kyre,  the  recorder,  Sir  Peter  King^  Genernl  Stanhope, 
Sir  Thomas  Parker,  and  Mr.  Walpole;  all  gentlemen  whose  talents  were 
degraded  by  so  silly  a  business. 

Dr.  Sacheverel  was  defended  by  Sir  Simon  Harcourt,  Mr.  Phipps,  and 
Drs.  Frii'nd,  Smrdlridge,  and  Atterbury ;  and  the  trial,  absurd  as  its  origin 
was,  produced  a  display  of  great  talent  and  eloquence.  Unfortunately 
the  silly  passion  shown  by  the  house  of  commons  communicated  itself 
to  the  people  out  of  doors.  Most  serious  riots  look  place,  in  which  the 
rabble  in  their  zeal  for  Dr.  Sacheverel  not  only  destroyed  several  dissent- 
.ng  meeting-houses,  but  also  plundered  the  houses  of  several  leading  dis- 
senters, and  the  disturbances  at  length  grew  so  alarming  that  the  queen 
published  a  proclamation  against  them.  The  magistrates  now  exerted 
themselves  with  some  vigour;  several  ruffians  were  apprehended,  and 
two  convicted  of  liigh  treason  and  sentenced  to  death,  which  sentence, 
however,  was  commuted. 

While  tlie  populace  was  rioting  without,  the  lords  were  trying  Sacli 
cverel.  Tie  was  very  aiily  defended,  and  he  personally  delivered  an  ad- 
dress, of  which  the  composition  was  so  immeasurably  superior  to  that 
of  his  sfTiiions,  that  it  was  generally  supposed  to  have  been  written  for 
him  by  Dr.  .Mierbury,  afterwards  bishop  of  Rochester;  a  man  of  great 
genius,  hut  of  a  turn  of  mind  which  fitted  him  rather  for  the  wrangling 
of  the  bar,  than  for  the  mild  teaching  and  other  important  duties  of  the 
Christian  ministry.  A  majority  of  seventeen  votes  condemned  Sach- 
everel, bill  a  protest  was  signed  by  thirty-four  peers.  Partly  in  defer- 
ence to  this  protest  and  partly  from  fear  that  severity  would  cause  dan- 
gerous renewals  of  the  riotous  (•oiuluct  of  .Sacheverel's  rabble  fnenils,  the 
sentence  was  extremely  light,  merely  prohibiting  the  doctor  from  preach- 
ing for  three  years,  and  oniering  his  alledged  libels  to  be  burned  by  the 
coiuinoii  hangman,  in  presence  of  the  lord  mayor  and  the  two  sheriffs. 

The  warmth  wliicli  the  people  in  general  had  shown  on  behalf  of  the 
doctor  showed  so  extensive  a  prevalence  of  tory  principles,  that  the 
queen's  secret  advisers  of  that  party  thought  that  they  might  now  safely 
recoiniuciid  a  dissolution  of  (larliameiit.  The  queen  complied,  and  a 
vast  majority  of  lories  was  returned  to  the  new  parliament.  Thus  con- 
vinced of  the  corri'dness  with  which  Uarley  had  long  assured  her,  thai 
she  might  safely  indulge  her  inclination  to  degrade;  tlie  whig  p.Trty,  the 
queen  proceeded  ac<'ordiiigly.  She  began  by  making  the  duke  of 
Shrewsbiii-y  lord  chamberlain,  instead  of  the  duke  of  Kent.  .Soon  after- 
wards the  carl  of  Sumlerhmd,  son-in-law  to  the  duke  of  Marlborough, 
was  deprived  of  his  olTice  of  secretary  of  state,  which  was  conferred 
upon  the  e.irl  of  Dartmouth;  the  lord  stewardship  was  taken  from  the 
duke  of  Itevonshire  :iiid  given  to  the  duke  of  liuckingham,  and  .Mr. 
Henry  St.  .lohii  was  made  secretary  in  lieu  of  Mr.  Hoyle.  Still  more 
swei'pinur  alterations  followed,  until  at  last  no  stati?  oflTice  was  filled  by  a 
wliiL',  with  the  single  exception  of  the  duke  of  Marlbonmgh. 

The  parliament  soon  afier  passed  a  resolution  warmly  approving  the 
course  pursued  by  the  (pieen,  and  exhortiiiij  her  to  discountenance  and 
resist  all  such  measures  as  those  by  which  her  royal  crown  anil  dignily 
had  ri'ceiiily  been  tlircatcncd.  From  all  this  it  was  clear  that  the 
power  of  Marlborough,  so  long  supported  by  the  court  intrigues  of 
his  duchess,  was  now  coin[ileli'ly  destroyed  by  her  imprudent  hauteur. 
His  avarice  was  well  known,  and  it  was  very  extensively  believed  that 
the  w,ir  with  France  would  long  since  have  been  brought  to  a  coiicliisioii 
if  the  pacitii'  inclinations  of  the  French  king  had  not  been  constantly  ;iii(t 
systciuatically  thwarted  by  the  iliike  for  the  furtherance  of  his  own  am. 
iiiuus  s<-hcmes.    And  though  the  *ory  ininisiry  cuntmued  the  war,  and 


the  almos 
secuted  w 
lately  idol 
thanks  of! 
Flanders,  \ 
borough  in 
to  contrast 
the  duke. 

As  t)ie  ej 

more  wearj 

mined  to  ta 

ONs  that  tin 

their  peacea 

him  in  souk 

ceived  bribe 

six  thousaiii 

tract  to  supi 

dismissed  In 

Tfie  poet  1 

returned  wit) 

arrange  the  p 

to  Holland,  w 

Dutch  the  pn 

vour  to  indue 

ed  to   the  im 

parties  were 

soon,  howevei 

France,  were  ; 

government  to 

to  a  separate 

A.  D.  nm 

St.  John,  wnf 
faultier,  to  m; 
received  by  t| 
treaty.  'l'|,e 
Piirtially  cared 
which  Englan( 
Protestants  wli 
opiuioiLs. 

A.  D.  1713.— i 
conducting  tlie 
growing   up  be 
had  for  a  long 
policy.     iJut  ih 
not  to  say  cei 
a  question  upor 
suspected  of  be 
tlicqiieens  suci 
pledged  to  the  . 
The  wliigs  wi 
disguised  enmit 
riie  queen  in  viL 
"fi  d'arcd  that  th 
creased  by  fit-r  n 
W"s  not  only  de, 
'hat  her  illness  x 
A.  n.  171 J — T 
1)111  hy  powerful 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


G33 


the  almost  entirely  tory  parliament  recommended  tiiat  it  slioiild  be  pro- 
Becuted  with  all  poyiHlc  vigonr,  the  monilication  ami  degradation  of  the 
lately  idolized  duke  were  aimed  at  by  evt-ry  possible  means.  Tiuis  the 
thanks  of  tlie  house  of  commons  were  refused  to  him  for  his  services  in 
Flanders,  wiiile  they  were  warmly  given  for  those  of  the  earl  of  Peter- 
borough in  Spain,  and  the  lord  keeper  in  delivering  them  took  occasion 
to  contrast  the  generous  nature  of  the  earl  with  the  greed  and  avarice  of 
the  duke. 

As  the  expenses  of  the  war  increased,  so  the  people  grew  more  and 
more  weary  of  their  war  mania.  The  ministry  consetpiently  now  deter- 
mined to  take  resolute  steps  for  putting  an  end  to  it ;  and  as  it  was  obvi- 
ous that  the  duke  would  use  all  tlie  influence  of  his  command  to  traverse 
their  peaceable  policy,  they  came  to  the  resolution  of  pro(;eeding  against 
him  in  some  one  of  the  many  cases  in  which  he  was  known  to  have  re- 
ceived bribes.  Clear  evidence  was  brought  forward  of  his  having  received 
six  thousand  pounds  per  annum  from  a  Jew  for  securing  him  the  con- 
tract to  supply  the  army  w.ith  bread ;  and  iipwi  this  charge  the  duke  was 
dismissed  from  all  public  em|)loyments. 

Tlie  poet  Prior  was  now  sent  on  au  embassy  to  France,  and  he  soon 
returned  with  Menagcr,  a  French  statesman,  invested  with  full  powers  to 
arrange  the  preliminaries  of  peace ;  the  ear!  of  Strafford  was  sent  back 
to  Holland,  whence  he  had  only  lately  been  recalled,  to  communicate  to  liie 
Dutch  the  preliminaries  and  the  queen's  approval  of  them,  and  to  endea- 
vour to  induce  the  Dutch,  also,  to  approve  them.  Holland  at  first  olyect- 
ed  to  the  inspection  of  the  preliminaries,  but  after  much  exertion  all 
parties  were  induced  to  consent  to  a  conference  at  Utrecht.  It  was 
soon,  however,  perceived  that  all  tlie  deputies,  save  those  of  Kngiand  and 
France,  were  averse  to  peace,  and  it  was  then  determined  by  the  queen's 
government  to  set  on  foot  a  private  negotiation  with  France  with  a  view 
to  a  separate  treaty. 

A.  D.  1713. — Karly  in  August.  1712,  Viscount  Bolingbroke,  formerly  Mr. 
St.  John,  was  sent  to  Versailles,  accompanied  by  Prior  and  liie  Abbo 
Qaultier,  to  make  arrangements  for  the  separate  treaty.  He  was  well 
received  by  the  French  court,  and  very  soon  adjusted  the  ternis  of  the 
treaty.  The  interests  of  all  the  powers  of  Europe  were  well  and  im- 
partially cared  for ;  but  the  noblest  article  of  the  treaty  was  that  by 
which  Rngland  insisted  upon  the  liberation  of  the  niunerous  French 
protcstants  who  were  confined  in  prisons  and  galleys  for  their  religious 
opinions. 

A.  n.  1713.— But  while  the  ministry  was  thus  ably  and  triumpiiantly 
conducting  the  foreign  affairs  of  the  nation,  serious  dissensions  were 
growing  up  between  Harley  and  Uolingbroke.  These  able  statesmen 
had  for  a  long  time  been  most  cordial  in  tlicir  agreement  on  all  points  of 
policy.  Hut  the  daily  increasing  illness  of  the  queen,  an  .  the  proi)ability, 
not  to  say  certainly,  that  she  would  not  long  survive,  brought  forward 
a  question  upon  which  tiiey  widely  dilTored.  Uolingbroke,  who  had  been 
suspected  of  being  a  strong  Jacobite,  was  for  bringmg  in  the  pretender  as 
the  queens  successor  <  while  Harley,  now  Lord  Oxford,  was  as  strongly 
pledged  to  the  Hanoverian  succession. 

Tiu!  wliigs  watched  with  delight  and  exultation  the  growth  of  the  ill- 
disguised  enmity  between  these  two  great  supports  of  the  tory  iiarly. 
The  queen  in  vain  endeavoured  to  compose  their  dilTc^rencHs,  and  it  is  to 
befcnr;)d  that  the  sufferings  of  the  last  months  of  her  life  was  much  in- 
creased by  her  anxieties  on  this  account.  Sin;  daily  grew  weaker,  and 
was  not  only  despaired  of  by  her  physicians,  but  was  herself  conscious 
that  her  illness  would  have  a  fatal  termination. 

A.  D.  171t.— The  queen  at  Iciigili  sunk  into  a  slate  of  extreme  lethargv, 
bui  by  powerful  medicines  was  .so  far  recovered  that  she  was  able  to  walk 


634 


:hg  theasury  of  history. 


about  her  chamber.  On  the  thirtieth  of  July  she  rose  as  early  as  eight 
o'clock.  For  some  tiuie  she  walked  about,  leaning  upon  the  arm  of  one 
of  her  ladies,  when  she  was  seized  with  a  fit  of  apoplexy,  from  which  no 
medicines  could  relieve  her,  and  she  expired  on  the  following  morning,  in 
the  forty-ninth  year  of  her  age  and  the  thirteenth  of  her  reign. 

Though  Anne  possessed  no  very  brilliant  talents,  her  reign  was  in  the 
main  prosperous  and  wise,  and  was  wholly  free  from  all  approach  to 
tyranny  or  cruelty.  Literature  and  the  arts  flourished  exceedingly  under 
her;  Pope,  Swift,  Addison,  Bolingbroke,  and  a  perfect  galaxy  of  lesser 
stars,  very  justly  obtain  for  this  reign  the  proud  title  of  the  Augustan  age 
of  England. 


CHAPTER  LVIII. 


THE     REIGN    OF    GEORGE 


A.  D.  1714. — Anne  having  Uft  no  issue,  by  the  act  of  succession  the  En- 
glish crown  devolved  upon  George,  son  of  the  first  elector  of  Brunswick, 
and  the  princess  Sophia,  grand-daughter  of  James  I. 

The  new  king  was  now  in  his  fifty-fourth  year,  and  he  bore  the  character 
of  being  a  man  of  solid  ability,  though  entirely  destitute  of  all  shining 
talents,  and  of  even  the  appearance  of  any  attachment  to  literature  or  the 
arts.  Direct,  tenacious  of  his  purpose,  and  accustomed  all  his  life  to  ap- 
plication to  business,  great  hopes  were  entertained  that  his  accession 
would,  at  the  least,  secure  order  and  regularity  in  the  conduct  of  public 
affairs.  His  own  declaration  was,  "  My  maxim  is  to  do  justice,  to  fear  no 
man,  and  never  to  abandon  my  friends." 

As  it  was  feared  that  the  intriguing  genius  of  Bolingbroke  might  have 
m.ade  some  arrangements  for  an  attempt  on  the  throne  on  the  part  of  the 
pretender,  the  friends  of  George  I.  had  procured  from  him,  as  soon  as  it 
was  tolerably  certain  that  Anne  could  not  survive,  an  instrument  by 
which  the  niost  zealous  and  influential  friends  to  his  succession  were 
added  lo  certain  great  ofliccrs,  as  lords  justices,  or  a  commission  of 
regency  to  govern  the  kingdom  until  tlie  king  should  arrive. 

As  soon  as  the  queen  expired,  the  regency  caused  George  I.  to  be  pro- 
claimed in  *11  the  usual  places,  the  important  garrison  of  Portsmouth 
was  reinfor  ,ed,  and  measures  were  taken  at  all  the  other  ports  and  garri- 
sons to  ded'at  any  attempts  at  invasion.  The  vii^our  and  vigilance  thus 
displayed  prevented  any  outbreak  or  disturbance,  if  any  such  had  ever 
been  actually  contemplated  ;  and  the  regency  ftlt  confident  enough  to 
deprive  Bolingbroke  of  his  oflice  of  secretary  of  state,  with  every  cir- 
cumstance of  insult.  Ilis  oflice  was  given  to  the  celebrated  poet  and 
essayist  Addison,  of  whom  a  curious  anecdote  is  related,  very  character- 
istic of  the  inunense  difference  between  the  qualities  of  a  scliolar  and 
those  of  a  man  of  business.  Mr.  Secretary  Addison,  renowned  as  a 
classical  and  facile  writer,  was  very  naturally  called  upon  to  write  tlia 
dispatcii  to  amiouncc  the  death  of  Queen  Anne  to  her  successor  ;  and  so 
much  was  he  embarrassed  by  his  anxiety  to  find  fitting  terms,  that  liia 
fellow-councillors  grew  impatient,  and  called  upon  the  clerk  to  draw  mil 
the  dispatch,  which  he  did  in  a  few  dry  business-like  lines,  and  ever  afler 
boasted  himself  a  readier  writer  than  the  facile  and  elegant  writer  of  the 
delightful  papers  in  the  Spectator! 

On  landing  at  Greenwich,  (leorgc  I.  was  received  by  the  assemblnd 
members  of  the  regency,  attenddl  by  the  life  guards  under  the  duke  o( 
Northinnberland.  iFe  immediately  retired  to  his  chamber,  where  he  Rave 
audience  to  those  who  had  been  zealous  for  his  succession.  From  tiiis 
moment  the  knig  showed  a  determined  partiality  to  the  whigs,  whici 


gave  gre 
by  the  I 
conferred 
utter  con 
The  gr, 
that  party 
state  of  d 
tendency 
whigs !" 

Undeter 

the  whig  p 

tiality  of  t 

cations  of 

late  niinisti 

utation  of 

duct  of  the 

kill/?  would 

termination 

of  pleasing 

porters  of  t 

honest  enoi 

peared  to  be 

Following 

Jiamentary  ( 

charges  agai 

as  chairman 

house,  and  m 

Harley;  and 

diately  taken 

affani  rose  tj 

house  eoidd  i 

*'  The  wori 

now  impeaci 

master;  I  iin 

and  other  crii 

Lord  Oxfor 

had  seemed  ti 

greatness. 

Kven  ainon 
the  extreme  v 
"istance,  poin 
Oxford,  liai,(l> 
all  men,  and 
question  did 
not  patiently 
Walpole,  in'ii 
gentleman  tov^ 
as  Sir  Joseph 
the  charge  did 
•^l'"  human 
sneered  down, 
to  im|»eacli  Le 
'"at  he  siioulil 
point  a  (lebate 
•ari  hnuseir,  w 
orders  of  the 
l<,"o»vii  ;,nv,  lie 
"''I  nian.     Me 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HIS  lORY. 


63.5 


like  ol 

jj:ive 

111  this 

Twbicl 


gave  great  and  general  disgust ;  a  feeling  that  was  still  farther  increaseri 
by  the  headlong  haste  with  whicli  the  whig  ministers  and  favourites 
conferred  all  offices  of  trust  and  emolument  upon  their  own  partizans,  in 
utter  contempt  of  tiie  merits  and  claims  of  those  whom  they  ousted. 

The  greediness  of  the  whigs,  and  the  pertinacious  partiality  shown  to 
that  party  by  the  king,  threw  f.  great  part  of  the  nation  into  a  dangerous 
state  of  discontent,  and  there  arose  a  general  cry,  accompanied  by  much 
tendency  to  actual  rioting,  of  "  Sacheverel  for  ever,  and  down  with  the 
whigs!" 

Undeterred  by  the  increasing  number  and  loudness  of  the  malcontents, 
the  whig  party,  confident  in  their  parliamentary  strength  and  in  the  par- 
tiality of  the  icing,  commenced  the  business  of  the  session  by  giving  indi- 
cations of  tiieir  intention  to  proceed  to  the  utmost  extremes  against  the 
late  ministers.  In  the  house  of  lords  they  affected  to  believe  that  the  rep- 
utation of  England  was  much  lowered  on  the  continent  by  the  con- 
duct of  the  late  ministers,  and  professed  hopes  that  the  wisdom  of  the 
king  would  repair  that  evil ;  and  in  the  lower  house  they  stated  their  de- 
termination to  punish  the  alledged  abettors  of  the  pretender;  a  sure  way 
of  pleasing  the  king,  and  an  artful  mode  of  confounding  together  the  sup- 
porters of  the  pretender,  with  loyal  subjects  of  George  I.  who  yet  were 
honest  enough  to  oppose  so  much  of  liis  system  of  government  as  ap- 
peared to  be  injurious  or  dangerous  to  the  country  and  to  himself. 

Following  up  the  course  thus  indicated,  the  ministers  appointed  a  par 
lianientary  committee  of  twenty  persons,  to  examine  papers  and  find 
charges  against  the  late  ministry ;  and  shortly  afterwards  Mr.  Walpole, 
as  ciiairman  of  this  committee,  stated  that  a  report  was  ready  for  the 
house,  and  moved  for  the  committal  of  Mr.  Matthew  Prior  and  Mr.  Thomas 
Harley  ;  and  those  members,  being  present  in  their  places,  were  imme- 
diately taken  into  custody  by  the  sergeant  at  arms.  Mr.  Walpole  then 
again  rose  to  impeach  Lord  Bolingbroke  of  high  treason.  Before  the 
house  could  recover  from  its  astonishment.  Lord  Coningsby  rose  and  said, 

"  Tiie  worthy  chairman  of  the  committee  has  impeaclied  the  hand,  I 
now  impeach  tiie  head ;  he  has  impeached  the  scholar,  1  impeach  the 
master;  I  imp(!acli  Robert,  earl  of  Oxford  and  Mortimer,  of  high  treason 
and  other  crimes  and  misdemeanors." 

Lord  Oxford  was  now  completely  abandoned  by  nearly  all  those  wlio 
had  seemed  to  be  so  much  attached  to  him ;  a  too  common  fate  of  fallen 
greatness. 

Even  among  the  whigs,  however,  there  were  some  who  disapproved  of 
the  extreme  violeMice  of  tlie  present  proceedings.  Sir  Joseph  Jekyl,  for 
instance,  pointing  out  an  overstrained  article  that  was  charged  against 
Oxford,  handsomely  said  tiiat  it  was  his  way  to  mete  out  equal  justice  to 
all  men,  and  that  as  a  lawyer  he  felt  bound  to  say  that  the  article  in 
question  did  not  aniounl  to  treason.  But  the  heads  of  the  faction  would 
not  patiently  listen  to  such  moderate  and  honourable  language;  and  Mr. 
Walpole,  in'a  tone  and  with  a  manner  very  improper  to  be  used  by  one 
gentleman  towards  another,  replied,  that  many  members  quite  as  honest 
as  Sir  Joseph,  and  better  lawyers  than  he,  were  perfectly  satisfied  that 
the  charge  did  amount  to  treason. 

Tiie  humane  and  honest  opposition  of  Sir  Joseph  Jekyl  being  thus 
sneered  down,  Lord  Coningsby  and  the  other  managing  whigs  proceeded 
to  impeacii  Lord  Oxford  at  the  bar  of  the  house  of  lords,  and  to  demand 
that  lie  slimild  immediately  b°!  committed  to  custody.  Upon  this  latter 
point  a  debate  arose  in  tlie  house  of  lords,  which  was  terminated  by  the 
eari  himself,  who  said  that  he  had  all  along  acted  upon  the  iinnicdiale 
itrder.s  of  liie  late  queen,  and  that,  having  never  offended  ai;aiiist_  any 
known  law,  he  was  wholly  unconcerned  aliout  the  life  of  an  insignificant 
old  man.     lie  was  consequently  committed  to  the  Tower   Uioiigh  the 


I 


636 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


celebrated  Dr.  Mead  positively  certified  that  his  oommittal  would  endan- 
ijer  his  life.  The  duke  of  Ormond  aud  Lord  Boliiigbroke,  against  whom 
the  proceedings  were  no  less  vindictively  carried  on,  fled  to  tlie  continent, 
upon  which  the  earl  marshal  of  England  was  ordered  to  erase  their  names 
and  arms  from  the  peerage  list,  and  all  their  possessions  in  England  were 
declared  forfeit  to  the  crown. 

A.  D.  1715.— The  pretender,  who  had  numerous  friends  in  England  and 
Scotland,  looked  with  great  complacency  upon  these  violent  proceedings, 
judging  tliat  the  discontent  they  caused  could  not  fail  to  forward  his 
designs  upon  the  crown;  and  while  tiie  king  was  intent  upon  alienating 
the  alfections  of  a  large  portion  of  his  people  in  order  to  support  a  greedy 
faction,  an  actual  rebellion  iiroke  out.  Two  vessels,  with  arms,  ammu- 
nition, and  officers,  were  sent  from  Franee  to  the  coast  of  Scotland,  and 
the  pretender  promised  that  he  would  speedily  follow  witli  a  greater  force. 
The  carl  of  !\lar  was  consequently  induced  to  assemble  his  friends  and 
vassals  to  the  number  of  three  hundred,  and  to  proidaim  the  pretender- 
As  the  cause  was  popular,  anil  no  opportunity  was  lost  of  magnifying 
the  force  with  which  that  princ;e  was  to  arrive  in  Scotland,  Alar  soon 
found  himself  at  the  heail  of  an  army  of  ten  thousand  men.  But  while 
he  was  completing  his  preparations  to  march  southward,  the  duke  of 
Argyle  at  the  head  of  only  about  six  thousand  men  attacked  him  near 
Dumblain,  and  though  at  the  close  of  the  engagement  both  parties  left  the 
field,  yet  the  loss  inflicted  upon  Mar  was  so  great  as  virtually  to  amount 
to  defeat,  and  the  injury  thus  done  to  the  cause  of  the  pretender  was  in- 
creased by  the  conduct  of  Simon,  Lord  Lovat.  That  restless  and 
thoroughly  unprincipled  man  held  the  castle  of  Inverness  for  the  preten- 
der, to  whose  forces  it  would  at  all  times  have  served  as  a  most  impor- 
tant point  (Tappui ;  but  Lord  Lovat,  changing  with  the  changed  fortune  of 
his  party,  now  basely  surrendered  the  castle  to  the  king. 

The  kngiish  ambassador  in  France,  the  accomplished  and  energetic 
Lord  Stair,  had  so  well  performed  his  duty  to  the  king,  that  he  was  able 
to  send  home  the  most  timely  and  exact  information  of  the  designs  of 
the  pretender;  and  just  as  the  rebellion  was  about  to  break  out  in  Eng- 
land, several  of  the  leading  malcontents  wctc  seized  by  the  ministry  and 
committed  to  (dose  custody.  For  one  of  these.  Sir  William  VVyndham, 
his  father-in-law,  the  duke  of  Somerset,  offered  to  become  security ;  but 
even  that  wealthy  and  powerful  nobleman  was  refu.sed.  The  rebellion 
was  thus  confined,  in  the  west  of  England,  to  a  few  feeble  and  unconnec- 
ted outbreaks  ;  and  at  Oxford,  where  it  was  known  that  many  young  men 
of  family  were  among  the  malcontents,  all  attempt  was  prevented  by  the 
spirited  conduct  of  Major-general  Pepper,  who  occupied  the  city  with  his 
troops,  and  posilivtdy  promised  to  put  to  death  any  student,  no  matter 
what  his  rank  or  connections,  who  should  dare  to  appear  beyond  the 
limits  of  his  own  college. 

In  the  niirtii  of  England  the  spirits  of  the  malcontents  were  kept  up,  in 
spite  of  all  the  ill  success  that  had  hitherto  attended  their  cause,  by  their 
reliance  upon  aid  from  the  pretender  in  person.  The  earl  of  Derwent- 
water  and  iVIr.  Foster  raised  a  considerable  force,  and  being  joined  by 
some  volunteers  from  the  Scottish  border,  made  an  attempt  to  seize  New- 
castle, but  the  gates  were  shut  against  them,  aud,  having  no  battering 
train,  they  retired  to  Hexham,  whence,  by  way  of  Kendal  and  Lan- 
caster, they  proceeded  to  Preston.  Here  they  were  surrounded  by  nearly 
eight  thousand  men,  luider  generals  (^arpenler  and  Wills.  Some  fighting 
ensued,  but  the  cause  of  the  rebels  was  now  so  evidently  hopeless,  tliav 
Mr.  Foster  sent  Colonel  Oxburgh,  of  the  royal  army,  who  had  been  taken 
prisoner,  with  ()roposals  for  a  capitulation.  General  Wills,  however,  de- 
ilincd  to  hear  of  tluun,  except  as  armed  rebels,  to  whom  he  could  show 
no  other  favour  than  to  leave  them  tu  the  disposal  of  gcvcrnment,  instead 


of  givinj 

nieii  wer 

officers  M 

the  other 

men  thro 

Had  till 

marched 

would  pn 

ance  in  Si 

mon-sense 

attempt  ai 

cisely  that 

moment  u 

sacrificed  ; 

IJunkirk,  a 

tliis  adequa 

proceeded 

car]  of  Mar 

He  now  pic 

jiis  rights  ai 

intention  of 

proclaimed 

Kven  the  vu 

hopelessness 

nim,"  and  sti 

who  had  sac 

means  for  a  i 

at  Montrose- 

'cvity,  joined 

most  firmly  h 

he  was  unabi 

needs  have  ir 

The  goveri; 

rebellion ;  it  i 

who  had  beei 

"f  more  than 

twenty  ofRcei 

disgusting  ac 

I>erwentwatei 
and  Widdn„„ 

Mackintosli,  a 
,  Nithisdale, 
'roni  prison  a 
executed  upon 
which  made  tl 
"uring  all  t 
iinnoticed  and 
'teraily  disgus. 
to  be  allowed 
••ehellion,  the  \. 
lively  venial,  e 
the  peers  in  VV( 
the  lords  and  c- 
A.  D.  1721 1 

ofa  fleet  under 
attempt  on  K,), 

disappointed  by 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


t!37 


of  giving  tiiem  over  to  instant  slaughter  by  his  troops.  Thi;  unhappy 
men  were  consequently  ohii^eil  to  surrender  at  discretion  ;  some  of  their 
officers  who  had  deserted  from  the  royal  army  were  immediately  shot, 
the  other  officers  and  gentlemen  were  sent  to  London,  and  the  common 
men  thrown  into  the  various  prisons  of  Lancashire  and  Cheshire. 

Had  the  pretender  promptly  joined  the  earl  of  Mar,  and,  joined  by  him, 
marched  to  effect  a  junction  with  the  earl  of  Derwentwater,  the  event 
would  probably  have  been  very  different;  but  having  delayed  his  appear- 
ance in  Scotland  until  his  friends  were  thus  overpowered  in  detail,  com- 
mon-sense  should  have  dictated  to  him  the  folly  of  his  carrying  his 
attempt  any  farther  for  the  present.  But,  alas  !  common-sense  was  pre- 
cisely that  quality  which  the  Stuarts  were  least  gifted  with!  At  llie  very 
moment  when  the  prisons  of  England  were  filled  with  his  ill-fated  and 
sacrificed  adherents,  he  hurried  through  France  in  disguise,  embarked  at 
Dunkirk,  and  landed  in  Scotland  with  a  train  of  six  gentlemen  !  With 
this  adequate  force  for  the  conquest  of  a  great  and  powerful  kingdom,  he 
proceeded  through  Aberdeen  to  Feteresso,  where  he  was  joined  by  the 
earl  of  Mar  and  somewhat  less  than  two-score  other  nobles  and  g(!Utry. 
He  now  proceeded  to  Dundee,  caused  a  frothy  and  useless  declaration  of 
his  rights  and  intentions  to  be  circulated,  and  then  went  to  Sfone  with  the 
intention  of  adding  the  folly  of  being  crowned  there  to  the  folly  of  being 
proclaimed  in  all  other  places  of  note  through  which  he  had  passed. 
Even  the  vulgar  and  the  ignorant  were  by  this  time  convinced  of  the  utter 
hopelessness  of  his  cause  ;  and  as  he  found  that  "  few  cried  God  bless 
him,"  and  still  fewer  joined  his  standard,  he  quite  coolly  told  his  friends — 
who  had  sacrificed  everything  for  him — that  he  had  not  the  necessary 
means  for  a  campaign,  and  then  embarked,  with  his  personal  attendants, 
at  Montrose— leaving  his  dupes  to  their  fate.  Such  baseness,  such  boyish 
levit}',  joined  to  such  cold  selfishness,  ought  to  have  made  even  those  who 
most  firmly  believed  in  the  abstract  rights  of  the  pretender,  rejoice  that 
he  was  unable  to  obtain  power  in  England;  since  so  heartless  a  man  must 
needs  have  made  a  cruel  monarch. 

The  government  had  acted  with  vigour  and  ability  in  suppressing  the 
rebellion ;  it  now  acted  with  stern  unsparing  severity  in  pmushing  those 
who  had  been  concerned  in  it.  The  mere  herd  of  rebels,  to  the  number 
of  more  than  a  thousand,  were  transported  to  the  colonies.  Two-and- 
twenty  officers  were  executed  at  Preston,  and  five  at  Tyburn,  with  all  the 
disgusting  accompaniments  of  drawing  and  qtiartering.  The  earls  of 
Derwentwater,  Nithisdalc,  and  Carnwarth,  and  the  lords  Kenmuir,  Nairne, 
and  Widdrington  were  sentenced  to  death,  as  were  Mr.  Foster,  Mr. 
Mackintosh,  and  about  twenty  other  leading  men. 

Nitliisdale,  Foster,  and  Mackintosh  were  fortunate  enough  to  escape 
from  prison  and  reach  the  continent;  Derwentwater  and  Kenmuir  were 
executed  upon  Tower-hill,  and  met  their  fate  with  a  decent  intrepidity, 
which  made  the  spectators  forget  their  crime. 

During  all  this  time  the  earl  of  Oxford  had  remained  in  the  Towei, 
unnoticed  and  almost  forgotten.  When  the  numerous  executions  had 
literally  disgusted  men  with  the  sad  spectacle  of  bloodshed  he  petitioned 
to  be  allowed  to  take  his  trial;  rightly  judging  that,  as  compared  to  actual 
rebellion,  the  worst  that  was  charged  against  him  would  seem  compara- 
tively venial,  even  to  his  enemies.  He  was  aciiordiugly  arraigned  before 
the  peers  in  Westminster-hall,  and  some  technical  dispute  arising  between 
the  lords  and  commons,  the  lords  voted  that  he  should  be  set  at  liberty. 

A.  D.  1721.— Passing  over,  as  of  no  importance,  the  sailing  from  Spain 
of  a  fleet  under  the  duke  of  Ormond,  for  the  purpose  of  making  a  new 
attempt  on  England  ;  the  pretender's  hopes  fmrn  that  expedition  being 
disappointed  by  a  slornj  which  entirely  disabled  the  fleet  off  Cape  Fim'*- 


638 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTOUY. 


terre  ;  we  come  to  a  domestic  event  which  originalcil  in  liiis  year  and 
reduced  thousands  of  people  from  affluence  to  bcgirary. 

The  South  Sea  company,  to  which  government  was  greatly  indebted, 
was  in  the  habit  of  contenting  itself  with  five  per  cent,  inlorosl,  on  ac- 
count of  the  largeness  of  its  claim,  instead  of  six  per  cent.,  winch  the 
government  paid  to  all  the  other  public  companies  to  whi(!li  it  was  in 
debted.,  A  scrivener,  named  Hlount.of  more  ability  than  principle,  av  lucd 
himself  of  this  state  of  things  to  commence  a  deep  and  destructive  pa.i  u( 
the  scheme.  It  was  quite  obviously  to  the  advantage  of  the  nation  ic  u.^y 
five  rather  than  six  per  cent,  upon  all  Its  debts,  as  wcM  as  i!,iMn  Die  one 
considerable  debt  that  was  due  to  the  South  Sea  com,)any  m',  on  th( 
other  hand,  it  was  well  worth  the  while  of  that  wealthy  >"ii|ji|);:  ly  to  add 
as  much  as  possible  to  the  already  large  amount  \ipon  which  live  per  cent 
interest  was  punctually  paid  by  the  government,  lilonnt  p\it  tlic  case  so 
plausibly  on  the  part  of  the  company,  and  so  skilfully  throw  in  the  addi- 
tional inducement  to  the  government  of  a  redu<'tion  of  the  interest  from 
five  to  four  per  cent,  at  the  end  of  six  years,  that  the  scluime  seemed  to 
be  an  actual  reduction  of  one-uixth  of  the  whole  national  iiurden  inunedi- 
ately,  and  a  reduction  of  a  third  at  the  end  of  six  years.  ICviTy  eniujur- 
agement  and  sanction  were  consequently  given  to  llio  plan  I)y  wliii-h  the 
South  Sea  company  was  to  buy  up  the  claims  of  all  other  creditors  of  the 
government.  Hitherto  only  the  fair  side  of  the  sclieino  had  been  display- 
ed; now  came  the  important  question,  wliere  was  the  South  Scu  com- 
pany, wealthy  as  it  might  be,  to  find  the  vast  sum  of  nioiuiy  n(!(!(!8sftry  for 
renderiii'f  ii.  the  sole  government  creditor?  Blount  was  reaily  with  his 
reply,  jiy  a  second  part  of  his  scheme  he  proposed  to  enricth  the  nation 
enormously  by  opening  up  a  new,  vast,  and  safe  tra<Ie  to  llio  South  Seas ; 
and  daming  prospectuses  invited  the  public  to  exciiange  governnuMil  stock 
for  equal  nominal  amounts  in  the  South  Sea  stocks — said  to  be  vastly 
more  valuable.  The  cunning  of  Blount  and  his  fello\v-ilire(!tor8  was  so 
well  aided  by  the  cupidity  of  the  public,  that  when  the  hooks  were  opened 
for  this  notable  transfer  there  was  a  positive  struggle  for  the  precedence  ; 
a  consequent  run  took  place  for  South  Sea  sliari.'s,  which  in  a  few  days 
were  sold  at  more  than  double  their  original  value,  and  ere  tlie  end  of  the 
delusion,  which  was  kept  up  for  several  months,  the  shares  met  with  a 
ready  sale  at  ten  times  their  original  cost!  When  wo  relU'ct  that  a  thou- 
sand pounds  thus  produced  ten  thousand  to  the  speculator,  and  a  hundred 
thousand  a  million,  we  may  judge  how  much  excitemtsnt  and  (•ag(TneHfi 
prevailed.  Enormous  fortunes,  of  course,  were  made  in  the  transfer  and 
re-transfer  of  shares,  and  to  thosn  who  sold  out  while  the  (UdiiMion  was 
still  at  iis  height  the  scheme  w:  :,  vt  ry  El  Dorado.  But  the  gniat  ma- 
jority oi'  :lie  supposed  fortunate  po:.':-' sb'^  -i  of  South  Sea  stock  were  f  r 
too  well  pleased  with  their  pro^jiecls  to  ,  .  ^.  ',h  them,  >  y  imagiiicii 
it  difficult  to  put  a  sufficient  vai  .  lir  ■;•.  ine  ■  ;irobabilities  (»l  vast  and  ev(,T- 
increasing  interest!  Among  this  number  was  the  poet  rtay,  who,  though 
a  scholar  and  a  wit,  was,  nevertheless,  in  the  actual  business  of  life,  as 
simple  as  a  child.  Ho  was  strongly  advised  by  his  friends  to  sell  some 
stock  which  had  been  presented  to  him,  and  thus,  while  the  stock  was  at 
its  highest  value,  secure  himself  a  competeneo  for  life.  But  no !  like  lliou- 
sands  more,  he  persisted  in  holding  this  precious  stock  j  and  all  who  did 
so  found  their  scrip  mere  waste  paper  when  the  company  was  called  upon 
to  pay  the  very  first  vast  and  very  genuine  demand  out  u(  ))ronts  wlncli 
were  represented  as  being  etjually  vast,  but  whicdi  had  the  slight  defect  o( 
being  wholly  imaginary.  Thousands  upon  thousands  of  fMinilies  were 
by  this  artful  and  most  vile  scheme  reduced  to  (iomplelo  ruin,  and  nothing 
that  has  occurred  in  our  own  time — replete  as  it  is  with  biibliles  ami 
swiiulling  directors — is  calculated  to  give  us  any  ade(piato  idea  of  the 
suffering,  the  rage,  and  the  dismay  that  were  felt  in  all  parts  of  the  ki'i;;- 


dom.     1 

disastroL 

cupidity  J 

of  the  iir 

as  far  as 

variety  of 

lions  of  p 

'"to  the  h 

"ot  positi 

thousands 

affluent,  w 

usefully  ea 

So  extei 

"lilt  the  fi 

bring  forw; 

there  was  s 

afl^jirs  Wert 

ministry  go 

ordered  the 

lords  Nortl 

several  othi 

sufllcieiit  lei 

Chester  and 

"f  the  others 

bishop,  who 

it  Tyburn. 

Scarcely  le 
apinst  the  e, 
' 'le  house  of 
and  a  most  id 
twenty  days, 
until  he  shoul 
.">  less  than  ti 
oy.  niasniiich 
Pnices  as  hat 
Sf'enis  but  a  > 
onffht  to  have 
"y, ".  especial 
exif"  nee  to  r 
'"^t  make  a  w| 
"'■  '"o  heavy; 

•"'"■   »  llicfi   j(  ,y 

^-  o.  1737  __ 
s'lovvu  at  least 
";•"■  l>een  abo- 
''•'ctoraic,  he 
'"■■'"h  that  gl^^ 
"'"'  'I'e  subse( 
pcrfiiriiipd  by  t, 
<'^nab„^  |,f,,J 

'fof  his  han,;' 
"'  '  !'•  sur<;eoii 
""  '"''e  folhnvin 
"»  'he  sixtv-eig 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTOHY. 


en 


doni.  The  goverinnpiit  did  all  tliat  it  consislciitly  cmikl  to  rcmrdy  the 
disastrous  effects  prodiiciul  by  individual  knavery  m  inig  upon  ;(!ueral 
cupidity  and  credulity.  The  cliiel  managers  of  the  seiieme  were  icprived 
of  the  immense  property  they  had  unfairly  acquired  by  it,  and  redresses 
as  far  as  possible  afforded  to  the  sufferr.Ts;  but  in  tiie  almost  infinite 
variety  of  transfers  which  had  taken  place,  it  inevitably  follow,  il  that  mil- 
lions of  property  passed  from  the  hands  of  those  who  speculated  foolishly 
into  the  liands  of  those  who  were  more  sagacious  and  more  wary,  though 
not  positively  involved  iu  the  jruilt  of  the  deception ;  and  for  mai\y  years 
thousands  had  to  toil  for  bread  who  but  for  this  scheme  would  have  been 
affluent,  while  thousands  more  enjoyed  wealth  not  a  jot  more  henestly  or 
usefully  earned  than  the  gains  of  the  veriest  gambler. 

So  extensive  were  the  sufferings  and  confusion  created  by  this  event, 
that  the  friends  of  the  pretender  deemed  the  crisis  a  tit  one  at  which  to 
brinjj  forward  his  pretensions  again.  But,  as  was  usual  with  'lat  party, 
there  was  so  much  dissension  among  the  Icadin!^  malcontent-,  and  their 
affairs  were  so  clumsily  conducted  on  the  part  of  some  of  thtii,  tiiat  the 
ministry  got  intelligence  of  the  designs  which  were  on  foot,  and  -uddenly 
ordered  the  apprehension  of  the  duke  of  Norfolk,  the  earl  of  Orr.ry,  the 
lords  North  and  Grey,  Atterbury,  bishop  of  Rochester,  Mr.  Lii;  cr,  and 
several  other  persons  of  less  note.  In  the  investigation  that  fu  lowed, 
sufficient  legal  evidence  could  be  found  only  against  the  bishop  if  Ro- 
chester and  Mr.  Layer,  though  there  could  be  no  moral  doulit  of  the  guilt 
of  the  others.  All,  therefore,  were  discharged  out  of  custody  except  the 
bishop,  who  was  banished  the  kingdom,  and  Mr.  Layer,  who  was  ha  iged 
at  Tyburn. 

.Scarcely  less  sensation  was  caused  by  an  accusation  which  was  brought 
against  the  earl  of  Macclesfield,  of  having  sold  certain  places  in  chancery 
Tiie  house  of  commons  impeached  him  at  the  bar  of  tiie  house  of  lor' Is, 
and  a  most  interesting  and  well  contested  trial  ensued,  which  lasted  lor 
twenty  days.  The  earl  was  convicted,  and  sentenced  to  be  imprisoned 
until  he  should  pay  a  fine  of  thirty  thousand  pounds.  He  paid  tiu;  money 
in  less  than  two  months ;  and  his  friends  deemed  him  very  hardly  done 
by,  inasmuch  as  it  was  proved  on  !he  trial  that  he  had  only  sold  such 
places  as  had  been  sold  by  former  chancellors.  To  us,  however,  this 
seems  but  a  very  slender  excuse  for  the  oftence;  as  a  judge  in  ecjuity  he 
ought  to  have  put  a  stop  to  so  dangerous  a  practice  and  not  have  profited 
by  it.  especially  as  the  honourable  precedent  of  Chancellor  Bacon  was  in 
exis'  nee  to  remind  him  that  in  chancery  as  elsewhere,  "two  blacks  do 
not  make  a  white."  As  to  the  fine,  large  as  the  sum  seems,  it  was  not  at 
all  too  heavy;  no  small  portion  of  it  having  been  the  produce  of  the  offence 
for  whi<;h  it  was  imposed. 

A.  D.  1727. — From  the  very  commencement  of  his  reign  George  I.  had 
shown  at  least  as  much  anxiety  for  Hanover  as  for  Kngland,  and  having 
now  been  above  two  years  prevented  by  various  iiauses  from  visiting  the 
ili'ctnratc,  he  appointed  a  regency  and  set  out  for  Hanover  in  a  .state  of 
health  that  gave  no  reason  to  fear  any  ill  result.  The  voyage  to  Holland 
and  the  subsequent  journey  to  within  a  few  leagues  of  Osnaburg,  were 
performed  by  tlie  king  in  his  usual  liealth  and  spirits,  but  as  he  approached 
Osnalnirgf  he  suddenly  call(?d  for  the  postillion  to  sto|).  It  was  found  that 
one  (if  his  hands  was  paralysed,  his  tongue  began  to  swell,  and  no  efforts 
of  tlu'  surgeon  who  traveled  with  him  could  afford  him  any  relief;  and 
on  ilie  following  morning  he  expired,  in  the  thirtieth  year  of  his  reign  and 
m  the  sixtv-eiglith  of  his  age 


1 


610 


l-HB   raiXASUHY  OF  H1ST0R\. 


HIAPTKR  LIX. 


THE     RKWS    OK    GK(iU(iE 


A.  n.  1707. — George  the  Second,  like  his  deceased  fiitlier,  was  a  German 
by  birlli,  l;inHiiagi',  and  sentinients.  In  their  pcrsoiiid  qiiahlies,  sdso,  they 
bore  a  stnkinij  rcsenibiance :  both  were  honest,  jnst,  phiin-dealing  men; 
botii  were  alii<i!  j)arsinionions  and  obxiiiiate;  and  as  both  were  beset  bj' 
pohtieal  factions  whose  raneonr  knew  no  bonnds,  so  each  of  those  men. 
arclis  liad  to  contend  with  tlie  caprice  or  veniihty  of  rival  statesmen,  as 
by  tnrns  they  (hrected  the  coinx-ils  o(  the  nation. 

Tiie  king  was  in  the  forty-fonrth  year  of  his  age  on  coming  to  the 
tlirone;  and  lie  took  the  first  opporinnity  of  declaring  to  his  parliament 
that  he  was  determined  to  aillii^re  to  tlie  policy  of  his  predecessor.  Owing 
to  the  previons  contineiitd  wars  in  whicli  ICngland  had  taken  ii  part,  the 
kingdom  was  involve<l  in  a  labyrinth  of  treaties  and  conventions.  Much 
discontent  was  also  felt  and  expressed  on  many  points  ol  domestic  policy. 
Dangerous  encroachments  had  been  made  in  the  constitution  by  the  repeal 
of  the  trienni:il  act ;  by  fre(|nent  Bus|iensions  of  the  habeas  corpus  act ;  by 
keeping  tip  a  standing  army;  and  i>y  the  notorions  venal  practices  eni- 
ployeii  ill  establishing  :i  system  of  parliamentar>  corruption.  At  first 
Home  change  in  the  ministry  appeared  in  contempi.ition;  but  after  a.  little 
time  it  was  settled  that  Sir  liohcrt  Walpole  should  contimie  at  the  head 
of  the  administration;  with  Lord  Townshend  as  director  of  the  foreign 
alTairs  and  .^Ir.  I'elham,  brother  to  the  dnki?  of  Newcastle,  is  secretary- 
nt-war.  Tlieie  was,  however,  a  great  and  concentrated  mass  of  opposi- 
tion gradually  forming  against  VNalpole,  which  required  all  his  vigilance 
and  ability  to  overc(mie. 

Peace  was  establislied  at  home  and  abroad  ;  and  the  new  parliament, 
which  asKcinbled  in  .I.innaiy,  IT'iH,  afl'ordcd  no  topic  of  inter(^st  ;  but  in 
the  sni'i'ceilmg  year  the  cmnmons  complained  of  the  occasional  publica- 
lion  of  their  proceedings,  ami  it  was  niianimonsly  resolved,  "  That  it  is 
an  indignity  to,  and  a  breach  of  the  privilege  of  the  house,  for  any  person 
to  presniiie  to  yive,  in  written  or  printed  newspapers,  any  account  ur 
mimiles  of  tlie  debates  or  oilier  proceedings  of  the  iionse  or  of  any  com- 
mittee thi'ieof ,  and  that,  upon  the  discovery  of  tin;  author,  iVc.this  house 
will  proceed  against  the  olleiiders  wiMi  the  ntliKist  severity."  An  address 
to  his  majesty  was  also  presented  by  the  eoiniiions, complaining  of  serious 
de|)reilatioiis  having  been  committed  by  the  Spaiii.irds  on  Drilisb  shiiis, 
III  manifest  violation  of  the  treaties  snlisi>tiiig  between  tlu:  two  crowns; 
mid  re(|nestiiig  that  active  measures  might  be  taken  to  jirocure  reasonalilc 
■atisfaetion  for  the  losses  sustained,  and  secure  his  majestv's  subjects  tin' 
free  exercise  of  commerce  and  navigation  to  and  from  the  Uritisli  planta- 
tions in  America.  This  was  fnilowed  by  a  defensive  treaty  betvvecii 
Great  llnt'.iin,  I'Vancc,  .Sjiain,  anil  Holland-  the  ipieslion  lictween  I'liiglaiid 
and  Spain  ,is  to  naval  capinres  being  left  to  future  adjudicati(Mi  by  coiii- 
missioners. 

*.  1).  17.'10. — Some  ehaiiBes  now  took  place  in  the  ministry.  I,<ird  Hat 
rintftoii  was  made  secretary  of  state,  in  the  room  of  Lord  Townshend,  who 
appears  to  h.ne  interfered  mure  with  the  alT.iirs  of  the  nation  than  WiH 
ngre(  able  to  Sir  Uobert  \Val|iole,  to  \\  bom  he  was  related  by  marriage. 
The  latter,  it  is  said,  upon  being  asked  the  eaiisc^  of  liiH  difrcrence  with  lin 
iMoiher-in-lav,  drily  replied.  "As  long  .is  the  firm  of  the  house  \\:\f 
Townshend  and  Walpole,  ,all  did  very  well ;  but  when  it  became  Waljuili' 
Hiid  'I'ownsheiid.  tbiiiL's  went  wrong  and  a  separatimi  ensued."  About  the 
kuiiiu  time  the  duke  of  Dorset  wuh  appiniiteii  lord  licutciiuiit  of  Ireland  .h 


the  root 

Trevor, 

Witfi 

of  prosp 

and  froi 

most  abi 

New-Yo 

were  rec 

from  our 

that  direc 

A.  IJ     17 

80'i.  who. 
cal  aspec 
alliances  1 
latory  add 
f>y  a  phah 
equanimit' 
delinquenc 
and  punish 
committed 
longing  to 
under  the  p 
and  to  01  he 
rapacity  of 
hut  by  Jicen 
Hobinsoii,  \ 
•^CRper,  had 
Ciipital  of  50 
the  remaiiidc 
moiis  haviiifi 
iniquitous  si 
eashier  and 
'•inl'(>zzij,|„ 
rpsolved,  tTia 
8"i"y  of  n,;,i 
L'orporation, 
•^states,  and  | 
'n  tho  foil, 
"''■<mi  moils; 
•"'  wine  ami 
lies  of  o.\ei,s( 
Prccedeuted. 
eminent  mere 
Pfsciu  their 
and  ilie  „,j„„ 
to  tlic  nieasiir 
noioiis  rej„i,., 
Iroin  outward 
niURl  Inive  (|,„ 
Pt'iiding  ,lan„e 
.*•''■>■  little  01 
princess  roy.d 
'""nraliz,,(M,n  i 
'*"■  ""iieid.iin 
l""f"'lainaii„n 
"leml.eiH  (,,r 
"fllifirdniyi 
Vol.  C 


II 


mm  TREA3URV  OF  HISTORY. 


641 


nil  itr 
I'lmi- 

llllUHC 

Idrcss 

■own? ; 
Jiiiililf 

■IS  llu" 

|)\;\uf.i- 
(wci'ii 

y  com- 

:.l  H.it 

„l,\vlio 
all  vv.i'* 
,irri;u:''' 

is,.  \v;i>< 
IViill'cl'' 
Lull  111'' 
Vmii'l  ■" 


the  room  of  Ijord  Carteret ;  the  duke  of  Devonshire,  privy  seal,  and  iiord 
Trevor,  president  of  the  council. 

Wild  the  blessings  of  peace  England  was  now  enjoying  a  high  degree 
of  prosperity;  her  trade  with  foreign  nations  was  constantly  increasing; 
and  from  her  American  colonies  tiie  imports  of  sugar,  rum,  &c.,  were 
most  abundant.  The  whale-fishery  also  on  the  coast  of  New-England, 
New-York,  &c.,  was  highly  productive.  The  most  flattering  accounts 
were  received  from  our  trans-atlantic  friends ;  and  the  tide  of  emigration 
from  our  shores,  but  more  particularly  from  Ireland,  was  fast  flowing  in 
that  direction. 

A.  I)  1732. — The  parliamentary  session  was  opened  by  the  king  in  per- 
son, who.  in  an  elaborate  speech,  complimented  the  country  on  its  politi- 
cal aspect.,  and  dwelt  with  evident  satisfaction  on  the  late  continental 
alliances  he  had  entered  into.  This  was  naturally  followed  by  congrratu- 
latory  addresses  from  both  houses ;  and  the  minister  saw  himself  surrounded 
by  a  plr.ilanx  of  supporters,  too  numerous  for  the  opposition  to  disturb  his 
equanimity.  But  amid  the  general  prosperity  there  were  some  public 
delinquencies  which  seemed  to  require  the  strong  arm  of  justice  to  unmask 
and  punish.  The  most  glaring  of  tliese,  perhaps,  was  an  enormous  fraud 
committed  by  certain  parties  who  had  the  management  of  tiie  funds  be- 
longing to  the  "charitable  corporation."  Tliis  society  had  been  formed 
under  tlie  plausible  pretext  of  lending  money  at  legal  interest  to  tiio  poor 
and  to  oih(Ts,  upon  security  of  goods,  in  order  to  screen  them  from  tiie 
rapacity  of  pawnbrokers.  Their  capital  was  at  first  limited  to  3(),ono/., 
but  by  lit'enscs  from  the  crown  they  increased  it  to  600,000/.  (icorge 
Robinson,  M.P.  for  Marlow,  the  cashier,  and  John  Thomson,  the  warehouse 
keeper,  iiad  suddenly  disappeared,  and  it  was  now  discovered  tliat  for  a 
capital  of  500,000/.  effects  to  the  amount  of  30,000/.  only  could  be  found, 
the  remainder  having  been  embezzled.  A  petition  to  the  iiouse  of  com- 
mons liaving  been  referred  to  a  committee,  it  clearly  appeared  that  a  most 
iniquitous  scheme  of  fraud  iiad  been  systematiiially  earned  on  by  the 
caslii(!r  and  warehouse-man,  in  concert  with  some  of  the  directors,  for 
eml'czzling  tlie  cajiilal  and  cheating  tlie  projirietors ;  on  which  it  was 
resolved,  that  Sir  lloiiert  Sutton,  witli  nine  otliers,  who  had  been  proved 
guilty  of  many  fraudulent  practices  in  tiie  managi'tnent  of  the  charitable 
corporation,  should  make  satisfaction  to  the  poor  sutfcrers  out  of  tlicir 
rstales,  and  be  prevented  from  leaving  the  kingih)in. 

In  tlie  following  year  tlie  cmsr  nrlieine  was  first  introduced  into  the  liouie 
of  coininons;  and  although  it  was  sininlv  a  plan  for  coiiveiting  the  diiiies 
on  wiiK!  and  tobai-co,  which  had  been  liitlierlo  duties  of  customs,  into  du- 
ties of  excise,  the  fcnnent  which  this  pro|)osinon  excited  was  almost  un- 
precedented. The  sheriffs  of  Lomlon,  accompanied  by  many  of  the  most 
eminent  merchants,  in  two  hundred  carri;iges,  came  down  to  the  Iiouse  to 
present  their  petition  against  llii^  lull;  oilier  petitions  were  also  presented  ; 
and  the  niiiiisler  finding  that  his  miijorily  was  sinall  and  the  opposition 
to  the  measure  so  univers'il,  (Ictcrniined  on  wiilidrawing  it.  Tiie  most 
riotous  rejoicings  followed;  and  if  a  correi't  jiiilinneiit  niiijlit  be  formed 
from  outward  iiiipearaiices,  the  iiihalnlants  of  l.oiiilon  and  Weslininster 
must  liiive  thiMi«lit  they  had  obtaineil  a  di  liverance  from  some  great  iin- 
peiidiiig  danger. 

Very  little  occurred  during  the  succeeding  year  worthy  of  rentark.  The 
prinress  royal  was  married  to  the  prince  of  Orange;  a  bill  p;issed  for  the 
iialuraiization  of  his  royal  highness;  and  the  "liapiiy  i>air"lrl"t  Si.  .lames' 
for  Holtenl.im  on  the  V.'2d  of  April.  Parliament  was  now  dissidved  by 
proclmnation.  The  king  had  previously  prorogued  it,  after  thanking  the 
inembers  lor  the  niiiny  signal  proofs  they  had  given  him  for  seven  years 
of  their  duly  and  attachiiient  to  his  person  and  government ;  and  cuncludid 
Vol.  1.— 41 


642 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


witli  a  prayer  that  providence  would  direct  his  people  in  the  choice  of  tlieii 
representatives. 

A.  D.  1735.— When  the  new  parliament  met  in  January  it  was  seen  that 
the  elections  had  made  no  perceptible  change  in  the  composition  of  the 
house ;  the  leaders  of  parties  were  the  same ;  and  nearly  the  same  motions, 
amendments,  debates,  and  arguments  were  reproduced.  Indeed,  if  we 
except  some  angry  disputf^s  which  occurred  between  the  ministers  and  the 

f)rince  of  Wales,  relative  to  the  income  allowed  out  of  the  civil  list  to  the 
alter,  scarcely  any  event  worthy  of  remark  took  place  for  a  long  time. 
The  affair  to  which  we  allude  thus  originated.  Motions  iiaving  been  made 
in  eaeh  house  of  parliament  to  address  his  majesty  to  settle  100,000/.  per 
annum  on  the  prince,  it  was  opposed  by  llie  ministers  as  an  encroachment 
on  the  prerogative,  an  olFicious  intermeddling  with  the  king's  family  affairs, 
and  as  an  effort  to  set  his  majesty  and  the  prince  at  variance.  Uut  the 
truth  was,  there  had  long  been  a  serious  inisuiidcrstanding  between  these 
royal  personages,  arising  chiefly  from  the  prince  being  at  the  head  of  the 
opposition  party ;  and  now  that  tliere  seemed  no  chance  of  his  obtaining 
the  income  he  required,  it  was  highly  resented  by  him,  and  caused  an  en- 
tire alienation  between  tiie  two  courts  of  St.  James's  and  Leicester-nouse. 
Nor  can  it  be  wondered  at  that  the  prince  siiould  feel  liimscif  grossly 
slighted,  when  out  of  a  civil  list  of  800,000/.  a  revenue  of  50,000/.  per  an- 
num oidy  was  allowed  him  ;  although  his  father  when  prince  had  100,000/., 
out  of  a  civil  list  of  700,000/.  The  breach  grew  wider  every  day;  and  at 
length  so  rancorous  had  these  family  squabbles  become,  that  in  the  last 
illness  of  the  queen,  who  expired  ill  November,  1737,  the  prince  was  not 
even  permitted  to  see  Iter. 

The  growing  prosperity  of  Kngland  during  a  long  peace  was  duly  ap- 
preciated hy  Sir  Hobert  Walpole,  and  he  neglected  nothing  that  seemed 
likely  to  insure  its  continuance!;  but  the  arbitrary  conduct  pursued  by  the 
Spaniards  on  (lie  American  coasts,  and  the  interested  clamours  of  some 
Kniilish  inerehants  engaged  in  a  contraband  trade  with  the  Spanish  colo- 
nies, led  to  a  war  between  the  two  countries,  which  lasted  from  the  year 
173!>  to  174H. 

In  oriler  to  prevent  the  ships  of  any  other  nation  from  trading  with  the 
American  colonies,  the  Spaniards  employed  vessels  called  gnarda-costas 
to  watch  and  intercept  thi'm  !  but  instead  of  confining  iheinsclvcs  to  this, 
their  ieuiliinate  olijecf,  the  captains  of  tiic  Spanish  guard-ships  frequently 
interrere(l  with  Uritisli  inerehants,  who  were  on  their  way  to  other  .Amer- 
ican colonies,  and,  under  pretenc(!  of  searching  for  contraband  goods, 
hoarded  their  sliip.i,  anil  sometimes  treated  the  cii'Ws  with  the  greatest 
barbarity.  Tlii' aci'onnts  of  tlu'se  indignilies  created  a  desire  among  all 
classes  of  his  inajesly's  subjects  l(ir  indicting  on  the  Spanianls  signal  and 
speedy  retriliiitiiiii :  Imt  llie  pacific  policy  iif  the  iniiiiHler  was  mimical 
to  the  adoption  of  vigorous  measures.  ('apl;iiii  Jenkins,  the  masler  of  a 
Scottish  merehiiiil-ship,  who  was  examined  at  the  bar  of  the  hmise  of 
coniinons,  declared  that  he  was  boarded  by  a  guard:i-costa,  who,  after  ran- 
sai'kiiig  Ins  ship  anil  ill-treating  liis  crew,  tore  off  one  of  Ins  ears,  .iiul 
Ihriiwiin;  it  in  his  face,  tidd  him"  lolake  it  to  his  kini;."'  I'pon  lieintraskcil 
what  he  itioiight  when  he  found  himself  in  the  liamls  of  such  ImrbMrnns, 
Jenkins  replied,  "  I  reeommeniled  my  soid  to  (Jod,  and  my  cause  to  my 
country."  These  words,  and  the  display  of  his  ear,  which,  wrapped  up 
in  cotton,  he  always  earned  abniit  him,  tilled  the  house  with  iiidigii:iiinii ; 
but  It  uas  not  till  more  Ihiin  a  twelve-month  afterward*  that  nn  order  in 
council  was  issneil  lor  making  reprisals  (mi  tlie  Spaiiiarils. 

A.  ri.  1710. — Till'  war  with  Spain  had  now  eonimi'iii-ed,  and  the  niosl 
■trenuoiis  exertions  were  iiu:!"  to  put  the  navy  in  the  liest  possible  eoiiili. 
lion.  Admiriil  Vernon,  with  a  siiidl  force,  captured  the  nnportant  city  nl 
I'orlo  hello,  UP  the  AnieriiMn  isthinuM.     Uut  it  appeared  ut  the  close  ot 


the  yea 

many  o 

At  thi 

eonr.     f 

tlic  com 

Soon  afi 

house  of 

councils 

early  hoii 

the  resul 

fined  to  a 

frery leng 

gerous;  I 

isfaction  i 

cussion  w 

from  Wal 

lion  was  i 

a  similar  i 

A.  D.     17 

Bello  indu 
Spanish  ci 
mand  of  a 
"n  the  side 
Horn  fo  ra 
Were  frusir 
eral  Weiitv 
the  admiial 
Ihe  expedii 
characterist 
ertected,  ail 
"■'lops  and  . 
Nor  was  th 
these  disast 
Caplureil  se 
treasure,  th 
such  severe 
ron  wii.s  (in;i 
li  is  finie 
least.  ,|H  t|„. 
VI.,  Ilieliist 
idl  the  iHjvvi 
tile  possessK 
lliiiii,'aiy  J  y 
nieiits.      Nr',1 
^lle  Coiiiid  In 
•"'d  and  ihi   ,, 
liaving  at  his 
Silesiii,  iiiiii  „ 
t'>  ••oiiteiid  w 
li'iof  lliviiri 

"'l">'|MIII,   |»o 

('ciilors,  oil 
I'his  she  he. 
jroops  even  II 
HiiiKi'arv,  anil 
«<•  bv  a  soleni 
•"••r  rigliis. 
aieni  voted  a 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


643 


1>  tlie 
iistiis 
ttiis, 
jiciuly 
Kmi'v- 

[idOlls, 
illfSl 

liiK  nil 
•,i\  ;iik\ 
iiiiic'.il 
|r  of  11 

ilSl'   of 

r  nul- 
ls, ;iml 
ask  I'll 
.irnn"*. 
to  my 

ICll  lip 

ir.iliou  ; 
■i\v(  I" 

nil"*! 
coilill- 

Jiiiy  I'l 

IIOHC    Ul 


the  year,  that  tlic  Spaniards  had  taken  upwards  of  400  English  vessels, 
many  of  them  riclily  laden. 

At  this  period  the  violence  of  party  politics  was  displayed  in  all  its  ran- 
cour. Many  chuiiges  look  place  in  the  cabinet;  and  Walpole,  descrying 
the  coming  storm,  presented  two  of  his  sons  with  valuable  sinecures. 
Soon  after,  Mr.  Sandys  gave  notice  iliat  he  should  make  a  motion  in  the 
house  of  commons  for  ttie  dismissal  of  Sir  Robert  Walpole  from  the  king's 
councils  forever.  On  the  appointed  day  tlie  house  was  crowded  at  an 
early  hour,  and  the  public  were  in  a  state  of  breathless  expectation  to  learn 
the  result.  Tlu!  accusations  ajfainst  the  minister  were  by  no  means  con- 
fined to  any  particular  misconduct,  but  were  vafrue  and  indefinite.  The 
very  length  of  Mr.  VVaipole's  power,  said  Mr.  Sandys,  was  in  itself  dan- 
gerous; to  accuse  him  of  any  specilii:  crime  was  unnecessary,  the  dissat- 
isfaction of  the  people  being  a  sufficient  cause  for  his  removal !  The  dis- 
cussion was  long  and  animated,  and  the  debate  closed  by  a  powerful  speech 
from  Walpoli',  whicii  made  a  deep  impression  on  the  iiouse ;  and  the  mo- 
tion was  negatived  liy  the  large  majority  of  '-'90  against  106.  In  the  lords, 
a  similar  motion  met  with  the  like  result. 

A.  D.  1741. — The  suct-ess  which  had  attended  Vernon's  attack  on  Porto 
Belli)  induced  the  government  to  send  out  large  armainents  against  the 
Spanish  colonies.  In  conjunction  with  Lord  (y'atlicait,  who  had  the  com- 
mand of  a  numerous  army,  Vernon  undertook  to  assail  Spanisli  America 
on  the  side  of  the  Atlantic,  whilt!  Commodore  Anson  sailed  round  Cape 
Horn  to  ravage  the  coast  of  Chili  and  Peru.  Part  of  these  arrangements 
were  frustrated  owing  to  the  death  of  Lord  Cathcart,  his  successor.  Gen- 
eral VVentworth,  being  an  ofiicer  of  little  experience  and  very  je.ilous  ol 
tiie  adiniiars  popularity.  As  might  be  expected  where  such  was  the  case, 
the  ex[)eiiition  lamentably  failed  of  its  object;  incapacity  and  dissension 
characterised  their  operations;  nothing  of  the  sliglilest  importance  was 
eflected,  and  they  reiuriii'(l  home  after  more  than  fifteen  ihousaiul  of  the 
troops  and  scaini'ii  had  fal  ii  viriims  to  the  diseases  of  a  tropical  climate. 
Nor  was  the  result  of  the  expedition  under  Anson  calculated  to  retrieve 
these  disasters  ;  for  although  lie  plundered  the  town  of  Patia,  in  Peru,  and 
caplurrd  several  prizes,  amoni.''  which  was  the  Spanish  galleon,  laden  with 
treasure,  that  sailed  annually  from  Acapulco  to  Manilla,  he  encountered 
such  severe  storms,  particularly  in  riniiiding  Cape  Horn,  that  his  squad- 
ron was  finally  reilnced  to  only  one  ship. 

It  is  time  that  we  rftniii  to  tiic  alTairs  of  conliiiental  Kurope,  so  far,  at 
least,  as  llicy  involve  Hnglaiid.  In  Octiihcr,  1710,  the  I'iniicror  ('liarlis 
VI.,  Ilie  last  inale  heir  of  ihe  iiouse  of  Austria  llapsburg,  died.  Almost 
all  liie  [wwers  of  llurope  iiad,  by  the  "pi:igiiiatic  sani'lion,"  guaranteed 
till'  possessions  of  Austria  to  the  ari'li-diiciiess  Maria  Theresa,  ijueiMi  of 
lliinuary;  yet  no  power  except  Kiiiriaiid  was  inllnenceil  by  its  eiigaue- 
ineiits.  Scarcely  had  the  Huiiganan  qiiecii  succeeded  her  I'atlier,  when 
she  fiiniid  lierselV  siiirmiiiili'd  liy  a  host  of  enemies.  IJut  the  most  power- 
ful ami  the  most  wily  of  them  was  Frederic  III.,  kinjj  of  Prussia,  who, 
liaviiig  at  his  command  a  rich  treasury  and  a  weli-appoiiiieil  army,  entered 
Silesia,  and  soon  eoiii|Uireil  it.  Knowimt,  iiowever,  tll.it  she  liiid  not  only 
tM  eonleiid  with  I'Vanre,  who  had  lesolved  to  elevate  Charles  .Mlierl,  elec- 
liir  of  Havana,  to  the  empire,  but  also  numbered  among  her  foes  the  kings 
ofSp.iiii,  Poland,  and  Sanlnna,  he  olhred  to  support  her  against  all  com- 
jietitors,  on  the  eoiidilion  of  being  permitted  to  retain  his  aciinisiiioii. 
riiis  she  heroieallv  and  mdimiimily  refused ;  and,  alihoiigh  the  French 
troops  even  meiiaeed  her  capital.  >laria  Theresa  conveneil  the  states  of 
iliingarv,  and  made  a  pow  itIuI  appeal  to  the  nobles,  which  they  responded 
•o  bv  a  "solemn  deelaralion  that  they  were  all  ready  to  die  in  ilelenre  of 
her  rights.  .\nolh(r  large  army  was  qunkly  raised;  Ihe  Fnglish  parlia- 
aieni  voted  a  subsidy ;  and  so  great  was  the  allachmenl  of  the  Knguslj 


m 


iiti 


^f*  I 


Ii 


I 


IN: 


544 


THE  TREASUUY  OF  HISTORY. 


people  to  her  cause,  that  the  pacific  Walpole  could  no  longer  control  the 
desire  that  was  manifested  for  becoming  parties  in  the  war. 

A.  D.  1742. — In  the  new  parliament,  which  was  opened  by  the  king  -n 
person,  it  was  evident  that  the  opponents  of  Walpole  had  greatly  strength- 
ened themselves  ;  and  being  shortly  after  able  to  obtain  a  trifling  majority 
ofvotesonthe  VVestminster  election  petition,  Sir  Robert  expressed  his 
intention  of  retiring  from  office.  He  consequently  resigned  all  his  em- 
ployments, and  was  created  earl  of  Orford,  with  a  pension  of  4,000/.  a 
year,  his  majesty  testifying  for  his  faithful  servant  the  most  affectionate 
regard. 

England,  accustomed  to  consider  the  equilibrium  of  the  continental 
states  as  the  guarantee  of  her  own  grandeur,  would  naturally  espouse  the 
cause  of  Maria  Theresa ;  while  it  was  quite  as  natural  that  the  king  o( 
England,  as  elector  of  Hanover,  would  be  ready  to  enforce  its  propriety. 
But  there  was  another  motive  at  this  time  still  more  powerful,  namely, 
the  war  which  had  recently  broken  out  between  England  and  Spain  ;  for 
it  could  not  be  expected  that,  in  a  continental  war  in  which  the  latter  coim- 
try  was  one  of  the  belligerents,  England  would  omit  any  opportunity  that 
oflfered  of  weakening  that  power.  Yet  as  long  as  Walpole  was  the  di- 
recting minister,  the  king  restricted  himself  to  negotiations  and  subsidies. 
But  when  Walpole  whs  superseded  by  Lord  Carteret,  the  cause  of  Maria 
Theresa  was  sustained  by  the  arms  of  F'ngland,  and  by  larger  subsidies, 
while  the  king  of  Naples  was  forced  by  an  English  fleet  to  the  declaration 
of  neutrality.  England  had  at  length  become  a  principal  in  the  war;  or, 
as  Smollet  observes,  "  from  being  an  umpire  had  now  become  a  parly  in 
all  continental  quarrels,  and  instead  of  trimming  the  balance  of  Kurope. 
lavished  away  her  blood  and  treasure  in  supporting  the  interest  md  allies 
of  a  puny  electorate  in  the  north  of  Germany." 

A.  D.  1743. — George  U.  was  now  at  the  head  of  the  AuLio-electoral 
army,  which  on  its  march  to  Hanim  met  and  engaged  the  French  under 
the  command  of  marshal  the  duke  of  Noaillcs  and  some  of  the  princes  of 
the  blood.  They  begaii  the  battle  with  their  accustomed  im[ietuosiiy,but 
were  received  by  the  English  infantry  with  the  characteristic  coolness 
and  steady  intrepidity  for  which  they  are  so  eminently  distinguished.  In 
this  buttle  the  king  showed  much  passive  courage,  and  his  son,  tlie  duke 
of  Cumberland,  was  wounded  ;  but  it  proved  a  decisive  victory,  6,000  of 
the  French  having  fallen,  while  the  loss  oi\  the  side  ^'  the  British  did  not 
amount  to  more  than  one-third  of  that  lunnber. 

About  this  time  a  treaty  was  concluded  between  England  and  Russia 
for  fifteen  years,  in  which  it  was  stipulated  that  the  empress  should  fur- 
nish his  Britannic  majesty,  as  sonn  as  required,  with  a  body  of  12.000 
troops,  to  be  employed  according  to  the  exigeiu-y  of  affairs ;  and  that 
Great  Britain  should  furnish  Russia  with  twelve  men-of-war,  on  the  first 
notice,  in  case  either  of  them  were  attacked  by  an  enemy  and  demanded 
stich  succour. 

A.  I).  1744, — To  remove  the  Hanoverian  dynasty  from  the  throne  of 
these  realms,  seemed  to  be  the  darling  object  of  the  courts  of  France  am! 
Spain,  who  were  secretly  planniiig  to  restore  the  Stuart  race  ni  thi'  person 
of  the  son  of  the  late  [irclender.  Declarations  of  war  between  Iriincc 
and  Etiuland  accordingly  took  place;  and  in  May  the  king  of  France  ar- 
rived at  fiisle,  to  open  the  campaign  in  Flanders,  with  an  army  of  l-0,n0(i 
men,  commandeil  liy  the  celebrated  Marshal  .Saxe.  TIk;  allied  arriucs. 
eonsisling  of  Knglish,  Hanoverians,  Austrians,  (uid  Dutch,  ainoiniting  in 
he  whole  to  about  75,00(1,  advanced  »vilh  the  apparent  nitention  of  attack- 
ng  thi'  enemy;  but.  after  performing  miinerons  nieonsistent  and  inexpli- 
"able  movements,  without  ri>kmg  either  a  siege  or  a  battle,  the  siiinincr 

ipsed  nway,  and  they  retired  into  winter-quarters.     Mimntime  some  m 


decisive 

fleets  in 

Towa 

resigned 

iluding  I 

torn"  adi 

flrst  lord 

set,  presi 

3ecretari( 

Mr.  Pitt, 

promised 

A.  D.  17 

tivity,  du 
twenty  y( 
pally  chai 
desire  of  | 
home,    u 
tained;  ct 
rights  of  tl 
in  Italy 
superiority 
-■^nglo-elec 
The  Frciicl 
to  which  pi 
by  nine  o'cj 
Uritish  infa 
down  ever3J 
the  village  ( 
of  the  semi( 
pelled  to  rei 
out  though  1 
marshal  to  ( 
and  the  allie 
Thirty  yp 
tip  that  rebe 
disastrously 
niarWed  a  gi 
^011,  Charles 
"young  pret 
pied  in  eiidei 
Charles  Fdw 
tiike  advanta 
"ow  that  the 
tlie  loss  at  F( 
finnined  to  a 
j^y  a  small  p.i 
Here  he  was 
'ii'iiMilf  at  tli( 
'"K'lly  pleasei 
oresscd  th.'iii.. 
towards   Kdj. 
L-astle  still  hel 
•ood  palace,  v 
iiiinself  regen; 
clair.alioii  wa.-? 
•"^ir  John  ('.. 
•ollccied  soiiK 
Dunbar  by  sea 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


04A 


lussm 

fiir- 
19.000 

Umt 

firs! 
inilt'il 

IIP    of 

|u  uiii! 
Inrson 

lr;iMi''' 
I'c  ar- 

to,ooo 

rinins. 
|i>K  '■'> 

hv  11' 


decisive  engagements  had  tiikeii  place  between  the  English  and  combined 
tleets  in  the  Mediterranean. 

Towards  the  close  of  the  year  Lord  Carteret,  now  earl  of  Granville, 
resigned  his  office,  and  a  coalition  of  parties  was  formed,  which,  from  in- 
tluding  lories,  whigs,  and  patriots,  obtamed  the  name  of  the  "  broad  bot- 
tom" administration.  Mr.  Pelham  was  chancellor  of  the  exchequer  and 
first  lord  of  the  treasury  ;  Lord  Hardwicke,  chancellor ;  the  duke  of  Dor- 
set, president  of  the  council;  the  duke  of  Newcastle  and  Lord  Harrington, 
secretaries  of  state ;  and  the  duke  of  Bedford,  first  lord  of  the  admirality. 
Mr.  Pitt,  afterwards  earl  of  Chatham,  gave  them  his  support,  having  been 
promised  a  place  as  soon  as  the  king's  aversion  could  be  overcome. 

A.  D.  1745. — Robert  Walpole,  earl  of  Orford,  after  a  life  of  political  ac- 
tivity, during  which  he  had  occupied  the  most  prominent  station  for 
twenty  years,  died  March  18,  aged  71.  His  general  policy  was  princi- 
pally characterized  by  zeal  in  favour  of  the  protestant  succession;  by  the 
desire  of  preserving  peace  abroad,  and  avoiding  subjects  of  contention  at 
home.  Under  his  auspices  the  naval  superiority  of  England  was  main- 
tained; commerce  encouraged;  justice  impartially  administered;  and  the 
rights  of  the  people  preserved  inviolate 

In  Italy  the  united  armies  of  France  and  Spain,  owing  to  their  vast 
superiority  in  numbers,  were  enabled  to  vanquish  the  Austrians  ;  and  the 
Anglo-electoral  troops  in  the  Netherlands  also  met  with  serious  reverses. 
The  French  army  under  Marshal  Saxe  was  strongly  posted  at  Fontenoy ; 
to  which  place  the  duke  of  Cumberland  advanced  on  the  30ih  of  April,  and 
by  nine  o'clock  in  the  morning  the  troops  were  engaged.  The  valour  of  the 
British  infantry  was  never  more  signally  disjilayeii ;  for  a  time  they  bore 
down  everything  before  them ;  but  the  Dutch  failing  in  their  atleinpt  on 
the  village  of  Fontenoy,  and  the  allies  coming  witiiin  the  destructive  fire 
of  the  semicircle  of  batteries  erected  by  Saxe,  were  outflanked  and  com- 
pelled to  retreat.  The  loss  on  each  side  amounted  to  about  10,000  men ; 
but  though  the  victory  was  not  absolutely  decisive,  it  .nabled  the  French 
marshal  to  take  some  of  the  most  considerable  towns  of  the  Netherlands, 
and  the  allies  retired  for  safety  behind  the  canal  at  Antwerp. 

Tliirty  years  had  elapsed  since  the  chevalier  de  St.  George  had  stirred 
up  that  rebellion  which  had  ended  so  fatally  for  his  own  liopes,  and  so 
disastrously  for  his  adherents.  Since  that  time  he  had  lived  in  Italy,  had 
married  a  grand-daughter  of  John  Sobieski,  king  of  Poland,  anil  had  one 
son,  Charles  Edward,  who  was  afterwards  known  in  Miifjlaiid  as  the 
"young  pretender."  While  George  H.  and  his  ministers  were  fidlyo('cu- 
piod  in  endeavoring  to  bring  the  war  in  Germany  to  a  successful  issue, 
Charles  Edward  received  every  cncourageinrnt  from  Louis  of  France  to 
take  advantage  of  that  opportunity,  and  try  his  sliciiglii  in  Britain.  And 
now  that  the  national  discontent  was  gaining  ground  in  conseqncnce  of 
the  loss  at  Fontenoy,  and  otiier  ev(!iit8  not  much  less  disastrous,  he  de- 
termined to  attempt  the  restori  lion  of  his  family  ;  and  accompanied  only 
by  a  small  party  of  his  most  (l(!votcii  friends,  he  landed  in  ihe  Hebrides. 
Here  he  was  soon  joined  liy  the  Higliland  chieftains,  and  speedily  found 
himself  at  the  head  of  several  thousand  hardy  mountaineers,  who  were 
higiily  pleased  with  his  atValde  manners,  and  with  genuine  enthusiasm  ex- 
oressed  themselves  ready  to  die  in  his  service.  Tlieir  first  movement  was 
towards  Edinburgh,  which  city  surrender  d  witliont  resistance,  but  the 
castle  still  helil  out.  The  youny  pretender  now  tonk  possession  of  Holy- 
rood  palace,  where  he  proclaimeii  his  father  king  of  (Jrcat  Britain,  and 
liiinself  regent,  with  nil  tiie  idle  pagiiantries  of  state.  Mean"  '.ue  a  pro- 
clamation was  issued,  ofi'ermg  a  reward  of  30,ooi)/.  for  his  aiiprehension. 

Sir  John  ('ope,  the  eommaiider  of  the  king's  troops  in  Scotland,  having 
•oliected  some  reinforcements  in  the  north,  proceeded  from  Alicrdeeii  to 
jiuiibur  by  sea,  and  hearing  that  the  insurgents  were  resolved  to  haZHrd  u 


IN 


ill- 


%' 


,1  ,•! 


i     » 


645 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


DHltle,  he  encamped  at  Preston  Pans.  Here  he  was  unexpectedly  attacK- 
ed,  and  with  such  vigorous  onslaught,  by  the  fierce  and  undisciplined 
Highlanders,  that  a  sudden  panic  seized  the  royal  troops,  and  in  their 
flight  they  alnndoned  all  their  baggage,  cannon,  and  camp  equipage,  to 
their  enemies.  Klated  with  success,  the  rebels  entered  England,  and  pro- 
ceeded as  far  as  Derby,  without  encountering  any  opposition.  Here, 
however,  they  \earned  that  the  uuke  of  Cumberland  had  arrived  from  the 
continent,  and  was  making  preparations  to  oppose  them  with  an  over 
whelming  force;  and  it  was  therefore  finally  determined,  that  as  they 
could  neither  raise  recruits  in  England,  nor  force  tlieir  way  into  Wales, 
they  shouL  hasten  their  return  to  Scotland. 

The  pretender  had  good  reason  to  believe  that  important  succours  would 
be  sent  to  him  from  France,  or  it  is  not  likely  he  would  have  crossed  the 
border.  But  the  vigilance  of  Admiral  Vernon  prevented  the  French  fleet 
from  venturing  out;  and  thus  all  hope  of  foreign  assistance  was  cut  off. 
The  forces  of  the  pretender  were  greatly  augmented  on  liis  return  to 
Scotland ;  but  finding  that  Edinburgh  was  in  possession  of  the  king's 
troops,  he  bent  his  course  towards  Stirling,  which  town  he  captured,  and 
besieged  the  castl-j.  .Matters  had  now  assumed  a  very  serious  aspect, 
and  public  credit  was  most  seriously  affected  ;  but  there  was  no  lack  of 
energry  in  the  government,  nor  any  want  of  |)atrioiism  among  the  nobility, 
mercliants  or  traders  of  England;  all  ranks,  in  fact,  united  with  ready 
zeal  in  meeting  iIk;  exigeticy  of  the  occasion.  Many  new  regiments  were 
raised  by  wealthy  and  patriotic  individuals  ;  and  it  was  found  that  by  liie 
voluntary  exertions  of  the  people  00,000  troops  could  be  added  to  the  king's 
forces. 

A.  D.  1740. — In  .January  General  Hawley  had  suffered  a  complete  defeat 
in  endeavoring  to  raise  the  siege  of  Stirling.  Ihit  a  day  of  terrible  retri- 
bution was  at  hand.  On  the  lOth  of  April  the  royal  army,  under  the  com- 
mand of  the  duke  of  Cumberland,  encouiilered  the  troops  of  ti\e  pretender 
on  CuUoden-moor.  The  Highlanders  l)egan  the  attack  in  their  wild,  furi- 
ous way,  rushing  on  the  royal  troops  with  thinr  broadswords  and  Locha- 
bar  axes  ;  but  tlie  English,  being  now  prepared  for  this  mode  of  attack,  re- 
ceived them  with  fixed  bayonets,  keeping  up  a  steady  and  well-sustained 
fire  of  musketry,  while  the  destruction  of  tlieir  ranks  was  completed  by 
discharges  of  artillery.  In  thirty  minutes  tlie  battle  was  converted  into  a 
rout ;  and  orders  having  been  issued  to  give  no  quarter,  vast  nunibers 
were  slain  in  the  pursuit.  Thi;  loss  of  the  rebels  was  estimated  at  about 
4,000.  while  liie  mmiber  of  killed  in  the  royal  army  is  said  to  have  scarcely 
exceeded  fifty  men!  Intoxicated,  as  it  were,  with  their  unexampled  vic- 
tory, the  contiuerors  seemed  only  bent  on  merciless  vengeance,  and  tiie 
wlidie  country  around  became  a  scene  of  rniclty  and  desDlation.  .As  tu 
till?  iiiifortimale  prince  Charles  Edward,  he  escaped  with  dillieully  from 
the  bai'le,  and  after  waiKlering  alone  in  the  inouMliiins  forsevcral  inoiillis, 
in  various  disguises,  he  found  means  to  make  his  escape  to  France. 

"  One  great  cause  of  the  pretender's  preservation,  was  the  belief  that  he 
had  been  slain,  which  arose  from  the  following  circumstance.  Amoiij? 
his  friends,  who  followed  as  much  as  possible  in  Ins  track,  a  party  «a» 
surprised  in  a  hut  on  the  side  of  the  llciialdcr  nioiintain,  by  the  soiilicrs 
who  were  in  search  of  hiin.  Having  seiziil  ihciii,  one  nnnied  Mackenzie 
effeited  his  escape ;  upon  wliicli  liis  compiiiKins  told  tlie  soldiers  that  it 
w.is  tlie  prince  ;  the  siddiers  iliereiipon  lied  in  piir.snit  anil  overlixik  the 
yontli,  who,  when  ln'  found  their  error,  resolved  to  sacrifice  his  life,  in  the 
iiope  It  might  save  Ins  niasier's.  He  bravely  cniilended  with  them,  re- 
fused ijiiarter,  anil  ilied  with  his  sword  in  his  hand,  exclaimiiiir.  as  he  tVIl 
"  Villi  have  killed  your  prince."  And  this  dcidaratiDii  was  iMdieved  by 
m.iiiy.  "We  cannot,  however,'' siiys  the  biiii;raplier  of  ihe  evenis  of 
I'ulloden,  "  willioul  pride,  inenlioii  the  astonishing  fact,  that  though  iha 


»u:n  of 

apprehe 

the  revv 

very  inq 

degradii 

whom  n 

IJ'thof ! 

tlemen  a 

for  that  ] 

at  Itoscii 

was  kind 

courage  ; 

with  a  re 

of  ambit i 

The  du 

for  his  bi 

addition  t 

the  gover 

tions  of  tl 

•ndictmen 

and  Croin 

AH  three 

Tower-liil 

had  eiiga^ 

family  to  t 

was  brand) 

vear)  had  i 

encouragii) 

remanded  i 

headed. 

his  behavi 

nnihitude  . 

it,  ho  repea 


'lien  laying 
sitroke, 

A.  D.  174 
coiitiiicit 
tliither,  toj 
''i'ivantagi;  i 
"lenceti  the 
•'Xceptioii  o 
Iiinguiillv  cii 
5''lh  of  .iiily 
horror  and 
differed  jiitl 
*?overnor,  i . 
the  fortress, 
tlienist'lves 
"lid  tlius   I,, 
the  allies,  ih 
cessful. 

At  sea  (h 
meiit  with  tl 
^nd  si'vernl 
into  their  h,\ 
UelleisJe,  and 


II 


THE  TKEASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


«47 


IkenziP 
Ithat  il 
ik  itie 
,  1:1  tho 
I'lii,  re- 
lic IVII 
\hh\  by 
hliH  of 


JU'.n  of  thirty  thousand  pounds  sterling  was  lonj  publicly  offered  for  liis 
apprehension,  and  though  he  passed  through  very  many  hands,  and  both 
the  reward  and  liis  person  were  p'jrfectly  well  known  to  an  intelligent  and 
very  inquisitive  people,  yet  no  man  or  woman  was  to  be  found  capable  of 
degrading  themselves  to  earning  so  vast  a  reward  by  betraying  a  fugitive, 
whom  misfortune  had  thrown  upon  their  generosity."  At  length,  on  the 
liHh  of  September,  the  young  pretender  embarked  with  twenty-five  gen- 
tlemen and  one  hundred  and  seven  eommon  men,  in  a  French  vessel,  sent 
for  that  purpose  to  the  coast ;  and  after  a  passage  of  ten  days  he  arrived 
at  Itoscau,  near  Morlaix,  and  immediately  proceeded  to  Paris,  wliere  he 
was  kindly  received  by  Louis  XV.  But  his  hopes  were  forever  fled.  The 
courage  and  fortitude  he  displayed  in  Scotland  seem  to  have  forsaken  him 
with  a  reverse  of  fortune,  and  during  the  remainder  of  his  days  no  trace 
of  ambition  marked  his  actions. 

The  duke  of  Cumberland  had  now  become  the  idol  of  the  nation  ;  and 
for  his  bravery  at  Culloden  the  parliament  voted  jC25,000  per  annum  in 
addition  to  his  former  income.  Several  acts  were  passed  for  protecting 
the  government  of  Scotland,  and  securing  its  loyalty ;  and  many  execu- 
tions of  the  rebels  took  place  in  different  parts  of  the  kingdom.  Bills  of 
indictment  for  hi^rli  treason  were  found  against  the  earls  of  Kilmarnock 
and  Cromartie,  and  Lord  Balmerino,  who  were  tried  in  Westminster-hall. 
All  three  pleaded  guilty ;  Kilmarnock  and  Balmerino  were  executed  on 
Tower-lull,  but  Cromartie's  life  was  spared.  Foremost  among  those  who 
had  engaged  to  venture  their  lives  and  fortunes  in  restoring  the  Smart 
family  to  the  throne  of  Kngland  was  Lord  Lovat,  a  man  whose  character 
was  branded  with  many  vices,  and  whose  great  age  (for  he  was  in  his  90th 
year)  had  not  deterred  him  from  taking  an  active  part  in  fomenting  and 
encouraging  the  late  rebellion.  Being  found  guilty  by  his  peers,  he  was 
remaniled  to  the  Tower,  where,  in  a  few  inontiis  afterwards,  he  was  be- 
headed. At  this  last  scene  of  his  life  he  behaved  with  great  propriety: 
his  behaviour  was  di<!;nirted  and  composed ;  he  surveyed  the  assembled 
multitude  with  a  cheerful  countenance,  and  taking  up  "the  axe  to  examine 
it,  he  repeated  from  Horace, 

"Dulce  et  decorum  est  pro  patria  mori!" 

then  laying  his  head  on  the  block,  it  was  severed  from  his  body  at  a  single 
btroke. 

4.  D.  1747. — Wc  must  now  briefly  allude  to  the  state  of  affairs  on  the 
comment.  Karly  in  the  spring  the  duke  of  Cumberland  led  his  troops 
thither,  to  join  our  Austrian  ami  Dutch  allies.  The  French  had  a  decided 
.HcUantagt?  in  point  of  numbers,  and  Marshal  Saxe,  their  commander,  com- 
menced the  campaign  with  the  invasion  of  Duicii  Brabant.  But,  with  the 
exception  of  the  jiege  of  Bergenop-Zoom,  by  the  French,  the  war  was 
languiillv  carried  on.  This  celebrated  siege,  however,  lasted  from  tho 
itiUi  of  .Inly  to  the  1.5th  of  September,  and  presented  a  conlinned  scene  of 
fiorror  and  destruction  ;  but  though  the  town  was  burned,  the  garrison  had 
Miffered  little,  while  heaps  of  slain  were  formed  of  the  besiegers.  The 
governor,  calculating  from  these  circumstances  on  tho  impregnability  of 
the  fortress,  wati  lulled  into  false  security;  while  the  French  tro'  ^s  threw 
themselves  into  the  fosse,  mouiiled  the  breaci>es,and  entered  the  garrison, 
and  thus  became  masters  of  the  navigation  of  the  Schehlt.  In  Italy, 
the  allies,  though  forced  to  raise  the  siege  of  Genoa,  were  generally  sue- 
cessful. 

Ai  sea  the  Knglish  well  maintained  their  superiority.    In  an  engage 
ment  with  the  French  off  Cape   Finisterre,  the  Knglish  were  victorious; 
and  several  richly  laden  ships,  both  outward  and  homeward  boiiinl,  fell 
into  their  hamls.     A<lmirat  Hawke,  also,  defeated  the  French  fleet,  ofl 
Uellcisle,  and  took  si.\  sail  of  the  line. 


'1 


H 


!:   :  /I 


648 


THE  TREASUaY  OF  HISTORY. 


In  November  a  new  parliament  assembled,  and  the  ministers  deriveo 
much  popularity  on  account  of  the  suppression  of  the  late  rebellion,  as 
well  as  for  the  naval  successes.  All  parties,  however,  were  tired  of  the 
war,  and  preparations  were  made  for  opening  a  congress  at  Aixla-CUiapelle 
preliminary  to  a  general  peace;  but  as  the  issue  of  it  was  uncertain,  the 
usual  grants  and  subsidies  were  readily  voted  without  inquiry.  Though 
so  long  since  began,  it  was  not  till  October  in  the  following  year  that  this 
treaty  of  peace  was  concluded.  The  chief  parties  to  it  were  Britain,  Hol- 
land, and  Austria  on  one  side,  and  France  and  Spain  on  the  other.  By  it 
all  the  great  treaties  from  that  of  VVestpiialia  m  1648,  to  that  of  Vienna  in 
1738,  were  renewed  and  confirmed.  France  surrendered  her  conquests  in 
Flanders,  and  the  English  in  the  East  and  West  Indies.  But  the  right  of 
British  subjects  to  navigate  the  American  seas  without  being  subject  to 
search  by  the  Spaniards,  was  suffered  to  pass  unnoticed,  although  that  was 
the  original  bone  of  contention  and  the  basis  of  the  attacks  made  on  Wal- 
pole's  ministry.  Tiie  only  advantage,  indeed,  that  England  gained,  was 
tile  recognition  of  the  Hanoverian  succession,  and  the  general  abandon- 
ment of  the  pretender,  whose  cause  was  from  thenceforth  regarded  as 
hopeless. 

A.  D.  1749. — The  war  being  at  an  end,  the  disbanding  of  the  army  nat- 
urally followed,  and,  as  must  ever  in  some  degree  be  the  case  at  such  a 
time,  the  idle  and  unemployed  committed  many  depredations  on  the 
public.  To  remedy  this,  a  colony  was  established  in  Nova-Scotia,  where 
Lord  Halifax  went  out  as  governor,  and  laid  the  foundation  of  a  town, 
which,  in  compliment  to  its  projector,  the  earl  of  Halifax,  was  named 
after  him.  It  was  soon  found  that  the  soil  of  Nova-Scotia  was  inca|)able 
of  repaying  the  labourer  for  his  toil,  and  many  who  had  been  transported 
there  obtained  leave  to  go  to  more  southern  latitudes.  Those  who  re- 
mained excited  the  jealousy  of  the  native  Indians,  who  still  resided  on  the 
borders  of  this  barren  spot ;  and  the  French,  who  were  the  first  European 
settlers  there,  encouraged  this  jealous  feeling.  Meantime  the  animosity 
between  the  English  and  French  grew  stronger,  till  at  length  the  latter 
claimed  tiie  whole  territory  between  the  Mississippi  and  New-Mexico  on 
the  eiist,  ■uid  to  the  Apalachian  mountains,  on  the  west.  From  the  fact 
of  their  having  been  the  first  to  discover  that  river,  they  took  from  the 
English,  who  had  settled  beyond  those;  mountains,  their  possessions,  and 
erectiul  forts  to  protect  all  the  adjacent  country. 

A.  I).  1751. — The  first  event  of  any  importance  this  year  was  the  death 
of  Frederic,  prince  of  Wales,  which  happened  on  the  10th  of  March,  in 
the  45111  year  of  his  age.  His  death  was  caused  by  an  abscess  in  his  side, 
that  formed  from  the  blow  of  a  cricket-ball  which  he  received  while  play- 
ing at  that  game  on  the  lawn  of  Cliefden-house,  Bui^ks,  a  collection  oi 
matter  having  been  produced  that  burst  in  his  throat  and  sufl^ocated  him. 
The  |)riuce  had  long  been  on  bad  terms  with  his  father,  whose  nieasures 
he  uniformly  opposed ;  and  though  the  anti-ministerial  party,  imd  a  con- 
siderable portion  of  the  people  spoke  highly  of  his  benevolence  and  luu- 
nificence,  and  loudly  applau<led  his  conduct  at  the  time,  it  is  clear  thai 
much  of  his  patriotism  originated  in  a  vain  desire  for  popularity.  He  left 
five  sons  and  three  daughters ;  his  eldest  son,  George,  being  only  eleven 
years  old:  a  regency  was  consequently  appointed;  but  the  king  surviving 
till  the  prince  attained  his  majority,  there  was  never  anv  occasion  for  it 
to  act. 

The  most  memorable  act  passed  in  the  course  of  this  session  was  that 
for  regulating  tlie  conimcnc^emiMit  of  the  year,  and  correcting  the  calendar 
aecorduig  to  the  (Jregorian  computation.  The  New  Style,  as  it  was 
termed,  was  intrnduced  by  Vo\)o  Gregory  XIU.  in  the  16th  ciMitury,  auii 
had  lung  been  adopted  by  most  slates  on  the  continent.  Uy  tins  at'i, 
tlurufure,  it  was  jirovided  that  the  year  should  begin  ou  the  Ist  day  ol 


lanuary, 
eleven  int 
1753,  shoi 
lution  to  I 
ing  made 
ever,  in  th 
days.     Uil 
the  regula 
disorderly 
gance  whii 
ment  oecu; 
Among  t 
than  the  c 
who  had  fo 
we  regard  1 
polished  co 
but  he  was 
inspires  coi 
The  new 
first  biisines 
land,  which, 
tion  to  siiak 
of  tranquillii 
liament  ;  bu 
caused  see 
succeeded  in 
unanimity  m 
A.  D.  1755. 
between  the 
sions.      Hos 
without  the  I 
der  Uieskau 
Gen.  Lyman 
ulated  to  atta 
were  importe 
for  hostilities 
reduced  by 
forts  on  the 
defeat ;  the  g 
slain,  and  tht 
provincial  mi 
courage,  nobi 
main  army, 
upwards  of  7( 
and  provisioni 
'-iliiiK't,  com, 
availed  himse 
'lie  attack  of 
sals  at  sea  im 
three  hundred 
that  year  by  I 
A  n.  1750.— 
iwelfemonth, 
icct  of  compla 
and  Nova-Sco 
land  or  Irelam 
ovenari  troops 
measure  wliic 


THE  THEASUttY  OF  HISTORY. 


649 


on 
fact 
tlie 
and 

■nth 
in 

iide, 
phiy- 
on  0} 

liini. 

con- 
inu- 
ttml 
i  left 
Ipven 
'iviiij,' 
for  it 


t\nit 
■nilur 

WHS 
i    iU'l, 


day 


January,  instead  of,  as  heretofore,  on  the  25th  day  of  March,  and  ihat 
eleven  intermediate  nominal  days  between  the  2d  and  14th  of  September, 
1752,  sliould  be  omitted  ;  the  Julian  computation,  sujjposing  a  solar  revo- 
lution  to  be  effected  in  tlie  precise  period  of  365  days  and  six  liours,  hav- 
ing made  no  provision  for  the  deficiency  of  eleven  minutes,  whicii,  how- 
ever, in  the  lapse  of  eighteen  centuries  amounted  to  a  difference  of  eleven 
days.  Hills  were  also  passed  for  the  better  prevention  of  robberies,  for 
the  regulation  of  places  of  amusement,  and  for  punishing  the  keepers  of 
disorderly  houses  ;  the  necessity  of  this  arising  from  the  sjiiril  of  extrava- 
gance which  prevailed  throughout  tiie  kingdom,  as  dissipation  and  amuse- 
ment occupied  every  class  of  society. 

Among  the  domestic  events  of  this  year  no  one  created  more  sensation 
than  the  death  of  Henry  St.  John,  V;«connt  Bolingbroke ;  a  nobleman 
who  had  for  half  a  century  occupied  a  high  station  in  the  country,  whether 
we  regard  him  in  the  character  of  a  statesman,  an  orator,  an  author,  or  a 
polished  courtier.  He  possessed  great  energy  and  decision  of  character, 
but  he  was  deficient  in  that  high  principle  and  singleness  of  purpose  that 
inspires  confidenee  and  leads  to  unquestioned  excellence. 

The  new  parliament  was  opened  on  tlie  10th  of  May,  1753 ;  and  the 
first  business  of  the  house  was  to  take  into  consideration  the  state  of  Ire- 
land, which,  in  proportion  as  it  advanced  in  civilization,  showed  a  disposi- 
tion to  shake  off  its  dependence  on  England.  The  kingdom  was  in  a  state 
of  tranquillity  at  the  session  which  terminated  the  labours  of  the  last  par- 
liament ;  but,  previous  to  the  new  election,  the  deatii  of  Mr.  Pelhani 
caused  several  changes  in  the  government  offices ;  the  late  minister  was 
succeeded  in  the  treasury  by  his  brother,  the  duke  of  Newcastle ;  and 
unanimity  now  prevailed  in  the  cabinet. 

A.  D.  1755. — We  have  before  alluded  to  the  animosity  which  existed 
between  the  English  and  French  relative  to  their  North  American  posses- 
sions. Hostilities  were  now  commenced  by  the  colonial  authorities, 
without  the  formality  of  a  declaration  of  war.  A  French  detachment  un- 
der Uieskau  was  defeated  with  great  loss  by  the  British,  commanded  by 
Gen.  liyman  and  Col.  Williams.  The  North  American  Indians  were  stim- 
ulated to  attack  the  British  colonists,  and  supplies  of  arms  and  ammunition 
were  imported  from  France.  The  British  ministers  immediately  prepared 
for  hostilities  ;  all  the  French  forts  within  the  limits  of  Nova-Scotia  were 
reduced  by  Colonel  Monekton:  but  an  expedition  against  the  French 
forts  on  the  Ohio,  commanded  by  General  Braddock,  met  with  a  severe 
defeat ;  the  general  falling  into  an  ambuscade  of  French  and  Indians,  was 
slain,  and  the  regular  soldiers  fled  with  disgraceful  precipitation.  The 
provincial  militia,  however,  led  by  Colonel  Washington,  displayed  good 
courage,  nobly  maintaining  their  ground,  and  covering  the  retreat  of  the 
main  army.  The  loss  of  the  English  on  this  occasion  was  very  severe; 
upwards  of  700  men,  with  several  oflicers,  were  slain ;  the  artillery,  stores, 
and  provisions  became  the  property  of  the  victors,  as  well  as  the  generars 
f'abiiK't,  containing  his  private  histrnctions,  &c.,  of  which  the  enemy 
availed  himself  to  great  advantage.  Two  otiier  expeditions,  destined  for 
tlie  attack  of  Crown  Point  and  Fort  Niagara,  also  failed.  But  the  repri- 
sals at  sea  more  than  compensated  for  those  misfortunes,  as  upwards  of 
three  hundred  merchant  ships  and  eight  thousand  seamen  were  captured 
that  year  by  British  cruisers. 

A  n.  1750.— Notwithstanding  hostilities  had  been  carried  on  nearly  a 
iweiveinonth,  war  was  not  formally  declared  till  May  18:  the  chief  sub- 
,ec.t  of  complaint  being  the  encroachments  of  the  Fr^-iich  on  the  Ohio 
and  Nova-Scotia.  This  was  followed  by  tlireats  o,  mvasion  upon  Kng- 
land  or  Ireland,  in  consequence  of  which  a  body  of  Hessian  and  Han- 
overian troops  was  introduced  to  defend  the  interior  of  the  kingdom  ;  a 
measure  which    gave  rise  to  considerable  disconlent,  as  most  peoulo 


650 


THE  TRKASURY  OF  HISTOIIY. 


tlioiiglu  tliiit  the  ordinary  force  of  either  country  was  sufficient  to  repel 
invasion.  Uut  whilst  tiie  government  was  providing  for  its  internal 
security,  the  enemy  was  making  serious  attemjits  to  wrest  from  us  our 
possessions  both  in  the  East  and  West  Indies.  The  reduction  oi 
Minorca  was  a  favourite  object  of  the  French  government;  a  formidable 
force  was  landed  on  the  island,  and  close  siege  laid  to  Fort  St.  Philip, 
which  commands  the  principal  town  and  harbour.  The  governor,  Gen- 
eral Blakeney,  made  a  long  and  able  defence;  but  Admiral  Byng,  who 
had  been  entrusted  with  the  charge  of  the  English  fleet  in  the  Mediterra- 
nean, and  was  ordered  to  attempt  the  relief  of  the  place,  seems  to  have 
been  destitute  of  any  decisive  plan;  and,  after  avoiding  an  action  with  a 
French  squadron,  he  returned  to  Gibraltar,  abandoning  Minorca  to  its 
fate,  which,  to  the  infinite  chagrin  of  the  nation,  fell  into  the  hands  of 
the  enemy. 

The  surrender  of  Minorca  was  an  unexpev;;ed  blow^  and  the  rage  of  the 
people  at  its  loss  was  directed  against  the  unrorlunate  Uyng,  who  being 
tried  by  a  court-martial  at  Portsmouth,  was  condemned  to  death  for  not 
doing  his  utmost  to  engage  the  enemy,  but  recommended  to  the  mercy 
of  tlie  crown,  as  it  did  not  appear  to  the  court  that  it  was  through 
cowardice  or  disaffection.  (Jreat  exertions  were  made  to  save  the  admi- 
ral's life,  but  in  vain ;  he  was  ordered  to  be  shot  on  board  the  Monarque, 
and  he  met  his  fate  with  coolness  and  intrepidity. 

Ill  America  a  second  series  of  expeditions  against  the  French  forts 
signally  failed ;  while  the  marquis  de  Montcalm,  the  governor  of  Canada, 
captured  Oswego,  where  tl.)  tiritish  had  deposited  the  greater  part  o/ 
their  artillery  and  military  s  o  f'S.  But  it  is  time  that  we  call  the  reader's 
atteiitiijii  to  the  progress  of  uffairs  in  our  Kastern  possessions. 

A.  1).  '757. — The  jealousy  which  had  been  created  among  tlie  petty  iii- 
depeii  'out  f.iinces  of  India,  by  the  privileges  which  the  emperor  of  Delhi 
had  granted  to  the  Englisii  settlers  at  Calcutta,  had  risen  to  an  alarming 
height;  but  successful  means  had  been  used  to  allay  their  fury  until  the 
ac(!essi()n  of  the  ferocious  Suraja  Dowla,  souhbadar  of  Bengal,  who  was 
enraged  at  the  shelter  which  the  English  afforded  to  some  of  his  destined 
victims.  He  advanced  towards  Calcutta,  when  the  governor  and  most  ol 
the  local  authorities,  panic-stricken,  made  their  escape  in  boats,  leaving 
about  a  hundred  and  ninety  men,  under  the  control  of  Mr.  Ilolwell,  to 
make  the  best  of  their  forlorn  situation.  The  mere  handful  of  English- 
men, composing  the  garrison,  for  a  short  time  bravely  defended  thein- 
selv(!s,  hut  when  they  fell  into  the  power  of  the  infuriated  Suraja,  he 
ordered  the  unhappy  prisoners,  then  amounting  to  one  hundred  and  forty- 
six,  to  l)e  thrust  into  the  prisfjii  of  Calcutta,  called  the  Black-hole;  a  room 
less  than  twenty  feet  square.  Here  the  heat  and  foulness  of  the  :  ^ 
reduced  them  to  the  most  pitiable  state  imaginable  ;  and  when  on  the  fui- 
lowing  morning  an  order  came  for  their  release,  only  twenty-three  were 
found  alive.  The  news  of  this  horrid  catastrophe  reached  Madras  just 
when  Colonel  Clive  and  Admiral  Watson,  Hushed  by  their  recent  victory 
over  the  celebrated  pirate  Angria,  had  arrived  at  Madras  to  aid  in  the 
destruction  of  the  French  influence  in  Deccan.  Calcutta  was  therefore 
the  scene  of  their  next  operations;  and  no  sooner  did  the  fleet  make  its 
appearance  before  that  city  than  it  surrendered.  The  French  fort  ol 
Chandcrnagore  was  reduced;  several  of  the  Suraja  Dowla's  own  palaces 
were  taken,  conspiracies  were  formed  against  him,  and  tli(!  haughty  chief- 
tain felt  that  the  sovereignty  of  B'.igal  must  be  decided  by  a  l)aitle. 
Contrary  to  the  opinion  of  all  his  officers,  Clive  resolved  to  engage  liiui, 
although  the  disparity  of  their  forces  was  prodigious,  lie  acM'ordiiigly  took 
up  a  j)osition  in  the  grove  of  Plassy  ;  his  tro()])s  in  the  whole  not  exceed- 
ing 3,'J()0  nuMiiOfwhom  only  nine  hundred  were  Furo|)caiis  ;  while  Suraja 
Dowla  had  with  him  fifty  thot:sand  foot,  eighteen  thousand  horse,  and 


♦fty  piec 
enemy,  ai 
eomplete 
in  killed  j 
dominion ; 
which,  in 
A.  D.  17; 
change  in 
was  at  this 
Chatham) 
being  oppo 
would  hav( 
;iples  had 
tarnished  b 
was  theref( 
military  op 
first-named 
boiirg,  and  a 
eminence,  f( 
ed  by  the  ei: 
the  French 
Forbes  was 
approach  ab 
Abcrcrombic 
valour  of  his 
fortified. 

All  expedi 
taiits  of  Cam 
would  be  res] 
'I'll  us  when  (, 
tered  no  vcrj 
regard  the  a 
vaiiced  towai 
Crown   Poiiii 
Niagara.     Ai 
out  in  this  he 
made  him  ain 
persevere  in 
flight,  under  t 
inaccessible  s 
(own.    The  n 
that  so  darint 
foops.    A  ha 
contest  with  e 
"■'IS  just  begii 
'lie  breast  of  \ 
fl'-w  from  ran 
loss  of  his  gei 
words  "  They 
f=<"k  in  a  sol 
'"'iiig  told  it  i(_ 
"laniiiis  (je  Mc 
I'lr  intrepidity. 
VnuiiCul  rival, 
''c  exclaimed, 
render  of  Q,„.li 
e-iU'H  uy  the  ;jr 


THE  TREABURY  OF  HISTORY. 


C51 


♦fty  pieces  of  cannon.  So  great  were  the  errors  committed  by  the 
enemy,  and  so  skilfully  did  the  Uritish  commander  use  his  means,  that  a 
complete  victory  was  won,  at  the  astonishingly  small  loss  of  seventy  men 
in  killed  and  wounded.  This  event  laid  the  foundation  of  the  British 
dominion  in  India  ;  and  in  one  campaign  they  became  possessed  of  territory 
which,  in  its  wealth  and  extent,  exceeded  any  kingdom  in  Europe. 

A.  D.  1758. — While  victory  followed  victory  in  the  eastern  world,  a 
change  in  the  Knglish  ministry  led  to  similar  successes  in  the  west.  It 
was  at  this  period  that  the  celebrated  William  Pitt  (afterwards  earl  of 
Chatham)  was  brought  into  office,  with  Mr.  Legge ;  bui  both  of  them 
being  opposed  to  the  expensive  support  of  continental  connexions,  lliey 
would  iiave  been  dismissed  by  the  king,  but  for  the  popularity  their  prin- 
iiples  had  acquired.  In  North  America  the  British  arms  had  been 
tarnished  by  delays  and  disasters  that  might  have  been  avoided  ;  and  it 
was  therefore  resolved  to  recall  the  earl  of  Loudon,  and  entrust  the 
military  operations  to  generals  Abercrombie,  Amherst,  and  Forbes,  the 
first-named  being  the  commander-in-chief.  Amherst  laid  siege  to  Louis- 
bourg,  and  aided  by  the  talents  of  Brigadier  Wolfe,  who  was  fastrisintf  into 
eminence,  forced  that  important  garrison  to  surrender.  This  was  follow- 
ed by  the  entire  reduction  of  Cape  Breton,  and  the  inferior  stations  which 
the  French  occupied  in  the  gulf  of  St.  Lawrence.  Brigadier-general 
Forbes  was  sent  against  Fort  du  Quesne,  which  the  French  at  his 
approach  abandoned.  But  the  expedition  against  Ticonderoga,  which 
Abercrombie  himself  undertook,  failed  of  success;  the  number  and 
valour  of  his  troops  being  unequal  to  the  capture  of  a  place  so  strongly 
fortified. 

An  expedition  was  now  planned  against  Quebec ;  and  as  the  inhabi- 
tants of  Canada  had  good  reason  to  believe  that  their  laws  and  religion 
would  be  respected,  they  were  prepared  to  submit  to  a  change  of  masters 
Thus  when  General  Wolfe  proceeded  up  the  St.  Lawrence,  he  encoun- 
tered no  very  serious  opposition  from  the  Canadians,  who  seemed  to 
regard  the  approaching  struggle  with  indifference.  While  Wolfe  ad- 
vanced towards  Quebec,  General  Amherst  conquered  Ticonderoga  and 
Crown  Point,  and  Sir  W.  .lohnson  gained  the  important  fortress  of 
Niagara.  Amherst  expected  to  be  able  to  form  a  junction  with  Wolfe, 
but  in  this  he  was  disappointed;  and  though  the  inadequacy  of  his  force 
made  him  almost  despair  of  success,  the  ardent  young  general  resolved  to 
persevere  in  this  hazardous  enterprize.  Having  effected  a  landing  in  the 
night,  under  the  heights  of  Abraham,  he  led  his  men  up  this  apparently 
inaccessible  steep,  thereby  securing  a  position  which  commanded  the 
town.  The  marquis  de  Montcalm  was  utterly  astonished  when  he  heard 
that  so  daring  and  desperate  an  effort  had  been  achieved  by  the  Fnglish 
troops.  A  battle  was  now  inevitable,  and  both  generals  prepared  for  the 
contest  with  equal  courage.  It  was  brief,  but  fierce ;  the  scale  of  victory 
was  just  beginning  to  turn  in  favour  of  the  British,  when  a  ball  pierced 
the  breast  of  Wolfe,  and  he  fell  mortally  wounded.  Thi;  unhappy  tidings 
flew  from  rank  to  rank;  every  man  seemed  determined  to  aveiiiri!  the 
loss  of  his  general;  and  with  such  impetuosity  did  they  charge,  that  the 
words  "  They  run !"  resounded  in  the  ears  of  Wolfe  as,  (fxpiring,  ho 
sank  in  a  soldier's  arms.  "Who  ruuT'  he  eagerly  inquired;  md  on 
being  told  it  was  ihe  French,  he  camly  replied,  "  I  die  happy  "  The 
inanpiis  de  Montcalm  fell  in  the  same  field,  and  met  his  fate  with  simi- 
lar inirepid'ty.  In  skill  and  valour  he  was  no  way  inferior  to  his  more 
youllirul  rival.  When  told,  after  the  battle,  that  his  wounds  were  mortal, 
lie  exclaimed,  "So  much  the  better  :  I  shall  not  live  to  witness  the  sur- 
render of  Quebec."  In  a  few  days  after  tiiis  battle,  the  city  opened  its 
gato  u»  Uie  British,  and  the  coini)iele  subjugation  of  the  Canadas  speedily 
loJVgvcd 


i' 


«'■; 


i 


*: 


653 


THE  THEASUHY  op  H18T0HY. 


A.  D.  17C0.— Ill  lliG  East  Indies  the  success  of  the  KiikuhIi  was  Nciinrcly 
less  decisive  tiiaii  in  America.  By  land  and  liy  sea  several  victories  had 
been  gained  in  tiiat  quarter :  and  at  length  Colonial  Coolo  and  the  French 
general,  Lally,  fought  a  determined  battle  at  VVandewaHJi  (Jan.  Ul),  in 
which  the  French  were  signally  defeated  and  their  inlluenoo  in  the  Car- 
natic  destroyed. 

The  war  on  the  continent,  in  which  the  English  Inul  taken  a  very  active 
part,  liad  now  raged  for  four  years,  without  gaining  any  other  ad'viuitiigj 
than  the  gratification  of  defending  the  possessions  of  their  sovereign  in 
Germany.  England,  indeed,  was  now  in  a  state  of  unparalU^led  glory. 
At  sea,  the  conduct  of  her  admirals  had  destroyed  the  naval  jHnver  of 
the  French ;  in  the  Indies  her  empire  was  extended,  and  the  Fiigiisli 
rendered  masters  of  the  commerce  of  the  vast  peninsula  of  IlindoNtan; 
while  in  Canada  a  most  important  conquest  had  been  achicvc.'d.  'I'hese 
important  acquisitions  made  the  English  very  impatient  of  tiie  (lurinan 
war;  and  they  asserted  that  the  French  islands  in  the  West  Indies,  more 
valuable  to  a  commercial  people  than  half  the  states  of  (jermaiij,  migl* 
have  been  gained  with  less  expense  and  risk  than  had  been  spent  in  de- 
fending one  paltry  electorate.  In  the  midst  of  these  disputes,  Ueorge  II. 
died  suddenly,  on  the  25ih  of  October,  in  the  77th  year  of  his  age,  and 
the  34th  of  his  reign.  The  immediate  cause  of  his  disease  was  a  rup- 
ture of  the  right  ventricle  of  the  heart.  If  we  impartially  regard  the  cliar- 
acter  of  this  king,  we  shall  find  both  in  his  private  and  pul)lic  conduct 
room  for  just  panegyric.  Tliat  during  his  whole  reign  he  evinced  a  re- 
markable affection  for  his  Hanoverian  subjects  is  certainly  true  ;  yet  his 
exposing  that  country  to  tlie  attacks  of  the  enemy,  rather  than  neglect  the 
rights  of  England  in  North  America,  clears  him  of  the  imputation  o/ 
partiality.  In  his  temper  he  was  hasty  and  violent,  yet  his  general  con. 
duct  was  so  little  influenced  by  this,  that  it  was  generally  mild  and 
humane.  He  was  impartial  in  the  administration  of  justic(!,  sinceri!  and 
open  in  his  intentions,  and  temperate  and  regular  in  liis  manner  of  living 
Under  his  reign  the  agriculture,  commerce,  and  industry  of  Cinsat  Itritaia 
daily  increased ;  and  his  subjects,  even  when  at  war  with  tho  moNt  power- 
ful nations  of  Europe,  enjoyed  peace  at  home,  and  n('(iuired  glory  abroad. 

Great  progress  had  been  made  in  this  reign  in  disseininating  a  taste  for 
general  literature  and  the  arts ;  and  though  it  was  not  tho  fashion  for  the 
magnates  of  the  land  to  be  very  liberal  of  their  patronage;  to  sticli  as 
devoted  their  minds  to  the  advancement  of  science,  still  much  was  done 
towards  pioneering  the  way  for  a  future  age,  when  a  solution  of  many  of 
the  phenomena  of  nature  might  .seem  to  demand  more  serious  attt;ntion. 
Among  tlie  great  historians  were  Hume,  Gibbon,  and  Robertson.  In 
philology  and  criticism  were  Warburton,  lientley,  anil  Itoyle.  Mjilhcma- 
tics  and  astronomy  could  boast  of  Halley,  llradley,  and  Maclanriii. 
Theology  was  distinguished  by  the  eminent  names  of  I'otter,  Hoadley, 
Sherlock,  Doddridge,  Watts,  Ciiandlcr,  and  iniiny  others.  I'aiiiling 
had  its  Reynolds,  Ramsay,  and  Ilogartii ;  music  its  Handel,  Itoyce,  (irccnc, 
and  Arne ;  and  among  the  votaries  of  tlu;  muses  were  I'opc!,  Akeiisi<le, 
Thompson,  Young,  Gray,  Glover,  and  others  scarcely  less  distinguished 


CHAPTER  LX. 

THE    REIGN    OF    GEOKGE  III. 

A.  n.  17G0.— George  II.  was  succeeded  by  his  grandson,  Oeorge  Hi., 
eldest  son  of  Frederic,  prince  of  Wales,  whose  death  lias  been  mentioned 
as  oc  Mirring  in  1751.  On  his  accession  to  the  thnuic  he  was  twenly-lwo 
years  of  age;  affable,  good-tempered,  upright,  and  religioUH.     Uiu  educd* 


IK,";  .^;? 


M^'m 


!    -i 


m,','i 


".W*: 


lie, 


t,\o 


m 


i 


r» 


ftf 


ffi! 

Br 

|:(| 

1' 

li 

If  !■ 

Ir 

'•.        '■ 

m 


■t 


m-i 


tlon  had  bee 

tage  over  hi; 

111(1  institutic 

sequemly  in; 

containing  pi 

parts  of  the  ]t 

On  his  maj 

the  duke  of  ^ 

presiding  gei 

Lord  Northii 

of  tile  counc 

chancellor  o( 

and  Lord  Hoi 

king  met  his  i 

with,  "  Born  f 

the  tiourisliinj 

and  the  cxtinc 

support  of  the 

were  declared 

granting  to  iiis 

A.  D.    17t)l.— 

declaration  of 

the  duke  of  M( 

cordingiy  niad( 

tials  look  pjacf 

majrstips  were 

Xoon  after  th 

hy  the  pourts  o 

intention  on  eii 

house  of  IJourb 

was  relying  on 

Imslilitifs  with 

at  sea  the  hono 

appeared  to  be  i 

lint  neither  pow 

discovered  that 

and  Madrid  had 

lile  intentions  o 

iires  of  Spanish 

were  adverse ; 

''i''"li''r-in-law,  I 

i'lixiiiiis  to  iiitnx 

ceiUed  111,,  prcii 

pi'iisKiii  of  3,()00i 

ti)  his  wife  (on  v^ 

llieir  eldest  son, 

A.  n.  17f>-3 —A 

jiiid  oecnrrcd,  it  I 

'"'iisi's  of  Uonrb( 

i^iiy  showed  no 

and  (Ml  the  lib  of 

Mow  w.is  striiek 

folliiwcd  by  ibc  R 

"t.  Vincent.    Th 

•iiree^sfiil ;  a  flp, 

the  ..art  of  \||„.,„ 

nf  r^nba,  wbieli  si 

The  riches  acijinr 


THE  TRKA8TJRY  OF  HISTORY. 


653 


tlon  had  been  under  the  direction  of  Lord  Bute,  and  he  Iiad  a  great  iidvan- 
lage  over  his  predecessors,  in  being  acquainted  with  the  language,  luibits. 
ind  institutions  of  his  countrymen  ;  his  first  entrance  into  public  life  con- 
gequently  made  a  favourable  impression  on  his  subjects,  and  addresses, 
containing  professions  of  the  most  loyal  attachment,  poured  in  from  all 
parts  of  the  kingdom. 

On  his  majesty's  accession,  the  nominal  head  of  the  administration  was 
the  duke  of  Newcastle  ;  but  Mr.  Pitt,  principal  secretary  of  state,  was  the 
presiding  genius  of  the  cabinet.  The  chief  remaining  mcmbcrB  were 
Lord  Northington,  afterwards  lord  chancellor ;  Lord  Carteret,  presiden 
of  the  council;  the  duke  of  Devonshire,  lord  chamberlain;  Mr.  Legge 
chancellor  of  the  exchequer ;  Lord  Anson,  first  lord  of  the  admiralty, 
and  Lord  Holdernesse,  secretary  of  state.  On  the  18th  of  November  the 
king  met  his  parliament,  and  in  a  popular  speech,  which  he  commenced 
with,  "  Born  and  educated  in  this  country,  Iglory  in  the  name  of  Hriion,'' 
the  tlourisliing  siate  of  tlic  kingdom,  the  brilliant  successes  of  the  war, 
and  the  extinction  of  internal  divisions  were  acknowledged;  while  the 
support  of  the  "  protestant  interest,"  and  a  "  safe  and  honourable  peace," 
were  declared  to  be  the  objects  of  the  war.  An  act  was  then  passed  for 
granting  to  his  majesty  an  annual  income  of  80,000/. 

A.  I).  171)1. — One  of  the  first  important  acts  of  the  new  monarch  was  a 
declaration  of  his  intention  to  marry  the  princess  Charlotte,  daughter  ol 
the  duke  of  Meeklenburgh-Slrelitz:  the  necessary  preparations  were  ac- 
cordingly made ;  she  arrived  in  I.c)ndon  on  the  7th  of  September,  the  nup- 
tials took  place  that  evening  in  tlie  royal  chapel,  and  on  the  22d  their 
majesties  were  crowned  in  Westminster-abbey. 

Soon  after  the  king's  accession,  negotiations  for  peace  were  commenced 
by  the  courts  of  France  and  Groat  Britain,  but  there  was  little  honesty  of 
intention  on  either  side  ;  Mr.  Pitt  being  firmly  resolved  to  humble  the 
house  of  Bourbon,  while  th(!  duke  of  Chouiseul,  on  the  part  of  Friiuce, 
was  relying  on  the  promises  of  Spanisli  aid,  to  enable  him  to  carry  on 
hiistilities  with  increased  vigour.  The  war  languished  in  (lermany  ;  but 
at  sea  the  honour  of  the  British  flag  was  still  nobly  sustained.  Peace 
appeared  to  be  desirable  for  all  parties,  and  negotiations  were  resinned; 
but  neither  power  was  willing  to  make  concessions,  and  Mr.  Pitt  having 
discovered  that  an  intimate  connexion  between  the  courts  of  Versailles 
and  Madrid  liad  been  formed,  proposed  in  council  to  anticipate  thi.'  hos- 
tile intentions  of  the  latter,  by  seizing  the  plate-fleet,  laden  with  the  treas- 
ures of  Spanish  America.  To  this  the  king  and  the  rest  of  the  ministers 
were  adverse ;  the  eonseqiience  of  which  was,  that  Mr.  Pitt  and  his 
brother-in-law.  Lord  Temple,  sent  in  their  seals  of  olTici'.  His  majesty, 
anxious  to  introduce  his  f.ivourite,  (lie  earl  of  llnte  into  the  cabinet,  ac- 
cepted the  premier's  resignation,  and  in  return  for  his  great  services,  a 
pciisioii  of  .3,000/.  per  iiiiiiuiu  was  settled  upon  him,  which  was  to  continim 
to  his  wife  (on  whom  the  title  of  baroness  Chatham  was  conferred)  and 
their  j'ldest  son,  for  their  lives. 

A.  n.  nfiv?.— A  very  few  months  after  the  late  changes  in  the  cabinet 
had  occurred,  it  became  fullv  evident  that  the  "  family  compact"  of  the 
houses  of  Hourlmn  li.id  been  .(.inpleted.  On  this  occasion  the  new  min- 
isiiy  showed  no  want  of  alacrity  in  maintaining  their  country's  honour; 
and  oil  the  Ith  of  .laniiary  war  was  declared  against  Spam.  The  first 
blow  was  struck  by  Admiral  Uodiiev,  wliocai)tiired  Martinico ;  which  was 
followed  by  the  surrender  of  the  dependent  isles,  Oreiiada,  St.  Lucie,  and 
8t.  Vincent.  The  next  expedition  undertaken  by  the  Knglii-h  was  efjiially 
lurrc'Hsfii! ;  a  fleet  under  Admiral  Pococke,  assisted  by  an  army  under 
the  earl  of  Mbemarle,  was  sent  ayainst  Havauna,  the  capital  of  the  island 
nfCuhn,  which  surrendered  after  a  vigorous  resistance  of  two  months. 
The  riches  acquired  by  the  Knglish  on  this  occasion  amounted  to  iv^wf 


1* 


S54 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


ships  of  the  line,  besides  money  and  merchandise  to  the  amount  of  four 
millions  sterling. 

While  these  successes  attended  the  British  arms  in  the  West  Indies,  an 
armament  from  Rliidnis,  under  General  Draper  and  General  Cornish,  re- 
duced the  island  of  Manilla,  and  its  fall  involved  the  fate  of  the  whole 
range  of  the  Philippine  islands.  The  capture  of  the  Hermione,  a  largo 
Spanish  register- ship,  took  place  soon  after,  and  tlie  cargo,  which  was 
estimated  at  a  million  sterling,  passed  in  triumph  to  the  bank  at  the  sar... 
hour  in  which  the  birth  of  the  prince  of  Wales  was  announced  to  the  pub 
lie  (April  12,  1762). 

An  attempt  made  by  S|)ain  to  subdue  Portugal  having  proved  unsuc- 
cessful, and  both  France  and  Spain  being  heartily  tired  of  a  war  whicli 
threatened  ruin  to  the  colonies  of  both,  they  became  desirous  of  peace ; 
this  being  agreeable  to  the  Britisli  ministry,  of  whom  the  earl  of  Bute  was 
then  at  the  head,  preliminaries  were  speedily  set  on  foot.  Indeed,  so 
anxious  was  his  lordship  to  avoid  a  continuance  of  hostilities,  that  he  not 
only  stopped  the  career  of  colonial  conquest,  but  consented  to  sacrifice 
several  acquisitions  that  Britain  had  already  made.  The  definitive  treaty 
was  concluded  at  Paris  on  the  Uih  of  February,  1763.  Florida  was  re- 
ceived in  exchange  for  llavanna;  Cape  Breton,  Tobago,  Dominico,  St. 
V^incent,  Grenada,  and  Senegal  were  retained  ;  the  conquest  of  Canada 
remained  intact,  and  th(;  British  nation  had  also  gained  large  possessions 
and  a  decided  superiority  in  India. 

A.  D.  1763, — In  Germany  the  marquis  of  Granby  signalized  liimself  at 
the  head  of  an  army  ;  and,  in  union  with  the  king  of  Prussia,  would  in  all 
probability  have  succeeded  in  expelling  the  French  troops,  had  not  a  gen- 
eral treaty  of  peace  |)ut  an  end  to  the  contest.  Britain  by  the  coloniiil 
war  obtained  complete  maritime  supremacy;  she  commanded  the  eninu 
commerce  of  North  America  and  Hindostan,  and  had  a  decided  superi- 
ority in  the  West  Indian  trade.  But  during  the  "seven  years'  war''  a 
qucslion  arose  whicli  led  tov(!ry  iin|)ortant  discussions;  France,  unable  to 
iiiaiiitain  a  commercial  intercourse  with  her  colonies,  opened  the  trade  to 
neutral  powers;  Kiigland  declared  this  trafTu;  illegal,  and  relying  on  her 
naval  superiority,  sijzed  neutral  vessels  and  neutr;il  property  bound  tu 
hosiilc  ports.  TIm'  relurii  of  peace  |)ut  an  end  to  the  dispute  for  a  season, 
but  the  subject  has  .since  bei'ii  the  fruitful  source  of  angry  discussion  iii 
every  subsequent  war. 

The  can  of  Bute,  under  whoso  auspices  the  late  peace  had  been  made, 
iiad  always  been  beheld  with  jealousy  by  the  popular  party,  who  accuse;! 
him  of  having  formed  that  "  iiilluence  behind  tile  throne  greater  than  lln- 
throne  ilsell," — though  il  really  seems  to  have  been  a  mere  delusion,  fos- 
tered and  eiurouraued  for  factious  purposes — now  suddenly  resigiieil  Ins 
ortice  of  first  lord  of  llu^  treasury,  and  was  succeeded  by  Mr.  George  Greii- 
ville. 

The  |)iil)lic  alteiiliiMi  was  now  almost  wholly  bent  on  the  result  of  ilic 
trial  of  John  Wilkes,  nieinhir  for  Aylrshiiry,  a  man  of  good  talents  and 
classical  taste,  hut  who  iMire  a  vrrv  pinlligate  eliaracler.  Disappoinled  hi 
Ins  expectalioiis  from  the  ininisu\.  he  assumed  the  part  of  a  violent 
patriot,  and  inveighed  velieinenily  against  tli(?  mi'asnrc>i  pursued  by  yiiv- 

eminent.     The  press  t iied  with  pnlilical  painplilcls,  to  which  the  niiiii!*- 

terii'l  party  seeincil  iiidiUcrenl,  iiiiiil  llir  ;ippc;ir,ince  of  No.  'r.!  of  the  .Yi/r//i 
liiilim,  in  which  very  strong  and  si'iirnluiis  abuse  was  published  again"! 
tlu:  king's  sptcch  delivered  alllie  close  iif  p^irliniurnt.  A  general  warrant 
was  tliereupiui  i>'Siicd  fur  apprebfiidiiig  the  iiulhor,  jirinter,  and  |iul>li'«lMr 
of  il  .  and  .Sir.  Wilkes  being  taken  into  cusiod)',  he  was  sent  to  the  Ttiwri 
and  all  his  paprrs  were  sri/cd.  He  was  al'lerwarils  tried  in  the  court  ni 
tuiniiion  pleas  Hind  acquitted.  Lord  Chief-Justice  Pratt  declarinm  iigaiiiiii 


the  legali 

names  of 

But  Wi 

infonnatic 
and  the  A 
matter  enc 
stormy  d(;l 
expelled  fi 
"  An  Kssa; 
burton  wai 
against  hiii 
we  may  he 
logical  bou 
to  the  fine  t 
of  the  sentt 
county  of  3 
ministerial 
the  earl  of 
in  the  Towe 
A.  D.  1765 
by  the  pHssi 
which  alien, 
total  separat 
in  order  to  p 
the  French,  i 
|he  expenses 
iato  parliaine 
oilier  duties  ( 
■ill.v,  the  resi! 
eral  disccmte 
■let.     A  chat 
Hockingham, 
limited  durati 
Ireasiiry.     Tl 
•■iirl  of  Chatl 
cliaiir(.ll„r,  ,„ 
'I'he  ad'airs 
lionse.     .Mr. 
Colonel  Clue 
had  opposed  t 
making  iiu  ei 
.Vear  the  coini 
heeii    in   Ihe 
princes,  by 
"aiiie  of  III!  |.;, 
sii'ain  the  rapa 
•'ompaiiy,  hv  V 
'I'lie  «falih( 

of  gllVI'||l|||,.„t 

had  ,iiiy  right 
»  appeiire,)  thii 
liig  proved  lli;,t 
"leir  doiiiinioiif 
'••"llinerri;,!  ;.,ss 

'rol  of  parliann 

The  metropo 

"'winch  a  selo 

Miud,  ulreiidy 


THE  TBEASUIIY  OF  HISTORY. 


655 

the 


niiick'. 

nil  iln- 

on,  (<>^- 

(I'd  his 

I   of    lllL' 
llti    M\'\ 

illlU'li  1" 
Vlull'lU 

by  U'l^- 

!■  Mlllli"- 

jiKiiii^t 
Iwiirrii'i 

lllllll-lK' 

.'rowel 
|<'oiirt  "' 
ii^^iiiiiti 


the  legiilily  of  general  warrants;  that  is,  warrants  not  specifying 
names  of  the  accused. 

But  Willies,  after  liis  release,  having  republished  the  offensive  paper,  an 
information  was  (iled  against  him  at  his  majesty's  suit,  for  a  gross  iitiel, 
and  the  North  Briton  was  burned  by  the  common  hangman:  nor  did  the 
matter  end  here;  the  legality  of  general  warrants  gave  rise  to  several 
stormy  d(;bales  in  the  house  of  commons,  and  at  length  Mr.  Wilkes  was 
expelled  for  having  printed  in  his  own  house  an  infamous  poem,  called 
"  An  Kssay  on  Woman,"  with  notes,  to  which  the  name  of  Uiaho[)  War- 
burton  was  affixed.  As  he  did  not  appear  to  tli''  indictment  preferred 
against  him,  he  was  declared  an  outlaw.  He  then  retired  to  Frapce  ;  and 
we  may  here  as  well  observe,  though  in  doing  so  we  overstep  our  chrono- 
logical boundary,  that  in  1708  he  returned  to  England,  and,  by  subn)iuing 
to  the  fine  and  imprisonment  pronounced  against  liini,  procured  a  reversion 
of  the  sentence  of  outlawry.  lie  then  otVered  himself  to  represent  the 
county  of  Middlesex,  and  was  unanimously  chosen,  in  opposition  to  the 
ministerial  candidates.  lie  afterwards  commenced  a  prosecution  against 
the  earl  of  Halifax,  and  recovered  4,000/.  damages  for  his  imprisonment 
in  the  Tower  upon  aii  illegal  warrant. 

A.  D.  1765. — This  year  is  rendered  important  in  the  annals  of  Fhigland 
by  the  passing  of  an  American  stamp  act,  winch  gave  rise  to  those  disputes 
whicli  alien. lied  the  colonies  from  the  mother  country,  and  ended  in  a 
total  separation.  As  the  late  war  had  been  entered  into  by  (ireat  Dritain, 
in  order  to  protect  her  American  settlements  from  the  eiicroachmcnls  of 
the  French,  it  was  tiioiighl  reasonable  that  they  siioiild  contrilnite  towards 
tile  expenses  which  had  been  incurred.  A  bill  was  accordingly  broiiifht 
into  parliament,  ai-.d  received  the  royal  assent,  for  imposmg  a  stamp  and 
other  duties  on  fiTty-three  articles  of  their  commerce.  However,  eventu- 
ally, the  resistance  made  by  the  Americans  to  these  imposts,  and  the  gen- 
eral discontent  which  prevailed  in  Kngland,  occasioned  the  repeal  of  the 
ai't.  A  change  in  the  ministry,  by  the  introduction  of  the  marquis  of 
Rockingham,  was  the  immediate!  consiH(uence ;  but  his  rule  was  of  very 
limited  duration,  and  the  duke  of  Grafton  was  appointed  first  lord  of  the 
treasury.  The  privy  seal  was  bestowed  on  Mr.  I'itt,  who  was  created 
earl  of  Chatham  ;  Iiord  Camden  succeeded  Lord  Northington  as  hu'd 
cliancellor,  and  Mr.  Townshend  was  made  chancellor  of  the  exchecpu^r. 
The  atrairs  o(  lUr  Kast  India  Company  now  claimed  the  attention  of  the 
house.  Mr.  Vansiltart  had  acted  as  governor-general  from  the  liiiii!  of 
Colonel  Clive's  return  to  Kngland  in  17(iO.  Itut  the  viceroy  of  ilengal 
had  opposed  the  c(Mnpany,  and  a  war  I'lisued  which  ended  by  the  Ihiglish 
making  an  entire  cviKiuest  of  l\n'  kingdom  of  Itengal.  Tin;  preceding 
year  tlii^  company  sen'  over  Lord  ('live,  «  ho  found  that  iK'  ir  agents  hail 
i)fen  in  lh(!  haliit  of  xacting  large  sums  as  presi.'uts  from  the  native 
princes,  by  which  means  they  had  accumulated  great  riches,  and  the 
name  of  an  F.nglishman  had  become  odious.  Lord  ('liver  resolved  to  re- 
strain the  rapacity  of  these  persons,  and  he  conidudeil  a  treaty  for  the 
company,  by  which  they  would  enjoy  a  revenue  of  1,700.000/. 

The  wealth  of  this  powerful  body  rendered  it  loo  forinidabh' in  the  eyes 
of  government,  and  a  iiuistion  arose  whether  Hie  Hasi  Iinlja  Company 
had  any  right  to  territoiial  jurisdiction.  On  exaininiiig  into  their  iinrler. 
it  appeari'ii  thai  they  were  prohiliiled  from  making  conquests  ;  iiml  it  lie 
ing  proved  that  they  had  subdued  sor.ir  of  the  native  princes,  and  annexed 
their  dominions  to  the  eompiuiy's  selilcnienls,  it  was  agreed  that  this 
idinmerrial  association  shouhl  be  brought  m  some  degree  under  the  con- 
trol of  parliament. 

The  metropolis  was  for  a  long  time  agitated  with  the  affair  of  Wilkes, 
of  which  a  setof  restless  deniagogiits  look  a  Ivanlnue  to  disliirb  the  pnlilio 
iiind,  already  over-e.\ciled  by  the  opposition  to  the  measurei  of  govern- 


♦I     '': 


656 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


merit  as  regarded  the  North  American  colonies.    Bnt  no  national  event 
worthy  of  historic.il  record  occurred  for  some  considerable  time. 

One  or  two  matters  of  domestic  interest  which  happened  during  this 
period  must,  however,  he  noticed.  The  first  relates  to  an  address  from 
the  corporation  of  London  to  the  king,  which  was  presented  on  the  23d 
of  May,  1770,  in  which  they  lamented  the  royal  displeasure  they  had 
incurred  in  consequence  of  their  former  remonstrance ;  but  they  still  ad- 
hered to  it,  and  again  prayed  for  a  dissolution  of  parhament.  To  which 
his  majesty  replied  that  "  he  slioukl  have  been  wanting  to  the  public,  as 
well  as  to  himself,  had  he  made  such  an  use  of  the  prerogative  as  was 
inconsistent  with  the  interest,  and  dangerous  to  tiie  constitution  of  the 
kingdom."  Upon  this,  the  lord-mayor  Ueckford,  p.  high-spirited  and  fear- 
less democrat,  be^'ged  leave  to  ans:i;er  the  king.  Such  a  request  was  as 
indecorous  as  it  was  unusual;  but  in  the  confiision  of  the  moment,  leave 
was  given,  and,  with  great  fluency  of  language,  he  delivered  an  extern 
pore  address  to  liis  majesty,  concluding  in  the  following  words  : — "Per 
mit  nic,  sire,  to  observe  that  whoever  has  already  dared,  or  shall  hereafter 
endeavour,  by  false  insinuations  and  suggestions,  to  alienate  your  ma- 
jesty's affections  from  your  loyal  subjects  in  general,  and  from  tiie  city 
of  London  in  particular,  and  to  withdraw  your  confidence  from,  and  regard 
for,  your  people,  is  an  enemy  to  your  majesty's  person  and  family,  a 
violator  of  the  ])ubli(;  peace,  and  the  betrayer  of  our  happy  constitution 
as  it  was  establislied  at  the  glorious  and  necessary  revolution."  No 
reply  w;is  given,  lint  the  kinsi;  reddened  with  anger  and  astonisiiment 
^Vh('n  his  civic  lordship  again  appeared  at  St.  James'  the  lord-chamber- 
lain informed  him  that  his  majesty  desired  that  nothing  of  the  kind  mighl 
happen  in  future. 

An  ex-officio  persecution  against  Woodfall,  the  printer  and  publisher  Oi 
the  "  Public  Advertiser,"  in  which  the  "  Letters  of  .Junius"  originally  aj) 
pearcd,  having  placed  him  at  the  bar.  Lord  Mansfield  informed  the  jury 
that  thoy  had  nothing  to  do  with  the  ititeuHnn  of  the  writer,  their  province 
was  limited  to  \hbfart  of  publishing;  the  truth  or  falsehood  of  the  alledged 
lilicl  was  wholly  immaterial.  Tiie  jury,  howrver,  after  being  out  nine 
hours,  found  a  verdict  of  guilty  of  printing  and  jmhlishing  unlij,  which  in 
effect  amounted  to  an  acquittal.  These  celebrated  "  Letters"  were  equally 
distinguished  by  tlie  force  and  elegance  of  tlieir  style,  as  by  the  virulence 
of  their  attacks  on  indivichials ;  and  though  conjecture  has  ever  since  been 
busy  to  discover  the  autlior,  and  strong  circumstantial  evidence  has  been 
brought  forward  at  different  times  to  identify  different  persons  with  the 
niithorsliip,  no  one  has  yet  succeeded  in  the  attempt. 

ncfore  tliis  time  (1771)  the  parliamentary  deba'cs  had  only  been  given 
in  monthly  magazines  and  other  periodicals  published  at  considerable 
intervals.  The  practice  of  daily  reporting  now  commcnc(!d ;  but  as  it 
was  an  innovation  on  the  former  jiractice,  and  in  direct  violation  of  the 
standing  orders  of  the  house,  several  printers  were  apjirehended  and  taken 
before  Lord-mayor  Crosby  and  Aldermen  Oliver  and  Wilkes,  who  dis- 
charged them,  and  held  the  messenger  of  the  commons  to  bail  for  false 
imiirisonment.  The  house  of  coinmoiis,  enraged  at  this  daring  coii'einpt 
of  their  authority,  committed  their  two  members,  Crosby  and  Oliver,  to 
till!  Tower;  but  eventually  the  matter  was  suffered  to  drop;  the  aldermen 
were  lioerated  ;  and  from  that  time  the  publication  of  the  parliamentary 
proceetnngs  has  been  connhrd  at'. 

Oil  the  death  of  Mr.  Townsheiid,  who  did  not  long  survi'chis  appoint- 
ment to  the  office  of  cliaiK-elhu'  of  the  exchequer,  he  was  succeeded  by 
Lord  North — Lord  Chatham  liaMiiij  now  loit  his  inthieiice  over  the  minis- 
try, and  being  dissatisfied  with  their  iiroeeediiigs,  resigiitd  his  place  an 
lord-keeper  of  the  privy  si'al,  ami  retired  from  tie  cares  of  government. 

\n  the  latcarraiigeineuts  made  luiween  govcrnm"nt  and  the  Kusi  India 


t^'ompaiiy 
Lord  Noi 
American 
lature,  if 

Custom-hi 

collecting 

infnngenu 

ish  coihmc 

at  Bo.ston, 

and  the  c;i 

defiance,  a 

inhabitants 

siderable  ai 

Boston,  iint 

When  th( 

of  the  act,  s 

provinces,  a 

'0  put  the  ac 

"as  franiiiiii 

raised  tlieir 

association, 

eiiant,  to  hre 

(he  Boston  | 

restored  to  it 

hameiit  asse 

'roubles  of  A 

'''iathain,iin(l 

>vere  also  rej< 

'il  the  bar  of  i 

A.  D.  1775.- 

was  evideiitlJ 

"leir  (Miise  wi 

"ain  their  mi 

prepare  arms 

'"''he   United 

reiicy,  and  we: 

"le  authority  c 

eral  (iaire,  wh 

"•■»y.     'I'hjs  o/J 

"floinjiiKj  to  tl 

sent  tliiilier  a  ( 

'0  Dosldii,  ihes 

l"tve  siK  ceeiled 

lurce  to  cover 

"iiioiini,.,!  t„  .J 

"'niiiideil.  Wa 
'•'ids,  elated  wj 
'iicreased  viirim 

l"li'l)|Mlrr(i||;a''MII 

"f  iipwanis  of  1 

''lt>r(s  of  every, 

'"<■»■  entrusted  t 

"'!••     In  the  n,r 

"f  these  resohii 

Ine  generals  If 

•■"•illidaled  by  t 

'"K'ltof  thetem 

'"'ice  ea|le,i  I),,, 

Vol..  I. — l-i 


•  \ 


THE  TUiSASUHY  OF  HISTORY. 


r,57 


h  given 
lcr;ible 
kt  as  it 
of  Uie 
ll  taUi'U 
llio  ilis- 
l)r  false 
In"  iMiipl 
Ivcr,  to 
Mcniu'" 
LiMitrvry 

Ippoint. 
l(k>l  by 
iiiinis- 
ll;ii"t'  '•'H 
liiiirnt. 
kl  IiiJia 


Company,  permission  was  given  to  the  latter  to  export  teas  free  of  duly. 
Lord  North  hoped  that  the  low  price  of  the  article  would  induce  the 
Americans  to  pay  the  duty  charged  on  importation  by  the  English  legis- 
lature, if  only  for  the  mere  purpose  of  allowing  the  right  of  taxation. 
Custom-houses  had  been  established  in  their  seaports,  for  the  purpose  of 
collecting;  these  duties  ;  which  being  considered  by  the  Americans  as  an 
infringement  of  their  liberty,  they  resolved  to  discontinue  the  use  of  Brit- 
ish coihmodities.  Accordingly,  when  three  vessels,  laden  with  tea,  arrived 
at  Boston,  they  were  boarded  during  the  night  by  a  party  of  the  townsmen, 
and  the  cargoes  thrown  into  the  sea.  This,  followed  by  other  acts  of 
defiance,  and  a  repetition  of  similar  rebellious  conduct  on  the  part  of  the 
inhabitants  of  South  Carolina,  gave  great  olTence,  while  it  occasioned  con- 
siderable alarm  in  England,  and  acts  were  passed  for  closing  the  port  of 
Boston,  and  for  altering  the  constitution  of  the  colony  of  Massachusetts. 
When  the  order  to  close  the  port  of  Boston  reached  America,  a  copy 
of  the  act,  surrounded  with  a  black  border,  was  circulated  through  all  the 
provinces,  and  they  resolved  to  spend  the  Isl  of  June,  the  day  appointed 
to  put  tiie  act  into  execution,  in  fasting  and  prayer.  Whilst  each  province 
was  framing  resolutions,  tiie  other  bills  reached  Massachusetts.  Tliese 
raised  their  irritated  feelings  to  the  highest  pitch,  and  they  formed  an 
association,  in  which  they  bound  themselves,  by  a  solemn  league  and  cov- 
enant, to  break  off  all  commercial  intercourse  with  Great  Britain,  until 
the  Boston  port-bill  and  other  acts  should  be  repealed,  and  the  colony 
restored  to  its  ancient  rights.  In  this  situation  of  affairs  the  Britisli  par- 
liament assembled,  when  a  conciliatory  plan  for  accommodating  the 
troubles  of  America  was  proposed  in  the  house  of  lords  by  the  carl  of 
Chatham,  and  rejected.  The  petition  and  remonstrance  of  Thi  Conuress 
were  .ilso  reje(;te(l,  and  an  application  made  by  their  agents  to  be  heard 
ut  the  bar  of  the  house  of  commons  was  .'cfused. 

A.  u.  1775. — An  open  rupture  between  the  i)arent  stale  and  its  colonies 
was  evidently  approaching  with  rapid  strides.  Determined  to  support 
their  cause  witli  the  utnios:  vigoin',  the  Americans  at  once  proceeded  to 
train  their  militia,  crccc  powdermiils  in  Philadelphia  and  Virginia,  and 
prepare  arms  in  eery  province.  Thsy  also  assumed  the  appellation  of 
"The  United  Cccnies  of  America,"  established  an  extensive  paper  cur- 
rency, and  were  very  active  in  raising  a  regular  army.  On  the  other  hand, 
the  a\nhority  of  cne  British  government  was  promptly  supported  by  Gen 
cral  (Jage,  who  had  lately  been  apjiointed  governor  of  .Massachusetts" 
llay.  Tliis  officer  having  received  intelligence  that  some  military  slere* 
belonging  to  the  provincials  were  deposited  at  a  place  called  Concord,  he 
sent  tintlier  a  detachment  of  soldiers  to  destroy  them  ;  but  on  ihcirrelvrry 
ut  Hoslon,  these  troojis  were  pursued  by  a  body  of  provincials,  who  wcvlrf 
have  sui  ceeded  in  cuttiujf  them  o(V,  had  not  the  general  sent  out  a  h:t»o 
force  to  cover  their  retreat.  The  loss  of  the  English  on  this  occasior. 
amounted  to  '^7.3  men;  of  the  Americans  only  50  were  killed  and  3R 
wounded.  War  had  therefore  now  actually  connnenceil ;  and  the  provin- 
I'iaN,  dated  with  their  success,  pur.«ucd  their  hostile  iiilentious  with 
increased  vigour.  ll;iving  a  short  time  after  surprised  the  fortresses  of 
Tii'oiiih  loga^and  Crown  Point,  and  by  that  means  possessed  themselves 
iif  upwards  of  100  pieces  of  cannon,  besides  ,i  large  (juanlity  of  nnlitary 
sloris  of  every  descri|iti(m,  they  assembled  mu  army  of '.'0,000  mi'U,  which 
thev  entrusted  to  (iKoimi':  Wasuinctdn,  and  resolved  to  lay  siege  to  Bos- 
ton! In  the  meanlmie  the  English  caliinet  having  receiveil  intelligence 
iiflhcse  resolute  proceedings,  sent  a  rcinfoicement  to  their  army,  with 
the  generals  Howe.  Uiirgoyne,  and  Clinton.  The  Americans,  not  at  all 
.aiiitndated  by  these  measures,  i)ersislcil  m  blockading  Boston;  and  in  the 
night  of  Ihe  tenth  of  .Iiini'  they  took  possessicm  of  and  fortified  an  emi- 
iinice  called  llnnker's  hill,  noiu  which  they  could  open  a  formidable  ran- 
Vol.  1.— IJ 


m 


^M       1.1 


W 


illT 


,i|i 


6S8 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


nonade  on  the  town.  To  tiiis  point  General  Gage  sent  two  thousand 
men,  in  order  to  dislodge  them  ;  in  which  attempt  they  at  last  succeeded, 
but  not  without  a  loss  so  heavy,  that  the  English  general  resolved  to 
confine  himself  for  the  future  to  defensive  operations. 

Hitherto,  notwithstanding  their  uninterrupted  success,  the  American 
colonists  had  disclaimed  all  idea  of  assuming  independence;  b\it,  on  the 
contrary,  as  was  averred  in  a  petition  from  the' congress,  presented  to  the 
king  by  Mr.  Penn,  a  descendant  of  the  founder  of  Pennsylvania,  they 
were  extremely  desirous  of  effecting  a  compromise.  He  at  the  same 
time  assured  the  government,  that  if  the  present  application  was  rejected, 
they  would  enter  into  alliance  with  foreign  powers  ;  and  that  such  allian- 
ces, if  once  formed,  would  be  with  great  difficulty  dissolved.  'I'he  peti- 
tion was,  however,  rejected  ;  an  act  was  passed,  prohibiting  all  trade  with 
the  colonies,  and  another,  by  which  all  American  vessels  were  declared 
enemies'  ships. 

The  Americans,  finding  that  their  endeavours  to  conciliate  the  ministry 
were  ineffectual,  gave  orders  to  their  generals  to  endeavour  to  subjugate 
such  of  the  colonies  as  remained  faithful  to  Great  Britain.  Two  parties 
were  sent  into  Canada,  under  General  Montgomery  and  Colonel  Arnold, 
who,  after  having  surmounted  innumerable  difliculties,  laid  siege  to  Que- 
bec ;  but  in  this  attempt  they  'ere  overpowered  ;  Montgomery  was  killed, 
Arnold  was  wounded,  and  tht.r  men  were  compelled  to  make  a  precipi- 
tate retreat.  While  the  Americans  were  thus  unsuccessful  in  Canada, 
the  British  governors  in  Virginia  and  North  and  South  Carolina  had  used 
their  best  endeavours  to  keep  those  provinces  in  alliance,  but  without 
effect ;  they  therefore  found  themselves  obliged  to  return  to  Kngland. 
General  (lage  was  recalled,  and  thj  commaml  of  the  troops  at  Boston 
devolved  on  General  Howe,  who  was  soon  after  obliged  to  evacuate  the 
place,  and  repair  to  Halifax,  in  Nova-Scotia.  The  royal  forces  had  no 
sooner  relinquished  the  town  than  General  Washington  took  possession 
of  it,  and,  with  the  assistance  of  some  foreign  engineers,  fortified  it  in 
such  a  manner  as  to  render  it  almost  impregnable.  It  now  wanted  little 
to  effe(!t  a  total  alienation  of  the  colonies  from  Great  Britain  ;  and  ihn 
fact  (if  having  subsidized  a  large  body  of  (Jerman  mercenaries  for  tiie  pur- 
pose of  assisting  in  the  subjugation  of  the  revolted  provinces,  served  as  a 
fair  excuse  for  the  congress  to  publish  the  declaration  of  independence  oj 
the  llurleen  United  States,  which  took  place  on  the  4th  of  July,  1770. 

Tliis  bold  measure  was  determined  on  at  a  time  when  the  congress  had 
no  very  flattering  pros|)cct  before  their  eyes,  and  little  to  encourage  tlimi 
save  the  indomitable  spirit  of  resistance  that  everywhere  manifi'^ltil 
itself  to  British  supremacy,  lis  army  was  a  ruw  militia,  and  it  was  un- 
provided to  any  »!Xtent  with  ships  or  money  ;  while  the  Knglish  forces, 
greatly  augiiienled,  were  preparing  to  besiege  New- York.  General  Howe 
hiid  been  joined  by  his  brother,  I.ord  Howe,  and  on  the  2Gth  of  August 
the  campaign  opened  by  the  Knglish  taking  possession  of  Long  I.shiiul, 
preparatory  to  an  attack  on  New-York,  which  was  captured  on  the  'Jlsil 
of  September,  Washington  evacuating  that  city  with  tin!  utmost  preilpi- 
tation.  The  city  was  soon  after  set  on  lire  by  some  ini-iMidiaries,  who  li;id 
concealed  themselves,  and  nearly  a  third  part  of  it  was  destroyed.  Aficr 
an  nndeviating  cours(!  of  victory.  General  llowe  led  his  troops  into  winicr- 
quarters ;  but  in  the  disposition  of  them  lie  departed  from  his  usual  piu- 
d(;nce,and  allowed  them  to  be  loo  niiicli  scattcrerl,  which  occasioiicd  ilic 
Hessian  troops,  who,  from  their  depredations  and  cruellies,  had  ronscil 
llie  resentful  feelings  of  the  inhabitants  of  Ni'w-Jersey,  to  be  sinpiised 
In  llicir  rtinto  imenls,  where  nearly  1000  were  taken  (irisoners,  and  iiiaiiy 
slain. 

A.  D.  1777.— Gratified  with  the  intelligence  they  received  of  Howe's 
lui'cesses,  the  Kiijflisii  miuialry  determined  to  follow  them  iq)  by  scikIiii^ 


»ii  army 

states,  tc 

seemed  t 

deCeated 

while  Bu 

soiuliwar 

reached  S 

erals  Gau 

men,  wen 

paign  whi 

turned  out 

appeared  t 

A.  D.  17; 

with  her  c( 

'ions  and  a 

parently  cii 

great  distui 

ainbitioi),  w 

riiisr,  and  pr 

"'■  ''-iigland, 

eoniinerce,  i 

sioii  of  .suci 

threatened  ) 

power  and 

"ere  receive 

''t'ginning  to 

heiMi  so  long 

(■'^ble  ronion: 

r  raiice,  and  I 

Aitierican  co 

simply  profit! 

■■'"  doubt  thai 

"priiiig  up  a, 

cfie.'lved  till  e 
t-ripDled  an 
out  danaer,  tli 
Pvery  day  wa 
'  'i''y  liad  est; 
"ircMLs  at  IIk; 
""IS;  and  IJK 
»y  two  of  III,. 
•I'l'l  America  \ 
'''icaiion  of  till 
oolcit.     Tlun, 
war  wit),  Kr;,,, 
'ii'iriNiiiiig  repn 
inciii  of  iiic  ,11 
'J*"  li'miinalinB 
""'■presented  th 
"le  disl)()„oi,r  t, 
"''llieirc()i„,iry 

■)"  invasion 
uddiess  wiis  I 
«"''  slalioi,i„„ 
'"'te  to  ||„.  ,|,.,-, 
["""•'I  hy  the  „ 
••"r'l  Cli,-,tl,,„n. 
'"'""place  ill  „ 


in 


THE  TREASUaV  OF  HISTORY. 


659 


I3S  hilll 

as  iin- 
forct's, 

Isl-.iiul, 

Iprc'ciiii- 
|,vl\o  li;»l 
Afii't 
winter- 
lual  \)iu- 
lined  (111' 
ronsi'il 
Uirprist'd 
|nl  unniy 

llowc'e 


an  army  under  General  Bnrgoyne,  from  Canada  through  the  northern 
states,  to  co-operate  with  Howe  in  the  South.  For  a  time  evsrything 
seemed  to  promise  a  favourable  issue  to  this  project :  Sir  William  Howe 
defeated  Washington  at  tlie battle  of  Urandywine,  and  took  Philadelphia; 
while  Uurgoyne,  having  reduced  Tic(nideroga,  was  pursuing  his  march 
southward.  But  innumerable  difficulties  lay  in  his  way,  and  when  he 
readied  Saratoga,  he  was  surrounded  by  the  American  forces  under  gen- 
erals OatTJs  and  Arnold,  and  he  and  his  whole  army,  amounting  to  5752 
men,  were  compelled  to  surrender  prisoners  of  war.  Tlius  ended  a  cam- 
paign which  at  the  outset  seemed  so  promising;  but,  disastrous  as  it  had 
turned  out,  neither  the  confidence  of  ministers  nor  of  the  British  people 
appeared  to  be  at  all  abated. 

A.  D.  1778. — Whilst  England  was  engaged  in  this  unfortunate  contest 
with  her  colonies,  a  cessation  seemed  to  have  taken  place  in  the  conten- 
tions and  animosities  of  other  nations,  and  their  whole  attention  was  ap- 
parently engrossed  by  speculating  on  the  novel  scene  before  tiiem.  The 
great  disturbers  of  mankind  appear  to  have  laid  aside  tlieir  rapacity  and 
ambition,  wl...'st  they  conlemplaled  the  new  events  which  were  transpi- 
riinr,  and  predicted  the  conclusion  of  so  strange  a  warfare.  Tiie  enemies 
of  Kiiglaiul,  who  had  long  beheld,  with  apprehension,  the  increase  of  het 
commerce,  and  many  of  England's  old  allies  who  envied  her  tlie  posses- 
sion of  such  valuable  colonies,  were  astonished  at  the  revolution  which 
threatened  her,  and  looked  forward  with  pleasure  to  the  time  when  her 
power  and  glory  should  be  wrested  from  her  grasp.  The  Americans 
were  received,  protected,  and  openly  caressed  by  France  and  Spain,  who, 
beginning  to  feel  the  inllueiice  of  tiiat  commerce  from  which  they  had 
been  so  long  excluded,  treated  the  colonies  witli  respect,  and  rejected  tiic 
feeble  remonstrances  of  England's  ambassadors.  Happy  had  it  been  for 
France,  and  lia|)py  for  the  world,  if,  content  with  reaping  tiie  benefits  of 
American  commerce,  they  had  remained  s|)ectators  of  tlie  contest,  and 
simply  profited  by  the  dis"sensi<)ns  of  their  neighbours.  For  it  is  beyond 
ail  ilonbt  that  the  seed  of  republi(;aiiism  which  was  sown  in  America 
s|iiung  up  and  was  nurtured  in  France,  nor  could  its  rank  growth  bi 
checked  till  every  acre  of  that  fair  land  had  been  steeped  in  blood. 

Oripnied  and  pent  up  in  situations  from  winch  they  could  not  stir  with- 
out danyer,  the  royal  troops  exhibited  a  most  forlorn  appearance,  while 
every  day  was  adding  to  tlie  strength  and  resources  of  the  insurgents. 
They  had  establisluid  for  themselves  an  efficii'iit  governmtmt ;  they  had 
ageiita  at  the  principal  Kiiropeaii  courts;  they  raised  and  maintuiiied  ar- 
mies ;  and  they  had,  in  fact,  been  ree()gnis(:<l  as  an  inde|)eiident  nation 
oy  two  of  the  priiii;ipal  power.s  in  Kni'opc.  The  treaty  bitween  France 
aiiil  .\inerica  was  completed,  and  the  discussions  which  anise  on  the  iio- 
tilicalion  of  this  circiimslanee  to  the  British  parliaineiit,  wert;  stormy  and 
violent.  Though  both  parties  were  uiiaiiimous  in  their  opinion  that  a 
war  with  Framu;  was  unavoidable,  yet  the  ojiposition,  who  had  from  the 
lieginning  reiirohated  the  American  war,  insisted  that  the  acknowledg- 
ment of  the  indep(!ndencp  of  the  colonies  was  the  only  etfectual  m(;tliod 
of  terminating  the  (jonlest.  The  ministerial  party,  on  the  other  hand, 
represented  the  disgrace  of  bending  beneath  the  power  of  France,  aiwl 
the  (lishoiiour  of  leaving  the  American  loyalists  exposed  to  the  rancour 
uf  their  eoiinlrymen. 

.\n  invasion "(. I  England  being  at  this  time  threatened  by  the  French,  an 
Hdilress  was  moved  for  recalling  the  lleets  and  armies  from  America, 
mil!  stationing  them  in  a  place  where  they  might  more  encctiially  coiiiri- 
biitelo  the  derence  of  the  kingdom.  This  measure  was  vigoninsly  op- 
posed by  the  adiniiiistraiinn,  and  by  some  meiiibers  of  the  ojiiiosileii; 
Lord  Chalhain.  wllll^elll^lrnlllies  had  lately  |irev(iited  him  from  altiMiiUiig 
In  his  place  in  uarlianient,  evinced  Ins  decided  disapprobation  of  ii    he  h  nl 


li  it,. 


rr' 


'I  T 


o60 


THE  TIIEASI/RY  OF  HISTORY. 


entered  the  house  in  a  ricli  suit  of  bhick  velvet,  a  full  wig-,  nnd  wrappeci 
in  flannel  to  the  knees,  and  was  supported  to  his  seat  by  his  son  and 
soii-in-law,  iMr.  William  Pitt  and  Viscount  Mahon.  It  is  said  that  he 
looked  weak  and  emaciated ;  and,  resting  his  hands  on  his  crutches,  he  at 
first  spoke  with  dilTiculty,  but  as  he  grew  warm  his  voice  rose,  and  be- 
came, as  usual,  oratorical  and  affecting.  "  My  lords,"  said  he,  "  I  rejoice 
that  the  grave  has  not  closed  upon  me,  that  I  am  still  alive  to  lift  up  my 
voice  against  the  dismemberment  of  this  ancient  and  most  noble  mon- 
archy." He  was  replied  to  with  great  respect  by  the  duke  of  Richmond, 
when  on  attempting  to  rise  again  he  fell  back  before  uttering  a  word,  in 
a  convulsive  fit,  from  which  he  never  recovered,  and  died  a  few  days 
after,  in  the  70th  year  of  his  age.  May  11,  1778.  His  merits  were  trans- 
cendant,  and  his  death  was  lamented  as  a  national  loss.  Apart  from  the 
aberrations  originating  in  an  ardent  love  of  power,  his  course  was  splen- 
did and  magnanimous  ;  and  it  was  truly  said  of  him  by  Lord  Chesterfield, 
that  his  private  life  was  stained  by  no  vices,  nor  sullied  by  any  meanness. 
Contemporary  praise  and  posthumous  honours  were  showered  down  upon 
the  man  of  whom  the  nation  was  justly  proud.  His  remains  were  inter- 
red with  great  solemnity  in  Westminster  abbey,  and  the  city  of  London 
erected  a  flattering  tribute  to  his  memory  in  Guildhall. 

A  French  squadron  was  sent  from  Toulon  to  the  assistance  of  America, 
under  the  command  of  Cf)niit  d'Estaing,  who  reduced  the  island  of  Grena- 
da, while  a  body  of  his  forces  made  themselves  masters  of  St.  Vincent. 
In  other  parts  of  the  West  Indian  seas  the  British  arms  were  ably  sup- 
ported liy  the  bravery  and  vigilance  of  the  admirals  Hyde  Parker  and 
Rowley.  On  the  27th  of  July  an  indecisive  action  was  fought  olT  Hri'si, 
between  the  French  fleet,  under  M.  d'Orvilliers,  and  a  British  squadron, 
under  Admiral  Koppel.  Sir  Hugh  Palliser,  the  second  in  command,  ac- 
cused the  admiral  of  not  having  done  his  duty;  he  was  accordingly  tried 
by  a  court-martial,  and  honourably  acquitted  ;  in  fact,  it  appeared  that  he 
had  been  so  badly  supported  by  Palliser,  that  he  was  unable  to  make  any 
use  of  the  slight  advantage  he  obtained. 

Sir  Charles  Hardy,  a  brave  and  experienced  officer,  whose  services  had 
been  rewarded  with  the  governorship  of  Qrccnwieh  Hospital,  was  ap- 
pointed to  succeed  Keppel  in  the  command  of  the  channel  fleet.  In  tiii; 
meantime,  the  Spanish  court  was  prevailed  on  by  the  French  to  take  up 
arms  in  defence  of  America,  and  to  accede  to  the  general  confederacy 
against  Great  Britain.  As  the  danger  to  which  the  nation  was  now  ex- 
posed was  become  truly  alarming,  it  was  thought  advisable  to  raise  volun- 
teer companies  in  addition  to  the  militia,  and  in  this  the  spiiit  and  mag- 
nanimity of  the  people  reflcct(!d  great  credit  on  the  national  character. 
Strengthened  by  the  alliance  of  Spain,  the  French  i)egan  to  extend  theii 
ideas  of  conquest,  and  thinking  that  a  blow  near  at  hand  \.;'s  more  likely 
than  operations  carried  on  at  a  distance;  to  alarm  the  fears  of  ilie  Fnglisli, 
they  made  attempts  on  the  islands  of  Guernsey  and  Jersey,  but  in  each 
they  were  completely  frustrated. 

But  the  old  enemies  of  Britain  had  grown  arrogant  durmg  the  nnnalii- 
ral  contest  that  was  waged  witii  the  unruly  scions  of  her  own  stock,  and 
preparations  were  now  made  fin'  Britain  itsidf.  A  junction  was  efl'eotcil 
between  the  French  and  Si)anish  fleets,  which  made  tfieir  appearance  in 
the  channel,  to  the  number  of  sixty  sail  of  thi!  line  liesides  frigates.  Tliis 
formidable  armament  was  opposed  by  a  for(;e  mucliinfe'"ioi,  under  Admi- 
ral Hardy,  who  leisundy  retired  up  the  channel,  enticing  them  to  follow 
him,  but,  with  all  their  immense  siipi^riority,  they  chose  rather  to  decliiu' 
an  encounter;  it  is  true  they  for  .some  tinn;  contmued  to  menace  ami 
insult  the  British  coasts  with  impiiniiy,  but  wilhuiit  accoinpliHliing  anylliiiig 
furth'T  than  the  capture  of  the  Ardent  man-of-w:ir,  wl  ch  by  acVideiil 
had  fallen  in  with  the  combined  flc'ts. 


In  cal 
nod,  we 
"  seven 
ror  Jose 
of  the  k 
together 
France  ti 
to  abaiid( 

A.  D.  1\ 

'lament  t 
a  plan  of 
«t  opened 
change  w 
siifjject  fo 
•Jilnre  in  t 
and  financ 
'or  genera 
of  the  kiiij 
at  this  cris 
Sir  Georo-f 
tlie  act  of ' 
on  the  Ron 
tion.     The 
readiness  t( 
country,  wi 
'ation  of  Sci 
t>ill  did  not  I 
"'  Kngiand 
ject  was   to 
statutes  wlii 
"lajority  of  t 
correctly  de 
persons  who 
would  have 
George  Gore 
'iioie  correct 
finding  this 
portunityof  ■. 
thereby  gaini 
{"'sed  it  into 
free  from  ev( 
meeting-  of  th 
"ley  should  a 
June,  when  tl, 
commons,  pra 
lioimn  cathol 
On  the  fo]|( 
force,"  the  tn<' 
was  every  rea 
C'lve  the  appr 
^'les  in  their  h 
rented  the  peti 
"te  (•onsiderati 
"e  dLsciissioii 
"it-ni  tiie  ppo, 

'■•It  lolic  chape 

"  <lemoli.sh  an, 

'o»ing  Monda 


?, 


THE  TREASURY  O^  HISTORY. 


661 


up 

;racy 

ex- 

/oUiii- 

nvag- 

acter. 

likely 

i-rlisli, 

each 


rt' 


nuaui- 
•k,  an'l 

fected 
incc  in 

■rills 

I'ollovv 

Ice  Mv\ 
ivllii'ig 
IcVidenl 


In  calling  the  reader's  attention  to  the  state  of  the  continent  at  this  pe- 
riod, we  have  to  notice  tliai  tiie  peace  which  followed  the  memorable 
"  seven  years'  war"  was  temporarily  menaced  by  the  efforts  of  the  empe 
ror  Joseph  to  obtain  possession  of  Bavaria;  but  the  prompt  interference 
of  tlie  king  of  Prussia,  who  brought  into  the  field  an  immense  army, 
togeiiier  with  the  remonstrances  of  Russia,  and  the  unwillingness  of 
France  to  second  the  ambitious  designs  of  Austria,  induced  the  emperor 
to  abandon  his  aggressive  intentions. 

A.  D.  1780 — Tlic  first  busmess  of  importance  that  came  before  the  par- 
liament this  year  was  the  state  of  Ireland,  which  brought  from  Lord  North 
a  plan  of  amelioration  that  met  with  the  approbation  of  the  house,  and,  as 
it  opened  her  ports  for  the  import  and  export  of  her  manufactures,  the 
change  was  hailed  as  a  happy  omen  for  tlie  sister  kingdom.  The  next 
subject  for  legislative  discussion  was  the  wasteful  and  extravagant  expen 
diture  in  the  different  official  departments  of  the  state  ;  and  the  eloquence 
and  financial  knowledge  of  Mr.  Burke,  were  amply  displayed  in  a  plan 
lor  general  reform,  which  was  seconded  by  petitions  from  various  parts 
of  liie  kingdom,  praying  for  a  change  of  men  as  well  as  measures.  But 
at  tills  crisis  the  attention  of  all  parties  was  attracted  by  a  sudden  alarm. 
Sir  George  Saville  had  in  the  preceding  session  proposed  a  bill  to  repeal 
the  act  of  William  III.,  which  imposed  certain  penalties  and  disabilities 
on  the  Roman  catholics,  and  which  passed  both  houses  without  opposi- 
tion. The  loyal  conduct  of  this  body  of  his  majesty's  subjects,  and  their 
readiness  to  risk  their  lives  and  fortunes  in  defence  of  their  king  and 
country,  were  generally  acknowledged  ;  but  in  consequence  of  the  popu- 
lation of  Scotland  expressing  a  dread  of  granting  toleration  to  papists,  the 
bill  did  not  extend  to  that  kingdom.  This  encouraged  a  set  of  fanatics 
in  England  to  form  themselves  into  an  association,  whose  professed  ob- 
ject was  to  protect  the  protestant  religion,  by  revising  the  intolerant 
statutes  which  before  existed  against  the  Roman  catholics.  The  great 
majority  of  the  members  of  this  "  protestant  association"  were  at  the  time 
coriectly  described  as  "outrageously  zealous  and  grossly  ignorant" — 
persons  who,  had  they  been  unassisted  by  any  one  of  rank  or  influence, 
would  have  sunk  into  oblivior.  from  their  own  insignificance;  but  Lord 
George  Gordon,  a  young  nobleman  of  a  wild  and  fervid  imagination,  or, 
inoie  correctly,  perhaps,  one  who  on  religious  topics  was  a  monomaniac, 
finding  this  "  association"  would  be  likely  to  afford  him  an  excellent  op- 
portunity of  standing  forth  as  the  champion  of  the  protestant  faith,  and 
thereby  gaining  a  good  share  of  mot -notoriety,  joined  the  club,  and  thus 
raised  it  into  temporary  importance.  He  became  their  chairman,  and, 
free  from  even  the  apprehension  of  any  fatal  results,  he  proposed  in  a 
meeting  of  the  society  at  Coachmaker's-hall,  on  the  2!)th  of  May,  that 
they  should  assemble  in  St.  George's  Fields  at  10  o'clock  on  the  2d  of 
June,  when  they  should  accompany  him  with  a  petition  to  the  house  of 
commons,  praying  a  repeal  of  the  late  act  of  toleration  granted  to  the 
Roman  catholics. 

On  the  following  Friday,  the  day  appointed  for  this  display  of  "  moral 
force,"  the  nienib(!rs  of  the  house  were  much  surprised— although  there 
was  every  reason,  after  this  public  notice,  to  expect  nothing  less— to  per- 
ceive the  approa(;h  of  fifty  thousand  persons  distinguished  by  blue  cock- 
ades ill  their  hats,  with  the  inscription,  "  No  Popery."  Lord  George  pre- 
sented the  petition  to  the  house,  am.  moved  that  it  be  taken  into  immedi- 
ate consideration  ;  but  his  motion  was  rejected  by  lOa  voles  to  fi.  During 
(he  discussion  his  lordship  frequently  addressed  the  mob  outside,  and  told 
them  the  people  of  Scotland  had  no  redress  till  they  pulled  down  the 
catholic  chapels.  Acting  upon  this  susrgf^lion,  the  populace  proceeded 
to  demolish  and  burn  the  chapels  of  the  foreign  ambassadors.  On  the  fol- 
lowing  Monday  the  number  of  the  mob  was  greatly  increased  by  the  idle 


I    11 


f 


662 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY 


I 


and  the  profligate,  who  are  ever  reaily  for  riot  and  phmder.  Their  vio- 
lence was  now  no  longer  confined  to  the  catholics,  but  was  exerted 
wherever  they  could  do  most  miscliief.  They  proceeded  to  Newgate, 
and  demanded  the  immediate  release  of  such  of  their  associates  as  had 
been  confined  there.  On  receiving  a  refusal  tiiey  began  to  throw  firebrands 
and  combustibles  into  the  keeper's  dwelling-house.  'I'he  whole  building 
was  soon  enveloped  in  flames,  and  in  the  interval  of  confusion  and  dismay 
all  the  prisoners,  amounting  to  upwards  of  three  hundred,  made  their  es 
cape  and  joined  the  rioters.  The  New-Prison,  Clerkenwell,  the  King's 
Bench,  the  Fleet  prison,  and  New-Bridewell,  were  also  set  on  fire ;  and 
many  private  houses  shared  the  same  fate ;  in  short,  on  that  night  London 
was  beheld  blazing  in  no  less  than  thirty- six  different  places  at  once.  At 
length  they  attempted  (he  Bank,  but  the  soldiers  there  inflicted  a  severe 
chastisement  on  them.  The  military  came  in  from  the  country,  and,  in 
obedience  to  an  order  of  the  king  in  council,  directions  were  given  to  tlie 
officers  to  fire  upon  the  rioters  without  waiting  the  sanction  of  the  civil 
power.  Not  oidy  had  the  most  fearful  apprehensions  been  excited,  and 
great  injury  done,  but  the  character  of  the  nation  in  the  eyes  of  foreign 
powers  could  not  fail  to  sufler  almost  indelible  disgrace  from  such  brutal 
and  tumultuous  scenes.  It  was  not  until  a  week  had  elapsed  that  tran- 
quillity was  restored,  when  it  was  found  that  458  persons  had  been  killed 
or  wounded,  exclusive  of  those  who  perished  from  intoxication.  Under  a 
warrant  of  the  secretaries  of  state.  Lord  George  Gordon  was  committed 
to  the  Tower  on  a  charge  of  high  treason ;  but  when  brought  to  trial  the 
charge  could  not  be  sustained,  and  this  most  mischievous  person  was 
acquitted.  However,  though  ho  escaped  punishment  for  these  proceed- 
ings, he  was  afterwards  imprisoned  for  a  libel  on  the  queen  of  France, 
and  ended  his  days  in  Newgate.  Out  of  the  rioters  who  were  tried  anil 
found  guilty,  twenty-five  of  the  most  violent  were  hanged. 

We  gladly  turn  from  these  scenes  of  civil  tumult  to  a  more  agreeable 
part  of  an  historian's  duty.  The  commenc<'menl  of  the  year  was  attended 
with  some  considerable  naval  advantages  to  Great  Britain.  The  fleet 
under  the  command  of  Sir  Hyde  Parker  engaged  a  French  squadron  in 
the  West  Indies,  and  captured  nine  merchantmen.  The  success  which 
attended  Admiral  Rodney  was  more  important.  On  the  10th  of  January 
tie  attacked,  ofiT  Cape  St.  Vincent,  a  Spanish  fleet,  (consisting  of  eleven 
ships  of  the  line,  captured  four  of  them,  drove  two  more  on  shore,  iiiiii 
burned  another ;  thence  proceeding  to  America,  he  thrice  encountered  tlit' 
French  fleet,  under  the  count  de  Guichen  and  though  he  obtained  no  de- 
cisive success,  he  prevented  Washington  from  receiving  naval  aid  in  his 
meditated  attack  on  New- York.  A  very  severe  loss  was  soon  after  s\is- 
tained  by  the  Knglish :  on  the  8th  of  August  the  Spanish  fleet  fell  in  witli 
the  trade-fleet  bound  for  tlie  Fast  and  West  Indies,  the  whole  of  which, 
consisting  of  fifty-four  merchantmen,  was  r-aptnred ;  their  convoy,  tlit 
Ramillies  of  74  guns,  and  two  frigates,  alone  escaping. 

The  operations  of  the  war,  taken  altogether,  not\»  jlistanding  the  pow- 
erful alliance  against  (Jreat  Britain,  had  hithert:'  been  supported  with 
vigour  and  magnanimity.  Yet  while  Kngland  was  frustrating  every  attenij't 
of  her  open  and  declared  enemies,  a  confederacy  was  formed  throughoii! 
Furope,  which,  as  it  acted  indirectly,  could  not  well  be  resisted.  This 
confederacy,  termed  the  "armed  neutraliiy,"  was  ])laniied  by  the  empress 
of  Russia,  who  issued  a  manifesto,  asserting  the  right  of  neutral  vessels 
to  trade  freely  to  and  from  all  ports  belonging  to  belligerent  )i.)wers,  ex- 
cept such  as  were  actually  in  a  state  of  blockade  ;  and  that  all  efliects  be- 
longing to  the  subjects  of  the  belligerent  powers  should  be  looked  upon 
as  free  on  board  such  ships,  excepting  only  such  goods  as  were  coiilni- 
band  ;  in  other  words,  that  "  free  vessels  were  to  m;>ke  fn'e  merchandise.'" 
Uussiu,  Denmark,  and  Sweden  were  the  first  to  biml  themselves  to  the 


conditio 
courts  t 

Kngland 
lean  vvai 
proof  wi 
congress 
their  per 

A.   D.    1 

was  reiie 

under  Li, 

•^xpecttatii 

American 

orces  of 

fresh  /aun 

reverses. 

overwliehi 

'ified  hinis 

became  pr, 

harbour  su 

expectatioi 

•n  that  qua 

sequence. 

immediai 
ney,  in  ,;oi,, 
ment  of  Ki 
immense  pi 
"f  the  captf 
«in  this  occ; 
were  interce 
<he  Gtiiofth 
equadroii  offl 
place;  tlie  e( 
'"•re  awav  . 
iiiuch  disa'ji 
*■•  o.  178;.'. 
decided  advjL 
supcriijrity  (, 
Willi  whieli  s 
"'J,'  the  recen 
sury  to  carry 
fiatioii  suffen 

'l-llliaiit   vi,;to 

'"'ve  of  their, 
'-■ofitent  rose 
W"'-  -li  the  ar 
government  A 
war,  were  lou 
""'se  disaster 
"■es'gn,  and  at 
«n<o,.ki„gi,a 
^ir.  fr  ox,  print, 
besides  Lr)r(l 
-'Vdmiral  Kenn 
posts.     TheV^ 
"ree  mouths 
ihe  marquis  „{ 
s'lfceed  th.-it  11 
"'■.  Fox,  Mr.  J 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


666 


pow- 

wilh 


conditions  of  tliis  league;  Holland  (juickly  foLowed  tlu;  example;  the 
courts  of  Vienna,  Berlin,  Naples,  and,  lastly,  Portugal,  the  oldest  ally  of 
England,  joined  the  assoeiation.  From  the  commeneement  of  the  Amer- 
ican war  the  Ijutcli  had  shown  great  partiality  to  llie  revoUers,  and  as 
proof  was  at  length  obtained  of  their  having  concluded  a  treaty  with  the 
congress,  the  Knglish  government  determined  on  taking  vengeance  for 
their  perfidy,  and  war  was  instantly  declared  against  them. 

A.  D.  1781. — At  the  commencement  of  this  year  the  war  in  America 
was  renewed  with  various  success.  The  progress  of  the  llritisli  forces 
under  Lord  Cornwallis,  in  Virginia  and  the  Carolinas,  had  raised  great 
expectations  of  triumph  in  Kngland,  and  had  proportionably  depressed  the 
Americans;  but  the  British  general  had  to  contend  against  tlie  united 
orces  of  France  and  her  trans-atlantio  ally,  and  though  he  obtained  some 
fresh  laurels,  his  successes  were  rendered  ineffectual  by  his  subsequent 
reverses.  At  length,  after  making  a  most  vigorous  resistance  against 
overwhelming  numbers,  while  defending  Yorktown,  whe»e  he  had  for- 
tified himself,  he  was  compelled  to  capitulate,  when  the  whole  of  his  .u  my 
became  prisoners  of  war  to  Washington,  and  the  liritish  vessels  in  tho 
harbour  .surrendered  to  liie  French  Admiral  de  Grasse.  As  no  rational 
expectation  of  subjugating  America  now  remained,  the  military  operations 
in  that  quarter  of  the  globe  were  regarded  as  of  comparatively  little  con- 
sequence. 

Immediately  after  the  declaration  of  war  against  Holland,  Admiral  Rod- 
ney, in  (!onjunction  with  General  Vaughan,  attacked  the  important  settle- 
ment of  Kuslatia,  which  surrendered  to  them  without  resistance.  The 
immense  property  found  tiiere  surpassed  the  most  sanguine  expectations 
of  the  captors  ;  but  it  unfortun;itely  happened,  that  as  the  riches  acquired 
on  this  occasioi\  were  on  their  transit  to  England,  the  ships  conveying  it 
were  intercepted  by  the  French,  and  twenty-one  of  them  were  taken.  On 
Ihe  Gth  of  the  following  August  Admiral  Hyde  Parker  fell  in  with  a  Dutch 
equadron  oflF  the  Doggers'  Hank,  and  a  most  desperate  engagement  took 
place ;  the  contest  was  fiercely  maintained  for  two  hours,  when  the  Dutch 
bore  away  for  the  Texel  with  their  convoy,  and  the  English  were  too 
much  disa 'led  to  pursue  them. 

A.  D.  17H'J. — Though  the  enemies  of  Great  Britain  had  at  this  time  gained 
decided  advantages  by  land,  and  in  numerical  force  possessed  a  manifest 
superiority  by  sea,  yet  such  was  the  courage,  persever;ince,  and  power 
with  which  she  contended  against  them  single-handed,  that  notwithstand- 
ing the  re(!enl  disasters  in  America,  and  the  enormous  expenditure  necea- 
aary  to  carry  on  so  fierce  and  extensive  a  warfare,  the  sjilendour  of  the 
nation  suffered  no  dinjinution,  and  exploits  of  individual  heroism  and 
brilliant  victories  continued  to  gladden  the  hearts  of  all  who  cheiished  a 
love  of  their  country's  glory.  At  the  same  time  popular  clamour  and  dis- 
content rose  to  a  high  pitcli  on  account  of  the  depressed  slate  of  trade 
vv'i.  -h  the  armed  neutrality  had  caused,  while  invectives  against  the 
government  for  the  mal-admiiiistration  of  affairs,  as  regarded  the  American 
war,  were  loud  and  deep.  'Vhc  whig  opposition,  making  an  adroit  use  ot 
tiiese  disasters  against  Lord  North  and  his  tory  friends,  induced  them  to 
resign,  and  about  the  end  of  March  they  were  succeeded  by  tiie  marquis 
of  Kockingham,  as  first  lord  of  the  treasury,  the  earl  of  Shelburne  and 
Mr.  Fox,  principal  secretaries  of  stiite,  and  Lord  Tluniow,  lord  cliancellor; 
besides  Lord  ("amden,  the  dukes  of  Richmond  and  Grafton,  Mr.  lUirke, 
Admiral  Keppel,  General  Conway,  &c.,  to  fill  the  other  most  important 
posts.  The  present  ministry,  iiowever,  had  not  continued  in  office  above 
three  months  before  a  material  change  was  occasioned  by  tiie  death  ot 
the.  marquis  of  Rockingham.  The  earl  of  Sludburne  being  appointed  to 
succeed  tliat  nobleman^  his  colleagues  took  offence,  and  Lord  Cavendish, 
Mr.  Fox,  Mr.  Uurke,  and  several  olhcrs  resigned.     Mr.  Townsiiend  way 


£64 


THK  TllKASUIlY  OF  HISTOUY. 


I 


then  made  secretary  of  stale,  and  Mr.  Pitt,  second  son  of  Lord  Cliathiim, 
succeeded  Lord  Cavendish  in  the  office  of  chanci!lh)r  of  ihc  (^xehiMiuer, 

Negotiations  for  peace  were  now  comnienecd  by  the  new  utiniHtry,  but 
without  at  all  relaxing  in  their  efforts  to  support  the  war.  The  iNhuiila  of 
Minorca,  St.  Nevis,  and  St.  Christoplier's  were  taken  by  the  Krcneli ;  Hnd 
a  descent  on  Jainai(ta  was  meditated  with  a  fleet  of  tiiirty.four  Nliipn,  lliey 
were,  however,  fortunately  met  by  Admiral  Rodney  off  Dominica,  and  a 
most  desperate  engagement  ensued,  of  nearly  twelve  hours'  conlituiance, 
which  terminated  in  the  total  defeat  of  the  French ;  their  admiral,  Count 
de  Grasse,  being  taken  prisoner,  with  the  Villc  de  Paris,  bcHiiieH  hIx  other 
ships  of  the  line  and  two  frigates.  In  this  action  the  bold  iiauti(;al  ma- 
ncBUvre  of  breaking  the  line  and  attacking  the  enemy  on  both  sides  at 
once,  was  first  tried  and  successfully  executed.  This  gloriouH  action  way 
fought  on  the  12th  of  April ;  and  about  the  same  period,  the  Heel  under 
Admiral  Barrington  captured,  off  (Jshani,  two  large  French  men-of-war, 
with  ten  sail  yf  vessels  under  their  convoy. 

During  this  period  the  arms  of  Spain  had  been  more  than  iisiitiUy  suc- 
cessful. In  America  they  conquered  the  Fnglish  fortresscH  on  the  Missis- 
sippi, as  well  as  Pensacola  and  all  Florida.  Uut  all  tluMr  ellbrlH,  in  eoin- 
bination  witli  their  French  allies,  against  Gibraltar,  proved  fruitles.s;  its 
brave  governor.  General  Elliott,  returning  their  tremtindous  emmoiuidt' 
with  a  well-directed  and  impetuous  discharge  of  red-hot  balls  from  the 
fortress,  thereby  utterly  destroying  the  floating  batteries  which  Ihe  be- 
siegers had  vainly  boasted  were  irresistible.  Ever  and  anon  during  the 
last  five  years  this  memorable  siege  had  been  carried  on ;  but  on  the  day 
after  this  memorable  bombardment  and  defence  (Sept.  13),  not  n  vestige  of 
all  tlieir  formidable  preparations  remained. 

In  the  East,  Hyder  Ally  had  succeeded  in  gaining  the  ea[)ilul  of  Arcot, 
and  his  success  gave  him  strong  hope  that  he  sliould  drive  the  llrilish 
from  that  part  of  the  globe ;  but  Sir  Kyrc  Cootc  was  vietoriouH  in  nnire 
than  one  decisive  engagement  with  Hyder,  whose  death  soon  after  gave 
the  goverimient  to  his  son  Tippoo  Saib;  and  as  he  appeared  tiontewliat 
disposed  to  be  on  good  terms  with  England,  cffairs  there  wore  a  betlei 
aspect.     .Still  the  war  in  the  East  had  a  humiliating  termination. 

Some  serious  casual  disasters  occurred  during  the  course  of  [\w  year. 
Four  large  ships  foundered  at  sea  on  their  return  froii\  the  \Ve>il  Indies; 
and  the  Royal  George,  of  100  guns,  a  fine  ship  which  hud  been  in  port 
to  refit,  was,  while  earefning  at  Spiihead,  overset  by  a  gust  of  wind,  and 
about  700  persons,  with  Admiral  Kempenfelt,  were  drowned. 

A.  n.  1783. — The  famous  "  coalition  ministry,"  of  incongruous  cehibrity, 
was  now  formed  ;  the  duke  of  Portland  being  first  lord  of  the  lr(!asury; 
Lord  North  and  Mr.  Vox,  joint  secretaries  of  slate  ;  Lord  John  Cavt.'iiditili, 
ehaiii'cllor  of  tlie  exchequer ;  Viscount  Kc|)()el,  f:.-"'!  lord  of  the  uclmiralty ; 
Viscount  Stormont,  president  of  the  council;  and  tlxMian  of  i;iiil;:.;!v.l<)id 
privy-seal.  These  seven  cunslitutcd  the  new  cabinet,  tliu  whigs  having 
a  majority  of  one  over  the  three  lories,  North,  CarlisUs  and  Slornionl. 
It  was  an  ill-assorted  and  insincere  compact,  an  abandonment  of  principle 
for  power,  which  soon  lost  iheni  tlie  confidence  and  support  of  lite  nation. 

Negotiations  for  a  general  peace  commenced  al  Paris,  under  the  auspi- 
ces of  Austria  and  Russia;  and  the  basis  of  it  being  arranged,  it  was 
speedily  ratified.  Great  Britain  restored  the  island  of  St.  Lucia  to  Frain;'' 
also  the  settlements  on  the  Senegal,  and  llie  city  of  Pondi(rlierry,  in  liie 
East  Indies  ;  while  France  gave  up  all  her  West  India  eonqneslH,  wiili  the 
exception  of  Tobago.  Spain  retained  Minorca  and  West  Florida,  F.asl 
Florida  l)cing  also  ceded  in  exchange  for  the  Uahamas.  And  between 
England  and  Holland  a  suspension  of  hostilities  was  agreed  to  in  Ihe  firsi 
place  ;  but  in  tlie  sequel  it  was  sti|)ulated  that  Ihert!  should  be  u  giMieraS 
restitution  of  all  places  taken  during  the  war,  excepting  tlu;   town  ut 


Negapatai 
Britain. 

In  the  tr 

thirteen  U 

quishitig  A 

same.    To 

these  states 

••.•ghtofnav 

tions  or  per 

Such  wae 

American  c 

hundred  mil 

extent  and  [ 

tlie  mother-i 

ment  of  the 

tageous  to  I 

reality,  was 

nierce  of  Kn 

increased  iiic 

'"  the  period 

Nova-Scotia 

India   islands 

rapidly  imprc 

The  coaliti 

Fox  thought  I 

eminent  of  In 

niercial  affairs 

hers,  chosen  f 

cither  house  « 

authority  in  tl. 

determined  o( 

Tliurlow  .>.,)s»-i 

worthy  of  ;(  in 

llie  diaitem  (nt, 

bill  war  (finiiv 

me.ss.io-   (roin 

seals  of  ujfice! 

would  be  disan 

were  sent  to  tf 

A.  D.  1784 

was  appointed  , 

Lord  Sydney  (J 

made  secretaric 

"fKuiland,  priv 

'<iciiii,o;;d  mas 

"■i'lty,  and  Mr.  t 

Bible  to  carry  oi 

m  tlie  house  of  ( 

The  elections 

!iie  jiarliament  a 

pie  will,  evident 

"le  East  India  C 

"leasures  as  mio 

""sly  opposed  iV 

P'Tied,  framed  a 

to  the  crown  the 

hamentary  coinii 

uiercial  affairs  wi 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


F,f.5 


Negapatain,  with  its  dependencies,  which  sliould  be  ceded  t.i    'iiad 
Britain. 

In  the  treaty  with  America,  the  liing  of  Great  Britain  acknowledged  the 
thirteen  United  States  to  be  "  free,  sovereiffn,  and  independent,"  relin- 
quishing for  himself,  his  heirs,  and  successors,  all  right  and  chum  to  the 
same.  To  prevent  disputes  in  future  on  the  subject  of  boundaries  between 
these  states  and  the  adjoining  provinces,  lines  were  minutely  drawn;  the 
right  of  navigation  on  the  Mississippi  was  declared  free ;  and  no  coufisca- 
tioas  or  persecutions  of  the  loyalists  were  to  take  place. 

Such  was  the  termination  of  tlie  contest  between  Great  Britain  and  the 
American  colonies ;  a  contest  in  which  the  former  lost  upwarti.s  of  one 
hundred  millions  of  money,  and  through  which  a  federative  state  of  vast 
extent  and  power  sprung  into  existence.  But  great  as  the  change  was, 
the  mother-country  had  ultimately  little  real  cause  to  regret  the  detacli- 
ment  of  the  thirteen  provinces  :  freedom  of  commercial  relations,  advan- 
tageous to  both  countries,  superseded  a  right  of  sovereignty  wliich,  in 
reality,  was  of  far  less  value  tlian  it  appeared  to  be.  In  short,  the  com- 
merce of  I'ngland,  instead  of  being  destroyed  by  the  war  of  independence, 
increased  most  rapidly,  and  English  trade  was  never  more  prosperous  tliaii 
in  the  period  that  succeeded  the  loss  of  the  colonies.  The  Caiiadas  and 
Nova-Scotia  shared  in  the  rising  prosperity  of  America,  and  the  West 
India  islands,  emancipated  from  unwise  commercial  restrictions,  also 
rapidly  improved. 

The  coalition  ministry  was  now  to  be  subjected  to  a  severe  test.  Mr. 
Fox  thought  proper  to  introduce  to  parliament  two  bills  for  the  better  gov- 
ernment of  India,  by  which  the  entire  administration  of  the  civil  and  lom- 
mercial  affairs  of  the  company  were  to  be  vested  in  a  board  of  nine  mem- 
bers, chosen  for  four  \r  i"*,  and  not  removable  without  an  address  from 
cither  house  of  u  .lameni.  That  such  a  board  would  be  an  independent 
authority  in  il;  state  was  quite  manifest,  and  it  accordingly  met  with  a 
determined  opposition,  particularly  in  the  house  of  lords,  where  Lord 
Tliurlow  luisitvi  il,  that  if  the  bill  passed,  the  crown  woulil  l)i'  no  lonsier 
wortliy  of  a  ni  *,ii  of  honour  to  wear ;  that  "  the  king  would,  in  fact,  take 
the  diat?*'ni  fnsni  his  own  head,  and  place  it  on  that  of  Mr.  Fox."  The 
bill  wu?  'hrownoutby  the  lords,  and  this  was  immediately  followed  by  a 
mesN.tg-  irom  the  king  requiring  Mr.  Fox  and  Lord  North  to  send  in  their 
seals  of  oifice  by  the  under  secretaries,  as  "  a  personal  interview  witli  him 
would  be  disagreeable."  Karly  the  next  morning  letters  of  dismission 
were  sent  to  the  other  members  of  the  cabinet. 

A.  D.  1784. — A  new  administration  was  now  formed,  in  which  Mr.  Fill 
was  appointed  first  lord  of  the  treasury  and  chanceiin  of  the  exchequer. 
Lord  Sydney  (late  Mr.  Townshend)  and  the  marquis  oi  Carmarthen,  were 
made  secretaries  of  state  ;  Lord  Thurlow,  lord  liigli-rhancellor;  the  duke 
of  Rutland,  privy-seal;  Earl  (Jower,  president  of  the  council ;  ihe  duke  of 
Iticnuioi'.d,  master  of  the  ordnance;  Lord  Howe,  trst  lord  of  the  admi- 
ralty, and  Mr.  L»iiiid-,'.«:  treasurer  of  the  navv.  It  h.-ing,  t;r.i.7u,rop  imnnc- 
sible  to  carry  on  public  business  winle  the  coalition  party  had  a  majority 
in  the  house  of  commons,  a  dissolution  of  parliament  became  miavoidable. 
The  elections  turned  out  favourably  for  the  new  ministers,  ami  when 
'.lie  parliament  assembled,  his  majesty  met  the  representatives  of  the  peo- 
ple with  evident  satisfaction.  lie  directed  their  attention  to  tiie  affairs  of 
liie  East  India  Company,  advising  them  at  the  same  time  to  reject  all  such 
measures  as  might  affect  the  constitution  at  liome.  Mr.  Pitt  had  strenu- 
ously opposed  Mr.  Fox's  India  bill,  and  now  finding  himself  ably  sup- 
piirted,  framed  a  new  one  for  the  government  of  India,  which  transferred 
to  the  crown  tiie  influence  whicii  Mr.  Fox  had  designed  to  intrust  to  par- 
liamentary commissioners,  but  leaving  the  whole  management  of  com- 
mercial affairs  with  the  court  of  directors. 


It' 


666 


THE  TH.KA8UHY  OF  HI3T0RY. 


! 


A.  D.  1786.  — I'arly  in  the  snssion  Mr.  Pitt  introduced  to  piirliament  liis 
coUibralcil  plan  of  a  "sirikinij  fund"  for  the  gradual  reduction  of  the  na- 
tional debt.  It  appeared  that  the  condition  of  the  revenue  was  in  so  flour- 
islituiT  a  state,  that  the  annual  receipts  exceeded  the  expenditure  hy 
900,000/.  It  was  therefore  proposed  that  this  sum  should  be  increased  to 
one  million,  and  placed  in  the  hands  of  commissioners  appointed  for  the 
purpose,  to  be  applied  to  the  dis-liargc  of  the  national  debt.  After  somo 
opposition,  and  an  amendment  suggested  by  Mr.  Fox,  the  bill  passed. 

On  the  2d  of  August,  as  the  king  was  alighting  from  his  carriage,  a 
woman  approached  liim  under  pretence  of  offering  a  petition,  and  at- 
tempted to  stab  him  with  a  knife  she  had  concealed.  His  majesty  avoided 
the  blow  by  drawing  back,  when  she  made  another  thrust  at  him,  but  was 
prevented  from  effecting  her  purpose  by  a  yeoman  of  the  guards  who 
seized  her  at  the  instant.  On  being  examined  before  the  privy  council,  it 
appeared  that  slie  was  a  lunatic,  her  name  Margaret  Nicholson. 

Nothing  at  tliis  period  excited  equal  interest  to  the  trial  of  Mr.  Hastings, 
the  governor  of  Bengal,  who  had  returned  to  England,  possessed,  as  it 
was  asserted,  of  inordinate  weallli,  obtained  by  unfair  means.  The  trial 
was  conducted  by  Mr.  Uurke,  who  exhibited  twenty-two  articles  of  im- 
pea(  hnient  against  him.  On  the  part  of  the  prosecution  Mr.  Sheridan 
appeared  viniiictively  eloquent.  He  said,  "  The  administration  of  Mr. 
llasiinps  formed  a  medley  of  meanness  and  outrage,  of  duplicity  and 
depredation,  of  |)rodigalily  and  oppressiiui,  of  tfie  most  callous  cruelty, 
contrasted  with  th<!  hollow  affectation  of  liberality  and  good  faith.  Mr. 
Hastings,  in  his  defence,  declared,  "That  he  had  the  satisfaction  to  see  all 
his  ineasur<'s  terminate  in  their  designed  objects  ;  that  his  political  con- 
duct was  invariably  regulated  by  truth,  justice,  and  good  faith,  and  that 
be  resigned  his  charge?  in  a  stale  of  established  peace  and  security,  with 
all  the  sources  of  its  abundance  unimpaired,  and  even  improved."  The 
trial  listed  seven  years,  and  ended  in  the  acfinittal  of  Mr.  Hastings,  at 
least  of  ail  intentional  error;  but  his  fortune  and  his  health  were  ruined 
by  this  protracted  prosecution. 

The  debts  of  the  |)rince  of  Wales  engrossed  iniieh  of  tlie  public  atten- 
tion at  this  period.  His  expensive  habits  and  uiunificent  disposition  had 
brought  his  atVairs  into  a  very  enibiirrasscd  state;  and  l\w  subject  having 
undergone  parliamentary  discussion,  an  addition  of  .')0,ono/.  was  made  to 
his  former  income  of  .')6,0(l()/.,  and  tli('  sum  of  181,000/.  was  granted  by 
parliamenl  for  the  iiayinent  of  his  debts. 

A.  I).  17HH.— An  event  occurred  about  this  lime  in  Holland  which 
threatened  the  lran(|uillity  of  Miirope.  I'>er  since  the  ackiiowledgemeiit 
oflhc  independence  of  thi-  United  Provinces,  two  powerful  parties  had 
been  continually  sirnggling  for  the  superiority;  one  was  the  house  ol 
Orange,  which  had  been  raised  to  power  by  their  great  services  to  the 
state,  liotli  against  the  tyraiuiy  of  Spain  ;ind  the  efforts  of  Trance;  the 
other  was  tlie  aristocralieal  party,  whudi  consisted  of  the  most  wealthy 
individuals  in  the  country.  Tiiis  |)arty  was  secretly  favoured  by  France, 
and  was  denomiiialecl  the  "parly  of  the  states,"  or  "  the  republican  party." 
The  prince  of  Orange  being  at  length  coinpt'lled  to  leave  the  Hague,  ho 
applied  to  I'liigland  and  I'russiit  for  protection,  who  lent  their  aid,  and  thu 
stadthidili'r  was  reinstated. 

It  was  during  this  session  that  tlio  attention  of  parliament  was  first  en- 
gaged in  attempting  the  abolition  of  the  slave  trade.  It  was  first  poiiit<'il 
out  by  the  Quakers  in  the  independent  provinces  of  South  America,  who 
in  many  instances  had  emancipated  their  slaves.  A  number  of  pamphlet'^ 
were  published  on  tlie  subject,  several  divines  of  the  established  cbiin'li 
recommended  it  in  their  discDurscH  ;  the  two  universities  and  after  thrin 
the  «lio|e  nation,  prcsinlcd  prtilions  praying  for  the  interference  of  par- 
lament   to  fiir\»  ird  tiie  liuinant   di'si;;ii  of  African  emancip.ition.    .Mr 


WiibeH 


stances 

to  defer 

Town 

by  the  f. 

much  so 

most  em 

His  majf 

examinal 

iidJourne( 

was  a  gn 

certain,  b 

gPiit  durii 

to  tliis  offl 

finned  tha 

little  less 

modified  n 

the  cuslod 

'lousidiold. 

"ceded,  foi 

"f  March  li 

his  recover 

khigdotn. 

A.  n.  178r 
'•Onstitutioi, 
'■•  form  of  If 
■■^'r-  I'itt  pro 
Slid  to  provi 
bicsse  on  tin 
other.     In  tl 
he  wrong  to 
tahlished,  an 
xvhich  was  n 
'he  observati 
diict   of  i,„|j 
l^'r-  Fox  thin 
hit  opinions  i 
'"'ion.     Mr. 
i"'  iintidote  (( 
•""lent  he  () 
hreacli  was  il 
'"ifftiislKxl  Rta 
A.  1).  I7tlO.- 
"■■'•hy  and  eon 
misery,  never 
'''•"'ed  iiarrati 
prnnpr  ),p,„| 

"''  {'••'e-thinki, 
'"  'hat  eounir3 
iind  liceiitiousii 
•:'hso|i,(„  ,„„„.„ 

'•'■I"  "IriUfirle  I 
Aimnrnn  ,.|,,,„ 

;■'"'' "n  Ih.'ir  re 
""'ircouiiirvni, 
"'fn  heirnsplier 
''hullitionofpo 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


en? 


whid) 

jitiS  !>«>! 
louso  ol 
lo  thr 
,cc ;  Itiu 
|\v(>;<Uliy 
Fnmrc, 

It  p;\rly" 

mm\  lUu 

I  first.  •"">■ 
lH)iiil''il 

Ll  clinri'l> 
Tier  111"" 
iif  l»:'f- 
Ion.    Mr 


VVilberforce  brounjlu  tlie  subject  before  parliament ;  but  as  many  circum 
Btances  arose  to  ri^tanl  the  consideration  of  it,  a  resolution  was  carried 
to  defer  it  till  a  future  opportunity. 

Towards  tlie  close  of  the  year  tht;  nation  was  thrown  into  great  dismay 
by  tlie  fact  that  the  king  was  suffering'  under  a  severe  mental  malady ;  so 
much  80,  that  on  the  4th  of  November  it  was  necessary  to  consult  the 
most  eminent  physicians,  and  to  assemble  the  principal  officers  of  state. 
His  majesty's  disorder  not  abating,  but  the  contrary  app'.aring  from  the 
examination  of  the  physicians  before  the  privy  council,  tlie  iiouse  twice 
adjourned;  but  hearing  on  tiieir  re-assembling  the  second  time  that  tliere 
was  a  great  prospect  of  his  majesty's  recovery,  though  the  time  was  un- 
certain,  both  houses  turned  their  thoughts  to  the  establishment  of  a  re- 
gent during  his  majesty's  incapacity.  The  right  of  the  prince  of  Wales 
to  this  office  was  asserted  by  Mr.  Fox,  and  denied  by  Mr.  Pitt,  who  af- 
firmed that  for  any  man  to  assert  such  a  right  in  the  prince  of  Wales  was 
little  less  tiian  treason  to  the  constitution.  After  violent  altercations,  .1 
modified  regency  was  carried  in  favour  of  the  prince  ;  the  quocni  to  have 
the  custody  of  the  royal  person,  and  the  appointment  to  places  in  fiin 
lious(diold.  For  the  present,  however,  these  arrangements  were  not 
needed,  for  the  health  of  the  king  was  rapidly  improving,  and  on  the  10th 
of  March  his  majesty  sent  a  message  lo  parliament,  to  acquaint  them  of 
his  recovery,  and  of  his  ability  to  attend  to  tlio  public  buhiiiess  of  tho 
kingdom. 

A,  n.  1780. — According  to  a  promise  given  by  the  king,  that  the  Tlrilish 
constitution  should  be  extended  to  Canada,  that  province  now  applied  for 
a  form  of  legislature.  For  the  better  accommodation  of  its  inhabitants 
Mr.  Pitt  proposed  to  divide  the  province  into  Upi)er  and  Lower  (Canada, 
and  to  provide  separate;  laws  which  might  suit  the  French-Canadian  no- 
blesse on  the  one  hand,  and  the  Hritish  and  American  colonists  on  tho 
other.  In  the  course  of  the  discussion,  Mr.  Fox  observed  that  it  would 
be  wrong  to  abolish  hereditary  distinctions  where  they  had  been  long  es- 
tablished, and  equally  wrong  to  create  those  distinctions  in  a  country 
which  was  not  suited  for  their  establishment.  This  drew  from  Mr.  Hurkc 
the  observation  that  "it  bccami!  a  duty  of  parliament  to  watch  the  con- 
duct of  individuals  and  soci  -lies  dis|)ose(l  to  encourage  innovations." 
Mr.  Fox  thinking  these  senlnnents  contained  a  censure  on  him,  defended 
Ins  opinions  by  a  full  explanati.  1  of  his  sentiments  on  the  French  revo- 
lution. Mr.  liiirko  had  previously  written  a  work,  intended  lo  ojierate  as 
an  antidote  to  the  growing  evils  of  rejuiblicanism  and  infidelity.  In  par- 
liament he  denounced  the  insidious  cry  of  liberty  and  eiiuality,  and  a 
breach  was  thus  mach;  in  the  long-cemented  friendship  of  llieso  two  dis 
linguished  statesmen  which  ever  after  remained  unclosed. 

A.  II.  17!tO.— At  this  period  France  had  begun  to  exhibit  scenes  of  an- 
arcliv  and  confusion,  which,  for  iiKHistrous  wickedness  and  wide-spread 
misery,  never  before  had  their  p.irallel  in  the  world's  InstDry.  A  e(m- 
deineJl  narrative  of  those  revolutionary  horrors  will  be  found  under  the 
proner  head  We  shall  here  simply  observe,  rn  pn.^tant,  Ihiit  the  progress 
of  free  thinking,  miscalled  plidosophy,  which  had  been  much  encouraged 
ill  that  country  during  the  last  century,  had  dilTused  a  spirit  of  innovation 
and  licentiousness  that  was  higlily  unfavourable  to  the  existence  of  an 
absolute  mmr.irchv.  Moreover,  the  participation  of  France  in  the  Amer- 
ican  siiuifffle  for  independeni'c,  had  instilled  into  the  minds  of  the  Hallo. 
AmcrnMu  champions  of  liberty  a  perfect  detestation  of  regal  aulhority, 
and  on  their  return  from  that  vaunted  lanil  of  freedom,  they  imparled  to 
thnr  couiitrvmeii  th>'  spirit  of  liberty  which  hail  been  kindled  in  llie  wcs- 
tern  lieini>plieri'.  Iliil,  perhaps,  the  more  immediate  cause  of  this  wild 
fbullilion  of  popular  fury  arose  from  the  embarrassed  stale  of  the  finances. 


'.ThF 

1 

'1 

^^^B 

I'll 

I 

In 

'A 

i-- 

il 

i' 

1 

1 

y 


! 


■>» 


■/I' 


668 


THE  TIIEASUHY  OF  HISTORY. 


which  induced  Louis  XVI.  to  assemble  the  stiiies-general,  in  order  to 
consider  the  measures  by  which  this  serious  evil  might  be  remedied. 

During  the  present  session,  a  message  from  the  king  informed  the  house 
of  some  hostile  proceedings  on  the  part  of  Spain,  who  had  seized  three 
British  ships  that  were  endeavoring  to  establish  a  foreign  trade  between 
China  and  Nootka  Sound,  on  the  west  coast  of  North  America,  the  Span- 
iards insisting  on  their  exclusive  right  to  that  part  of  the  coast.  Orders 
were  immediately  issued  for  augmenting  the  IJ'^'ish  navy  ;  but  the  ex- 
pected rupture  between  the  two  countries  was  averted  by  timely  conces- 
sions on  the  part  of  Spain. 

A  new  parliament  Iiaving  met  on  the  20th  of  November,  the  king,  after 
making  some  remarks  on  the  state  of  Europe,  observed  that  the  peace  of 
India  had  been  disturbed  by  a  war  with  Tippoo  Sultan,  son  of  the  late 
Ilyder  Ally.  The  business  of  the  session  was  then  entered  into,  and 
various  debates  occurred  with  respect  to  the  convention  with  Spain,  and 
the  ex[)('nsive  amount  that  had  been  prepared  anticipatory  of  a  war  witli 
that  power. 

A.  D.  17!)1, — The  whole  kingdom  was  now  divided  into  two  parties, 
arising  from  the  opposite  views  in  which  the  French  revolution  was  con- 
sidered; one  condeujinng  the  promoters  of  Gallic  independence  as  tlic 
subverters  of  all  order,  while  the  other  considered  the  new  constitution 
of  I'" ranee  as  the  basis  of  a  system  of  politics,  from  which  peaci",  happi- 
ness, and  concord  would  arise  to  bless  the  world!  On  the  14th  of  July, 
the  ainiiversary  of  the  demolition  of  the  Uastile,  the  "  friends  of  liberty" 
agreed  to  celebrate  that  event  by  festive  meetings  in  the  principal  towns 
in  the  kingdom.  Tliese  meetings  were  rather  unfavourably  regarded  by 
the  opponents  of  the  revolution,  as  indicative  of  nrinci|)le8  inimical  to  the 
British  constitution;  but  no  pul>lic  expression  or  disapprobation  had  yet 
appeared.  In  the  metropolis  and  most  of  the  other  towns  these  nuuHings 
liad  passed  over  without  any  disturbance;  but  in  the  populous  town  of 
Hirmingham,  where  a  dissension  had  long  existed  between  the  high 
I'hnrchinen  and  the  dissenters,  its  consequences  were  very  alarming.  A 
seditious  handbill  having  been  eirculaied  about  the  town  by  some  unknown 
person,  created  a  great  sensation.  The  friends  of  the  intended  ineelinji 
thought  it  necessary  to  disi'laim  tlie  sentiments  contained  in  the  Imnd- 
bills  ;  but  as  tlu'ir  views  were  misrepresent('d,  tlie  hotel  in  which  the 
meeting  w.i!«  held  was  soon  siirnninded  by  a  tumultuous  mob,  who  ex- 
pri'Ksed  their  disapprobation  by  slioiits  of  "Church  and  King!"  In  the 
evening  the  mob  ileniolished  a  Unitarian  meeting-house  belonging  to  the 
celebrat<Ml  Dr.  Priestly,  and  afterwards  attacked  his  dwelling-house  and 
destroyed  his  valuable  library.  For  three  days  thR  rioti-rs  continued  llirir 
de[iredaiii)ns,  but  tran(|nillity  was  restored  on  the  arrival  of  the  milit!iry, 
and  some  of  the  ringleaders  were  executed. 

A.  D.  170-.'. — Parliament  assembled  .Ian.  .Tl,  and  were  agreeably  sur- 
prised by  a  declaration  of  the  minister,  that  the  niiaiices  of  the  iialuni 
would  allow  him  to  take  off  taxes  to  the  amount  of  ,C'.*O0,0i)0  and  to  apiiro- 
pri:ite  ClOd.dOO  towards  the  reduction  of  the  national  debt.  He  then  di'.s- 
canted  (III  the  (lotirishiiig  slate  and  happy  prosjieets  of  the  nation,  dc- 
cliriiig  at  the  same  lime  how  iiitiinately  eoiinecU'il  its  prospeiily  wii-^ 
with  the  preservation  of  peace  .ibroad  and  tiaiKpiillity  al  lionie. 

The  duke  of  York  liaviiig  iit  the  close  of  the  previous  year  niarrii<d  llii' 
princ'i'ss  Kredcrica  (^'harlotia,  <  Idest  daughter  of  the  King  of  i'russi.t,  the 
comnioiis  [iMssed  a  bill  to  settle  C,'.'),0IM)  per  aiinuni  on  the  duke,  and 
X'-'.oiMi  on  the  dui'hess  should  she  survive  hiin.  The  linuse,  also,  during 
tlii-<  session,  went  into  a  eommlltee  on  the  Afrieiin  slave-trade,  and  uave 
ii  as  llieir  cipiiinm  ibat  it  should  be  abolished.  In  the  course  of  debale 
Mr.  I'lit  and  many  others  spoke  in  favour  of  its  immediate  aliojitimi. 
After  mail}  divisioim  the  term  was  limited  to  tliu   tst  day  of  J.iniii  rv, 


1796.  I„ 
indefinite  ( 
The  war 
Jucted  by 
comnieiicei 
ions.  Thi! 
conclude  pj 
sons  as  hos 


A-  D.  1790. 
after  your  ov 
t  ic  new  poi 
throughout  G 
^yere  issued  / 
'lie  govf'riimf 
suppression  o 
suits  of  Fro,,, 

'femagojr„e  „. 

'"''Jitioii.     To 

'•■imatioii  was 

''"•')ad,  .-iikJ  pii 

■■'"d  various  oti 

the  National  A 

^o'liid,  althougl 

'"  tlie  meant 

'■'*""?■     An  all 

■"'•'-  'he  osten.sil 

I' ranee,  win,  (|, 

property  of  :i|| 

**"'K.  com,n;i,|,j 

''"•""■•I  man.f,. 
'^'""dd  siil„„jt  ,, 
■''vord  if  injury. 

.'••'Pl'Mie;,,,;,   „i,, 

,';"'fe:  ■",  •'•■throne, 

"'■"  ,"'<•  rovalis,: 

'■"yi'l  aiithf.rnv 

'■  '«''|y  •••MKined 

;;'!"•;''  ff^'vernine 

"''"''•-  flK"  inoirJ 
'"■■'.vng  i„  ,)„.  J 

^Jji'-truilloiinel 

^y'"!''  these  ,1," 

>'i,'ilanee  of  t|„. 

••'•volii(,o„;,ry  nril 

""fy  '•oii.ii„.t  of 

"""•ly  senin.ieni 
•  Id  assonatj,,,,,  \ 
'"•prot,,.(,o„  of 

'"f  flaino  of  civil 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


669 


1796.     In  the  liouse  of  lords  several  of  the  peers  were  in  favour  of  its 
indefinite  continuance. 

The  war  in  Iiuiiii  against  Tippoo  Saib  had  lately  been  vigorously  con- 
ducted by  Lord  Cornwaliis,  who,  having  surmounted  all  impediments, 
commenced  tiie  siege  of  Seringapalain,  ihe  capital  of  Tippoo's  domin- 
ions. This  reduced  that  prince  lo  such  difficulties  as  compelled  him  to 
conclude  peacie  on  the  terms  oflered  by  the  earl,  and  to  deliver  up  his  two 
sons  as  hostages  for  llie  performance  of  the  conditions 


CH.\PTER  LXI. 

THE  REION  OF  OEUROK  III.  (CUNTINUEO.) 

A.  D.  1790. — "When  your  neighbour'.s  house  is  on  fire  it  is  well  lo  look 
after  your  own,"  says  a  trite  but  wise  old  saw.  The  rapidity  with  which 
the  new  political  principles  of  the  French  republicans  were  ditTu.sed 
throughout  Great  Britain,  and  the  numerous  inllammatory  libels  which 
were  issued  from  the  press,  awakened  well-grounded  apprehensions  of 
'i\e  govermnent,  and  induced  the  legislature  to  adopt  measures  for  the 
suppression  of  ttie  growing  evd.  Tlie  moral  as  well  as  the  political  re- 
sults of  French  republicanism  were  fast  developing  ;  and  every  reckless 
demagogue  was  busily  at  work,  disseminating  the  poison  of  infidelity  and 
sedition.  To  put  a  stop,  if  possible,  to  tiiis  state  of  things,  a  royal  proc- 
lamation was  issued  for  tlie  suppression  of  seditious  correspondenco 
abroad,  and  publications  at  home.  Tlie  London  Corresponding  Society, 
;md  various  other  societies,  had  recently  sent  congratulatory  addresses  to 
the  National  Assembly  of  France!  Hut  the  heart  of  Kngland  was  still 
soimd,  although  some  of  the  limbs  were  leprous. 

In  the  meantime  affairs  on  the  (continent  became  every  day  more  inler- 
csiing.  An  alliance  was  entered  into  between  Russia,  Austria,  and  I'rim- 
sia,  the  ostensible  object  of  which  was  lo  re-establish  publi(!  security  in 
TraniM',  with  the  ancient  ordiir  of  tlungs,  and  lo  jirotcct  the  persons  aiul 
property  of  all  loyal  subjects.  On  the  2.5th  of  July  ttie  duke  of  Uruns- 
wick,  commander-in-chief  of  the  allied  armies,  issued  at  Coblentz  his  cel- 
ebrated manifesto  to  the  French  people,  jiromising  prot(!ctiou  to  all  who 
should  submit  to  their  king,  and  threaiening  the  city  of  Paris  with  fire  and 
sword  if  injury  or  insult  were  offered  to  Uwn  or  any  of  his  family.  Tlu; 
republicans,  indignant  at  this  foreign  inlcrference,  now  resolved  on  (lie 
king's  dctbroneiueut.  Having  l)y  llieir  mischievous  |iu!ilnMtions  turned 
Ihe  tide  of  disgust  against  their  sovereign,  and  |)ersuaded  tlit!  populace 
that  the  royalists  had  invited  the  allieg  lo  invade  them,  Ihe  suspension  of 
royal  aullmrity  was  soon  after  decreed,  the  king  and  his  fannly  were 
closely  I'onfiiied  in  Ihe  Temple,  all  persons  who  were  attaelied  lo  monar- 
clueal  government  were  east  inlo  prison  or  massacred  ;  and.  lo  crown  the 
whole,  Ihe  inolfensivi"  monarch  was  led  forth  to  e.xecuticm,  and  while 
praying  to  the  Almighty  lo  pardon  his  enemi  s 'g'">"iii>i"U*'y  P<""ished 
by  the  guillotine. 

While  thesi!  detestable  scenes  of  murder  we.  ■  disjiayed  in  Friince,  the 
vigilance  of  the  Knulisli  goveniiueiit  was  exceed  by  Ihe  propagation  of 
revolutionary  principles,  and  it  was  compelled  lo  employ  such  measures 
;is  the  daiigcri>us  eircnmsiances  of  Ihe  country  demanded.  The  Haiigui- 
iinry  conduct  of  the  French  revolutionists,  llieir  extravagant  projects  and 
unholy  sentimenis,  naturally  iihirined  all  persons  of  rank  and  property, 
and  assocjalions  of  all  classe.s  who  hail  anything  to  lose,  were  formed  for 
Iheproteilioii  ol'  liberlv  and  properly  against  Ihe  elTorls  of  annreliistii  and 
levellers.  Hut  stdl  there  were  many  desperate  eharaeiers  ready  to  kindlH 
ihe  Hamo  of  civil  war  on  thu  rtr«t  favourable  opportunity.     Another  pro 


m 


K     { 


rif'  P 

i 


it 
II 


670 


THE  TKEASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


clamatioii  was  tneijibre  issued,  in  which  it  was  stated  that  evil-disposed 
persons  were  acting  in  concert  with  others  in  foreign  countries,  in  order 
to  subvert  the  laws  and  constitution  ;  and  that  a  spirit  of  tumult  and  sedi- 
tion having;  manifested  itself  on  several  oucasions,  his  majesty  had  re- 
solved to  embody  part  of  the  national  militia.  This  was,  ir.  fact,  a  mea- 
sure absolutely  necessary  on  another  account,  it  being  clear  that  the 
r'rench  republic  had  resolved  to  provoke  England  to  a  war,  by  the  most 
unjustifiable  breach  of  the  laws  of  nations:  this  was  their  avowed  design 
to  op  II  the  river  Scheldt,  in  direct  opposition  tv)  the  treaties  of  which 
Kiiffhuid  was  a  guarantee,  and  to  the  manifest  disadvantage  of  the  com- 
merce of  the  United  Provinces,  who  were  the  allies  of  Kngland. 

So  portentous  was  the  political  aspect  at  this  lime,  that  it  was  thought 
necessary  to  simmion  the  parliament.  In  the  speech  from  the  throne,  iiis 
majesty  de(;lared  that  lie  had  hitherto  observed  a  strict  neutrality  in  regard 
to  (he  war  on  the  continent,  and  nad  refrained  from  interfering  with  tlie 
internal  affairs  of  France ;  but  that  it  was  impossible  for  him  to  see, 
without  till!  most  serious  uneasiness,  the  strong  aiu'  increasing  indications 
wlii(  li  appeared  there,  of  an  intention  to  e.vcite  disturbances  in  other  coun- 
tries, to  disregard  the  rights  of  neutral  powers,  and  to  pursue  views  of 
unjust  coiKjuest  and  aggrandizement.  He  had  therefore  taken  steps  for 
making  some  aiigineiitation  of  his  naval  and  military  force  ;  and  he  re- 
(•oiiiinended  the  subject  to  the  serious  attention  of  parliament.  After  very 
long  and  animated  debates  on  the  address  of  thanks  for  the  king's  sneecii 
(during  which  many  of  Hie  opposition,  who  were  l)y  this  time  thoroughly 
disgusted  with  the  French  revolutionist'*,  deserted  their  party),  the  motion 
was  carried  by  a  large  majority. 

The  next  bubjeet  which  engaged  the  attention  of  parliament  was  the 
alien  liill,  which  authorized  government  to  dismiss  from  the  kingdom  such 
foreigners  as  they  should  think  fit.  During  the  month  of  December  an 
order  of  government  was  also  issued  for  preventing  the  exportation  of 
••orii  to  France;  and  several  slil|)8  laden  with  grain  were  compelled  ici 
unload  their  cargoes. 

A.  I).  1793.— That  a  war  between  Great  Uritain  and  France  was  speedily 
:i|iproacliiiig,  was  believed  by  all  parlies;  yet  war  was  neither  foreseen 
nor  pri'incditated  by  tiie  king's  iniiMSters;  it  was  the  unavoidable  result  of 
i-iicumsiances.  In  a  decree  of  the  French  eonvenlion  on  the  l!ttli  of 
.\()V(!mber,  1792,  tiiey  had  declared  their  intention  of  extending  their  Ira 
tcriilly  and  assistance  to  the  disaffected  and  revolting  sulijects  of  all  inoii- 
arcliical  governments.  'I'lie  disavowal  of  this  assertion  was  demanifeii 
by  till-  llrillsh  ministry;  but  as  this  was  not  complied  with,  M.  Ohaiive- 
liii,  ambassador  from  the  late  king  of  Friinee — llioiigh  not  acknowlediicd 
in  iliat  light  by  the  republic — reci^ived  orders  to  leave  the  kingdom.  In  vnuie 
of  the  alien  act.  In  coiiseipience  of  this  measure,  the  French  coiiventiiiii, 
on  the  1st  of  February,  declared  war. 

No  sooner  was  Great  llritain  involved  in  this  pvenlful  war,  than  a 
treaty  of  commerce'  was  concliuled  with  Uussia,  a  laryi^  body  of  troops 
Was  taken  intollu?  service  of  trovernmeiit,  and  an  engagement  was  (^iilend 
jiiloby  the  king  of  Sardnila,  wlio  agreed,  for  an  annual  subsidy  of '.200,0(10/., 
to  join  tli(!  Austrians  iii  Italy  with  a  very  considerable  military  forci*. 
Allianees  wen;  likewise  formed  with  Austria,  I'riissia,  Spain,  liollaiid, 
i'lnliigal,  and  Ktissia,  all  of  whom  agreed  to  shut  llieir  ports  against  llic 
vessels  of  Fraiire.  Denmark,  .Sweden,  and  .Swiizerland,  however,  re- 
fused to  join  ihe  coiifederHcy.  The  kiiii;  of  the  Sicilies  agreed  to  fiiriiisli 
(iooo  troops  and  four  ships  uf  the  line  ;  the  eiiijiire  also  furnished  ils  cmi' 
tiiiLfeiits  to  llie  Austrian  and  I'rus.sian  arhiies,  and  llritish  troops  wire 
buiit  to  \Uv  proteciiiiii  of  llollaiiil,  under  the  comtiii>iid  of  llie  duke  of  York 

The  French  ariiiv ,  eniiiinaniled  by  General    Diiiiiouiiex,   invaded  llol 
lund,  and  ImMii^   t.tk<  ii   Itreda,  (tcriruydunbur^,  and  tiuiiie  other  placen, 


Hdvancei 

brigade  ( 

met  with 

Dumouri 

defeated 

Neer-win 

numbers. 

PHiinent, 

divided  (h 

{fenerais, 

and  free  h 

under  the 

nis  supplje 

hiin  to  ihei 

"ions,  and 

"ot  share  t 

self  obliged 

%ili(6  (as 

now  Louis 

The  duke 

s'effe  to  an 

their  coiique 

kirk  and  eo 

"Hval  arinai 

["i-ces ;  but, 

'"'ig'  delayed 

town.     The 

'"  such  nuin 

retreat,  to  av 

'Tid  having  ti 

"t'/it.     At  Va 

peror  of  Gerii 

command. 

'J'he  princif 
an  agreenientl 
•^•■ed  n,t  the  I, 
restored  to   i-f 
''"''«  (own,  hoj 
P'Tior  force  ()£ 
7"niated,  f,„J 
""'  ftiKish  shJ 
«''"ier  with  ail 
were  eoiis,i,„e, 
P"l''"n  Houapil 
Ihatdavhisprl 
'"'le  e/forls  I 
llaviiiirpro.jiyjl 
Hliaiever  iiiiglif 
'  '•;  and  as  t|„. 
"I'les  were  olii 
'''iveii  „ii|,  j„„L 

successive  defef 
«<'ii!l>uig  in  trii 
•Mes  w,-,s  j,„„„, 

""'  ''Vciieh  coil 
*<'re  serioiislv 
"".'"oied,  ju  ,;,, 
'"  (lie  I'Just  ai 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


671 


lllr.m  :t 
troops 

I'lHi'l't'il 

|o,i)iiii/., 

forrc. 

IIoIIiukI. 

Ivcr.  i'- 

llMlllsIl 

Ills  coil- 
i)s  were 

[ilYorK 
f(l  llol 


advanced  to  Williamsladt,  which  was  dcfoiided  by  a  detaohnient  from  tlie 
brigade  of  the  Knglish  guards,  just  arrived  in  Holhiiid.  H  ire  tlie  French 
met  with  a  repulse,  and  were  compelled  to  raise  the  siege  \'ith  great  loss. 
Dumouriez  then  left  Holland  to  defend  Louvain;  but  being  afterwards 
defeated  in  several  engagements  with  the  allied  armies,  particularly  at 
Neer-winden,  his  soldiers  were  so  discouraged,  that  they  deserted  in  great 
numbers.  At  length,  weary  of  the  disorganized  state  of  the  Frencii  gov- 
ernment, and  finding  himself  suspected  by  the  two  great  factions  which 
divided  tlic  republic,  Dumouriez  entered  into  negotiations  with  the  allied 
generals,  and  agreed  to  return  to  Paris,  dissolve  the  national  convention, 
and  free  his  country  from  tlie  gross  tyranny  which  was  there  exercised 
under  the  specious  name  of  equality.  But  the  conventionalists  witlilield 
his  supplies,  and  sent  commissioners  to  thwart  his  design.'^  and  summon 
him  to  their  bar.  He  instantly  arrested  the  oificers  that  brought  ilu;  sum- 
mons, and  sent  them  to  the  Austrian  head-(|iiarters.  But  the  army  did 
not  share  the  anti-revolutionary  feelings  of  the  general,  and  he  was  him- 
self obliged  to  seek  safety  in  tlie  Austrian  camp,  accompanied  by  young 
Kgalil^  (as  be  was  then  styled),  son  of  the  execrable  duke  of  Orl(;ans,  and 
now  Louis  Philippe,  king  of  the  rrencli! 

The  duke  of  York,  who  was  at  ilie  head  of  the  allied  armies,  had  laid 
siege  to  and  taken  ValcMciennes,  and  he  was  now  nnxious  to  extend 
their  conquests  along  the  frontier  ;  he  accordingly  marched  loward.s  Dun- 
kirk and  commenced  the  sieg(!  on  the  27tli  of  August.  He  cxiiccted  a 
naval  armament  from  Great  Uritain  to  act  in  conjiniction  with  tlic  land 
forces;  but,  from  some  unaccountable  cause,  the  heavy  artillery  was  so 
long  delayed  that  the  enemy  had  time  to  provide  for  the  defence  of  the 
town.  The  French  troops,  commanded  by  Honrhard,  poured  upon  tlxMii 
in  such  numbers,  that  the  duke  was  couipcllcd  to  mak(^  a  i)recipitate 
retreat,  to  avoid  losing  the  whole  of  his  men.  lie  then  tame  to  JMiyland, 
and  having  held  a  conference  witii  the  minisiurs,  returned  lo  tlic  conti- 
nent. At  Valenciennes  it  was  decided  in  a  council  of  war,  that  the  em- 
peror of  Germany  should  take  the  held,  and  bt!  invested  with  the  supremo 
command. 

Tiie  principal  persons  of  the  town  and  harbour  of  Toulon  entered  into 
an  agreement  with  the  Urilisli  admiral,  I.ind  Hood,  by  which  they  deliv- 
ereil  up  the  town  and  shipping  to  bis  protection,  on  condition  of  its  being 
restored  to  France  when  the  Itourbon  restoration  should  be  elFccted. 
The  town,  however,  was  not  for  any  long  time  defensil)le  against  th('  su- 
perior force  of  the  enemy  which  liaci  come  to  its  rescue;  it  was  therefore 
evacuated,  fourteen  thousand  of  the  inlialiitauts  taking  fefnye  on  board 
tilt!  liritish  ships.  Sir  Sidney  Smith  set  lire  lo  the  arsenaN,  wlndi,  to- 
gether with  an  immense  quantity  of  na\al  .stores,  and  sliijis  of  the  Inie, 
were  coiismned.  On  tiiis  occasion  the  artillery  was  commanded  by  Na- 
poleon Itonaparte,  wliosi-  skill  ;ind  courage  was  conspicuous,  tiiiil  from 
that  day  his  promotion  rapidly  took  place. 

The  "elTor's  ni.ide  by  the  {'"reiicli  at  this  tiini  were  truly  Hstonistiingf. 
Having  jirodigionsly  increased  their  forces,  they  were  resolved  to  roiuiuer, 
whateviT  might  be  the  cost  of  human  life.  Kvery  day  was  a  <lay  of  bat- 
tle; and  as  ihi'y  wen;  continually  reinforccil,  the  veteran  armies  of  the 
allies  were  obligcil  to  nive  way.  On  llie  'JJiid  of  !)ecrml)er  lliey  were 
driven  with  iinmensc  slaughter  from  Ha-jciiaii  ;  this  was  followed  up  by 
successive'  (leftMts  till  the  17tli,  when  tiie  Fri'iich  army  arrived  at  Weis- 
(leinbing  in  triumph.  During  this  last  inoiiih  the  loss  of  men  on  both 
»ides  was  immense,  being  esliinati'd  at  between  70.000  and  HO.Oon  men. 
Tlie  French  concluded  the  I'atiipainn  in  triumph,  ami  liie  allied  powi^rs 
were  seriously  alirmcd  ;it  tlie  ihiliciilties  which  were  necessary  lo  la;  se.i 
tiiiinnled,  in  order  lo  regain  the  ground  that  had  lieeii  lost. 

In  the  Kast  and  West  Indies  the  Knuhsh  were  nuccesHful      Tobago, 


!:»l 


in' 


Ti'i  I* .    J 


(jra 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


St.  Domingo,  PondiclKTry,  and  tlie  French  settlements  on  the  coast  ul 
Mahib:u-  and  Coroinandel,  all  si-rendered  to  them. 

A.  D.  1791.— From  the  great  and  important  events  which  were  trau 
sacting  on  the  continent,  wc  turn  to  the  internal  affairs  of  Great  Britain. 
The  French  republic  having  menaced  England  with  an  invasion,  it  was 
proposed  by  ministers  that  associations  of  volunteers,  both  of  cavalry  and 
infantry,  might  be  formed  in  every  county,  for''the  purpose  of  defending 
the  country  from  the  hostile  attempts  of  its  enemies,  and  for  supporting 
the  government  against  the  ciTorts  of  the  disaffected. 

On  tlie  12th  of  May  a  message  from  the  king  announced  to  parliament 
the  existence  of  seditious  societies  in  London,  and  that  the  pa|)crs  of  cer- 
tain persons  belonging  to  them  had  been  seized,  and  were  submitted  to 
the  consideration  of  the  house.  Several  members  of  the  Society  for  Con- 
stitutional Information,  and  of  the  London  Corresponding  Society,  were 
apprehended  on  a  charge  of  high  treason,  and  committed  to  the  Tower. 
Among  tlum  were  Thomas  llar.ly,  a  shoemaker  in  Piccadilly,  and  Daniel 
.\dams,  secretaries  to  the  before-named  societies;  the  celebrated  John 
Home  Tooke ;  tiic  Kev.  Jeremiah  Joyce,  private  secretary  to  Farl  Stan- 
hope:  John  .\ugustus  Uonney,  an  attorney ;  and  Messrs.  Tlielwall,  Rich- 
ter,  Lovatt,  and  Stone.  They  were  brought  to  trial  in  the  following  Oc- 
tober, and  had  the  good  fortune  to  be  acquitted. 

Every  appmirance  on  the  gr  nd  theatre  of  war  indicated  a  continuance 
of  success  to  the  French  in  the  ensuing  campaign.  The  diligence  and 
activity  of  their  govermnent,  the  vigour  and  bravery  of  their  troops,  the 
ability  and  firnmess  of,  their  commanders,  the  unwearied  exertions  of  all 
men  employed  in  the  public  service,  astonished  the  whole  world.  Filled 
with  an  enthusiastic  devotion  to  tiie  cause  in  which  they  had  embarked, 
their  minds  were  intent  only  on  the  inililary  glory  and  aggrandisement 
of  the  republic.  While  the  whole  strength  which  could  be  collected  by 
the  allies  amounted  to  less  tlian  four  hundred  thousand  men,  the  armies 
of  France  were  estimated  at  upwiirds  of  a  million. 

Though  the  superiority  by  land  was  at  present  evidently  in  favour  of 
the  Ficncii,  yet  on  the  ocean  "Old  England"  inaiiilaiiicd  its  predominaiK^e. 
During  the  course  of  th(^  summer  the  islaml  of  (Corsica  was  subdued;  and 
tli<^  whole  of  tii(!  West  India  islands,  except  part  of  Guadaloupe,  surren- 
dered to  the  troops  under  the  conmiand  of  Sir  (Charles  Gray  and  Sir  John 
JerM^.  Th(.  channel  fleet,  uwh'v  its  veteran  commander.  Lord  Howe, 
sailed  from  port,  in  order  to  intercej)t  the  Drest  fleet,  which  had  ventured 
out  to  sea  to  protect  a  large  convoy  that  was  expected  frorr  America. 
The  hostile  fleets  descried  eaidi  otiier  on  the  23ili  of  M.iy,  and  as  an  en- 
liaiii'imnt  became  inevitable,  the  enemy  formed  iit  regular  order  of  battle. 
On  the  morning  of  the  1st  of  June  a  dose  action  commeiiied  ;  tin- enemy's 
fleet,  consisting  of  twenty-six  sail  of  the  line,  and  the  British  of  tw(!nty- 
five.  Thougii  tlu;  battle  did  not  last  long,  it  was  very  severe,  and  proved 
decisive,  seven  of  the  French  ships  being  compelled  to  strike  their  colours, 
one  of  which,  la  Vengcur,  went  down  with  ail  her  crew  almost  immedi- 
ately on  being  taken  possession  of.  In  the  ea|)tiii'ed  ships  alone,  the 
killed  and  woundeil  amounied  to  1270.  The  total  loss  of  the  Uritish  was 
;t06.  When  intelligenei?  of  this  memorable  victory  arrived  in  England,  it 
produced  the  greatest  exultation,  and  the  metropolis  was  illuminated  three 
Biiccessive  nijjhts. 

This  naval  loss  of  llie  French,  though  it  considernbly  diminished  the 
Rfdoiir  of  their  seamen,  was  greatly  overbalanced  by  the  general  success 
of  their  military  operations.  The  principal  tiieatrc!  of  the  contest  was  the 
Netherlands,  where  generals  Jourdan  and  I'ichegrii  had  not  less  than 
20n,min  good  troops,  headed  l)y  many  expert  and  valiant  oftjeers,  ami 
i\!iiindanily  sii|)pli(Ml  with  all  the  reipiisites  of  war.  To  o|)pose  this  forini- 
li.ible  force,  the  allies  assembled  an  army  of  liC.OOO,  commanded  by  the 


fimpdro 
the   iuk 

loss  i}{  , 

confli,  tj 
JimateJ 
sisiible, 
Bruges ; 
i-'ieniies, 
torious  ci 
were  eiju 
niainiaiiK 
masses  o( 
licans  foii 
they  wi'i-fi 
But  the 
Netlie.>-Iaiii 
''''pain  and 
as  to  disiu 
riHich  redu 
flcnliy  the  , 
Europe.  J 
energy  uhj, 
'vlieliii  t.'ie 
•I'liivaiiiiig  a 
'tiss  /brtu'i'i;,, 
'"'"lies,  a  s(. 
campaign  eii 
I'l-uiee. 

We  shall  , 
'>«'Uierlan(ls,| 
ii";te,i  with 
liois-le-Diic 
■'superior  mm, 
'■'LToss  the  \l 
leinhcr  Oevi 
""mediately  i 
•'"»  royal  In'iri, 
•'I  'Uiiheinr 
■Voveinber, 
;"■  tiie  rivers 
VJ'.'^nniimg  at' 

'ri)n;i.s    w,.,.,, 

•'"'■">y,  seizin" 
-|<  70,01)0  „„,„' 
""the  l<;.||„r 
'^ilhanislaiK,  I 
•■''""i.int  of  (iin 

f"'l>''IIIOIIS.    Ilild 

'■••^'"iped  in  ;,  |„ 
'"'•■■""e  III.!  ,,hj 

'■';*'"l"lloiiized 
'■/■""ie<l,  r.'pir. 

".Hl.Hl    ({,.„„| 

'  ""  ll.is  new  „ 
""■y  scMin  hill 

L'llsll  si.|z,.,|  III, 
"""■'•.  the  FlMi, 
V,  ".    17!!.-,.— 
Vof..  L-c; 


THE  TRKASUEY  OF  HI3T0HY. 


67J 


Ipd  llie 

iras  llic 

Is  lli'.in 

\ii,  ■.iiiil 

,  forini- 

by  tlie 


pin|«5roi  'li  ^enon,  assisted  by  generals  Clairfait,  Kamiitz,  Priiicn  Coburg, 
the  luko  oi  V'otk,  &c.  Numerous  were  the  battles,  and  enormous  the 
loss  ill  Vile  o.i  each  side  during  tliis  campaign :  in  one  of  these  bloody 
conftiv  Is  aloiii',  the  battle  of  Charleroi,  the  loss  of  llie  Austrians  was  es- 
tnnateJ  at  lo.vlOO  men.  The  armies  of  France  were,  in  fact,  become  irre- 
sistible, and  the  allies  retreated  in  all  directions  ;  Nienport,  Oslend,  and 
Bruges ;  Tournay,  Mons,  Oudenarde,  and  Brussels ;  Landrecies,  Valen- 
ciennes, Conde,  and  Quesnoi— all  fell  inio  their  lianils.  Uurni^f  this  vic- 
torious career  of  the  French  in  the  Netherlands,  their  armies  on  ihe  Rhine 
were  equally  successful ;  and  though  both  Austrians  and  Prussians  well 
mainiained  ttieir  reputation  for  skill  and  bravery,  yet  tiie  overwhelming 
masses  of  the  Fretich,  and  the  fierce  enliiusiasni  with  whicli  these  repub- 
licans fongiit,  wert  n)ore  than  a  match  for  the  veteran  bands  by  whom 
they  were  opposed. 

But  the  military  operations  of  the  French  were  not  comined  to  the 
Netherlands  and  the  frontiers  of  Germany;  they  had  other  armies  both  in 
Spain  and  Italy.  'J'iie  kingdom  of  Spain,  winch  was  formerly  so  powerful 
as  to  disturb,  by  its  ambition,  the  peace  of  Kurope,  was  at  this  time  so 
much  reduced  by  superstition,  luxury,  and  indolence,  that  it  was  with  dif- 
ficulty the  court  of  Madrid  mainiained  its  rank  antmig  the  countries  ol 
Furope.  It  was  tiu'refore  no  wonJ.er  that  the  irnpetnosity  and  untiring 
energy  whici)  ■  oved  so  d  sirnctive  to  tiie  warlike  (jiernians,  should  over- 
wiielin  t!ie  in  irmies  of  Spain,  or  that  tiieir  strongholds  should  prove 
unavailing  a'  ...st  sncii  resolute  foes,  in  Italy,  too,  the  French  were  not 
less  fortunate.  Thongii  Ihey  had  to  combat  the  Austrian  and  Sardmian 
armies,  a  series  of  victories  made  them  masters  of  Piedmonl.  and  the 
cam[)aign  ended  tliore,  as  elsewhere,  g.  ■  tly  in  favour  of  revolutionary 
France. 

We  shall  now  return  to  the  operations  of  tlii!  common  eiKMny  in  the 
Netherlands,  wiiich,  notwithstanding  the  a])pn)ach  of  winter,  were  con- 
•incied  with  great  perseverance.  The  duke  of  Voik  was  posted  between 
liois-le-l)ue  and  Breda,  hut  being  attacked  willi  great  impetuosity  by  the 
superior  numbers  of  I'iciiegru,  he  was  ov(!rpowereil,  and  obliged  to  retreat 
across  the  Macse.  with  the  loss  of  about  l,.50l)  men.  On  the  ',Wi\\  of  Sep- 
tember Ot!veiMinir  was  taken  by  the  enemy,  and  Hois-le-l)iic  surrendered 
immediately  after.  They  tluMt  followed  the  duke  across  the  .Maese,  when 
Ills  royal  highness  found  it  necessary  to  cross  the  Uliine,  and  lake  post 
at  Arnheim.  Nimeguen  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  French  on  the  7tli  of 
NoviMiiber,  and  as  the  winter  set  in  with  iiiicoinnion  severity,  the  whole 
of  tli(!  rivers  ami  lakes  of  llolliiiid  wert;  bound  uj)  by  the  frost.  At  the 
Vj'gmning  of  January,  171'.),  the  river  Waal  was  froz(;ii  over;  the  British 
.roups  were  at  Ihe  lime  in  a  most  deplorable  slate  of  ill  lieallh,  and  the 
enemy,  s(!i/iiig  the  favonralih?  opporiniiity,  crossed  tiie  riv(^r  with  an  army 
«if  70,11(1(1  men.  and  having  repuls"d  the  force  which  was  o|iposed  to  them, 
Oil  the  Kiili  "f  .lanuary  took  possession  of  Amsterdam.  The  fortresses  of 
Williainslaili,  ilieda,  Itergen-on-Znom,  ailniilted  the  French,  the  shattered 
rcnniant  of  the  British  army  was  obliged  to  retreat,  under  tlie  most  severe 
pnvaiKMis,  and  in  a  season  unusually  inclement;  and  the  priiurc  of  Orange 
escaped  in  a  lilllc  boat,  and  landed  in  Knuland,  where  he  ami  his  family 
hcciHiie  Ihe  obiecis  of  niyal  liberality.  The  United  Provinces  were  now 
iiV(i|iiiioni/.cd  altir  111"'  model  of  France;  the  rights  of  man  were  pro- 
'■liiiincd.  rcpicsciiiativis  chosen,  and  "he  country  received  the  iniiic  of  the 
il:i'nvian  Ucpiililic.  It'  there  were  any  in  lloilaicl  who  seriously  expected 
tliat  this  new  order  of  iliings  was  likidy  to  jirove  lMMielic;al  (o  the  country, 
llicv  soim  hid  I'xpcricnce  to  the  contrary;  for,  <ni  the  (Uie  hand,  the  F-n- 
i;lisli  seized  their  cidnnies  and  destroyed  their  eoininerce,  while  on  the 
iitlicr.  the  Ficiich  treated  them  with  all  the  haulciir  of  insolent  ciinqnerors. 
A.  n.  17;i.'.. — At  the  conclusion  of  the  past  ycK  the  aspect  of  allairs  on 
Vol,.  I.— i:! 


i 


M 


'iT-^ 


TllK  TKKASURY  OF  HIHTORY. 


ihP  oiitiiiniit  was  most  gloomy  and  unpromising.  Tlie  French  republic 
had  suddenly  become  more  extensive  by  its  conquests  than  Frauee  hail 
been  since  tlio  days  of  Charlemagne ;  they  had  acquired  an  increased 
population,  estimated  at  thirteen  niillions,  which,  added  to  twenty-four 
millions  contained  in  France,  constituted  an  empire  of  37,000,000  people. 
As  this  immense  population  inhabited  the  centre  of  Europe,  they  were 
able  by  their  position  to  defy  the  enmity  of  nil  their  neighbours,  and 
to  exercise  an  i'lfliience  almost  amounting  to  an  universal  sovereignty. 

The  consternation  of  Great  Britain  and  the  allied  powers  was  greaily 
increased  by  tiie  conduct  of  the  king  of  Prussia,  who  withdrew  from  the 
coalition,  and  concluded  a  treaty  of  peace  with  the  French  convention. 
This  act,  in  addition  to  the  dismemberment  of  Poland,  was  commented  on 
in  the  Britisli  parliament  in  terms  of  severe  and  merited  censure.  He  had 
received  large  subsidies  from  Kngland,  and  was  pledged,  as  a  member  of 
the  coalition,  to  do  his  utmost  towards  the  overthrow  of  regicidal  France 
and  the  restoration  of  the  Bourbons  ;  and  his  defection  at  such  a  time  was 
as  unprincipled,  as  the  effect  of  it  was  likely  to  be  disastrous.  But  the 
English  and  Auslrians,  encouraged  by  the  distracted  state  of  France,  more 
especially  by  the  royalist  war  in  La  Vendee,  continued  their  efforts,  not- 
withstauiiing,  Spain  followed  the  example  of  Prussia,  and  the  duke  of 
Tuscany,  also,  deserted  the  allies. 

Though  mifortunate  in  her  alliances,  and  unsuccessful  in  the  attempts 
made  by  her  military  force  i^n  the  continent,  (Jreat  Britain  had  still  the 
s.itisfaclion  of  beholding  her  fleets  riding  triumphantly  on  tne  ocean.  On 
the  23d  of  June,  Adn.iral  Lord  Bridnort  attacked  the  French  fleet  off  L'Ori- 
ent,  and  captured  three  s!iii)8  of  the  line.  Some  other  minor  actions  also 
served  to  show  that  Britain  had  not  lost  the  power  to  maintain  her  naval 
superiority.  .\s  FloUand  was  now  become  subject  to  France,  letters  of 
reprisals  were  issued  out  against  the  Hutch  ships,  and  directions  were 
given  for  atta<;king  their  colonies,  with  the  iiiieiiticui,  however,  of  resloriiu; 
fhem  when  the  stadthholder's  government  should  be  re-established.  Tii< 
Cape  of  Good  Hope  was  obliged  to  submit  to  the  British  anus,  together 
with  Trincoiualee,  and  all  the  other  I'niled  seltleuients  except  Batavia. 

The  other  events  of  the  year  may  be  thus  snuiuiod  up : — The  marrinire 
of  the  prince  of  Wales  with  the  princess  t^aroline  of  Bnmswick  ;  a  match 
dictated  by  considerations  of  what  are  ternieil  prudence,  rather  than  iif 
affection  ;  the  prince's  debts  at  the  time  amounted  to  fi'20,000/.,  and  parlia- 
ment agreed  to  grant  him  ]3'j,000/.  per  anniMU  in  addition  to  his  income 
arising  from  the  duchy  of  (.'orinvall,  a  iioriion  being  reserved  for  the  grad 
ual  liquidation  of  his  (lel)ts. — The  deatli  of  I,()uis  XVII.,  son  of  the  unfor- 
lunati!  Iiouis  XVI.,  and  lawful  sovereign  of  Fnuice,  in  prison. — The  acquit- 
tal of  Warren  Hastings,  after  a  trial  which  litid  lasted  seven  years. — The 
commencement  of  the  societies  of  United  Irisliincn  airainst,  and  of  Orange 
clubs  in  favour  of,  the  government. — A  dearth  of  corn  in  Kngland,  witli 
consiMpu'iit  high  prices,  great  distress,  and  riots  which  created  miudi  alarm. 

In  seasons  of  scarcity  and  conscquen'.  high  [irices,  the  multituile  arc 
easily  excited  to  acts  of  insubordination.  At  this  per. id  tlieir  attention 
had  been  roustMl  to  |)(ilitical  subjects  by  some  meetings  lield  in  the  open 
fields,  at  the  inslaiwe  of  the  r'orrespcuidintr  societies,  where  the  usual  in- 
vectives against  goverinnent  had  foruieil  the  staple  of  their  discourse,  and 
the  [icople  had  been  !nere  than  usually  excited.  A  report  was  cin-ulatcd 
that  vast  bodies  of  the  ^  saffccted  would  make  tlicir  appe;ir;ince  when  the 
king  procecilcd  to  o|)en  parliament ;  anil  so  it  proved,  for  tlu!  ainaziiig 
number  of  ','00,000  persons  assemliled  in  the  park  on  that  occasion,  Oct. 
19.  An  immense  throng  surrounded  his  majesty's  carriage,  claniouroiisly 
'oeifcrating"  Bread  !"  "Peace!"  "No  Pitt!"  some  voices  also  shouting  out 

No  King!"  while  stones  were  thrown  at  the  coach  froin  all  directions, 

id,  (Ml  p.issiiig  through  Palace-yard,  one  of  the  windows  was  broken  liv 


a  bullet  f, 
said  to  till 
scandaioii 
feriijg  a  tti 
ceriied  in 
*•  D.  179 
armies  ant 
of  Great  U 
sight  appei 
"le  froiitiej 
Jourdaii ;  i 
extraordiua 
•ike  PicJieg 
publican  an 
''  Ihe  siege 
veloped.  H 
opposed  to  , 
"y  Gtiieral  J 
<^"  'lie  9ih  uf 
at  Millesimo, 
'ne  village  of 
';'"-'ty-  .Mass 
Junug  the  da 
suiiie  reinfoic 
made  14,000 ,] 
having  been  d, 
'*'"'ns,  wiiicii  u 
'-•oiifederaey,  U 
"f  ""-3  duchy  „ 
fallowed  bv  si, 
"t-  king  of  sai 
"iietion. 

''■''«  Austria, 
"'*  situation  oji 
^"u  Cremona,  J 

^"""•y-     'i'hesc 
ffuard  of  (j,f,  ,.,, 

"""-•'1  preeip,,;,!, 
'""''•     A   batn. 
fu'iiioaading-  ke, 
"•'«i'  artiJl,,.,-y,  I 
"y^  ^''-  forced ;  b 
y^'ix-h  army  wo 
^r  position,  he 
•"■'■thLs  object. 
;;[/'-«  troops,  he 
"'^"".'  Austrian  ; 
'J/'Poiients,  tliat  / 
''"-■  Wiaitered  -rni 
P'"'^ued  by  a  i„rg 
^sooumthei? 
'';'0"ly  place  of  I 
,f  «<■,  Bonaparle  . 

■'"."<;xt„u..„aeeu 
'ytlm  unpro« 

'"'g  terms,     ji,.  ., 
'^'"'  "10  citadel'of 


ed 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


67& 


a  bullet  from  an  air-gun.  On  entering  the  house,  the  king,  much  agitated, 
said  to  the  cliancellor,  "  My  lord,  I  have  been  shot  at."  On  his  return  these 
scandalous  outrages  were  repeated,  and  a  proclamation  was  issued  of- 
fering a  thousand  pounds  reward  for  tlie  apprehension  of  the  persons  con- 
cerned in  these  seditious  proceedings. 

A.  D.  179G. — The  unremitting  struggle  on  the  continent  between  the  allied 
armies  and  those  of  France,  was  far  too  important  as  regarded  the  i-iterests 
of  Great  Britain  for  us  to  pass  it  lightly  over,  however  little  it  may  at  first 
sight  appear  to  belong  strictly  to  British  history.  Tlie  Trench  armies  on 
the  frontiers  of  Germany  were  commanded  by  their  generals  Moreau  and 
Jourdan  ;  the  army  of  Italy  was  conducted  by  Napoleon  Bonaparte.  Thi.s 
extraordinary  man,  whose  name  will  hereafter  so  frequently  occur,  had, 
like  Pichegru,  Jourdan,  .Moreau,  &c.,  attained  rapid  promotions  in  tlie  re- 
publican armies.  In  1791  he  was  a  captain  of  artillery  ;  and  it  was  only 
at  the  siege  of  Toulon,  in  1793,  that  his  soldierly  abiaties  began  to  be  de- 
veloped. He  had  now  an  army  of  50,000  veterans  under  his  command, 
opposed  to  whom  were  80,000  Austrians  and  Piedmoiitese,  commanded 
by  General  Beaulicu,  an  officer  of  great  ability,  who  opened  the  campaign 
oil  the  9th  of  April.  Having,  after  several  engagements,  suffered  a  defeat 
at  MiUesimo,  he  selected  7,000  of  his  best  troops,  and  attacked  and  took 
the  village  of  Dego,  where  the  French  were  indulging  themselves  in  se- 
curity. Massena,  having  rallied  his  troops,  made  several  fruitless  attempts 
during  the  day  to  retake  it ;  but  Bonaparte  arriving  in  tlic  evening  with 
some  reinforcements,  renewed  the  attack,  drove  the  alhes  from  Dego,  and 
made  14,000  prisoners.  Count  Colli,  the  general  ol  the  Sardinian  forces, 
having  been  defeated  by  Bonaparte  at  Mondovi,  requested  a  suspension  of 
arms,  wliich  was  followed  by  tlie  king  of  Sardinia's  willulrawal  from  the 
confederacy,  tlie  surrenderof  his  most  important  fortresses,  and  the  ce.«sion 
of  tlie  duchy  of  Savoy,  &c.,  to  the  French.  This  ignominious  peace  was 
followed  by  similar  conduct  on  the  part  of  the  duke  of  Parma,  wlio,  like 
liie  king  of  Sardinia,  appeared  to  liave  no  alternative  but  that  of  utter  ex- 
tinction. 

The  Austrian  general,  Beaulieu,  being  now  no  longer  able  to  maintain 
his  situation  on  the  Po,  retreated  across  the  Adda  at  Lodi,  Pizzigheltone, 
aim  Cremona,  leaving  a  detachment  at  Lodi  to  slop  the  progress  of  the 
enemy.  These  forces  were  attacked,  on  the  10th  of  May,  by  the  advanced 
guard  of  the  republican  army,  wlio  compelled  them  to  retreat  with  so 
iiuicli  precipitation  as  to  leave  no  time  for  br(!aking  down  the  bridge  of 
liodi.  A  battery  was  planted  on  the  French  side,  and  a  tremendous 
cannonading  kept  lip;  but  so  well  was  tiie  bridge  protected  by  the  Aus- 
trian artillery,  that  it  was  the  opinion  of  the  general  olKcers  that  it  could 
nut  be  fori^ed;  but  as  Bonaparte  was  convinced  that  tlie  reputaiion  of  the 
i''rein!li  army  would  suffer  iiiucli  if  the  AuslrJans  wen  allowed  to  maintain 
ilicir  position,  he  was  determined  to  encounter  every  risk  in  order  to 
clTccl  his  object.  Putting  himself,  therefore,  at  ilie  head  of  a  select  body 
(if'his  troops,  he  passed  the  bridge  in  tiie  midst  of  a  most  destructive  fire 
of  tiie  Austrian  artillery,  and  then  fell  with  such  irresistible  fury  on  his 
opponents,  that  he  gained  a  complete  victory.  Maislial  Beaulieu,  with 
the  shiittereJ  ^»'miiaiits  of  his  aniiv,  made  a  hasty  retreat  towanls  .Mantua, 
pursued  by  a  large  body  of  the  French.  Pavia,  Milan,  and  Verona,  were 
MOW  soon  in  their  hands  ;  and  on  the  lili  of  June  they  invested  Mantua, 
ilie  only  place  of  importance  which  the  emperor  held  in  Italy.  Not  long 
after,  Bonaparte  made  himself  master  of  Ferrara,  Bologna,  and  Urbino; 
and  next  menaced  tiie  city  of  Rome.  As  tlie  pope  was  incapable  of  re- 
sisting this  unprovoked  invasion  of  his  territories,  he  .vas  reduced  to  the 
uecessilv  of  soliciting  an  armistice,  which  was  granted  on  very  humilia- 
ting teriiis.  He  agreed  to  give  up  the  cities  of  Bologna  and  Ferrara, 
with  the  citadel  of  Ancona,  and  to.deliver  up  a  great  number  of  paintings 


ail) 


Tin;  THEASi;jiY  of  historv. 


and  statues,  ami  to  enrich  the  foiiqiipror  witli  sonic  hundreds  of  the  mosi 
curious  Miiiniis(M'i[)ls  from  the  Vatican  library. 

The  court  of  Vienna  now  recalled  Itcaulien,  and  Rave  the  command  to 
Marshal  VVurmser ;  hut  tlie  tidt;  of  suc(;ess  ran  more  strong  against  him, 
if  possible,  than  it  had  done  against  his  predecessor.  As  Bonaparte  was 
at  this  time  cniployed  in  forming  a  republic  of  the  states  of  Ueggio,  Mo- 
dena,  Bologna,  and  Ferrara,  the  Austrians  had  leisure  to  make  new  mili* 
tary  arrangements.  They  reinforced  Marshal  Wurmser,  and  formed  a 
new  army,  the  command  of  which  was  given  to  General  Alvinzi.  At  tiie 
beginning  of  November,  several  partial  engagements  took  place  between 
Alvinzi  and  Bonaparte,  till  the  I5th,  when  a  most  desperate  engagement 
at  the  village  of  Areola  ended  in  the  defeat  and  retreat  of  the  Austrians, 
who  lost  about  ]. •5,000  men.  Mantua,  however,  was  still  obstinately  de- 
fended, but  the  garrison  ceased  to  entertain  hopes  of  ultimate  success. 

While  the  French  army  under  Bonaparte  was  overrunning  Italy,  the 
armies  on  the  Uhine,  under  Jonrdan  and  Moreau,  were  unable  to  make 
any  impression  on  tiie  Austrians.  The  armistice  which  had  been  con- 
cluded at  the  termination  of  the  last  (-ainpaign,  expired  on  the  31st  of  May, 
when  both  armies  took  the  field,  and  the  archduke  Charles,  who  com- 
manded the  Austrians,  gained  several  aiivantages  over  both  Jourdan  and 
Moreau,  till,  at  the  end  of  the  year,  the  hostile  armies,  having  been  harassed 
by  the  incessant  fatigues  they  had  undergone,  discontinued  their  military 
operations  for  the  winter. 

The  successes  of  Bonaparte  in  Italy,  and  the  general  aversion  with 
which  the  people  Iieheld  tlie  war,  induced  the  British  ministry  to  make 
ov(Ttures  for  peace  with  the  French  republic.  Lord  Malmesbury  was 
accordingly  dispatched  to  Paris  on  this  important  mission,  and  proposed 
as  the  basis  the  mutual  restitution  of  conquests  ;  but  there  was  no  dispo- 
sition for  peace  on  the  part  of  the  French  directory,  and  the  attempt  at 
pacification  ended  by  a  sudden  order  for  his  lordShip  to  leave  Paris  in  forty- 
eight  hours.  While  these  negotiations  were  on  the  tapis,  an  armament 
was  prepared  at  15rest  for  tiie  invasion  of  Ireland,  which  had  long  been 
meditated  by  the  French  rulers.  'J'iie  (lect,  consisting  of  twenty-five 
ships  of  the  line  and  fifteen  frigates,  was  intrusted  to  Admiral  Bonvet; 
the  land-forces,  amounting  to  25,000  men.  were  commanded  by  General 
Hoche.  They  set  sail  on  the  ISth  of  Deciembcr,  hut  a  violent  tempest 
arose,  and  the  frigate  on  hoard  of  which  the  general  was  conveyed  being 
separated  from  tiie  fleet,  ihoy  returned  to  harbour,  after  losing  one  ship  of 
the  line  and  two  frigates. 

A  few  incidental  notices  will  serve  to  wind  up  the  domestic  events  of 
the  year: — Sir  .Sidney  Smith  was  taken  prisoner  on  the  French  coast, 
and  sent,  under  a  strong  escort,  to  Paris. — The  princess  of  Wales  gave 
birth  to  a  daughter,  tlie  princess  Charlotte;  immediately  after  which,  at 
the  instance  of  the  prince  on  the  "vound  of"  incongeniality,"  a  separation 
took  place  between  the  royal  parents. — A  government  loan  of  18,000,000/. 
was  siil)scril5ed  in  fifteen  hours,  lietweeii  the  1st  and  5th  instant.  One 
million  was  subscribed  by  the  hank  of  England  in  their  corporate  capacity, 
and  400,000/.  by  the  direi.-tors  iiuiividiially. 

A.  D.  1707. — Tlie  garrison  of  Mantua,  which  had  held  out  with  astonish- 
ing bravery,  surreiKlcrwl  on  the  2il  of  Fc'bruary,  but  obtained  very  lionour- 
ahlc  t(!rnis.  After  this,  Bonaparte  recisived  very  considerable  reinforcc- 
iiKMits,  and  having  cut  to  pieces  tin;  army  under  Alvinzi,  he  resolved  on 
peuelraiing  into  the  centre  of  the  Austrian  dominions.  When  the  court  of 
Vienna  received  information  of  this  design,  they  raised  a  new  army,  tiie 
command  of  which  was  given  to  the  archduke  (Miarles.  The  Frencii  de 
feated  the  Austrians  in  almost  every  euL'agement ;  and  Bonaparte,  after 
making  20,000  prisoners,  efTccted  a  p  issage  across  the  Al[)s,  and  drove  the 
emperor  to  the  necessity  o{  requesting  an  armiatico     in  April  a  prelinui'- 


>ry  tret 

retain  tl 

from  til 

sliould  I 

't«ly,  le 

vhich  w 

Knglai 

'ad  been 

»f  th«;m. 

<idies  to 

.■Treat  Uri 

i  nin  upo 

rated  itsel 

of  the  ban 

committee 

though  the 

"I't  was  pii 

po;.nds  we 

was  at  firsi 

confidence 

OiieoftI 

'J'e  equipn 

French,     f 

oil  the  Mth 

Cape  St.  Vi 

line  in  ordei 

fleet,  and  se 

^''g<'iir,  and  i 

■■iiid  blockade 

"'ouiided;  tl 

to  the  peera-i 

son,  wlio  wa 

Rejoieinc 
serious  i„ut 
'his  uiitow;.., 
'cut  was  first 
received  aiioi 

^••tl    ships'  CO 

hiitionofpriz 
his  lordship  I 
disafi'ectioii 
'■"rgeries,  and 
orders  were  j 
Spithead  ran\ 
They  then  cIk 
the  admiralty 
ail  oath  to  be 
'""ird,  and  tolc 
and  the  kin.r's 
inentingthtTp;, 
claims  Iwd  be 
"iiiliiiy  and  in 
af  the  head  of 
who  un.leriook 
'eject  repeue. 
""^'iced  on  ho( 
iK'liear,  .ind,  ;,ri 
'  'ii'ker  and 
■"i.iated  their 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


(>77 


iry  treaty  was  entered  into,  by  which  it  w:is  stipulated  that  France  should 
retain  tl\e  Austrian  Netherhiuils,  and  that  a  new  republic  should  bo  formed 
from  the  states  of  Milan,  Mantua,  Modena,  Ferrara,  and  Bologna,  wliich 
should  receive  the  name  of  the  Cisalpine  Republic.  He  tiien  returned  to 
Italy,  leaving  minor  details  of  the  treaty  to  be  adjusted  afterward;",  and 
vhich  was  accordingly  done  at  Campo  Forniio,  in  the  following  October. 

England  was  now  the  oidy  power  at  war  with  France  ;  and  great  as 
tad  been  the  e.vertions  of  tiie  people,  still  greater  were  ofeour.se  required 
»f  tlit'ni.  The  large  sums  of  money  which  had  been  sent  abroad,  as  sub- 
tidies  to  foreign  princes,  had  dimiuisiicd  the  quantity  of  gold  and  silver  in 
fjrcat  Britain  ;  this  cause,  added  to  the  dread  of  an  invasion,  occasioned 
A  run  upon  the  country  banks,  and  a  demand  for  specie  soon  comniniu- 
cated  itself  to  the  metropolis.  An  order  was  issued  to  prohibit  I  he  directors 
of  the  bank,  from  payments  in  cash.  On  the  meeting  of  parliament,  a 
committee  was  appointed  to  inquire  into  the  state  of  the  currency ;  and 
though  the  affairs  of  the  bank  were  d(!emed  to  be  in  a  prosperous  slate,  an 
act  was  passed  for  confirmmg  the  restriction,  and  notes  for  one  and  two 
po..nds  were  circulat<:d.  The  consternation  occasioned  by  these  measures 
was  at  first  very  general,  but  the  alarm  gradually  subsided,  and  public 
confidence  returned. 

One  of  the  finst  acts  of  Spain,  after  declaring  war  against  England,  was 
the  equipment  of  a  large  number  of  ships,  to  act  in  concert  with  the 
French.  The  Spanish  Heet,  of  twenty-seven  sail  of  the  line;,  was  descrie<l 
on  the  llth  of  January  by  Admiral  Sir  John  Jervis,  who  was  cruising  olT 
Cape  St.  Vincent,  with  a  llrict  of  fifteen  sail.  He  immediately  formed  ills 
line  in  order  of  battle,  and  having  forced  his  way  through  the  encniy's 
fleet,  and  separated  one-thii-d  of  it  from  the  main  body,  he  attacked  with 
vigour,  and  in  a  short  lime  captured  four  first-rate  Spanish  inen-of-uar. 
and  blockaded  the  remainder  in  Cadiz.  The  Spaniards  had  C<00  killed  and 
wounded;  the  British,  300.  For  this  i)rilliant  exploit  Sir  John  was  raised 
to  the  peerage  by  the  title  of  earl  of  St.  Vincent ;  and  Commodore  Nel- 
son, who  was  now  commencing  his  brilliant  career,  was  knighted. 

Rejoicings  for  the  late  gloriou.s  victory  were  scarcely  over,  when  a 
serious  mutiny  broke  out  in  the  channel  fleet.  The  principal  cause  of 
this  untoward  event  was  the  inadequacy  of  the  sailors'  pay.  This  discon- 
tent was  first  made  known  to  Lord  Howe,  who  in  February  and  March 
received  anonyiuous  letters,  in  which  wi  re  enclosed  petitions  fronidilfer- 
rnt  ships'  companies,  requesting  an  increase  of  pay,  a  more  equal  distri- 
bution of  prize  money,  &c.  The  novelty  of  this  circumstance  induced 
his  lordship  to  make  some  inquiries;  but  as  there  was  no  appearance  of 
disalfeetion  in  the  fleet,  he  concluded  that  the  letters  must  have  been 
forgeries,  and  took  no  further  notice  of  it.  On  the  1.5th  of  April,  when 
orders  were  given  for  preparing  to  sail,  the  crews  of  the  .ships  lying  at 
Spithead  ran  up  the  shrouds,  gave  three  cheers,  and  refused  to  comply. 
They  tiien  chose  two  delegates  from  each  ship,  who  drew  up  a  petition  to 
the  admiralty  and  the  house  of  eomujons,  and  each  seaman  was  bound  by 
an  oath  to  be  faithful  to  the  cause.  At  length  Lord  Bridport  went  on 
board,  and  told  them  he  was  tiie  bearer  of  redress  for  all  their  grievances, 
and  the  kind's  pardon ;  and  on  the  8lh  of  May  r.n  act  was  passed  for  iiug 
meuting  the  pay  of  sailors  and  mariners.  The  facility  with  which  these 
claims  had  been  granted  instigated  the  seamen  at  the  Nore  to  ri.se  in 
mutiny  and  make  furtlier  di-mands.  A  council  of  delegates  was  elected, 
at  the  head  of  whom  was  a  bold  and  insolent  man  named  Richard  Parker, 
who  undertook  to  comniaml  the  fleet,  and  prevailed  on  Ids  companions  to 
reject  repcite(l()n"ers  of  pnrdoii.  Trepiirations  for  hostilities  were  com- 
menced on  liotii  sides,  when  dissensions  among  the  disaffected  began  to 
inpear,  .ind,  after  some  hbiodshed,  all  the  ships  submitted,  iriving  up 
Parker  and  Ins  fellow-deleirates :  some  of  whom,  with  their  leader. 
°K.  iaied  their  oirences  by  an  ignominious  death. 


m 


m 


M 


1)78 


THE  THEASURY  OF  UlrtTOIlY. 


Notwithstanding  the  hitc  dangerous  mutiny,  the  idcii  was  very  pniviilont 
in  the  i;ountry,  liiat  if  a  hostile  fleet  were  to  nuiko  its  iipiKianincc,  the 
men  would  show  themselves  as  eager  as  ever  to  fight  for  the  honour  of 
Old  Kngland.  In  a  few  months  afterwards  an  o|)i)orlunity  oceurn  il  of 
testing  their  devotion  to  tlie  service.  The  Uatavinn  n^puhiic  having  lltled 
out  a  fleet  of  fifteen  ships,  under  the  eonnnand  of  their  udnnral,  Dc 
Winter,  with  an  intention  of  joining  the  Freneh,  Admiral  Dnnoau,  who 
commanded  the  British  fleet,  watched  them  so  narrowly,  that  they  found 
It.  impracticable  to  venture  out  of  the  Texel  without  risking  an  iMigage- 
meiit.  The  British  admiral  being  obliged  by  tempestuouH  we.ithcr  to 
leave  his  station,  the  Dutch  availed  themselves  of  the  opportiniily, 
and  put  to  sea;  but  were  descried  by  the  Knglish  fleel,  whii'h  imiiK!- 
diately  set  sail  in  pursuit  of  them.  On  the  lltli  of  October  tiie  I'lnglish 
came  up  with,  and  attacked  them  olf  Camperdown;  and  afKn'  a  gallant 
fight  of  four  hours,  eight  ships  of  the  line,  including  thoHi;  of  the  admiral 
and  vice-admiral,  besides  four  frigates,  struck  tlieir  colours.  Thi!  loss  of 
the  Knglish  in  this  meinorable  action  amounted  to  700  men  ;  thi!  loss  of 
the  Dutch  was  estimated  at  twice  that  number.  The  gallant  Adiniral 
Duncan  was  raised  to  tlie  peerage,  and  received  the  title  of  Visi-ouiil 
Camperdown,  with  an  hereditary  pension. 

About  three  months  previous  to  this  action  Admiral  NcIhoii,  actitig  on 
fallacious  intelligence,  made  an  unsucoessful  attack  on  Santa  ('ru/,  in 
the  island  of  Tenerilfe;  on  which  occasion  the  assailants  sustaijied 
great  loss,  and  Nelson  himself  had  his  artn  shot  olT. 

A.  D.  1798. — As  the  French  republic  had  at  this  time  subdued  all  its 
enemies  except  England,  the  conquest  of  this  country  was  the  principal 
object  of  their  hopes.  The  vast  extent  of  territory  whiish  the  i-'rench 
tiow  possessed,  together  with  the  influence  they  had  obtained  over  the 
councils  of  Holland,  retidered  them  much  more  forniiijaiili'  thun  they 
had  been  at  any  former  period.  The  circumstances  of  the  Krilish  nation 
were,  however,  such  as  would  discotirage  every  idea  of  lui  invasion. 
Its  navy  was  more  powerful  than  it  had  ever  been  ;  the  vi(Mories  which 
had  lately  been  gained  over  the  Dutch  and  Spanish  lleets,  had  conlirmi'd 
the  general  opinion  of  the  loyalty  as  well  as  bravi^ry  of  its  seamen  ;  luid 
all  parties  btirying,  for  a  lime,  all  past  disput(!s  in  oblivicm,  ntianimotis- 
ly  resolved  to  support  the  govermnent.  On  the  mtietiiig  of  parliament, 
in  .laimary,  a  message  from  the  king  intimated  that  im  invfisiim  of  the 
kingdom  was  in  contemplation  by  the  French.  This  c(Hiniiimication 
gave  rise  to  very  active  measures,  which  plainly  manifested  tht;  spirit 
of  unanimity  which  reigned  in  (ireat  Britain.  Besidiis  a  large  addition 
made  to  the  militia,  every  county  was  directed  to  raist!  bodies  of  cavalry 
from  the  yeomanry,  and  almost  every  town  and  consiileriible  village 
had  its  corps  of  volunteers,  trained  and  arme<l.  'i'ho  island  was  never 
before  in  such  a  formidable  state  of  internal  defcnict!,  luid  a  warlike 
spirit  was  diffused  throughout  the  entire  population.  A  volnittary  sub- 
scription for  the  support  of  the  war  also  took  jilace,  by  which  a  million 
and  a  half  of  money  was  raised  towards  defraying  the  extraordinary 
demands  on  the  public  purse. 

While  this  universal  harmony  seemed  to  direct  the  (JouncilH  of  (Jreat 
Britain,  the  Irish  were  greatly  divided  in  their  sentiments,  and  at  length 
commenced  an  open  rebellion-  In  the  year  1791  a  society  hud  been  in- 
stituted by  the  catholics  and  protestanl  dissentiTs,  for  the  purjiose  of  ob- 
taining a  reform  in  parliament,  and  an  entire  deliveramiu  of  the  Roman 
catholics  from  all  the  restrictions  under  which  they  laboured  on  lU'i'oiiiit 
of  religion.  This  institution  was  projected  by  a  peiion  named  Wolfe 
Tone;  and  the  members,  who  were  termed  the  Vniled  Irishman,  were  so 
niinierous,  that  their  divisions  and  sulidivisions  were,  in  a  short  time, 
extended  over  the  whole  kingdom.     Though  a  reform  of  |iarliiiment  wan 


the  osteni 
but  zealoi 
and,  by  e 
a  republic 
(iid  the  nui 
were  they 
nominated 
Arthur  0'( 
Their  cons 
with  such 
into  effect, 
by  the  gov( 
Fitzgerald 
A  second  ci 
but  not  unti 
the  castle  o 
be  surprisec 
moment.    1 
^liiy,  a  bod 
on  the  towm 
from  Lord  ( 
of  them  we 
strong,  agai 
forth  to  nice 
became  niasi 
ter,  from  i\e 
iit  Wexford 
(General   Nuj 
Miinio,  near' 
tiicir  greatest 
mentoii  Vinei 
them.     Vario 
of  which  the 
III  llie  pres( 
prudent  by  th 
military   man 
chosen  for  tli 
tlieSOth  of  Ju 
his  majesty's  j 
and  surrender 
resolute  cond 
and   the    insui 
of    August,   al 
General   Hunil 
'nsh,  lauded 
But  instead  of 
pected,  they  wi 
prisoners  of  wr 
— a  rebellion  \v 
excesses  on  eai 
tlie  time  that  ik 
victims. 

'I'he  preparat 
were  apparenijj 
out  at  Toulon,  i 
consisted  of  thir 
"^.-ty.fivebail.be 


THE  TEBASUaY  OF  HISTORY. 


«r> 


ry 


the  ostensible  object  of  tliis  society,  yet  it  soon  proved  tiiat  their  secret 
but  zealous  endeiivouis  were  directed  to  the  bringing;  about  a  revolution, 
and,  by  effecting  a  disjunction  of  Ireland  from  Great  Britain,  to  establish 
a  republican  form  of  government  similar  to  that  of  France.  So  rapidly 
did  the  numbers  of  these  republican  enthusiasts  increase,  and  so  confident 
were  they  of  the  ultimate  success  of  their  undertakinj;,  that  in  1707  ihey 
nominated  an  executive  directory,  consisting  of  1  rd  Edward  Fitzgerald, 
Arthur  O'Connor,  Oliver  Bond,  I)r.  JIac  Niven,  a. id  Counsellor  /'inniet. 
Their  conspiracy  was  planned  with  sucii  consummate  art,  and  conducted 
with  such  profound  secresy,  tliat  it  would,  doubtless,  havt;  been  carried 
into  effect,  but  for  its  timely  discovery  in  Man^li,  by  a  j)erson  eiuployed 
by  the  government,  when  the  principal  ringleaders  w'  re  appreh  ''ded,  and 
Fitzgerald  was  mortally  wounded  wliih;  resisting  the  olRcors  of  Justice. 
A  second  conspiracy  shortly  afterwards  was  in  the  like  manner  delected, 
but  not  until  a  general  insurrection  had  been  determined  upon,  in  whi  :;> 
the  castle  of  Dublin,  the  camp  near  it,  and  the  artillery  barracks,  were  to 
be  surprised  in  one  night,  and  other  places  were  to  be  seized  Mie  same 
moment.  But  the  (lame  of  rebellion  was  not  easily  extinj  rs  <  J.  la 
May,  a  body  of  rebels,  armed  with  swords  and  pikes,  ma  'e  at  .^inpts 
on  the  towns  of  Naas  and  Wexford  ;  but  they  experienced  a  hignal  defeat 
from  Lord  Gosford,  at  the  head  of  the  Armagh  militia,  and  four  hundred 
of  them  were  left  dead  on  the  field.  They  "afterwards  marched,  15,000 
strong,  against  Wexford,  and  upon  defeating  the  garrison,  which  sallied 
forth  to  meet  them,  obtained  possession  of  the  town.  Subsequently  they 
became  musters  of  Enniscortliy,  but  being  driven  back,  with  great  slaugh- 
ter, from  New  itoss,  they  wreaked  their  vengeance  upon  their  captives 
at  Wexford  in  the  most  barbarous  manner.  On  the  twelflli  of  .Iiine, 
General  Nugent  attacked  the  rebels,  5000  in  number,  commanded  by 
iSIunro,  near  Ballynahincli,  and  routed  tliein  with  great  slaughter.  But 
their  greatest  discomfiture  was  that  which  they  sustained  in  their  encamp- 
ment on  Vinegar-hill,  where  (ieneral  Lake  attacked  and  completely  routed 
them.  Various  other  minor  engagements  ensued  about  this  time,  in  all 
of  which  the  rebels  were  defeated  with  considerable  loss. 

In  the  present  divided  and  dangerous  state  of  Ireland  it  was  judgea 
prudent  by  the  legislature  to  appoint  to  the  lieutenancy  of  that  country  a 
military  man  of  acknowledged  prudence  ,i  ..i  I  ravery.  The  person 
chosen  for  the  station  was  Lord  Coriuvalh  '•"•.  arrived  at  Dublin  on 
the  20th  of  June.  His  first  act  was  to  iniblisii  ;.  proclamation,  offering 
his  majesty's  pardon  to  all  such  insurgents  as  would  desert  their  leaders, 
and  surrender  themselves  and  their  arms.  This  proclamation,  and  the 
resolute  conduct  of  the  government,  h- 1  a  great  effect  on  the  rebels, 
and  the  insurrection  was  in  a  short  tune  suppressed.  On  the  '2M 
of  August,  about  eight  Immlreil  Frenchmen,  under  the  command  of 
(ieneral  Humbert,  who  had  come  to  the  assistance  of  the  rebellious 
Irish,  landed  at  Killala,  and  made  themselves  masters  of  that  lown. 
But  instead  of  being  joined  by  a  considerable  body  of  rebels,  as  they  ex- 
pected,  they  wore  met  by  General  Lake,  to  whom  they  surrendered  as 
prisoners  of  war.  An  end  was  thus  temporarily  put  to  the  Irisli  rebellion 
—a  rebellion  which,  though  never  completely  organized,  was  fraught  with 
excesses  on  each  side  at  which  humanity  shudders.  It  was  computed  at 
the  time  that  not  less  tVun  30,000  persons  in  one  way  or  other,  were  itti 
victims. 

The  preparations  which  had  been  making  for  the  invasion  of  England 
were  apparently  conliiiued,  but  at  the  same  lime  an  armament  was  fitting 
out  at  Toulon,  ihe  destination  of  which  was  kept  a  profound  secret.  It 
consisted  of  thirteen  ships  of  the  line,  with  other  vessels,  amounting  in  all  to 
lorty.five  sail,  besides  200  transoorts,  on  board  of  which  were  20,000  choice 


irH 


1  II 


S89 


THE  TREASDHY  OF  HISTOIkY. 


troops,  will!  horses,  artillciy,  and  an  immense  quantity  of  provisions  and 
military  stores.  All  Knropc  hrlicld  with  astonislnnent  and  rippri'hension 
tiiese  niiy:hiy  prppar;itions,  and  scpnicd  to  wait  in  awfnl  cxpi'ctalion  for 
tiie  storm  of  \v:ir  tliai  was  al)()iit  to  burst  on  some  devoted  land.  This 
arnianieni,  wliidi  wns  umlcr  liu;  (.'onimand  of  General  Honaparte,  set  sail 
May  20tli,  iiii,|  haviiiy;  lakeii  possession  of  the  island  of  Malta  on  the  Is' 
of  June,  (iroceedcd  iDwanIs  Kiiypt,  where  it  arrived  at  the  beginning  of 
July  ;  il.'s  iiltiinate  (U'siinaliou  iifiny-  said  to  be  the  \v,\M  Indic!*.  ii<i  ihe 
Red  Sea.  Sir  Iloralio  Nelsdu,  wjio  was  sent  in  puri-uit  ol  the  Krencli 
fleet,  biiiiy'  wholly  igin)raiit  of  it.s  ileslination,  sailed  for  j\a[)les.  where  lie 
obtained  iiifuriuaiHin  of  the  surrender  of  M;dla,  iind  aeeorilinsily  duecicd 
his  course  towards  ili.it  island.  On  his  arrival  he  had  the  mortilicatioii 
to  find  thai  lionaparh was  },Mnie,  and  eonjecturini;  that  lie  had  sailed  to 
Alexandria,  he  imiiu'diately  prepared  to  follow,  lie  was,  however,  afrain 
disappoiiiied,  fur  on  reachini,'  Alexandria  ho  learned  that  the  enemy  had 
not  been  there,  \fler  this,  tjie  IJritish  squadron  iiroceeded  to  Uliodes, 
ami  thencf  to  Sicily,  where  thi'y  hail  the  salisfaedon  of  liearinjj;  that  the 
enemy  iiad  been  olVCiiidia  about  a  nioiilh  before,  and  had  5,'one  to  Alex- 
nndria.  'i'liiiherward  lluy  pressed  all  sail,  and  on  the  1st  of  Aiijfust 
d(!scried  tln^  Freneli  lleet  lyiii)i  in  Alioukir  bav.  Uoiw.parte  had  lauded 
his  army  (mi  llie  .'Jtli  of  .Iiiiy.  and  haviiijj  maile  liimself  master  of  Alex- 
andria, iie  (hew  up  liis  iraiis|)((rts  within  the  inner  harbour  of  that  city, 
and  Iiroceeded  with  his  army  along  the  banks  of  the  Nile.  'I'lie  French 
fleet,  commandeil  by  Adiiiir.i!  Urueys,  was  drawn  up  near  the  shore,  n\  a 
comjiaet  line  of  battle,  ihiuked  by  hnir  friifales,  and  protected  in  the  front 
by  a  batii  ry  pianled  on  a.sin.ill  island.  Nelson  decided  on  an  iinmeiliate 
attack  that  eveiiiii;f,  and  regardless  of  the  posiliun  of  the  Krencl;.  led  hiii 
fleet  between  them  and  the  shore,  so  as  to  place  his  enemies  between  two 
fires.  Tiie  victory  was  coaiplele.  Nine  ships  ol  the  line  were  taken, 
one  was  burnt  iiy  her  captain,  and  tin;  admiral's  ship.  I/Orient,  was  blown 
Uj)  in  tile  action,  wiih  her  conimander  and  the  (.'reaier  |»art  of  her  crew 
The  loss  of  the  i:ii;;lish  Was  !)()()  sailors  killed;  that  of  the  l''reiich  far 
jfreiiler.  'I'lie  {j;''Uious  coniluct  of  the  brave  men  who  achieved  Ibis 
«i{{nal  iriumph  was  the  llienie  of  every  tongue,  and  Ihe  intrepid  NcImoii 
was  rew  irdcd  with  a  pci  r.iire  and  a  jieiisioii. 

The  victory  of  ilic  Nile  produced  a  powerful  effect  lhrou;ihoiit  Ihirope 
The  formidable  preparations  which  had  inenticcd  Asia  and  Africa  with 
iminediale  ruin  were  ov( nlirown,  and  seemed  to  leave  beliind  tliiun  an 
everlastiiiif  mmmmeiit  of  tin;  c  xireinr  folly  and  uiiceriainiy  of  biinmn 
Und(U'takiuus.  The  deep  despondeiu'y  which  liai.  darkened  the  hori/.on 
of  Kurope  was  suddenly  disp(  lied,  the  dread  of  flallic  veiii;cance  seeineil 
to  vanish  in  a  moment,  and  Ihe  minds  of  men  were  awakeneil  inio  ueijon 
by  the  ardent  disiie  ol  resioriiiL' traiKpullily  to  Knropc.  A  second  lali- 
tion  was  iinmcdi  ilcly  huined  a;ranisl  l''r  nice,  under  the  auspices  of  (ireat 
Uritahi,  and  was  eiiteri  d  into  by  Austria.  Russia,  llic  Oiioman  I'or'c,  and 
Naples.  'I'owards  lli<;  close  of  Ihe  yeai  ihe  island  of  ,^lllun■ca  surrendered, 
Willi  scarcidy  a  show  of  resislaiice,  to  (ieneral  Smart  and  ('ommodore 
Duckworth. 

We  niiist  now  lake  a  ylaiice  of  ihe  static  of  llriiish  afTairi  in  India. 
Ti|)|ioo  Sail)  haviiiy  entered  iiilo  a  secret  correspoiidenci!  with  llie  Kreii'li 
republic,  the  i,'overnoi-j,'iiicral  demanded  an  expiaiiation  of  bis  Mileiiiions! 
and  as  this  demand  was  not  ciMiiplied  willi,  licmr.il  Harris  invaded  Ins 
territories.  ,\fler  soiiie  shuht  en^'aijcmeiits,  Ihe  Hi  iiisli  army  advanced  to 
Herinuapalam,  the  capital  of  Tippoo,  and  oil  the  lib  of  May.  after  :t  L'd- 
luiit  and  dc  s|ier.ile  resi-taiice.  Ihey  succeeded  in  taknm  it,  the  sullan  beiajf 
killed  while  deli  iidinu:  Ihe  linlress. 

A.  I)  PUD. — In  eonscijuencr'  of  the  eonfi'deriiey  winch  had  been  foniiH'J 
tguliist  the  i-'reiich  republic,  tliu  uumpuigii  uf  tliii  year  becnine  purtiou 


farjy 


-..../  in 

aer  Gei 

Charles 

The  An 

'"  make 

"■inyof 

the   fVei 

''■■isleii  u 

F'i'ench  n 

ha.sfc,  aiu 

"'ilh  (heii 

"';u  ill  (hi 

"if  inispai 

Uhii;  f 

tempt  was 

'"  I'einstaii 

'"'■,'  "-as  ac 

Ahercroiiii, 

'?diniral  >fj 

'"If.  bpsi,(,., 

"(■Sept,.,,,!,, 

^vfii'-h  amoii 

"•as  at  first 

"ifir  rei,if„f, 

f""-t  from  (hi 

''''S'»Jved  to  r 

i'""';  '"Id.  as 

„  -^'^'ei-  tlie  hi 
""'  av(Mve,|  ii 
'•"•"Plf,  and  r, 
■'affa  wns  e  irr 
■^^'-f.  u  hi,.,,  ), 
'If  me(  „.,„,  .„ 

f  SIS(,„„.,,  „f  , 

ilarinjroxpioK, 

"PHierl  hi.,  „,., 
J;"'  '"•'•'>  ea,„„ 
';'/i"is.  (hen 

,),„    ',      •      "ow 
V'"  pile..   /,v  ,„ 

;"  •''"■r.iaii„„  , 

•"■"'.'^'  "Inch  It, 
y>y<;,  s„|,|, 

'^''"■'•d  inlcll,,,,,, 
Jf'iirned  (>„„;',, 

•'"  .V  "''ranicl ,, 
'lit  he  was  no 
"ti^ions  i„  /,>,, 
";';;''i  "ris  thvrrl 

r  '","  '"  'l"Ve  .SI 

"'^"lif  army  („ 
'^'■"l-I.Ahoi.kiV;  I, 


'  sii 


THE  TIIEASIJHY  ok 


lariy  mterestino-     *  Pro,    i  '  68' 

'o  makna  stand  untitl,,  "^^  ^''""^''  Enrich,  wli,.-,    f"'"'^^'''»'>d- 

'••'ny  of  Austria,    'id''^^,f;-'''^ed  '•<'i"f.>,v,>,o  ,'"',';'>'  ^^"^  enabled 

'he  French  to  relinquiS,  .?""'  "'"'•^'- ^^norars  nvar  •  u  ',  "":"""'"<^.  an 
hasten  ,0  the  assi  Xe' ,/  hi''  '■"'■1^^'^  i-  l^^y'un^'lT^"^^'^'^'i 
1' renc'h  (rpiipr;,)    \T.,=I  ,  ''"  i'rchdike'  hut   uJ:         ^  '"''''nnnied  to 

with  tlieirccier  ■'■■'  "^"fc  surroinuJod  s.,  cm  nT  /''  ';''""'-^"  '"  W'lt 
""U  n,  the  space  .'rrr;''"'''-,    ^"  ^■'i'^'' «o  severe      i',''-'''  "'^^'  ""'y  S^OO 

^Vhih,  fh,,,e  ovent«  «■.-„  ....  "•"  "^"=""18  to 


'If  in-'t  uiih  an  onnone  <  v  '"^'"-^  ""^  '"-"f")  seWt    m  n  '">'  '" 

■■"'■''istaMe,.  of  that  D     .  „   1      ^'T"'''  hi^  pr  mress      Tl , ' ''^V  ''.'"  ''.'iv 

f'"nilmrihanapreea,le  tor,         "■'""■''  ''''"'  ■'•■ndered      s  „  ,       r  ^""''" 
."P«'"..d  ins  fen,.!,,,:    ,-..':'..^';.'"":. ••■"•><.     On  the  Mil,    r  >,,''',  ""j/^""  "!"<•' 


iliiiiiiii 

'roM,     hm    ^r  """"■'■"'  ^'•■''.•r.  an,|  sailed   ,nih    H  '^       ""  '"•'■'"•'fiiiKlv 

Vtf.irULU     ".    (he    ^r„„d  ^..iiiui 


I' 


Hi 


TIIK   TUEASURY  OF  HI8TOUY. 


of  !•' ranee,  lie  in  the  true  Cromwelliati  fashion,  w'lh  the  assistance  of  a 
strong  jjiirty,  dissolved  the  assembly  of  representatives,  and  usurped  the 
govnrnnieni  with  the  title  of  (thief  consul,  which  was  at  first  conferred  on 
nim  for  ten  years,  but  was  afterwards  confirmed  for  life. 

In  order  to  render  his  usurpation  popular,  Bonaparte  began  to  make 
professions  of  a  pacific  character,  and  entered  into  a  correspondence  for 
a  negotiation  witli  the  principal  powers  at  war  with  the  republic.  In  his 
coininunications  with  the  allied  sovereigns  he  departed  from  the  forms 
sanctioned  by  the  custom  of  nations,  and  personally  addressed  his  letters 
to  the  monarclis.  The  substance  of  the  note  addressed  to  his  Britannic 
majesty  was  conveyed  in  two  questional,  "  Whether  the  war  which  had 
for  eight  years  ravaged  the  four  quarters  of  the  globe,  was  to  be  eternal ;' 
and  "  Whether  there  were  no  means  by  which  trance  and  England  miglit 
come  to  a  good  understanding  1"  In  answer  to  this  letter,  an  official  note 
was  returned  by  Mr.  Grenvillc,  who  dwelt  much  on  the  bad  faith  of  revo- 
lutionary rulers,  and  the  instability  of  France  since  the  subversion  of  the 
ancient  monarchy.  The  overture  which  was  transmitted  to  the  court  ot 
Vienna  was  of  a  similar  nature,  and  experienced  similar  treatment;  but 
the  emperor  of  Russia,  being  disgusted  with  the  conduct  of  Austria  in  the 
lute  campaign,  withdrew  from  the  confederacy. 

A.  n.  IHOO. — The  often  discussed  question  of  a  legislative  union  between 
Oreat  Britain  ,ind  Ireland  engaged  the  attention  of  politicians  at  this  time, 
and  gave  rise  to  much  angry  feeling.  Some  serious  dilTicultieshad  arisen 
from  the  existence  of  ind('|)endent  legislatures  in  Kngland  and  Ireland,  and 
tliere  was  reason  to  fear  that  while  separate  interests  were  made  jiara- 
nionnt  to  the  general  good,  old  grievances  nnght  again  lead  to  disatfection, 
and  the  result  be  a  disinembernient  of  the  em|)ire.  To  prevent  such  an 
evil  the  ministers  of  the  day  cons;  leie<l  their  boundcn  duty;  and  though 
the  'iicasun;  at  first  met  with  grea:  ipposilion,  it  was  eventually  carried 
by  consiiierable  majorities,  and  took  place  on  the  1st  of  Jamiary,  IHIII. 
My  this  arrangement  the  Irish  were  to  have  a  share  of  all  the  connncrcc 
of  t  ir'sd  Britain,  except  such  parts  of  it  as  bidoiigi'd  to  chartered  companies. 
The  conimoiis  of  Ireland  lobe  rcnresented  in  the  imperial  parliament  by 
a  hundred  members  ;  the  spiritual  and  temporal  peerage  of  that  country 
by  lour  liishops  and  twenty-eiglit  lay-lords,  holding  their  seats  for  life. 

During  the  past  winter  and  the  early  part  of  spring  the  greatest  distress 
was  felt  by  the  poorer  classes  on  acc(nint  of  llu'  sctircity  ami  extraordinary 
high  price  of  liread  ;  in  order  to  mitigal(!  wlinh,  an  act  was  passi^d  pro 
liibitiiig  the  sale  of  that  great  necessary  of  lift!  until  it  had  been  baked 
twenty-four  hours,  from  a  well-founded  notion  that  the  consumption  ol 
stale  bread  would  lie  much  less  than  new. 

( III  the  Llth  of  May,  as  the  king  was  reviewing  a  battalion  of  the  gii,ir<ls 
III  Mvde  I'ark,  a  ball  was  fired  in  one  of  the  vollies  liy  a  soldier,  wliicli 
woiiiiili'd  a  gentleman  who  was  standing  not  many  yards  from  his  maies- 
ty  ;  but  whether  it  was  from  acciilent  or  design  emild  not  be  discovi'red 
And  on  the  eviMiing  of  the  same  day  a  much  more  :ilariniiig  eircumslaiii'd 
iici-inreil  at  Drury-lnn'  theatre.  At  the  moment  his  majesty  eiiti'red  llic 
royal  box,  a  man  s'uml  up  in  the  pit  ami  dlsch.irged  a  pistol  at  the  king 
the  ball  proviileutially  missed  him,  and  the  olleiider  was  iiiiiiii  li.itely 
sei/.cd,  when  it  appeared  that  his  name  was  Jaini'H  Hatfield,  fnniLrrly  a 
jirivate  siddier,  and  that  he  was  oecasioiially  afllietcd  with  mental  deraiigi^- 
iiiciit,  from  a  wound  he  hail  received  iii  the  head,  lie  was  aeeordiiigly 
"  provided  for"  as  a  liinalic.  'I'lie  eoiislernatioii  occasioned  by  these 
oeeurreiici'S  was  succeeded  by  many  signal  proofs  of  aiructionulu  luyultVi 
i^'specially  on  the  ttli  of  .liiiie,  his  majesty's  liirlh-day. 

The  campaign  of  MOil  was  opened  with  great  nsoliiiion  on  both  sides. 
Independently  of  tlie  oilier  troops  of  I'ranee,  an  additional  army  of  fiO.OOi) 
men  was  asseinhled  at  Dijon,  and  it  was  publicly  annouuceil  In  the  French 


papers,  ih 

?"d  in  Ital 

i'liportaiit 

''City  oftli 

sequences 

/Ja'y.  uiidi 

"eiioese  ; 

der  of  Gi.„ 

suddenly  jo 

St.  B.inani 

into  the  Mil 

rcinforceine 

rear  of  tlie  A 

encounter  w 

vantage;  an, 

I  lie  Austriiii 

nieneing  tj,,, 

(lefcat  of  tl  - 

nvcd  with  a  r 

"ic  Aiistrians 

the  Freiieli  st; 

following  day 

^vas  gr.inted  c 

af'cr,  iioiiapar 

' '"  ihe  .■ii-d  „ 

"as  .signally  , 

being  10,006  m 

that  III,;  ,.„,,„,,., 

^'iis  uas  r,)jj,„ 

oil  the  <tU,  of  J, 

A.  D.   JrtOI ( 

f'.'yiil  sty  J,,  ami 

timed    Kliigiloi 

*»'/'' •"""■abs, 

HSI-l,'.        ()„  ,|„.    J 

'01-8  foril,,.  ('„,,] 
presented  the  I,, 

H.v  the  treaty  , 
""'  I-  rcnel,  n'mil 
I'oiniiioii  ener.rvl 
''aiil  „(•  Uuss,^,;  J 
'"■""'d  iK'iitraliivl 

"'"'"'III     .Sl,|„|,„i,| 

Ji"i''(iir,'  ih,.  UiiiT 
,""■"■••-•  Tl„.  „s„l 
"'  ''"'  'iK'ipali,.,,.  f 
,""'"'■""  ■"■"l-calL 
""'  king's  <.l.j,.,.tJ 
<^"'i>.i'i,.e||,„„j^.  ,f 

"?"  '"'   III-*    C„r,M,;' 

"lii'-h,  tli,.r,.  was 
1'     Ir-iand    t„   „„, 

'^'•''•ify  of  Ih,.  ,,„r 

"'■'.I'My,  a  n,.w  ,„| 
■^"•-  \dilini.t„„  „,,. 
'•xch-.jM,.,.;  1^,,^,, 

"'''•'  lord  of  111,. 
"«"«-'s  of  g|.,u..  „  I 


THE  THEASURY  Ol^  HISTORY. 


ftSi 


1,01)0 
I  iicb 


papers,  that  it  was  itUeiuled  as  a  reinforcement  to  the  armies  on  the  Rhiiiv 
and  in  Italy,  as  circmnstances  might  require.  No  one  suspected  tiiat  any 
important  phm  of  military  operations  wa.s  concealed  by  the  alTccted  pub- 
licity of  this  arrangement,  so  no  precaution  was  taken  to  obv.ate  the  con- 
sequiaices  which  miijiit  arise  from  its  movemenis.  Tlie  Ausirians  in 
Italy,  under  (ieneral  Melas,  ailacked  Ma.ssena  in  the  territory  of  the 
Genoese  ;  and  hciuj^  successful  in  several  ohstuiate  conflicts,  the  surren- 
der of  Genoa  with  its  garrison  followed.  Just  at  this  time  Bonaparte 
suddenly  joined  the  army  of  reserve  at  Dijon,  crossed  the  Alps  over  Mount 
St.  UiMuai'd,  which  before  had  been  deemed  impracticable,  and  descended 
into  the  .Milanese  without  opposition.  Haviiiir  received  some  powerful 
reinforcements  from  tiu^  army  in  Switzerland  he  placed  hims('ll^  in  the 
rear  of  the  AusM'ian  army,  and  resolved  on  hazarding  a  battle.  Their  first 
encounter  was  the  battle  of  Moniobello,  in  which  the  French  had  the  ad- 
vantage; audit  served  as  a  |)rehide  to  the  decisive  battle  of  Marengo. 
The  Austriaiis  numbered  (!i),OUO ;  the  French,  50,000  ;  the  former  com- 
mencing the  tight  with  unusn.d  spirit  and  success.  For  a  long  time  the 
defeat  of  tl  "  French  seemed  inevitable.  But  General  Desaix  having  ar- 
rived with  a  reinforcenn'iit  towards  evening,  a  terrible  carnage  ensued,  and 
the  Austriaiis  were  totally  routed.  The  loss  on  each  side  was  teriific; 
the  French  staling  theirs  at  IJ.OOO,  and  tiic  Austriaiis  at  15,000.  On  the 
following  (lay  a  cessaiiun  of  hostilities  was  proposed  by  the  allies,  which 
was  granted  on  condition  of  their  abandoning  Piedmont.  Immediately 
af'i'r,  Boiia|)arte  le-cstablislied  the  Cisalpine  repiililic. 

On  the  :ird  of  Deccmlier  the  Austrian  army,  under  the  archduke  John, 
was  signally  defeated  at  Ilohenlindeii,  by  (ieiieral  Moreau;  their  loss 
being  10,000  men  and  eiu'hty  pieces  of  cannon  ;  the  effect  of  which  was, 
tliat  the  emperor  was  driven  to  the  necssity  of  soliciting  an  armistice. 
This  was  followed  by  a  treaty  of  peace,  which  was  signed  at  liUneville, 
on  the  iHh  of  February,  ISOl. 

A.  i>.  If^oi. — On  the  1st  of  .Imuiary  a  royal  proclamation  announced  the 
royal  siyle  and  title  as  "  (Jeorge  the  Third,  by  the  grace  of  God,  of  the 
rniled  Kingiloin  of  (ireat  Britain  and  Ireland,  King,  Defender  of  the 
Faith  ;"  tlu!  alisnrd  titular  assumption  of  king  of  France  being  now  laid 
aside.  On  tlie  lird  his  .Majesty's  (•oiincil  look  the  oaths  as  privy  cDiincil- 
lorB  for  the  Cmted  Kingdom  of  (ireat  Britain  anil  Irelaiiil  ;  and  the  king 
presented  the  lord  eliancellor  with  a  new  great  se.il  made  for  the  union. 

By  the  treaty  of  !,niievdle,  (ireat  Britain  bec.ime  the  only  opponent  of 
the  French  republic,  and  w  is  placed  in  a  sitnation  r<(piiriiig  more  than 
common  energy  and  prudence.  Iiillueneed  by  the  capricious  emperor 
Paul  id'  Uiissia,  the  principal  northern  powcr.s  resolved  on  reviving  the 
armeil  neiitralitv,  and  claimed  a  nulit  of  trailing  to  the  pints  of  Fr.ince, 
witlioiil  snbiniiimg  to  their  vessels  bciiiu'  starched.  At  this  critical 
jniiciiire  the  British  ministry,  on  the  llihof  February,  resigned  their 
otiices.  The  ostensible  cause  was  a  inisiinderstaiiihiig  ndative  to  catho- 
lic emancipation.  It  was  iiiiderstood  that  Mr.  Pitt  had  phdged  Inmsell 
to  obtain  .t  repeal  of  the  disabililn'S  legally  pending  over  liiat  body  ;  iiut 
tlie  king's  oli|ecU(iiis  to  the  meisiire  were  loo  deeply  rooted,  and  too 
coiisiMei>tioii-,lv  formed  (it  being,  as  he  believed,  I'ontrary  to  the  obliga- 
tion of  his  eoi-oiiatioii  oatlil,  lor  the  minister  to  remove  ihem;  added  U 
whiili,  there  was  the  well-known  ilislike  entertained  by  the  prolestants 
of  Ireland  to  eiteoiinier  a  citliolic  magiRlracy,  and  the  fears  of  the 
clergy  of  the  established  cliundi.  Owing  to  the  indisposilion  of  his 
m;ij>->ty.  a  new  tiiinisirv  was  not  firmed  till  the  middle  of  .March,  when 
Mr.  Niidinuton  was  chosen  first  lord  of  llie  treasury  and  chancellor  of  ilie 
cxeheipier;  Lord  Fldoii,  lord  high  (diancellor  .  the  earl  of  St.  Viiii-enl, 
first  lord  of  the  admiraltv  ;  the  lords  llawkesbury  and  Pelhain.  seen>- 
laries  id'  stale;  and  the  Hon.  ("ol.  Yorku    (lecretiiry   of  war.     There  ii 


W' 


m 


584 


THK  TilKASCllY  OF  HISTORY. 


lil'.u  (l(Milit  that  tho  now  ministers  were  brought  forward  to  do  what  their 
preilt'eesM)rs  were  unable  or  unwilling  to  iici;ouiplish,  numely,  the  putting 
an  end  to  the  w;ir,  and  evading  the  agitation  of  the  eutliolic  question. 
Mr.  Addington,  it  is  true,  had  given  general  satisfaction  as  speaker  of 
the  house  of  commons,  and  he  had  acquired  the  king's  personal  favours 
by  his  decorous  manner  and  respectable  character :  but  neither  he  nor 
liis  colleagues  had  any  political  reputation  to  entitle  them  to  be  entrusted 
willi  till!  pilotage  of  tlie  vessel  of  tlu'  state,  es|)ecially  where  it  was 
necessary  to  steer  her  amid  the  rocks  and  breakers  of  a  tempestuous  sea. 
In  order  to  counteract  the  designs  of  the  northi'rn  confederate's,  an  arma- 
ment was  fitted  out  in  the  Urilish  ports  consisting  of  17  sail  of  the  line, 
with  frigates,  bomb-vessels,  &-c.,  and  I'ntrnsted  to  llie  connnand  (jf  Ad- 
miral 8ir  Hyde  Farker  and  \' ice-Admiral  Lord  Nelson.  The  fleet 
eml)arkeil  at  Yarmouth  on  the  12th  of  March,  and  liaving  passed  the 
Sound  with  very  trilling  opposition,  a])pi'ar<Ml  before  Copenhagen  on  the 
30tli.  Uatleries  of  cannon  and  morlars  \mic  placed  on  every  part  of  the 
shore  wiiere  they  might  be  used  in  annoying  the  Knglish  fleet;  the 
nKunli  of  the  harbour  being  protected  by  a  chain,  and  by  a  fort  construct- 
ed on  |)iles.  An  attack  on  this  formidable  crescent  was  entrusted,  at 
his  own  re(|iie,sl.  to  Nelson,  with  twidve  ships  of  the  line  and  all  the 
smaller  craft.  It  began  at  ten  o'clock  in  the  morning,  and  was  kept  up 
on  both  sides  wiili  great  courage  and  prodigious  slaughter  for  four  luuns  ; 
by  which  lime  17  sail  of  the  enemy  had  been  burnt,  sunk,  or  taken;  while 
three  of  the  largest  ol  the  I'liitplish  ships,  owing  to  the  intricacies  of  the 
navigation,  iiad  gnmnded  within  reach  of  tlu!  enemy's  land  batUnies.  At 
this  iunctme  N(  Ison  pro[)osed  a  truce,  to  which  the  prince  of  Denmark 
proin|)ilv  acceded.  'I'lie  loss  of  the  Ihiglish  m  killed  and  wounded  was 
9 1-J  ;  thill  of  the  Danes  18(10.  The  sudden  death  of  I'aul,  emperor  of 
Russia,  who,  il  has  been  authenlically  said,  was  strangled  in  Ins  palace, 
caused  a  change  in  foicign  all'airs.  His  eldest  son,  Alexander,  ascended 
the  llirone,  and.  ri'iioiincing  the  p(ditics  of  his  father,  eulered  into  a  treaty 
of  ainily  with  Hngland;  the  norlliern  confederacy  was  consequently  dis- 
solved. 

At  the  time  the  expedition  to  Copenhagen  was  on  the  eve  of  departure, 
a  considerable  Iditish  force  had  been  sent  to  l''gypt,  in  order  to  effect  the 
expnlsioii  (It  the  I'rcnch  from  that  coiiiiry  This  was  under  the  command 
of  Sir  Kaljjh  Aiiercroinbie,  who  on  llie-lh  of  March  elfceled  a  disembarka- 
tion, wilh  ure.it  spirit,  in  the  (::(■>•  of  Ihi^  eiicmw  at  Aboukir,  the  fort  of 
which  surrendered  on  the  lOlii.  (leii.ral  Klelur,  ulio  commanded  the 
French  troops  in  Kgypt  after  the  de|iarlin(^  of  linnaparte,  had  been  assas- 
sinated, and  .^I(■nou  was  now  the  gciicral-iii-cliicf.  On  the  13th  a  severe 
Hction  look  place,  in  which  the  Mngli^h  had  Ihe  advantage  ;  butontheSlst 
the  eeli'lirati'd  bailie  of  Alexandria  was  fought.  The  hjrce  on  each  side  was 
about  1J,00();  and  before  daylii^ht  the  French  coinini'liced  tlu 
long,  desperate  engagement  Hiicee(  (led  ;  but  allcuglh  tin!  assailants 
(lel'eat(  il,  and  the  famous  corps  of  "  Invincibles"  almost  amuhihiled 
loss  of  the  l'"r:ii(  h  in  killed,  woiiiideil, 
.3.100;  that  of  the  Itritish  1  100 
Abercroi'iliie,  who 


k.     A 

were 

The 

lid  prisiMHTs,  was  upwards  n( 

imong  whom  was  lh(>  gallant  Sir  Hal|ih 

lolily  leriuuialiil  a  long  career  of  military  glory.  He 
was  wounded  in  the  thigh,  ibmit  the  middle  of  the  day;  but  iliat  ]u>  niicht 
not  damp  the  ardour  of  his  troops,  iiu  concealed  his  unguish  until  the  bat 
lie  was  won. 

The  eoinmand  of  the  llr^tish  troojis  devolved  mi  (Jeneril  Hulchiiisoii, 
an  able  ollicer,  and  Ihe   iiitiiinle   friend  of  Sir  Kalph,  who  having  inado 
hiinsi  If  m.ister  of  the  jxiris  nf  Kosetia,  Cuiro,  ainl  Alexandria,  completcil 
e(Uii|ilest  of  I'luypt   ibdUt  the  inidillf!  of  .Seplember  ;   w  hell  the  I'rein'h 


th( 


1 *..'  I r '  ■   '     

!■  ipiliii.iled,  upon  eoiidiiioii  of  their  being  ciniveyed,  with  th(irarms,  arid- 
ler\.  (Vc  ,  to  llieir  own  couiiiry.     A  l.n'ije  diMiichinent  of  iroops  from  ibu 


Indi-^ri  ai 

after  the 

^  T/,e  „e 

'n«  preJin 

part  of  the 

"";  majcst 

Marcli,  1S( 

qiiesis,  ex( 

"le  Cape 

powers.     : 

'*'',  and  rei 

was  to  be 

Naples.     E 

'ones  and  p 

viously  to  tl 

main  entire 

"■"PubJic  of  tl 

ofNexvfoun(, 

.    1  'le  rcslor 

joy.  and  Was 

on  wlii,.),  it  , 

nabitanis  of 

liouseofcom 
mail  is  „/;,rt, ,, 

ifiiidency  of  n 
prognostic.!  te 
prospect  was 
fJclween  t/,e  r< 
Having  in  va 
was  appoi,„,,j 

S'-'l  o'-^'i'sion, 
P'  noii()ii,._,,j 

."'■"^■eiy,  and  .;, 
''•"yr  s(ri,t  aihn 
Hefore  we  ,,, 
"nJi-'conspiracvr 
'•o'lsiden.hle  ;,i,,t 

«;',""•»'"' good! 

fields  prison  for  f 
,'';""'"•"",  with  i] 

■'hoiiring  rhsHv 
P''"/''''  "lat  on  1,1 
"""'••ot  ftlUm,,  ,J 
2'  «"*'Tnine„f,| 

"  "'"'Iv  and  Tol 
"'"'*<■  plans  wer,. 
exccnii,,,,^  ,^,,,j,^,  ' 

'^'''■"•■'1  ill  0.     Inf 

V"   ''••'<'«ii,s  „f  /,, 
■  y'ifged  fr,„„  „,„  ' 

•"Id  on  I  he  •JI,s|„f| 
,7'^Pira(ors.  was 

""■•■"^^o-eonceril 


THE  TREASUtt\  OF  HISTORY. 


CtJd 


Ini3i;u(  army  arrived,  by  way  of  the  Red  Sea,  under  Sir  David  Baird,  jusi 
after  tlie  coiic-liisioii  of  liie  treaty. 

The  news  of  tliis  important  event  reaehed  I^ngland  on  tlie  same  daytliat 
the  prehminaries  of  a  peace  wiiii  France  \i'ere  signed  by  Mr.  Olto.on  tlie 
part  of  the  French  repubhc,  and  Lord  Hawkesbnry,  on  the  parlof  his  Uritan- 
nm  majesty.  The  definitive  treaty  was  concluded  at  Amiens  on  the  Q7tli  of 
March,  1803  ;  by  which  (ireat  Britain  consented  to  restore  all  lier  con- 
quests, except  the  island  of  Trinidad,  and  the  Dutch  possessions  in  Ceylon. 
The  Cape  of  Good  Hope  was  to  remain  a  free  port  to  all  the  contracting 
powers.  Malta,  with  its  depend(Uicies,  was  to  be  I'vacuatcd  by  the  Brit- 
ish, and  restored  to  the  order  of  St.  John  of  .lernsalem  ;  while  the  island 
was  to  be  placed  under  the  ()rotection  and  soverei>rnty  of  the  l;ing  of 
Naples.  E<rypt  was  to  he  restored  to  the  Sublime  j'orte,  wiiose  terri- 
tories and  possessions  were  to  be  preserved  entire,  as  they  existed  pre- 
viously  to  the  war.  The  territories  of  the  iiueen  of  Portugal  were  to  re- 
main entire  ;  and  the  French  agreed  to  evacuate  Rome  and  Naples.  The 
republic  of  the  Seven  Islands  was  recognised  by  France  ;  and  the  fishery 
of  Newfoundland  was  established  on  its  former  footing. 

The  restoration  of  peace  was  universally  received  with  transports  ol 
joy,  and  was  in  itself  a  measure  so  necessa.y  and  desirable,  that  the  terms  ■ 
on  wliicti  it  had  been  concluded  were  passed  over  in  silence  by  tlie  in- 
habitants of  both  countries.  When  the  subject  was  alluded  to  in  the 
house  of  commons,  Mr.  Sheridan  observed,  "  it  is  a  peace  of  which  every 
man  is  ojad,  but  of  which  no  man  is  proud."  But  though  this  apparent 
tendency  of  the  two  nations  to  forget  their  mutual  animosities  seemed  to 
prognosticate  a  long  continuance  of  the  blessings  of  peace,  the  liappy 
prospect  was  soon  interrupted  by  symptoms  of  jealousy  which  appeared 
bctw^een  the  respective  governments. 

Having  in  various  ways  gained  tiu'  popular  voice  in  his  favour,  Bonaparte 
was  appointed  consul  for  life,  with  tiic  power  of  naming  a  successor.  On 
this  occasion,  lu;  instituted  a  republican  order  of  nobility— the  legion 
of  liouour — to  l)e  conferred  on  military  men  as  a  reward  for  skill  and 
bravery,  and  on  citizens  who  distinguished  themselves  by  their  talents  or 
their  strict  administration  of  jusli<'e. 

Bi'fore  we  enter  upon  a  new  ciia|)ter,  w(!  are  bound  to  notice  a  treason- 
able conspiracy  by  cerlain  obscure  individuals,  whi(di,  at  t;,t;  time,  caused 
considerable  alarm,  ("olonid  Dcspard,  an  Irish  gcnilemaii  of  respectable 
faimly  and  coiineitioiis,  who  had  formerly  given  distinguished  proofs  of 
valour  and  good  conduct,  but  had  subsecjucntly  been  confineil  in  (-"(dd-batl.- 
fields  prison  for  seditious  practices,  was  apprehended  at  the  Oakley-Arms, 
Lambeth,  with  thirty-six  of  his  confederates,  principally  consisliiigof  the 
labouring  (dasses,  and  amoi'j.;  them  three  soldiers  of  the  guards.  It  ap- 
peared that  on  Ins  liberation  from  prison,  Despard  iinliiced  a  number  of 
violent  fellows  to  believe  tl,.it  'liey  werecapal)le  of  suiiverting  tlie  pres- 
ent government,  and  estaldishiiig  i  deimx-racy.  In  ordt'r  to  elTict  this 
measure,  it  was  proposed  to  assassinate  the  king  and  i  ))al  family,  to  seize 
the  Bank  <ind  Tower,  and  imprison  the  members  of  |>arliament.  Vast  as 
th"se  plans  wtn'e,  yet  it  appeareil  that  iht,'  time,  mode,  and  place  for  their 
execution,  were  arranged  ;  tli()ii'.ih  only  fifty  or  sixty  persons  were  con- 
cerned ill  It.  Informati(ni  having  been  conveyed  to  ministers  of  this  bold 
ronsniracy,  its  jiiogress  was  nairowly  watidied,  and  at  the  inonient  when 
tlie  designs  of  the  traitors  were  rijic  for  execution  llicy  were  suddenly 
dragged  from  their  rendezvous  and  fully  comniilted  on  a  charge!  of  treason. 
After  a  In, il  wliiidi  listed  eighteen  hours  tin-  coloiiid  was  found  guilty  J 
and  on  llie  '.'Isi  (>f  Febru.iry,  1h;iO,  this  misguided  man,  with  six  fellow 
conspirators,  was  exeiMiled  on  the  top  of  the  new  gaid  in  SouthwarV 
l)('S|i,ird  declined  spiritual  assist  Mice,  and  ict  his  fate  without  contritioi 
Kirrow,  o'  eimcern  :  the  others  suffered  death  with  decency. 


l! 


T'T  I 


6M 


THE  TBKASURY  OK  H1.ST(1HV. 


CHAPTER  ^Xll. 
Tiu;  fEioN  or  ocoROE  III,  (continued.) 

A.  i>.  1H03. — The  in  iiy  of  Amiens  proved  delusive,  and  both  coinbRt 
an's, jpjilous  and  watchful,  :-inod  ready  to  r.iew  llie  coiifict.  ''lie  un 
bounded  ambition  of  thn  Freir  li  cuds  u  induced  iiim  Ui  t;ik.  every  oppor- 
tunity of  ill -idling  our  a'liba-isudots,  in  'rder  to  oircasiiU  .i  renewal  o( 
hoatilities.  Peace  bad  hardly  jccmi  concluded,  v.-'.ir '^  tlio  wh'ile  fortresses 
of  Piedmont  were  dismaniler'  am.  .bat  country  \\  'vncxid  to  Fraiure. 
The  same  measures  were  pui.-.ued  .vith  regir-'  to  i',. m.i  and  Placentia; 
and  ^i  nuni'.rous  army  was  sent  again' t  Suitsi; ;iand,  and  that  government 
wa!»  placed  in  the  bands  of  the  dependents  of  Uonaparte.  Notwitbstand- 
iiij;  Uiese  and  several  other  acts  of  tyranny,  bis  iiritannlc  majesty  ear- 
nestly endeavoured  to  avoid  a  recurrence  to  arms,  and  seemed  willing  to 
suiTer  the  most  unwarrantable  a'rgressions,  rather  than  again  involve 
Kurope  in  the  horrors  of  war.  Tins  was  construed  by  the  Corsican  into 
a  dread  of  his  ill-gotten  power.  Nome  olTicial  papers  were  afterwards 
presented  to  tlie  Itritisb  ministry.  :n  which  he  rcijuired  that  the  French 
emigrants  who  bad  found  shelter  :n  Kngland  should  be  banished;  that 
the  liberty  of  the  press  in  Britain  should  be  abridged,  because  some  of 
the  newspapers  bad  drawn  his  cbai  i^ter  with  a  trutiiful  pen  ;  and  it  ap- 
peared, indeed,  that  nothing  short  of  a  species  of  dictation  in  the  domestic 
affairs  of  (?reat  lirilain  was  likely  to  .■•.uisfy  him.  .Such  insolent  preten- 
eions  could  not  he  brooked;  all  raid<s  ■  f  men  seemed  to  rouse  from  their 
lethargy,  and  the  general  wish  was  U>  uphold  the  country's  honour  by  a 
renewed  appeal  to  arms. 

The  extensive  warlike  jireparatioi.s  going  forward  about  this  time  in 
the  ports  of  France  and  Holland,  exciird  the  jealousy  of  the  British  tiiin- 
istry  ;  though  it  was  pretended  that  they  weri^  designed  to  reduce  their 
revolted  colonies  to  obedience.  An  explanation  of  tho  views  of  the 
French  goverinncnt  was  reijuested  by  Lord  VVhiiworth,  the  Fnglish  am- 
bassador, but  he  was  openly  insulte<l  by  the  first  consul,  who  had  the  in- 
decency to  intim;ite,  in  a  tone  of  gasconade,  that  (rrcat  Hrilain  was  inia- 
blc  to  contend  single-handed  with  France.  On  the  I'.'lb  of  May  Lord 
Whitworth  presented  the  ultimatum  of  tbi!  Itritisb  government,  wbicii  be- 
ing rejected,  war  was  annminced  on  the  Kith,  by  a  niessagf!  from  bis 
majesty  to  parlianu'nt.  Almost  immediately  upon  this,  Bonaparte  issu(Ml 
a  decree  for  the  detention  of  all  the  Fnglish  m  France  ;  in  uou...  ij'icncc  ol 
which  infrmgenicnt  of  international  law,  aliont  l-',()()0  Fi>;^lish  sul)ject3, 
of  all  ages,  were  connnitted  to  custody  as  prisoners  oi  v.  .ir. 

This  event  was  followed  by  the  invasion  of  ILinovcr  by  a  republican 
nriny  inuier  (ieneral  IMortier,  thus  openly  violating  the  neutrality  of  the 
(lerman  empire,  and  breaking  the  peace  wbi(  i  been  separately  concluded 
with  bis  majesty,  as  elector  of  Hanover.  Ilis  royal  highness  the  dnkc 
of  (lambridge,  who  was  at  that  tune  in  Hanover,  and  h,id  the  command 
of  a  small  body  of  troops,  was  res'olved  to  t>p[)osi'  the  progress  of  the 
in''aders  ;  but  being  urged  by  the  regency  to  retire  fnnn  i\w  >;'mtnaiiii, 
be  returned  to  Fiigland.  Li  a  slu>''t  time  the  French  made  themselves 
masters  of  tin;  electorate,  and  commilied  the  most  tlagraiit  acts  of  cruelty 
on  tin-  uiifortimate  inlia'.-itants.  The  Fll)e  and  the  Weser  being  now  un- 
der the  eonind  of  the  l''renili,  these  riv<'rs  were  c'osed  against  Fiiglisti 
connnerce.  and  Bonaparte  also  insisted  that  the  pons  of  Denmark  shoiilil 
be  shut  against  the  vessels  of  (ireat  Britain.  In  retaliation  the  British 
L'o  veinmenl  gave  orders  for  bloek;idiiig  the  Frenidi  ports. 

But  It  appeared  liiat  all  minor  sdv  nies  of  aitgrandizemeiit  wrrr 
Id  give  place  to  the  invasion  and  sub;  .'ation  of  (treat  Itiilain;  for  winch 
purpose   an  immense  number  of  traiiH|iorts  weie  ordend  to  be  built  vvitli 


*'ie  grea 

ci.iit  to 

'ilia  Win 

niimlier  \ 

tection,  i 

'o  watch 

'■"titiide  V 

"Gl,  gave 

'ioiiably  s 

'L'gular  ai: 

'''Vied,  un 

initeer  coi 

defence. 

.    Wiile  m 

invasion,  a 

'o  form   ai 

Km  met,  bn 

'ions  transi 

a'teiiipt  to 

^'k'ii  Knim 

'ii'iiis,  marc! 

carriage  of 

nied  by  his  i 

•■'■'yo.  and  hi 

"'<•  young  la, 

■^mall  party  c 

'•-niiiiet  and  s 

Pxiieme  pona 

■•"■'s  were  pas 

enforce  rnarti; 

'n  the  Wci 

"""■I-  islands. 

''"niiuao  to  M 

"■'ihont  a  mofl, 

'''■'It  state,  „m1 

''I  tlie  l.',;st  I 

".:'';"'«•  fainoul 
Hel lesley.  .viJ 

!""■''  Mahratia' 
uerar. 

'•'■'■;^'«  a  8(ro;ig,l 
•f'-lnp  of  Afr.V 
"'  ''i-eat  Briiai 
'"'  •^'"MiM  retiirl 
''''''•  aceordj„„|r 
'""•adh-TincTtJ 
;',""-"'^'r.  Pittl 
■;''';"•.  •■'lit  nulliL 
' ""'  •■i>alition,  i1 
'  •''■"'■'•'I'd  to  l,e  I 
'■'yn-oiis  pro.seei 
""I'Mdiiecl  ,)„, 

'"feat  , -IS  w.asl 
"''■''"^^•■•l  himsel 
"■•^'•Ived  to  seeiiJ 
""■''"•'"i"ns  of  til 
''"""iiitf  out  the 


.^i^ 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


687 


It  vvr'' 
vvliu-U 

till  vvii*' 


the  greatest  expedition ;  and  a  flotilla  was  assembled  at  Boulogne,  suffi- 
ci.iii  to  carry  any  army  which  Franco  mijilit  wish  to  employ.  This  flo- 
tilla w;:s  frequently  attacked  by  the  Knglish,  and  whenever  any  of  their 
numlier  ventured  beyond  the  range  of  the  batteries  erected  for  their  pro- 
tection, they  were  generally  captured  by  cruisers  stationed  off  the  coast 
to  watch  their  motions.  These  mighty  preparations,  and  the  menacing 
attitude  whicli  was  not  allowed  to  relax  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  chan- 
nel, gave  a  new  and  vigorous  impetus  to  British  patriotism,  and  propor- 
tionably  strengthened  the  hands  of  the  government.  Exclusive  of  the 
legular  and  supplementary  militia,  an  additional  army  of  50,000  men  was 
levied,  under  the  title  of  the  army  of  reserve ;  and  in  a  few  months,  vol- 
unteer corps,  amounting  to  300,000  men,  were  armed  in  their  country's 
defence. 

While  measures  were  being  taken  for  defending  the  country  against 
invasion,  a  new  insurrection  broke  out  in  Ireland,  which  had  for  its  object 
to  form  an  independent  Irish  republic.  It  originated  with  Mr.  Robert 
Emmet,  brother  to  him  who  had  been  so  deeply  implicated  in  the  rebel- 
lious transactions  of  1798,  and  who  had  been  expatriated.  This  rash 
attempt  to  disturb  the  public  tranquillity  was  made  on  the  03d  of  July, 
when  Eimnet,  with  a  crowd  of  desperadoes  armed  with  pikes  and  fire- 
arms, marched  through  the  principal  streets  of  Dublin,  and  meeting  the 
carriage  of  Lord  Kilwarden,  chief-justice  of  Ireland,  who  was  accompa- 
nied by  his  nephew  and  daughter,  the  ruffians  dragged  them  from  the  car- 
riage, and  butchered  the  venerable  judge  and  Mr.  Wolfe  on  the  spot,  but 
the  young  lady  was  allowed  to  escape.  Being  attacked  in  their  turn  by  a 
small  party  of  soldiers,  some  of  the  rioters  were  killed,  aiul  others  seized. 
I'lminet  and  several  of  the  most  active  ringleaders,  afterwards  suffered  the 
extreme  penalty  of  the  law  for  theiroffence.  In  the  sessiotiof  Noveniher, 
acts  were  passed  to  continue  the  suspension  of  the  habeas  corpus,  and 
enforce  martial  law  in  Ireland. 

In  th(^  West  Indies  the  English  eapturiid  St.  Lucie,  Demerara,  ana 
other  islands-  A  British  fleet  also  assistinl  the  insurgent  blacks  of  St. 
noniingo  to  wrest  that  island  frotn  the  French  ;  but  it  was  not  effected 
without  a  most  singuinary  contest.  It  was  then  erected  into  an  indepen- 
ileut  state,  under  its  ancient  Indian  name  of  Hayti. 

In  tiie  !;.ist  Indies  much  greater  Iriutnphs  were  achieved;  among  these 
was  the  fanu)us  battle  of  Assaye  (Sept.  'J3),  where  Major-general  Arthur 
Wellesley,  with  a  comparatively  few  troo|)s,  completely  defeated  the  com- 
bined Maliratta  forces  commanded  by  Scindiah  Ilolkar  and  the  rajah  of 
Uerar. 

A.  D.  1804.— It  was  the  opinion  of  men  of  all  parties,  that  in  the  present 
crisis  a  stronger  ministry  than  tiiat  which  had  been  formed  under  the  lead- 
ership of  Mr.  Addingtoti,  was  absolutely  necessary  to  direct  the  councils 
of  (ireat  Britain;  and  the  friends  of  Mr.  Pitt  became  most  atixious  that 
lie  should  return  to  the  administration  on  the  renewal  of  war.  The  min- 
istrr  accordingly  sought  the  aid  of  that  great  statesman  as  an  auxiliary ; 
liiU,  adhering  to  his  well-known  maxim  "to  .iccept  of  no  subaltern  situa- 
liiiii,"  Mr.  Pitt  plainly  sigiiided  that  the  premiersiiip  must  be  his.  "  Aut 
('M'sar,  aut  millus."  Thougii  many  were  disajipointed  to  liiid  that  a  pow- 
.•ifiil  coalition,  in  which  Mr.  Fox  and  his  most  eminent  colleagues  were 
exiieeleil  to  be  included,  was  not  formed,  yet  the  mainfest  necessity  of  a 
vigorous  prosecution  of  the  war  excited  a  spirit  of  iinaiiiinity  .n  the  nation, 
iiid  iiiiiuced  tlie|iarhament  to  second  every  motion  of  the  ministry. 

ilieat  as  was  the  power  to  which  Konaparte  had  by  artful  grailations 
idv.iiiced  himself,  it  was  not  snlFicient  to  satiate  his  nmhition;  and  he 
resolved  to  secure  to  himself  the  title  of  ei,!|ieror.  In  order  to  sound  the 
iii.'iiiiations  of  the  people,  a  book  had  been  (Uiblishcd  some  time  before, 
pointing  out  tlie  propriety  and  expediency  of  creating  him  emperor  of  the 


llSml:! 


^rv     ' -WA 


THE  TIIEA8U11Y  OF  HI31011Y. 


Gauls;  after  wiiicli,  iiii  ovortiiic,  cquiilly  iiisok'iit  and  absurd,  was  mafle 
to  Louis  XVMIl.,  oircritig  him  iiideiiuiilies  and  a  splnnilid  eslabiislniient, 
if  he  WDiild  i-cii(>iMii'f  his  pii  icnsiuiis  to  the  crown  of  Krancu.  This  pro- 
posal hcin;^-  Heated  with  (he  n)iit(,'iM|)t  it  nicrilcil,  Bonaparte  resolved  on 
takinj;  auay  the  life  of  tin;  duke  D'Kngheiii,  eldest  son  of  the  duke  of 
J3ourbon,  on  a  surreptitious  charge  of  haviiiif  engaged  in  a  conspiracy 
aganist  ilie  first  consul,  and  of  serving  in  the  arnues  of  the  emigrants 
against  France.  He  had  fixed  his  residence  at  Kttenhciin,  in  the  neutral 
territoiv  of  iIk;  (dector  of  IJadcii,  whern  his  chief  occupation  was  study, 
ami  his  jirincipai  recreation  the  culture  of  a  small  garden.  From  this  ru- 
ral retreat  he  was  dragged  on  the  15tli  of  March,  by  a  body  of  French 
cavalry,  under  the  coinmand  of  (Jencral  Caulincourt,  and  carried  the  same 
day  to  the  citadel  of  Strasbnrjrh,  where  he  reinaiiu.'d  till  the  18th.  On 
the  ^Oll)  the  duke  arrived  at  Paris  iind(!r  a  guard  of  gens  d'armcs,  and, 
after  some  hours  at  the  barrier,  was  driven  to  V'incennes.  A  military 
commission  appointed  to  try  him  met  the  same  evening  in  the  castle,  and 
the  foul  atrocity  was  coinpleied  by  his  being  sentenced  to  immediate  ex 
ecution;  which  having  lak(!n  |)lac(!,  his  body  was  placed  in  a  cofTui  partly 
filled  with  lime,  and  bniicd  in  the  castle  garden. 

Uonaparle  having  now  nothing  to  apprclwind  either  from  his  declared 
or  coiic(sil('d  <;iRiiii('s,  prevailed  on  the  people  to  confer  on  himself  and 
liis  heirs  the  imperial  dignity.  The  ceremony  of  his  coronation  accor- 
dingly took  place,  Willi  rciiiaikabli!  solcinnity,  on  the  lOtli  of  November; 
and  in  tlu;  lollowiiig  F(  briiary  he  aildn^ssed  the  king  of  Great  Drilain  a 
letter,  soliciting  the  eslalilisiinunt  of  peace.  The  answer  of  his  Itrilannic 
niajesly  aekiiowledgeil  that  no  olijeet  would  be  dearer  to  liiiu  than  such 
H  peaci!  as  would  he  coiisisieiit  with  the  security  ami  interests  of  his  do- 
minions; lint  it  added,  that  he  declined  entering  into  particular  discussion 
without  coiisiilliiig  his  allies. 

.\,  D-  18(1.'). — Fnraged  at  the  perseverance  of  Great  nritaiii,  and  elated 
by  the  uiipar.ilhded  success  which  had  allendcd  all  his  measures,  the 
French  empc^ror  seemed  now  to  consider  himself  as  the  disposer  of  king- 
doms, and  disregardetl  all  principles  of  ji,  I'.H'  and  moderation.  In  order 
to  secure  his  own  personal  aggrandizfuncnt  he  made  an  e.venrsion  to 
Ital}',  converled  the  Cisalpine  re|)ublic  into  a  kingdoi".,  and  assumed  the 
title  of  king  of  Italy.  Me  then  united  the  Ligurian  re[)iihlic  to  France, 
and  creeled  the  republic  of  laieca  into  a  principality,  in  favour  of  his  sis- 
ter Kliza,  wilt)  had  marriiMl  the  senator  Hacchiachi.  After  these  iinpre- 
cedc'iiteil  acts  of  aggression,  he  returned  to  France,  and  being  once  more 
resolveil  to  effect  the  snbiiigition  of  the  Dritish  isles,  he  re[)aired  to 
Boulogne  and  reviewed  his  troops  there,  which  were  oslentaliou-ly 
named  "  the  army  of  F.ngland,"  and  amounted  to  considerably  more  than 
a  hundred  tlioiisand  men. 

S|)ain  iiaving  been  compelled,  in  consequence  of  its  d(!pcndence  on 
France,  to  becmne  a  party  in  the  war  with  (ireat  Britain,  Bonaparte  de- 
termined, by  uniting  the  naval  strength  of  both  nations,  to  strike  a  blov/ 
in  several  parts  of  tlie  world  at  the  same  time.  The  greatest  activity  ac- 
cordinuly  prevailed  in  the  French  ports,  where  the  fleets  had  hitherto  re- 
mained inactive  ;  and  several  siiuadrons  having  eluded  the  vigilance  of  the 
British  cruisi^rs,  [nit  to  sea.  A  sijiiadron  of  live  ships  arrived  in  the  West 
Indies,  and  surprized  the  town  of  lioiiseau  in  Dominica;  but  being  gal- 
lantly opposed  by  (Jeiieral  I'riivost,  the  governor  of  the  island,  thc^y  hnii'd 
a  c(Mi(ril:iition  of  five  thousand  pounds,  and  prccipitiitcly  n!-enil)arkcd  their 
troops.  They  ne.vt  |)i'oi'eeded  to  St.  v'hristopher's,  where,  havinii  in;Kl« 
grtat  pi'cnniary  exa<Mioiis,  thi'y  seized  all  the  ships  in  the  Br.  -'•'":. e  lOad. 
These  prizes  wen;  sent  to  (iaudalonpe;  and  the  French  squadron,  fearful 
of  eiiioiiiiieriiig  the  British  fleet,  returnc  '  to  Kurope. 

In  (lie  meantime  a  formidable  lUx't  of  ti'u  sail  of  the  lino,  with  10,000 


men  on  i 

iieuve ;    \ 

SpaiiisJi  a 

'"or  the  \\ 

/'''■•-'iicJi  an 

I*"'  an  attc 

lie  travers 

of  ten  ship 

he  eonciud 

(iiatejy  din 

'""••■d   .S(,„;,c 

a'tiick  on  n 

^/  Nelson's 

'heir  safety 

the  brave  iV 

P^'ched  a  m 

"vertakino- 1 

''/'^'■'ig-  re/iit, 

si.xiy-tlireo  d 

On  the  am 

fquadron,  eoi 

^obt'ii  .le.cri 

"''-."•  great  sii 

^^•",""      After 

f"  ,""-"  defeat  o 

in  hasi,,.  to  Fe 

.V""'-'J'"i,  they' 

""•y  uere  f  c 

been  o.\p,o:,sed 

""'"iral  ill  [|,^  ,' 

''"''■«  '"'o  ti.e's 

"/■the  whole  na 
'«"fcd  to  bo  red 

y^^rs  will,  ),„  J 
»>ul)scqii(.,)|),,] 

'•^:'-sed  the  bav 

;;■'"'  fatigues "aj 
'iL'  fiirivcd  at 
/^""doii  on  jijo 

was  then  ,„vp,,,| 

'■"•'"-■'l  that  th^ 

■I  ;7.""' "'"""•■ '1 
:""'<''-avina;  an, I 

,"""a.d,ale/y  „,,le 

:'  ,"""<-i'  beeonuf 
'MS  duty.'     Tlu 

;)'•"*'"'.  in  the  V,i 
'^"yai  S'n'erei.u 

""'"^"'  "'all  parti 


TUl.  TUKASUKY   OK  IlISTORV. 


889 


men  on  board,  set  sail  from  Toulon,  under  the  command  of  Admiral  V'iile- 
neuve ;  who,  iiaving  procaudud  to  Cadiz,  was  thero  reinforced  by  the 
Spanish  admiral,  Gravina,  and  six  large  ships,  and  imniudialuly  embarked 
for  the  West  Indies.  When  Lord  Nelson  received  information  that  the 
French  and  Spaniards  had  put  to  sea,  he  supposed  that  they  were  destined 
("or  an  attempt  on  Alexandria,  and  accordingly  set  sail  in  tiiat  direction. 
He  traversed  tlie  Mediterranean  vvitli  tlie  utmost  celerity,  havini^j  a  squadron 
of  ten  ships  with  him ;  but  finding  that  he  was  mistaken  in  his  conjectufcs, 
he  concluded  that  the  enemy  had  sailed  for  the  West  Indies.  He  imme- 
diately directed  his  course  towards  tiiat  quarter,  and  by  drivini;  the  com- 
bined squadrons  from  island  to  island,  he  prevented  tiiem  from  making  an 
attack  on  any  of  the  Oritish  possessions ;  nay,  so  universal  was  the  dread 
of  Nelson's  name,  that  they  had  no  sooner  arrived,  than  they  consulted 
tiieir  safity  in  a  precipitaic  lliglit,  and  iiastily  returned  to  Europe.  Wheu 
tlie  brave  Nelson  was  assured  of  tlie  course  of  his  adversaries,  he  dis- 
patched a  messenger  to  England,  and  immeuialely  set  sail  in  hopes  of 
overtaking  the  fugitives.  He  arrived  at  Gibraltar  on  the  iJUih  of  July,  and 
having  refitted  his  ships,  lie  resumed  his  position  off  Cape  St.  Vinceni, 
sixly-three  days  after  liis  denarture  from  it  for  the  West  Indies. 

On  the  arrival  in  London  -'le  information  of  the  enemy's  retreat,  a 
squadron,  consisting  of  fiftee.  il  of  the  line,  was  dispatclied  under  Sir 
llobert  (balder,  in  the  iiope  of  intercepting  them.  On  tbe  -'id  of  .luly  Sir 
lloberl  descried  the  object  o.'  his  mission,  olf  Ferrol ;  and,  notwithstanding 
their  great  superiority,  he  did  not  iiesitato  a  moment  in  bringing  tiiem  to 
aclioii  After  an  obstinate  engagement,  the  unequal  confiict  terminated 
in  the  defeat  of  the  enemy,  who,  iiaving  lost  two  largo  ships,  procueUeU 
in  liasle  to  Ferrol.  Being  reinforced  '  y  the  adiiiirals  Grandallana  and 
Gonrdon,  thciy' weighed  anchor,  and  reii  1  to  tiic  iiarbour  of  Cadiz,  wiiere 
thty  were  I '  ckaded  by  Sir  iiobert  C;ii  I',  r.  Some  dissatisfaction  having 
been  expressed  in  the  public  papers,  rc'itive  to  the  conduct  of  the  Urilisli 
admiral  in  the  engagement  off  Ferrol,  be  applied  for  a  court-martial  to  in- 
quire into  the  subject;  when,  to  his  givat  astonishment,  and  to  the  regret 
of  the  whole  navy,  he  was  found  guilty  of  an  error  of  judgment,  and  sen- 
tenced to  be  reprimanded — a  reproach  which  he,  v'lo  had  passed  forty-six 
years  with  honour  in  the  service,  fell  deeply. 

Subsequently  to  his  arrival  at  Cape  St.  Vincent,  Admiral  Nelson  tra- 
versed tbe  bav  of  Biscay  in  search  of  the  enemy ;  but  being  oppressed 
Willi  fatigues"  and  disappoininicnt,  he  resolved  on  returning  to  Kngland 
He  arrived  at  Portsmouth  on  the  ISlii  of  August,  and  having  reached 
London  on  the  -'Oili,  experienced  a  most  cordial  and  aflfectionate  reception 
from  his  irrateful  countrymen.  He  would  not,  however,  allow  himseii'  to 
remain  i  I'inactivity,  and  being  offered  tiie  command  of  an  armamenl  that 
was  tiieu  preparing,  he  without  licshalion  embraced  the  opportunity  of 
serving  his  country.  Having  lioisted  his  flag  on  board  tbe  Victory,  on  tbe 
foliou  nig  (Uiy  he  put  to  sea,  and  on  his  arrival  at  Cadiz  he  received  from 
AdmirarColliiigwood  the  cominattd  of  tlie  British  licet,  winch  now  coii- 
sisicd  (if  tuenty-sevcii  .-^ail  of  the  line.  On  the  I9th  of  October  Nelson 
learned  that  tbe  combined  French  and  Spanish  Heels,  consisting  of  Uiirty- 
tbrc;  sail  of  tlic  line,  had  put  to  sea  from  Cadiz,  under  admirals  \  illencuve 
aiul  Gravina  ;  and  on  tlie  21st  lie  discovered  them  olV  Cape  Trafalgar.  He 
iininedialcly  ordered  tin,'  fleei  'o  bear  up,  in  two  columns,  as  directed  by 
Ian  of  attack,  and  issued  this  adnui-.  lory  signal 


li'.s  previous  pi 


_ this  adnuii  lory  signal — which 

li;  s  since  hccdiiiVa  nali.mai  p.oveib—'- England  expects  every  man  to  do 
his  duty.'  The  windward  colmnn  of  the  Kiigiisli  ships  was  led  by  Lord 
Nelson,  in  the  Victory;  the  leeward  by  lle.ir  admiral  CoUmgwood,  la  the 
lioyai  S'wercign.  About  noon  tie  awful  contest  eo.,i!nenced,  by  the  lead- 
ing ships  of  the  columns  piercing  the  e'liemy's  line;  the  others  breaking 
llirom!li  in  all  parts,  and  engagii.ji-  Hieir  adversaries  at  the  muzzle  of  llici/ 
Vol.  L— 44 


190 


TIIK  THEASURY  OK  HISTORY. 


gum.  Tlic  ciipmy  f()iii;!i  with  intrepid  spirit ;  but  the  superior  skill  which 
opposed  ihcin  was  ri'sislii'ss.  Tlie  fury  of  the  b:-.t;!G  was  sustiiiiicd  for 
tlireo  hours,  wiieii  muny  ships  of  the  combined  fleet  liiiving  siruck,  their 
line  fTiivo  way  :  nineteen  sail  of  the  line,  witii  Villeneuve  and  two  other  Hag 
ofliccrs,  were  taken ;  the  other  ships,  with  Admiral  Gravina,  escaped. 

This  splendid  victory,  so  preeminent  in  the  annals  of  Britain,  was  pur- 
chased with  the  life  of  tier  greatest  naval  commander.  In  the  middle  of 
the  contest  Lord  Nelson  received  in  his  left  breast  a  musket-ball,  aimed 
lit  him  fnun  the  ship  with  which  he  was  engaged;  and  in  about  an  hour 
afterwards  he  expired,  displaying  in  his  deatli  the  heroic  firmness  which 
nad  distniguished  every  action  of  his  life.  The  loss  of  this  gallant  man 
i]anipe<i  tlie  joy  which  the  news  of  so  important  a  victory  would  have  ex- 
.'itcd;  and  it  is  difficiiU  to  say  whether  the  general  grief  that  was  felt  for 
llie  hero's  death,  or  the  exultation  for  so  signal  a  triumph,  preponderated. 
Many  iliere  were,  most  assuredly,  who  would  have  relinquished  the  vic- 
,ory  to  have  saved  the  victim.  His  remains  were  deposited  in  St.  Paul's 
cathedral,  and  were  aocompanied  by  a'procession  more  extensive  and 
magnificent  than  Knglaiid  h:<d,  on  any  similar  occasion,  beheld. 

Of  iliat  pari  of  the  Cadiz  fleet  which  had  escraped,  four  ships  were  after- 
ivards  ca[)tiir('(l  by  Sir  Richard  Stracliaii,  oflF  Ferrol,  and  were  conducted 
.0  a  Urill^'h  port.  Thus  the  enemy's  marine  was  virtually  annihilated,  and 
the  navy  (  f  Kiigland  held,  undisputed,  the  mastery  of  the  seas. 

It  was  far  otherwise,  however,  with  her  e"i"l'^'"nal  projects  and  allian- 
ces. Am  alliance  oflTensive  and  do''^...^ive  h:>d  ',ong  been  im  H'eciually  ne- 
gotiating with  Russia,  Austria,  and  Sweden;  but  it  was  not  till  the  French 
umpcror  had  arbitrarily  annexed  Genoa  and  Parma  to  his  dominions,  that 
a  treaty  was  concluded.  The  objects  of  this  formidable  coalition  were 
the  liheralioti  of  Holland,  Sardinia.  Switzerland,  and  Hanover,  from  French 
lyraiHiy  ;  liie  restoration  of  tranquillity  to  the  Italian  states,  and  the  re- 
csiahlislimcnt  of  safety  and  peace  in  ..II  Kurope.  It  was  stipulated  tliat 
tiic  ihrt'(!  continental  powers  should  furnish  500,000  men,  exclusive  of  the 
liritish  troops.  The  military  force  at  the  disposal  of  France  was  ()50,000, 
licsidcs  a  considerable  number  of  auxiliaries.  Uy  one  article  of  the;  con- 
federacy it  w;is  agreed  that  the  continental  powers  should  not  withdraw 
their  forces,  nor  GrcLi!  Britain  her  subsidies,  ti'l  a  general  pacification  took 
place  with  (he  common  consent  of  the  contracting  parties. 

The  dissali.sfacHion  evinced  against  the  French  emperor  in  all  the  ter- 
ritories whii'h  he  had  seized,  seemed  only  to  raise  his  ambition.  To  in- 
sure ih(!  subjugation  of  Germany,  he  endeavoured  to  separate  Austria  from 
the  other  iin[)erial  sti-.tes.  He  issued  a  manifesto,  reprobating  the  folly 
and  injustice  of  tjie  confiulerate  powers,  and  declaring  that  if  hostilitif?s 
were  cdininenced  against  any  of  his  allies,  particularly  against  Bavaria,  he 
would  in-'tiiiuly  march  his  wliohf  army  to  nivenge  the  atfront.  Ht;  said 
thai  ilic  war  wa.i  criiated  and  maintained  by  the  gold  and  hatred  of  Great 
Britain,  ;iMd  boasted  that  he  would  fight  till  he  had  secured  the  indepen- 
dence of  ilie  'nrmanic  body,  and  would  not  make  pe.ico  without  a  sutfi- 
cient  si'crity  for  its  coiitinuaiice.  The  Aiistrians,  disregarding  these 
threats,  ciiicred  Davaria  with  5.'>,000  men,  anil  were  vigorously  supported 
by  the  licrcditary  stales.  These  forces,  with  those;  furnished  by  Russia 
and  lilt  Tyrol,  seemed  to  promise  success;  but  through  the  precipilaiuj 
of  the  .\uslrians,  th(!  tardiness  (jf  the  Russians,  and  the  vigorous  measure! 
of  Bonaparte,  the  great  ob|ccts  of  the  coalition  failed,  and  the  most  disas- 
trous reverses  were  expci  iciiced. 

The  FriMich  reached  tin;  binks  of  the  Rhine  in  September,  and  efFected 
a  passiiLre  over  the  nver;  engaged  the  Austrians  befor(;  the  KiiNsiaiis 
could  ji>iii  tlicm,  and  defeated  them  with  great  loss  at  Wertnigcn  and 
(laiisbiirgh.  In  tiie  meantime  (ieneril  llcriridotie,  by  tb(!  order  <i(  i;,)- 
rtaparte,  'jiitered  the  neimal  territories  of  Franconia,  and  was  there  I'Micd 


oy  tbe  Da 

«na  oy  til 

"le  Ausii 

October,  ; 

On  the  l!)i 

tacking  D 

A  fnw  day 

up  in   Uiii 

picious  cir 

Tie  tiisi 

'"«■  iit  len< 

110,000  stri 

U'lwilliiig  t, 

awaited  ilu 

«^ver,  delay, 

fiiposiiioi,  , 

'"g"  llie  colli 

J'le.s,  tile  Fn 

'il-fiitcd  pol 

l^urope  afie, 

Its  posilioi,  n 

cessiiy  of  fa] 

^M  that  of  , 

With  which  h 

tria  to  propos 

reinforceiiieii 

quarters  of  i\ 

tilitics  for  a  f 

general  peace 

tii-'e,  on  Condi 

to  return  lion 

♦eiiice  and  tli 

Tiie  Russia 

Austria,  they  il 

but  as  the  all 

saciidce  of  lifJ 

(iigious  arinicsl 

propose  an  ariJ 

wisiied  to  lull] 

Plnneiits,  and  1 

hud  previ,„i.siyl 

'""I  UllMI  t|„.   f 

;"ivantagcoft|I 
I  i;U  his  eiieinyl 
'lieir  forces,  f 
posed  iniervicvJ 
'""g  eoiifc-eii,.; 
extremities. 

Tiie  Frciiclj 
''W)i  weakness 
«onihiM(.,l  army 
parte  brou^rin  , 
gamed  a  co'iiinl 
battle  of  Ausic 
'''Uipcrors."    'j'jl 
mended  by  (;,.,, 
'"  l^'lied,  w,„„,   ' 
'riuiuoh  of  ,\;i|, 


THE  THKASURY  OK  HISTORY. 


691 


iinil 


oy  tbe  Bavarian  army  of  liO,000  cavalry  and  infantry,  the  Batavian  division, 
ana  oy  tlie  army  of  Holland,  under  Marniont.  The  losses  sustained  by 
the  Austrians  iiad  hitherto  been  very  inconsiderable;  but  on  the  13ili  of 
Oc'tobiT,  Meninircn,  witli  its  large  garrison,  surrendered  to  Marshal  Soull. 
On  tlie  IDth,  llie  Austrians  niaknig  a  sortie  from  the  city  of  Ulm,  and  at- 
tacking Uiiponl's  division,  were  defeated,  and  15,000  of  their  men  taken. 
A  few  days  afterwards  tlie  Austrian  general,  Mai-k,  who  had  shut  himself 
up  in  Ulm,  with  .30,000  men,  surrendered  to  the  French,  under  very  sus- 
picious circunistanoos,  and  his  whole  army  were  made  jjiisoners  of  war. 
Tie  fnst  Russian  division,  under  generals  Kulusoff  and  Merveldl,  hav- 
Hig  at  length  eifected  a  junction  with  the  Austrians,  the  French  army, 
110,000  strong,  hastily  advanced  to  attack  ihem.  Tlie  alhed  troops  were 
unwilling  to  engage  a  force  so  much  more  numerous  tliau  their  own,  and 
awaited  the  arrival  of  the  second  Russian  army.  That  arrival  was,  how 
ever,  delayed  for  a  very  considerable  tune,  by  the  meiiaf.iig  and  impolitic 
o,;position  of  the  Prussian  armaments.  Mad  the  king  of  Prussia,  by  join- 
ing the  confederates,  avenged  the  insult  offered  to  his  Franconian  territo- 
ries, the  French  would  soon  have  been  compelled  to  return  home;  but  the 
ill  fated  policy  he  now  adopted  was  the  cause  of  all  the  disasters  which 
Europe  afterwards  suffered.  The  first  Russian  army,  unable  to  inainiain 
its  position  against  the  superior  power  of  the  enemy,  were  under  the  ne- 
cessity of  falling  back  upon  Moravia,  and  in  their  rout  had  no  alternative 
but  that  of  crossing  the  Uaiiubo,  above  Vienna.  The  imminent  danger 
with  which  his  capital  was  now  threatened,  induced  the  emperor  of  Aus- 
tria to  propose  an  armistice,  in  hopes  of  gaining  time  for  the  arrival  of 
reinforcements.  Count  Guilay  was  accordingly  dispatched  to  the  head- 
quarters of  Napoleon,  with  proposals  for  concluding  a  suspension  of  hos- 
tilities for  a  few  weeks,  as  a  preliminary  step  towards  a  negotiation  for  a 
general  peace.  Bonapaitc;  expressed  his  remiiness  to  accede  to  the  armis- 
tice, on  condition  that  the  Austrian  monarch  would  cause  the  allied  army 
to  return  home,  the  Hungarian  levy  to  be  abandoned,  and  the  duchy  of 
V^enice  and  the  Tyrol  to  be  occupied  by  the  French. 

The  Russian  armies  having  at  length  effected  a  junction  with  those  of 
Austria, ihey  marched  towards  Austerlitz, where  the  French  were  posted; 
but  as  the  allied  sovereigns  were  desirous  of  preventing  the  dreadful 
sacrifice  of  life,  which  was  inevitable  from  the  conflict  of  two  such  pro- 
digious armies,  the  counts  Stadion  and  Guilay  were  sent  to  N.ipoleon  to 
propose  an  armistice.  The  French  emperor  supposing  Ui-il  tiiey  merely 
wished  to  lull  him  into  a  false  security,  beguiled  them  "vith  aisful  com- 
lilimcnts,  and  solicited  an  interview  with  tlie  Emperor  Alexaiui'T.  lie 
liad  previously  discovered  that  the  allies  were  rashly  ;,  Ivaiicing  against 
liim  when  the  utmost  caiiliou  was  necessary;  and,  in  cnlir  'o  take  full 
advantage  of  the  (;ircumstaiicc,  he  cominaiided  his  army  to  feign  a  retreat, 
that  his  enemy  might  be  conlinncd  in  the  idea  of  his  being  unable  to  resist 
llieir  forces.  The  Russian  emperor  declined  in  his  own  person  the  pro- 
posed iiilervii^w,  but  sent  his  aid-de-(Mm|i  as  a  proxy,  who  returned  after  a 
long  coiiference,  fully  persuaded  that  the  French  were  reduced  to  the  last 
extremities. 

The  FrciK.'h  h.iving  by  cautious  movements  kept  up  the  idea  of  tlietr 
liwii  weakness  and  alarm,  were  attacked  on  the  1st  of  December,  by  tbo 
combined  army  ;  but  when  their  arulices  had  been  duly  prolonged,  Bona- 
parte brought  up  all  his  troo|>s,  and  by  the  superiority  of  his  numbers, 
gained  a  complete  victory.  This  was  the  well-contested  and  memorable 
battle  of  Austerlitz,  or,  as  it  was  often  called,  the  battle  of  the  "Three 
Emperors."  ThevAiisiro-Russian  armies,  amounting  to  80,000,  were  {Com- 
manded by  (icNcral  Kutusoll' and  Friiice  Lichteustcin  ;  and  nearly  30,000 
ill  killed,  wounded,  and  prisoners,  with  100  pieces  of  cannon,  attested  the 
triumoh  of  Namileon.     in  coiistquenceof  this,  an  armistice  was  four  davs 


I'f 


fir 


H  r 


S92 


THE  THEASURY  OF  HISTOIIY. 


afterwards  effected;  and  on  the  OCth  of  llie  same  inontli,  a  pncifir;  Ireiily 
was  concluded  at  Prcsbiirg  between  France  and  Ausiiiii.  Uy  tlio  ternm 
ngrecd  on,  France  retained  possession  of  tlic  'I'r,inHalj)in('  Icriitories ; 
Ronaparte  was  acknowledjred  king  of  Italy,  but  tlie  ciowuh  of  Fninee  and 
Italy  were  to  be  forever  separated,  instead  of  bcinj}  united  inider  ontj 
head  ;  and  the  new  made  king  was  invested  with  the  power  of  amiointinjf 
an  acknowledged  successor  to  the  Italian  throne.  On  tin!  other  iianil,  the 
French  emperor  guaranteed  the  integrity  of  the  eni|)ire  of  Austria,  in  the 
state  to  which  he  had  now  reduced  it,  as  well  as  the  inl(!grity  of  the  pos- 
sessions of  the  princes  of  tlie  house  of  Austria,  Russia,  Scr.. 

Prussia,  which  had  insidiously  held  back,  watciiing  the  pro^fress  of  the 
campaign,  determined  for  the  present  to  i)ieserve  peace  with  I'rance,  and 
concluded  a  convention  with  that  power,  by  which  Hanover  wan  pro- 
visionally exchanged  for  Anspach,  Cleves,  anci  N(Uif(;hatel.  it  has  always, 
indeed,  appeared  to  us  that  the  policy  of  Prussia  was  coriNtantiy  directed 
to  tin;  diminution  of  the  Austrian  power,  in  the  hoj)e  that  tiie  ini|ierial 
crown  might  be  transferred  to  the  house  of  llrandenburg  ;  a  feiding  which 
Donaparte  insidiously  encouraged  as  long  as  it  suited  liiH  own  viuwH  uf 
aggrandizement. 

A.  D.  1806.— The  campaign  of  1805  liaving  thus  fatally  terniinut<M!,  and 
the  Russian  armies  having  returned  across  the  Kl!)e,  Napoleon  resolved 
to  take  vengeance  on  the  king  of  Napleis,  who  had  |)rovoked  his  wrath  l)y 
admitting  some  British  and  Russian  troops  into  his  dominioMH.  {)\i  the 
morning  after  he  had  signed  the  peace  of  Presljiirg,  the  French  em|)eror 
issued  a  proclamation  from  his  head-quarters  at  Vienna,  ili.'ciarmg  that  the 
Neapolitan  dynasty  had  ceased  to  reign,  and  denouncing  vengeance  on 
the  royal  family.  Immediately  after  this  threatening  nianifesio  reached 
Naples,  the  Russian  troops  re-emharked,  and  the  Hritisli  determined  on 
retiiing  to  Sicily,  without  waiting  the  arrival  of  the  eneniy.  The  crown 
of  Najiles  was  conferred  on  Joseph  Bonaparte,  wlio,  being  HU[)port<'(l  hy  a 
numerous  French  army,  look  possession  of  his  king<lom  on  tli(!  l.'ltii  of 
February,  1800.  The  late  king  took  nTugcs  at  Palermo,  where  lie  was 
protected  by  the  tnmps  and  fleet  of  Great  Britain. 

As  that  part  of  the  Neapolitan  territories  called  Calabria  pcrnisttul  in 
opposing  the  invaders.  Sir  J.  Stuart,  connnander  of  thi!  Ilritisli  forc(,'S  in 
Sicily,  undertook  an  expedition  for  the  purpose  of  restoring  llie  legitiniale 
sovereign.  Having  landed  his  troops,  consisting  of  'liHOO  men,  he  imme- 
diately advanced  to  attack  the  Frencli  general,  Regnier,  who  oecn|)icd  u 
strong  position  near  the  plains  of  Maida,  with  an  army  of  7()()(»  men  ;  but 
the  British  troops  charged  the  enemy  at  the  jjoint  of  the  hayiuiet,  and 
obtained  a  glorious  victory;  the  enemy's  loss  being  4(100  men,  killed, 
wounded,  and  prisoners,  while  that  of  the  Fnglish  was  only  'IT)  killed  and 
285  wounded!  Tim  battle  of  Maida  led  to  the  expulsion  of  the  French 
from  Calabria  in  less  than  a  month ;  but  such  considerable  reinforcenn-nts 
were  received  by  Joseph  Bonaparte  that  the  authority  of  the  new  mon- 
arch was  established  at  Naples,  and  the  Fnglish  beinj^  under  the  necessity 
of  withdrawing  their  forces  to  the  protection  of  Sicily,  tin!  ('ajabrians 
were  obliged  to  submit. 

Shortly  afier  this  Bonaparte  erected  Holland  into  a  kingd(Mn,  which  he 
bestowed  on  his  brother,  Louis,  whose  mild  adniinisiralion,  while  it  gained 
him  the  good-will  and  afTection  of  his  subjects,  incenseil  bis  despotic 
brother.  He  next  subverted  the  (iermanii;  constitulion,  and  established 
the  rnnfrdrratinn  of  Ihc  lihiiie,  of  which  he  declared  that  he  bail  taken  on 
himself  the  office  of  "protector." 

These  momentous  transactions  on  tlie  coiilinent  have  iieees'<'irily  iiiler- 
nipted  our  narration  of  those  events  which  relate  exclnsivrly  to  fireat 
l*>ritain.  An  important  acc|iiisitioii  wis  made  hj  (ieneral  Ilaird  and  Sn 
Uonie  Popham,  wlio,  after  surmounting  the  ino.-i    forinidabic  ubfltaclc.-. 


made  th^ 
iiary,  ex 

qnest  Wi 
•'f  a  sqii; 
J.  Dnck\ 
Rut  no 
poriaiice 
Kxcessiv 
plan  for , 
iind  the  |: 
By  a  vot( 
abbey,  u'i 
at  the  pub 
tlie  public, 
during  ;i 
nioney,  bu 
his  age ;  a 
than  ever  i 
of  the  tyia 
Soon  [id 
resigned  tl 
members  o 
fox,  secret, 
peer),  lord 
•inmediately 
tnents  comn 
anticipated; 
Prench  rulei 
A  ineasurt 
"'■oi'glit  abo 
Slave  trade, 
tjie  opposjtjn 
tintiaiiee,  it  t 
tiiignishfid 
celebrated  ni 
'I'Juse,  in  his 
the  late  pr,.,, 
'"i'li.  he  was 
W'itlistandiiig 
received  sinTi 
remains  were 
political  oppo 
We  have  bi 
Prussia,  whic 
to  extend  her 
strict  neutrali 
certain  time  ii 
were  expectet 
the  nation  dec 
battle  of  Aust( 
oecanie  entire 
instigated  by  i 
Hanover,  by  > 
Oreat  Britain, 
his  Prussian 
"•"posed  upon 
f''i*'s/a,  and  S\_ 
3f  Hie  Pfussiui 


THE  TIIEASUR\  OP  HISTORY. 


6<M 


he 
[lied 
lot  in 
llii'd 

|i  Ull 

lilcr- 


made  Uiomsolvcs  ni;i.slrrs  of  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  on  ihe  10th  of  Jan- 
iiary,  cxpciiciicini;  little  rnsistaiice  from  the  Dutch  governor.  This  coti- 
quest  was  followed  hy  the  eapture  of  three  French  ships  of  the  line,  part 
of  a  squadron  that  had  escaped  from  the  harbour  of  Brest,  and  which  Sir 
J.  Duckworth  fortunately  met  with  in  the  West  Indies. 

But  no  event  that  took  place,  favourable  or  othiTwise,  was  of  equal  im- 
porianee  to  the  death  of  Mr.  Pitt,  which  happened  on  the  23d  of  January. 
Excessive  anxiety,  application,  and  debility,  added  to  the  failure  of  his 
plan  for  (hdivering  Kurope  from  French  tyranny,  accelerated  his  death, 
and  the  last  words  which  quivered  on  his  iips  were  "Oh,  my  country!" 
By  a  vote  of  the  commons,  his  remains  wijre  interred  in  Westminster 
abb(?y,  with  the  greatest  solemrdly,  and  a  monument  was  erected  to  him 
at  the  public  expense.  By  the  same  vote,  his  debts  were  discharged  by 
the  public,  and  it  was  no  small  proof  of  his  entire  disinterestedness,  that 
during  a  long  administration  of  twenty  years,  he  did  not  accunuilate 
money,  but  died  insolvent.  This  great  man  departed  in  the  47lh  year  of 
his  age ;  at  a  period,  too,  when  such  a  master-mind  seemed  to  be  more 
than  ever  needed  to  counteract  the  vast  designs  and  universal  despotism 
of  the  tyrant  of  the  continent. 

Soon  after  the  decease  of  Mr.  Pitt,  his  colleagues  in  office  unanimously 
resigned  their  employments,  and  a  new  ministry  was  formed,  the  chief 
member.^  of  which  were  Lord  Grenville,  first  lord  of  the  treasury;  Mr. 
Fox,  sei-retary  of  state  for  foreign  affairs;  and  Mr.  Erskine  (created  a 
peer),  lord  high  chancellor.  Negotiations  for  a  treaty  of  peace  were 
immediately  opened,  and  from  the  cordiality  with  which  the  two  govern- 
ments commenced  their  proceedings  the  most  happy  consequences  were 
anticipated;  but  it  soon  appeared  that  the  immoderate  ambition  of  the 
French  ruler  excluded  for  the  present  all  hopes  of  an  accommodation. 

A  measure  which  will  forever  reflect  glory  upon  the  British  nation  was 
brought  about  by  the  new  administration ;  we  mean,  the  abolition  of  the 
slave  trade.  The  bill  was  introduced  hy  Mr.  Fox,  and  notwithstanding 
the  opposition  it  encotniterei!  from  those  who  were  interested  in  its  (con- 
tinuance, it  passed  through  both  houses  with  a  great  majority.  This  dis- 
tinguished act  of  humanity  was,  in  fact,  one  of  his  last  measures;  this 
celebrated  and  much  respected  statesman  having  expired  at  Chiswick- 
liouse,  in  his  59th  year,  ou  the  13th  of  September.  Like  his  great  rival, 
the  late  premier,  he  gave  early  indications  of  superior  capacity,  and,  like 
him,  he  was  educated  for  political  life.  It  is  rather  remarkable,  that  not- 
withstanding the  irreconcilable  opposition  between  him  and  Mr.  Pitt,  ho 
received  similar  honours  from  the  representatives  of  the  nation,  and  his 
remains  were  deposited  in  Westminster  abbey,  within  a  few  inches  of  his 
political  opponent. 

We  have  before  alluded  to  the  ill  feeling  existing  between  Austria  and 
Prussia,  which  had  induced  the  latter  to  cultivate  the  friendship  of  France, 
to  extend  her  influence  and  dominions  into  Germany,  and  to  maintain  a 
strict  neutrality  with  the  hostile  powers.  From  this  conduct,  which  for  a 
certain  time  insured  the  peace  and  entirety  of  Prussia,  many  advantages 
were  expected  to  residt;  yet,  at  the  same  time,  the  military  system  of 
the  nation  declined,  and  its  reputation  had  greatly  decreased.  After  the 
battle  of  Austcrlitz,  so  fatal  to  the  liberties  of  Kurope.  the  king  of  Prussia 
became  entirely  subservient  to  the  arbitrary  will  of  Bonaparte ;  and,  being 
instigated  by  that  powerful  tyrant,  he  took  possession  of  the  electorate  of 
Hanover,  by  which  means  he  involved  himself  in  a  temporary  war  with 
Great  Britain.  A  (leace,  however,  was  in  a  s'lorl  time  coiicluded  ;  and  as 
his  Prussian  majesty  was  unable  any  longer  to  submit  to  the  indignities 
imposed  upon  him,  he  entered  into  a  confederacy  with  Great  Britain, 
Russia,  ami  Sweden.  An  instantaneous  change  took  place  in  the  conduct 
sf  the  Prussian  cabinet  the  precipitancy  of  whode  present  measures  eouW 


6!)4 


THE  TREASUHY  OF   HKSTOllV. 


in 


only  bn  equalled  by  tliRir  former  tardiness.  The  armies  of  the  contend 
in^  parties  took  the  field  early  in  October,  and  after  two  engagements,  in 
which  the  success  was  doubmil,  a  general  battle  took  place  at.Icnaon  the 
14th  of  that  month.  The  French  were  posted  along  the  Naale,  their 
centre  being  at  ,Ieiia.  The  Prussians,  under  Prince  Ferdinand,  diike  of 
Brunswick,  were  ranged  between  Jena,  Aiiersiadt,  and  Weimar.  The 
armies  were  drawn  up  within  mnsket-shoi  of  each  other,  and  at  nine  in 
the  morning  about  2.'J0,000  men,  with  700  cannon,  wore  employed  in 
mutual  destruction.  Courage  and  discipline  on  each  side  where  nearly 
etjual,  but  the  French  evinced  superior  military  science.  When  the  day 
was  far  gone,  Angereau  arrived  with  seasonable  reinforcements,  which 
being  supported  by  a  brilliant  charge  of  Mnrat's  cuirassiers,  victory 
declared  in  favour  of  the  French.  Napoleon,  from  the  height  whore  he 
stood,  saw  the  Prussians  fly  in  all  directions.  More  tlian  'J0,000  were 
killed  or  wounded,  and  30,000  taken  prisoners,  with  300  pieces  of  camion. 
Prince  Ferdinand  died  of  his  wounds.  A  panic  seizerl  the  garrison  ;  all 
the  principal  towns  of  Prussia,  west  of  the  Oder,  surrendered  soonafterthe 
battle  ;  and  the  remains  of  their  army  was  driven  as  far  as  the  Vist\d:i. 
Blucher  was  eonipelled  to  capitulate  at  liU'oec.  Bonaparte  now  entered 
Berlin,  and  while  there,  received  a  deputation  from  the  French  senate, 
complimenting  him  on  his  wonderful  successes,  but  recommending  peace. 

On  tlio  approach  of  the  French  to  the  Vistula,  the  Russian  armies  ad- 
vanced with  great  rapidity  to  check  their  course;  a  formidable  body  of 
Swedes  was  assembled  in  Pomcrania;  and  the  king  of  Prussia  having 
assembled  his  scattered  troops,  and  reinforced  them  with  new  levies, 
prepared  to  face  the  enemy,  (u'lieral  Henigsen,  who  commanded  the 
Russian  forces,  and  w.'.s  in  daily  expectation  of  a  reinforccmeiif,  was 
attacked  at  Pnltiisk,  on  the  'JGih  of  necember;  the  engapeincnl  was 
very  severe,  but  he  succeeded  in  driving  the  enemy  from  the  field  of 
battle.     This  CMiclnded  the  cainpaiffii. 

A.  n.  li^O?. — At  the  beginning  of  this  year  the  hill  for  (he  emancipation 
of  the  Roman  ('alholics  passed  both  houses  of  parliament,  and  was  pre- 
sented to  the  king  to  receive  the  roval  assent.  His  majesty,  eon- 
seienliously  believing  that  hi'  could  not  simi  ii  without  violating  his  (coro- 
nation oath,  ami  l)eiiig  desirous  of  testifying  his  altacbmenl  to  the 
established  religion,  imi  only  refused  to  sign  the  bill,  but  desired  that  his 
niinislers  would  foreve;  abandon  the  measure.  This  they  refused  ;  and 
on  the  dismissal  of  Lord  Frskiiie  and  severiil  of  his  eolleagucs,  Lord 
KIdon  was  chosen  lord  chaiici'llor;  the  duke  of  Porllaiv'  first  lord  of  the 
treisiiry  ;  and  the  Right  Hon  Spencer  I'ereeval,  ehaiicellor  of  the 
excheipier. 

Afi'T  the  surrender  of  the  Cnpei  of  Oood  Hope  to  the  British  nrmn  nn 
expedition  was  undertaken  against  the  Spanish  settlements  In  South 
Ainericn.  They  proceeded  n|)tli('  Kio  (\v  l,i  I'lata,  and  having  snrinoimted 
innumerable  dilficulties,  landcil  ilicir  trnops  near  Hiieiios  Ayres,  and  on 
the  'Jf'th  of  .Iniic,  IHOO,  took  posse^si(nl  of  the  town.  A  general  iiisiirree 
tioii  having  been  cxciicd  soimi  afterwards,  the  llrilisli  troops  were  coin 
pdleil  to  abandon  it,  iiml  il  \^  as  found  expedient  to  send  to  ll;e  (^ipe  foi 
reiiiforeemeiits.  Hneiios  Ayres  was  au'ain  attacked  mi  the  7ih  of  .Inly 
1807,  by  Kearadmiral  Murray  and  (■'eiieral  Wliitelock.  The  sidiiiert 
beiiiff  orilered  to  enter  the  town  with  iinloailed  nius'."ls,  were  received  hy 
a  most  deslrui'tive  file  from  the  houses,  and  after  liaviiiif  lost  ',*,'> no  brave 

men,  were  for I  to  retire.      A  eonvention  was  then  entered  into  with  the 

Spimisb  coinmandcr,  by  which  it  wns  siipiila'eil  that  a  mutual  re>iilution 
of  prisoiiiMs  should  take  place,  and  that  llie  Hritisli troops  should  i  variiatf 
the  coiinlrv.  For  his  uiisoldierlike  cmi'l'i 't  in  this  f.ii  il  ex|)ei'iliiin, 
•  ■'■nerii  Wliileloi  k  was  trie.  I  by  a  emiit-miirii  il  on  bis  return  lo  Knglatid, 
uiid  rendered  incapable  uf  Merving  hi«  uiajeiiiy  lu  future. 


We  nil 
Ue  of  Pu 
equal.     I 
have  rem 
scions    ol 
they    wei 
Markow. 
in  Kast  P 
favour  of 
of  Februa 
Russia  sei 
'imnediau 
ili<-  Russia 
General  U 
been  sent  I 
"lis  repiji,s( 
sia,  and  nie 
t'lis  tun,;  s 
of  the  coiiti 
aiTairs,  and 
them  to  ma 
"lent  ensue 
repulsed  wii 
armistice  w 
signed  at  Ti 
'lis  Prussian 
'I'iie  /iist 
took  place  o 
the  river  Xii 
Tile  two  fii 
braced    each 
i'apoleon's  f 
[lii-'y  •■Xehaiii 
''"'iich,  pari 
peace  was  ijr 
favourable, 
creation,  and 
mediate  a  pe, 
taken  to  be  il 
his  ineilmiion 
The  terms  m 
seventy.     'I'i 
I'olisli  provii 
•jueror,  by  wl. 
'lis  ti'rriiories 
to  be  closed  , 
The  unex  II 
nations   of  K 
ho  evervwhc 
mark  wi'mld  . 
liad  gooil  re.i,' 
«f  the  Frciic  . 
it  wtis  |i  ,.|,.f( 
<>f  the  eiieinv, 
"lent  Id   ilir  Ii 
basis  ,,(  III,.  II, 
mark,  oil  ciiiii. 
uiltho  tcniiiii, 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


69ft 


We  now  return  to  the  military  op(M;ilioiis  on  tlie  coiiliiuMil.  The  hiit- 
tle  of  Pulliisk  Imd  left  iho  coiiteiuliiii,'  parties  in  circumslain'os  nearly 
equal,     lioiiaparle  had  retired  into  wniter-qiiarlt^rs,  where  he  nil(Mided  to 


have  remained  till  tiie  r(^tin'n  of  spring 


but  as  the  lUissians   we 


re  eon- 


seious  of  the  advantages  resuiiinj;  to  iliein  from  the  rigorous  ulimale, 
they  were  resolved  to  allow  Inm  no  r(!pose.  The  Russian  yeneral, 
Markow.  accordingly  attacked  the  Freneh  under  Iternadolle,  at  Morungeti 
in  Kast  Prussia,  when  a  very  severe  action  ensu^'d,  which  ternnnated  in 
favour  of  the  allies.  Another  sanguinary  encounter  took  pla"e  ontheSth 
of  Februiiry,  near  the  townof  Kylau,  when  the  fortunes  of  Fiance  ,ind 
Russia  seemed  to  be  equally  balanced,  and  each  party  el,iini(.'il  the  vu'tiny. 
Immediately  after  this  eii^.i;;emenl  IJoiiaparte  disriaiched  a  messenger  to 
the  Russian  commander-in-chief,  with  overtures  of  a  t)aeilic  nature;  but 
General  Ueuigsen  rejected  his  olTeis  with  disdain,  and  repliiMi  that  "  he  had 
been  sent  by  his  masters  not  to  negotiate,  but  to  fight."  Notwithstanding 
this  repuls(%  similar  overtures  were  made  by  liona|)arte  to  ihe  king  of  Prus- 
sia, ami  met  wiXli  no  better  success.  The  weak  stale  of  the  French  army  at 
this  time  seemed  to  pnmiise  the  allies  a  speedy  and  furtun.iie  tenniuaiioii 
of  the  contest ;  but  tlic  surrender  of  D.tntzic  totally  changed  the  face  of 
aiTairs,  and  by  supplying  the  French  with  anus  ami  ainmumtioii,  enabled 
them  to  maintain  a  superiority.  (Jn  the  14th  of  June  u  general  engage- 
ment ensued  at  Friedland,  and  the  concentrated  forces  of  the  allies  were 
repulsed  with  prodigious  slaughter.  Ua  the  23d  uf  the  same  laontli  an 
ariuistice  was  concluded ;  and  on  the  8ih  of  July  a  treaty  oi  peace  was 
signed  at  Tilsit,  between  the  emperors  of  France  and  Russia,  to  wiiiub 
Ills  Prussian  majesty  acceded  on  tin;  following  day. 

The  first  interview  between  lionaparle  and  tiie  emperor  Alexander 
took  place  on  the  Uoth  of  .liiiie,  on  a  raft  cmistructed  for  th.it  purpose  mi 
the  river  Niimiu'II,  where  two  tents  lii'.d  been  prepared  for  their  reception. 
The  two  emperors  landed  from  their  boats  at  the  s.iinu  tune,  and  eni- 
liracetl  each  other.  A  magmlicuit  dinner  was  afterwards  given  by 
Napoleon's  guard  to  those  of  Alexander  and  the  king  of  Prussia ,  when 
they  exchanged  uiiifornis,  and  were  to  hi;  seen  in  motley  dresses,  partly 
oartlv   |{ussian,   and  iiartly   Prussian.     The   articles  by    which 


reiieli, 


.aiices,  rciiii 


¥ 

peace  was  grantedto  Russia  were,  iiuder  dl  the  eircumsl 
favoiirat)le.  Alexander  agreed  to  acknowledge  the  kings  of  llmiap.irte's 
creation,  and  tlu;  coiifederalion  of  the  Rhine.  Napoleon  undertook  to 
mediate  a  peace  between  the  Porte  and  Russia  ;  Alexamier  having  under- 
taken  to  be  the  mediator  between  France  and  Kiighind,  or,  ni  the  evi  nt  of 
his  mediation  being  refused,  to  shut  his  porln  against  Untish  eipinmeree. 
The  terms  imposed  on  the  king  of  I'russia  were  marked  by  eharaitcrmtic 
seventy.  T'ne  city  of  Diiilzic  was  declared  indc|iendeiit ;  ami  alt  the 
Polish  provinces,  wilh  Westpli  ilia,  were  ceded  by  Prussia  to  the  eiiii- 


queror,  by  wiiic 

Ills  territories,  and  om 


h  nieaiis  the  king  of  Prussia  wasslripned  of  nearly  ha 


ilfof 


-third  »d'  Ins  revenues.    All  Ins  |ioris  were  likewise 


to  lie  closed  against  Kiiglaiid  till  a  perm.>meiit  peaei!. 

The  unexamphd  inHueiice  winch  iVipolcmi  had  now  acquired  over 
nations   of  Knrope,  to  sa 
he  everywhere  exe 
mark  wtmld  long  preservi    h 


tlie 


y  iiothii'g  of  that  spirit  of  dommatioii  wliieU 
vised,  reiiilered  it  exiremcly   impt   liable  that    Deit- 


ooil  re.isons 


to 


had  g 

of  the  French  einpert 

it  was 


er   neutrality;  nay,   lie'  Fnglish   ministers 
btdieve  that  a  ready  Hcqiiieseence  to  tlie  diclati'B 


ir  would  be  found  III  the  court  (d  t'opeiiliig^il. 


Alt 


li  ficfore  feared  thai  the  Danish  lleet  would  fill  into  liie  handi 

Iif  till)"  enemy,  it  was   thought  expedient  to  dispatch  a  loniiidalile  ariilH- 

lo  negiiiiaic  wi'.h  '.lii'  .)aiiisli  govei-nineiit.     The 

leet  tlie  neutralMv  of  Ueil- 


IIK 


nt  to  the  I!. line  an 


brtNlH  of  the  negoti.ition  w.is  a  propovi 
mark,  on   eom 


pri 


litioii  lh:il  Us  licet  should  be  depoRiti  d  111  the   llrilish   port! 


all  the  toriiimatioii  of  the  v\ar  uiih   Fianei 


As   this  piopos.i 


•*r 


i 


690 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


Jected,  ana  as  the  general  conduct  of  llie  Dunes  betra3-e(l  their  pnrtialit) 
for  the  French,  the  armament,  which  consisted  of  twenty-seven  shII  oii 
the  line  and  twenty  thousand  land  forces,  under  the  command  of  Admiral 
Qamhier  and  Lord  Callicart,  made  preparations  fo>  investing  tlie  city.  A 
tremendous  cannonading  then  commenced.  The  eatiiedral,  many  public 
edifices  and  private  honse.s  were  destroyed,  with  the  saerilice  of  two 
thousand  lives.  From  tlie  2nd  of  Seiitember  till  the  evening  of  the  5th, 
the  conflagration  was  kept  up  in  dilTerent  places,  when,  a  considerable 
part  of  the  city  being  consunicd,  and  the  remainder  threatened  with 
speedy  destruction,  the  general  commanding  the  garrison  sent  out  a  flag 
of  truce,  desiring  an  armistice,  to  afford  time  to  treat  for  a  eapiluhition. 
This  iieing  arranged,  a  mutual  restilniion  of  prisoners  took  jilciee,  and 
the  Danish  Ihu't,  consisting  of  18  sail  of  the  lin(!  and  15  frigates,  together 
with  all  the  naval  stores,  surrendered  to  his  Brilanniir  majesty's  forces. 
The  Danish  governm(nit,  however,  ri'fnsed  to  ratify  the  capitulation,  and 
issued  a  declaration  of  war  against  Kngland.  This  unexpected  enter- 
prize  against  a  neutral  jiower  .'^erved  as  an  ostensible  cause  lor  Uussia 
to  coininence  hostilities  against  Great  Kritain  ;  and  a  manifesto  was  pub- 
lished on  the  3'st  of  October,  ordering  the  detention  of  all  Urilish  ships 
and  property. 

The  two  grand  objects  to  whiidi  the  attention  of  Bonaparte  was  prni- 
cipally  directed,  were  the  annihilation  of  the  trade  of  Great  llrilain,  and 
th(!  extension  of  his  dominions.  In  oriler  to  attain  tlu!  former  of  these 
objects,  he,  in  November,  IHOC,  issued  at  IJerlin  a  decree,  by  which  the 
British  is!  nids  were  declareil  to  b"  in  a  stale  of  blockade,  and  all  neutral 
vessels  that  trailed  to  liiem  without  his  consent  were  subject  to  captnr 
and  cimfisiMiidn 
hensions  of  the  British  rnercl 
ttiliat 


his  new  mode  of  warfare  excited  at  first  ilie  appre 
Its;  but  the  ca'.)in('t  were  resolved  to  re^ 


e,  Miiil  accori 


iligly  issued  the  celebrated  orders  in  cnu 


nru,  l>y  wllicll 


r  ranee  and  all  llie  p( 
Slate  of  bloidkadc,  an 


■rs  under  her  influence  were  de<darcd  to  be  in  a 
d  all  neutral  vi  ssris  that  should  trade  between  the 


hostile  powers,  without  touching  at  some  port  of  Great  Ilriiain,  were 
liable  ti>  be  si  izeil.  Tln^se  ini[ireeedenleil  measures  were  exireniely  del- 
rimcMlal  to  all  neutral  powers,  especially  to  the  Americans,  who  were  the 
general  earners  of  c(donial  produc-e.  '!"liey,  by  way  of  retaliation,  laid 
nil  embargo  in  al!  the  |)iirls  of  tint  V\\\U  I  .States,  ami,  notwithstamling 
the  exlinctiiin  of  their  eomnierce,  hnig  persisted  in  the  miMsure. 

Ill  tlie  conduct  pursued  by  Ilon.iparie  wiili  res;)ect  to  I'<nltigal,  ho  re- 
s(dved  to  act  in  such  a  manner  as  slioiiM  i  ilher  involve  that  n  iiioii  in  a 
war  Willi  Kngland,  or  winild  furnish  him  with  a  nre'enee  An-  invading  it. 
lie  aecordiiiejy  recpiired  the  court  of  l.isbon.  first,  lo  shut  their  p(n'ta 
n|.>aiiist  (iri'at  Ilriiain;  secondly,  lo  detain  ail  Ihiglishmeii  resi 'ing  in 
Portugal;  and  thirdly,  lo  confiscite  all  llnglish  [iroperly.  In  ease  these 
(luiiiands  were  refused,  be  d(  '  ired  Ihal  war  would  be  dec  lareil  ag.iinsl 
Ihem,  iiiid,  willKMii  wailing  for  an  answer,  he  gave  orders  for  detaining  all 
inereliaiil  ships  that  were  in  the  port  of  Frani'e.  As  the  prince-regeiit 
could  nut  coinply  with  tin  se  ini[n'ri<)iis 


lids  vvilhont  viidating  tin 
treaties  thai  existed  between  the  two  iiatii  .  i..'  endeavoured  to  avoid  the 
danger  which  ilirealened  him  by  agreeing  to  the  first  ((Miilition.  The 
pints  iif  I'liring  d  were  aecordingly  shut  up,  but  this  eonresNiiin  served 
only  lit  mil  line  the  reselitilK  nl  of  Ihniiparle,  who  immediately  deehited 
"  thai  llii-  liiiUM'  of  lirag mza  bad  ee.ised  lo  reign,"  ind  seiit  an  imiiieiiM' 
army  into  I'orlugal,  Mild  r  General  Jiinol.  In  tins  critical  sniialioii  the 
nrinee-ri  gent  reiiidvei 
his  dnminions  he  retireil  willi  Ins  family  to  the  nr.ixiJM 


IS  tiiiopt  lo  the  SI  riporls,  and  \\\    ii  Junol  tiitered 


Tlir  subveii'on  of  Ihe  giivrrinni  III  of  Spain  and  tli  expiil«li>ii  of  the 
reigning  rmiily  was  the  iii At  step  mi  the  ladi'er  of  Napideon'n  ambilioii. 
Ill  order  to  aei'oinplisli  this  it  was  his  first  caru  (u  fonieni  discurd  in  tli* 


royal  fa  mi 

the  anibitii 

"ig  monan 

ou.sy,  and 

this  perplf 

armies  intf) 

who  Was   1 

'I'he  ncu'-n 

s'i')rtly  afii 

where  an  in 

Way  the  tw 

'•ation,  and 

'o  the  siicci 

declaring  ih, 

I'oiiupane,  \ 

•Mnrat. 

As  the  Frc 
Btronoest  am 
"f  20,000  nif 
that  the  new 
opposiuoii. 
family  rcachi 
formed  in  the 
assistance  of 
suiiieil  the  SOI 
proclaimed   |< 
"as  proelainif 
set   free,    elol 
eoiihl  desire,  ii 
"ess  of  III,,  j„ 
wilh  which  it 
forth  their  exe 
aslonisliiiiir  sm 
having  remain 
50,000  men,  wi 
and  to  reiire  i,i 
A.  n.    IHOH- 
if  the  Spaiiian 
■>ily,  and  a  ge 
•^iiigdom,     1,1 
"le  aiithoritv 
juiilas,  like  ,j|,„ 
ll  iving  taken  e( 

'''"■s  to  Fnglan 
'his,  an  arniv  i 
s.iil  from  fiir|< 
severe  eneinniii 
a  very  slroiig  p 
l-'lbonle  (  (Teclei 
!l'eir  linileil    for. 
inforced  by  a  bo 
Ihe  eapiial'  j„  |,, 
■"■"ly  iin.ler  .Iini, 
""■I  lla-  Hfitish 
Hon  .■iisiieij,  and 
'»  ^illicit  alone  i 
'•■        e,.:ie,|  IV.,., 
J<     e.i  .■  -arniy 


THE  TREASURY  OK  HISTORY. 


697 


lie 


lit 
lU. 


royal  fnmily,  whic^li  he  was  too  surrcssfiil  in  efTot-tiiig.    I5y  nncouriigiiig 
the  ambition  of  the  heirapp:ircnt,  ho  cxcilcil  the  resciitinciil  of  thu  reign- 
g  monarch,  Chailps  IV.,  renficrci  tli(;in  mutual  objects  of  mistrust,  jeal- 


ousy, anil  hatred,  and  plunged  the  nuiion  into 


ly  and  confusion.     In 


this  per()l<"Xe(l  stale  of  affairs,  he  invented  an  e^l'l|^e  for  intrmlucing  his 
armies  into  Spain,  and  compelled  Charles  lo  resign  the  crown  to  his  son, 
who  was  invested  with  tlie  soven  ignty,  witli  the  title  of  Ferdinanrl  VII. 
The  new-made  king,  with  liis  father  and  the  whole  royal  family,  were 
shortly  afterwards  prevailed  on  to  take  a  journey  to  nayonne,  iri  France, 
where  an  interview  look  place  with  the  French  emperor.  On  the  5lli  of 
May  the  two  kings  were  compelled  by  Honaparte  lo  sign  a  formal  abdi- 
cation, and  the  iul'ants  Don  Antonio  and  Don  Carlos  renounced  all  claim 
to  the  succession.  This  measure  was  followed  by  an  imperial  decree, 
dcclarmg  the  throne  of  Spain  to  bo  vacant,  and  conferring  it  on  .losepli 
l?onaparie,  who  had  abdicated  the  throne  of  Naples  in  favour  of  Jouchitn 
.Murat. 

As  the  French  forces,  amounting  lo  about  100,000  men,  occupied  all  the 
Blrongest  and  most  eonnnandnig  positions  of  Spain,  and  as  another  iirmy 
of  20,000  men,  under  Junot,  had  arrived  in  Portugal,  it  was  imayined 
that  the  new  sovereign  would  take  possession  of  the  kingdom  without 
opposition.  Hut  no  sooner  had  the  news  of  the  treatment  of  tlie  royal 
family  reached  Spain,  than  a  general  insurrection  broke  out;  juntas  wi're 
formed  in  the  difTcrent  provinces,  palriolic  armies  were  levied,  and  the 
assistance  of  I'ligland  was  implored.  The  supreme  junta  of  Sevilh^  as- 
sumed the  sovereign  authority  in  the  name  of  Ferdinand  VII.,  whom  Ihey 


proel 


limeil   king,  and  de(dar»'d  war  against  France.     Peace  with  Spain 


was  pro(daiined  in  London  (ui  the  5tli  of  July ;  the  Spanish  prisoners  wt 
set  free,  clothed,  and  sent  home;  ai,d  evcrylhii'j  that  the  Spaniards 
could  desire,  or  liic  Knglish  atford,  was  liberally  c-inied.  The  sudden- 
ness of  the  insmreetion,  the  mtanimily  which  pi  (hI,  and  the  vigour 
with  which  it  w  is  r  oi.diieled,  amazed  thr"  surround  ..,(  nations,  and  called 
forth  their  e.xerlions.  The  (  fTorts  of  the  Spauiar<i.i  v.cf,'  crowned  with 
astonishing  success;  the  nsnrpcr  .losepb  wa 


s  driven  from  the 


:,p 


al  after 


having  n'inained  in  it  about  a  week  ;  ami  the  Fri'neh,  after  losing  about 
rjO.OOO  mill,  were  obliged  to  aliamlon  the  greate&t  part  of  ilie  kni|{(loin, 
and  to  retire  to  the  norlh  of  the  Fbro. 

A.  n.  1H0>*. — Animated  and  encouracra  ,/  the  successful  re  sis!  nice 
if  the  Spaniards,  tb"  Portuguese  also  displayed  a  spirit  of  palrioiu;  loy- 
ally, and  a  general  insurrection  took  pla—  in  the  norlliern  parts  of  that 
kingdom.  In  the  provinces  from  wliieti  the  Fn'iieh  had  been  cxjioHed 
the  authority  of  the  prmce-iegeut  was  re-''slablisli!  d,  an  I  provisional 
juntas,  like  those  of  Spain,  were  formed.     The  supreme  junta  of  Oporto 


having  taken  elTceiual  measures  for  raising  ;in  army,  dis|)atclicd  a'libassa 


dors  111  England  to  solicit  support  and  a-s;«.i;ti 


n  eousequei 


)f 


this,  an  army  under  Sir  .\rtbiir  Wellesley,  consisting  of  10,000  men,  set 
sail  from  Cork  on  the  I'Jlh  of  .Inly,  and  landed  in  Oporto,  where,  after  a 
severe  encmniter,  he  emnpelled  the  F.eiii'b  general,  Laborde,  lo  abandon 
a  very  strona  (lo-i.ion  on  the  heiglits  of  Kolei.i.  In  the  following  iiiglit 
I.iborde  (  (Tec ted  a  jiinciioii  with  (Jenernl  L"i«oii,  imd  they  retreated  with 
their  united  forces  icnxards  l,isbon.  The  Urilish  army  havin^r  hei  n  re 
iiiforeed  by  a  liody  of  troops  under  (Jeneral  .\nslriither,  proceeded  towanls 
the  capital  in  pitr.M.  if  tlie  French  On  the  21st  of  August,  the  French 
army  under  .Innol,  wi.o  h  id  beee  created  duke  of  Abnnles  by  nonaparte, 
met  the  Untish  Iro  ps  at  Hie  villa'4e  of  Vimiera,  when  a  very  severe  ac- 
tion I'lisued,  and  terminal'd  in  lb"  total  defeat  of  the  French,  whose  loss 
m  kiileil  alone  aincmiiteil  lo  .^.^OO  infii.  Sir  Iliuh  n.ilrymple,  who  hid 
\y  r.dled  ("■■■en  Oib'Mllar  to  like  the  eommaud  of  the  llrilish  forces, 
jt..  i.'d  '•  •  army  at  Cmira  on  the  day  after  ihm  .sjileiiiUil  victory,  and  eon. 


..S^»lt' 


69g 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


chilled  a  treaty  whirl)  was  lliouglit  in  England  to  be  disadvantaj^eons,  ano 
bt'canie  tlic  suhjcct  of  iniliiary  inquiry  ;  but  Sir  Aitliiir  Welicsity  giving 
liis  ti'stinuiny  in  its  favciur.  it  may  safely  be  inferred  to  have  been  wisely 
concluded;  and  such  was  the  residl  of  tho  in'. esUgatiun.  It  fetimilated 
that  the  l''n  ik'Ii  sliould  evacuate  Porlugid,  with  tlii'ir  arms,  but  leaving 
their  magazines,  and  be  transported  to  France  in  British  ships,  without 
any  restriction  in  regard  to  fuiure  service  ;  having  leave  to  dispose  of 
their  private  property  (viz.,  their  plunder  acquired  by  contributions),  in 
Portugal.  The  Russian  lleet  in  the  Tagus,  consisting  of  nine  ships  of 
the  line  and  a  frigate,  was  to  be  surrendered  to  the  Uritish  government, 
but  to  b(!  restored  after  the  peace,  and  the  Russian  officers  and  men  to  be 
conveyed  home  in  Knglish  transports. 

The  convention  of  Cintra  being  carried  into  effect,  the  British  forces 
advanced  to  Lisbon,  and  having  remained  in  that  city  about  two  months, 
proceeded  in  diU'erent  divisions  towards  Salamanca,  in  Spain.  In  the 
meantime  an  army  of  1.3,000  men,  under  Sir  David  Baird,  having  landed 
at  CoruniKi,  was  marching  tliroiigli  the  norlhern  part  of  Portugal  towards 
the  ame  point.  Bonaparte  having,  with  an  immense  army,  entered 
Spain,  in  urder  to  (  onduct  the  o|)eralion8  of  the  war,  tlic  patriot  troops 
under  Belvulere,  Bl.ike,  and  Castunos,  were  successively  defeated,  and 
Napoleon  entered  Madrid  in  triumph.  Sir  .lohn  Moore,  the  commander- 
in-chief  of  the  British  army,  being  unable  to  keep  the  field  in  tlie  pres- 
ence of  an  enemy  so  much  siipi'rior  in  numbers,  while  liis  own  troops 
were  suffeniig  dreadfully  frcjiii  hunger  and  fatigue,  retreated,  in  the  midst 
of  wiiitiT,  through  a  desolate  and  mountainous  country,  made  almost  im- 
passable liy  snow  and  rain;  yet  he  cfT'cled  his  retreat  willi  great  rapidity 
and  judgment,  ami  arrived  at  Corunna  Jan.  II,  1809.  Soult  look  up  a 
position  above  the  town  in  readiness  to  make  an  attack  ns  soon  as  the 
troojis  slimilil  begin  to  .inbark.  On  the  I'Uh,  the  op(  ration  having  be- 
gun, the  French  descended  in  four  columns,  \\hen  Sir  John  Moore,  ii. 
bringing  up  Ilie  guauls,  «  h«  II' the  fire  was  most  destructive,  received  a 
niorial  WDcnd  frmn  ;i  camion  b.ill.  U<neral  liaird  being  also  disabled,  the 
eiiiih. ::'.!!'!  devolv'd  on  Sir  John  Hop*-,  under  whom  the  troojis  bravely 
continued  the  fight  until  nightfall,  when  the  French  retreated  with  the 
loss  of  two  thous.iiid  men,  and  offV'red  no  further  molestation.  'I'lic  loss 
of  the  Knglisli  in  I'ns  battl<  was  staled  at  between  seven  and  eight  liun- 
dr<  d  men  ,  but  their  total  it»«s  in  this  arduous  expedition  was  little  less 
than  MX  thousand,  w  ill  their  itruve  and  Doble  ronwuander,  wiiosu  soldierly 
skill  ^iid  yi'iieral  h>|li  (}ualiiies  fairly  entitled  him  to  the  rt-pect  and  ad- 
nnruiK'il  ill  whicdi  he  wan  univi-rsally  held. 

A.  D  1809. — The  most  vi||foroiis  exertions  we»«  no*  made  by  tho  French 
for  til*'  complete  siiliju;.'ation  of  Spain.  Ilavitt/  defeated  niid  dispersed 
Beverul  bo(h<  s  of  ihe  .Spaiufli  troops,  they  sat  down  before!  Saragossa, 
and  made  tlw  iiiseh'  -  masters  >("  it  afti-r  a  d"  sperate  and  sanguinary  as- 
sault. Tli<-  French  «riny  itcn  entered  Portugal,  uiidor  Marshal  Soult, 
duke  of  haliiiatia.  aiA  took  Op<.r(o.  On  the  .irnval  of  another  British 
arinament,  coiiBisling  of  above  I'.irty  ihousaiid  iii<n,  under  generals  Wid 
lesh  V  iiiid  Beresfoid,  Soult  wa»  olijiged  :o  retire  from  Portugal  willi  eoii- 
jiderable  loss.  Sir  Arthur  \Vel'<-«ley  advanced  **  rh  rapiiliiy  into  Spain, 
mid  having  united  bis  iroop«  with  a  Spanish  army  of  itiirljr-eight  thou- 
sand men,  under  O,  lu  ral  (,  i*i»i.i,  tlrf-y  iiirt<clied  on  .Madrnl.  On  the  ','()tli 
of  Jiiiy  (iciiernl  f'liest.i'n  ad* sliced  guard  was  attacked  by  a  detachment 
of  the  I'lieiny,  aii<l  us  a  gt^ncral  eiigagenieni  was  daily  expected.  Sir  Ar 
thur  Wellcsiey  Untk  a  stroiiit  position  'tt  I'alrtvera.  On  the  following  d.iy 
a  very  obstinale  fn<x\\^'m>tit  coiniiwoed.  which  was  continued  with 
various  success  till  the  ev<  ,<og  of  the  ^.'■'tli,  when  \Im>  F'reuch  retieali  d, 
leaving  behind  iheiii  sevenK  «n  piec  es  "f  cannon.  T'.ie  hi<fle\\aH  iiinsl 
•iivere,  till'    Kli;;lish  bwMijf  iii  kllLc'.  Wuiinded,  and  iniBsitij^.  »\\  ihoiisUM^ 


men,  whi 

sand.     Fi 

Weileslev 

T/ie  Fren 

afterward! 

I'ish,  eon 

Spain  to  c 

Austri,!, 

tempted  to 

sula  soon  ; 

war  which 

on  the  6ih 

to  the  arm' 

triaii  army" 

'brty  ihous; 

eongreiralef 

was  his  eel 

the  short  sp 

possession  ( 

same  month 

left  tank  of 

pertie  and  Ki 

to  Lohan,  an 

much  weake 

and  both  am 

J'iiving  been  > 

torrent  of  rai' 

o*"  "i'^  Aiistri 

Uiiexpeci,.,!  |„ 

Wliich  they  h(] 

disadvaiitagp, 

treated  towar 

"•iirds  agreed  I 

Sc'lioeiihriin, 

cede  several   d 

course  with  till 

vessels. 

Ill  I  lie  coursl 
'he  most  foriiiJ 
consisted  of  ail 
'fi«ale,s,  and  ij 
Ki»«'n  to  (he  ,., 
objects  of  th„cL 
"/  U^.|,.heren,l 
"'"ir  arsenals 
Antwerp.  .  Th.l 
•''"'  'lie  imnieni 
of  Ihe  nation  [\ 
"lid  IheivforeiiJ 
of  Ihe  (irinaineil 
hHd  been  decidd 
'•■om  what  had 
'ess,  was  compll 

"■'■'••-I'.vs;  bij 
lolnlly  li|iexp,.,.(| 
•Hid  Ihe  ir,„,,,, 
^^  'he  due  ariij 


THK  TIIEASUIIY  OF  HISTORY. 


699 


L'lich 


men,  while  the  loss  on  the  part  of  the  French  was  estimated  at  ten  thou- 
Siiiul.  For  the  great  skill  and  bravery  displayed  in  this  action  Sir  Arthur 
Well('sl(?y  was  created  a  peer,  with  the  title  of  Viscuunt  Wellington. 
The  French  army  was  commanded  by  Vi  .'tor  and  Sebastian!;  but  soon 
afterwards  the  junction  of  Noy,  Soult,  and  .Mortier  in  the  rear  of  the  En- 
glish, compelled  them  to  fall  back  on  Badajoz,  and  Cuesta  remained  in 
Spain  to  cheek  the  progress  of  the  French. 

Austria,  stimulated  by  what  was  passing  in  Spain,  had  once  more  at- 
tempted to  assert  her  independence ;  and  Bonaparte  had  left  the  penin- 
sula soon  afier  the  battle  of  Corunna,  in  order  to  conduct  iii  person  the 
war  which  was  thus  renewed  in  Germany.  Hostilities  had  been  declared 
on  the  6th  of  April,  when  the  archduke  Charles  issued  a  spirited  address 
to  the  army  preparatory  to  his  opening  the  campaign.  The  whole  Aus- 
trian army  consisted  of  nine  corps,  in  each  of  which  were  from  thirty  to 
forty  thousand  men.  Bonaparte,  in  addition  to  tl»e  French  corps,  now 
congresrated  under  his  standard  Bavarians,  Saxons,  and  Poles ;  and  such 
was  his  celerity  of  movement,  and  the  impetuosity  of  his  troops,  that  in 
the  short  space  of  one  moitli  he  crippled  the  forces  of  Austria,  and  took 
possession  of  Vienna  on  the  13lh  of  May.  On  the  21st  and  22d  of  the 
same  ninnth,  the  archduke  Charles,  who  had  taken  his  position  on  the 
left  tank  of  the  Danube,  engaged  Bonaparte  between  the  villages  of  As- 
periie  and  Kssling,  and  completely  defeated  him,  eompellinghim  lo  retire 
to  Lohan,  an  island  on  the  Danube.  The  Auslriiins  were,  however,  so 
much  weakened  by  this  battle,  as  to  be  uii  ihle  to  follow  up  their  success, 
and  botli  armies  remained  inactive  till  the  Ith  of  Jidy,  when  Bonaparte, 
having  been  greatly  reinforced,  relinquished  his  situation  amid  a  violent 
torrent  of  rain,  and  drew  up  h^s  forces  in  order  of  battle  on  the  extremity 
of  the  Austrian  li^ft  wing.  The  allies  were  greatly  disconcerted  by  this 
unexpeiMed  inovenicnt,  and  being  obliged  to  abandon  the  strong  position 
which  they  held,  an  engagrnient  commenced  near  Wagrani,  under  every 
disadvantage,  wlien  the  Fietudi  were  victorious,  and  the  Austrians  re- 
treated towards  Bohemia.  A  suspension  of  hostilities  was  soon  after- 
wards agreed  on,  which  was  Tdlowed  by  a  treaty  of  peace,  coiududed  at 
Si'lioenbl-un,  Oct.  1'),  by  which  the  emperor  of  Austria  was  coni|)elled  to 
eeile  several  of  his  most  valuable  provinces,  to  discontinue!  his  inter- 
course with  the  court  of  London,  and  to  close  his  ports  against  British 
vi'ssels. 

In  the  course  of  the  summer  was  fitted  out  with  great  secrecy  one  of 
the  most  formidable  aruianieiits  ever  sent  from  the  shons  nf  Ihigl.ind.  It 
consisted  of  an  army  of  40,000  iiicii.  and  a  Heel  of  ,39  sail  of  the  line,  3fi 
frigatis,  and  niiinerous  gun-boats,  &c.  The  command  of  the  first  was 
given  10  the  earl  of  Chatham,  of  the  hist  to  Sir  H  Slraehaii.  The  ('hief 
objects  of  till!  enterprise  were  lo  get  piisseHsiiin  of  I'hishiiig  and  the  island 
of  Waliheren,  with  the  Freiii'h  ships  of  war  in  the  Scheldt;  to  des.iu< 
tin  ir  iiisenals  and  dock-yards,  and  lo  efTcet  the  r.'ductiiin  of  ihe  city  of 
Antwrri).  ■ 'i'he  prrparations  wliicli  had  been  made  for  th's  expediieni, 
and  Ihe  immense  sums  of  money  expended  on  it,  raised  the  expectations 
of  the  nation  to  the  highest  pitch  ;  but  it  wan  planned  wilhout  jiidgu.ent, 
and  Ihercfiire  neeessarilv  tmniiiated  m  loss  and  disgrace.  On  the  arrival 
of  the  nrmaineni  in  the'  Scheldt,  the  contest  between  Austria  and  Fiance 
had  been  decided;  the  military  slate  of  the  country  was  widely  different 
from  what  had  been  represented;  and  Antwerp,  iiisti  iid  of  bemg  ih  fence- 
less, was  completely  fortified.     The  atta<'k  on  the  ixlaiid  of  \\al<-iier(m 

succ led,  and   Flii'shmg   surrendered    after  an   obsliimte   rrsisimice  of 

IwrJM'  diys;  but  I's  ihe  (dunlry  .jsnined  a  poslnre  of  defence  tlnit  w«» 
tuliilly  iiiii'xpi'Cled,  all  idea  of  proceeding  up  the  Sidieldl  was  .ibiiiidwned, 
iiird  liie  irooj.s  reniiincd  at  Walclcn  n  where  ;,n  cpilemi,-  fex.f  raj/ed. 
Of  'ill!  line  army  that  left  I'oitwiiioulh  u  few  months  before,  yu«  half 


liii 


Bi5si. 


+■ 


roo 


THli:  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


perisheil  on  the  pestilential  shores  of  Walcheren ;  and  of  tlie  remainder, 
who  returned  in  December,  many  were  afflicted  with  incurable  chronic 
diseases. 

The  (itlier  events  of  the  year  may  be  briefly  told.  The  French  setlle- 
ment  at  Cayenne  .--urreMdered  to  an  Eiigli.sh  and  Porlujjiiesc  force,  and 
(he  island  of  .Martinique  was  soon  afterwards  captured  by  Uritish  arms. 
A  French  fleet,  consisting  of  leu  sail  of  the  line,  whicii  lay  in  llie  Basque 
roads,  under  the  prdtcelion  o'"  tbf  forts  of  the  island  of  Aix,  was  attacked 
by  a  squadron  of  gun-boat«,  firi-  .-l.ips,  and  frigates,  under  Lord  Cochrane, 
who  captured  four  ships,  disabli  d  several  others,  and  tlrove  ihe  rest  on 
shore.  A  gillant  action  was  likewise  performed  by  Lord  Ct)llingwood, 
who,  on  the  Isi  o*"  October  destroyed,  in  the  bay  of  Rosas,  three  sail  o( 
the  line,  twj  fr'g.'les,  and  twenty  trans,'  •(  ..  To  these  successes  may 
be  added,  tb^  reduction  of  some  small  i:«!  iids  in  the  West  Indies,  and 
the  capir.rc*  of  a  Russian  flotilla  and  convoy  in  the  Baltic,  by  Sir  James 
Saiunn'.ei, 

In  the  early  part  of  the  y<'r.r,  public  attention  was  engrossed  wi'th  a 
')arli-<'.neiitary  iuijuiry  into  ti;e  conduct  of  his  royal  highness  the  duke  of 
York,  coniinan<l('r-jii-chiei';  against  v.-bom  Colonel  Wardle,  an  ofl!icer  of 
nilitia,  had  brimglit  forward  a  series  of  ilarges,  to  the  effect  that  Mrs. 
Hary  .\nii  Clarke,  a  once  favoured  courtesan  of  the  duLe,  had  carried  on 
1  traffic  in  military  ccMiimissicnis,  with  liis  knowledge  and  concurrence. 
During  the  progress  of  this  investigation  the  house  was  fully  attended,  its 
members  appearmg  highly  edified  bj  the  equivocal  replies  and  sprightly 
sallies  of  the  frail  one.  Hut  Ihe  duke  (hongh  guilty  of  great  indiscre- 
tion, was  ac(piiited  of  personal  corniptio.i  by  a  vote  of  tile  house.  He, 
however,  thoiigiit  proper  to  rcsi^fn  his  employnien*.  Various  circiin- 
stances  which  afterwards  transiiired  tended  to  throw  considerable  sus- 
piciim  on  the  motives  .nd  characters  of  the  p-  k-s  who  instituted  the 
inquiry. 

A.  n.  IPIO. — The  parliamentary  session  commenced  with  an  inquiry 
into  the  late  calamitous  expi'iliiion  to  Walcheren;  and  after  a  long  dei)ate 
ill  the  house  of  ('(iininoiis,  the  conduct  of  ministers,  instead  of  being  cen- 
sure 1.  w,is  (Ic(  hired  to  be  worthy  of  commeiiihition.  In  the  course  of  the 
disciissjiiii,  Mr.  Yorke,  memlier  for  Cambridge,  d;»ily  enforced  the  stand- 
ing order  of  tlie  house  for  the  exclusion  of  strangers — a  measiu'e  which 
w.is  very  uiij!0|iular,  and  became  the  .subject  of  very  severe  animadver- 
sions in  the  London  dctiating  societies.  .lohn  (lalc  Joncf,  the  director  of 
one  of  these  siieieties  called  tlie  "Hiiiish  Forum,"  having  issued  r,  placard, 
iioiifying  that  the  following  question  had  been  discussed  there  : — "  Which 
was  a  greaier  oulra:,fc  on  the  public  feeliii);,  Mr.  Yorke's  enforcement  of 
the  standing  ot  i  T  to  exclude  strangers  from  the  hoiisi!  of  commons,  or 
Mr.  Winilhum  ..  attack  on  the  [iress '"  aiul  that  it  had  been  niiniiimously 
carried  rigainst  tin  former.  Mr.  Yorke  complained  of  it  as  a  breach  of 
privilege,  and  Jones  was  coiiMnilted  to  Ne\'  gate.  On  the  \'i\h  of  March, 
Sir  Francis  Uurdetl,  who  had  been  absent  wiieii  Mr.  Jones  was  conimilted, 
broiiglit  forward  a  motion  for  his  liber.ilion,  on  ilie  j^Touud  that  his  iin- 
prisoniiieiit  l)y  the  house  of  commons  was  an  infringement  of  the  law  of 
the  laiiil,  and  a  siibverMon  of  the  |irinciples  of  the  cmistitnlion.  This  mo- 
tiiMl  being  IK  galived,  Sir  Francis  published  a  letter  to  his  constituelits,  the 
electors  of  W'estminsler,  in  which  he  staled  Ins  reasons  lor  oliiecting  to 
liie  imprisonriieiit  of  .Mr.  Junes,  and  ad\erti'd  in  very  )'i)iiited  terms  to  the 
ille(.';dit\  of  the  measure.  This  lelir-r  wa.>  hronyht  forward  in  the  bouse 
by  Mr-  (.elhlirnliii ,  uho  moved  ilnit  It  was  a  scaiidaloui"  publication,  ami 
that  Sir  Francis  Bnrdell  was  ijnilty  of  a  fl.igranl  breaeli  of  privilejfe.  After 
ail  a<l|oiiiiiineiit  of  ii«eel,,  llii'se  res(dntioiis  were  carried  ;  .iiiil  a  motion 
that  Sir  I'raiicis  Hiinleit  ■lioiild  b«  coinmiiled  to  the  Tower,  was  likewise 
carried  by  a  in  ijonty  of  tiiiriy-sevcii  incmlH  rs.     .\  warrant  was  aciord 


tn^ly  signc 

and  coinnii 

illegality  o 

0th   of  Ap 

police  oflici 

house,  urn 

Tower.     'J' 

they  heard 

oil  Tower  li 

for  a  time  i 

i»g  that  t.ici 

killed.     At  I 

was  liberatei 

partizaiis  for 

and  returned 

As  for  .Mr.  C 

^««'gate,  am 

double  grieve 

On  the  31 

made  on  die 

morning  his  r 

about  the  hea 

|i"npiiig  up  i( 

him  across  tin 

'0  his  master' 

spccted  tlio  ro 

the  porter's  ro 

'"S  open  the  , 

'•'It-     Siibsequi 

having  failed  i 

fii'st  alarm,  an.: 

"as  hold  on  t 

to  the  evideiir; 

was  belie v(m1  t, 

posed  injury, 

""  tin,'  rei,-,, 
vaiiced  Willi  as 
Spiinish  anny  , 
llK'ir  victorious 
'"'"■•'ver,  niiicl 
oaiidcriiiu-  (■,■„„ 
I'ii'msclveH  on  I 
»..s  givatly  su, 
•^'■irshal  Massel 
I'<'nl  Wellingi, 
liuns.     Will,  ii 
Hodrigoand.Mi 
"'■re  compelled 
indliee  the   L'mi 

L'liuist.iiic.s.  a 

«■■'■>'  as  laud.ibii 
Kcnaut  leiigiii  I, 
»"d   therefore 

•*iiiinim  of  i),|. 
I''''<'<'  ini  the  'j; 

'""i  Portiig„j  ;■., 

i/'^anls  of 


"'"I'lal,  by  uii 


i()( 


THE  TUKASUllY  OF  HlSTOllY. 


701 


I'cn- 

f  the 

land- 

tik'h 

vrr- 
or  of 
(•■.ini, 

liicli 

111  of 

iH,  or 
i0usly 
ch  of 
uroh, 
liittrd, 

9  iin- 
n\v  of 

S  1110- 
s,  UlP 

10  l)if 

llllUSI' 

A  It  IT 
lOlll'Il 
(■VMM" 


III, 


in^fly  signed  by  thn  spoaker  of  the  house  of  commons,  f(  ir  the  appvelicnsion 
and  cominitiiK^iit  of  the  right  hoiiounihle  baronet.  Sir  FraiuMS  urged  the 
illegabty  of  the  speaker's  warrant,  and  resisted  tl\e  execution  of  it  till  the 
[)lh  of  April,  when  the  serjeant-at-arms,  aecompanied  by  messengers, 
police  otTieers,  and  detacliinenls  of  the  milit;  ry,  forced  open  the  baronet's 
house,  arrested  him,  and  conveyed  him,  by  a  circuitous  route,  to  the 
Tower.  The  greatest  indignation  prevailed  among  the  populace  wluMi 
they  heard  of  the  apprehension  of  tlieir  favourite;  and,  having  assemltled 
on  Tower  hill,  they  attacked  the  military  with  stones  and  other  missiles. 
F'or  a  timi'  ihe  soldiers  submitted  to  the  insults  of  the  multilude;  but  find- 
ing that  tneir  audacity  increased,  they  fired,  and  three  of  the  rioters  were 
killed.  At  the  prorogation  of  parliament,  on  the  21st  of  June,  Sir  Francis 
was  liberated  from  the  Tower,  ai\d  great  preparations  were  niarle  by  his 
partizans  for  conducting  him  home,  but  he  prudently  declined  the  honour, 
and  returned  to  his  house  by  water,  to  avoid  tho  risk  of  popular  tumuli. 
As  for  Mr.  Gah;  Jones,  who  clainu^d  a  right  to  a  trial,  he  refused  to  leave 
Newgate,  and  was  at  last  got  out  by  stratagem,  loudly  complaining  of  the 
double  grievance  of  lieing  illegally  imprisoned  and  as  illegally  discharged. 
On  the  31st  of  May  an  extraordinary  attempt  at  assassination  was 
made  on  Ihe  duke  of  Cumberland.  At  about  half-past  two  o'clock  in  the 
morning  his  royal  highness  was  roused  from  his  sleep  by  several  blows 
about  tlie  head,  which  were  proved  to  have  been  given  by  a  sabre;  and, 
jumping  up  to  give  an  alarm,  he  was  followed  hy  the  assassin,  who  cut 
him  across  the  thighs.  He  then  called  his  valet-in-wailing,  who  hastened 
to  his  master's  assistance,  and  alarmed  the  house.  Having  closely  in- 
spected the  room,  to  see  if  any  one  were  concealed  therein,  they  went  to 
the  porter's  room  to  awaken  Sellis,  a  Piedniontese  valet;  when,  on  forc- 
ing Oj)en  the  door,  they  found  him  stretched  on  the  bed,  with  his  throat 
cut.  Subseiiueiit  (urcumstances  made  it  evident  tliat  this  wrcich,  aflcir 
having  failed  in  his  attempt  to  assassinate  the  duke,  had  retired  on  the 
first  alarm,  and  put  an  end  to  his  own  life.  Next  day  a  coroner's  inquest 
was  liolil  on  the  bo'ly  of  Sellis,  and  after  bestowing  a  patient  attention 
to  the  evidence,  the  jury  returned  a  verdict  of  fclo  dc-se.  The  assassin 
was  believed  to  have  been  actuated  by  i)rivate  resentment  for  some  sup- 
posed injury,  hul  nothing  definite  was  elicited. 

On  the  retreat  of  Lord  VVelliiiglon  at  Talavera,  the  French  armies  ad- 
vanced wilh  astonishing  rapidity  ;  and  having  defeated  and  dispiT'cd  a 
Spanisii  army  of  .50,000  men,  at  the  bailie  of  Ocana,  Nov.  i;),  they  carried 
their  victorious  arms  into  almost  every  province  of  Spain.  Tliey  were, 
liowever,  much  annoyed,  and  someiiines. repulsed  by  the  palri.its,  who, 
wandering  from  place  to  place,  seized  every  op|iortiiinly  of  nvengiiig 
i!u  insclves  on  their  rapacious  invaders.  The  French  unny  in  Portugal 
w,.s  greatly  superior  in  nuinlcrs  lo  the  English,  and  was  coinniaiuled  by 
Marshal  !\lassena,  prince  of  i;>sling,  who  employed  every  art i lice  to  induce 
Lord  \Vi  llingiiin  lo  leave  the  strong  po-ilion  which  he  held  oi.  liie  nioun- 
lains.  With  this  view  he  undertook,  siicessively,  ihe  sieges  of  CukUd 
Rodngoaiid  Almeida,  both  of  which  places,  aitir  imost  spirited  fesistauce, 
ucre  compelled  to  -iirrci.ler.  All  these  .stratagems  of  Masseua  could  not 
imhicc  the  L'ritish  general  lo  liaz.ird  a  b.iillc  under  disadvantageous  cir- 
Liiinstances;  and  tlii'  cautious  enuduct  of  his  lordship  on  this  dcc.isioii, 
was  as  lauil.dile  as  his  cinuage  .iiid  rusoluUoii  had  formerly  bi  n.  Mas- 
sella  at  leiiglh  began  lo  siis[Mrt  that  Ins  opp,iiient  wa.s  aelualeC  by  fear; 
iii'd  llierefore  diiemiine  1  lo  ailack  him  m  his  intreiivliineuls,  on  the 
siiinniit  of  Ihe  mountain  of  Uiizaco.  An  iiigagement  acci.r  l.ngly  look 
pl.iee  on  the  '.'Tlh  of  Scpleinber,  when  the  i:mnbineil  arniKso*  England 
;ind  rortngal  completely  defeated  tic  I'lench,  who  lust  on  the  oecision 
'i|i\vards  of  ■-'-100  men.  A  few  days  after  this  eiigagcuii  iit.  the  Hnlish 
ai'iiural,  by  un  unexiiected  luoveincnl,  relircd  towards  Li.-'bon,  and  oc- 


llf''  t       II 


702 


THK  TUEASUIIY  OF  HI8TOKY. 


cupird  .-^11  impregnable  posilidii  on  Torres  Vedras ;  whithir  lie  was  foU 
lowed   ly   'Iiirsl::il  Massenii,  who  enc'ani|)ed  directly  in  his  (ront. 

While  ihese  even's  we're  taking  place  in  Spain  and  I'ortugal,  the  suc- 
cessful ter  niiii'iion  of  some  distant  naval  expediiions  servetl  to  confirni  the 
gallantry  of  that  liraneli  of  the  service.  'J"he  Dutch  settlement  of  Am 
boyne,  with  its  depender/t  islands,  surrendered  to  a  British  force  Feb.  1'  , 
On  the  8tli  of  August,  a  parly  of  IHO  Uiitlsh  seamen,  under  tlu^  connuanj 
of  Captain  Ca\c,  attacked  Banda,  the  prnicipal  of  the  Dutch  spice  islands, 
and  obligtul  the  garris(ni,  consisting  of  1000  men,  to  surrender.  The  im- 
portant islands  of  Bourbon  and  the  Mauritius  were  likewise  reduced,  at 
the  close  of  tiie  year,  by  a  British  armament,  under  tiie  command  of  Ad- 
miral Bertie  and  Major*ieneral  Abercrombie. 

Several  events  look  place  ut  this  time  on  the  continent  of  Europe,  not 
less  remarkable  for  their  novelty  than  for  their  importance.  Bonaparte, 
having  divorced  tlie  empress  Josephine,  espoused  on  the  11th  of  March 
the  ari'lidiichess  Aii'iia  Louisa,  daughter  of  the  emperor  of  Austria.  On 
the  1st  of  July,  I,(  nis  Uonaparte,  king  of  Holland,  after  having  made  a 
fruitless  atteii,()t  to  nnprove  the  condition  of  his  unfortunate  subjects, 
abdicated  the  tlirone  in  favour  of  his  eldest  son.  That  exhausted  country 
was  immediately  seized  by  Napoleon,  and  annexed  to  the  French  empire  ; 
Charles  XI II.  of  Sweden,  being  a<lvaiiced  in  age  and  having  no  children, 
clioM'  for  his  successor  Charles  Augustus,  prince  of  Augustinberg  ;  hulas 
this  prIiKM!  died  suddenly,  it  became  lu'cessary  to  nominate  his  successor. 
The  candidates  for  this  high  odice  were  the  prince  of  Holstein,  the  king 
of  Denmark,  and  the  French  marshal  Bornadottc,  prince  of  I'onte  Corvo. 
The  latter  being  fav(!nred  by  Napoleon  and  by  tlie  king  of  Sweden,  he 
was  unanimously  chosen  crown  prince,  and  his  installation  took  place  on 
the  1st  (if  November,  in  the  presence  4>f  the  assembled  diet.  A  few  days 
afterwards  war  was  declared  against  Great  Britain;  all  intercourse  was 
nroliibited,  and  the  imjiortation  of  colonial  produce  luterdicted. 


cHaptkr  lxiii. 

THK  REIC.N  OF  CEonOE   111.    [tHE  RECENCY.] 

A.  D.  1811. — One  of  the  first  legislative  acts  of  this  year  was  the  ajv 
poinlmeiit  of  the  princes  of  Wales,  under  certain  resirictions,  as  regent  in 
coii8e(|M(iice  of  a  return  of  iliat  mental  malady  with  which  the  king  had 
formerly  lieeii  icmporarily  afTliCted.  The;  restrictions  were  to  continue 
till  after  I'cbruary  1,  Ij^Iv!.  It  was  (■x[iicted  that  a  change  of  ministers 
would  immeili.itely  take;  place,  but  the  prince  declined  nuking  any  change 
in  the  admiiiisiratiim,  or  to  accept  any  grant  for  an  establishiiient  in  virtue 
ol  his  new  functions. 

The  protiresa  of  event^  in  th(!  peninsula  again  claims  our  attention. 
Massciia,  who  at  the  close  of  the  preceding  year,  had  posted  himsidf  at 
Saniartiii,  met  with  such  difTiciillies  in  procuring  the  necessary  sufiplyof 
provisiims,  that  he  was  in  liiced  to  abandon  his  [losition  on  the  Sili  of 
Slarili,  Icaviiii;  behind  him  a  coiisiilerabic  (jiiantily  ol  heavy  ariillcry  and 
»iniinm:iion.  He  conlimici' his  relreal  ihmugh  I'ortug.il,  closely  pursued 
l.'V  Lord  Wcllingtim  and  <t('ii('ral  lleresford.  Nuinerous  skirmishes  took 
rlaee  between  ilie  oniposts  of  the  hostile  armies ;  but  on  the  l*jlli  of  May 
a  more  iu'imrlant  action  ensued  al  the  river  Alliuera,  between  .Marshal 
Siiiill  and  (ieneral  Ben  sford  TIk'  contest  conlmiied  with  great  iinpetu- 
osiiv  for  seve.al  Innirs,  till  at  lenglh  victory  declared  in  favour  of  tlio 
Aiiiilol'oriiiuiiese  tniiips,  and  the  French  were  compelled  to  rclrcat. 
The  loss  of  the  French  was  esliiiialed  al  fl.OOO,  amoiit;  wlimn  were  live 
generals  i   the   loss  of  the  allies  amounted  to  about  half  that  iiumtM'r. 


Aftrr  fhis  1 
dajos,  but  1 
^'f  the  Freii 
The  w;ir 
parts  of  Sp; 
with  succes 
determined 
siras,  under 
troops  enga 
strong  piisit 
the  2.5th  by 
engagement 
but  the  num 
tliein  with  si 
during  this 
;iriny,  who  h 
and  to  drive 
tlireat  into  e,' 
had  been  mw 
While  t!ie ' 
nority  of  her 
'ended  III!  its 
listing  of  five 
'lie  island  of 
posed  of  four 
I'll'  at  length 
were  taken. 
six  vessids,  w 
and  a  sloop,  ai 
man.     These  : 
doimded  muci 
From  the  > 
fsssued,  ,1  sect 
"le  United  St; 
••reased  in  the 
American  friyii 
J'riiish  sloop  , 
lliis  occiirrenc( 
'libuled  the  lihi 
states  prepuree 
During  tlie  n 
of  the  eoiiiitry 
irictsof  Notiin 
'■iitise  of  discoi 

sloi'killg-\V(.;|vi 

became  so  dain 
vere  inea.siires 
A.  n.   IHI',',~ 
of  Wiiles  In-  th 
moMs  opinion  o 
prospect  of  his 
'liereforc  assinn 
"id,  contriry  li 
'■aliinei.     On  th 
V'Tk,  declared  - 
•o  gratify;"  inn 
s'miiglhencl  hy 
"'I'n  I'ornieil,  an 


THE  TRKASURY  OV  HIdTOIlY. 


703 


in 

lad 
II1U8 

iters 

align 

rliie 

tion. 

■If  at 
)ly  of 
of 

i\Ull 
ISllCll 

look 

May 

iishul 

H)fl\i- 


II 


Ileal- 

live 

iiiUt. 


\ftrr  fliis  victory  Geiicnil  Ocrcsford  iiivpstcil  tlip  iniportant  city  of  Ua- 
ilaios,  hut  was  ohlijriHi  to  raise  tiie  siciie,  ill  coiisoquenee  of  th(!  jiliielion 
'.'f  the  French  armies  iiiider  Sotilt  and  Marinoiit. 

Tlio  war  was  at  the  same  luno  eondin'ted  with  "reat  spirit  in  (hlTerent 
parts  of  Spain.  In  Catalonia  the  rtp(  rat'ons  of  the  French  wiyr  crowned 
wilii  success;  hut  in  Andalusia  they  were  compelled  to  retire  l)efore  the 
determined  hravery  of  the  allied  forces.  'I'his  ariiiy  had  landed  at  Aljie- 
siras,  under  Generil  (iraham,  with  the  intention  of  attacking  the  French 
troops  engaged  in  the  siege  of  C-id'z.  On  the  .5lh  of  .March  they  look  a 
strong  position  on  the  heights  of  ''arossa,  where  they  weie  at'acked  on 
tlie  25th  hy  a  superior  force  of  the  enemy.  After  a  rcmarkahly  severe 
engagement,  tiie  French  retired  in  disorder,  wiih  the  loss  of  .3,000  men; 
but  the  numerical  inferiority  of  the  allies  precluded  the  hope  of  pursuing 
them  wiih  success.  The  snbsequoiit  events  of  the  war  in  the  peninsula, 
during  this  year,  were  neither  numerous  nor  important.  The  French 
army,  who  had  threatened  to  "  plant  tlieir  eagles  on  the  walls  of  Lisbon, 
and  to  drive  the  English  into  the  sea,"  were  not  only  unable  to  carry  tlieii 
threat  into  execution,  but  were  frequently  defeated  by  troops  which  ihey 
had  been  taught  to  despise. 

While  tiie  military  prowess  of  England  was  thus  displayed,  the  supe- 
riority of  her  navy  was  sufficiently  manifested  by  the  success  which  at- 
tended all  ils  operations.  A  combined  French  and  Italian  squadron,  con 
sisling  of  live  frigates  and  sixsinallci  .iriucd  vessels,  was  encountc^red  off 
Ihc  island  of  l,issa,  in  the  gulf  of  Venice,  by  an  Fnglish  squadron  com- 
posed of  four  frigates  only  ;  the  contest  was  fierce  and  for  a  tune  doubtful, 
but  at  ItMigtli  llriiish  valour  prevailed,  and  three  of  the  enemy's  frigates 
were  taken.  On  the  21st  of  .Inly,  a  French  Hotilla,  consisting  of  twenty- 
six  VLSSids,  was  attacked  olT  thi;  coast  of  Calabria,  by  an  lOnglisb  frigate 
and  a  sloop,  and  th('  whole  of  tbein  were  captured  without  the  loss  of  a 
iiiaii.  These  and  other  gallai' encounters,  though  on  a  small  scale,  re- 
dounded much  to  our  naval  credit. 

From  tlie  year  1807,  when  the  cele-ated  "  orders  in  council"  were 
fsssued,  a  secret  discontent,  indicative  ol  Hostilities,  had  evinced  itself  in 
tlu!  United  Slates  of  .Vmerica.  This  misundcrstandini;  was  greatly  in- 
<Teased  in  the  present  year  bj'  an  nnforluiiate  enc:,nnier  between  the 
American  frigate  President,  commanded  by  (^>.llmodore  Rodgers,  ■,\u^  the 
Dritisli  sloop  of  war  Little  IJelt,  Captain  niiigham.  Tlii' parliciilars  of 
Ibis  occurrence  were  reported  1)".'  the  captain  of  the  fjittle  Hell,  who  at- 
Iriliulcd  the  blame  eniirely  to  the  Americans.  At  any  rate,  the  .\merican 
states  jirepared  for  war,  whiili  was  soon  afterwards  declared. 

Puring  the  months  of  November  and  Oeremlier  the  Irilernal  tranquillity 
of  tlie  country  was  disinrbed  liy  frequent  ;-jois  in  the  niannfactnnng  dis- 
tricts of  Noitinghamsbire,  Di'rbyshire,  and  i,eii-es|ershire.  Tlie  princinal 
cause  of  discontent  was  the  iiitrodnciioii  of  a  new  kind  of  machinery  for 
stocking-weaving.  The  rioters  assumed  the  name  of  Luddites,  and  they 
liccaiiie^so  dangerous  thai  ilie  legislature  deemed  it  necessary  to  use  se- 
vere measures  for  their  suppression. 

A.  n.  1^12.— The  restrieiions  which  had  l.'en  imposed  upon  the  prince 
of  Wales  l)y  the  regency-bill  were  now  withdrawn,  it  beum  the  nnaiii- 
moiis  opinion  of  the"  inellical  anihorilics  that  there  was  not  the  sliirhlest 
prospect  of  his  majestv's  reiiirn  to  a  stile  of  ncrfeci  sanity.  The  prince 
ihcrefore  assumed  the  full  powers  lndong'ngto  the  sovereignly  of  Unlain  ; 
iiid,  contrary  to  geiKTal  expiM-i.iiion,  very  little  cbant'e  was  made  in  the 
caliiiiet.  On  the  l.'lili  of  Februiry.  the  reirent,  in  a  letter  to  the  duke  of 
York,  decl.ired  that  he  "  had  no  predilections  to  indubie,  nor  resentments 
lo  gratify  ;''  inliniating,  howevf.  .  i!(:..iic  ;'at  his  iToveriiment  mii^tit  bo 
slrengihened  bv  tlie  i-o-opi'raiion  •  '  ose  with  whom  bisi'arly  habiiH  had 
iccii  I'unned,  and  authorizing  the  uuke  to  coininuniealu  his  semimeiits  lo 


re  i 


..!.    K 


704 


THIS  TUKASUUY  OK  UlriTOIlY. 


Lords  Orey  niid  Orcuville.  To  lliis  overture  tlii'se  nol)leinon  replied,  by 
iinrr'scrvcdly  t'xpr('ssiii<r  ilic  iiii|)i)ssil)ilily  of  llieir  uiiiliiig  with  tliu  iircseiit 
govcriiincnl,  owjuir  to  ilicir  diircrfiiccs  of  opinion  being  too  iiiiiny  iiiul  too 
iiiiport;int  to  admit  of  such  union.  The  iiu'asur<'s  |)roposed  for  rfpcidinjr 
thii  penid  laws  ag:ainst  the  papists  were  agitated  in  both  houses  of  parlia 
meiil  this  session,  hnt  were  negatived  by  a  great  majority. 

The  distinbances  among  the  manufactming  classes,  which  began  last 
year  in  Nottinghamshire,  had  exMended  into  Lancashire,  Cheshire,  an^' 
the  west-riding  of  Yorkshire.  The  property  of  individuals  as  well  as  tiie 
macliinery  was  destroy(;d  l>y  nightly  marauders ;  a  syst<'in  of  mditary 
training  was  ado[)ied,  and  secret  oatiis  administered;  in  short,  the  num- 
ber and  daring  spirit  of  the  rioters,  and  tlie  steadiness  with  which  their 
plans  were  condncled,  rendered  them  so  forniidaiile  as  to  require  the  in- 
terposition of  the  legislature.  A  large  military  fon^e  was  accordingly  sta- 
tioned in  tlie  disturbed  coimties,  and  by  a  rigid  enforcement  of  the  law, 
and  tii(!  adoption  of  remedial  measures  for  the  distresses  of  the  labour 
ing  poor,  tranipnllity  was  at  length  restored. 

While  tl:e  public  mind  was  agitated  by  these  occurrences,  an  event  oc- 
curred whi(di  was  at  once  truly  lamentable  and  important.  On  the  Utii 
of  May,  as  Mr.  I'erceval,  chancellor  of  the  exche(pier,  was  entering  the 
lobby  of  the  bouse  of  conmnns,  about  five  o'ldock,  a  person  named  Del 
lingham  presented  a  pistol  to  his  bn^ast,  and  shot  him  through  IIk;  heart. 
The  act  was  so  suddi  n  and  astoiniding  that  no  one  of  the  many  individ- 
uals present  jirecisely  knew  what  had  happencid,  and  it  was  the  fall  of  the 
martyr  only,  that  develo[ied  the  nature  of  the  atrocious  deed.  The  un- 
fortunate gentleman  fell  \rM-k  t(>wards  his  left,  against  the  door  and  the 
wall,  I'.Ki'hiiming  faintly,  "  O  f!od  !"  the  last  words  he  utterred  ;  for  im- 
mediatrly,  as  if  move(i  by  an  impulse  to  seek  for  safety  in  the  house,  he 
made  an  etrort  to  rush  forward,  but  merely  staggered  a  f(!W  paces,  and 
dropped  down.  Hellingham  was  taken  without  resistance,  a  f(nv  minutes 
afterwards.  It  ap[ieared  that  he  was  a  Liverpool  shi|)-brokcr  who  had 
sustained  some  connnercial  losses  in  Russia,  for  wdii(di  he  thought  the 
government  was  bound  to  procure  redress,  and  his  memorials  on  lliesul) 
ject  being  disregarded,  be  liad  worked  up  bis  gloomy  mind  to  the  mon- 
strous <'onviction  that  he  was  justified  in  taking  away  the  life  of  the  prime 
minister.  Iti  tlie  change  of  administration  whi(di  took  |dace  in  conse- 
quenc(!  of  tliis  melan(diidy  circumstance.  Lord  Sidinouth  was  appointed 
secretary  of  slate  ;  the  earl  Ilarrowby,  lord  president  of  the  council ;  and 
Mr.  Vaiisiitart.  chancf  tlor  of  the  exchequer. 

.\t  I'l'  ('ommeMcenirnt  of  the  campaign  in  the  Spanish  peninsula  fortune 
seeme.i  at  first  to  favour  the  eneiTiy,  wlio,  on  the  Oili  of  Jaimarj',  made 
tliems(dves  masters  of  the  city  of  Valencia,  whiidi  General  Ulake,  after  a 
feeble  resistance,  surrendered,  with  in,000  men.  Tlu;  strong  town  of 
Peiuscola,  wtiich,  on  account  of  its  (jominanding  situation,  wus  of  great 
im|.ortanfe  to  its  poss(>ssors,  was  soon  after  surrendered  to  the  Kreiicii  by 
the  Ireaclx'ry  of  ilic  govi^rnor.  Serious  as  these  misfortunes  were  to  the 
allies,  they  were  in  a  short  time  coimterhalanccd  by  the  success  which  at- 
tended the  exertions  of  the  llritisli  commander.  Aftera  fortnight's  siege. 
Lord  Wellington  carried  fnidad  Rodrigo  by  assaidt,  on  the  lOih  of  .laiui- 
ary  ;  and  on  the  IGiU  of  .\pril  the  strong  city  of  Badajns  Burrendered  to 
him,  afl'T  a  Ion,",  and  most  olistinale  resistance.  After  the  capture  of  this 
city  the  allied  armies  proceed(-d,  without  opjiosition,  to  Salamanca,  where 
tliey  were  rccei\'ed  by  the  inhabitants  with  benedictions  and  ae(dainations. 
As  the  hostile  armies  were  now  so  situated  as  to  render  a  battle  almost 
inevitable,  Lord  Wellinglon  maih;  bis  nijcessary  dispositions,  and  as  a 
favourable  o|iporlunily  occurnvl  on  the  I'-Od  of  .Iidy  for  attacking  the  eu'.i. 
my,  he  itnmeilial(dy  took  advantage'  of  it.  An  action  accordingly  ensued, 
in'which  the  Frenidi,  after  a  determined  and  obstinate  rcsisiancr,  were 


obliged  t{ 
"1  the  utn 
to  tlie  fug 
colours,  c 
After  ta 
Burgos;  I 
ppportunit 
This  was  i 
peninsula  i 
erally  appi 
cominaiide 
eraiissinio 
also,  who  li 
'liin  to  the 
The  forei 
in  possessi( 
must  now  d 
fondly-cheri 
■Britain  l)y 
througli  intr 
stagnation  o 
respective  s( 
tlie  Itiissians 
natural  ally, 
'onger  to  the 
ed;  and  a  w 
fn  this  coute: 
The  allies  of 
Poland ;  to  w 
iiussia,  Nwec 
N^apoleon  j 
coinmen(;ed  t 
den,  and  visit! 
the  Niemen, 
of  march  w  eri 
and  discii)linc| 
and  laconic  sti 
her  destinies 
the  last  fifty  y| 
Piemen,  and  d 
ftreparations  ll 
liuiidred  thousl 
pcror  Alexandl 
of  the  kussiaiil 
dtand  oidy  in  . 
marches  over  . 
should  lend  itsi 
^■'"gements  toe 
wiiich  were  so, 
•liat  nothing  isl 
masses  of  me( 
'•apidity,  notwil 
Ifie  7th  of  SeptI 
effort  against  tlf 
»illages  of  Mos 
olace.     On  thiJ 
"Ki'i ,  and  whe) 
■•f  l<.  Tty  ihousaf 
Vol.  1 — 4I 


THE  TUEASUllY  OF  HISTORY. 


roi 


tune 

lailc 
XT  a 
of 

;ri';it 

II  by 

Uif 

li  iil- 

aim- 

id  to 
if  this 
vhijre 
lions, 
linost 

as  a 
ell'.;- 

isut'ili 


Wellington  advanced  to 

ig  it,  llie  enemy  iiad  an 

r  re-oucupying  Madrid. 

liich  took  place  oa  the 

.ices,  which  though  gen- 


obli;red  to  give  way  to  the  superior  braveiv  of  the  assailants,  and  torstreal 
111  the  utmost  confusion.  Tlie  darkness  oi'  tlie  night  was  very  favourable 
to  the  fugitives,  yet  upwards  of  7.m  ■<  pinners  were  taken,  with  eagles, 
';olours,  cannon,  and  amnumition 

After  taking  possession  of  the 
Burgos  ;  but  being  detained  a  Ion 
opportunity  of  concentrating  tiii 
Tliis  was  one  of  the  last  military 
peninsula  during  the  year.     For  hi -^  ,,: 

erally  appreciated  were  not  over-rated,  the  cortes  bestowed  on  the^Brrtish 
commander  the  title  of  duke  of  Cuidad  Roihigo,  and  constituted  him  gen- 
eralissimo of  the  Spanish  armies.  The  prmce  rcgen*.  of  Great  Britain, 
also,  who  had  previously  conferred  on  him  the  title  of  earl,  now  raised 
him  to  the  dignity  of  a  marquis  of  the  United  Kingdom. 

The  foregoing  outline  of  tlie  transactions  in  Spain  will  put  the  reader 
in  possession  of  the  principal  features  of  the  war  in  that  quarter.  We 
must  now  direct  his  attention  to  events  in  the  north  of  Europe.  The 
fondly-cherished  scheme  of  Bonaparte  for  ruining  the  finances  of  Great 
Britain  l)y  cutting  off  her  commercial  intercourse  with  Europe,  was, 
through  intrigue  or  intimidation,  adopted  by  all  the  neutral  powers.  The 
stagnation  of  trade  on  the  continent,  though  it  was  submitted  to  by  their 
respective  sovereigns,  was  very  distressing  to  their  subjects,  especially 
the  Russians,  wlio  had  been  accustomed  to  consider  England  as  their 
natural  ally.  At  length  the  emperor  of  Russia  resolved  to  submit  no 
longer  to  the  arbitrary  restrictions  which  the  will  of  Napoleon  had  dictat- 
ed; and  a  war  between  those  great  jjowers  was  the  immediate  result. 
In  this  contest  the  most  considerable  slates  in  Europe  were  involved. 
The  allies  of  France  were  the  German  states,  Italy,  Prussia,  Austria,  and 
Poland;  to  whom  were  opposed  the  combined  powers  of  Great  Britain, 
Russia,  Sweden,  and  Spain. 

Napoleon  placed  himself  at  the  head  of  an  immense  aiiny,  and  now 
commenced  the  ever-memorable  struggle.  After  passing  iluough  Dres- 
den, and  visiting  in  rapid  succession  JJantzic  and  Konigsberg,  he  reached 
tile  Niemen,  the  frontier  river  of  Russia,  on  ttie  23d  of  June.  On  the  line 
of  inarch  were  half  a  million  of  soldiers,  in  the  highest  state  of  equipment 
and  disci|)line;  to  wliom  he  issueil  a  proclamation  in  his  usual  confident 
and  laconic  style :  "  Russia,"  said  he,  "  is  driven  onwards  by  fatality  ;  let 
her  desiinies  be  fulfilled,  and  an  end  put  to  the  fatal  influence  which  for 
Uie  last  lil'ty  years  siic  has  had  on  the  an"airsof  Eiin)pe.  Let  us  cross  the 
Niemen,  and  carry  the  war  into  her  territories."  On  the  other  side  vast 
^reparations  had  also  been  made ;  and  the  army,  consisting  of  about  three 
hundred  thousand  men,  was  under  the  immediate  command  of  tlie  em- 
peror Alexander,  and  his  sagacious  minister,  Barclay  de  Tolly.  The  plan 
of  the  Russians  was  to  draw  the  invaders  from  their  resources;  to  make  a 
dtand  only  in  favourable  situations :  and  to  weary  the  French  liy  endless 
marches  over  the  dreaify  plains,  till  the  inclemency  of  a  Russian  winter 
should  lend  its  aid  to  stop  their  ambitious  career.  Various  partial  en- 
gagements took  place  as  the  French  advanced,  the  circuinslaiices  of 
which  were  so  diHerently  related  in  tiie  bulletins  of  the  opposite  parties, 
•  hat  nothing  is  certain  but  the  general  result.  Considering  the  immense 
masses  of  men  that  were  in  motion,  the  French  proceeded  with  great 
4'apidity,  notwithstanding  the  checks  they  occasionally  experienced,  till 
the  7th  of  September,  when  the  Russians  determined  to  make  a  vigorous 
eft'ort  against  their  farther  advance.  The  two  armies  met  between  the 
villages  of  Moskwa  and  Borodino,  when  a  most  sanguinary  battle  took 
olace.  On  this  occasion  each  of  the  hostile  armies  numbered  135,000 
nu'.n  ,  and  when  "  night's  sable  curtain"  closed  the  horrid  scene,  the  bodies 
jf  (i  riy  thousand,  cither  dead  or  wounded,  were  stretched  on  the  field  at 
Voi,.  1—45 


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Corporation 


33  WIST  MAIN  STRUT 
WIUTM.N  Y    MStO 

(716)  ir^^soa 


706 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


battle !  Both  parlies  claimed  the  victory,  though  the  advantage  was  evi- 
dently  on  the  side  of  the  French,  as  tliey  proceeded  without  farther  oppo- 
sition to  Moscow,  where  they  expected  to  rest  from  their  toils  in  peace 
and  good  winter-quarters.  About  mid-day  on  the  14th  the  turrets  of  Mos- 
cow, glittering  in  the  sun.  were  descried.  The  troops  entered  ;  but  the 
city  was  deserted,  and  all  was  still.  The  capital  of  ancient  Russia  was 
not  destined  to  be  the  abiding-place  of  its  present  occupantss.  A  dense 
smoke  began  to  issue  from  numerous  buildings  at  the  same  instant.  By 
order  of  the  governor.  Count  Rostopchin,  bands  of  incendiaries  had  been 
employed  to  work  destruction.  Public  edifices  and  private  houses  sud- 
denly burst  into  flames ;  and  every  moment  explosions  of  gunpowder 
mingled  with  the  sound  of  the  crackling  timbers,  while  frantic  men  and 
women  were  seen  running  to  and  fro,  with  flambeaux  in  their  hands, 
spreading  the  work  of  destruction. 

Paralysed,  as  it  were,  by  the  awful  scene,  and  by  the  extreme  danger 
which  he  could  no  longer  fail  to  apprehend.  Napoleon  lingered  five  weeks 
among  the  reeking  ruins  of  Moscow.  Around  him  the  Russians  were 
daily  increasing  in  strength,  especially  in  cavalry;  and  it  was  not  till 
Mnrnt  had  been  defeated,  and  the  first  snow  had  fallen,  that  he  determined 
on  retreat.  At  length  he  left  the  city  of  the  czars,  on  the  ]9th  of  Oc- 
tober, taking  with  him  all  the  plunder  that  could  be  saved  from  the  fire; 
having  at  liie  time  one  hundred  thousand  effective  men,  fifty  thousand 
horses,  five  hundred  and  fifty  field-pieces,  and  two  thousand  artillery 
wagons,  exclusive  of  a  motley  host  of  followers,  amounting  to  forty 
thoiisand.  He  had  no  choice  left.  To  subdue  the  whole  Russian  army, 
and  by  that  means  to  secure  to  himself  an  honourable  peace,  appeared 
beyond  the  verge  of  possibility ;  to  return  with  all  possible  expedition 
was  llie  only  course  to  pursue  ;  and  he  accordingly  directed  the  march  of 
his  army  towards  Smolensko,  where  he  arrived  with  his  imperial  guard  on 
the  i>th  of  November.  Alternate  frost,  sleet,  and  snow  made  the  weather 
insipportable ;  overcome  by  cold,  hunger,  and  fatigue,  the  soldiers  and 
their  horses  perished  liy  thousands.  At  lengtii,  after  taking  leave  of  his 
marshals  at  Smorgoriy,  Decemiier  5,  Napoleon  privately  withdrew  from 
the  army,  and  reaciied  Paris  ot>  the  lOtli.  The  KussianI  never  relaxed 
in  the  pursuit  till  they  readied  the  Vistula,  and  not  a  day  passed  in  which 
some  of  the  fugitives  did  not  fall  into  tlieir  hands.  By  Christmas-day 
they  estimated  iheir  captures  at  41  generals,  1, '208  otRcers,  107,510  pri- 
vates, and  1,131  pieces  of  cannon :  the  grand  iirniy  was,  in  fact,  annihilated. 

During  the  absence  of  Bonaparte  in  this  disastriiiis  expedition,  an  at- 
temjit  was  made  to  subvert  his  power  at  home,  which,  had  it  not  been 
speedily  suppressed,  would  probably  have  occasioned  another  revolution. 
The  conductors  of  the  conspiracy  were  the  ex  generals  Mallet,  Lahoric, 
and  fJiiidal,  who,  having  framed  a  fictitious  senatus  cunsulliim,  went  to  tiie 
barrack  of  the  first  division  of  the  national  guards,  and  read  a  proclama- 
tion, stating  that  the  emperor  had  been  killed,  and  commanding  the  troops 
to  follow  them.  The  soldiers,  little  suspecting  any  forgery,  obeyed,  ai  d 
suffered  themselves  to  be  led  to  diff<!rent  posts,  where  they  relieved  tin) 
guai  Is.  The  conspirators  then  arrested  the  ministers  of  police,  and  ha.- 
mg  assassinated  (ieneral  Hullin,  who  had  marched  into  the  city  with 
BoiTie  troops,  they  attempted  to  seize  the  chief  of  the  etat-major  of  Pans; 
but  being  arrested,  they  were  committed  to  pri.son,  and  tried  befort?  a  mili- 
tary commission,  when  the  tlirce  generals  and  eleven  others  received 
sentence  of  death,  which  beitig  put  into  execution,  tranquillity  was  re- 
stored to  Paris. 

A.  ».  1813.— The  attempts  made  by  ministers  to  arrange  the  differences 
between  (Jreat  Britain  .nd  the  United  .States  were  iinsucceHMfiil ;  the  in- 
fluence of  ['resident  Madison,  the  EngUsli  contend,  being  exerti^d  in  tli« 
fe)ectiun  of  all  pacificatory  proposals.    Tlie  conquest  uf  Canada  was  ru 


•olvui]  I 
but  llio 
ttiuiii  lu 
eeniifiil  I 
Aftor 
(lurnudil 
no  wtiH 

HII  IIIJVIII 
flOIIIK'oj 
Ul'ltuill  11 
f'M'lN  tu  r 

iiiiviiij(  m 

«riiiy,  iiu 

Il0»ll|(t  III 

wtifo  eon 
Tli«  (iiiiil 
Oil  llio  III 
Pliii'o.  mil 
Jiiiie,  Hi  I 
Xiilit  Ut  ihi 

'llllllll'd  of 
'It")  iioti,  0 

U  now 

tll'lUMIIIKl  I 
tllll  IIOI'lll  ( 
fUlu  (.'OUill 

uf  liiiavuid 
"l»i'iiiii((  til 
I'reiieli  to 

I'ONHihlu,  II 

it  town  III 
WHO  foiiKh 
rri'wh,  CO 
riihlii  hravi 
plutejy  viii 
mid  four  I:, 

OlIlCS  llKthl 

II  wiis  knot 
l'iir«iied,  th 
loii  of  Mar 
ill  reiiirii,  V 
iiniiieii  i,(  ( 

'icldiitwjedt 

the  diKiiJty 

Willi,,  ill, 

WeMiiiKMni 

«'  ''iirruKHt 

in,i«i,ir  ,if  I 
"liiil  Niidi,  ( 
diM,.||||,.,f|j„, 

<'l|>ltl|t|,M|  N 

beiiitf  irt,.,| 
judged  "  to 
<'i>iniiMiii|,.r 
the  icMtuM,-! 
«ltril,iii„i|  I 
'o  I  all  fur  I 
Aftur  (he 


THIS  TRKASUHY  OF  HISTORY. 


707 


oops 
iiril 
till) 
hii.'- 
willi 
arisi 
luiU- 

MVl'll 

rv- 

ill- 
\\\f 
u  ro 


■olvoi]  on  by  llie  Aiiu'rieaii!<,  and  troops  were  dispatclied  into  that  country ; 
but  llie  vlitlfttiice  u(  the  UntiHli  commanders  baffled  the  scheme,  and  obhged 
thoiii  Id  (loHlMt  rniin  the  enterprize.    The  Americans,  however,  were  suc- 
oeiinrill  lit  »m,  iind  captured  several  British  Trigates  an  '.  other  vessels. 
Ariiir  thtt  rutreut  uf  Uonaparte  from  Russia,  the  emperor  Alexander 

ruiNUitii  tint  romainin^  French  forces  as  far  as  Posen,  a  city  in  Poland, 
lu  witH  liero  Joini!d  by  the  king  of  Prussia,  who,  considering  the  present 
Hll  iiilviiiUiitttiUUii  (ippiirluiiity  for  restoring  the  equilibrium  of  Europe,  re- 
noiiiiuud  his  iilliance  with  France,  and  concluded  a  treaty  with  Great 
Ui'Kiiiii  itiid  hur  iillieg.  In  the  meantime  Bonaparte  was  using  all  his  ef- 
foi'lN  lu  ritvivo  the  fl|)irit,  and  call  forth  the  resources  of  his  empire,  and 
IliiviMK  H|)|niiiitud  tlie  empress  regent  during  his  absence,  he  joined  his 
army,  now  uiinslRting  of  350,000  new  troops.  On  the  7th  of  May  the 
hoNtiUt  iirinlen  engaged  at  Lutzen,  in  Upper  Saxony,  where  the  French 
wuri)  uouiittatidud  by  Bonaparte,  and  the  allies  by  General  Winzingerode. 
Th«  ooitltlttl  was  long  and  bloody,  and  both  parties  claimed  tlie  victory. 
On  llltl  UHli,  Ullth,  Slit,  and  32d  of  the  same  month,  severe  actions  took 
aUwe,  iiiiii  Hut  less  than  40,000  were  killed  or  wounded.  On  the  1st  of 
Jiinv,  lit  tiui  nuggCHtion  of  the  emperor  of  Austria,  Napoleon  made  propo 
filtiN  lo  ihii  tiinpcror  Alexander  for  a  suspension  of  hostilities;  in  conse- 
qiitnii'i)  *if  which  an  urmislice  was  concluded,  which  was  to  terminate  on 
•hi)  'Hhh  of  July. 

It  now  lt()(!iiinn  necessary  for  Bonaparte  to  withdraw  about  twenty 
tliuuNiiiiil  of  hilt  best  troops  from  Spain,  to  reinforce  this  grand  army  iit 
lliM  north  uf  Kiiropo.  Tliis  diminution  of  the  French  force  in  the  penin- 
iUlil  could  Itiil  fail  to  gratify  the  Anglo-Spanish  army;  yet  a  concurrence 
of  uiiiivuiiliil)ln  cIri'Umstiinccs  prevented  tlu;  marquis  of  VVelliiiirton  from 
oiiitiiiiiK  tliu  campaign  till  about  the  middle  of  May.  Having  obliged  tlie 
treiii'li  lo  (tViiiMiato  Halamanca,  he  pursued  them  with  as  much  haste  as 
poNNiblu,  iiiiil  having  passed  the  Kbro,  he  came  up  with  thum  at  Vitloria, 
u  town  Ml  thi)  pnivinco  of  Biscay,  where,  on  the  21st  of  June,  a  battle 
WitN  i'oiight  hutsvt'iMi  the  allied  troops  under  Lord  Wellington,  and  the 
Fri'iicli,  (■oilliltiiinled  by  Joseph  Bonaparte  and  Marshal  Jourdan.  Adini- 
ralilii  hruvt^ry  iind  persovcrancc  were  displayed  by  the  allies,  who  coin- 
pititnly  viiii<|imsIumI  the  French,  and  took  one  hundred  and  Afty  cannon 
and  fonr  ImiiiIhuI  and  flfti;en  wagons  of  ammunition.  On  the  side  of  the 
Ittlii'ii  lliiirt!  wi<ru  Ni'ViMi  hundred  killed  and  four  thousand  wounded;  and 
it  wiiN  known  thnt  the  loss  of  the  French  was  much  greater.  Bting  hotly 
pnr»ili'd,  lint  French  retreated  across  the  Bidassoa  into  Frani.-e.  The  ba 
ton  of  Marithiil  Jourdan  being  taken,  was  sent  lo  the  prince  rcj,'ent,  who, 
in  ri'Uiril,  created  the  marquis  of  Wellington  field-marshal  of  the  allied 
Mniilii»  of  llrcul  Britain,  Spain,  and  Portugal.  The  Spanish  government 
iii-knowlt<dKi'i|  ihcir  oliliiraiions  lo  the  British  hero,  by  conferring  on  him 
the  iligiilty  of  iirliice  of  Viltoria. 

While  llie  I'aiiKC  of  ralioiml  freedom  was  so  nobly  susUi/ied  by  Lord 
Welliinji.i»ii  III  tins  part  of  S|)ain,  Sir  John  Murray  had  landed  his' troops 
Ht  'riirrugHiio,  III  order  to  invest  that  plaice.  After  he  had  made  himseK 
iiia«li'r  of  Fori  Si,  Philippe,  on  being  informed  of  the  approach  of  Mar- 
mIiiiI  Nik'Ik  I,  he,  wilhont  waiting  for  information  of  the  enemy's  slreiiglh, 
diKeinliirknd  his  troops,  leaving  behind  him  his  artillery.  For  this  pre- 
eipiliitioii  NIr  John  was  severely  censured  by  some  political  writers,  and 
hi'iMK  Irli'ii  III  Wlncliesler,  in  February,  Ifll5,  he 'was  found  guilty  and  ad- 
IndgKil  '•  lo  bn  adiiinnislied  in  such  a  manner  as  his  royal  highness  the 
eoininiiider-iii  ehlef  may  think  proper."  His  royal  highness  approved 
llie  seiilciicM  of  the  court,  but  as  the  con(lni;t  of  Sir  John  Murray  was 
MttiilMiled  merely  lo  nii  error  of  judgment,  the  case  'ii'.  lOt  appear  lo  hiin 
Id  I  all  for  iiiiv  rurlher  observation. 

Aflurlhi'  Uttlllu  of  Viiioria  the  French  army  retreu  .  .  wilh  great  pre* 


n 


7Ui 


THE  THEASUaV  OF  HISTORY. 


eJpl(ntioii  Into  France,  pursued  by  the  li^ht  troops  of  the  allies ,  and  the 
IflHftluis  of  Wellington  caused  the  forts  of  Pampeluna  and  St.  Sebastian 
te  l*e  immediately  invested.  When  Bonaparte  received  intelligence  ot 
these  successes  of  the  British  army,  he  dispatched  Marshal  Soult  with 
SOIIJO  (ofccB  to  check  their  progress.  On  the  13th  of  July  the  Frencli 
Itwrshiil  Jollied  the  army,  and  on  the  24th  he  made  a  vigorous  attack  on 
the  right  wing  of  the  allies,  at  Roncesvalles,  commanded  by  General 
Uyilg.  Prom  that  day  till  the  2d  of  August  the  hostile  armies  were  con 
(hllltilly  engaged ;  the  passes  of  the  mountains  were  bravely  disputed 
hy  the  French,  but  the  British  were  irresistible,  and  the  French  again  re- 
irfitttpd  beyond  the  Pyrenees.  The  fortresses  of  St.  Sebastian  and  Pam- 
Itelutm  surrendered  to  the  British  arms  afterwards,  and  on  the  7th  of 
OtUoher  Lord  Wellington  entered  the  French  territory  at  the  head  of  his 
ufitty. 

Whilo  in  the  south  of  Europe  these  transactions  were  taking  place,  a 
grmil  crisis  was  at  hand  in  the  north.  During  the  armistice,  which  had 
extetldod  to  the  llth  of  August,  several  attempts  were  made  by  the 
ttllK^s  to  obtain  such  a  peace  as  would  cflfect  and  confirm  the  safety  and 
truiltlililllty  of  the  continental  states.  These  endeavours  were,  however, 
reildcrod  abortive  by  the  insolent  pretensions  of  the  French  ruler,  which 
illdlK'ed  the  emperor  of  Austria  to  relinquish  his  cause,  and  to  join  in  the 
tlllliincc  against  him.  Hostilities  were  resumed  on  the  17th  of  August, 
wllflii  Uoiiaparte  immediately  prepared  to  attack  the  city  of  Prague ;  but 
hfllJg  informed  that  his  Silesian  army  was  exposed  to  imminent  danger 
from  the  threatening  posture  of  the  allies,  he  was  obliged  to  change  his 
phill  of  operations.  He  accordingly  left  Bohemia,  and  maue  an  at- 
iiu'k  on  the  allied  army  under  the  Prussian  General  BUicher,  who  was 
•ompelled  to  make  a  retrograde  movement.  The  further  progress  of  the 
t'^mu'h  In  this  quarter  was  arrested  by  the  advance  of  the  grand  army 
il  the  (lilies  towards  Dresden,  which  made  the  immediate  return  of  Napo- 
Im(»ii  net'cssarv.  He  accordingly  advanced  by  forced  marches  to  the 
iiroleciion  of  that  city,  and  having  thrown  into  it  an  army  of  130,000  men, 
\w  (iwiiitpd  the  attack  of  his  enemies.  The  grand  assault  was  made  on 
lh«)  'J'lth  of  August,  but  as  there  was  no  prospect  of  taking  Dresden  by 
rsculatlo,  the  allies  abandoned  the  attempt,  and  took  a  very  extended  po- 
<»lll(»ti  on  the  heights  surrounding  the  city,  where  they  were  attacked  by 
iht!  French  on  the  following  day,  and  obliged  to  retire  with  considerable 
loss.  It  was  in  this  engagement  that  General  Moreau,  who  had  left  his 
rtitrent  in  Amt^rica  to  assist  in  restoring  liberty  to  Kurope,  was  mortally 
womi'lcd,  while  conversing  with  the  emperor  Alexander.  A  cannon-ball, 
which  (lassed  through  his  horse,  carried  off  one  of  his  legs  and  shattered 
the  other.  He  had  both  legs  amputated,  but  survived  his  disaster  only  a 
fitw  flays,  dying  from  exhaustion. 

In  the  following  month  several  well-contested  battles  took  place,  in 
which  victory  was  uniformly  in  favour  of  those  who  contended  against 
lymnny  and  usurpation.  But  as  Leipsic  was  the  point  to  which  the  efforts 
of  llio  confederates  were  principally  directed,  Bonaparte  left  Dresden,  and 
concentrated  his  forces  at  Roclditz. 

At  this  |)eriod  an  important  accession  was  made  to  the  allied  cause,  by 
n  treaty  with  Bavaria,  who  agreed  to  furnish  an  army  of  fifty-five  thou- 
MHlid  iDiiu.  The  hostile  armies  were  now  both  in  the  vicinity  of  Leipsic; 
ilin  French  estimated  at  about  200,000  men;  the  allies  at  250,000.  On 
iiie  night  of  the  15tli  rockets  were  seen  ascending,  announcing  the  ap- 
iiroach  of  Jllucher  and  the  crown  prince  of  Sweden.  At  day-break  on  the 
Irtth,  the  FreiK^h  were  as.sailed  along  their  southern  front  with  the  great- 
rsl  fury,  but  they  (ailing  to  make  any  impression,  Najmleon  assumed  the 
offensive.  Throughout  the  day,  by  turns,  each  parly  had  the  advantage ; 
but  at  night-ffill  the  French  contracted  their  position,  by  drawing  iicurur 


the  wall 
tions  for 
gageinei 
raged  fr 
quished 
were  eitl 
Saxons, 
Bixty-fnr« 
were,  th* 
prisoners 
Tlie  aJ 
gained,  a 
to  the  Rl 
Russia, 
distiiiguis 
territorief 
now  joine 
solved,  an 
The  spi 
nicated  its 
tion  in  tha 
detriment! 
of  the  alli( 
and  with  t 
orange  col 
The  exam 
pendence  ( 
announce 
at  the  heai 
all  the  sue 
went  and  a 
stadtholdei 
ing  ally  of 
accept  suel 
On  the  1 
declaration 
ducted  thei 
of  it  was  I 
powerful ; 
one  of  the 
confirm  to 
ler  kings,  r 
equilibrium 
from  the  c 
hor."    This 
conduct  to 
A.  1).  181. 
■enalc,  and 
French  to  i 
•lis  apjieals 
twenty-live 
the  l(!vy  of 
left  Paris  o 
troops  as  . 
»a  one  sidt 
tilt;  allied  f< 
Tlie  arinu 
of  Februar) 


THE  TaEABUttY  OF  HISTORY. 


709 


the  wiiUs  of  Leipsic.  The  following  day  was  spent  in  making  prepara- 
tions for  a  renewal  of  the  contest ;  and  on  the  18tl*  another  general  en- 
gagement took  place.  The  loss  of  the  victors,  auring  a  battle  which 
raged  from  the  dawn  of  day  till  night,  was  severe,  but  that  of  the  van- 
quished was  infinitely  more  so.  Above  forty  thousand  of  the  French 
were  either  killed,  wounded,  or  taken  prisoners ;  seventeen  battalions  of 
Saxons,  with  their  artillery,  joined  the  ranks  of  the  allies,  who  took  also 
Bixty-five  pieces  of  cannon.  The  immediate  fruits  of  this  splendid  victory 
were,  the  capture  of  Leipsic  and  of  the  Saxon  king,  of  thirty  thousand 
prisoners,  and  of  all  the  baggage  and  ammunition  of  the  flying  foe. 

The  allies  did  not  fail  to  follow  up  the  advantages  which  had  been 
gained,  and  their  close  pursuit  of  the  French  army  rendered  its  retreat 
to  the  Rhine  in  some  respects  as  calamitous  as  their  recent  flight  from 
Russia.  The  troops  under  Ulucher  and  Scliwartzenburg,  who  had  greatly 
distinguished  themselves  during  the  late  encounters,  entered  the  French 
territories  on  New-yaar's  day,  1614.  All  the  minor  states  of  Germany 
now  joined  the  grand  alliance,  the  confederation  of  the  Rhine  was  dis- 
solved, and  the  continental  system  established  by  Bonaparte  was  broken  up. 

The  spirit  which  had  attended  the  march  of  the  allied  armies  commu- 
nicatcd  itself  to  the  United  Provinces,  and  occasioned  a  complete  revolu- 
tion in  that  part  of  Europe.  The  arbitrary  annexation  of  that  country  was 
detrimental  to  their  commercial  interests ;  and  at  length,  on  the  approach 
of  tiie  allies  to  (he  Dutch  frontier,  the  people  of  Amsterdam  rose  in  abody, 
and  with  the  rallying  cry  of  "  Orange  IJoven,"  universally  displayed  the 
orange  colours,  and  proclaimed  the  sovereignty  of  that  illustrious  house. 
The  example  of  Amsterdam  was  followed  by  the  other  towns,  the  inde- 
pendence of  Holland  was  asserted,  and  a  deputation  sent  to  London,  to 
announce  the  revolution  and  invite  the  prince  of  Orange  to  place  himself 
at  the  head  of  iiis  countrymen.  The  Dutch  patriots  were  assisted  with 
all  the  succours  that  England  could  furnish,  and  the  prince  of  Orange 
went  and  assumed  the  reins  of  government,  not  under  tlie  ancient  title  of 
stadtholder,  but  as  king  of  the  Netherlands.  Denmark,  the  only  remain- 
ing ally  of  Bonaparli!,  was  compelled,  by  the  crown-prince  of  Sweden,  to 
accept  such  terms  as  the  allied  sovereigns  pleased  to  prescribe. 

On  the  1st  of  December  the  allied  sovereigns  issued  from  Frankfort  a 
declaration  explanatory  of  their  views.  "  Victory,"  they  said,  "  had  con- 
ducted them  to  the  batiks  of  the  Rhine,  and  the  first  use  which  they  made 
of  it  was  to  ofl'er  peace.  They  desired  that  France  might  be  great  and 
powerful ;  because,  in  a  state  of  greatness  and  strength,  she  constituted 
one  of  the  foundatiuus  of  the  social  edifice  of  Europe.  They  offered  to 
confirm  to  the  French  empire  an  extent  of  territory  which  France,  under 
ner  kingb,  never  knew.  Desiring  peace  themselves,  they  wished  such  an 
equilibrium  uf  power  to  be  established,  that  Europe  might  be  preserved 
from  the  calamities  which  for  the  last  twenty  years  had  overwhelmed 
her."  Tills  declaration  wns  based  on  moderation  and  justice,  and  in  their 
conduct  to  France,  the  allies  acted  up  to  their  professions. 

A.  ».  1814. — After  his  hasty  retreat  to  Paris,  the  emperor  assembled  the 
senate,  and  neglected  ni>  means  that  were  likely  to  rouse  the  spirit  of  the 
French  to  resist  their  invaders.  Little  effect  was,  however,  jiroduced  by 
his  appeals  to  the  peojili!,  and  he  was  \nider  the  necessity  of  appointing 
twenty-five  commissioners,  invested  with  absolute  power,  to  accelerate 
the  levy  of  new  forces.  Having  confided  the  regency  to  the  empress,  he 
left  Paris  on  the  25tii  of  January,  and  placed  hiiiiself  at  the  head  of  such 
troops  as  he  could  nuister.  His  dominions  were  at  this  time  threatened 
on  one  side  by  the  Uriiish  troops  under  Wellington,  and  on  the  other  by 
the  allif(i  forces  commanded  by  their  respective  sovereigns  and  generals. 

'I'lii!  army  umler  the  marqins  of  Wellington  attacked  Soult's  on  the  27lh 
r)f  February,  and.  after  an  obstinate  battle,  drove  the  enemy  from  a  strong 


i 


1 1! 

'4\ 
■r 

710 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


position  near  Orthns ;  and  on  the  12th  of  March,  a  division  under  Marshal 
Beresrurd  advanced  to  the  important  city  of  Bourdeaux,  and  entered  it 
amid  the  acclamations  of  the  inhabitants. 

After  the  entry  of  the  northern  allies  into  France,  several  sanguinary 
contests  took  place,  when  Bonaparte,  finding  that  it  was  impracticable  to 
prevail  by  force,  attempted  to  retrieve  his  affairs  by  negotiations.  Pleni- 
potentiaries appointed  by  the  belligerent  powers  accordingly  assembled 
at  Chatillon,  and  the  allies,  whose  moderation  had  on  every  occasion 
been  particularly  conspicuous,  offered  to  sign  preliminaries  of  peace, 
which  would  have  secured  to  Bonaparte  very  important  advantages.  But 
these  offers  were  rejected  by  Napoleon,  who  required  that  his  family 
should  be  placed  on  foreign  thrones,  and  insisted  on  terms  incompatible 
with  the  liberties  of  Europe.  The  conferences  were  discontinued,  and 
the  allied  sovereigns  indignant  at  the  conduct  of  one  who  displayed  such 
an  aversion  to  peace,  resolved  on  vigorously  prosecutiuR  war.  In  all  the 
engagements  which  ensued,  the  superiority  of  the  allies  was  manifested. 
Napoleon  now  adopted  the  singular  resolution  of  getting  to  the  rear  of 
his  enemies,  and  by  this  ill-judged  movement  left  open  the  road  to  Paris. 

As  soon  as  the  Prussian  and  Austrian  commanders  could  form  a  junc- 
tion, they  advanced,  at  the  head  of  200,000  combatants,  towards  the  cap- 
ital of  France,  and  having  gained  a  complete  victory  over  the  army  com- 
manded by  Marmont  and  Mortier,  under  Joseph  Bonaparte,  they  entered 
the  city  which  capitulated  on  the  31st  of  March.  The  enthusiastn  exhibited 
on  this  occasion  surpassed  the  most  sanguine  expectations  of  the  con- 
querors. The  whole  city  seemed  to  rise  en  masse,  and  to  hail  the  allies 
as  the  liberators  of  Europe  and  the  avengers  of  tyranny.  The  white 
cockade  was  generally  worn,  tiie  air  resounded  with  shouts  of  "  Vive  le 
Roi,  Louis  XVIII!"  "Vivent  les  Bourbons!"  and  the  conquerors  were 
welcomed  with  the  acclamations  of  "  Vive  I'Empercur  Alexandre !" 
"Vive  le  Roi  de  Prusse!"  "Vivent  nos  liberateurs!" 

The  French  senate  now  assembled  and  appointed  a  provisional  govern- 
ment, at  the  head  of  which  was  the  celebrated  Talleyrand,  prince  of  Bene- 
vento.  At  a  subsequent  meeting  they  (iei'liirod  that  Napoleon  Bonaparte 
and  his  family  had  forfeited  all  claim  to  the  throne,  and  tliat  the  army  and 
nation  were  consequently  absolved  from  the  oaths  of  allegiance  to  him. 
The  senate  then  directed  their  attention  to  the  choice  of  a  sovereign  ;  and 
after  a  long  consultation,  in  which  there  was  considerable  difference  of 
opinion,  they  determined  to  recall  the  Bourbons.  Marshal  Marmoni,  after 
obtaining  a  promise  that  tlie  life  of  the  emperor  should  be  spared,  and 
that  his  troops  mi<rht  pass  into  Normandy,  joined  the  allies  at  the  head  of 
twelve  thousand  men. 

Bonaparte,  who  had  rctircid  to  Fontainbleau,  finding  that  he  had  been 
deposed  by  the  senate,  and  that  the  allies  were  fully  determined  not  to 
treat  with  him  as  the  ruler  of  France,  now  offered  to  abdicate  in  favouJ 
of  his  infant  son;  but  this  was  peremptorily  rejected,  and  he  solemnly  ab- 
dicated his  usurped  crown  on  the  Gth  of  April,  on  wiiich  day  a  new  con- 
stitution was  given  to  France,  and  Louis  XVIII.  was  recalled  to  the  throne 
of  his  ancestors.  As  soon  as  the  emperor  Alexander  was  informed  of 
this  event,  ho  proposed,  in  the  name  of  the  allied  sovereigns,  that  Napo- 
leon Bonaparte  should  choose  a  place  of  retreat  for  himself  and  fantlly. 
By  a  mistaken  sense  of  gcnero!<ity,  liie  small  island  of  Elba,  situated  in 
the  Mediterranean,  between  Corsica  and  the  Tuscan  coast,  was  given  to 
him,  in  full  sovereignty,  with  an  annual  revenue  of  two  millions  of  francs, 
to  be  paid  by  the  French  goverinntnit ;  Bn<l,what  whs  a  still  more  extrav- 
agant stretch  of  misplaced  liberality,  a  furthei'  allowance  of  two  millions 
five  Innidred  thousand  francs  was  to  be  alhnved  to  thi!  different  branches 
af  his  family  ;  who,  as  well  as  Napoleon,  were  to  be  suffered  to  retain  theii 


THE  TKEASUEY  OF  HISTORY. 


711 


usurped  titles.  The  principality  of  Parma  was  also  settkd  un  Maria 
U)uisa,  his  wife,  in  which  she  was  to  be  succeeded  by  her  son. 

Louis,  who  had  for  several  years  resided  at  Hartwell  in  Buckinghanj- 
shire,  having  accepted  the  basis  of  the  constitution,  made  a  public  entry 
into  London,  and  was  accompanied  to  Dover  by  the  prince  regent,  from 
whence  his  majesty  embarked  for  Calais,  being  conveyed  to  tliat  port  by 
the  duke  of  Clarence.  He  entered  Paris  on  the  3rd  of  May,  where  lie  was 
favourably  received  by  the  inhabitants,  but  the  soldiery  were  fur  from  ap- 
pearing satisfied  with  the  change  which  had  been  so  suddenly  wrought. 
On  the  same  day  Bonaparte,  after  a  variety  of  adventures,  in  which 
he  had  several  narrow  escapes  from  the  populace,  arrived  at  his  abode  in 
Elba. 

Owing  to  some  unaccountable  delay  in  the  transmission  of  the  treaty 
concluded  at  Paris,  or  to  the  envy  of  Marshal  Soult,  who  hoped  to  defeat 
his  opponent,  a  sanguinary  battle  was  fought  near  Toulouse,  on  the  10th 
of  April,  between  his  army  and  that  of  the  marquis  of  Wellington.  But 
this  useless  and  deplorable  effusion  of  blood  oily  added  fresh  trophies  to 
those  already  gained  by  the  British  commander.  The  last  action  of  the 
peninsular  war  was  fought  at  Bayonne,  in  which  Sir  Jolin  Hope  was 
wounded  and  taken  prisoner,  and  General  Andrew  Hay  was  killed. 

Among  the  minor  transactions  of  this  period  we  must  not  omit  that  at 
the  close  of  the  proceeding  year  Hanover  was  recovered  by  the  crown 
prince  of  Sweden,  who  also  reduced  Holstein  and  Westphalia.  The 
king  of  Denmark  joined  the  grand  alliance,  and  Daiitzic  surrendered  after 
a  long  siege.  The  British,  however,  were  repulsed,  with  considerable 
loss,  in  the  attempt  to  take  the  strong  fortress  of  Bergen-op-Zoom. 

A  treaty  of  peace  and  amity  was,  on  the  30th  of  May,  concluded  at  Paris, 
between  his  Britannic  majesty  and  his  most  Christian  majesty,  by  which 
it  was  stipulated  that  the  kingdom  of  France  should  retain  its  limits  entire, 
as  it  existed  previously  to  the  revolution;  that  Malta  should  be  ceded  to 
Great  Britain ;  and  that,  with  the  exception  of  Tubago,  St.  Lucie,  and  the 
Mauritius,  all  other  possessions  held  by  the  French  in  January,  1793, 
should  be  restored.  These  and  a  few  minor  conditions  being  arranged  at 
the  time,  it  was  agreed  that  all  other  subjects  should  be  settled  at  a  con- 
gress, to  be  held  at  Vienna  by  the  high  contracting  parties,  at  some  future 
period.  The  return  of  peace  was  celebrated  by  illuminations,  feastings, 
and  every  joyful  demonstration  th:it  so  happy  an  event  could  inspire. 

A.  D.  1815. — We  now  resume  our  brief  narrative  of  the  events  winch 
were  occuring  on  the  other  side  of  the  Knglish  channel.  Louis  XV  III, 
devoted  his  attention  to  the  re-establishment  of  order  in  the  government, 
and  endeavoured  by  every  kind  and  conciliatory  act  to  soothe  the  animos- 
ities that  still  rankled  in  the  bosoms  of  the  royalists,  republicans,  and  Uo- 
napartisls.  The  new  constitution,  which  was  niodelled  upon  th.it  of  Kng- 
land,  was  readily  accepted  by  tiie  senate  and  legislative  body.  The  con- 
scription was  abolished ;  the  unsold  property  of  the  emigrants  was  re- 
stored to  them ;  the  shops,  which,  during  the  republic  and  the  rei',rn  of 
Bonapart«,  had  always  remained  open  on  Sundays,  were  now  ordered  to 
be  closed,  and  the  liberty  of  the  press  was  restricted. 

A  congress  of  the  allied  powers  was  now  heid  at  Vienna,  for  the  purpose 
of  making  such  political  and  territorial  regulations  as  should  effectually 
restore  the  equilibrium  of  power,  and  afford  a  more  certain  prospect  of 
permanent  tranquillity.  But  a  state  of  tranquillity  was  not  so  near  as  their 
sanguine  wishes  contemplated.  An  event  happened  ere  their  delilerations 
were  brought  to  a  conclusion,  which  made  it  necessary  lor  them  to  lay  aside 
their  pen,  and  once  more  take  up  the  sword.  The  restless  and  intrignini 
spirit  of  Napoleon  was  not  to  be  confined  to  the  isle  of  KIba,  and  the  allied 
armies  were  no  sooner  withdrawn  from  France,  than  he  meditated  a  de- 
scent on  Its  coast.    He  accordingly  took  advantage  of  the  first  opportunity 


it '» 1 ' 


€■' 


712 


THE  TlUSASUttY  OP  HI8T0KY. 


that  offered  of  leaving  the  island,  attended  by  the  officers  and  troops  who 
had  followed  him  thither,  with  many  Corsicans  and  Elbese,  and  landed 
at  Cannes,  in  Provence,  on  the  Ist  of  March. 

The  news  of  his  landing  was  instantly  conveyed  to  Paris,  and  large 
bodies  of  troops  were  sent  to  arrest  his  progress,  and  make  him  prisoner. 
But  Louis  was  surrounded  by  traitors  ;  the  army  regretted  the  loss  of 
their  chief  who  had  so  often  led  them  to  victory ;  they  forgot  his  de- 
sertion of  their  comrades  in  the  moment  of  peril,  and  doubted  not  that 
his  return  would  efface  their  late  disgrace,  and  restore  them  to  that  proud 
pre-eminence  from  which  they  had  fallen.  At  his  approach,  the  armies 
that  had  been  sent  to  oppose  him  openly  declared  in  his  favour,  and  he 
pursued  his  journey  to  Paris,  augmenting  his  numbers  at  every  step,  till 
all  resistance  on  the  part  of  the  king  was  deemed  useless.  On  reaching 
the  capital,  he  was  received  by  the  inconstant  multitude  with  acclamations 
as  loud  as  those  which  so  recently  had  greeted  the  arrival  of  Louis.  Such 
is  the  instability  of  what  is  termed  popular  favour.  The  unfortunate  king 
retired  first  to  Lisle,  and  then  to  Ghent. 

When  the  allied  sovereigns  were  informed  that  Napoleon  had  broken 
his  engagements,  and  saw  that  his  bad  faith  was  fully  equal  to  his  ambi- 
tion, they  published  a  declaration  to  the  effect  that  Bonaparte,  having  vio- 
lated the  convention,  had  forfeited  every  claim  to  public  favour,  and 
would  henceforth  be  considered  only  as  an  outlaw.  In  answer  to  this,  he 
published  a  counter-declaration,  asserting  tiiat  he  was  recalled  to  the 
throne  by  the  unanimous  voice  of  the  nation,  and  that  he  was  resolved  to 
devote  tlie  remainder  of  his  life  in  cultivating  the  arts  of  peace. 

In  the  meantime  preparations  for  war  were  made  by  all  the  allied 
powers.  The  English,  whose  arm)',  under  the  command  of  the  duke  of 
Wellington,  was  at  this  time  in  the  Netherlands,  resolved  not  to  leave  the 
man  they  had  once  conquered  in  quiet  possession  of  the  throne  of  France, 
and  every  engine  was  put  in  motion  to  re-assemble  the  troops.  Bonaparte, 
likewise,  actively  prepared  for  the  contest  that  wiis  to  decide  his  fule.  He 
collected  together  all  the  disposable  forces  of  France,  and  led  them  towards 
the  Netherlands,  hoping  to  arrive  before  fresh  troops  could  come  to  the 
aid  of  the  English  and  Prussians,  and  thus  defeat  them  and  get  possession 
of  Brussels. 

The  army  under  the  immediate  direction  of  the  French  emperor,  includ- 
ing the  corps  of  Grouchy,  amounted  to  upwards  of  150,000  men,  with  350 
pieces  of  cannon.  In  an  order  of  the  day,  issued  the  14th  of  June,  he  said, 
"  the  moment  has  arrived  for  every  Frenchman  who  has  a  heart,  to  con- 
quer or  perish."  The  allied  troops  in  Flanders  were  yet  quiet  in  their 
cantonments.  The  Prusso-Saxon  army  formed  the  left,  the  Anglo-Bel- 
gian army  the  right.  The  former  was  115,000  strong,  commanded  by  the 
veteran  Blucher;  the  latter  about  80,000,  commanded  by  the  duke  of  Wel- 
lington, whose  head-quarters  were  at  Brussels;  those  of  Blucher  were 
at  Namur,  about  sixteen  leagues  distant. 

On  the  15th  of  June  the  memorable  campaign  of  1815  was  begun,  by 
Napoleon  driving  in  the  advance  posts  of  the  Prussians  on  the  river  Sam- 
brc,  while  Marshal  Ncy  crossed  the  river  at  Marchiennes,  repulsed  tlie 
Prussians,  and  drove  back  a  Belgian  brigade  to  Quatre-Bras.  In  the 
evening,  at  eleven  o'clock,  the  duke  of  Wellington  (who,  together  with 
the  duke  of  Brunswick,  and  the  principal  officers  then  in  Brussels,  were 
participating:  in  the  festivities  of  a  ball,  given  by  the  duchess  of  Uichmond), 
received  a  dispatch  from  Marshal  Blucher,  informing  him  that  Ilonapartc 
was  on  hia  march  to  Brussels,  at  the  head  of  an  hundred  and  fifty  thous- 
and men.  The  dance  was  suspended,  and  orders  issued  for  assemkilinf 
the  troops.  On  the  IC'th  was  fought  the  battle  of  Ligny,  in  which  Blucher 
was  detiiated,  and  forced  to  retreat  to  Wavre,  having  narrowly  escaped 
being  taken  prisoner.    On  the  Ame  day  the  duke  of  Wellington  had  di 


THE  TREASURE  OF  HISTORY. 


713 


reeled  his  whole  army  to  advance  on  Quatre-Bras,  wicli  the  intention  of 
succouring  Blucher,  but  was  himself  attacked  by  a  lar?e  body  of  cavalry 
and  infantry,  before  his  own  cavalry  had  joined.  In  the  meantime  the 
English,  under  Sir  Thomas  Picton,  and  Belgians,  under  the  duke  of  Bruns- 
wick, had  to  sustain  the  impetuous  attacks  of  the  French,  commanded  by 
Marshal  Ney,  who  was  eventually  repulsed,  though  with  considerable 
loss.  In  this  action  fell  the  gallant  duke  of  Brunswick,  who  was  univer- 
sally and  deservedly  lamented.  The  whole  of  the  17th  was  employed  in 
preparations  for  the  eventful  battle  that  ensued. 

The  retreat  of  Blucher's  army  to  Wavre  rendered  it  necessary  for  Wel- 
lington to  make  a  corresponding  retrograde  movement,  in  order  to  keep  up 
a  communication  with  the  Prussians,  and  to  occupy  a  position  in  front  of 
the  village  of  Waterloo.  Confronting  the  position  of  the  allies  was  a 
chain  of  heights,  separated  by  a  ravine,  half  a  mile  in  breadth.  Here  Na- 
poleon arrayed  his  forces,  and  having  rode  through  the  lines  and  given 
his  last  orders,  he  placed  himself  on  the  heights  of  Rossome,  whence  he 
had  a  complete  view  of  the  two  armies. 

About  a  quarter  before  eleven  o'clock  the  battle  began  by  a  fierce  attack 
on  the  British  division  posted  at  Hougomont;  it  was  taken  and  retaken 
several  times,  the  English  guards  bravely  defending  and  eventually  re- 
maining in  possession  of  it.    At  the  same  time  the  French  kept  an  iines- 
Rant  cannonade  against  the  whole  line,  and  male  repeated  charges  with 
heavy  masses  of  cuirassiers,  supported  by  close  columns  of  infantry,  whith, 
except  in  one  instance,  when  the  farm  of  La  Haye  Sainte  was  forceO, 
were  uniformly  repulsed,    Charges  and  counter-charges  of  cavalry  and 
laifantry  followed  with  astonishing  pertinacity.     The  brave  Sir  Thomas 
Picton  was  shot  at  the  head  of  his  division ;  a  grand  charge  of  British 
cavalry  then  ensued,  which  for  a  moment  swept  everything  before  it ;  but, 
assailed  in  its  turn  by  masses  of  cuirassiers  and  Polish  lancers,  it  was 
forced  back,  and  in  the  desperate  encounter  Sir  William  Ponsonby  and 
other  gallant  officers  were  slain.    Soon  after  this,  it  is  said,  the  duke  felt 
himself  so  hard  pressed,  that  'e  was  heard  to  say,  "Would  to  God  night 
or  Blucher  woi'lrl  come."    As  the  shades  of  evening  approached,  it  ap- 
peared almost  ,'    l.tful  whether  'he  troops  could  much  longer  sustain  the 
unequal  conflict ,  Imt  at  this  crit.cal  moment  the  Prussian  caimonade  was 
heard  on  the  left.     Bonaparte  immediately  dispatched  a  force  to  hold  them 
in  check,  while  he  brought  forward  the  imperial  guards,  sustained  by 
the  best  regiments  of  horse  and  foot,  amid  shouts  of  "Vive  I'empereur," 
and  flourishes  of  martial  music.    At  tliis  moment  the  duke  of  Wellington 
brought  forward  his  whole  line  of  infantry,  supported  by  the  cavalry  and 
artillery,  and  promptly  ordered  his  men  to  "charge!"    This  was  so  unex- 
pected by  the  enemy,  and  so  admirably  performed  by  the  British  troops, 
that  the  French  fled  as  though  the  whole  army  were  panic-stricken.    Na 
poleon,  perceiving  the  recoil  of  his  columns  on  all  sides,  exclaimed,  "it  is 
all  over,"  and  retreated  with  all  possible  speed.    The  French  left  the  field 
in  the  utmost  confusion  and  dismay,  abandoning  above  one  hundred  and 
fifty  pieces  of  cannon.    They  were  pursued  by  the  victors  till  long  after 
dark,  wlien  the  British,  exhausted  by  fatigue,  halted ;  the  Prussians  there- 
fore continued  the  pursuit,  and  nothing  could  be  more  complete  than  the 
discomfiture  of  the  routed  army :  not  more  than  forty  thousand  men,  partly 
without  arms,  and  carrying  with  them  only  twenty-seven  pieces  out  of 
their  numerous  artillery,  made  their  retreat  through  Charleroi.    The  loss 
of  the  allies  was  great ;  that  of  the  British  and  Hanoverians  alone  amounted 
to  lliirteen  thousand.    Two  gcnonds  and  four  colonels  were  among  the 
killed ;  nine  generals  and  five  colonels  were  wounded ;  among  them  wa 
Lord  Uxbridge,  who  had  fouglit  gallantly,  and  was  wcunded  by  almo 
the  last  shot  thai  was  fired  by  the  enemy.    Such  is  the  general,  thoug 
necessarily  meagre,  oijtline  of  the  ever-memorable  battle  of  Waterloo 


714 


THE  TRKASIJEY  OP  HISTOEY. 


evincing  one  of  tlie  noblest  proofs  upon  record  of  British  valour,  and  of 
(he  talents  of  a  great  national  commander. 

Bonaparte  returned  to  Paris,  in  the  gloominess  of  despair,  and  admitted 
that  his  army  was  no  more.  The  partisans  of  Louis  looked  forward  to 
the  restoration  of  the  Bourbons;  another  party  deuired  a  republic;  while 
the  Uonaparlists  showed  their  anxiety  to  receive  Napoleon's  abdication, 
and  to  make  Maria  Louisa  empress-regent  durmg  her  eon's  minority 
Meanwhile  the  representatives  of  the  nation  declared  their  sittings  per- 
manent, and  some  of  the  members  having  boldly  asserted  that  tne  un- 
conditional abdication  of  Bonaparte  could  alone  save  the  state,  the  declar- 
ation was  received  with  applause,  and  the  fallen  emperor  was  persuaded 
once  more  to  descend  from  his  usurped  throne. 

A  commission  was  appointed  to  repair  to  the  allied  armies  with  propo- 
sals of  peace,  but  the  victors  had  formed  a  resolution  not  to  treat  but  under 
tl«3  walls  of  Paris.  The  duke  of  Wellington  then  addressed  a  proclama- 
tion to  the  French  people,  stating  that  he  had  entered  the  country  not  as 
an  enemy,  except  to  the  usurper,  with  whom  there  could  be  no  peace  nor 
truce,  but  to  enable  them  to  throw  off  the  yoke  by  which  they  were  op- 

f>ressed.  Wellington  and  Bhicher  continued  their  march  to  Paris  with 
ittle  opposition,  and  on  the  M)\h  it  was  invested.  The  heights  about  the 
city  were  strongly  fortified,  and  it  was  defended  by  fifty  thousand  troops 
of  the  line,  besides  national  guards  and  volunteers.  On  the  3d  of  July, 
Marshal  Davoust,  the  French  commander,  concluded  a  convention  with 
the  generals-in-chief  of  the  allied  armies,  who  stipulated  that  Paris  should 
be  evacuated  in  three  days  by  the  French  troops ;  all  the  fortified  posts 
and  barriers  given  up;  and  no  individual  prosecuted  for  his  political  opin- 
ions or  conduct.  The  provisional  government  now  retired,  and  on  the  6th 
Louis  made  his  public  entry  into  Paris,  where  he  was  hailed  by  his  fickle 
subjects  with  cries  of  "Vive  le  roi!"  The  military,  however,  though 
beaten,  were  still  stubborn,  and  it  required  some  lime  and  address  to  make 
them  acknowledge  the  sovereignty  of  the  Bourbons. 

Bonaparte  in  the  meantime  had  reached  the  port  of  Rochefort  in  safety, 
from  when(;c  he  anxiously  hoped  to  escape  to  America ;  but  finding  it  im- 
possible to  elude  the  British  cruisers,  he  went  on  board  the  Bellerophon, 
one  of  the  vessels  blockading  the  coast,  and  surrendered  himself  to  Cap- 
tain Mailland.  Prior  to  this  he  had  sought  to  stipulate  for  a  free  pas- 
sage, or  to  surrender  on  condition  of  being  allowed  to  reside  in  England 
in  honourable  exile  ;  but  neither  proposal  could  be  listened  to;  the  allied 
powers,  aware  of  his  restless  and  intriguing  disposition,  had  determined 
upon  the  island  of  St.  Helena  as  his  future  residence,  and  that  there  he 
should  be  kept  under  the  strictest  guard.  The  Bel'erophon  proceeded  to 
Torbay ;  Napoleon  was  transferred  to  the  Northumberland,  commanded 
by  Admiral  Sir  G.  Cockhuin,  and,  attended  by  some  of  his  most  attached 
friends  and  domestics,  he  in  due  course  reached  his  destination,  but  not 
without  violently  protesting  against  the  injustice  of  his  banishment,  after 
having  thrown  himself  upon  the  hospitality  of  the  British  nation. 

Murat,  the  brother-in-law  of  Napoleon,  having  joined  the  allies  when 
he  found  the  career  of  his  friend  and  patron  growing  to  a  close,  rejoined 
him  again  on  his  return  from  £lba-,  but  having  been  driven  from  the  throne 
of  Naples,  he  joined  a  band  of  desperadoes,  and  landed  in  Calabria,  where, 
Leing  speedily  overcome  and  taken,  he  was  itistan'lj'  shot.  Marslial  Ney 
f  who  had  promised  Louis  to  bring  Napoleon,  "like  »  wild  beaet  in  a  cage, 
to  Paris")  and  Colonel  Labedoyere,  sufl'ered  for  their  treachery;  but  Lav- 
alette,  who  was  sentenced  to  the  same  fate,  escaped  from  priton,  dis- 
guised in  his  wife's  clothes,  and,  by  the  assistance  of  Sir  Robert  Wilson, 
Mr.  Hutchinson,  and  Mr.  Bruce,  got  out  of  the  country  undiscoverci'. 

A  congress  was  held  at  Vienna,  and  several  treaties  between  the  at'ied 
powers  and  France  were  finally  adjusted.    (Nov.  20.)    The  additions  made 


THE  TREASUHY  OF  HISTORY. 


715 


10  the  French  territory  by  the  treaty  ot  1814  were  now  rescinded;  seven- 
teen of  the  frontier  fortified  towns  and  cities  of  France  were  to  be  gar- 
risoned by  the  allies  for  five  years ;  one  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  troops, 
as  an  army  of  occupation  under  the  duke  of  Wellington,  were  to  be  main- 
tained for  the  same  space  of  time ;  and  a  sum  of  900,000,000  francs  was 
to  be  paid  as  an  indemnity  to  the  allies.  It  was  further  agreed,  that  all 
the  works  of  art  which  had  been  plundered  by  the  French  from  other 
countries,  should  be  restored.  Thus  the  master-pieces  of  art  deposited 
in  the  gallery  of  the  Louvre  (the  Venus  de  Medicis,  the  Apollo  Belvi- 
dere,  &c.,  &c.),  were  reclaimed  by  their  respective  owners — an  act  of 
stern  justice,  but  one  which  excited  the  utmost  indignation  among  the 
Parisians. 

In  order  to  secure  the  peace  of  Germany,  an  act  of  confederation  was 
concluded  between  its  respective  rulers,  every  member  of  which  was 
free  to  form  what  alliances  he  pleased,  provided  they  were  such  as  could 
not  prove  injurious  to  the  general  safety,  and  in  case  of  one  prince  being 
attacked,  all  the  rest  were  bound  to  arm  in  his  defence.  Thus  ended  this 
long  and  sanguinary  warfare,  the  events  of  which  were  so  rapid  and  ap- 
palling, and  their  consequences  so  mighty  and  unlooked-for,  that  future 
ages  will  be  tempted  to  doubt  the  evidence  of  facts,  and  to  believe  that  the 
history  of  the  nineteenth  century  is  interwoven  with  and  embellished  by 
the  splendour  of  fiction. 

A.  n.  1816.— It  has  been  justly  observed,  that  "it  was  only  after  the 
storm  had  subsided  that  England  became  sensible  of  the  wounds  received 
in  her  late  tremendous  struggla.  While  hostilities  lasted,  siie  felt  neither 
weakness  nor  disorder.  Though  a  princrpal  in  the  war,  she  had  been  ex- 
empt from  its  worst  calamities.  Battles  were  fought,  countries  were  over- 
run and  desolated,  but  her  own  border  remained  unassailable.  Like  a 
spectator  viewing  securely  the  tempest  at  a  distance,  she  was  only  seMi- 
ble  of  its  fury  by  the  wreck  of  neighbouring  nations,  wafted  at  inlerv«l3 
to  her  shores.  The  cessation  of  hostilities  in  1815,  was  like  the  cessation 
of  motion  in  a  gigantic  machine,  which  has  been  urged  to  its  maximum 
velocity.  One  of  the  first  results  of  peace  was  an  enormous  diminution 
in  the  war  expenditure  of  the  government.  During  the  last  five  years  of 
the  war,  the  public  expenditure  averaged  108,720,000/.  During  the  first 
five  years  of  peace,  it  averaged  64,660,0002.  Peace  tltus  caused  an  imme- 
diate reduction  of  nearly  fifty  millions  in  the  amount  of  money  expended 
by  government  in  the  support  of  domestic  industry. 

At  the  commencement  of  the  session  the  ministers  were  defeated  in  at- 
tempting to  continue  the  property  tax  for  one  year  longer;  and, chagrined 
at  this  result,  they  abandoned  the  war  duty  on  malt,  thereby  relinquishing 
a  tax  that  would  have  produced  2,000,000/.  The  bank  restriction  bill  was 
extended  for  two  years  longer,  and  another  ineffectual  attempt  was  made 
in  favour  of  the  Roman  catholic  claims. 

The  house  was  now  informed,  by  a  message  from  the  prince  regent, 
that  a  matrimonial  alliance  was  about  to  take  place  between  his  daughter 
and  Prince  Leopold  of  Saxe  Cobourg :  upon  whic.i  parliament  voted  an 
annual  provision  of  60,000/.  for  supporting  a  suitable  establishment,  and, 
in  the  event  of  the  decease  of  the  princess,  50,000/.  per  annum  was  secured 
to  his  royal  highness  for  life.  The  nuptials  were  solemnized  with  be- 
coming splendour,  on  the  2d  of  May,  at  Carlton  house.  In  the  .Fuly  follow- 
ing the  princess  Mary  gave  her  hand  to  her  cousin  the  duke  of  Gloucester. 
The  event  next  demanding  notice,  was  one  which  placed  the  glory  of 
British  arms  and  British  humanity  in  a  conspicuous  light.  The  Algerines 
and  their  neighbours,  the  Tunisians,  had  long  been  in  the  habit  of  com- 
mitting atrocities  on  the  subjects  of  every  Christian  power  that  happened 
to  fall  into  their  hands.  Repeated  remonstrances  had  been  made,  without 
procuring  redress,  and  it  was  now  determined  that  this  horde  of  pirates 


nilrf 


ric 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HI3T0EY. 


should  either  accede  to  certain  proposals,  or  suffer  for  so  long  and  barbar 
ously  deryin>r  the  laws  of  civilized  nations.  Accordingly,  Lord  Kxmouth 
was  sent  with  a  fleet  to  the  states  of  Barbary,  to  conclude  a  treaty  of 
peace  between  them  and  the  kings  of  Naples  and  Sardinia,  to  abolish 
Christian  slavery,  and  to  obtain  from  them  a  promise  to  respect  the  flag 
of  the  Ionian  islands,  which  had  lately  become  an  independent  country. 
The  beys  of  Tunis  and  Tripoli  acceded  to  all  these  demands ;  but  the  dey 
of  Algiers  demurred,  as  far  as  regarded  the  abolition  of  slavery.  Shortly 
after,  notwithstanding  this  treaty,  a  considerable  number  of  unarmed 
Christians,  who  had  landed  at  Bona,  having  been  massacred  by  the  Mo- 
hammedans, Lord  Exmouth  returned  and  commenced  a  furious  bombard- 
ment of  the  city  of  Algiers,  which  lasted  six  hours;  the  contest  was 
severe ;  eight  hundred  of  the  assailants  fell  in  the  action,  and  the  Britisli 
ships  suffered  considerably,  but  the  gallant  admiral  had  the  satisfaction 
of  demolishing  the  Algerine  batteries,  and  destroying  their  shipping, 
arsenal,  and  magazine,  while  the  dey  was  forced  to  agree  to  the  abolition 
of  Christian  slavery,  and  the  release  of  all  within  his  dominions. 

Tiie  distresses  of  the  labouring  and  manufacturing  classes,  and  the  high 
price  of  provisions,  at  length  produced  serious  disturbances  in  various 
parts  of  England.  The  malcontents  in  the  eastern  counties  broke  out 
into  open  violence,  and  were  not  suppressed  without  the  assistance  of  the 
military.  In  London  similar  attempts  were  made.  Mr.  Hunt,  a  popular 
demagogue,  had  on  tiie  15th  of  November  convened  a  public  meeting  in 
Spa-fields,  to  draw  up  a  petition  to  the  regent.  On  the  2d  of  December 
another  meeting  was  called  to  receive  the  answer  to  their  petition.  While 
this  meeting  was  awaiting  the  arrival  of  Mr.  Hunt,  a  band  of  desperadoes 
appeared  on  the  ground  with  a  tri-coloured  flag  and  other  banners,  beaded 
by  a  young  man  named  Watson,  who,  after  using  violent  language  from  a 
wagon,  proceeded  towards  the  city,  accompanied  by  a  vast  crowd  of  the 
populace.  On  arriving  at  Snow-hill  they  plundered  the  shop  of  Mr.  Beck- 
with,  a  gunsmith ;  and  a  person  named  Piatt,  who  remonstrated  against 
the  proceeding,  was  shot  at  and  wounded  by  young  Watson.  They  then 
hurried  on  towards  the  Royal-exchange,  where  they  were  met  by  a  body 
of  the  police,  headed  by  Mayor  Wood,  who  ordered  the  gates  to  be  shut, 
and  seized  several  who  had  arms.  Ttic  mob  plundered  some  more  gun- 
smiths' sliops  in  the  Minories,  but  the  military  coming  to  the  aid  of  the 
civil  power,  several  of  the  rioters  were  apprehended,  and  the  remainder 
dispersed.  One,  named  Cashman,  suffered  capital  punishment,  but  the 
ringleader  contrived  to  effect  his  escape  to  America,  although  a  large  re- 
ward was  offered  for  his  apprehension. 

A.  D.  1817.^In  the  regent's  speech  at  the  opening  of  parliament,  allusion 
was  made  to  the  popular  discontents,  which  he  ascribed  to  the  efforts  of 
designing  persons  to  mislead  the  people.  On  his  return  through  St. 
James'  purl<  an  immense  mob  had  assembled,  who  saluted  him  with 
groans  and  hisses,  and  as  he  passed  the  back  of  Curlton-house  the  glass 
of  the  royal  carriage  was  perforated  either  by  a  stone  or  the  ball  from  an 
air-gun.  To  meet  the  public  exigencies,  his  royal  highness  soon  after 
surrendered  fifty  thousand  pounds  per  annum  of  his  income.  This  ex- 
ample was  followed  by  the  marquis  Camden,  who  patriotically  gave  up 
the  fees  of  the  tellership  of  the  exchequer,  valued  at  thirteen  thousand 
pounds  per  annum,  reserving  only  the  salary  of  two  tiiousand  seven  hun- 
dred pounds.  Alas!  the  noble  marquis  had  no  imitators ;  but  though  his 
generous  example  was  not  followed,  the  deed  will  not  be  wholly  ob- 
literated from  his  country's  annals. 

A  melancholy  event  now  occurred.  The  princess  Charlotte,  daughter 
of  the  regent  and  consort  of  Prince  Leopold,  expired  on  the  5ih  of  No- 
vember, after  having  given  birth  to  a  dead  child.  The  untimely  fate  of 
this  amiable  princess  caused  a  regret  which  was  universally  exprofcsed. 


THS  TREAStniY  OF   HISTOllY 


717 


[ler  unostentatious  and  frank  demeanour,  her  domestic  virtues  and  be- 
nevolent disposition,  had  inspired  the  people  with  a  high  idea  of  her  worth, 
and  they  fondly  antieipated  that  under  her  auspices  the  glory  and  pros- 
perity of  England  would  again  become  resplendent. 

There  is  little  else  of  a  domestic  nature  to  record  this  year,  if  we  except 
the  three  days'  trial  of  William  Hone,  the  parodist,  who  was  arraigned  upon 
criminal  information  as  a  profane  libeller  of  parts  of  the  liturgy.  He  was 
tried  by  Lord  Ellenborough  and  Mr.  Justice  Abbott ;  and  having  conducted 
his  defence  with  unusual  ingenuity  and  perseverance,  he  not  only  came 
off  victor,  but  actually  pocketed  the  sum  of  three  thousand  pounds,  the 
amount  of  a  public  subscription,  raised  to  remunerate  liim  for  liiving  un< 
dergone  the  perils  of  a  government  prosecution,  or  as  a  reward  for  the 
laudable  intention  of  bringing  into  contempt  both  church  and  state ! 

A.  D.  1818. — The  parliamentary  session  was  opened  by  commission. 
The  habeas  corpus  act  was  rf^stored,  and  a  iiill  passed  to  screen  ministers 
from  tiie  legal  penalties  the;  ^.light  have  incurred  through  the  abuse  of 
their  j*)wer  during  the  time  of  its  suspension.  At  the  same  lime  meet- 
ings were  held  in  nearly  every  populous  town  throughout  the  country,  for 
the  purpose  of  petitioning  for  parliamentary  reform.  When  the  sessions 
closed  on  the  10th  of  June,  the  parliament  was  dissolved,  and  writs  issued 
for  new  elections.  All  the  ministerial  candidates  in  the  city  of  London 
were  thrown  out,  and  Sir  Samuel  Romilly  and  Sir  Francis  Burdett  were 
returned  for  Westminster;  but  in  the  country  the  elections  passed  off 
quietly,  and  little  change  was  produced  in  the  parliamentary  majority  of 
ministers. 

Queen  Charlotte,  who  had  been  some  time  indisposed,  expired  at  Kew, 
m  the  75th  year  of  her  age,  and  the  68th  of  her  marriage  with  the  king. 
Owing  to  her  exemplary  conduct  the  court  of  England  was  pre-eminent 
for  its  strict  decorum. 

The  year  1818  was  fertile  in  royal  marriages ;  the  princess  Elizabeth 
was  married  to  the  prince  of  Hesse  Romberg ;  the  duke  of  Clarence  to 
tiie  princess  of  Meinengen ;  the  duke  of  Kent  to  the  princess  dowager 
Leinengen,  sister  to  Prince  Leopold ;  and  the  duke  of  Cambridge  to  the 
princess  of  Hesse  Cassel. 

The  British  army  returned  from  France,  which  they  had  lately  occupied, 
according  to  the  stipulations  of  the  treaty  at  the  restoration  of  Louis 
XVIII.  Towards  the  close  of  the  year  the  expedition  which  hid  been 
sent  to  explore  the  arctic  regions  also  returned  to  England,  but  without 
accomplishing  their  object— the  progress  of  the  vessels  having  been  so 
impeded  by  the  ice. 

A.  D.  1819.— The  country  was  still  pregnant  with  disaffection,  and  the 
doctrine  of  annual  parliaments  and  universal  suffrage  was  advocated  by 
demagogues  as  the  only  remedy  for  a  corrupt  state  of  the  representation. 
At  length  the  meetings  assumed  a  very  serious  aspect;  one  of  which, 
from  its  being  attended  with  fatal  consequences,  and  having  given  rise 
to  much  subsequent  discussion,  it  is  necessary  to  describe.  This  was 
the  "Manchester  reform  meeting."  It  was  originally  convened  for  the 
choice  of  a  parliamentary  representative,  and  had  been  fixed  to  take 
place  on  the  4th  of  August ;  but  in  consequence  of  a  spirited  notice  put 
forth  by  the  magistrates,  declaring  that  the  intended  meeting  was  illegal, 
it  was  postponed,  and  hopes  were  entertained  that  it  would  ultimately  have 
been  abandoned.  However,  new  placards  were  issued  for  the  16th,  and 
"pariiamentary  reform"  was  substituted  for  the  original  object.  A  piece 
of  ground  called  St.  Peter's  field  was  the  spot  chosen  for  this  exhibition; 
and  hither  large  bodies  of  men,  arrayed  in  regular  order,  continued  to 
march  during  the  whole  of  the  morning,  the  neighbounng  towns  and 
villages  pouring  out  their  multitudes  for  the  purpose  of  centering  in  this 
fccus  of  radical  discontent.      Each  parly  had  its  banner,  with  some 


718 


THE  TREAStRY  OF  HISTORY. 


motto  thereon  inscribed,  clianicteristic  of  the  grand  object  they  had  in 
veiw,  mottoes  which  have  since  become  familiar  even  to  ears  polite— such 
as  "  No  Corn  Laws,"  "  Annual  Parliaments,"  "  Vote  by  Ballot,"  "  Liberty 
or  Death,"  &c.  Nay,  such  was  the  enthusiasm  of  the  hour  that  among 
Ihtm  were  seen  two  clubs  of  "  female  reformers,"  their  wiiite  flags  float- 
ing in  the  breeze.  At  the  time  Mr.  Hunt  took  the  chair  not  less 
than  fifty  thousand  persons — men,  women,  and  children — had  as 
sembled,  and  while  he  whs  addressing  his  audience,  a  body  of  the  Man- 
chester yeomanry  cavalry  came  ni  sigiit,  and  directly  galloped  up  to  the 
hustings,  seizing  the  orator,  together  with  his  companions  and  their  ban- 
ners. A  dreadful  scene  of  terror  and  confusion  ensued,  numbers  being 
trampled  under  the  horses'  feet,  or  cut  down.  Six  persons  were  killed, 
and  about  a  hundred  wounded.  Coroners'  inquests  were  held  on  the 
dead  bodies,  but  the  verdicts  of  the  juries  led  to  no  judicial  proceeding  ; 
true  bills,  however,  were  found  against  Hunt,  Moorhouse,  Johnson,  and 
seven  others,  for  a  conspiracy  to  overturn  the  government,  but  at  the 
same  time  they  were  admitted  to  bail. 

Public  meetings  were  now  held  in  all  the  principal  towns  in  the  king- 
dom, and  addresses  were  presented  to  the  regent  and  the  parliament, 
condemnatory  of  the  civil  and  military  authorities  at  Manchester,  which 
were  met  by  counter-addresses,  calling  for  the  repression  of  sedition,  &c. 
At  the  opening  of  parliament  the  subject  underwent  a  thorough  discussion, 
aiid  amendments  to  the  address  were  moved  in  both  houses,  character- 
ising the  Manchester  [)roeeedings  as  unconstitutional ;  they  were,  how- 
ever, negatived  by  overwlielming  majorities.  At  the  same  time  strong 
measures  were  resorted  to  for  preventing  the  occurrence  of  similar  dis- 
orders, by  passing  C(  rlain  preventive  and  prohibitory  acts  of  parliament, 
afterwards  familiarly  known  as  the  "  six  acts."  These,  though  decidedly 
coercive,  seemed  called  for  by  the  state  of  the  country,  and  received  the 
ready  sanction  of  the  legislature. 

On  the  23d  of  .lami.iry,  18J0,  died  at  Sidmouth,  in  his  53d  year,  Prince 
Kdward,  duke  of  Kent;  leaving  a  widow,  and  one  child,  the  Princess 
Victoria,  then  only  eiu'lit  months  old.  The  duke  had  never  mixed  much 
in  the  turmoil  of  |)olilics,  his  life  having  been  chiclly  spent  in  the  army, 
wIktc  he  obiaiiKMl  a  high  character  for  bravery,  but  was  regarded  as  a  too 
strict  disi'ipiiiiariati. 

Scarcely  had  the  news  of  the  duke's  decease  reached  the  more  distant 
parts  of  (Jrcal  Hritaiii,  lufnre  the  dcalh-knell  of  his  venerable  father, 
George  III.,  was  heard.  The  bodily  heallli  of  his  inajf'sty  had  of  late  been 
fast  (iciliiiiiiij,  and  on  llie  2!)th  of  .laiiiiaiy  he  exi)h-ed.  Some  lucid  in- 
tervals, Ihontfli  few,  had  been  noticed  din'iiiLT  the  lime  he  laboured  iiiiihT  hi* 
distressing  malady;  hut  he  had  long  heiMi  blinil,  :iiid  latterly  deafner<s  was 
added  to  his  otlier  afllii-tions.  'i"he  king  was  in  the  8','d  year  of  his  age, 
and  the  (illth  of  his  reign  ;  leaving  six  sons  and  four  daiighl(>rs  living  at  the 
time  of  his  decease.  His  remains  were  interred  in  the  royal  vault 
at  Windsor. 

In  speaking  of  the  character  of  Oeorge  (he  Third,  no  one  will  deny 
that  he  appeared  inv.iriably  to  act  up  to  the  diiiales  of  his  conscience  ;  as 
a  monarch,  he  studied  the  w<'lfare  of  his  subjects;  us  a  father,  he  n»'Klect- 
ed  not  the  honour  and  happiness  of  his  chililreii.  lie  left  a  name  unsullied 
by  any  |)arlieular  vice,  and  his  memory  will  be  honoiii'ed  by  posterity 
fur  till-  goodness  of  his  heart,  for  Ins  piety,  clemency,  and  fortitude. 


THK  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


710 


CHAPFKll  LXIV. 

THE    REIGN   OF   OEOROB    IV. 

A.  n.  1S20.— George  the  Fourth,  eldest  son  of  the  lute  vmerable  inon- 
arch,  who  had  exercised  sovenngii  power  as  regent  during  his  roynl  fath- 
er's mentjil  incapacity,  was  immediately  proclaimed  king,  and  the  new 
reign  commenced  without  any  expectation  of  official  changes.  At  the 
very  moment  of  his  accession,  and  for  some  time  before,  a  most  atrocious 
conspiracy  existed,  having  for  its  object  the  assassination  of  the  whole  of 
his  majesty's  ministers.  The  sanguinary  intentions  of  the  conspirators 
render  a  detail  of  their  plans  necessary. 

Several  wretched  individuals,  headed  by  Arthur  Thistlewood — a  man 
who  had  formerly  been  a  lieutenant  in  the  army,  but  who  had  subsequently 
suffered  fine  and  imprisonment  for  challenging  Lord  Sidmouth  to  tight  a 
duel,  and  was  now  reduced  to  indigence — hired  a  stable  in  Calo-street, 
Edge  ware  road,  for  the  express  purpose  of  assembling  there  and  consult- 
ing on  the  best  plan  of  putting  the  design  into  execution.  The  time 
chosen  for  the  commission  of  the  bloody  deed  was  on  the  occasion  of  a 
cabinet-dinner  at  Lord  Harrowby's,  in  Grosvenor-square;  they  iutoiidi'd 
to  proceed  in  a  body  to  his  lordship's  house,  and,  having  gained  admission 
by  stratagem,  murder  all  present.  Actiu'^  on  previous  uiformalion  from 
one  of  the  conspirators,  wlio  had  associated  with  tiien>  for  the  purpose  of 
their  betrayal,  Mr.  Birnie,  a  Bow-street  magistrate,  with  twelvi;  of  the 
patrol,  went  to  Calo-street,  and  Iher",  in  a  haylolt,  they  found  the  con- 
spirators assembled.  The  entrance  was  by  a  ladder,  which  some  of  the 
police  officers  ascended,  and  on  the  door  being  opened,  twenlyfive  or 
thirty  men  appeared  armed.  A  desperate  struggle  ensued  in  the  dark,  the 
liglits  having  been  extinguished,  and  Smitlii-rs,  one  of  the  police,  was  run 
through  the  body  by  Thistlewood;  meaiiiiine,  a  company  of  the  foot 
guards,  commanded  by  Captain  Fitzclarence,  arrived  at  the  place;  of  ren- 
dezvous, which  they  surroundiid,  and  succeeded  in  capturing  nine  of  the 
desperadoes.  Thistlewood  and  the  rest  escaped ;  but  he  was  afterwards 
taken  in  an  obscure  lodging  at  Finshury,  while  in  bed.  They  were  all 
found  guilty;  and  five  of  them,  namely,  TInatlewoo.d,  Ings,  Brunt,  Tidd, 
and  Davidson,  were  hanged  and  then  decapitated  at  the  Old  Badey  ;  the 
other  five  had  their  sentences  commuted  for  transportation.  Al)iint  the 
same  time  the  trial  of  Hunt  and  others  took  place  at  York,  for  their  con- 
duct at  Manchester  on  the  16th  of  August ;  Hunt  was  senienced  to  he  im- 
prisoned in  Ilchester  jail  for  two  years  and  six  months,  and  llealy, 
Johnson,  and  Bamford  to  one  year's  imprisonment  in  Lincoln  jail. 

The  country  had  been  in  a  very  unsettled  state  in  consequence  of  the 
foregoing  proceedings,  hut  they  were  treated  as  matters  of  httle  impor- 
tance when  compared  with  a  scene  that  followed  :  we  mean  the  trial  of 
Queen  Caroline.  Her  majesty  had  been  six  years  absent  from  England, 
and  for  the  last  twenty-three  years  she  had  been  separated  from  her  hus- 
band. She  had  been  charged  with  connubial  infidelity,  and  a  riijid  inves- 
tigation into  her  conduct  had  taken  place;  hut  thtmgh  an  undignitied  levity 
had  been  proved  against  her,  the  charge  of  criminality  was  not  eslalilislied ; 
yet  was  she  visited  with  a  kind  of  vindictive  persecution  that  rendered 
her  life  a  burden.  The  prince  liad  declared  Ik;  would  not  meet  her  iti 
\)ul)lu!  or  in  private;  and  among  the  magnates  of  rank  and  fashion  his 
iiiallicma  operated  with  talisinanic  power;  she  was  consequently  put  out 
)f  the  pale  of  society,  of  which  she  had  been  described  to  bo  "  the  grace, 
,ife,  and  ornament."  Thus  neglected  and  insidled,  she  sought  for  recrea- 
tion and  repose  in  foreign  travel ;  and  during  her  absence  rumour  was 
•3usy  at  home  in  attnhuiinuf  to  Iter  amours  of  the  mon  degrading  kind.  It 
f/aii  currently  reported  that  the  princess  of  Wales  was  living  in  adultery 


;:t 


*f' 


•:c!n 


THE  TUEASUIIY  OF  HISTORY. 


with  an  Ituliuii  named  Bergami,  whom,  from  the  menial  station  ot  a 
courier,  she  had  created  her  chamberlain,  and  familiarly  admitted  to  her 
table.  To  elicit  evidence  and  investigate  the  truth  of  these  reports,  a 
commission  had  been  appointed  under  the  direction  of  Sir  John  Leach, 
who  proceeded  for  that  purpose  to  the  continent ;  and  the  result  of  his  in- 
quiries was,  that  the  Engiisn  ministers  abroad  were  not  to  give  the  prin- 
cess, in  their  official  character,  any  public  recognition,  or  pay  her  the  re- 
spect due  to  her  exalted  station. 

On  the  death  of  George  III.  the  first  step  taken  to  degrade  her  was  the 
omission  of  her  name  in  the  liturgy ;  but  sne  was  now  queen  of  England  ; 
and  notwithstanding  an  annuity  of  50,000/.  per  annum  was  offered  on  con- 
dition of  her  permanently  residing  abroad,  and  not  assuming,  in  the  event 
of  the  demise  of  tlie  crown,  the  title  of  ^ueen,  she  indignantly  rejected  tiie 
proposal,  challenged  the  fullest  inquiry  into  her  conduct,  and  returned  to 
England  on  the  (ith  of  June,  with  a  full  determination  to  face  her  enemies. 
She  was  accompanied  by  Alderman  Wood  and  Lady  Hamilton,  and  her 
entry  into  London  was  greeted  with  the  joyful  acclamations  of  assembled 
multitudes. 

Tiie  charges  against  the  queen  being  resolutely  persisted  in  by  her  ac 
cusera,  and  her  guilt  as  pertinaciously  denied  by  her  defenders,  all  attempts 
at  reconciliation  failed,  and  a  secret  committee  of  the  house  of  lords  pro- 
ceeded to  examine  the  inculpatory  documents  contained  in  the  "  green 
bag."  On  the  5th  of  July  Lord  Liverpool  presented  a  bill  of  pains  and 
penalties  against  the  queen,  providing  that  her  majesty  be  degraded  from 
her  rank  and  title,  and  her  marriage  with  the  king  dissolved.  The  queen 
protested  against  these  proceedings  at  every  step,  and  was  occasionally 
present  during  the  examination  of  witnesses.  Meanwhile,  the  excitement 
was  intense.  Guilty  or  not  guilty,  the  public  sympathized  with  her  as  a 
woman  who  had  been  subject  to  systematic  persecution  for  a  quarter  of  a 
century,  carried  on  by  a  man  as  relentless  as  he  was  licentious ;  and  how- 
ever great  her  delinquencies  might  be,  her  persecutor  was  the  last  man  in 
his  dominions  who  could  justify  himself  in  pursuinir  the  object  of  his  hate 
with  cruel  vindictiveness.  During  all  this  time  addresses  and  proces- 
sions in  honour  of  the  queen  kept  the  metropolis  in  such  a  ferment  that 
its  mechanics  and  artizans  appeared  as  if  iMigaged  in  a  national  saturnalia. 
Sir  Hol)ert  GilTord,  liie  attorney-general,  assisted  by  tiie  solicitor-general, 
coiulucteil  the  |)rosecution  ;  Mr.  Urougham,  Mr.  Denman,  and  Dr.  Lush- 
Migton,  the  defence.  The  proceedings  liaviiig  at  length  been  brought  to 
a  close,  tlie  lords  met  on  the  2d  of  Novemb(.'r,  to  discuss  the  second  read- 
mg  of  tlic  bill  of  degradation.  Some  declared  their  conviction  of  the 
queen's  guilt ;  others  as  confidently  as.serted  her  innocence;  while  several 
denied  both  the  justice  and  expediency  of  the  bill,  and  would  not  consent 
to  brand  with  everlasting^  infamy  a  member  of  the  house  of  Urunswick. 
Upon  a  division  for  a  second  reading  there  was  a  majority  of  28.  Some 
were  in  favour  of  degradation,  but  not  divorce.  Upon  the  third  reading 
of  the  bill,  the  ministerial  majority  was  reduced  to  9 ;  when  Lord  Liver- 
pool iminedjately  annuunced  the  intention  of  government  to  abandon  the 
further  prosecution  of  this  extraordinary  proceeding.  The  filthy  details, 
as  they  fell  from  the  lips  of  well-paid  Itiilians,  couriers,  valets,  and  chain, 
bermaiils,  wliiii-  under  examination,  were  given  with  prurient  comments 
in  the  newspapers;  and  thus  a  mass  of  impurity  was  circulated  through- 
out the  country,  more  contaminating,  because  more  minutely  discussed 
and  dwelt  upon,  than  anything  that  was  ever  publicly  recorded  in  the 
chroni(;lcs  of  sliamelessnoss.  On  the  23d  the  parliament  was  suddenly 
prorogued  ;  and  on  the  29th  the  queen,  attended  by  a  cavalcade  of  gentle- 
men on  horseback,  went  in  state  to  St.  Paul's  to  return  thanks  fur  hei 
bH[)py  dejiveraiice. 

A  D.  1821— On  opening  the  parliamentary  sossion,  his  majesty  meu- 


(lonml  t 
prnvlslii 
niury  nil 
wqiioiill 
upon  III, 

Duiinj 
iiiUtroNt ; 
and  (he  i 
Wtti  i-epi 
l»ruit  Hill 
iniulii  II  It 
were  imh 
dmiiiiiitiii 

Till.    HI 

quoeii  hu 

li«r  eiMiim 

«olicli(»r., 

ci)ii»ori  w 

filminl  („ 

ci»r«iiioiiy 

niorit  iiiiig 

abliiiy  ami 

from  |||(>  ii 

llie  pliil/'or 

liiiiKlreil  III 

view  of  (III 

imkI  tfiiller 

Biirly  iiK  i«« 

MIUJCN  of  |ll 

«idi'nili|(t  III 
had  tiei'ii  ( 
lor  of  the 
airivi'il  III 

I'l'l'l-plloii,  I 

niijiiitiiiq;  i, 
kiiitf  iirrlvn 
abbey,  hm  i 
(liii  ImniiiH 
l|lleeil'N  ||.({, 
''oroiiiiijiiii  I 
lite  kiiiK  n 

Willi  llllllllH 

nerved ,  1,11 

I r*  mill  III 

afierwiniU  i 
a  ur.iiid  iliK, 
V'iii'MMii«  Hum 
drcil  .ii|f|  (III 

I'  lll'«  llCl 

ilii'  ciiruii  ii|i 
llniiimvii'li,  \ 
lOliliiiiielv  o 
"luhi  lioijiiv 
'loiii  tile  dm 

«'llM'll   jiliii'i' 

III  oiiM  wi  I'k 
HI  olilcct  ,|f 
who  iliii  iiol 


Vol.,  I, 


THE  THEA8URY  OP  HISTORY. 


'M 


if 
he 
Is, 
in« 

iti 

rh- 
IL-J 

he 

>iy 

,1c- 
lei 


tinned  the  qunen  by  name,  and  recommended  to  the  house  of  commons  a 
provbloii  lor  her  iniiiutenancie.  At  first  she  declined  to  accept  any  pecu- 
llinry  iillinviiiU'n  until  iier  nitme  was  inserted  ia  the  liturjry  ;  but  she  sul> 
swiuoiilly  iiltcriMl  her  determination,  and  an  annuity  of  50,000/.  was  settled 
upon  htM', 

Ouiitiu  llii'  »('sninn  the  subject  of  parliamentary  reform  excited  much 
lllltirMtit ;  tho  boroimh  ofGrainpound  was  disfranchised  for  its  corruption; 
ttlltl  tht'  ncccKwily  of  rctriMichniuiit  in  all  the  departments  of  (jovernment 
Wtt»  rcpciittMily  urgnd  by  Mr.  Hume,  whose  persevering  exposition  of  the 
Ittftfit  nw\\<*  that  were  uselessly  swallowed  up  in  salaries  a.id  sinecures 
miiilti  It  urciit  iinprcsNiou  on  the  public,  and  though  none  of  iiis  motions 
wcrd  ('iirrit)il,  Ihe  atleutiou  of  ministers  was  tiu-reby  directed  to  tiie  gradual 
diniililllMMi  of  the  enormous  expense  incurred  in  tite  different  public  offices. 

The  UMlM'i|ialed  coronation  was  now  the  ail-absorbing  topic.  The 
qutuMl  liiiviiix,  by  memorial  to  the  king,  claimed  a  rigiit  to  be  crowned, 
lliir  I'OUMni'l  were  heard  in  support  of  her  claim,  and  the  attorney  and 
iioll('llor-K''iierul  ai{;iiiist  it.  Tlie  lords  of  tiie  council  decided  thatqueena- 
eimvorl  wtirn  not  cntillcd  to  the  honour — a  decision  which  the  king  was 
fileu»iit  loii/i/inii'c.  The  l!)lh  of  July  was  the  day  appointed  for  the  august 
eerenioiiy,  pn'|iarati(ni8  for  which  had  long  been  making;  and  nothing 
lllonHnatfiiiCu'entciin  be  imagined  than  the  appearance  of  Westminster- 
abhtiy  iind  hull.  'I'he  covered  platform,  over  which  the  procession  moved 
fcoin  till'  hall  to  Ihenblx^  was  1,500  feet  in  length;  and  on  each  side  of 
the  plMll'onu  an  aniphithealre  of  seats  was  erected,  to  acconnnodate  one 
liundri'ii  llioUKund  opcctators.  Kvery  spot  in  the  vicinity  from  wliieh  a 
vi«W  (tf  llie  ({iirgeoufl  piigeant  could  be  obtained  was  covered  with  seats 
iiud  (jullenen,  for  which  the  most  extravagant  prices  were  given.  As 
early  in*  two  o'ehick  in  tho  mornuig  the  streets  were  filled  with  the  car- 
rnmim  of  pei'Kons  going  to  witness  the  ceremony;  and  before  five  a  con- 
■idenilde  tniniber  of  the  comp;my  had  taken  their  [)|:<.ees  at  the  hall.  It 
had  been  eurrently  reported  that  the  queen  would  be  present  as  a  specta- 
tor of  the  ni'ene ;  and  so  it  proved  ;  for  about  five  o'clock  lier  majesty 
arrived  hi  her  olale-carriage ;  but  no  preparation  had  lieeu  made  for  her 
riM'e|)ll(m,  and,  not  having  an  admission-ticket,  she  had  to  bear  the  hu- 
niiliatltiir  indignity  nf  a  stern  refusal,  and  was  ot)liged  to  retire!  The 
kinif  arrlvnl  iii  ten,  and  the  procession  moved  from  the  hall  towards  the 
fthhi'y,  Inx  iiiH|esty  walking  imder  a  canopy  of  cloth  of  gold,  supported  by 
the  banniN  ol'  ''le  einipie-ports,  among  whom  was  Mr.  llrougham,  the 
i|ue(Mi'N  legal  adviner  and  leading  coiuisel !  The  ancient  solemnity  of  the 
coronullon  ni  VVenlminster-abhcy  occupied  about  five  hours;  and  when 
the  kiUK  re-eiilered  the  hall,  with  the  crown  on  his  head,  he  was  received 
Willi  eiilliU'«liiKlie  cheers.  Soon  after  five  o'clock  the  royal  banquet  was 
Nerved,  mid  lie'  king,  having  dined  with  anil  drank  tlu;  hiallh  of  "his 
peer*  and  lim  good  people,"  left  the  festive  scene.  The  populace  were 
iiClerwiinN  gralilliil  \»illi  a  balloon  ascent,  boat-races  on  the  Serpentine, 
a  ur.iiiil  display  of  fire-works  in  Hydepark,  and  free  admission  to  the 
varioiiK  ihealren.  'I'lu'  expenses  of  the  coronation  amounted  to  two  hun- 
ilreil  .Hid  lliii'iy  eU!lil  thousand  pounds. 

II  \\\H  lieeii  Keen  that  the  (|Ueen  made  an  inefTectual  attempt  to  witness 

ill run  lUtiii  of  Iwr  royal  husband.     The  proud  spirit  of  the  house  of 

llriiHNWiek.  whieli  li:id  borne  up  against  a  load  of  regid  oppression  and  the 
eonliimelv  of  Kveiipbantie  emirtiers,  was  now  doomeil  to  yield  before  a 
f\\,\\\\  boililv  allaek  Kleveii  days  after  her  majesty  had  l.een  repulsed 
li'oin  the  door*  of  WeotmiiiHier-hall,  she  visited  Dniry-biin'  theatre,  from 
wliieh  place  ulie  reined  early  on  account  of  a  sudden  indisposition,  and 
III  one  week  more  IIik  lieniic  female  was  a  corpse  As  long  as  she  was 
til  olilecl  of  perKeeiilioii,  slie  was  the  idol  of  popular  applause  ;  those  oven 
who  did  lint  iiecoiint  her  blameless,  felt  for  her  as  the  victim  of  a  heart 
Vol..  1,^40 


'ill" 


HI 


TIIK  THEASURY  OF  HISIORY. 


U'SS  syslcin  of  oppression.  But  the  excitement  in  her  favour  soon  oegan 
(0  Hdlisidp,  Hud  it  was  believed  that  the  comparatively  little  interest  wliicii 
th«'  ptihiic  snemt'd  to  take  in  her  favour  on  the  day  of  the  coronation,  sunk 
dffp  Into  her  heart.  She  died  August  the  7th,  aged  52  ;  leaving  the  world, 
8N  she  herself  declared,  without  regret.  H(;r  body  lay  in  state  at  Bran- 
dcilhllf^'house,  lier  villa  near  Hammersmith;  and  on  the  lOth,  it  was  ccv 
V(<yt<(\  (hrougli  London,  on  its  way  to  Harwich,  the  port  of  embarkaticxi 
for  lt(4  flniil  re8litig-|)lace  at  Brunswick.  Countless  multitudes  had  a* 
S«(lll»led  to  join  in  the  procession;  and  when  it  was  discovered  that  a  cir- 
CdlloKS  nnite  had  been  prescribed  for  the  funeral  train,  in  order  to  avoid 

tmf*sing  through  the  streets  of  the  metropolis,  the  indignation  of  the  people 
itWW  no  bounds,  and  in  an  affray  with  the  guards  two  lives  were  lost. 
Hy  ohstrilctiiig  and  barricading  the  streets  tlie  people  succeeded  in  forcing 
the  fJfoi'fission  through  the  city,  and  the  royal  corpse  was  hurried  with 
indpcent  haste  to  the  place  of  embarkation.  On  the  24lh  ol  August  the 
femrtlds  of  the  queen  reached  Brunswick,  and  were  deposited  in  the 
family  vault  of  her  ancestors. 

We  simll  now  turn  for  a  moment  to  notice  some  events  of  importance, 
thotigh  not  connected  with  the  domestic  history  of  Great  Britain.  The 
first  is  the  death  of  Napoleon  Bonaparte,  who  died  of  cancer  in  the  stomach, 
aged  f»1.  The  disease  was  constitutional,  but  it  had  probably  been  accel- 
♦^rated  by  mental  agitation  and  the  unhealthy  climate  of  St.  Helena. 
Those  who  wish  to  know  the  character  of  this  extraordinary  man  must 
ft^H(\  it  in  his  actions,  under  the  various  and  varying  aspects  of  his  fortune. 
His  aim  was  to  astonish  and  aggrandize,  to  uphold  or  trample  upon  jus- 
lltP,  (19  best  suited  the  object  he  had  in  view.  Before  his  love  of  uuiver- 
DhI  domination,  every  other  passion  and  principle  was  made  to  give  way  : 
rdlijlon,  honour,  truth — all  were  sacrificed  to  personal  ambition.  In  his 
Will  he  expressed  a  wish  that  his  "  ashes  might  repose  on  the  banks  of  the 
Heine,  in  the  midst  of  the  French  people,  whom  he  loved  so  well."  That 
Wish  has  since  been  gratified. 

/n  Mpnin,  Portugal,  and  Naples,  a  sort  of  revolutionary  crisis  had  com- 
menced. Kncouraged  by  the  discontents  of  the  middle  ranks,  the  troops, 
under  the  influence  of  Ri(!go  and  other  gallant  officers,  succeeded  in 
IlliikiiiK  Ferdinand  swear  fidelity  to  the  constitution  of  1812.  Similar 
trtiidnct  was  pursued  by  the  people  of  Portugal,  whose  declared  objects 
were  the  establishment  of  a  constitutional  itionarchy.  .\nd  in  Naples  the 
tio|iiilnr  mind  took  the  same  direction,  and  ellected  the  same  object. 

A,  n.  \r*'i'>. — This  year,  though  not  marked  by  any  great  event,  was  one 
of  Interest  as  regarded  important  questions  in  parliament.  Amonu  the 
lending,  were  agricultural  distress  in  Kngland.  and  scarcity  and  distress 
III  Ireland.  Some  changes  during  .lanu.iry  took  place  in  the  cabinet ; 
llllnislers  strengthened  themselves  by  a  imion  with  the  (irenville  party; 
find  liord  Sidmonlli  retired  from  his  office  of  home  secretary,  to  make 
riHMii  for  Mr.  I'eel. 

On  the  fith  of  February  the  king  opened  parliament,  and  took  occasion 
toexjiress  regret  that  his  visit  to  Ireland  had  failed  to  produce  tranquillity. 
lie  nisd  adnntled  that  agriculture  had  to  contend  with  unexpected  diffi- 
etlllies,  but  congratulated  the  house  on  the  prosperity  which  attended 
the  manufai  lures  and  (.'ommerce  of  the  country. 

The  state  .»f  Ireland  did  indeed  demand  attention.  On  one  hand,  coer- 
cive measures  were  necessary  to  re|)ress  tlu;  disorder  that  reigned  through 
till*  island,  for,  owmg  to  the  daring  nocturnal  hands  of  \Vhit(>  boys,  &(•., 
neither  life  nor  [)roperly  was  safe.  On  the  other,  so  universal  we^  tha 
ftitliite  of  Ihe  potato  crop  that  the  price  was  quadrupled,  and  the  peas 
aiilry  of  the  smith  were  in  a  stale  of  starvation.  To  meet  the  former 
fivll,  it  was  found  necessary  to  suspend  the  habeas  corpus  act,  and  to 
rriiow  ihn  iiivurrectiun  act.    To  alleviate  the  latter,  a  cuiiimittee  ^^  .i< 


/ormed 

country 

answer 

viduals 

close  o( 

of  the  d 

300,000^ 

000/.;  n 

From 

houses  V 

tural  dis 

fohn  Rui 

for  reliev 

the  curre 

caused  bj 

the  imprc 

Pailiar 

king  enib; 

Leith,  anc 

he  appear 

which  his 

embarked 

London. 

During  1 
of  the  mai 
ment.     Tl 
\vas  in  his 
liy  cutting 
ihe  share  i 
"iipopular 
private  life 
Little  of 
lo  foreign  i 
"ecember; 
tism  of  Per 
Kiigland  ob 
affairs  of  t 
frontiers  of 
raged  at  B 
to  "army 
ment  to  ch 
developed, 

A.  D.  182„ 

about  to  set 

"lent,  and  a 

faste,  and  Ai 

Some  popuI« 

'■hancellor  o 

cepted  the  c 

upper  house  I 

president  of 

was  prorogii 

'laving  takt 

wlio  plainly 

Bui  he  had  ti 

flourishing  cJ 

a  considerab 

"otumcncem 


THE  TREA8URV  CF  HISTORY. 


;93 


111 

liir 

t.s 

,lie 


ly; 
like 


;opr- 

&(!.. 
the 
pcus 
riiu"' 
lid  to 


lormed  ia  London,  and  corresponding  committees  in  different  parts  of  tin- 
country;  British  sympathy  was  no  sooner  appealed  to  than  it  wh.i 
answered  with  zealous  alacrity;  and  such  was  the  benevolence  of  indi- 
viduals that  large  funds  were  speedily  at  their  disposal,  so  that  before  the 
close  of  the  year  the  subscriptions  raised  in  Great  Britain  for  the  relief 
of  the  distressed  Irish  amounted  to  350,000/. ;  parliament  made  a  grant  of 
300,000/.  more;  and  in  Ireland  the  local  subscriptions  amounted  to  150,- 
000/. ;  making  altogether  a  grand  total  of  800,0i0/. 

From  the  beginning  of  the  year  to  the  end  of  the  session  in  Augu>st,  the 
houses  were  occupied  on  questions  of  the  highest  importance ;  agricul- 
tural distress,  for  which  various  remedial  measures  were  proposed ;  Lord 
lohn  Russell's  plan  for  a  parliamentary  reform ;  Mr.  Vansittarl's  scheme 
for  relieving  the  immediate  pressure  of  what  was  called  the  "  dead  weigiit ;" 
the  currency  question,  which  referred  to  the  increased  value  of  money 
caused  by  Mr.  Peel's  act  of  1819,  for  the  resumption  of  cash  payments; 
the  improvement  of  the  navigation  laws,  &c. 

Parliament  was  prorogued  on  the  6lh  of  August,  and  on  the  tentii  the 
king  embarked  at  Greenwich  for  Scotland.  On  the  15th  he  landed  ui 
Leith,  and  the  19th  held  a  levee  in  the  ancient  palace  of  Holyrood,  wiiere 
he  appeared  in  the  Highland  costume.  Having  enjoyed  the  festivities 
which  his  loyal  subjects  of  Edinburgh  provided  for  the  occasion,  lie  re- 
embarked  on  the  27th,  and  in  three  days  was  again  with  his  lieges  in 
London. 

During  his  majesty's  absence  intelligence  was  brought  him  of  the  death 
of  the  marquis  of  Londonderry,  secretary  of  state  for  the  foreign  depart- 
ment. This  nobleman,  who  had  been  the  leading  member  of  government, 
was  in  his  54th  year,  and  in  a  temporary  fit  of  insanity  committed  suicide, 
by  cutting  the  carotid  artery.  In  consequence  of  his  tory  principles  and 
the  share  he  took  in  effecting  the  union  with  Ireland,  he  was  the  most 
unpopular  member  of  the  administration,  but  he  was  highly  respected  in 
private  life,  and  enjoyed  the  personal  esteem  of  his  sovereign. 

Little  of  domestic  interest  occurred  this  year,  but  a  few  words  relative 
lo  foreign  affairs  are  requisite.  The  congress  at  Verona  terminated  in 
December;  the  allied  sovereigns  were  disposed  to  re-establish  the  despo- 
tism of  Ferdinand  in  Spain,  in  opposition  to  thecortes  ;  but  to  this  policy 
FiUaland  objected,  denying  the  right  of  foreign  powers  to  interfere  in  the 
affairs  of  the  Peninsula.  The  "  sanitary  cordon,"  established  on  the 
frontiers  of  France  for  the  avowed  purpose  of  preventing  the  fcvnr  which 
raged  at  Barcelona  from  spreading  to  that  country,  chiiiiged  its  name 
to  "  army  of  observation,"  while  the  design  of  the  FoMich  govern- 
ment to  check  the  progress  of  revolutionary  principles  in  Spain  were 
developed,  and,  indeed,  soon  afterwards  openly  expressed. 

A.  D.  1823. — On  the  death  of  Lord  Londonderry,  Mr.  Canning,  who  was 
about  to  set  out  to  India  as  governor-general,  relinquished  that  employ- 
ment, and  accepted  the  vacant  secretaryship,  as  one  more  consjonial  to  his 
taste,  and  for  the  duties  of  which  he  was  supposed  to  be  perfectly  efficient. 
.Some  popular  changes  now  took  place  in  the  ministry.  Mr.  Vaiisiltart, 
chancellor  of  liie  exchequer,  resigned  in  favour  of  Mr.  Robinson,  and  ac- 
cepted the  chancellorship  of  the  duchy  of  Lancaster,  with  a  seat  in  the 
upper  house  and  the  title  of  LordBexley;  and  Mr.  Huskinson  was  made 
president  of  the  board  of  trade,  in  room  of  Mr.  Arbuthnot.  Parliament 
was  prorogued  by  commission  on  the  19th  of  July;  much  altercation 
bavins  taken  place  between  Mr.  Canning  and  his  political  opponents, 
who  plainly  convinced  him  that  he  was  not  "reposing  on  a  bed  of  roses." 
Hut  he  had  the  satisfaction  at  the  close  of  the  session  of  dwelling  on  the 
flourishing  condition  of  all  branches  of  commerce  and  manufactures,  and 
■i  considerable  abatement  of  the  difficulties  felt  by  the  agriculturists  at  iH 
Roiumcncenient. 


'"t-n 


!■♦•' 


t:   I 


/•->4 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


In  April  the  French  army  of  observation  crossed  the  Pyrenees ;  and  the 
duke  of  Aiigoiilemo,  its  commander,  pubhshcd  an  address  to  the  Spainards, 
declaratory  of  the  objects  of  this  interposition  in  their  affairs ;  defining  it 
to  be,  the  suppression  of  the  revolutionary  faction  which  held  the  king 
captive,  that  excited  troubles  in  France,  and  produced  an  insurrection  in 
Naples  and  Piedmont.  They  then  marched  onward,  and,  without  rneet- 
mg  any  resistance  of  consequence,  occupied  the  principal  towns  and  for- 
tresses. In  October  the  city  of  Cadiz  surrendered,  and  French  interfer- 
ence terminated  with  the  liberation  of  Ferdinand  from  the  cortes,  who  in 
all  their  movements  had  carried  the  unwilling  king  with  them.  The 
French  then  retraced  their  steps,  leaving  forty  thousand  men  in  possession 
of'the  fortresses,  to  maintain  the  authority  of  the  Spanish  king  in  case  of 
a  reaction. 

A.  D.  1824. — Favourable  as  the  political  aspect  of  Great  Britain  appeared 
at  the  commencement  of  18:23,  there  was  now  an  evident  improvement  in 
almost  every  branch  of  commercial  industry ;  while  the  cultivators  of  the 
soil  found  their  condition  materially  assisted  by  natural  causes,  without 
the  aid  of  legislatorial  interference.  It  was  therefore  a  pleasing  task  for 
Mr.  Robinson,  when  he  brought  forward  his  budget,  to  describe  in  glowing 
terms  the  general  prosperity  of  the  country,  and  declare  his  intention  of 
effecting  an  annual  saving  of  ^£375,000  by  reducing  the  interest  of  the  four 

fier  cent,  stock  to  three  and  a  half.  But  a  course  of  prosperity  in  England, 
ike  true  love's  course,  "  never  did  run  smooth"  for  any  length  of  time. 
There  was  now  an  abundance  of  capital,  and  money  was  accordingly  to 
be  had  at  low  rates  of  interest.  Safe  investments  were  difficult  to  be 
found  at  home;  hence  foreign  loans  were  encouraged,  till  there  was 
scarcely  a  state  in  the  Old  or  New  World  which  had  not  the  benefit  of 
English  capital.  It  was  a  rare  era,  too,  for  the  gambling  speculations  of 
a  host  of  needy  adventurers ;  and,  under  pretext  of  having  discovered  ad- 
vantageous modes  of  employing  money,  the  most  absurd  schemes  were 
daily  set  afloat  to  entrap  the  avaricious  and  unwary.  Many  of  these 
devices  were  so  obviously  dishonest,  that  the  legislature  at  length  inter- 
fered to  guard  the  public  against  a  species  of  robbery  in  which  the  dupes 
were  almost  as  much  to  blame  as  their  plunderers.  A  resolution  passed 
the  house  of  lords  declaring  that  no  bill  for  the  purpose  of  incorporating 
any  joint-stock  company  would  be  read  a  second  time  till  two-thirds  of 
the  proposed  capital  of  the  company  had  been  subscribed.  This  certainly 
checked  the  operations  we  have  alluded  to;  but  the  evil  had  been  allowed 
to  proceed  too  far,  as  experience  proved. 

A  convention  belweei'.  Ureat  Britain  and  Austria  was  laid  on  the  table 
of  the  house  of  commons,  by  which  the  former  agreed  to  accept  dE0,.500,000 
as  a  tinal  compensation  for  claims  on  the  latter  power,  amounting  to 
dCSO.OOO.OOO — a  composition  of  one  shilling  and  eight-pence  in  the  pound  ! 
Among  matters  of  domestic  interest,  although  not  of  a  nature,  perhaps, 
to  dcmaiid  notice  in  a  condensed  national  history,  we  may  mention  two 
occurrences  which  supplied  the  public  with  feride  topics  of  discourse. 
We  allude  to  the  trial  of  John  Tliurtell,  who  was  executed  for  the  murder 
of  William  Weare,  as  they  were  proceeding  in  a  gig  towards  the  cottage 
of  their  mutuiil  friend  Prohert,  near  Elstrce,  where  they  had  been  invited 
to  take  the  diversion  of  shouting :  and  also  to  the  execution  of  Mr.  Faunt- 
leroy,  the  hanker,  who  wiis  tried  and  found  guilty  of  forging  a  power  of 
attorney  for  the  transfer  of  slock.  The  lirst-nientioned  offender  against 
Uie  laws  of  Ciod  and  man  was  the  son  of  a  respectable  alderman  at  Nor- 
wich ;  but  by  aHsocialing  with  gambler!*,  and  indulging  in  brutal  sports, 
he  hiid  conirai'ted  habits  of  ruflianism  to  which  such  a  course  of  life  almost 
inviiri.ihly  leads.  The  latter  viokaor  of  a  sai'rcd  trust  had  committed 
forgeries  to  the  enormous  exteitt,  as  was  asserted  at  the  time,  of  about  a 
quarter  of  a  million. 


A.  E 

•uppri 
to  he 
counti 
absurd 
sequel 
thiit  c( 
state  o 
va'fed  b 
agicato 
people, 
connexi 
ture  pre 
The  ( 
jecled  i 
carried 
Vork  st 
"  Twent 
agitated ; 
l;ist  ten  1 
I  will  ad1 
We  hai 
of  all  kin 
duction  0 
panics  wi 
more  thai 
been  projc 
many  of  t 
pects  that 
several  ro 
South  Am 
Several 
the  great 
money  mai 
unable  to  i ' 
house  of 
dismay  in 
were  conn, 
don  bankini 
,''/ne,  in  adi 
The  tnerch] 
'"ff.feelinif 
a'  the  man 
unprecedeii 
founded  pai 
lishnieiits  o 
public  crodj 
I"  twodai 
one  and  tw( 
For  one  wv 
post-chaise 
and  preveii 
their  groiim 
A.  D.  182«j 
admitted  ih 
ppcimmry  di 
iiidicioiis. 
facility  of  c 


THE  TttEASUin    OF  HISTOllY. 


A.  D.  1825. — One  of  the  first  steps  in  legislation  this  year  was  an  act  lo 
(oppress  the  catholic  association  of  Ireland.  Daniel  O'Connell  assumed 
to  1)6  the  representative  and  protector  of  the  catholic  population  in  that 
country,  and  continued  to  levy  large  sums  from  the  people,  under  the 
absurd  and  hypocritical  pretence  of  obtaining  "justice  for  Ireland."  Sub- 
9eq\ienlly  a  committee  of  the  lords  sat  to  inquire  into  the  general  state  of 
th:it  country;  and  in  the  evidence  it  clearly  appeared  that  the  wretched 
state  of  existence  to  which  the  peasantry  were  reduced  was  greatly  aggra- 
vated by  their  abject  bondage  to  their  own  priests,  and  that  while  the  arch 
aguator  and  his  satel'.iles  were  allowed  to  inflame  the  passions  of  the 
people,  and  delude  them  into  a  belief  that  they  were  oppressed  by  their 
connexion  with  Great  Britain,  no  remedy  within  the  power  of  the  legisla- 
ture presented  itself. 

The  catholic  relief  bill  passed  in  the  house  of  commons,  but  was  re- 
jected in  the  lords  by  a  majority  of  178  against  130.  The  debate  was 
carried  on  with  great  animation ;  and,  in  the  course  of  it,  the  duke  of 
York  strenuously  declared  against  further  concession  to  the  catholics. 
"  Twenty-eight  years,"  said  he,  "  have  elapsed  since  the  subject  was  first 
agitated ;  its  agitation  was  the  source  of  the  illness  which  clouded  the 
last  ten  years  of  my  father's  life ;  and,  to  the  last  moment  of  my  existence, 
I  will  adhere  to  my  protestant  principles— so  help  me  God!" 

We  have  seen  what  an  astonishing  impulse  had  been  given  to  speculations 
of  all  kinds  last  year  by  the  abundance  of  unemployed  capital  and  the  re- 
duction of  interest  in  funded  property.  The  mania  for  joint-stock  com- 
panies was  now  become  almost  universal.  During  the  space  of  little 
more  than  a  twelvemonth,  two  hundred  and  seventy-six  companies  had 
been  projected,  of  which  the  pretended  capital  was  .=£174,114,050.  Though 
many  of  these  were  of  an  absurd  character,  and  nearly  all  held  out  pros- 
pects that  no  sane  man  could  expect  to  see  realized,  yet  the  shares  of 
several  rose  to  enormous  premiums,  especially  the  mining  adventures  in 
South  America.     But  a  fearful  re-action  was  at  hand. 

Several  country  banks  stopped  payment  in  December,  and  among  them 
the  great  Yorkshire  bank  of  VVenlworth  and  Company.  A  panic  in  the 
money  market  followed  ;  and  in  a  few  days  several  London  bankers  were 
unable  to  meet  the  calls  upon  them.  On  the  12lh  December  the  banking- 
house  of  Sir  Peter  Pole  &  Co.,  stopped  payment.  This  caused  great 
dismay  in  Hie  city,  it  being  understood  that  forty-seven  country  banki 
were  connected  with  it.  During  the  three  following  days  five  other  Lon- 
don banking  firms  were  compelled  to  close  ;  and  in  a  very  short  space  of 
time,  in  addition,  sixty-seven  country  banks  failed  or  suspended  payments. 
The  mercl'fi'its  of  the  city  of  London,  at  the  head  of  whom  was  Mr.  Bar 
ing,  feeling  that  something  was  necessary  to  restore  confidence,  assembled 
at  the  mansion-honse,  and  published  a  resolution  to  tlie  eflTect  that  "  the 
unprecedented  enibarrassmonts  were  to  be  mainly  attril)uted  to  an  un- 
founded pan.c;  that  they  had  the  fullest  reliance  on  the  banking  estab 
iishments  of  the  country,  and  therefore  determined  to  support  them,  and 
public  credit,  to  the  utmost  of  tlieir  power." 

In  two  days  after  this  declaration,  the  Bank  of  England  began  to  re-issue 
one  and  two  iiound  notes  for  ttie  (convenience  of  the  coinitry  circulation. 
For  one  week,  150,000  sovereigns  per  day  were  coined  at  the  Mint,  and 
post-chaises  were  hourly  dispatched  into  the  country  to  support  the  credit, 
and  prevent  the  failure,  of  the  provincial  firms  which  still  maintained 
their  gronini. 

A.  n.  lS2(i.— The  effects  of  the  panic  were  severely  felt;  but  it  must  be 
admitted  that  Hie  Bank  of  Kngland  made  strenuous  efforts  lo  mitigate 
pecuniary  distress,  and  the  course  pursued  hy  government  was  ste-idy  and 
ludicions.  The  main  ingredient  in  producing  the  mischief  h;id  been  the 
facility  of  creating  fictitious  money  ;  ministers,  therefore,  prohibited  the 


..rrM 


:\t^ 


r2fi 


THE  TREASIiRY  OF  HISTORY. 


sirculatioii  of  one  pound  notes,  while  incorporated  companies  wen 
allowed  to  carry  on  the  business  of  banking.  Beyond  this  they  could 
scarcely  go :  it  was  next  to  impossible  that  tliey  could  afford  an  effective 
guarantee  against  future  panics,  over-trading,  or  the  insolvency  of  bankers. 

On  the  2(1  of  February  parliament  was  opened  by  commission.  The 
royal  speech  adverted  to  the  existing  pecuniary  distress,  and  showed  that 
it  WHS  totally  unconnected  with  political  causes.  It  also  alluded  to 
measures  in  contemplation  for  the  improvement  of  Ireland.  After  sitting 
till  the  end  of  May,  the  parliament  was  dissolved,  and  active  preparations 
were  made  for  a  general  election. 

Certain  leading  questions  had  now  got  such  possession  of  the  public 
mind,  that,  at  most  of  the  elections,  tests  were  offered  and  pledges  re- 
quired from  the  several  candidates.  The  most  important  of  these  were 
catholic  emancipation,  the  corn  laws,  and  the  slave  trade  :  and  out  of  the 
members  returned  for  England  and  Wales,  one  hundred  and  thirty-three 
had  never  before  sat  in  parliament.  It  was  observed  that  now,  for  the 
first  time,  the  catholic  priests  of  Ireland  openly  began  not  only  to  take  an 
active  part  in  elections,  but  to  inculcate  the  doctrine  that  opposition  to  an 
anti-catholic  candidate  was  a  christian  duty.  The  English  radicals  were 
also  extremely  noisy  and  active  in  their  endeavours  to  return  Cobbett, 
Hunt,  and  othersof  that  clique ;  but  for  the  present  they  were  unsuccessful. 

The  new  parliament  was  opened  by  the  king  in  person.  No  business 
of  any  great  importance  was  brought  before  the  house;  hut  an  expose  of 
khe  numerous  joint-stock  companies  that  had  been  estHblished  was  made 
Oy  Alderman  Waithnian.  He  observed  that  six  hundred  had  been  formed, 
most  of  them  for  dislionest  purposes  ;  the  directors  forcing  up  or  depress- 
ing tlie  market  as  they  pleased,  and  pocketing  the  difference  between  the 
selling  and  buying  prices.  As  members  of  the  house  were  known  to  be 
directors  of  some  of  these  bubble  companies,  he  moved  for  a  committee 
of  inquiry  with  reference  to  the  part  taken  by  members  of  parliament  in 
the  joint-stock  mania  of  1824-5-6. 

A  few  foreign  occurrences  claim  our  notice.  The  death  of  Alexander, 
emperor  of  Hussia,  a  powerful  ally  of  England,  and  a  noble  and  benevo- 
lent prince,  who  sincerely  desired  the  good  of  his  people.  It  was  his 
wish  that  his  brother  Nicholas  should  succeed  him;  ami,  in  compliance 
with  that  wish,  the  grand  duke  Constantine,  who  was  next  heir  to  tiie 
throne,  publicly  renounced  his  right  to  the  succession  in  favour  of  his 
younger  brother. — Also,  the  death  of  John  VI.,  king  of  Portugal  and 
titular  emperor  of  Brazil ,  whither  he  had  retired,  with  his  court,  on  the 
invasion  of  Portugal  by  Honaparte. — Missolonghi,  the  last  asylum  of  the 
Greeks,  taken  by  storm,  by  the  combined  Egyptian  and  Turkish  forces, 
who,  rendered  furious  by  the  bravery  of  the  besieged,  put  all  the  males  to 
the  sword,  and  carried  the  women  and  children  into  slavery. — The  de- 
struction of  the  Janissaries  by  Sultan  Mahmoud,  followed  by  an  entire  re- 
modelling of  the  Turkish  army,  and  the  introiluciion  of  European  military 
discipline. — Remarkable  coincidence  in  the  deaths  of  two  ex-presidents 
of  the  United  Sta'es  of  America  :  Mr.  Adams  and  Mr.  Jefferson  not  only 
expiring  on  tne  same  day,  but  that  day  being  the  fiftieth  anniversary  of 
the  declaration  of  American  independence. 

A.  D.  1B27. — We  closed  our  last  record  with  a  notice  of  the  deaths  of 
two  distinguished  men  on  trans-Atlantic  ground.  We  are  compelled 
to  commence  the  present  year  with  the  decease  of  an  illustrious  individual 
in  Enifland.  His  royal  highness  Augustus  Frederick,  duke  of  York,  pre 
Bumptive  heir  to  the  throne,  and  commander-in-chief  of  the  army,  at  the 
head  of  which  he  had  been  thirty-two  years,  and  under  whose  adminis- 
tration it  had  won  imperishable  laurels,  died  on  the  .'Jth  of  January,  in  the 
Mthyear  of  his  agi;.     in  person  he  was  noble  and  soldierlike,  in  disposi- 


<ioii  i 
partiii 
Th( 
took  , 
denly 
attack 
free  f\ 
him  to 
but  hi 
handlii 
countr 
Neai 
Liverp( 
to  forn 
dingiy 
ble  diffi 
jesty's 
colleagi 
'his  per] 
a  confec 
royal  wi 
ster,  anc 
Mr.  Cam 
seal;  Vii 
retary ;  fl 
count  Pa 
of  Lanca 
poinlmen 
chancellc 
general  ;1 
master-g( 
of  Leeds, 
sequently 
partnient, 
A  treat 
an  end  to 
jects,  was 
Britain,  t 
From  tl 
been  sufft 
inroads  oi 
the  parlia 
of  Angus 
mation  oi 
57th  year 
tlian  for  h 
with  succ 
In  politi 
act  upon 
Liverpool, 
in  the  st 
and  ami.. 
On  the 
'ry.     Loi 
of  the  ex, 
"rmy,  but 
Tlie  tre;, 
to  the  suit 


en 


ab 


Drc 


THE  TKEA8UEY  OF  HISTORY. 


727 


his 

ami 

tlie 

the 

irces, 

[■s  to 

(le- 

ro- 


ths of 
pelled 
dual 
pre 
at  the 
minis- 
ill  the 
isposi- 


iioii  frank,  amiable  and  sincere ;  in  the  discharge  of  his  official  Julies,  im- 
partial and  exact. 

The  first  topic  of  domestic  interest  was  the  change  of  ministry,  which 
took  place  in  consequence  of  Lord  Liverpool,  the  premier,  being  sud- 
denly disabled  by  a  stroke  of  apoplexy,  which,  though  he  survived  the 
attack  nearly  two  years,  terminated  his  public  life.  His  lordship  was 
free  from  intrigue  and  partisanship,  and  his  official  experience  enabled 
him  to  take  the  lead  in  conducting  the  ordinary  affairs  of  the  government, 
but  his  oratory  was  commonplace,  and  he  was  incapable  of  vigorously 
handling  the  great  questions  which  during  his  premiership  agitated  the 
country. 

Nearly  two  months  elapsed  before  the  vacancy  occasioned  by  Lord 
Liverpool's  illness  was  filled.  The  king  then  empowered  Mr.  Canning 
to  form  a  new  ministry,  of  which  he  was  to  be  the  head;  and  he  accor- 
dingly began  to  make  arrangements.  But  he  met  with  almost  insupera- 
ble difficulties,  for  within  forty-eight  hours  after  he  had  received  his  ma- 
jesty's commands,  seven  leading  members  of  the  cabinet — his  former 
colleagues — refused  to  serve  under  him,  and  sent  in  their  resignations.  In 
this  perplexity  he  waited  on  the  king,  who  suspected  there  was  not  only 
a  confederacy  against  Mr.  Canning,  but  also  a  disposition  to  coerce  the 
royal  will.  Tlie  king  was  not  likely  to  withdraw  his  support  from  the  min- 
'ster,  and  ultimately  a  mixed  administration  entered  on  the  duties  of  office. 
Mr.  Canning,  premier ;  earlof  Harrowby,  president ;  duke  of  Portland,  privy 
seal ;  Viscount  Dudley,  foreign  secretary ;  Mr.  Sturges  Bourne,  home  sec- 
retary; Mr.  Iluskisson,  board  of  trade;  C.  VVynn,  board  of  control;  Vis- 
count Palinerston,  secretary  of  war;  Lord  Bexley,  chancellor  of  the  duchy 
of  Lancaster ;  Lord  Ly  iidhurst,  lord  chancellor.  The  other  ministerial  ap- 
pointments 'vere.  Sir  John  Leach,  master  of  the  rolls ;  Sir  A.  Hart,  vice- 
chancellor;  Sir  James  Scarlett, attorney-general;  Sir  N.  Tindal, solicitor- 
general ;  duke  of  Clarence,  lord-high-adiniral;  marquis  of  Anglesea, 
master-general  of  ordnance ;  duke  of  Devonshire,  lord-chamberlain ;  duke 
of  Leeds,  master  of  the  horse  ;  and  VV.  Lamb,  secretary  for  Ireland.  Sub- 
sequently, the  marnuis  of  Lansdovvne  accepted  the  seals  of  the  home  de- 
partment, and  Mr.  fierney  was  made  master  of  the  mint. 

A  treaty  which  had  for  its  object  the  pacification  of  Greece,  by  putting 
an  end  to  the  sanguinary  contest  between  the  Porte  and  its  Grecian  sub- 
jects, was  signed  at  London,  on  the  6lh  of  July,  by  the  ministers  of  Great 
Britain,  France,  and  Russia. 

From  the  hour  that  Mr.  Canning  undertook  the  office  of  premier  he  had 
been  siitfering  under  a  degree  of  nervous  excitement  which  made  visible 
inroads  on  his  constitution;  but  it  was  expected  that  a  little  repose  during 
the  parliamentary  recess  would  reiiivigorate  him.  Not  so,  for  on  the  8th 
of  August  he  expired,  the  immediate  cause  of  his  death  being  an  inflam- 
mation of  the  kidneys.  This  highly  gifted  statesman,  who  was  in  the 
67th  year  of  his  iige,  was  not  less  remarkable  for  scholastic  acquirements, 
than  for  brilliant  oratory  and  pungent  wit ;  weapons  which  he  often  used 
witli  success  in  deinolisliing  the  more  solid  arguments  of  his  opponents. 
In  politics  he  was  a  tory,  though  possessing  the  good  sense  to  avow  and 
act  upon  liberal  principles.  He  was  long  the  efficient  representative  of 
Liverpool,  and  his  constituents  were  proud  of  one  who,  while  he  shone 
in  the  senate,  combined  the  graces  of  scholarship  with  elegant  manners 
and  amiability  of  temper.  .  . 

On  the  death  of  Mr.  Canning  there  were  but  few  changes  m  the  minis- 
try. Lord  (todcrich  became  the  new  premier,  and  Mr.  Herries  chancellor 
of  the  exchequer;  the  duke  of  Wellington  resumed  the  command  of  the 
army,  but  without  a  scut  in  the  cabinet. 

The  treaty  for  attempting  the  pacification  of  Greece,  not  being  palatable 
to  the  sultan,  he  declined  the  mediation  of  the  allied  powers,  and  recom 


Ij* 


\  I'M 


li, 


728 


THE  TREASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


metiL-cd  the  war  furiously  against  the  Greeks.  To  put  a  stop  to  this,  the 
combined  flecMs  profeedc^d  (o  the  bay  of  Navarino,  with  a  determination  to 
capture  or  tieslroy  the  Turkish  fleet  which  lay  there,  if  Ibrahim  Pauha 
refused  lislun  lo  pacific  overtures.  No  satisfaction  being  obtained,  Ad- 
miral Codringlori,  followed  by  the  French  ships,  under  Ue  Rigny,  and  the 
Russian  siiiiailroii,  entered  liie  bay;  and  after  four  hours  from  the  com- 
men<;eiiifiil  of  the  confliet,  which  had  been  carried  on  with  great  fury,  the 
enemy's  fleet  was  wholly  destroyed,  and  the  bay  strewn  with  the  frag- 
ments of  his  ships. 

A.  D.  1828. — It  was  seen  from  the  first,  that  the  Goderich  ministry  did 
not  possess  the  inj^redients  for  a  lasting^  union.  Difl"erences  between  the 
leading  members  rendered  his  lordship's  position  untenable,  and  he  re- 
signed his  seals  of  oflice.  Upon  this  the  king  sent  for  the  duke  of  Wel- 
lington, and  coiTiinissioned  him  to  form  a  new  cabinet,  with  himself  at  the 
head  ;  the  result  was,  that  his  grace  immediately  entered  into  communi- 
cation with  iMr.  Peel,  and  other  members  of  Lord  Liverpool's  ministry, 
who  had  seceded  on  the  elevation  of  Mr.  Canning;  and,  with  very  few 
exceptions,  the  same  parties  once  more  came  into  power.  The  duke,  on 
becoming  the  first  lord  of  the  treasury,  resigned  the  oflice  of  commander- 
in-chief. 

On  the  ftih  of  May  the  catholic  claims  were  again  brought  forward, 
when  Sir  Francis  burdett  moved  for  a  committee  of  the  whole  liouse  on 
this  subject,  with  a  view  to  a  conciliatory  adjustment.  After  a  three 
nigliis'  debate,  this  was  carried  by  a  majority  of  six.  A  conference  with 
the  l(jrds  was  then  held,  after  which  there  was  a  two  nights'  debate  in  the 
lords,  when  the  duke  of  Wellington  opposed  the  resolution,  and  it  failed. 

In  Ireland,  during  the  Canning  and  Goderich  ministries,  all  was  com- 
paratively still ;  but  this  year  the  excitement  of  the  people,  led  on  by  the 
popular  dema<rogues,  was  greatly  increased  by  the  formation  of  a  Wel- 
lington and  Peel  administration.  The  Catholic  Association  was  again 
in  full  activity;  Mr.  O'Connell  was  returned  for  Clare,  in  defiance  of  the 
landed  gentry  of  the  county;  the  priests  seconded  the  efl'orts  of  itinerant 
politicians,  and,  in  tlie  inflated  rhetoric  of  ,Mr.  Shiel,  "  every  altar  became 
a  tribune  at  which  the  wrongs  of  Ireland  were  proclaimed."  Meanwhile, 
ministers  looked  sui)inely  on,  till  the  smouldering  embers  burst  into  a 
flame,  whieh  nothing  within  tlieir  power  could  extinguish.  How  could  it, 
indeed,  be  otherwise,  when  the  marquis  of  Anglesea,  the  king's  represen- 
tative, wrote  a  letter  to  Dr.  Curtis,  the  titular  catholic  primate  of  Ireland, 
to  the  eff"ect  that  the  settlement  of  the  catholic  question  was  unavoidable, 
and  recnmmeiidiiig  the  catholics  to  "agitate,''  but  refrain  from  violence, 
and  trust  to  the  legisl-.iture.  What  more  could  the  great  agitator  himself 
require  than  such  an  ally  ?  It  is  true  that  the  marquis  was  forthwith  re- 
called from  the  government  of  Ireland  for  writing  the  said  letter — btU  he 
was  noL  impcuched. 

The  repairs  and  improvements  of  Windsor  castle,  which  had  been  for  a 
long  time  in  hand,  were  this  year  completed,  and  the  king  took  posses- 
sion of  his  apartments,  December  0th.  A  parliamentary  grant  of  450,000/. 
had  been  devoted  to  this  truly  national  edifice,  and  great  ability  was  shown 
in  retaining  the  principal  features  of  the  original  building,  while  studying 
the  conveniences  of  modern  civilization. 

At  the  latter  end  of  tiie  year,  owing  to  the  discovery  of  a  systematic 
plan  of  murder  h  ivmg  been  piirsuc-d  by  some  wret(;lies  at  Kdinburgli,  an 
indeserihablo  feeling  of  horror  and  disgust  pervaded  the  (country.  It  ap- 
peared, on  the  trial  of  William  Hiirko  and  Helen  M'Dougal,  who  lodged 
in  a  house  kept  by  a  m-an  named  Hare,  that  tliey  had  been  in  the  habit  ol 
decoying  persons  into  the  house,  where  they  first  made  them  intoxicated, 
Uid  then  sufl'ocatcd  them.  'V\w  boihcs  were  tiien  sold  for  anatomical 
purposes,  and  no  questions  asked  respecting  the  mode  in  which  they  had 


been  \  i 

though 

cuted  1 

special 

after  wa 

The 

render  i 

war  agi 

left  the 

Russian 

great  ba 

tance  to 

from  the 

aflfairs  ol 

between 

country 

A.  D.    1 

tlieir  int( 
emancipa 
populatio 
tlian  one 
Scotland, 
was  well 
liad  been  i 
depended 
come  the 
along;,  cat 
into  the  h( 
to  render  i 
at  the  ele 
upon  their 
'he  protes 
Whigs  adv 
that  sectio 
protestant 
however,  a 
resolute  stl 
den,  and  oJ 
the  bishop-j 
ner  denouiJ 
church  anJ 
10th  of  Apl 
A  few  off 
eral,  was  ^ 
Sir  James  I 
peerage  by  I 
pleas  by  8il 
to  Mr.  Suirl 
The  veiTil 
oiitofparliJ 
one,  but  it 
emancipati(j 
and  they  wl 
whose  co-ol 
governmentl 
allow  him  if 
be  could  nol 
clear  that  til 


THE  THKASUHY  OP  HISTORY. 


7S9 


been  ( rocured.  Tlie  number  of  their  victims  it  was  difficult  to  ascertain, 
thou>{li  Uurke  confessed  to  upwards  of  a  dozen.  This  wretch  was  exe- 
cuted amid  ilie  exultations  and  execrations  of  an  immense  concjurse  of 
spectators  ;  and  the  system  of  siranguhition  wiiieh  lie  liad  practised  was 
afterwards  known  hy  the  term  of  Burking. 

The  foreign  even'ts  of  this  year  bear  too  little  on  English  history  to 
render  necessary  more  than  a  mention  of  tiiem.  In  April  Russia  declared 
war  against  Turkey.  Tlie  destruction  of  the  Turkisli  fleet  at  Navarino 
left  the  former  power  masters  of  the  Black  Sea;  and  on  land  115,000 
Russians  were  assembled  to  open  the  campaign  on  the  Danube.  Several 
great  battles  were  fought,  the  Turks  offering  a  much  more  cffecuial  resis- 
tance to  their  invaders  than  was  anticipated  ;'at  length  the  Russians  retired 
from  the  contest,  but  did  not  return  to  St.  Petersburgh  till  October.  The 
affairs  of  Greece  had  gone  on  more  favourably  in  consequence  of  the  war 
between  Turkey  and  Russia ;  and,  assisted  by  France  and  England,  that 
country  was  restored  to  the  rank  of  an  independent  nation. 

A.  D.  18^9.— Soon  after  the  opening  of  parliament,  ministers  declared 
their  intention  to  bring  forward  the  long-agitated  question  of  catholic 
emancipation,  in  order  to  put  an  end  to  it  forever.    In  Ireland  the  catholic 
population  was  estimated  at  five  millions  and  a  half,  whereas  not  more 
than  one  million  and  three  quarters  were  protestants;  but  in  England, 
Scotland,  and  Wales,  the  number  of  catholics  fell  short  of  a  million.    It 
was  well  known  that  the  duke  of  Wellington's  repugnance  to  the  measure 
had  been  gradually  abating;  that  he  thought  the  security  of  the  empire 
depended  upon  its  being  carried ;  and  that  he  had  laboured  hard  to  over- 
come the  king's  scruples.    These  being  at  length  removed,  Mr.  Peel,  in 
a  long,  cautions,  and  elaborate  speech,  introduced  the  "  Catholic  relief  bill" 
into  the  house  of  commons  on  the  5th  of  March.    Its  general  objects  were 
to  render  catholics  eligible  to  seats  in  both  houses  of  parliament,  to  vote 
at  the  election  of  members,  and  to  enjoy  all  civil  franchises  and  offices, 
upon  their  taking  an  oath  not  to  use  their  privileges  to  "weaken  or  disturb 
the  protestant  establishment."    As  it  was  a  course  of  policy  which  the 
whigs  advocated,  it  had  their  support ;  the  chief  opposition  coming  from 
that  section  of  the  tory  party  who  felt  it  to  be  a  measure  dangerous  to  the 
protestant  institutions  of  the  country.    The  majority  in  favour  of  the  bill, 
however,  at  the  third  reading,  was  320  to  142.    In  the  upper  house  a  more 
resolute  stand  .vas  made  against  it;  the  lords  Eldon,  Winchelsea,  Tenter- 
den,  and  oth'  .s,  backed  by  the  archbishops  of  Canterbury  and  York,  and 
the  bishops  of  London,  Durham,  and  Salisbury,  in  the  most  solcnm  man- 
ner denouiicing  it  as  a  measure  pregnant  with  the  most  imminent  peril  to 
church  and  state  as  by  law  established.    It  was,  however,  carried  on  the 
10th  of  April,  and  received  the  royal  assent  on  the  13th. 

A  few  official  changes  followed.  Sir  Charles  Wethercll,  attorney-gen- 
eral, was  dismissed  for  his  anti-catholic  opposition  to  the  ministers,  and 
Sir  James  Scarlett  appointed.  Chief-justice  Best  was  elevated  to  the 
peerage  by  the  title  of  Lord  VVynfonl ;  and  was  suixeeded  in  the  common- 
pleas  by  Sir  Nicholas  Tindal,  the  solicitor-general,  whose  office  was  given 
to  Mr.  Sugden. 

The  year  1830  commenced  without  any  circumstance  occurring  in  or 
out  of  parliament  worth  relating.  The  position  of  ministers  was  a  difficult 
one,  but  it  was  what  they  had  a  right  to  expect.  By  conceding  catholic 
emancipation  they  had  lost  the  support  of  their  most  influential  friends, 
and  they  were  now  compelled  to  accept  as  auxiliaries  those  hybrid  whigs, 
whose  co-operation,  to  be  permanent,  must  be  rewarded  by  a  share  in  the 
government.  But  the  stern  unbending  character  of  "  the  duke"  would  not 
allow  him  to  share  even  the  glorv  of  a  conquest  with  mercenaries  whom 
he  could  not  depend  on ;  and,  the'rcfore,  as  the  tories  were  divided,  it  wai 
clear  that  their  lule  was  fast  drawing  to  a  close. 


730 


THE  TKEASUttY  OF  HISTORY. 


An  event,  by  no  means  unexpected,  now  took  place.  For  a  consiterabie 
time  past  tlic  king  had  been  indisposed,  and  he  was  rarely  seen  beyond 
the  limits  of  his  royal  domain  at  Vv'inonur;  where,  when  he  was  well 
cnougii  to  take  exercise,  he  woiil'!  <  iijoy  a  forest-drive,  or  amuse  himself 
by  fishing  and  sniliiii>  on  hif  j."o>i"\io  ^  .-rinia-waler.  But  gout  and 
dropsy  had  made  sad  liavoi  .>n  tlie  vayu:  i.  'alid;  and  in  April  bulletins  ol 
his  health  began  to  be  puoIi:>hed.  His  iljiess  gradually  increased  frnni 
that  time  to  the  2Cth  of  Jw.y,  l!  •  'uy  on  which  he  died.  After  a  severe 
paroxysm  his  maje^iv  ;ii)peared  u.  be  fainting,  and,  exclaiming  "this  if 
death,"  in  a  few  ni  ;..i'r    he  ctased  to  breathe. 


CHAPTER  LXV. 


THE    REION    OF    WILLIAM    IV. 


A.  D.  1830,  June  2G. — William  Henrv,  duke  of  Clarence,  third  son  ot 
George  111.,  succeeded  to  tiie  throne  as  William  IV.,  being  at  the  time  of 
his  accession  in  ilic  ()-5tii  year  of  his  age.  This  monarch  was  brought  up 
to  the  navy,  having  entered  the  service  as  a  midshipman  in  1779,  on  board 
the  Royal  George,  a  98-gun-ship,  commanded  by  Captain  Digby ;  and,  by 
regular  gradations,  he  became  rear-admiral  of  the  blue  in  1790.  From  that 
time  he  saw  no  more  active  service  afloat,  although  he  wished  to  share  in 
his  country's  naval  glories  ;  and  nothing  was  heard  of  him  in  his  profes- 
sional capacity,  till  5lr.  Canning,  in  1827,  revived  the  office  of  lord-high 
admiral,  which  for  more  than  a  century  had  been  in  commission.  He, 
however,  resigned  it  in  the  following  year,  tlie  duke  of  Wellington,  as 
prime  minister,  disapproving  of  the  expense  to  which  the  lord-high-admiral 
put  the  nation,  by  an  over-zealous  professional  liberality. 

On  tile  23d  of  July  parliament  was  prorogued  by  the  king  in  person,  the 
royal  speech  being  congratulatory  as  to  the  general  tranquillity  of  Europe, 
tile  repeal  of  taxes«,  and  certain  reforms  introduced  into  the  judicial  estab- 
lishment of  the  country. 

It  was,  notwithstanding,  a  period  pregnant  with  events  of  surpassing 
interest,  but  as  they  chiefly  belong  to  the  history  of  France,  the  bare  men- 
tion of  them  is  all  that  is  here  necessary.  An  expedition  on  a  large  scale 
was  fitted  out  by  the  French,  witli  the  ostensible  view  oi  chastising  tlie 
Algerines  for  their  piratical  insults ;  but  it  ended  in  then  "apturing  the 
city,  and  in  taking  measures  to  secure  Algeria  as  a  Vrench  co.  my.  Then 
cam:;  the  revolutionary  struggle  on  the  appoiiitmem  of  the  Poi.gnac  min- 
i cy,  which  ended  in  the  c;  ulsion  of  Charles  \.  from  the  throne  of 
1  ,  I  J,  aiidtlu  .  dtion  of  Louis  Philippe,  duke  of  Orleans,  as  "king  of 
li,!  French,"  who  swore  fidelity  to  tiic  constitutional  charter. 

Tliis  great  change  in  the  French  monarchy  was  effected  with  less  blood- 
shed, and  in  far  less  time,  than  could  have  been  anticipated  by  its  most 
saiijiuiue  promoters;  for,  from  the  date  of  the  despotic  ordinances  issued 
by  the  ministers  of  Charles  X.,  to  the  monu  nt  that  the  duke  of  Orleans 
accciited  the  office  of  lieutenant-general  of  the  kingdom,  preparatory  to 
his  being  elected  king,  only  four  days  elapsed,  duriti^  two  of  which  there 
were  some  sharply  contested  battles  between  the  citizens  and  the  royal 
troojjs  under  Marmont.  Of  the  citizens  three  hiiii;!red  and  ninety  were 
killed  on  the  spot,  and  of  two  thousand  five  huiiured  wounded,  three  hun- 
dred died.  Of  the  royal  guard,  three  hundrt  d  and  seventy-five  were  killed 
and  wounded,  and  of  gens-d'arines  two  hundred  ami  two. 

A  similar  revolution  in  Delgium  followed.  When  that  country  was 
joined  to  Holland  in  1815,  to  form  the  kingdom  of  the  Netherlands,  und 
thereby  raise  a  powerful  litihvark  on  the  frontier  of  France?,  it  was  avow- 
edly a  mere  union  of  political  convenience,  in  which  neither  the  national 


TIIK  TllKAfitatY  OK  HlSTOIlV. 

cii;in,(!i  1. 1  III!  iiistiiutioiis,  nor  the  mliginn  of  tlie  iiilnii 
No  MiniinT  ihd  the  outbre-.ik  in  Paris  become  known, 
Namiir,  (JIuiit,  Antwerp,  an<f  other  cities,  showed  iui 
hostility  to  their  Dutcli  rulers,  and  insurrection*  whn 
a  state  of  civil  war,  were  general  throughout  Befiriinii. 
the  Netherlands  having  been  created  by  Great  Britain, 
Russia,  and  France,  these  powers  assumed  a  ri<'ht 


731 

Us  was  consulted. 

Brussels,  I.iege, 

derate  ■spirit  of 

'  t  amounted  to 

kiniijdom  of 

Ai.  'na,  ii*r!)<i8ia, 

f  medii     >n  berseen 


>\  Wi! «  signed  al 

the  tr  ")ps  of  the 

ormerl)    ''parated 


I'h' 


lot  lost 

le  the 

keof 

>  sup- 

i<:  mill- 

■,  ll  »  IS 


id  ih  less 
md  Ihetn- 
■ivil  list. 
'Mr  seals 
day.  No- 
lle fcead 
r  nvi^m- 
I.ord 
xche- 


reign 
lord 


the  belligerents;  and  on  the  4th  of  November  a  pi  •! 
London,  declariny  that  hostilities  should  cease,  and  t 
contending  parties  should  retire  within  the  limits  whic 
Belgium  from  Holland. 

Jhe  effect  of  these  successful  popular  com  iiotions  a      y 
upon  the  people  of  England;   and  "parliauuutary  reiw..i 
watch-word  of  all  Aho  wished  to  harass  the  lory  ministry. 
Wellington  was  cl.irgeil,  though  most  unjustly,  of  hav  in  - 
port,  or  at  least  bet  >  privy  to  the  arbitrary  measures  of  i 
istfy ;  and  a  clamoi  .  was  raised  against  him  and  his  coUe; 
beyond  their  power  ;o  control. 

By  degrees  the  sin  ill  ministerial  majority  dwindled  aN\ 
than  a  fortnight  from  'he  assembling  of  parliament  the  tur, 
Stives  in  a  minority  o   jfi,  on  a  motion  for  the  settlement  m 
This  was  a  signal  for    he  Wellington  ministry  to  resign,  an 
of  office  were  rcspectlVlly  tendered  to  the  king  on  the  follo\\ 
vember  16. 

The  celebrated  "reform  ministry"  immediately  succeeded 
of  which  was  Lord  Grey,  as  first  lord  of  the  treasury.  The  < 
bers  of  the  cabinet  were  ihe  marquis  of  Lansdo*ue,  lord-presu 
Urougham,  lord-chancellt)r:  Viscount  Althorp, --hancellor  of 
quer ;  Viscount  Melbournt .  liome  secretary ;  Viscount  Palmersi 
secretary;  Viscount  Godi  rich,  colonial  secretary;  Lord  Dur 
privy  seal;  Lord  Aucklanc  president  of  the  board  of  trade;  n  James 
Graham,  first  lord  of  the  admiralty ;  Lord  Holland,  chancellor  of  ttie  duchy 
of  Lancaster;  Honourable  Charles  Grant,  president  of  the  India  ixi'H; 
ami  the  earl  of  Carlisle,  without  any  official  appointment.  Among  te 
ministers  wiio  had  no  seats  a  the  cabinet,  were  Lord  John  Russell,  pay- 
niaster-general;  the  duke  of  Richmond,  postmaster-general ;  the  dukf  of 
Devonshire,  lord-chamberlain;  Marquis  Wellesley,  lord-steward;  Sir  T. 
Denman,  attiVrney-gei'-ral;  u  id  Sir  W.  Home,  solicitor-general.  The 
Marquis  of  Anglesea  was  invested  with  the  lord-lieutenancy  of  Ireland, 
and  Lord  Plunkett  was  its  lori  -chancellor. 

During  the  autumn  of  this  y<  ir  a  novel  and  most  destructive  species  of 
outrage  prevailed  in  the  agricultural  districts  of  the  south  of  England, 
arising  from  the  distressed  comitlon  of  the  labouring  population.  Ni;^ht 
after  night  incendiary  fires  kept  the  country  in  a  constant  state  of  alarm, 
anil  farming-stock  of  every  description  was  consumed.  There  was  no 
open  rioting,  no  mobs ;  nor  did  it  appear  that  it  was  connected  with  any 
jjiiliilcal  object.  In  the  counties  of  Kent,  Hants,  Wilts,  Bucks,  and  Sussex, 
these  tlisorders  rose  to  a  fearful luiglit ;  threatening  letters  often  preceding 
;ht;  conllagrations,  which  soon  after  night-fall  would  simultaneously  burst 
out,  and  spread  over  the  country  havoc  and  dismay.  Large  rewards  were 
(iflrrcil  fur  the  discovery  of  the  offenders,  the  military  force  was  increased, 
iiul  sjieeial  commissions  were  appointed  to  try  the  incendiaries.  Alto- 
n'lliiT  upwards  of  eight  hundred  off"enders  were  tried,  the  greater  part  of 
Ahmii  were  acquitted;  and  amonir  those  convicted,  four  were  executed, 
Hiid  ihi!  remainder  sentenced  to  diffeient  terms  of  transportation  and  im- 
pri^onincnt. 

In  referring  to  foreign  affairs,  we  have  to  notice:  1.  The  trial  of  the 
French  ministers,  Polignac,  Peyronnet,  Chantelauze,  and  Ranville,  on  a 


m 


732 


THK  TREASUUY  OP  HISTOftY. 


charge  of  liiirli  trrason  for  the  pan  they  took  in  enforciiifj  the  "ordinanoes" 
of  Charles  X.,  wliich  led  to  the  memorable  revolution  of  July.  £.  The 
Polish  insurrection.  This  arose  from  the  grand  duke  Constantine  o( 
Russia  having  severely  punished  some  of  the  young  military  students  at 
Warsaw  for  toasting  the  memory  of  Kosciusko.  The  inhabitants,  assisted 
by  the  Polish  regiments,  after  a  sanguinary  contest  in  the  streets,  com- 
pelled the  Russians  to  retire  to  the  otiier  side  of  the  Vistula.  However, 
dreading  the  resentment  of  their  tyrannical  masters,  they  afterwards  en- 
Jeavoured  to  effect  an  amicable  Bettlement;  but  the  emperor  Nicholas 
refused  to  listen  to  their  representations,  and  threatened  them  with  con- 
dign piuiishment.  .Meanwhile,  the  Poles  prepared  to  meet  the  approaching 
contlii't,  and  (General  Joseph  Chiopicki  was  invested  with  the  office  of  "die. 
tator."  3.  'I'lie  death  of  Simon  Bolivar,  the  magnanimous  "liberator"  ol 
Columbia,  who  exitired,  a  voluntary  exile,  at  San  Pedro,  December  17,  in 
the  '18ih  year  of  his  age. 

A.  n.  1H31. — On  the  ."Id  of  February  parliament  re-assembled,  and  it  was 
announced  that  a  plan  of  reform  would  speedily  be  introduced  by  Lord 
John  Russell.     In  the  meantime  Lord  .\lthorp  brought  forward  the  budget; 
by  wiiich  it  appeared  that  the  taxes  on  tobacco,  newspapers,  and  adver 
tisemcnts  were  to  be  reduced;  and  those  on  coals,  candles,  printed  cot 
tons,  and  i-ome  oilier  articles,  abolished. 

The  subject  of  parliamentary  reform  contiinied  to  absorb  all  other  polit 
leal  cousidcratious,  and  was  looked  forward  to  with  intense  interest.  In 
amiouuciug  his  scheme.  Lord  John  Russel  pro[)osed  the  total  disfranchise- 
ment of  sixty  boroughs,  in  which  the  population  did  not  amount  to  two 
thoiisaiiil,  and  Ihe  partial  disfranchisement  of  forty-seven,  wliere  the  pop- 
iilatiiiu  was  oidy  four  thousand.  The  bill,  after  a  spirited  discussion  of 
seven  days,  was  read  a  first  time.  'I'he  second  reading  was  carried  on 
the  9i.'(l  of  March,  by  a  majority  of  one;  and  on  General  Gascoyne's  mo- 
tion for  the  conunitment  of  the  bill,  there  was  a  majority  against  ministerj 
of  eight.  Three  days  afterwards,  on  a  question  of  adjournment,  by  winch 
the  voting  of  supplies  was  postponed,  this  majority  had  increased  to  twenty- 
two;  wliereupou  the  ministers  tendered  tlieir  resignations  to  the  king. 
These  he  declined  to  accept,  but  adopted  the  advice  of  Karl  (irey,  who 
reconunended  a  dissolution  of  parliament,  which  took  place  on  the  2'Jd 
of  Afirii. 

On  the  11th  of  June  the  new  [)arliament  met,  and  was  opened  by  the 
king  in  jxTson.  On  the  'J'lth  Lord  John  Russell  made  his  second  attempt. 
The  licliate  lasted  three  nights,  and  on  a  division  there  was  a  majority  of 
one  hundred  and  thirty-six  in  favour  of  the  bill.  It  then  nndi^rwent  a  loiig 
and  severe  scrutiny  in  connnittee;  every  clause  was  discussed,  and  I7iany 
imperfections  remedjed.  These  occupied  tlu?  house  till  the  19th  of  Sep- 
leuilier,  when,  alter  another  del)ate  of  three  nights,  tlu^  lull  was  earned 
by  a  majority  of  one  hundred  and  nine,  and  taken  up  to  tin*  lords — where 
it  f.'iiled. 

That  we  may  not  interrupt  the  thread  of  onr  narrative,  we  pass  o?i  to 
April  II,  18;t'.';  when,  after  a  four  nights' debate  in  the  lioiise  of  lords, 
tins  iKip'iI.ir  bill  was  carried  by  a  majority  of  nine.  After  tins,  innnmera- 
Me  rlillicnIiH  s  were  raised,  but  the  majority  on  its  third  reading  was  one 
hundred  and  six  to  twenty-two. 

We  sliall  now  bru'lly  refer  to  a  (ewoccnrrences  liitherlo  omitted.  Tho 
Hnssiiiis  sustained  a  severe  defeat  at  Wawz,  after  a  liaitle  of  two  days, 
their  loss  being  fourteen  ihcnisand  men  ;  their  oppoucnis  the  Poles,  siitTer- 
ed  coiii|)aratively  little.  Dut  on  the  nnih  a  Polish  coips,  under  Dwermcki, 
being  liiird  |pressed  by  the  liuHsiaiis,  retreated  into  Ausinun  (Jaljicia,  and 
sinTendenng  to  the  AvistriMi  authorities,  were  treated  ns  prisoners  and 
sent  into  Mimgary.  In  slmrt,  afler  In.tvely  eiiconuteriiig  their  foes,  and 
struKgling  against  su|>(>rior  mimbers,  Warsaw  capiiuhiteit,  ami  the  idea  of 


from  till 
popular 
8ci(nisly 
csiiiiiate 
ed,  or 
the  vile 
the  flMiiei 
tile  soidie 
and  eighn 

Wi.eii  f,„|| 
place  oil 
colonel  III 
pending  m 
With  not  li 
II  tumult  o 
have-  been 
how  far 
iransaclioi 
will  lead 
per|ietuiil 
wliirlwind, 


HE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


733 


ipt. 


led 

ITC 

to 

ITil- 

0110 
'ho 

tr.T- 

u'ki, 
ni)(l 
and 
mid 
of 


Polish  iiidepeiiileiice  was  farther  rcmovod  than  ever. — lu  June,  Piiiice 
Leopold  was  elected  king  of  lielgiuin  by  the  eongress  at  Brussels,  his 
territory  to  eunsisl  of  tlie  kingdom  of  the  Netherlands,  as  settled  in  181,5. 

On  tiie  7th  of  September  the  coronatinn  of  their  majesties  took  place  ; 
but,  as  eompared  with  the  gorgeous  display  and  banqueting  when  George 
IV.  was  crowned,  it  must  be  considered  a  frugal  and  unostentatious 
cPTcnioiiy.  There  was,  however,  a  royal  procession  from  St.  James' 
palace  to  Westminster-abbey  ;  and  in  the  evening  splendid  illuminations, 
free  admission  to  the  theatres,  and  a  variety  of  other  entertainments. 

On  the  ~'lst  of  October,  the  Lmidoii  (iazetteeontamed  precautions  to  be 
adopted  against  the  spread  of  the  Asiatic  ciiolera,  that  dreadful  pestilence 
iiaving  lately  extended  from  Moscow  to  Hamburgh.  It  was  ordered  that 
a  board  of  health  should  be  established  in  every  town,  to  correspond  with 
the  board  in  London,  and  elTectual  modes  of  insuring  cleanliness,  free 
ventilation,  &<;.  were  pointed  out.  These  precautionary  measures  were 
doubtless  of  great  use,  and  worthy  of  the  paternal  attention  of  a  humane 
government ;  but  owinir,  as  was  supposed,  to  the  quarantine  laws  having 
been  evaded  by  some  persons  who  came  over  from  llambuigh  and  landed 
at  Sunderland,  the  nuuh-dieadcHi  infection  visited  many  parts  of  Great 
Britain,  and  produced  indescribable  alarm  among  all  ranks  of  people. 

One  other  event,  that  we  would  fam  omit  altogether,  remains  to  be 
mentioned  among  the  domestic  occurrences  of  the  year.  On  the  29th  of 
October  the  city  of  IJristol  became  the  scene  of  dreadful  riots,  which 
were  not  overcome  till  that  large  commercial  town  appeared  to  be  on  the 
verge  of  total  destrueiion.  Sir  Charles  Uetherell,  an  uncompromising 
opponent  of  the  reform  bill,  was  recorder  of  Uristol ;  and  maledictions  on 
his  head  were  freely  uttered  by  the  base  and  vulgar,  for  the  vigorous  stand 
he  made  against  tlu;  bill  during  its  progress  through  the  commons.  On 
the  recorder's  making  his  public  entrance  the  cruel  storm  (^oinmciiced, 
and  did  not  cease  till  the  third  day,  by  which  Inne,  besides  immense  de- 
struction of  private;  property,  the  mansion-lionse,  custom-house,  excise- 
office,  an<l  bishop's  [)ala(H'  were  plundi  red  and  set  on  (ire;  the  prisons 
were  burst  opini,  and  their  inmates  set  at  libiTty  ;  and  during  one  entire 
day.  Sunday,  the  mob  were  unresisted  masters  of  the  city.  On  Monday 
.-norning,  when  tin;  fury  of  thi!  rioters  had  partly  spent  itself  in  beastly 
oru'ies,  imd  many  had  become  the  victims  of  excessive  drinking  in  the 
ritred  cellars  and  warehouses,  tin;  civil  magistrates  appeared  to  awake 
from  their  stupor,  and,  with  assistance  of  the  military,  this  •' ebullition  of 
popul.ir  feeling,"  as  it  was  delicately  termed  by  soine  who  had  uncon- 
sciously fanned  the  (lame,  was  arrested.  The  loss  of  property  was 
estimated  at  half  a  million.  Tlu^  number  of  rioters  killed,  wound- 
ed, or  iniureil,  was  aliout  110;  but  of  these,  far  more  sud'ered  from 
the  vile  excesses  of  iiitempiMaiicc.  iiiid  fiom  lieiiig  uiiaMe  to  eseiipi;  from 
the  (Imiu's  which  they  had  themselves  kindled,  '.han  from  the  sahres  of 
tlie  soldiery  or  the  truncheons  (d'  (  onsfib.dary  protectors.  One  liumlred 
Hiid  eighty  were  taken  into  custodv.  .iiid 'ricd  by  a  special  eominission  ; 
when  f.)ur  were  exi'ciiled  and  twenty-two  triiisporled.  Their  trills  look 
place  on  the  -M  of  .lamiary,  I'i-.  Not  inati\  days  afiersvards  laeutenant- 
C(d(mol  Itreretcm,  who  had  coiumaiid  of  the  troops,  coininitted  suiciile, 
pending  an  inquiry  in. o  Ins  conduct  by  ediiil-mariial.  He  was  charged 
With  not  liavmu  displaved  the  lirinness  and  decision  ncccss.iry  foripiellnig 
a  tumult  of  such  ma«i'ntude.  That  more  energy  and  decision  ought  to 
liave  been  shown  at  tlic  eomnicncemenl,  by  the  iivil  power,  is  evident; 
iiow  far  the  colonel  was  in  error  is  very  ipiesiionalile.  The  uliolo 
Iransaetum  proves  to  what  excesses  the  unbn(ilcd  fury  of  the  populace 
will  lead  during  a  period  of  piditical  exciteineut,  and  ought  to  nerve  us  •» 
perpetual  warning  to  all  those  unquiet  spirits  who  lovi!  to  "  rule  on  llu' 
whirlwind,"  but  know  not  how  to  "direct  the  storm." 


')*i| 


734 


THE  TKEASUJIY  OP  HISTORY. 


A.  D.  1832. — Having  in  our  previous  notice  stated  tiie  result  of  die  long 
continued  contest  respecting  parliamentary  reform,  we  have  now  only  to 
describe  the  changes  effected  in  the  representative  system  when  the  bills 
came  into  operation.  As  soon  as  the  royal  assent  was  given  to  the  En- 
glish reform  bill  (June  the  7th),  congratulatory  addresses  and  other  peace- 
ful demonstrations  of  public  joy  were  very  generally  indulged  in;  but  if 
we  may  .judge  by  the  triumphant  chuckle  of  the  victors  and  the  lofty 
scorn  of  the  vanquished,  the  angry  invectives  of  the  late  political  dispu- 
tants were  neither  forgotten  nor  forgiven.  Yet,  though  the  war  of  words 
nad  not  wholly  passed  away,  it  was  now  as  a  mere  feather  in  the  balance — 
tlie  reform  bill  had  become  the  law  of  the  land. 

During  the  montlis  of  February,  March,  and  April,  the  cliolera  became 
very  prevalent,  not  only  in  the  country  towns  and  villages  in  the  north  of 
England,  where  it  first  appeared,  but  also  in  the  metropolis.  Every  pos- 
sible attention  was  paid  to  the  subject  by  government;  parocliial  and  dis- 
trict boards  were  forthwith  organized,  temporary  hospitals  got  ready  for 
the  reception  of  the  sick,  and  every  measure  that  humanity  and  pru- 
dence could  suggest  was  reoorted  to,  toclieck  the  progress  of  the  malady. 
The  virulence  of  the  disease  abated  during  tlie  three  succeeding  months, 
but  at  the  end  of  the  summer  it  appeared  again  as  malignant  as  ev(.'r.  In 
the  whole  year,  the  deaths  from  cholera,  within  the  limits  of  the  bills  of 
mortality,  amounted  to  3.'200  ;  and  the  total  number  of  deaths  exclusive  of 
London,  was  24,180;  tht;  amount  of  cases  being  C8,855.  In  Paris,  1000 
deaths  o(!curred  during  the  first  week  of  its  appearance  there ;  nay,  so 
fatal  was  it,  that  out  of  -15,075  deaths  whicth  took  place  in  the  French 
capital  in  18,32,  the  enormous  luimber  of  ?. 9,000  was  occasioned  by 
cholera.  This  frightful  epidemic  next  appeared  m  Canada  :md  the  United 
States.  It  thus  made  the  tour  of  the  globe;  beginning,  as  was  supposed, 
in  Hindosian  ;  then  devastating  AIoscow  and  the  northern  parts  of 
Europe;  visiting  Great  Britain  and  France;  and  lastly,  crossing  the 
Atlantic. 

In  this  year's  obituary  are  the  names  of  several  men  of  eminence.  From 
among  iheni  w(!  s^elect — Sir  .lames  Mackintosh,  an  (iloquent  writer  and 
statesman. — .Icremy  Iknlliam,  ct'lebrated  as  a  jurist  and  law  reformer; 
a  man  wiio  had  his  own  sijccilics  for  ev(!ry  disease  of  tlie  body-politic,  but 
who  never  had  iIk;  happiness  to  se(!  one  of  them  etTect  a  cure.  Sir 
Waller  Scdlt,  the  "  wizard  of  the  norlli,"  as  some  of  his  eulogists  have 
called  hini ;  a  romance  writer  and  poet,  of  acknowledged  merit,  who  for 
a  long  period  enjoyed  a  popularity  unknown  to  any  of  his  coteinporaries. 
He  iiosscssrd  an  exlraordinary  union  of  genius  and  induslry,  aiui  had  ho 
been  saiislied  with  his  literary  gains,  instead  of  joining  in  tlies|ieculations 
of  his  jiriiilers  and  publishers,  his  latter  days  would,  in  ail  probability, 
have  been  spent,  aN  they  ought,  in  the  enjoyment  of  ease  and  affluence. 

A.n.  lH,'i;i. — On  the  2!iih  of  January  liie  first  reform  parliament  was 
opene<l  by  commission,  and  on  the  5lli  of  February  the  king  delivered  his 
H|)eech  m  person.  Among  other  topics  of  interest,  he  cmphalically  dwell 
upon  the  increasing  spirit  of  insubordination  and  violeiice  in  Ireland,  and 
on  till'  necessily  which  existed  for  enlnisting  the  crown  with  additional 
powers  for  puniHliiuH  the  disiurbcrs  of  the  laiblic  jieace,  and  for  strengthen- 
ing the  legislative  union  of  the  two  kingiloms.  This  led  to  the  passing 
of  the  insurrection  acts  in  the  following  nioiilh ;  empowering  the  lord- 
lieulenanl  to  prohibit  piiidic  meetings  of  a  dangerous  tendency ;  sus- 
pending the  wiii  of  halHNis  corpus ;  autiiuriziiig  domiciliary  visits  by 
mauistrates,  &c. 

(ireat  llritain  had  in  1S07  abolished  the  "slave  trade,"  but  ilnvrry  tl.irlj 
was  now  to  become  extinct  in  the  West  Indies.  Hy  the  ad  for  llie 
"aboliiion  of  cohmial  slavery,"  all  chililren  umler  six  years  of  age,  or 
born  after  August  1,  1834,  were  declared  free  ;  all  regislerid  slaves  above 


mm 


for 


iiy. 

ICC. 
\V  !IS 

his 

iwrll 

anil 

Ollitl 

•lieii- 
lord- 

fllH- 

by 

!'"•(/ 

ir  tlio 
or 

lllDVO 


THE  TREAaiUlY  OP  HISTORY 


735 


•IX  ycfllK  bt'Ciinir,  I'nun  Uk;  same  dale,  apprenticed  labourers,  with  weekly 
pny,  cillK'r  in  money  or  by  board  and  lodgingf,  possessing,  at  the  same 
lilliM,  III!  lilt!  riftlils  and  immunities  of  freemen.  In  effecting  so  great  a 
pIliUiKt),  il  was  necessary  that  tlie  owners  of  slaves  should  receive  some 
mlfl(|UUH'  eoMipeimation.  To  meet  this  object,  ministers  at  first  proposed 
(ulvanciiitf  II  loan  of  fifteen  millions  to  the  West  India  proprietors;  but 
tlin  KJt'U  of  a  liiiin  was  soon  converted  into  a  gift,  and  of  a  still  higher 
mmnnil ',  llm  sum  of  C'JO,000,000  being  finally  voted  to  the  slave-owners 
an  II  lihiiral  rompcnsalion  for  the  losses  they  might  sustain  by  this 
lliiiiiaiio  measure.  An  end  was  thus  put  to  a  question  which  had  agitated 
thn  ri'lli?i<»tiH  portion  of  the  community  from  the  day  that  Mr.  Wilberforce 
flrnl  Hiooii  forward  as  the  champion  of  African  emancipation. 

Willi  r«!((iinl  to  renewing  the  charter  of  the  Bank  of  England,  there 
Wdi'd  (Hii'Btioiis  on  which  the  legislature  were  divided  ;  the  majority,  how- 
uviU',  iiiHlNted  on  the  expediency  of  continuing  the  e.vclusive  privileges  of 
tlid  liaiiki  NO  that  it  should  remain  the  principal  and  governing  monetary 
itMioiMiilloii  of  the  empire. 

A>  n.  1  Hill. —The  desire  to  move  onward  in  legislating  for  and  removing 
{iverylliliiK  tliiil  senmed  to  obstruct  the  progress  of  "  liberal"  principles, 
will*  llu)  iinliirnl  consequence  of  the  reform  bill ;  and  at  the  commcnce- 
iinml  of  llm  year  the  "  pressure  from  without"  was  felt  by  ministers  to 
lie  II  iiioNl  inconvenient  appendage  to  their  popularity.  This  state  of 
llllli|{H  could  not  long  remain  ;  and  on  Mr.  Ward  bringing  forward  a 
Miotifiii  III  lilt'  house  of  commons  for  appropriating  the  surplus  revenue  of 
Hilt  Irlxll  rliiirch  to  the  purposes  of  government,  it  appeared  that  there 
exluti'd  It  illlTerenct!  of  opinion  in  the  cabinet  as  to  the  mode  in  which  the 
imilMiii  hIumiIiI  be  met.  The  majority  was  in  its  favour ;  but  the  appro- 
pniiiHiil  tift'hiirtsli  property  to  other  than  ecclesiastical  uses  was  incom- 
imliltli'  Willi  llie  notions  of  Mr.  Stanley,  Sir  James  (iraham,  the  earl  of 
l<i|Hiii,  iiiid  llin  duke  of  Hichmoud;  and  tht^y  accordingly  resigned  their 
placfNliillM'iiiiiimlry.  This  happened  May  37th;  the 'J8ih  being  the  anniver- 
Hurv  tif  till'  klnn'N  hirth-day,  the  Irish  prelates  presented  an  address  to  his 
niiiji'Hiy,  III  which  Ihcy  strongly  deprecated  ecclesiastical  innovations. 
'I'lit'  kiiiu  proinplly  rcplitid,  and  in  an  unstudied  speech  of  eimsiderablc 
li'iiylli,  witniilv  expressed  his  atlaehnient  to  thechurch.  He  said  Unit  he  had 
iilwiiyK  lici'ii  ('riciidlv  to  loleration  in  its  ulinost  latitude,  hut  opposed  to 
licciiliiMiKin"<K,  and  that  Im  was  fully  sensible  how  much  both  the  nrotes- 
liiiit  cliiMi'li  and  Ins  own  family  were  indebted  to  the  revolutiDii  of  1G8S ; 
ciiiphatictilly  and  sdinewhal  naively  adding,  "The  words  which  you  hear 
rniiii  me  lire  npipkeii  froiii  my  mouth,  but  they  jiroceed  from  my  heart." 

'I'lie  riipliire  Willi  the  ministers  above-named  was  speedily  followed  by 
iiiiollicr,  winch  ended  in  the  resignation  of  Karl  lirey,  the  jiremier.  In 
the  eoiniiiUliii'iilioii^  which  bad  from  lime  to  time  been  made  by  ministers 
III  Mr.  O'Coiiiiell  oii  Irish  affairs,  it  had  beeucoiilideiitly  stated  to  him  that 
when  llie  Irish  cm  ri'ioii  bill  was  renewed,  the  el.iuses  prohibitory  of 
lliei  iniKt  Wdiild  mil  lie  pressed;  nevertheless,  the  obnoxious  clauses  ap- 
piMired  III  the  lull  ;  ami  Mr.  O'CtPimell  declared  that  he  considered  it  dis- 
Holved  llie  obliualjon  of  secrecy  under  which  the  eoininumeation  had 
licciiiniide.  I.iird  Mlliorp  fimlini;  himself  unable  to  carry  ilic  coercion 
bill  ihiiMiuli  the  coinmons,  with  the  clauses  ajiainst  public  meetings,  sent  in 
hiH  rtKijinnlion  ;  and  as  r,;irl  (irey  considered  himself  unable,  wiihout  the 
axNiitianee  of  Lord  Mtliorp  as  ministerial  leader  in  the  house  of  commons, 
III  carry  on  the  (("vtTiinieiit,  he  also  resigned. 

An  arriinnemenl  was,  however,  soon  effected  to  form  another  minis- 
tr>,  i.ord  Allhorj)  eonsciiling  to  resume  the  chancellorship  of  the  ex- 
dicqiier  under  the  premiership  of  Viscount  Melbonrne.  The  new 
cabiiiel  lliiii  Hlood  thus  i  \  iscomit  Melbourne,  tirst  lord  of  the  treasury  ; 
Lord  llronuliain,  lord  chancellor;   Viscount  .Mtliorp,  chancellor  of  thii 


HI, 


III 


m 


THE  TUEASUKYOF  HISTORY. 


♦*iiclH>(iurr;  Aliiiqiiis  of  liimsdowiie,  president  of  the  council;  Rarl  o) 
MlllgfiiVi-,  privy  seal ;  Viscount  Diiiicannon,  home  secretary  ;  Viscount 
t'iilUM'iKloii,  foreign  secretary ;  Spring  Rice,  colonial  secretary ;  Lord 
AuckliiMd,  first  lord  of  the  admiralty;  Charles  Grant,  president  of  the 
Illdiii  l/onrd  ;  IMarqnia  of  Conyngham,  postmaster-general;  Lord  Holland, 
ellttliccllor  of  the  duchy  of  Lancaster;  Lord  John  Russell,  paymaster  of 
tlin  foK'PS  ;  and  H.  J.  Littleton,  secretary  for  Ireland. 

All  event  now  took  place  which  was  regarded  as  a  national  calamity, 
lint  merely  on  account  of  the  loss  sustained,  but  also  from  the  historical 
8tl(|  periBMiial  associations  connected  with  it.  On  the  evening  of  the  ICth 
(if  Octdher  a  fire  broke  out  in  oik;  of  the  offices  at  the  lower  end  of  the 
house  of  lords,  which  continued  to  rage  throughout  the  night,  and  was  not 
t'dlllplelely  extinguished  for  several  days.  Great  anxiety  was  felt  for 
the  safety  of  that  ancient  edifice,  Westminster-hall;  and  even  the  vener- 
ttltle  and  inagnificent  golhic  pile  o])posite,  Westminster-abbey,  was  at  one 
period  in  great  danger;  but  nothing  that  skill  or  intrepidity  could  achieve 
Was  neglected  in  arresting  the  progress  of  the  flames;  and  though  the 
two  lioiist  s  of  parliament  were  destroyed,  neither  the  hall  nor  the  abbey 
AllAlnlneil  iniiteria!  damage  ;  and  the  libraries  and  state  papers  in  the  lords 
tltid  eoininoiis  were  preserved.  The  fire,  as  appeared  on  inquiry,  was 
t'illified  by  negligence,  in  burning  the  exchequer-tallies  in  a  building 
ttdjolniiig  tlie  house  of  lords. 

()iie  iiionlh  after  the  d(;struction  of  the  houses  of  parliament  the  MeU 
l)0(irii»!  Miiiiistry  was  suinniarily  dismissed.  On  the  14th  November,  Lord 
Mellioinne  waited  on  iiis  majesty  at  Ijrighton  to  take  his  commands  on  the 
iippojiitineiit  of  a  chain  ilior,  in  the  room  of  Lord  Althorp,  removed,  by 
the  death  of  his  father,  irl  Spencer,  to  the  Iiouse  of  peers.  The  king,  it 
Is  piikI,  (ibjei-ied  to  tin  |ir(ii)osed  re-construction  of  the  cabinet,  and  made 
his  lordship  the  bean  :  of  a  letter  to  the  duke  of  Wellington,  who  waited 
Upon  his  iMHjesty,  an  :  advised  him  to  place  Sir  liobert  Peel  at  the  head  of 
the  fiovernmeiit.  Sir  Hoiurt  was  at  the  time  in  Italy,  whilher  a  courier 
WHS  {|is|Mlclie(l,  and  llu^  baronet  arrived  in  London,  Dec.  9,  saw  the  king, 
Mild  a('ee|)l(d  the  situation.  Thus  again,  though  for  a  brief  space,  the  tory 
jtiifty,  or  conservatives,  as  tliey  were  now  called,  were  in  the  ascendant. 

A.  ii.  lw.1"i. — 'I'Ih!  MelhouriK!  cabinet  had  been  looked  upon  as  the  dregs 
of  the  (Jrev  ininistry  ;  and  the  losses  it  hiid  siistaiiu^d  by  the  withdrawal 
of  llir-  earl  oi  ihirham,  tlie  .Stanley  section,  and  the  noble  premier  himself, 
had  not  l)(  en  siipjilicd  by  men  of  siiitidile  talents.  The  public,  therefore, 
liad  no  great  reason  for  regret,  when  the  king  so  suddenly  dispensed  with 
their  services.  Vet  when  the  same  nieii  were  entrusted  with  the  reins  of 
goveriilnenl  who  had  l)i'en  the  strenuous  opposers  of  reform,  an  iiistanta- 
lieoiis  outcry  hurst  fortli,  and  the  advent  of  toryism  was  regarded  by  the 
populace  with  feelings  of  distrust  and  drt'ad.  Sir  Robert  I'<'el,  however, 
CXI'lli'iliy  declared  that  he  considered  the  reform  bill  as  a  final  and  irrc- 
Voi'iilile  settlement ;  and  he  appealed  to  several  measures  that  had  for- 
merly emaiialed  from  himself,  as  jiroofs  that  hi;  was  not  opposed  to  the 
redress  of  grievances.  Ihit  wlien,  on  tlie  30tli  of  ALircli,  Lord  .John  Rus- 
pell  liroii(iht  forward  his  rcs(diition — "that  the  house  shmild  resolve  itself 
llilo  a  coinmillce  of  the  whole  house,  to  consider  the  temporalities  of  the 
{■liiireh  of  IrelaiKl,"  the  motion  was  met  by  Sir  K.  Knalchbull  with  adirecl 
negative,  ami  after  a  long  and  stormy  debate,  minister.s  found  themselves 
III  II  minority  of  .in.  The  bill  was  then  discussed  in  committee  ;  and  after 
tl  "  iiighls  debate  there  was  still  a  majority  against  them  <tf  -7.  Find- 
llill  that  neither  r'onccssions  nor  iirofessions  of  liberality  were  of  any 
nviiil,  Hie  duke  of  Wellington  in  the  upper  house,  and  Sir  iiobert  I'eel  In 
the  lower.  Miiiiouneed  their  resignations;  the  latter  at  the  g.ime  time  dc- 
eliiriiig.  Ilial  llKuigli  thwarted  by  the  cuniinuns,  lie  parted  with  them  on 
'rieiidly  teriim. 


A- 1»  KKi 
Vot.  1. 


I'vcr, 
liiri!- 
for- 
l)  tilt' 
lUus- 
lilBcK 
If  tlie 
lliri'i^l 
Iflvcs 

1  ilftlT 

iFiiiil 
liny 
Icel  in 
Ic  dc- 

Mll  OK 


THE  TU15A8UKY  OF  HISTOHY. 

These  changes  in  the  ministry  sadly  impede  us  in  the  progress  of  this 
siiiiinni-t  history  ;  bnt  us  ihey  cngrosbud  nniversiil  uitentionat  the  time,  su 
must  they  now  he  related,  as  all'ording  the  readiest  clue  lo  the  principal 
transactions  in  tiic  arena  of  politics.  Once  more,  then,  wc  see  Lord  Mel- 
bourne as  the  premier;  Lord  John  Russell,  home  secretary;  Palmerston, 
foreign  secretary;  Uijjht.  lion.  Spruig  Rice,  chancellor  of  the  exchequer; 
marquis  of  Lansdowne,  president  uf  the  council ;  the  other  appoiiUments 
filled  nearly  as  they  were  when  the  "  liberals"  were  in  power,  ex'icpt  that 
the  great  seal  was  put  in  (commission. 

Let  us  a  moment  pause  in  our  domestic  narrative,  to  mention  a  diabolical 
contrivance  in  France,  which  iniglil  have  involved  Europe  in  another  scene 
of  blood  and  tumult  but  for  its  providential  failure.  On  the  2t3tli  of  July, 
during  tlie  festivities  of  tiie  annual  cuninicmoration  of  the  revolution  uf 
1H3U,  as  Louis  Philippe,  attended  by  his  sons  and  a  splendid  suite,  was 
riding  along  the  line  of  the  national  guard,  on  the  boulevard  of  the  'I'emple, 
an  explosion  like  a  discharge  of  musketry  took  place  from  the  window  of 
an  adjoining  house,  which  killed  Marshal  Mortier  and  another  general 
otiicer,  besides  killing  or  wounding  nearly  forty  other  persons.  But  the 
king,  who  was  the  object  of  this  indiscriminate  slaughter,  with  his  three 
sons,  escaped  unhurt.  The  assassin,  who  was  a  Corsicaii  named  Fiesehi, 
was  seized  by  the  police  in  the  act  of  descending  from  the  window  by  a 
rope,  and  wounded  by  tlie  bursting  of  some  of  the  barrels  of  his  "  infernal 
machine."  The  deadly  inslrument  consisted  of  a  fiaine  upon  which  were 
arranged  twenty-five  barrels, each  loaded  with  bullets,  &o.,  and  the  touch- 
holes  communicating  by  means  of  a  train  of  gunpowder.  On  his  trial  he 
made  no  attempt  to  deny  his  guilt,  but  noihing  could  be  elicited  to  prove 
ihat  any  formidable  conspiracy  existed,  or  that  he  was  influeiieed  by  any 
political  party  to  undertake  tiie  horrid  act.  T!ie  atrocious  attempt,  how- 
ever, served  for  a  convenient  pretext  to  introduce  a  series  of  severe  laws 
for  the  prevention  and  punishment  uf  slate  crimes  und  revolutionary 
attempts. 

We  sir  '1  close  cmr  sketch  of  this  year's  occurrences  by  briefly  noticing 
the  deaths  of  two  persons,  who,  in  their  career  for  popular  applause,  at- 
tained u  more  than  orliiiary  sliare  of  notoriety.  The  one  was  Henry 
Hunt,  laii!  M.P.,  for  Preston,  who  had  figured  as  a  leader  among  the 
riuiicals,  and  whose  zimI  for  •'the  people"  at  the  too  memorable  meeting 
a:  Manchester  had  been  rewarded  by  a  long  imprisonment  in  Ilehestcr 
jail.  Me  was  originally  a  respectable  and  wealthy  Wiltshire  farmer; 
but  having  renounced  Ihociiarins  of  country  life  for  the  euphonious  greet- 
ings of  "unwashed  artisans,"  he  for  many  years  cmitiiiued  to  hold  un- 
divided empire  over  their  alTections.  In  personal  appearance  Mr.  Hunt 
was  a  fine  specimen  of  the  lOnglish  yeoman ;  he  was  naturally  shrewd, 
uniting  caution  wiiii  boldness,  liiit,  above  ;dl,  greedy  of  poliiical  popularity. 
Diiiing  the  latter  p;irt  of  bis  life,  his  name,  which  usod  to  grace  the  walls 
in  jnxta-positioii  with  "  uiiivcisal  siiflTrage,"  was  allied  with  "matchless 
blacking ;"  and  it  was  while  he  was  on  a  journey  of  business  through 
till!  soulh-w<'stern  couiilics  that  he  met  wiih  his  death,  owing  to  a  vudenl 
lit  of  paralysis  with  which  he  was  seized  as  he  was  alighting  from  his 
ph;etoii  at  Alresford,  Hants.  His  more  distinguished  coicmporary  ami 
coadjutor,  though  sometimes  powerful  rival,  was  William  ('obtteit,  M. P. 
for  Oldhiim;  u  man  reftiarkalile  for  persevering  industry,  and  of  unques- 
tioir.tltle  talents,  who,  from  following  his  father's  phmgh,  and  afterward? 
serving  with  credit  as  a  Urinsh  soldier  in  America,  passed  the  greater 
part  of  his  life  in  the  unceasing  s'rife  of  polities,  anil  was  able,  bv  the 
force  of  Ins  extraordinary  and  versatile  powers  as  a  writer,  to  ke«ip  » 
stionir  bold  on  public  oniiiion  for  nearly  half  a  century.  He  died  m  4'ino 
•>ut  three  iiumlhs  after  liis  quoiid  im  friend,  Mr-  Henry  Hunt. 
K.  II  HIKi— The  year  opened  auspiciously,  bulb  wiih  regard  lo  its  com 
Voi,,  I.— »7 


M 


4'\ 


I 


r- 


V  'I] 


738 


TIM';  TlU!:Ac«t;RY  OF   HISTORY. 


mercial  prospects  and  its  political  aspect.  The  whole  manufacturing  dis- 
tricts  were  in  a  state  of  activity  ;  money  was  abinidant  wherever  lolcrahii- 
security  was  offered  ;  and  thongh  an  immense  absorption  of  capital  was 
taking  place  in  extensive  public  undertakings,  such  as  railways,  some  ol 
which  were  already  highly  successful,  there  was  very  little  of  that  wild 
spirit  of  adventure  which  ten  years  before  had  nearly  brought  the  country 
to  the  brink  of  ruin.  Mercantile  confidence  rested  upon  a  better  basis 
than  't  had  done  for  a  long  time  past;  the  ports  bore  ample  evidence  of 
the  prosperity  of  Hriti.sh  commerce  ;  and  thongh  there  were  still  just  com- 
plaints of  agricultural  distress,  they  were  partial  rather  than  general. 

in  the  obituary  for  this  year  are  several  distinguished  names:  Lord 
Stowell,  aged  !)(),  an  eminent  civilian,  many  years  judge  of  the  high  court 
of  adnnralty.and  brother  of  lord-chancellor  Eldon. — Nathan  Meyer  Roths- 
child, the  greatest  millionaire  of  the  age  ;  a  man  who  in  conjunction  with 
other  membrrs  of  his  family  on  the  continent  may  be  said  to  have  gov- 
erned the  Kuiopcaii  m(Miey  market. — .lames  Wood,  the  rich,  eccentric. 
and  penurious  hanker  of  (ilouco  ^ter. — James  Mill,  the  historian  of  British 
India. — Charles  X.,  ex-king  of  France,  who  died  an  exile  in  Illyria,  in  the 
8()ih  year  of  his  age. — And  the  Abbi!  Sieycs,  who  under  all  the  phases  of 
the  tVench  rcvoliiiiDn  maintained  an  elevated  station,  and  on  the  fall  ol' 
the  republic;  became  a  count  and  peer  of  the  empire. 

A.  n.  18:!7. — U  was  remarked  at  the  commencement  of  the  previous  year 
that  symptoms  of  jjrosperity  appeared  in  all  the  leading  branches  of  com- 
mercial industry.  IJut  over-trading,  led  on  and  encouraged  by  over-bank- 
ing, again  proihiced  evils.  During  the  year  183(;  no  less  than  forty-five 
jontt-stock  banks  had  been  establisshed.  It  was  therefore  natural  that  one 
of  the  subjects  nicommcnded  to  the  attention  of  parliament  in  the  opening 
.spt-ccli,  shoidd  be  "a  renewal  of  the  inquiry  into  the  operation  of  joint- 
stock  banks,"  I.itile  progress,  however,  was  made,  when  an  event  oc- 
curred which  for  a  time  absorbed  all  matters  of  miiu)r  interest. 

The  public  had  been  apprised  by  the  publication  of  bulletin'",  that  hi-- 
majesty  was  seriously  ill,  and  on  the  '-'Oth  of  Jinic  his  death  was  annoiuiced 
as  having  taken  place  early  that  morning.  He  was  perfectly  conscious 
of  his  approaching  fate,  and  had  expressed  a  wish  to  survive  the  anniver- 
sary of  the  liatth;  of  Waterloo  on  the  18th.  The  good  old  king  was  sn 
far  gratified ;  but  the  symptoms  of  internal  decay  rapidly  increased,  anii 
he  breathed  his  last,  as  his  head  rested  on  Queen  .Adelaide's  shoulder,  in 
the  presence  of  the  archtiishop  of  ("anterbury,  the  dean  of  Hereford,  &c., 
faintly  articnlaling,  "  Thy  will  be  di>ne. '  The  queen's  attentions  to  her 
ainicted  consort  had  been  unremitting;  for  twelve  days  she  did  not  lake 
ofl"her  clothes,  but  was  constantly  in  iIk?  sick  chamber  administering  con- 
solation. His  majesty  was  in  the  71Jd  year  of  his  age,  and  had  nearly 
completed  tlu'  seventh  year  of  his  reign.  The  royal  corpse  lay  in  state 
till  the  8th  of  .Inly,  when  it  was  deposited  in  St.(Jeorge's  chapel,  Windsor. 
The  duke  of  Sussex  attended  as  chief  nu)urMer;  and  the  queen  dowager 
was  present  in  the  royal  clusit  during  the  funeral  service. 

Many  were  the  rulogiums  pronounced  upon  the  deceased  monarch;  but 
no  tesinnony  was  more  just,  or  mor(!  characierisiic  of  his  real  qualities, 
than  the  fidlowiiig  Irdmle  by  Sir  Robert  Peel.  He  said,  "it  was  the  uni- 
V(^rsa!  feeling  o*  the  c(innlry,  that  the  reigns  of  government  were  never 
committed  to  the  hanils  of  one  wht)  hurt?  hnuself  as  a  sovereign  with  more 
adalulity,  and  yet  with  more  trni!  dignity — to  one  who  was  more  compas- 
sionate for  the  snlTerings  of  others — or  to  one  whose  nature  was  ninrc 
i-omoletely  free  from  all  selfishness,  He  did  not  Ixdieve  that,  in  the  most 
eAai>d  or  in  the  most  humble  station,  there  could  be  found  a  man  who 
Cii  luoie  pleasure  in  witnessing  and  promoting  the  welfare  of  others." 


cr- 

\v\ 

in 

&(■., 

0011- 
SUltf 

dsor. 
agor 


but 
lilios, 

uni- 
iicvtT 
niorf. 
inp-.is- 

luoro 
5  most 
u  who 
•9." 


THE  THBASUaV  OF  HISTOaY. 


CHAPTER  LXVI 

THE     REION     or     VICTORIA. 

A.  u.  1837. — Intelligence  of  his  majesty's  death  havinjj  been  odicially 
coniinunicHted  to  the  Princess  Victoria  and  the  duchess  of  Kent,  at  Ken- 
smgton  palace,  prepaiations  were  immediately  made  for  holding  a  privy 
council  there  at  eleven  o'clock.  A  temporary  throne  was  erected  for  the 
occasion ;  and,  on  the  queen  being  seated,  the  lord-chancellor  administered 
to  her  majesty  the  usual  oath,  thiit  she  would  govern  the  kingdom  accord- 
ing to  its  laws  and  customs,  &c.  The  cabinet  ministers  and  other  privy 
councillors  then  present  took  tiie  oaths  of  allegiance  and  supremacy  ;  and 
the  ministers  having  first  resigned  their  seals  of  office,  her  majesty  was 
graciously  pleased  to  return  them,  and  they  severally  kissed  hands  ou  their 
re-appoiutment. 

By  the  death  of  William  IV.  the  crowns  of  the  United  Kingdom  and 
Hanover  were  dissevered  tiirough  the  operation  of  the  salic  law  excluding 
females  from  the  Hanoverian  kingdom,  wliich  consequently  descended  to 
the  next  heir,  the  duke  of  Cumberland;  and  Adelaide,  as  queen-dowager, 
was  entitled  to  >£  100,000  per  annum,  settled  upon  her  for  life  in  1831,  with 
Marlborouuh-house  and  Bushy-house  for  residences. 

On  the  20tli  of  October  the  new  parliament  assembled,  when  her  majesty 
opened  in  person  the  business  of  the  session.  In  her  progress  to  and  from 
the  house,  the  queen  was  received  by  the  populace  with  the  strongest 
demonstrations  of  enthusiasm.  The  speech,  which  her  majesty  delivered 
in  a  clear,  audible  voice,  concluded  with  the  following  sei\tence:  "The 
early  age  at  wiiich  I  am  called  to  the  sovereignty  of  this  kingdom,  renders 
it  an  im|)orativc  duty  that,  under  Divine  Providence.  I  should  place  my 
reliance  upon  your  cordial  co-operation,  and  upon  the  love  and  affection 
of  all  my  people."  In  the  house  of  lords,  the  address  in  answer  to  her 
majesty's  gracious  speech  was  moved  by  her  uncle  the  duke  of  Sussex, 
wlio  "  trusted  he  might  be  allowed  to  express  his  conviction  that  when 
the  chroniclers  at  a  future  period  should  have  to  record  the  annals  of  her 
rcifrn,  wliich  had  soauspiciously  commenced,  and  which,  with  the  blessing 
of  (lod,  he  trusted  would  be  continued  for  many  years,  they  would  not  be 
written  in  letters  of  blood,  but  would  commemorate  a  glorious  period  of 
prosperity,  the  triumphs  of  peace,  the  spreading  of  general  knowledge,  the 
aJvancement  of  the  arts  and  manufactures,  the  difTiision  of  commerce,  the 
content  of  all  classes  of  society,  and  the  general  welfare  of  the  country." 

No  groat  progress  was  made  during  the  fiist  session  of  Victoria's  par- 
liament in  settling  the  various  important  subjects  under  discussion.  At 
its  close,  however,  the  civil  list  bill  was  passed;  it  provided  a  total  sum 
of  iliree  hundred  and  eighty-five  thousand  pounds,  which  was  thus  classed  : 
1,  privy  purse,  sixty  thousand  pounds  ;  2,  salaries  of  household  and  retired 
allowances,  one  hundred  and  thirty-one  thousand  two  hundred  and  sixty 
poiiiuls  ;  3.  expenses  of  household,  one  hundred  and  seventy-two  thousand 
five  hundred  pounds;  t,  royal  bounty,  &c.,  tliirtec^i  thousand  two  hundred 
pounds;  .'),  pcmsions,  one  thousand  two  humlred  i)ouiids;  unappropriated 
moneys,  ciglii  llici  iml  and  forty  pounds.  On  the  23d  her  majesty  went 
in  person  to  give  it  licr  royal  assent,  and  then  adjourned  the  parliament 
to  the  Ifith  of  January. 

A.  11.  Iri.'i-^. — 1'  or  some  time  there  had  been  symptoms  of  discontent  in 
Lower  (Canada,  fomented  by  the  old  French  party,  which  at  length  broke 
out  into  the  appearance  of  a  civil  war.  To  check  m\  evil  so  pregnant  with 
misciiief,  it  was  deemed  advisable  that  no  ordinary  person  should  be  sent 
out  to  that  important  colony.  Accordingly,  it  was  nolifnd  in  the  London 
Gazette,  Jan  16,  that  the  oarl  of  Durham,  G.('  0.  was  aD''wled  governor- 


K\ 


740 


THE  TEEASUHY  OF  HISTOHY. 


geiicrni  of  "all  her  majesty's  provinces  within  and  adjaeent  to  the  con 
Inient  of  North  America,  and  her  majesty's  high  commissioner  for  the 
adjustment  of  certain  important  affairs  affeciinfj  the  provinces  of  Lower 
and  Upper  Canada."  His  lord&hip  did  not  arrive  in  Canada  tilt  nearly 
the  cud  of  May.  Actual  contests  had  taken  place  between  considerable 
parties  of  the  insurgents  and  the  troops  under  Lieutenant-colonel  Wether- 
ail,  wiio  had  succeeded  in  driving  them  from  all  the  villages  on  the  line  oi 
the  river  Ivichelieu.  At  lengih,  on  the  13th  of  December,  Sir  John  Col- 
horiio  himself  marched  from  Montreal  to  attack  (he  chief  post  of  the  rebels 
at  ihc  Grand  Brule.  On  the  following  day  an  engagement  took  place  in 
the  cimrchyard  of  St.  Eustachn,  when  the  loyalist  army  proved  once 
niui'c  victorious,  eighty  of  the  enemy  having  been  killed,  and  one  hundred 
and  twenty  taken  prisoners.  Dr.  J.  O.  Chenier,  their  leader,  was  slain 
and  the  town  was  more  than  half  burned  down.  On  the  ISih,  on  Sii 
Joim  Colborne's  approach  to  the  town  of  St.  Bcnoit,  a  great  portion  of  the 
iiiliatitaiits  came  out  bearing  a  white  flag  and  begging  for  mercy,  but  in 
iMiiiSL'quence  of  the  great  disloyalty  of  the  place,  and  the  fact  of  the  prin- 
cipal leaders  having  been  permitted  to  escape,  some  of  their  houses  were 
fired  as  an  example.  Dr.  Wolfred  Nelson,  one  of  the  rebel  leaders,  hav- 
ing been  nine  days  concealed  in  the  woods,  was  brought  in  prisoner  to 
Montreal.  In  the  Upper  Province,  a  body  of  rebels,  which  occupied  a 
position  about  three  miles  from  Toronto,  threatening  that  city,  were  suc- 
cessfully attacked  and  dispersed  on  the  7th  of  December,  by  Sir  Francis 
Bond  Head,  at  the  head  of  the  armed  citizens,  with  such  reinforcements 
as  had  spontaneously  joined  them  from  the  itountry.  The  rebels  had, 
however,  established  a  camp  on  Navy  island,  on  the  Niagara  river;  and 
many  citizens  of  the  United  States  were  implicated  in  the  insurrectionary 
movements  there  and  clstiwhere  on  the  fnmlicr. 

On  the  3d  of  March  a  sharp  engagement  took  place  between  her  maj- 
esty's troops  and  the  insurgents,  in  which  the  latter  were  totally  defeated 
at  Point  Pele  island,  near  the  western  boundary  of  the  British  possessions. 
This  island  had  been  occupied  by  about  five  hundred  men,  well  armed  and 
equipped;  when  ('oloncl  Maitland,  in  order  to  dispossess  them,  marched 
from  Amiierstburgh  with  a  few  ccnnpanies  of  the  33d  and  83d  rogimcnta, 
two  six-pounders,  and  some  volunteer  cavalry.  The  action  that  followed 
assumed  the  character  of  bush-fisfhting — the  island,  which  is  al)out  seven 
miles  long,  being  covered  with  thicket,  and  the  pirates  outnumbering  the 
troops  in  the  proportion  of  nearly  two  to  one.  llltimatcly,  however,  they 
were  <Iriven  to  llighl,  leaving  among  the  dead.  Colonel  Bradley,  the 
commander-in-chief.  Major  Howdley,  and  ('aplains  Van  Renseilaer  and 
M'Keon,  besides  a  great  many  woimded  and  other  prisoners.  The  insur- 
gents being  thus  foiled  in  their  dariiiif  atlempls,  it  is  not  necessary,  for  the 
present,  for  us  to  allude  further  to  Canadian  afl'airs,  than  to  observe  that 
some  of  the  most  active  ringleaders  were  executed,  and  others  transported 
to  the  island  of  Bermuda. 

In  narrating  the  domestic  occurrences  of  this  year,  we  have  to  com- 
mence with  one  which,  like  the  great  conflagration  of  the  houses  of  par- 
li:iineiit,  filled  the  inhabitants  of  the  metropolis  with  alarm.  Soon  after 
len  o'clock  on  the  evening  of  the  lOih  .laiiuary,  a  fire  broke  out  in  the 
lioyal  Exchange.  The  firemen  were  promptly  on  the  spot,  but  owing  to 
•11  intense  frost,  great  delay  was  or-easioned  before  their  services  becamr 
.•fleet've.  Kvery  efl'ort  was  maile,  but  the  work  of  destruction  went  on, 
irom  room  to  room  and  from  one  story  to  another,  till  that  fine  building, 
witli  Its  various  olTices  and  royal  statues,  was  utterly  demolished.  It  was 
rem  irked  by  those  present,  that  at  twelve  o'clock,  when  the  flames  had 
just  r' ...  IkmI  the  north-west  angle  of  the  building,  the;  chimes  struck  ii|), 
»g  usuai,  the  old  tune  "  Then^'s  ine  luck  alioiit  th(!  house,"  and  continued 
Mr  about  live  minutes.    The  eflfeet  was  extraordinary  ;  for  althuugh  lh« 


THE  TIIEASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


741 


fire  was  violently  raging,  and  discordant  sounds  arose  in  every  quarter, 
the  tune  wns  distiuutiy  heard. 

A.  D.  1839. — Canada  ajrain  demands  our  notice.  Lord  Durham  had 
been  sent  out  witii  exlraonlinaiy  powers  to  meet  the  exigency  of  affairs 
in  that  ciilDuy.  It  was  now  adinitled  that  lie  had  exceeded  the  scope  of 
those  powers,  by  deciding  on  the  guilt  of  accused  men,  witlioui  trial,  and 
by  baniiihing  and  imprisoning  them :  but  the  nimisters  thought  it  their 
duty  to  acqiiiesce  in  passing  a  bill,  which,  while  it  recited  the  illegality  of 
the  ordinance  issued  by- his  lordship,  should  indemnify  those  who  had  ad- 
vised or  acted  under  it,  on  the  score  of  their  presumed  good  intenlionv 
The  ordinance  set  forth  that  •'  VVolfred  Nelscm,  R.  S.  M.  Bouchette,  and 
others,  now  in  Montreal  jail,  having  acknowledged  their  treasons  and  sub- 
mitted themselves  to  the  will  and  pleasure  of  her  majesty,  shall  be  trans- 
ported to  the  island  of  Uermiida,  not  to  return  on  pain  of  death  ;  and  the 
same  penalty  is  to  be  incurred  by  Papineau,  and  others  who  have  abscond- 
ed, if  found  at  large  in  the  province."  Government  had  intended  merely 
to  substitute  a  temporary  legislative  power  during  the  suspension  of,  and 
in  substitution  for,  the  ordinary  legislature ;  and  as  the  ordinary  legisla- 
ture would  not  have  had  power  to  pass  such  an  ordinance,  it  was  argued 
that  neither  could  this  power  belong  to  the  substituted  authority. 

The  passing  of  the  indemnity  act  made  a  great  sensation  as  soon  as  i: 
was  known  in  Canada ;  and  Lord  Durham,  acutely  feeling  that  his  implied 
condemnati(m  was  contained  in  it,  declared  his  intention  to  resign  and  re- 
turn immediately  to  England,  inasmuch  as  he  was  now  deprived  of  the 
ability  to  do  the  good  which  he  had  hoped  to  accomplish. 

Meanwinle,  the  Canadas  again  became  ihe  scene  of  rebellious  war  and 
piratical  invasion.     The  rebels  occupied  Beauhaniois  and  Acadie,  near 
the  confluence  of  the  Richelieu  and  the  St.  Lawrence,  establishing  their 
head-quariers  at  Napierville;  and  their  forces  mustered,  at  one  time,  to 
the  number  of  eight  thousand  men,  generally  well  armed.    Several  actions 
took  place ;  and  Sir  John  Colborne,  who  had  proclaimed  martial  law,  con- 
centrated his  troops  at  Napierville  and  Chaleauquay,  and  executed  a 
severe  vengeance  upon  the  rebels  whom  he  found  there,  burning  the 
houses  of  the  disaffected  through  the  whole  district  of  Acadie.    But  it 
was  a  part  of  the  plan  of  the  traitors  and  their  republican  confederates  to 
distract  the  attention  of  the  British  commander  and  to  divide  the  military 
force,  by  mvading  upper  Canada;  and  at  the  moment  Sir  John  Colborne 
was  putting  the  last  iiand  to  the  suppression  of  the  rebellion  in  Beauhar- 
nois  arid    Acadie,  eight   hundred  republican  pirates  embark(!d  in  two 
schooners  at  Ogdensbur§h,  fully  armed,  and  provided  with  six  or  eight 
pieces  of  artillery,  to  attack  the  town  of  Prescott,  on  the  opposite  side  of 
the  river.     By  the  aid  of  two  United  States  steamers,  they  effected  a  land- 
ing a  mile  or  two  below  the  town,  where  they  established  themselves  in 
a  windmill  and  some  stone  buiUiiiias,  and  repelled  the  first  attempt  made 
to  dislodge  them,  k'lliiig  and  wounding  forty-five  of  their  assailants,  among 
whom  w(!ie  five  oflicers ;  but  on   Colonel  Dundas  arriving  with  a  rein- 
forcement of  regular  troops,  with  three  pieces  of  artillery,  they  surren- 
dered  at  discnaion.     Some  other  skirmishes  subsequently  took  [ilacc, 
chiefly  between  American  desperadoes  who  invaded  the  British  territory 
»nd  the  (pieeii's  troops ;  hut  the  former  were  severely  punished  for  their 
temerity.    The  coniliiet  of  Sir  John  Colborne  elicited  the  praise  of  all 
parties  at  home  :  and  he  was  appointed  governor-general  of  Canada,  with 
all  the  powers  which  had  been  ve-s'.ed  in  the  earl  of  Dinhain. 

T'-  adjusliniMit  of  a  boundary  ll;ii%  bel  ween  Maine  and  New-Brunswick, 
had  been  a  subject  of  dis|)iite  froi!"  tne  time  the  Muiependence  ol  the 
Stales  w.is  ai'knowledireil  in  178,3.  T'loimh  the  iract  in  disimle  was  of 
no  valu.!  to  eillicr  elaiiiiiiiil  generally  as  likely  to  become  profiiuhle  uiidei 
cultivation,  yet  »oinu  part  ol  it  was  found  necessary  to  Great  Britain  as  s 


I 


I 


i 


f*3 


THK  T11KA8UHY  OF  HISTORY. 


means  uf  cotniiiuiiication  between  New-Brunswick  and  the  Canadas,  ar.d 
thus  through  ah  tlie  British  eoloiiies.  Great  Britain  had,  moreover,  since 
17^3,  remained  in  de  facto  possession  of  the  desert,  as  far  as  a  doseri 
can  be  said  to  be  occupied.  At  length,  however,  the  state  of  Maine  inva- 
ded this  debateable  land,  and  several  conflicts  took  place,  whicii  for  atinia 
seemed  likely  to  involve  Great  Britain  and  America  in  a  general  war. 
The  colonists  showed  great  alacrity  and  determination  in  defending  their 
right  to  the  disputed  territory ;  ana  it  was  eventually  agreed  that  both 
parties  wore  to  continue  in  possession  of  the  parts  occupied  by  them  re- 
spectivel;-  at  the  commencement  of  the  dispute,  until  the  federal  govern- 
ment and  'jreat  Britain  should  come  to  a  definitive  arrangement. 

The  p.cseedings  of  parliament  had  lately  been  watched  with  interest, 
the  state  of  parties  being  too  nicely  balanced  to  insure  ministerial  majori- 
ties. On  the  9th  of  April  leave  was  given  to  bring  in  a  bill,  on  the  motion 
of  Mr.  Labouchere,  to  suspend  the  executive  constitution  of  Jamaica.  It 
appeared  that,  in  consequence  of  a  dispute  between  the  governor  and 
holJ^(;  of  assembly,  no  public  business  could  be  proceeded  with;  and  it 
was  proposed  by  this  bill  to  vest  the  government  in  the  governor  and  a 
council  only — to  be  continued  for  five  years.  When  the  order  of  the  day 
for  going  into  committee  on  the  Jamaica  bill  was  moved,  it  was  opposed 
by  Sir  Robert  Peel,  in  a  speech  in  which  he  exposed  the  arbitrary  pro- 
visions of  the  bill,  the  enormous  power  it  would  confer  on  the  governor 
and  commissioners,  and  the  im(;ossibility  of  imposing  an  effectual  cheek 
on  the  abuse  of  power  exercised  at  a  distance  of  three  thousand  miles. 
In  support  of  ihe  view  he  had  taken.  Sir  Robert  alluded  to  the  modi  of 
treating  refractory  colonies,  formerly  suggested  by  Mr.  Canning,  who  had 
declared  thut  "  nothing  short  of  absolute  and  demonstrable  necessity 
should  induce  him  to  moot  the  awful  question  of  the  transcendental  power 
of  parliament  over  every  dependency  of  the  British  crown  ;  for  that  trati 
cendental  power  was  an  arcanum  of  empire  whieh  ought  to  be  kept  back 
within  the  penetralia  of  the  constitution."  After  an  adjourned  debate,  .May 
the  6th,  the  house  divided,  when  there  appeared  for  going  into  committee 
294,  against  it  289,  the  majority  for  ministers  being  only  five.  The  next 
day  Loril  John  Russell  and  Lord  Melbourne  stated,  that  in  conspquptn-e 
of  this  vote,  the  min'st.y  had  come  to  the  resolution  to  resign,  it  being 
evident  that  with  such  a  want  of  confidence  on  the  part  of  so  large  a  f)ro. 
portion  of  members  in  the  house  of  commons,  and  the  well-known  oppo- 
sitiiui  in  the  tionso  ot  lords,  it  would  be  impossible  for  ihnm  to  adniinistcj' 
the  afl^airs  of  her  majesty's  government  in  a  maimer  which  could  bn  use- 
ful and  beneficial  to  the  coimtry. 

The  fierce  and  c-uel  contest  tl  t  had  raged  for  the  last  three  years  in 
the  Spanish  poninsi'la,  between  tlie  Carli.«ts  and  ('hrir;tmos,  was  now  vir- 
tually termiiiat(!d  .ly  the  active  and  -oidicr-lilvc  conduct  of  I'Isparlcio,  the 
queen's  general  avd  chief.  Th,-"  British  loi,Moii  had  scinn'tinic  since  with- 
drawn, tile  (lueen'r  party  daily  gained  ground,  and  Don  Carlos  han  found 
it  necessary  to  seek  refuge  in  France. 

In  narrating  the  affairs  of  Britain,  it  will  he  oliscrvcd  that  we  are  neces- 
sarily led,  from  time  to  time,  to  a<iv(>rt  to  the  cvinls  which  lake  place  in 
British  colfjuies  and  possessions,  wherevi-r  situate  ;"id  however  liislant. 
For  a  considerable  lime  past  the  governineiit  of  in'lla  h:id  bee':  adopting 
very  active  measures,  in  Cfmspiiu^iie"  of  tlie  shah  of  Persia,  who  was 
raised  to  the  thrope  mainly  by  British  assist!>:!r'e,  lieiiig  su|)|i()sed  to  he 
acting  under  Russian  intltience,  to  the  pr'j;idice  of  this  country.  Stimu- 
lated by  Bussia,  as  ii  ap()eared,  the  Persian  undertook  an  expeditimi  to 
Herat,  an  iinporl:int  place,  to  whieji  a  sinnll  priiicinalilv  is  attaidicd.  in 
ihe  territory  of  Aflghatiistaii.  l-ord  Auckland,  the  g<iv>'rnor-[r"!i>itii  o\ 
India,  thereupon  determined  to  send  an  army  of  thirty  thousand  men 
•owards  Caiidatiar,  Caboiil,  and  Herat;  and  this  force  was  to  be  joim** 


r-»~1«ti>ut<'.'«Hfii,\ 


THE  IREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


743 


in 

Ivir- 
tlie 
,'ith- 
)iin<l 

\v  in 

|t',\nt. 

Viing 

\v;is 

lo    I'll 

jiitiii- 

|n    ti> 

a.  in 

ia,  v.l 
men 


ny  about  forty-five  thousand  men,  furnished  by  Runjeet  Singh,  the  sovc 
reign  of  the  I'unjaub.  In  the  meantime  it  appeared  that  llie'l^ersians  had 
suffered  great  loss  at  Herat.  It  was  soon  afterwards  rumoured  lliat  the 
chiefs  of  AlTghanislau  were  prepared  to  meet  a  much  stronger  force  than 
the  Anglo-Indian  government,  though  reinforced  by  Runjeet  Hw^U.  could 
bring  into  the  field,  and  thai,  they  would  listen  to  no  terms  of  acc.oinmoda- 
lion.  The  next  accounts,  however,  announeed  that  the  Urilish  iua  ca- 
tered Candahar,  tlial  the  diificullies  experienced  with  respect  to  [irovisioiia 
had  vanished,  and  that  the  ir-joos  were  received  witii  open  arms.  Shah 
Soojah  was  crowned  with  acslaination  ;  and  the  army  proceeded  forthwith 
to  Caboul. 

On  the  21st  of  September  tlie  fort  of  Joudpore,  in  Kajpootana,  surren- 
dered to  the  Urilish  ;  and  that  of  Kurnaul,  in  ilie  Deccan,  on  the  Cth  of 
October.  The  camp  of  the  rajah  was  attacked  by  General  Willshire, 
which  ended  in  the  total  rout  oi"  the  enemy.  A  very  great  quaniily  of 
military  stores  were  found  in  Kurnaul,  and  treasure  amounting  lo  nearly 
1,000,000/.  sterling.  In  the  camp  an  immense  quantity  of  jewels  was  cap- 
tured, besides  150,000/.  in  specie.  The  shah  of  Persia  consented  lo  ac- 
knowledge Shah  .Soojah  as  king  of  Affghanistan ;  but  Dost  Maliomed,  the 
deposed  prince,  was  slill  at  large,  and  there  was  no  doubt  llial  ;i  widely 
ramified  conspiracy  existed  among  the  native  chiefs  to  rise  against  the 
British  on  the  first  favourable  opportunity. 

The  country  had  been  much  dih.ur^:*;'.'  during  the  year  by  large  and  tu- 
multuous assemblages  of  the  people,  oi  a  revolutionary  character,  under 
the  name  of  charUsls;  and  many  e*cf;ss;-s  were  committed  by  them  in  the 
large  manufacturing  towns  of  Mancliesiir,  Bolton,  Birmingham,  Stock- 
port, &c.,  that  required  the  strong  arm  of  the  law  to  curb.  This  was  al- 
luded to  in  her  majesty's  speech,  at  the  close  of  liie  session  of  parliament, 
as  the  first  attempts  at  insubordination,  wlrcli  happily  had  been  checked 
by  the  fearless  administration  of  the  law. 

On  the  lOih  of  Uecember  aspe<:iai  comir'.ssion  was  held  at  Monmouth, 
for  the  trial  of  the  chartist  rebels  at  Newport,  before  Lord-chu'f-justice 
Tiiidal,  and  liie  judges  Park  and  Williams,  Use  chief-justice  opening  the 
proceedings  with  a  luminous  and  eloquent  charge  to  the  grand  jury.  Ac- 
cordingly, on  tiie  liith,  true  bills  were  returned  aijaiiist  John  Krosl,  Charles 
Waters,  James  Aust,  William  Jones,  John  Lovell,  Zeplianiah  Williams, 
Jeiikin  Alorgan,  Solomon  Uritloii,  lAlmoiid  KdmonJs,  Richard  Heiifield, 
John  Rees,  David  Jones,  and  John  Terner  (otherwise  Coles),  for  high 
treason,  in  order  to  comply  witii  the  fornis  uusioinaiy  in  trials  for  high 
treason,  the  court  was  then  adjourned  to  Oee.  31,  wih'ii  John  Frost  was 
put  to  the  bur.  Tiie  lirst  day  was  occupied  ii.  ('uillengiiig  the  jury; 
the  lU'.xl  day  the  atloriiey-gciif  ral  addressed  the  cJi'rl  ami  jury  on  the 
part  of  the  crown,  and  llie  prisoner's  counsel  olijcelc  1  U<  lliu  calling  of  the 
\vitaessl^s,  in  coiihcqiieiice  of  the  li^l  of  them  iioi  I 
the  pri!<oner.  Frost,  .lyieeably  to  the  terms  of  the  . 
day  the  evidence  was  ciileied  into;  and  on  tiii!  i'l^\.'. 
patient  alteiilion  of  the  coiiil  and  jury,  a  verdict  c.' 
against  l'"rost,  wiih  rccomiiuiulalion  to  inurcv 
and  Jones  each  occupied  four  days,  with  a  l;k 
tion.  Walters.  .Mmtjaii,  Rees,  Hciili 
received  seiileiK     of  dealli,  tluJconrt 

ported  f.ir  lil'e.  Four  were  discliaigod,  two  f(Ml'.  'ted  their  bail,  and  nine, 
having  pleaded  gi:ilt y  to  chi.iges  of  conspiracy  and  not,  were  sentenced 
to  terms  of  iiiiprisoiiiiieiit  not  e.veediug  one  year.  Frost,  and  tlie  other 
ringleaders  on  whom  sentence  of  death  had  been  [lassed,  were  finally 
traiispiirled  for  life. 

Tlie  -spirit  of  chartism,  thoiiuh  repressed,  was  not  subdued.     Sunday, 
laniiarv  l-'lli.  had  been  fixed  on  for  outbreaks  in  various  parts  of  the  eoun- 


ivnig  been  given  to 
a' lite;  on  the  third 
,  day,  after  the  most 
guilty  was  recorded 
'llie  trii*ls  of  Williams, 
verdict  and  recoininenda- 
1(1,  M-A  Lovell   pleaded  guilty,  and 
i'iinatiii;r  thai  tliey  wouKl  be  iraiis- 


744 


TMK  TRKABIJRY  OF  HISTORY. 


try  ;  uiit  by  the  pi-cciiutidiiiiry  iiicitsiires  of  goveriimpnt  and  the  police 
t^f;ird('siy;iis  wcri!  friisii-iited.  Iiironniuioii  \v:is  afterwards  rereivtH  ilial 
the  charlisis  inteiided  lo  (ire  tlit;  town  of  Slicfludd.  They  began  to  nsseu; 
ble,  but  Iroops  and  consiablcs  being  on  Iho  alert,  they  sin-ceeded  in  takn)g 
the  ringleaders,  but  luil  before  several  [irrscnis  were  wounded,  three  ol 
wlioni  were  polieeincn.  An  immense  quantity  of  fire-arms,  ball-ear 
tridjtes,  ircni  l)idlels,  hmnl-grenades,  fire-l)al]s,  (laifgers,  pikes,  and  swords 
were  fcnuid,  together  with  a  quantiiy  of  crowfeet  for  disabling  horties. 
The  ringleMders  were  cinninitted  to  York  eastle,  and  at  the  ensuing  as- 
sizes were  tried,  found  gniliy,  and  seuleneed  to  various  terms  of  impris 
onuienl,  of  tnic',  two,  and  three  years.  At  the  same  lime  four  of  the  Brad 
ford  charlisis  weresenieneed  to  three  years'  imprisonment,  and  three  from 
Barnsley  for  the  term  of  two  years.  At  the  same  assizes,  Feargus  O'Con- 
nor was  convicted  of  having  pul)lished,  in  the  Northern  Star  newspaper, 
of  which  he  was  the  editor  and  proprietor,  certain  seditious  libels;  and 
the  noted  demagouue  orators,  Vincent  and  Edwards,  who  were  at  the 
time  undergoing  a  former  sentence  in  prison,  were  convicted  at  Monmouth 
of  a  conspiracy  to  efTect  great  changes  in  the  government  by  illegal 
means,  &c.,  and  were  severally  sentenced  to  a  further  imprisonment  of 
twelve  and  fourteen  months.  In  various  other  places,  also,  London  among 
the  rest,  chartist  ccnispirators  were  tried  and  punished  for  their  misdeeds 

A.  D.  1840. — For  the  space  of  two  years  and  a  half  the  liritish  sceptre 
had  been  swayed  by  a  "  virgin  queen  ;"  it  was  therefore  by  no  means  sur- 
prising that  her  majesty  slinuld  at  length  consider  that  the  cares  of  regal 
state  might  be  rendered  more  siqiportable  if  shared  by  a  consort.  That 
such,  indeed,  had  been  the  subject  of  her  royal  musings,  was  soon  made 
evident;  for,  on  the  IGth  of  January,  she  met  her  parliament,  and  com- 
menced her  niosigr.icious  speech  with  the  following  plain  and  unaffected 
sentence  : — "  .My  lords  and  gentlemen  :  Since  you  were  last  assembled 
I  have  declared  my  mieiition  of  allying  myself  in  marriage  with  the  prince 
•Mhert  of  Saxe-Cohourg  and  Gotlia.  I  humbly  implore  that  the  Divine 
blessing  may  prosper  this  (iiii(ni,  and  render  it  conducive  to  the  interests 
of  my  peojile,  as  well  as  to  my  own  domestic  happiness." 

Tlierc  could  be  no  reasonable  ground  for  caviling  at  her  majesty's 
choice.  The  rank,  age,  character,  and  connexions  of  the  priinre,  were  all 
in  his  favour;  and  the  necessary  arrangeiiicnts  were  made  without  loss 
of  lime.  A  natnralizati<m  bill  for  his  royal  highness  was  immediately 
passed  ;  and  Lord  .lohn  Russell  moved  a  resolution  authorizing  her  maj- 
esty lo  grant  fifty  thousand  pounds  a  year  to  the  prince  for  his  life.  This 
was  generally  thought  to  be  more  than  suffic'ieiit,  and  Mr.  Hume  moved 
as  an  amendment,  that  the  grant  be  lw(nily-oiie  thousand  pounds  ;  how- 
ever, on  a  division  there  was  a  majority  of  207  against  the  amendent. 
Upon  this,  (^)loiiel  Sibthorp  moved  a  second  amendment,  substituting 
thirty  thotisaiul  pomids,  which  was  supported  by  Mr.  (ioulburn,  Sir  J.  Gra- 
ham, and  Sir  R.  Peel,  who  considered  thirty  thousand  pounds  a  just  and 
liberal  allowance  for  the  joint  lives  of  the  queen  and  the  prince,  and  for 
the  |)rince's  possible  survivorship,  should  there  bo  no  issue  ;  if  an  heir 
slioiilil  1)1^  born,  then  the  thirty  thousand  might  properly  be  advanced  to 
fifty  ihoiisand  pounds;  and.  slionid  there  he  a  mimeroiis  issue,  it  would 
be  reasoiialiUi  lo  make  a  still  further  increase,  such  as  would  befit  the 
father  of  a  large  family  of  royal  children. 

On  the  <;ih  of  the  ensuing  month.  Ilie  bridegroom-elect,  conducted  by 
Viscount  T(nrin;:lon,  and  accoinpanieil  by  the  duke  Ins  father,  anil  his 
elder  brotli'^r,  ariivcd  :U  Dover;  anil  on  llie  10ih"llie  marriaue  of  the 
ijueun's  most  exicllent  iniiji'sty  with  the  lii'lilinarslitil  his  royal  highness 
Fraiiiis  MI)itI  Ani;usius  (Charles  Km  innel,  duke  of  Saxe,  prince  of  .S:ixe- 
Colioiirg  '.ind  (ioiha,  K.  <i.,  was  soleinnizcil  at  the  chapei-royal,  St. 
la.nes'."     The  processions  of  the  royal  bride  and  bridegroom  were  con- 


lit. 
ing 
ra- 
md 
for 
bi'ir 

10 
)U1(1 

tlic 


li  hv 
,\  his 

int'riS 

,   SI. 
:  con- 


THK  TUKAtiUUY  Of  UItiTO"Y 

ducted  in  a  style  of  spleiilour  suitabli!  to  llin  occasion.  The  duke  of 
Sussex  gave  away  his  royal  iiicce;  iiiid  al  ihal  part  of  tin;  service  where 
tlic  arcliiiishiip  of  Canterbury  ri.'ad  ihi'  w.inls,  "  1  proimuiU'R  llul  lliey  be 
man  and  wife  io»ether,"  the  park  ami  Tower  ^uns  (ireJ.  In  the  afternoon 
her  majesty  and  tlie  prince  |)rocet'<leii  III  Wiiiisur  castle,  a  banquet  was 
given  at  St.  James'  palace  to  the  memlicrs  of  the  household,  which  was 
honoured  by  the  prcsemre  of  the  diicliess  of  Kent,  and  the  reighiuR  duke 
and  hereditary  prince  of  Saxe-Cobourg,  and  the  day  was  universally  kept 
as  ii  holiday  ihroiighonl  tlie  country ;  ^jrand  dinners  were  (T'-  n  by  the 
cabinet  ministers,  and  in  tile  evening  the  splendid  illunii'  me 

tropolis  gave  additional  eclat  to  the  hymeneal  rejoicing: 

For  many  months  past  there  had  been  an  interruption  lOti:  ,  .';.aons 
of  amity  and  commerce  which  for  a  long  period  had  been  maintained  be- 
tween Kny^land  and  China.  It  originated  in  the  deterininatiou  on  the 
part  of  the  Chinese  goveriiinent  to  put  an  end  to  the  importation  of  opium 
into  the  "  ceh^stial  empire,"  and  tlie  opposition  made  to  that  decree  by 
British  merchants  engaged  iii  that  traffic.  Early  in  the  preceding  year  a 
large  quantity  of  opium,  belonging  to  British  merchynts,  was  given  up, 
on  the  requisition  of  Mr.  Klliot,  the  queen's  representotii'o  ai  Canton,  to 
be  destroyed  by  the  Chinese  authorities.  The  quantity  seized  was  twenty 
thousand  chests,  supposed  to  be  worth  <£-2,000,000 :  and  Mr.  Elliot 
pledged  the  faith  of  the  goverinent  he  representpd;  tha;  the  merchants 
should  receive  compensation. 

The  English  governmciit  was  naturally  desirous  to  keep  on  good  terms 
with  a  country  from  which  so  many  commercial  advantages  had  been 
derived;  but  the  Chinese  authorities  daily  grew  more  arrogant  and  im- 
reasonable,  and  several  outrages  against  the  English  were  committed 
At  length,  in  an  affray  between  some  seamen  of  the  Volage  and  the  Chi- 
nese, one  of  the  latter  was  killed  ;  and  on  Captain  Klliot  having  refused 
to  deliver  up  the  homicide  to  Commissioner  Lin,  the  most  severe  and  ar- 
bitrary measures  we:e  immediately  taken  to  expel  all  the  British  inhabi- 
tants from  Macao.  Tl.is  hostile  conduct  was  quickly  followed  by  an  out- 
rage of  a  still  more  serious  character.  The  lilack  Joke,  having  on  board 
one  passenger,  a  Mr.  Moss,  and  six  Lascars,  was  obliged  to  anchor  in 
the  Lantaod  passage,  to  wait  for  the  tide.  Here  she  was  surrounded  by 
three  mandarin  boats,  by  wiiose  crews  she  was  boarded,  five  of  the  Las- 
cars butchered,  and  Mr.  Moss  shockingly  mutilated.  These  proceedings 
gave  rise  to  further  ineHsures  of  hostility.  On  the  4lh  September,  Cap- 
tain Elliot  came  from  Hong  Kong  to  Macao  in  his  cutter,  in  company  with 
the  schooner  Pearl,  to  obtain  provisions  for  the  fleet.  The  maiidariiis, 
however,  on  board  the  war-juiiks.  opposed  their  embarkation,  when  Cap- 
tain Elliot  ituimated  that  if  in  half  an  hour  the  provisions  were  not  allow- 
ed to  pass,  ho  would  open  a  fire  upon  them.  The  half  hour  passed,  and 
the  gun  was  fired.  Three  war-junks  then  endeavoured  to  put  to  sea,  but 
were  compelled  bv  a  well-directed  fire  of  the  cutter  and  the  Pearl  to  seek 
shelter  under  the"  walls  o*"  Coloon  fort.  About  six  o'clock  the  V(dage 
frigate  hove  in  sight,  ana  the  boat  of  Captain  Douglas,  with  twenty-four 
BrTtish  seamen,  attempted  to  board  the  junk,  but  without  success.  The 
boat's  crew  then  opened  a  fire  of  musketry,  by  which  a  mandarin  and  four 
Chinese  soldiers  were  killed,  and  seven  wounded.  The  result,  however, 
was,  that  the  provisions  were  not  obtained,  and  that  the  Chinese  junks 
escaped;  while,  instead  of  any  approach  to  a  better  understanding  be- 
tween the  two  countries,  it  was  regarded  rather  as  the  commencement 
of  a  war,  whicli,  indeed,  the  next  news  from  China  confiimed. 

On  '.he  appearance  of  another  British  ship,  the  Thomas  Coutts,  at 
VVhampoa.  Coni.nissioner  Liu  renewed  his  demand  for  the  surrender  o' 
the  murderer  of  the  Chinese,  and  issued  an  edict  commanding  all  UrilisK 
ships  to  enter  the  port  of  Canton  and  sign  the  opium  bond,  or  to  deoart 


746 


THli;  TRKASURY  OP  HISTORY. 


from  the  coast  iinmcdiatcly.  In  case  of  iioncompliiince  with  either  of 
tliese  conditions,  witiiin  tin-te  days,  the  t-onnnissioncr  dechired  he  would 
destroy  the  entire  Britisli  fleet.  On  liie  publication  of  this  edict,  Captain 
Elliot  demanded  an  explanation  from  the  Ciiiiicse  admiral,  Kawii,  who 
at  first  pretended  to  enter  into  a  negotiation,  hut  immediately  afterwards 
ordered  out  twenty-nine  war-junks,  evidently  intending  to  surround  the 
British  ships.  The  attempt  ended  in  five  of  the  junks  being  sunk,  and 
another  blown  up,  each  with  from  150  to  200  men  on  board,  and  on  the 
rest  makinif  o(T,  Captain  KUiot  ordered  the  firing  to  cease. 

A  decree  was  now  issued  by  the  emperor  prohibiting  tiie  importation  of 
all  British  goods,  and  the  trade  with  China  was  consequently  at  an  end; 
but  the  Americaii  ships  arrived  and  departed  as  usual.  In  the  meantime 
preparations  on  a  large  scale  were  making  in  India  to  collect  and  send 
a  largo  force  to  China,  so  as  to  bring  this  important  (juarrel  to  an  issue. 
Several  men-of-war  and  corvettes,  from  Kngland,  and  various  stations, 
were  got  ready,  and  the  command  given  to  Admiral  Elliot  to  give  the 
expedition  all  the  co-operation  possible. 

A  great  sensation  was  caused  in  the  public  mind  by  an  attempt  to  as- 
sassinate the  queen.  On  the  10th  of  J(ni(;,  as  her  majesty  was  starting  for 
an  eveniiig  drive,  up  Constitution-hill,  in  a  low  open  carriage,  accompa- 
nied by  Prince  Albert,  a  young  man  dehberatetly  fired  two  pistols  at  her, 
but  happily  without  efli;ct.  His  name  proved  to  be  Kdward  Oxford,  the 
son  of  a  widow  who  formerly  kept  a  cofree-shop  in  Southwark.  He  was 
about  eighteen  years  of  age,  and  had  been  lately  employed  as  a  pot-boy  in 
Oxf;'rd-street,  but  was  out  of  place.  He  was  instantly  seized,  and  sent 
to  Newgate  on  a  chargt;  of  higJi  treason;  but  it  appeared  on  bis  trial  that 
there  were  grouiul.'s  for  attributing  the  act  to  insanity,  an<l  as  there  was  no 
proof  that  the  jiistols  were  loaded,  the  jury  relumed  a  verdict  of"  guilty, 
but  that  at  the  time  he  coniinittcd  the  act  he  was  insane."  The  conse- 
quence was,  that  he  became  an  inmate  of  Kethlem  for  life,  as  was  the 
case  with  Hatluld,  who  forty  years  before  fired  off  a  pistol  at  George 
HI.,  in  Drury-lane  tiieatn!. 

The  nninler  of  Lord  William  Russell  by  Courvoisier,  his  Swiss  valet, 
had  JU--1  before  e.\cited  considcraljle  interest.  The  crime  was  commilted 
at  his  loriWnp'.s  residence  in  Noifolk-strei'l,  Park  lane,  early  in  tlie  night, 
and  the  miu'dcnr  had  employed  the  ri'niaiiider  of  the  night  in  carefully 
destrojiiii;  all  marks  which  coiiM  cast  suspicion  upon  luinself,  and  in 
throwing  the  house  iiiio  a  stale  of  coiifiisioii,  in  order  that  it  might  bear 
the  appearance  of  having  been  broken  iiilo  l)y  burglais.  Nor  would  it 
have  been  an  easy  matter  to  have  convicted  him  on  cin'umstantial  evi« 
deuce,  liad  not  a  missing  parcel  of  pi  ile  Ik  en  iliscovcred  on  iht;  very  day 
the  In.il  coiniiicnced,  which  it  appcanil  he  had  left  some  days  before  the 
nnndi  r  with  M.idaine  I'lol.me.  llic  kei'pcr  of  a  liotid  in  l.cicislcr-sipi.irc. 

It  is  sDiiic  time  since  we  had  occasion  to  notice  anything  n'iatni'  to 
Frciiih  al1":iirs;  but  an  event  transpired  in  .\iigii>l  whicii  we  eannot  well 
omit.  On  the  lilli  of  that  mouth,  Louis  ,\,i|ioleon,  (son  of  the  lale  king 
of  lloilaiiil,  aiiil  lirir  iiiali'  of  the  Miiiia|):irle  fimily),  made  an  absurd 
atli'iiipi  III  eH'cct  a  hoHiile  desi'cni  iipun  ilic  co.ist  of  France.  He  eni- 
iiarki  il  from  Luiidon  in  tlie  Mdiiibiir^li  (.'.islle  slcainer,  which  he  li.id  hired 
from  the  Coiiimeri'i.il  Sieam  Navigaliou  Company,  as  for  a  voyage  of 
pleasure,  accoinpaiiii'd  by  about  lifly  men,  mi'liiiliiig  (ieneral  .Montliolon, 
.•(doinls  Voiseii.  L.iborde,  Mniilantiaii,  and  Panpiin,  and  several  o!lier 
oHii'ir.i  of  infi  riiir  r.uik.  Tiny  landed  at  a  small  port  abmit  two  liagueii 
fioin  llni:|ii;.rnc,  to  whiidi  town  they  iininediaiely  inanlied,  and  arnviMl 
lit  Ihc  birracks  aliniii  (ive  o'clock,  just  as  tlir  soldiers  id  llic  VM  regiment 
of  the  line  were  ri-iiiL'  from  their  III  iN,      At  first  the  soldiers  were  a  liH' 

uliiugcriil,  an  till  y  iiiiili'r'<t I  a  rivnlniion  had  taken  place  in  Paris,  and 

Ihcy  were  suininoiu  d  to  join  the  im()crial  eaijle,    One  of  their  olliceru 


■Wftrw^Aitto**!*"!.";*?**  ■ " 


III 

It 

vi- 

ly 

I  lie 
c. 
to 

ill 

111^ 
<  11  111 
1 111- 

ilTll 

<li 

)ll>Mi 

icr 

llVt'll 

incnt 

iiikI 
l\('i'i» 


THK  THKASUUY  OF  HISTOllY. 

however,  having  liurrind  to  the  barracks,  soon  relieved  tiic  men  from 
their  pcrpli'xiiy,  iiiid  they  acknowledged  his  authority.  Louis  Napoleon 
drew  a  pistol,  and  attempted  to  shoot  the  inopportune  intruder ;  but  tiie 
shot  took  erti'i't  upon  a  soldier,  who  died  the  same  day.  Finding  Ihein- 
selves  tlins  foiled,  the  Bonapartists  took  the  Calais  road  to  ine  coloiine 
de  Napoleon,  upon  the  top  of  whieh  they  placed  their  flag  The  town 
aiitlioriiies  and  national  guard  then  went  in  pursuit  of  the  prince,  who, 
being  interci'pted  on  the  side  of  Uw  column,  made  for  the  beach,  with  a 
view  to  embark  and  regain  the  packet  in  which  he  had  arrived.  He  took 
possession  of  the  life-boat ;  but  scarcely  had  his  followers  got  into  it  when 
the  national  guard  also  arrived  on  the  beach  and  discharged  a  volley  on 
the  boat,  which  iniineilialely  upset,  and  the  whole  company  were  seen 
struggling  in  the  sea.  In  the  meantime  the  steam-packet  was  already 
taken  possession  of  by  the  lieutenant  of  the  port.  The  prince  was  then 
made  prisoner,  and  about  three  hours  after  his  attempt  on  Uoulognc,  he 
and  his  followers  were  safely  lodged  in  the  castle.  From  Boulogne  he 
was  removed  to  the  castle  of  Ham,  and  placed  in  the  rooms  once  occu- 
pied by  Prince  I'oligiiac.  On  being  tried  and  found  guilty,  Louis  Napo- 
leon was  sentenced  to  perpetual  imprisonment  in  a  fortress  ;  Count  Mon- 
th(doii,  twenty  years'  detention  ;  Parquin  and  Lombard,  the  same  period; 
others  were  sentenced  to  shorter  periods ;  Aldcnize  was  transported  for 
life,  and  some  were  a(;tiuitted. 

This  insaiK!  attiiinpt  to  excite  a  revolution  probably  owed  its  origin  to 
the  "  liberal"  permission  granted  by  Louis  Philippe,  and  the  no  less  lib- 
eral acquiescence  of  the  Knglish  ministers,  to  allow  the  ashes  of  the  em- 
peror Napoleon  to  be  removed  from  St.  Helena,  that  they  might  find  their 
last  resting-place  in  France.    This  had  undoubtedly  raised  the  hopes  of 
many  a  zealous  Bonapartist,  who  thought  that  the  fervour  of  the  populace 
was  likely  to  display  itself  in  a  violent  emeule,  which  the  troops  would  be 
more  ready  to  favour  than  to  quell.     A  grant  of  a  million  of  francs  had 
been  made  to  defray  the  expenses  of  the  expedition  to  St.  Helena  (which 
was  to  be  under  the  command  of  Prince  de  Joinville),  the  funeral  cere- 
mony, and  the  erection  of  a  tomb  in  the  church  of  the  Invalides;  so  that, 
in  the  language  of  the  French  minister  of  the  interior,  "  his  tomb,  like  his 
glorv.  should  belong  to  his  country."    The  prince  arrived  at  tJlierlmnrg, 
with  his  "  precious' charge,"  on  the  UOth  of  November;  and  on  the  I5th 
of  I)iccnilter  NapidciMi's  remains  were  h(Hiouied  by  a  splendid  funeral 
procession,  the  kiiiij  and  royal  family  bring  present  at  the  ci  reniony.  with 
Sixty  thousand  national  giianls  in  attend. nice,  and  an  assiMiiblagi!  of  five 
huiulicd  thousand  persons.     It  was  oiiserved  at  the  tune  of  Bonaparte's 
exhiniiation,  that  his  fratures  were  so  little  changed  that  liis  face  was 
recoiiiii/.ed  by  those  who  had  known  him  when  alive  ;  and  the  uniform, 
till'  iirlcis.  and  the  hat  wliuh  liail  lieeii  bininl  with  him,  were  very  little 
changed.     It  was   little  coiitcniplaled  when  Ihf   liody    was   de|)osited  in 
"  N.ipolron's  Valley."  at  ^l   Helena,  that  it  would  I'ver  be  removed  ;  nay, 
"t  seems  that  especial  cai'e  was  taken  to  prevent  such  an  ocriirri'in'e  ;  for 
wv  read,  that  afur  h.ivmg  tikiii  away  the  iron  railing  which  sunounded 
.he  toiiili,  "they  llieii  ri'inovn,  three  ranges  of  masonry,  and  came  to  a 
'aiilt  eleven  U-i  dei  p,  nearly  filled   willi  clay,  a  beil  of  Uoinaii  ceineiil 
hen  presented   iIscH',  and   uinleriieatli  was   aiiollier  lied,   ten  feel   deep, 
jonii  I  toneihi'r  with  liaiids  of  nun.     A  covering  of  masonry  was  llicii  dis- 
joveiicl,  live  ficl  deep,  fonning  the  covering  of  the  saicophagim." 

We  eoiieliKle  tins  \  ear's  oeciirreiices  with  the  aei'oiielieineiit  of  her 
majesty,  Qneen  Vutoria,  who  on  the  Clsl  of  Noveinlier  give  birth  at 
Biiekiti'iiliaMi  p.ilai'e  to  a  pneeess.  her  nist-liorn  child;  and  oa  ilic  IDtliof 
t'elnniiy  lite  iif.int  pnneess-ioyal  was  elirihlened  Victoria  Adelaide 
Mary  Louisa.  ,  „ 

A.  i..  1-41.— Uuriinr  the  past  ;ca'  the  atleutian  o!  the  great  hunmeaii 


,  I 


iii 
1 

i 


748 


THE  TRKASURY  OF  HIHTOllV. 


powers  hud  beon  diJiwii  to  the  coiulilioii  of  Syria  and  Turkpy,  and  an 
aliiaiiue  \v:is  ciilL-red  Into  between  HnglHiiil,  Riissia,  Austria  Hiid  Prussia, 
to  put  Hn  end  lo  the  dispute  wliieli  existed  liiaween  the  sullan  Hud  M.1. 
heiiiet  All,  tlie  ivariike  paeha  of  Ki^ypt.  Tor  tills  purpose  it  was  deemed 
expedient  lo  dispatch  a  fleet  to  the  Mi'dlterraneaii ;  and  on  tht;  14th  of 
August  Coininodiirc  Napier  sujiiinoned  the  Hgyplian  authorities  to  i^vmimi- 
ate  Syriu.  In  reply  to  llilssiininions,  Meheinet  Mi  deelariid  that  on  the  lirtsl 
appearaiiee  of  hostility  by  the  powers  of  Kurope,  the  pairha,  llirahm,  would 
be  euiiiinaiided  lo  inarch  on  (.'oiistaiitliiople.  Soon  afterwards  ho.stililii's 
coiniiieiii-ed,  an<l  the  town  of  Ueyrout  was  bouibHrded  on  the  lllli  of  .Sep- 
tember, and  eomplelely  destroyed  by  the  allies  in  two  hours.  'I'lie  war 
ill  Syria  was  now  carried  (mi  with  {jrreat  activity.  'I'hc  troops  of  Ibrahim 
sustained  a  signal  defeat  early  in  October,  with  a  loss  jf  seven  thousand 
ill  killed,  wounded,  and  prisoners;  in  addiiiui  to  which,  Commodore  Na- 
pier, with  a  comparatively  trilling  number  of  marines  and  Turkish  troo|)8, 
succeeded  in  expelling  the  lOgyptians  from  nearly  the  whole  of  Lebanon, 
captured  ahout  five  ihonsaiid  prisoners,  with  artillery  and  stores,  and 
elTeetcd  the  disorganization  of  an  army  of  twenty  thousand  men.  In 
short,  more  brilliant  results  with  siicli  limited  means  have  rarely  been 
known,  particularly  when  it  is  considered  under  what  nnvol  cireumstan- 
CCS  they  were  accomplished.     Hut  tht!  great  exploit  remains  to  be  related. 

St.  Jean  d'Acre  was  taken  by  the  allies  (Hi  the  3(1  of  November.  (Col- 
onel Smith,  who  eoiiimaiided  the  forces  in  SyriH,  directed  Omar  Hey, 
with  two  thousand  Turks,  to  advance  <hi  Tj  re,  and  occupy  the  pusses  to 
the  northward  of  Acres  in  the  meaiitiine  Admiral  Stopford  sailed  frnin 
Beyroui  roads,  having  on  board  three  thousHiid  Turks,  and  detachments 
of  iOngllsli  artillery  ami  8iip|)(n'S.  The  forces  and  fleet  arrived  olf  Acre;  ai 
Iho  same  time.  At  two  o'elock  P.  M.  a  Ireinendous  ennnoiiadu  look 
place,  which  was  inaintained  without  intermission  for  some  hours,  ihe 
steamers  lying  outside  throwing,  with  astonishing  rapidity,  their  sIhUh 
over  the  ships  into  the  fortificatioii.  During  the  bombardment  the  arsenal 
and  magazine  blew  up,  annihilating  upwards  of  twelve  liuiidn.-d  of  the 
enemy,  forming  twi)  entire  regiments,  who  weie  drawn  up  on  the  miii- 
parts.  A  sens.ition  was  fell  on  board  the  ships  similar  to  that  of  an  earth- 
<]uakc.  Kvery  living  creature  within  the  art;a  of  sixty  tlioiisinid  sijii.ire 
yards  ceased  to  exist.  At  two  o'clock  on  tlie  fidlowiiig  inorniiig  a  boat 
arrived  frmii  Acre,  to  annonnce  that  the  remainder  of  the  garrison  were 
leaving  the  place,  and  as  soon  as  the  sun  rose,  the  Uriiish,  Austrian,  and 
Turkish  flags  were  seen  waving  (m  the  eitadi  1.  The  town  was  •"oninl  to 
be  one  mass  of  ruins — the  batteries  and  iKnises  riddled  all  ovei— killed 
and  wounded  lying  about  in  all  directions.  The  slam  were  estiii.Hted  ,it 
twenty-five  hundred  men,  and  the  prisoners  ainiiuiit<(i  to  upw.irds  >,f  three 
lliousand.  The  Turkish  troops  were  landed  to  giirrisini  Acre,  where  a 
vast  (piantity  of  military  stiu'cs  were  found,  besides  an  excellent  park  of 
artillciy  of  -JIKI  euns,  and  a  large  sum  in  specie. 

As  tlie  forcginng  successes  led  to  the  terinination  of  the  war  in  Syria, 
uiid  Its  evaeiialioii  by  Ibrahim  I'aelia,  it  is  unnecessary  to  speak  of  oper- 
ations of  a  minor  chiiracter.  Meliemet  Ali  eventually  .submiiicd  tu  all  llie 
eondilions  idlered  by  the  Miitan,  and  winch  were  Miiictioned  hy  the  re|)re- 
sentatiM-s  of  Austria,  Kriince,  (irtat  llrit.iin,  Prussia,  ami  Itiissia : — 
1.  The  hereditary  jiossession  of  Kgyjit  is  coiifiriiieil  hi  Meliemet  All,  and 
Ins  doceiidalils  in  it  tlirtcl  line, — '.'.  Alelieiliel  All  will  be  allowed  to  nom- 
imile  liis  own  olllceis  up  to  the  rank  of  a  colonel.  The  viceroy  can  mily 
eoiifrr  ihe  title  of  pacha  wiili  the  consent  of  ihe  siiltiin. — ;i.  The  aiiinial 
coninlMiiion  is  fixed  al  ho.Oiiu  |iiirses,  or  K),iiiin,(Min  of  |iiaslres.  or  ■KKI.iKin/. 
—4.  Till'  .  iceroy  will  not  be  allowi  d  lo  binld  a  slop  of  war  wilboiit  the 
perniiKNion  oi  the  miIi.iii — •").  'I'lie  l,i\\siiiid  rigid, iiioiis  of  the  empire  are 
lo  be  observed   in   Kgypt.  w  illi  sucli  i  luniges  as  the  jieeuliarity  uf  llit 


Syria, 

iiptT- 
:ill  ilie 

i(|irL'- 
(hiii ; — 
ill,  aiul 
I)  noiii- 
in  (inly 

IIIIIIUIll 

iiil.tion/. 

Mil    lIlL' 

iiri'  are 
iif  till 


THR  TllEASlJRY  OF  HISTORY. 

Rflfyptiiiit  ppoplt!  inny  rnmifsr  necessary,  but  which  changes  must  receive 
thu  niiiii'tntii  of  thu  Porle. 

At  Ihi)  eomiiKMicfineiil  of  the  year  news  was  broiight  from  Chiiiii  that 
the  (liirurcnciis  which  hmi  exislnil  were  in  ii  fair  train  of  sctili'innut,  and 
Unit  thn  war  nii|j[ht  be  considered  as  at  an  end.  HostiUlies  had,  however, 
rcciMiiiiicncfid,  in  consequence  of  K'sheii,  the  imperial  coinmi.'isioner, 
hiivinjjt  (li'liiyed  to  bring  to  a  conclusion  the  neaiotiatioiis  enlercd  into  with 
Cliiptaiii  Klliol.  Preparations  were  accoriliii;;[ly  made  for  attackiiiir  the 
((UlpiiNln  i)(  till!  Uogue  forts,  on  the  Docc  >  Tigris.  Having  obtained  po.s- 
dtipiiioii,  the  Kleamers  were  sent  to  desiniy  ihe  war-junks  in  Anson's  l)ay  ; 
but  Ihn  uliailowness  of  the  water  admitted  only  the  approach  of  the 
Neimmin,  tiMVing  ten  or  twelve  boats.  The  junks  endeavoured  ti>  escape, 
but  u  rocket  blew  up  the  powd'jr  magazine  of  one  of  them,  and  eighteen 
HKire  which  were  set  ou  fire  Wy  the  Knglish  boats' crews  also  successively 
blew  up.  At  length  a  flag  of  truce  was  dispatched  by  the  Chinese  coin- 
niiiudor,  and  hosnlitlea  ceased.  On  the  3Uih  of  January  Captain  Kiliot 
■liniiuiiced  to  her  majesty's  subjects  in  China  that  the  lollownig  arrange- 
meulN  bail  been  made  :  1.  The  cession  of  the  island  and  harbour  of  Hong 
Kniig  to  the  Uritish  crown.  2.  An  indemnity  to  the  British  government 
(»f  ijl(l,(m(l,Oi)i>,  §1,000,000  payable  at  once,  and  the  remainder  in  equal 
iinuual  in»tiilinents,  ending  in  I8in.  3.  Direct  official  intercourse  between 
the  two  coinitries  noon  an  equal  footing.  4.  The  trade  of  Ihe  port  of 
(yHUtoii  lo  hi!  opened  within  ten  clays  after  the  Chinese  new  year. 

'I'huf  far  nil  ap|)eared  as  it  should  be;  but  great  doubts  of  tlie  sincerity 
of  KcNhcn,  the  (Miincsc  commissioner,  were  felt  both  in  F.nglan  I  and 
nt  (*aiilnn.  Accordingly  the  Nemesis  steamer  was  3bnt  up  the  river  to 
ri)ConniMlr(>,  and  on  ncaring  the  Hogue  forts  (30  in  number),  it  was  discov- 
ttrcil  llialpri'piirntions  for  defence  had  been  made,  batteries  and  field-works 
Ihtd  bticii  thrown  up  along  the  shore,  and  upon  the  islands  in  tlni  mid- 
illii  of  the  river,  n  barrier  was  in  course  of  construction  across  the 
cliiinuci,  iind  there  were  large  bodies  of  troops  assembled  from  iho  in- 
terior. Kesluni  finding  bis  duplicity  disc'wcred,  coinmnnicatcil  that 
further  m-gotialiims  would  be  declined.  The  emperor,  it  appeari.'il,  had 
iNNUi'i!  ediclK  repudiating  the  treaty,  and  denoimcing  the  English  barbari- 
IIUH,  "  who  were  like  dogs  and  siicep  in  their  dispositions.''  That  in 
(ilcenliiK  or  rating  he  found  no  quiet,  and  he  therefore  onlcrcd  eight  thou* 
Riinil  of  his  best  troops  to  defend  Canton,  and  to  recover  the  places  on  the 
ciiHitl  I  for  it  WHS  absolutely  necessary  (said  the  emperor),  "  that  the  rebel- 
IliMiN  foreigners  must  give  up  their  heads,  which,  with  the  prisoners,  were 
to  be  KHUl  lo  I'ekin  in  cages,  to  undergo  the  last  |)enalty  of  the  law."  He 
iiIno  oirored  fifty  tliousanil  dollars  for  the  apprehension  of  Idlioi.  Morison, 
or  llermer  nlive,  or  thirty  thousand  dolla-s  for  either  of  their  beads.  In 
iiddiliiMi,  nvv  Ihousand  dollars  for  an  olricer's  head,  five  hundred  for  an 
Kiigliithniau  nlive,  three  humlred  for  a  head,  and  (Uie  hundred  for  a  Sfooy 
alive.  The  emperor  also  delivered  Keshen  in  irons  over  to  tlie  board  of 
puiUHlinient  at  I'ekiu.  and  divested  the  admiral  Kwan  Teenpei  of  his  bill- 
ion. Ilefofo  Ihe  hostile  edicts  had  appeared,  Captain  Kllioi,  confidin'r  in 
Ihe  good  faith  of  Keshen,  had  sent  orders  lo  General  Ihirrel  to  r.^siore 
ihe  Inland  of  Chusun  (winch  the  Knglish  had  taken  m my  months  before), 
liMho  (Miinese,  iiiid  to  return  with  the  Hengal  volnnieers  to  Calcutta. 
Thm  order  had  been  promptly  obeyed,  Chusau  having  been  evacuated 

Kehnmry  V).  ^  „...., 

Ciiptaiii  Klltot  set  sail  on  Feb.  20,  up  the  Cantoii  river.  On  lite  2Jth 
ho  (Inslroyed  a  innsked  field  work,  disabling  eighty  c;;nnoii  there  mounted. 
On  llid  "i'tlli  mill  '-'(ilh  he  took  three  adjoining  (loKue  lorls,  without  loMiig 
II  man,  killing  about  two  bmelrcd  and  fifty  Chinese,  and  taking  one  tlou- 
«iiiid  three  hundred  prisoners.  The  snliseqiieiu  oper.iiimis  of  th«>  squad 
niii  prniiuiiled  uno  unbroken  succusiion  of  brilliant  ucbievuments,  uuiil,  t>u 


i 


m 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HI.STOllY. 


tfio  3Hlti  or  March,  Canton,  ihe  second  city  in  the  Chinese  ern|>ire,  con 
Irtililng  a  milhon  of  souls,  was  placed  at  the  mercy  of  the  Uritisli  troops, 
livery  possible  means  of  defence  had  been  used  by  the  Chinese  comniand> 
etn,  but  nothing  could  withstand  the  intrepidity  of  the  British.  In  con- 
SfqtiOMce  of  the  Chinese  firing  on  a  flag  of  truce,  the  forts  and  defences  of 
<*(i(i(on  were  speedily  taken,  the  flotilUv  burnt  or  sunk,  and  the  union  Jiick 
lioisle'l  on  the  walls  of  the  British  factory.  But  Captain  Elliot  seemed 
doomed  to  be  made  the  sport  of  Chinese  chipliciiy.  He  no  sooner  issued 
It  ciroilar  to  the  English  and  foreign  merchants,  announcing  that  a  sus- 
pension of  hostilities  had  been  agreed  on  between  the  Chinese  conimis- 
sioner  Y»ng,  and  liimself,  and  that  the  trade  was  open  at  Canton  .ind 
would  be  duly  respected,  than  the  emperor  issued  another  procianiatioii, 
ordering  all  communication  with  "  the  detestable  brood  of  English"  to  be 
Kit  off.  Several  other  imperial  proclamations  in  a  more  furious  style  fol- 
lowed, the  last  of  which  thus  concludes  :  "  If  the  whole  number  of  iheni 
^ilie  English),  be  not  effectually  destroyed,  how  shall  I,  the  cni|)('ror,  be 
(ibln  to  answer  to  the  gods  of  the  heaven  and  the  earth,  and  cherish  the 
hopes  of  our  people."  Captain  Elliot,  however,  whose  great  object  hith- 
erto !i|)pear8  to  have  been  to  secure  the  annual  >.xportof  tea,  had  succeed- 
ed in  having  11,000,000  lbs.  shipped  before  the  fulminating  edicts  of  the 
Rinprror  took  effect. 

In  October,  dispatches  of  importance  were  received  from  General  Sir 
lliiiih  <»ough,  commanding  the  land  forces,  and  Captain  Sir  H.  F.  Sen- 
I0U9P,  the  senior  naval  olficer  of  the  fleet,  detailing  a  series  of  brilliant 
>pprulions  against  Canton,  whither  ttiey  had  proceeded  by  the  direction 
»f  Captain  Elliot.  On  the  20ihof  May  the  coiiK^st  began  by  the  Chinese 
flring  on  the  British  ships  and  letting  loose  some  fire-ships  among  them, 
ivhich,  however,  did  no  damage.  Next  morning  the  fort  of  Shaming  was 
silenced,  and  n  fleet  of  about  forty  junks  burnt.  On  llie  2  tlh,  a  favourable 
liutding-place  having  been  discovered,  the  right  column  of  the  26th  regi- 
ment, under  Major  Pratt,  was  convoyed  by  the  Atalanta  to  act  on  tTie 
soulli  oftlie  city,  while  the  Nemesis  towed  the  left  eoluinn  up  to  Tsin- 
ghao.  After  some  sharp  fighting,  the  Canton  governor  yielded,  and  the 
troops  and  ships  were  withdrawn,  on  condition  of  the  three  comniissiDners 
fliid  nil  the  troops  under  them  leaving  Canton  and  its  vicinity,  and  six  mil- 
lion') of  dollars  to  be  paid  within  a  week,  tiie  first  million  before  evening 
that  day  !  if  the  whole  was  not  paid  before  the  end  of  the  week,  llie  ransom 
Whs  to  be  raised  to  seven  millions  ;  if  not  before  the  end  of  fourti-en  days, 
to  eight  millions ;  and  if  not  before  twenty  days,  to  nine  millions  of  dollars. 
After  three  days,  the  c(mditions  having  been  fulfilled,  the  troops  iefi  for 
llonq  Kong,  having  had  thirteen  men  killed  and  nini'ly-seven  woinnied. 
NIr  11  F.  Menhonse  died  on  board  of  the  Bl.nlieim  from  a  fever  brought 
on  by  excessive  fatigue.  Notwithstanding  this  ilefeat.  the  (/hinis('  were 
n\H\  detrrmined  to  resist,  and  Yeh  Sh m  had  reported  to  the  emperor,  his 
llliele,  that  wlien  he  had  inilnecd  the  barbarians  to  withdraw,  he  would 
repair  all  the  forts  again.  The  empciror,  on  his  pari,  declared  that,  as  a 
lust  resort,  he  would  put  himself  at  the  head  of  his  army,  and  march  to 
India  and  Kngland,  and  tear  up  the  English,  root  ainl  branch  * 

Hir  Henry  l'olling(!r,  the  new  plenipotentiary,  and  Kear  admiral  Parker, 
the  new  naval  connnander-in-chief,  arrived  at  Macao  on  llieOlhof  .Vngnst. 
\  notifieation  of  S'r  Henry's  presence  and  ])owers  was  sent  to  Canton 
immediately  on  his  arrivai,  aecomiianied  by  a  letter  forwarded  to  the  em- 
peror at  Pekin,  the  answer  to  which  was  recpiired  to  be  sent  to  a  northern 
Klalion.  The  fleet,  consisting  of  nine  ships  of  war.  four  armeil  steaineri, 
and  twe'ity-two  transports,  saih^l  for  the  isl.uid  and  fortified  city  of  Ainoy, 
on  llie  21<<l  of  August. 

This  islnnil  is  situated  in  a  fine  gulf  in  thi!  province  of  Pokein,  the  vfAt 
^^<H  district  of  China,  opfiosite  the  islainl  of  Furmosa,  and  about  thrM 


large 
from 
execi 
their  ; 
Hon 
latleii 
che()ii 
defiei 
the  .1 
diuii'i 

OpjJOM 

Perl  e, 
red  ( 
out  nil 
wane; 
in  inov 
'o  eons 

of  govi 

h  Id  gi 
liaineiil 
is  not 
>*Mgar  fi 
majestv 
lebale 
JedoiKc 
»K /,  Ih 


THE  TREASURE  OF  HISTORY. 


rsi 


ihrM 


•undrcd  and  fifty  miles  northeast  of  the  ^iilf  of  Cmiton,  five  hundred  miles 
south  of  Chusiin,  ami  one  tiiousanrl  tiiree  hundred  miles  from  Pekin.  It 
was  fortified  by  very  strong  defences,  of  granite  rocks  faced  with  mud, 
and  mounted  with  no  less  than  five  hundred  pieces  of  cannon.  On  the 
26th,  after  a  brief  parley  with  a  mandarin,  the  city  was  bonibfirded  for 
two  hours.  Sir  Hugh  liough,  with  the  18th  regiment,  then  landed,  and 
si'ized  one  end  of  the  l(nig  battery:  while  the  2Cth  regiment,  with  the 
sailors  and  marines,  carried  tlie  strong  baaeries  on  the  island  of  Koolang- 
see,  just  in  front  of  Amoy.  The  Chinese  made  an  animated  defence  for 
four  hours,  and  then  fled  from  all  their  fortifications,  and  also  from  the 
city,  carrying  with  them  their  treasures.  The  Chirese  junks  and  war- 
beats  were  all  captured  ;  and  the  cannon,  with  immense  munitions  of  war, 
of  course  fell  into  the  hands  of  tlie  Knglish.  Not  a  single  man  of  the 
Briiish  was  killed,  and  only  nine  were  wounded.  The  next  day  Sir  Hugh 
Gougli  entered  the  city  at  the  head  of  his  troops  without  opposition. 

The  noKt  dispatches  .'"rom  China  stated  that  Chusan  had  been  recaptured 
on  the  1st  of  October.  A  resolute  stand  was  made  by  the  Chinese  ;  but 
the  troo[>s.  supported  by  the  fire  of  the  ships,  ascended  a  hill,  and  escala 
ded  Tinghae,  the  capital  city,  from  whence  the  British  colours  were  soon 
sfcn  flying  iu  every  direction.  On  th(!  7ih  the  troops  attacked  the  city  of 
Cinhae,  on  the  main-land  opposite  Chusan,  which  is  inclosed  by  a  wall 
tliirty-seven  feet  thick,  and  tweiUytwo  feel  high,  with  an  embrasured 
parapet  of  four  feet  high.  The  ships  bombarded  the  citadel  and  enfiladed 
the  batteries ;  the  seamen  and  marines  then  landed,  and  Admiral  Sir  W. 
Parker,  with  the  true  spirit  of  a  Urilish  sailor,  was  among  the  first  to 
scale  the  walls.  Here  was  found  a  great  arsenal,  a  cannon-foundry  and 
gun-carriage  manufactory,  and  a  great  variety  of  warlike  stores. 

Several  other  engagements  took  place,  in  all  of  wliich  the  Hritish  con- 
tinni'd  to  have  a  most  decided  advantage,  allli<nigii  it  was  admitted  that 
the  Chinese  and  Tartar  soldiers  ;.!'  j\v('(l  more  resolution  and  a  better  ac- 
quaintance with  the  art  of  war  t'  an  on  former  ccciasions.  However,  as  a 
large  reinforcement  of  troops,  with  a  battering  train  which  had  been  "cni 
from  (Calcutta,  was  shortly  e.vpected.  Sir  llciny  Pottingcr  put  off  the 
execution  of  some  intended  operations  on  a  more  exteiuied  scale  until 
their  arrival. 

Home  afl'airs  again  require  attention.  The  finances  of  the  country  had 
latterly  assumed  a  discoiu-aging  aspect;  and  on  the  chancellor  of  the  ex- 
che()U('r  bringing  forward  his  annual  lindgct,  he  proposed  to  make  up  the 
deficiency  of  llii!  present  year,  which  he  stated  to  be  2,1-21,000/.,  besides 
the  aggregate  deticicncy  of  .'),000,000/.,  mainly  l>y  a  modification  of  the 
duticsTni  sugar  and  timber,  and  an  alteration  of  the  duties  on  corn.  Tim 
op|)osiiion  ciMisured  the  proceedings  of  ministers,  and  Sir  Robert 
Perl  connnented  severely  on  the  enormous  deficiency  of  7,500,000/.  incur- 
red duiing  the  past  five  years,  with  a  revenue,  too,  which  had  been  through- 
out nnproving.  It  apjiearcd  that  the  Mclliourne  administration  was  on  the 
wane;  and  its  permanency  wiis  put  to  the  test  when  Lord  Jolin  lUissell, 
ill  nu)ving  that  the  house  should  go  into  a  coinmillce  of  ways  an<l  nu-ans, 
to  consider  the  sugar  dulies,  entered  into  ;i  defence  of  the  presnnl  policy 
of  govcrmuent.  Lord  Sandon  then  moved  the  amondmen'  of  which  In- 
had  given  notice,  "that  considering  the  efTorts  and  siic;-i<iccs  which  par- 
liament and  the  country  have  made  for  the  abolition  oi'  alj.v.-'ry,  this  house 
is  not  prepared  (espe(  iaily  with  the  present  prospects  of  tlie  supply  of 
sugar  fiMiU  llrilish  po.xsessions),  to  adopt  the  ineaKU.-e  proposed  by  her 
majesty's  government  for  the  reduclioii  of  du  ies  on  foreign  sug.irs."  The 
deb;ite  wlii.-h  ensued  adjourned  fr(tin  day  to  day,  and  lastinl  for  the  unpro- 
?edeii\ed  e;.tent  of  eight  nights.  When  the  house  divided,  on  the  IHtli  of 
y^\t,  Iherc  ippeared  for  Lord  Siuidon's  amendment,  three  hundred  and 


i 


TS'J 


THK  THtCASUllY   OF  HISTOttY. 


seveiitep;! ;  agaimit  it,  two  hundred  and  eighty-one ;  majority  against  min 
istors,  thiriy-six. 

On  tlie  27ih  of  May  Sir  R.  Peel  took  an  opportunity  of  minutely  review- 
ing the  measures  tlmi  had  heen  submitted  to  parliament  by  ministers,  and 
afterwards  abandoned,  and  the  prejudieial  efTeels  on  the  finanecs  of  the 
country  whiifli  liad  accrued  fnnn  the  passing  of  others.  Sir  Robert  added, 
that  in  every  former  case  where  the  house  had  indicated  that  its  confidence 
was  withdrawn  from  the  ministry,  the  ministers  liud  retired.  The  whole 
of  their  con(lu(M  bi^raycd  weakness  and  a  truckling  for  popular  favour, 
and  the  prerosfiiiives  of  the  crown  were  not  safe  in  their  hands.  He  then 
moved  the  folhtwing  resohilion  "That  her  majesty's  ministers  do  not  suf- 
ficiently possess  the  eonfi(h;nce  of  the  iiouse  of  conmious  to  enable  them 
to  (rarry  tliroujih  measures  whi(!h  ihey  deem  of  essential  importance  to 
the  public  welfare,  and  that  their  coniinuanee  in  office,  under  such  cir- 
cumstances, is  at  variance  with  the  spirit  of  the  constitution."  This  mo- 
tion was  carried  in  a  fidl  house,  (the  unmiier  of  members  present  being 
six  hundred  and  twenly-thretO  by  a  majority  of  one.  On  the  23d  of  June 
lier  majesty  proroy;ue(l  parliament,  "with  a  view  to  its  immediate  disso- 
lution," and  it  was  accordingly  dissolved  by  proclamation  on  llie  follow- 
ing day. 

On  the  nieeting  of  tin?  new  parliament,  August  24lh,  the  strength  of  the 
conservative  party  was  slnkiiitr.  The  ministers  had  no  measures  to  pro- 
pose beyond  ihose  (ui  wlrch  ihey  had  before  sustained  a  defeat;  and  when 
an  aniemlment  to  the  address  was  put  to  vote,  declaratory  of  a  want  ol 
confidence  in  her  majesiy's  advisers,  it  elicited  a  spirited  debate  of  four 
night's  continuance,  terniinating  in  a  majority  of  ninety-one  against  tnin- 
istcrs.  This  result  prodiiiM'd  an  iimnediaie  change  iti  the  ministry.  Tho 
new  cabinet  was: — Sir  K.  t'ecl,  first  lord  of  the  treasury;  duke  of  Wel- 
lington, (without  office) ,  Lord  Lyndhurst,  lord-chancellor ;  Lord  Wliarn- 
clifi'e,  president  of  the  council;  duke  of  Uuckingham,  privy  seal ;  Right 
Honourable  II.  (ioulbnrn,  chancellor  of  the  exchequer;  Sir  James  Graham, 
home  secretary  ;  earl  <if  Aberdeen,  foreign  seiiretary  ;  Lord  Stanley,  colo- 
nial  secretary  ;  earl  of  llaildiiigton,  first  lord  of  the  admiralty  ;  Lord  Ki- 
leiiboniugh,  prcsiih.'tit  of  tin;  board  of  control ;  earl  of  Ripon,  president  ol 
the  bo.iril  ol  tra<le;  Sir  Henry  llardinge,  secretary  at  war;  Kir  Kdward 
Knatchbiill,  treasurer  <if  the  navy  an<l  paymaster  of  the  Torces.  Earl  de 
(trey  was  apponilcd  lord-lieutenant  of  Ireland,  and  Sir  Edward  Sugden. 
Irish  lord-ch  inccllnr. 

On  the  .30ih  of  October  a  dcslructive  fire  broke  out  in  the  Tower,  about 
half-past  ten  o'clock  at  ni;>hi,  and  continued  to  rage  with  the  utmost  fury 
for  sever;il  hcnirs.  It  was  first  discovered  in  the  round  or  bowyer  lower, 
and  <)uickiy  s|nead  to  the  grand  armory,  where  the  llaincs  gained  a  fearful 
ascendency.  Notwithstanding  the  exertions  of  the  firemen  and  military, 
the  contlagration  continued  to  spread,  and  apprehensions  were  entertained 
that  the  jewel  tower,  with  its  crowns,  scei)lres,  and  other  eml)h'ms  of  roy- 
ally would  fall  a  prey  to  the  devouring  element.  Happily,  by  prompt  ex- 
ertion, they  wcr(!  all  taken  loilie  governor's  residence,  and  the  guii|)owder 
and  other  warlike  stores  in  the  ordnance  office  were  also  n'lnoveil.  In 
adililion  to  the  armory  and  l)ov<yer  tower,  llirei!  other  large  buildings  were 
consumed.  The  [rrand  armory  was  three  hundred  and  finty-five  feet  long, 
and  sixty  feet  broad.  1 1  the  tower  lloor  were  kept  about  forty-three 
pieces  of  cannon,  niadt!  by  founders  of  iliffi'rent  periods,  besides  various 
other  inleresting  obieeis,  and  a  mimber  of  i  'icsis  containing  arms  in  readi 
iicss  for  use.  A  grand  staircase  led  to  the  upper  lloor,  called  the  small 
armory,  in  which  were  above  l.')0,()00  stand  of  small  arms,  new  flinted, 
and  ready  for  iinniediiite  service.  As  that  part  of  the  b"ildinu  where  the 
fire  originated  was  heated  by  lines  from  stoves,  it  was  tho  jpniloii  that 


THE  TREAeOllY  OF  HiaTORY. 


?3S 


In 


•cudi 
small 

illtO(i. 

re  till' 
that 


the  accident  was  thereby  occasioned.    The  loss  sustained,  includiBj  tlie 
expense  of  rebudding,  was  estimated  at  about  jE250,000. 

The  closing  paragraph  in  the  occurrences  of  last  year  recorded  the  I  irth 
of  the  princess  royal.  We  have  now  to  state,  that  on  the  9th  of  No^  em- 
ber the  queen  gave  birth  to  a  prince  at  Buckingham-palace,  neatly  a 
twelvemonth  having  elapsed  since  her  majesty's  Ibrmer  accouchement 
The  happy  event  having  taken  place  on  lord-mayor's  day,  it  was  raost 
loyally  celebrated  by  the  citizens  so  opportunely  assembled.  On  the  25th 
of  the  following  January  the  infant  prince  of  Wales  received  the  name  of 
Albert  Edward,  the  king  of  Prussia  being  one  of  the  sponsors. 

A.  D.  1842. — The  year  commenced  with  most  disastrous  intelligence 
from  India.    In  consequence  of  reductions  having  been  made  in  the  tri- 
bute paid  to  the  eastern  Ghilzie  tribes,  for  keeping  open  the  passes  be- 
tween Caboul  and  Jellalabad,  in  Affglianistan,  tlie  people  rose  and  took 
possession  of  those  passes.     Gen.  Sir  R.  Sale's  brigade  was  therefore 
directed  to  re-open  the  communication.     The  brigade  fought  its  way  to 
Gundamuck,  greatly  harassed  by  the  enemy  from  the  high  ground,  and 
after  cigliteen  days'  incessant  fighting,  reached  that  place,  much  exhausted; 
they  then  moved  upon  Jellalabad.     Meantime  an  insurrection  broke  out 
at  Caboul.     Sir  A.  Uurnes,  and  his  brother  Lieutenant  C.  Burnes,  Lieu- 
tenant Broadfoot,  and  Lieutenant  Sturt  were  massacred.    The  whole  city 
then  rose  in  arms,  and  universal  plunder  ensued — while  another  large 
party  attacked  the  British  cantonments,  about  two  miles  from  the  town. 
These  outrages,  unfortunately,  were  hut  the  prelude  to  others  far  more 
frightful.     Akhbar  Khan,  the  son  of  Dost  Mahommed,  on  pretence  of 
making  arrangements  with  Sir  W.  M'Naghten,  the  British  envoy  at  the 
court  of  Shah  Soojah,  invited  him  to  a  conference  ;  he  went,  accompanied 
by  four  officers  and  a  small  escort,  when  the  treacherous  Affghan,  after 
abusing  the  British  ambassador,  drew  a  pistol  and  shot  him  dead  on  the 
spot.     Captain  Trevor,  of  the  3d  Bengal  cavalry,  on  rushing  to  his  assist- 
ance, was  cut  down,  tlirce  other  officers  were  made  prisoners,  and  the 
mutilated  body  of  the  ambassador  was  then  barbarously  paraded  through 
the  town.     It  was  also  stated  that  some  severe  fighting  had  taken  place, 
but  under  the  grcatesi  disadvantage  to  the  British  and  native  troops,  and 
that  the  army  in  Caboul  had  been  almost  literally  annihilated.    A  capitu- 
latioit  was  then  entered  into,  by  which  the  remainder  of  the  Anglo-Indian 
army  retired  from  the  town,  leaving  all  the  sick,  wounded,  and  sixteen 
ladies,  wives  of  officers,  bel:ind     They  had  not,  however,  proceeded  far 
before  Ihcy  were  as.sailed  from  the  mountains  by  an  immense  force,  when 
the  native  troops,  having  fought  three  days,  and  wading  through  deep 
snow,  gave  way,  and  nearly  the  whole  were  massacred. 

So  terrible  a  disaster  had  never  visited  the  British  arms  since  India  first 
acknowledged  the  suprcntacy  of  Kngland.  A  fatal  mistake  had  been  com- 
mitted by  the  former  government,  and  it  was  feared  that  all  the  eiiergy 
of  the  new  ministry  would  be  insufficient  to  maintain  that  degree  of  iiifla- 
ence  over  the  vast  and  thi(^kly  peopled  provinces  of  India,  which  was 
necessary  to  ensure  the  safety  of  our  possessions,  The  governor-general, 
Lord  Auckland,  was  recalled,  and  his  place  supplied  by  Lord  Ellenborough, 
whose  reputation  for  a  correct  knowledee  of  Inilian  aflTairs  was  undisputed. 
His  lordship  arrived  at  Cahmlta  on  Feb.  28,  at  which  time  Sir  Robert 
Sal(!  was  safe  at  Jellalabad ;  but  he  was  most  critically  situated.  The 
garrison,  however,  maintained  their  post  with  great  gallantry,  and  were 
able  to  defy  the  utmost  efforts  of  the  Affglians,  having  in  one  instance  sal- 
lied forth  and  attacked  llicir  camp,  of  f.,000  men,  and  gained  a  signal  vic- 
tory. At  length  (n-neral  Pollock  effected  a  juncl  an  with  the  troops  of 
Sir  II.  Sale,  and  released  them  from  a  siege  of  one  hundred  and  fifty-four 
days'  duration;  having  previously  forced,  with  very  little  loss,  the  dreailed 
pass  of  the  Ivhybcr,  twenty-eight  miles  in  length.  Gen.  Notl,  also,  who 
Vol,.  I.— 48 


) 


'Q 


754 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


advanci'd  from  Candahar  to  meet  General  England,  who  had  sustained 
considerable  loss  at  the  pass  of  Kojuek,  eneountered  a  large  force  of  Aff- 
ghans,  and  completely  defeated  them.  Hut.  on  the  other  hand.  Colonel 
Palmer  snrrendered  the  celebrated  foi tress  of  Ghuznee,  on  condition  that 
the  garrison  should  be  safely  conducted  to  Cabonl. 

The  day  of  retribution  was  at  hand.  General  Nott,  at  the  head  of  seven 
thousand  men,  having  left  Cindahar  on  the  10th  of  August,  proceeded 
towards  Ghuznee  and  Cabonl,  while  General  England,  with  the  remainder 
of  the  troops  lately  stationed  at  Candahar,  marched  back  in  safety  to 
Qiieita.  On  the  30th  of  August,  Shah  Shoodeen,  the  gorvernorof  Ghuznee, 
with  nearly  the  wholp  of  his  army,  amounting  to  not  less  than  twelve 
thousand  men,  arrived  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  British  camp,  and  Gen 
eral  Nott  prepared  to  meet  him  with  one  half  of  his  force.  The  enemy 
came  boldly  forward,  each  division  cheering  as  they  came  into  position, 
and  occupying  their  ground  in  excellent  style  ;  but  after  a  short  and  spirited 
contest,  they  were  completely  defeated,  and  dispersed  in  every  direction, 
their  guns,  tents,  ammunition,  &c.,  falling  into  the  hands  of  the  English. 
On  the  5th  of  September  General  Nott  invested  the  city  of  Ghuznee,  which 
was  strongly  garrisoned,  while  the  hills  to  the  north-eastward  swarmed 
with  soldiery  ;  but  they  soon  abandoned  the  place,  and  the  British  flags 
were  hoisted  in  triumph  on  the  Bala  Missar.  Tlie  citadel  of  Ghuznee, 
and  other  formidable  works  and  defences,  were  razed  to  the  ground. 

Early  in  September  General  Pollock  marched  from  Gimdanmck  on  his 
way  to  Cabonl.  On  reaching  the  hills  which  command  the  road  through 
the  pass  of  Jugdulluck,  the  enemy  was  found  strongly  posted  and  in  con- 
siderable numbers.  In  this  action  most  of  the  influential  Aflghan  chiefs 
were  engaged,  and  their  troops  manfully  maintained  their  position  ;  but 
at  length  the  heights  were  stormed,  and,  after  much  arduous  exertion,  they 
were  dislodged  and  dispersed.  Gen.  Pollock  proceeded  onwards,  and 
does  not  appear  to  have  encoimtered  any  further  opposition  until  his 
arrival.  September  13,  in  the  T(!hzear  valley,  where  an  army  of  16,000 
Tien,  commanded  by  Akhbar  Khan  in  person,  was  assembled  to  meet  him 
A  desperate  fight  ensued  ;  the  enemy  was  completely  defeated  and  driven 
."rom  the  field.  On  the  day  follownig  this  engagement  the  general  ad- 
•'anced  to  Boodkhak,  and  on  the  16lh  he  made  his  triumphal  entry  info 
the  citadel,  and  planted  the  British  colours  on  its  walls.  "  Thus,"  said 
Lord  Ellenborough,  in  his  general  orders,  "have  all  past  disasters  been 
retrieved  and  avengei!  on  every  scene  on  which  they  were  sustained,  and 
repeatod  victories  in  the  field,  and  the  capture  of  the  citadels  of  Ghuznee 
and  Caboul  have  advanced  the  glory  and  established  the  accustomed 
superiority  of  the  Drr'ish  arms." 

At  length  the  long  and  anxiously  desired  liberation  of  the  whole  of  the 
British  prisoners  in  the  hands  of  the  AflTirhaiis  was  effected.  Their  num- 
ber was  31  ofllcers,  9  ladies,  and  12  children,  with  61  European  soldiers, 
2  clerks,  and  4  women,  making  in  all  109  persons,  who  had  suffered  cap- 
tivity from  Jan.  10  to  Sept.  27.  It  a[)peared  that,  by  direction  of  Akhbar 
Khnn,  the  prisoners  had  been  taken  to  Bamecan,  90  miles  to  the  west- 
ward, and  that  they  were  destined  to  be  distributed  among  the  Toorkistan 
chiefs.  General  Pollock  and  some  other  offlcers  propositi  to  the  AtVtjh.in 
chief,  that  if  he  would  send  them  back  to  Caboul,  tlicy  woidd  give  him 
€£2  (ino  at  once,  and  <€l,200  a  year  for  life.  The  chief  complied,  and  on 
the  second  day  th('y  were  met  by  .Sir  Richmond  Sliakspear,  with  (ilO 
Kuzziibashes,  and  shortly  afterwards  bv  General  Sale,  with  2,000  cavalry 
and  infantry,  when  they  returned  to  Caboul.  Besides  the  Europeans, 
there  were  327  sepovs  found  at  frhviziiee,  and  1,200  .sick  and  womided 
who  were  begging  about  Cabonl.  On  the  arrival  of  General  Nott's  divi- 
sion,  the  resolution  adopted  by  i\  [•  British  govt^rntnent  lo  destroy  all  the 
S!f;;lian  strongholds  was  carried  ,nto  execution,  thongii  not  without  rt- 


exa 
was 
iieai 
oen 
S 
pret 
her 
cha 
A  la 


■NIPM 


THE  TEEASUttY  OK  HISTORY. 


755 


Bislance,  particularly  at  the  town  and  fort  of  Istaliff,  where  a  slron"  body 
ol  Affghans,  led  on  by  Ameer  Oola,  and  sixteen  of  their  most  determined 
chiefs,  had  posted  theniselves.  This  town  consisted  of  masses  of  houses 
built  on  the  slope  of  a  mountain,  in  the  rear  of  which  were  lofty  eminences 
shutting  in  a  defile  to  Toorkistan.  The  number  of  its  inhabitants  exceed- 
ed 15,000,  who,  from  their  defences  and  difficulties  of  approach,  consider- 
ed their  position  unassailable.  The  greater  part  of  the  plunder  seized 
last  January  from  the  British  was  placed  there ;  the  chiefs  kept  their 
wives  and  families  in  it ;  and  many  of  those  who  had  escaped  from  Ca- 
boul  had  sought  refuge  there.  Its  capture,  however,  was  a  work  of  no 
very  great  difficulty,  the  British  troops  driving  the  enrniy  before  them 
with  considerable  slaughter.  The  Anglo  Indian  troops  soon  after- 
wards commenced  their  homeward  march  in  three  divisions ;  the  first 
under  General  Pollock,  the  second  under  General  iM'Caskill,  and  the 
third  under  General  Nott.  The  first  division  effected  their  niardi  tiirough 
the  passes  without  loss  ;  but  the  second  was  less  successful,  the  moun- 
taineers attacking  it  near  Ali-Musjid,  and  plundering  it  of  part  of  the 
baggage.  General  Nott,  with  his  division,  arrived  in  safety;  bearing 
with  them  the  celebrated  gates  of  Somnauth,  which  it  is  said  a  Moliame- 
daii  conqueror  had  taken  away  from  an  Indian  temple,  and  which  for 
eight  centuries  formed  the  chief  ornament  of  his  tomb  4t  Giiuznee. 

The  Niger  expedition,  which  was  undertaken  last  year  by  benevolent 
individuals,  supported  by  a  government  grant  of  X'GO.o'oO,  was  totally  de- 
feated by  the  pestilential  effects  of  the  climate.  The  intention  was,  to 
plant  in  the  centre  of  Africa  an  English  colony,  in  the  hope,  by  the  proofs 
afforded  of  the  advantiiges  of  agriculture  and  trade,  to  reclaim  tlie  natives 
from  the  custom  of  selling  their  captives  into  slavery. 

On  the  30th  of  May,  as  her  majesty,  accoinpaiilKd  by  Prince  Albert, 
was  returning downConstitutioii-hill  to  Buckingham-palace,  from  lier  after- 
noon's ride,  a  young  m.in,  named  .John  Francis,  fired  a  pistol  at  the  car- 
riage, but  without  effecting  any  injury.  He  was  immediately  taken  into 
custody,  when  it  appeared  that  lie  was  by  trade  a  carpenter,  but  being 
out  of  employ,  had  attempted  to  establish  a  snutf-shop,  in  which  he  was 
unsuccessful.  It  was  su|)posed  that  he  was  incited  to  this  criminal  act 
partly  by  desperation,  and  partly  by  the  oclat  and  permaneiil  provision- 
though  in  an  apartment  at  Bedlam— awarded  to  Edward  Oxford,  wlio  it 
will  be  remembered,  performed  a  similar  exploit  at  nearly  the  same  spot 
in  June,  1840.  The  news  readied  the  iiouse  el"  commoiiis  wliiie  ilie  de- 
bate on  the  property  tax  was  in  progress,  whi<  'i  was  siukhi'iy  stopped, 
and  the  house  broke  up.  The  next  day,  howeves,  the  bill  was  again  pro- 
posed, and  carried  by  a  majority  of  lOG. 

A  joint  address  congratulating  her  majesty  on  liei  happy  escipe,  was 
presented  from  both  houses  of  parliament  on  the  Isi  of  June,  aiu'  a.  form 
of  thanksgiving  was  aanclioned  by  the  privy  council.  It  appealed  thai 
lome  danger  had  been  apprehended  in  coiiseiir.encc  of  the  same  [eison 
aaving  been  observed  in  tiie  jiark  witli  a  pistol  on  the  p.-ecfdinj,'  day  ;  ^nd 
Lord  Portmaii  stated  in  tin,  house  of  lords  ib.at  he:  majesty  in  "oiise- 
quenec  would  not  permit,  (ui  liie  ."^Oth  of  May.,  the  attendance  of  tiiase 
ladies  whose  duty  it  is  to  wait  upon  heron  such  accasions.  Francis  war 
examined  before  the  privy  council,  and  then  committed  to  Newgate ;  ho 
was  tried,  found  guilty  of  liigii  treason,  and  sentenced  to  be  hung,  be- 
headed, and  quartered ;  but  it  was  deemed  proper  to  remit  the  extreme 
penalties  and  commuie  Ins  sentence  to  transportation  for  life. 

Scarcely  more  than  a  month  had  elapsed,  when  a  third  attempt,  or 
pretended  attempt,  on  the  life  of  the  qiecn  was  made  in  St.  James'  park, 
her  majesty  being  at  the  time  on  her  wa\'  from  Buckingham-palace  to  the 
ehapel  royal,  accompanied  liy  Prince  Albert  and  the  king  of  the  Belgians. 
A  lad,  about  eighteen  years  <><°  age,  named  John  William  Bean,  was  ob- 


756 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


terved  to  present  a  pistol  at  her  majesty's  carriage,  by  a  youth  nainea 
Dasset,  who  seized  him,  and  rehited  the  circumstance  to  two  policemen. 
They  treated  it  as  a  joke,  and  Beaii  was  allowed  to  depart;  but  he  was 
subsequently  apprehended  at  his  father's  house,  and  committed  to  prison. 
On  his  examination  he  persisted  in  asserting  that  that  there  was  nothing 
but  powder  and  paper  in  the  pistol,  and  that  he  did  not  intend  to  hurt  the 
queen ;  in  fact,  he  appeared  to  be  one  of  those  weak  beings  who  seem 
actuated  by  a  ntorhid  desire  of  notoriety. 

It  was  evident  that  the  false  sympathy  shown  to  Oxford  had  encouraged 
others  in  their  base  attempts  ;  and  Sir  Robert  Peel,  acting  on  that  con- 
viction, introduced  a  bill  into  parliament  for  the  better  security  of  her 
majesty's  person,  his  object  being  to  consign  the  offenders  to  that  con- 
tempt which  befitted  their  disgraceful  practices.  The  bill  was  so  framed 
as  to  inflict  for  the  offences  of  presenting  fire-arms  at  her  majesty,  or  at- 
tempting to  strike  her  person  with  missiles,  and  for  other  acts  intended 
to  alarm  her  majesty,  or  disturb  the  public  peace,  the  penalty  of  seven 
years'  transporatation,  with  previous  imprisonment  and  flogging,  or  other 
bodily  chastisement. 

We  must  once  more  recur  to  the  warlike  operations  in  China.  After 
an  arrival  of  reinforcements,  the  British  expedition,  June  13th,  entered 
the  large  river  called  Yaiig-tze-Kiang,  on  the  bants  of  which  were  im- 
mense fortifications.  The  fleet  at  dayliglit  having  taken  their  stations, 
the  batteries  opened  a  fire  which  lasted  two  hours.  The  seamen  and 
marines  then  landed,  and  drove  the  Chinese  out  of  their  batteries  before 
the  troops  could  be  disembarked.  253  guns  were  taken,  of  heavy  calibre, 
and  11  feet  long.  On  tlie  19th  two  other  batteries  were  taken,  in  which 
were  48  guns.  The  troops  then  took  possession  of  the  city  of  Shanghai, 
destroyed  the  public  buildings,  and  distributed  the  contents  of  the 
granaries  among  the  people.  Two  other  field-works  were  also  taken,  and 
the  total  number  of  guns  captured  amounted  to  364.  The  squadron 
set  sail  from  VVoosung  on  the  6th  of  July  ;  on  the  20th  the  vessels  anchor- 
ed abreast  the  city  of  Ching-Keang-foo,  which  commands  the  entrance 
of  llie  grand  canal,  and  the  next  morning  the  troops  were  disembarked, 
and  marched  to  the  attack  of  the  Chinese  forces.  One  briga  "e  was  direct- 
ed to  move  against  the  enemy's  camp,  situated  about  three  miles  distant, 
another  was  ordered  to  co-operate  with  this  division  in  cutting  off  the  ex- 
pected retreat  of  the  Chinese  from  the  camp,  while  the  third  received  in- 
structions to  escalade  the  northern  wall  of  the  town.  The  Chinese,  after 
firing  a  few  distant  volleys,  fled  from  the  camp  with  precipitation,  and 
dispersed  over  the  country.  The  city  itself,  however,  was  manfully  de- 
fended by  tlie  Tartar  soldiers,  who  prolonged  the  contest  for  three  hours, 
resisting  with  desperate  viilour  the  combined  efforts  of  the  three  brigades, 
aided  by  a  reinforcement  of  marines  and  seamen.  At  length  opposi- 
tion ceaseji,  and  ere  nightfall  the  British  were  eomi^lcte  masters  of  the 
place.  Ching-'Ceang-foo,  like  Amoy,  was  most  strongly  fortified,  and 
the  works  in  excellent  repair.  It  is  supposed  that  the  garrison  consist- 
ed of  not  less  tiian  3,000  men,  and  of  these  about  1,000,  and  40  man- 
darins, were  killed  and  wounded.  The  Tartar  general  retired  to  his 
house  when  he  saw  that  all  was  lost,  made  his  servants  set  it  on  fire, 
and  sat  in  his  chair  till  he  was  burned  to  death.  On  the  side  of  the 
Briiish,  15  officers  and  154  men,  of  both  services,  were  killed  and 
wounded. 

A  strong  garrison  being  left  behind  for  the  retention  of  Ching-Keang- 
foo,  the  fleet  proceeded  towards  Nankin,  about  forty  miles  distant,  and 
arrived  on  the  6th  of  August,  when  preparations  were  immediately  made 
for  an  attack  on  the  city.  A  strong  force  under  the  command  of  Major- 
general  Lord  Saltoiin,  was  landed,  and  look  up  their  position  to  the  west 
of  the  town :  and  operations  were  about  to  be  commenced,  when  a  letter 


whic 
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navig 
Hyde 
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the  re 
defeiK 
<nunit 


liMM 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


9W 


was  «eiit  ofl  to  the  plenipotentiary,  requesting  a  truce,  as  certain  fiija 
commissioners,  specially  delegated  by  the  emperor,  and  possessfd  oi  liili 
powers  to  negotiate,  were  on  their  way  to  treat  with  the  English.  aIXox 
several  visits  and  long  discussions  between  the  contracting  powers,  the 
treaty  was  publicly  signed  on  board  the  Cornwallis,  by  Sir  H.  Pottinger 
and  the  three  commissioners.  Of  this  convention  the  followiiiP,  are  the 
most  important  articles:  l.  Lasting  peace  and  friendship  between  the 
two  empires.  2.  China  to  pay  twenty-one  millions  of  dollars  in  the 
course  of  that  and  three  succeeding  years.  3,  The  norts  of  Canton, 
Amoy,  Foo-choo-foo,  Ningpo,  and  Shanghai,  to  be  thrown  open  to  British 
merchants,  consular  officers  to  be  appointed  to  reside  at  them,  and  regulv 
»nd  just  tariffs  of  import  and  export  (as  well  as  inland  transit)  duties  to 
be  established  and  published.  4.  The  island  of  Hoiig-Kon<r  to  be  ceded 
in  perpetuity  to  her  Uritannic  majesty,  her  heirs,  and  successors.  5.  All 
subjects  of  her  Uritannic  majesty  (whether  natives  of  Europe  or 
India),  who  may  be  confined  in  any  part  of  the  Chinese  empire,  to  be  un- 
conditionally released.  6.  An  act  of  full  and  entire  amnesty  to  i)e  pub- 
lished by  the  emperor,  under  his  imperial  sign-manual  and  seal,  to  all  Chi- 
nese subjects,  on  account  of  their  having  held  service  or  intercourse  with, 
or  resided  under,  the  British  government  or  its  officers.  7.  Correspon 
deuce  to  be  conducted  on  terms  of  perfect  equality  among  the  officers 
of  both  governments.  8.  On  the  emperor's  assent  being  received  to  this 
treaty,  and  the  payinentof  the  first  instalment,  six  millions  of  dollars,  her 
Britannic  majesty's  forces  to  retire  from  Nankin  and  the  grand  canal, 
and  the  military  posts  at  Chinghai  to  be  also  withdrawn;  but  the  islands 
of  Chusan  and  Kohingsoo  are  to  be  held  until  the  money  payments  and 
the  arrangements  for  opening  the  ports  are  completed. 

A.  D.  18-13. — On  the  2d  of  February  the  parliamentary  session  com 
menced ;  the  royal  speech,  which  was  read  by  the  lord-chancellor,  referred 
Ui  terms  of  just  congratulation  to;  1.  The  successful  termination  of  hos 
tilities  with  China,  and  the  prospect  it  afforded  of  assisting  the  commer- 
cial enterprise  of  her  people.  2.  The  complete  success  of  the  recent  mil- 
itary operations  in  Affghanistan,  where  the  superiority  of  her  mnjesly's 
arms  had  been  established  by  decisive  victories  on  the  scenes  of  formei 
disasters,  and  the  complete  liberation  of  her  majesty's  subjects,  for  whom 
she  felt  the  deepest  interest,  had  been  effected.  3.  The  adjustment  ot 
those  difierences  with  the  United  Stales  of  America,  which  from  llieir 
long  continuance  had  endangered  the  preservation  of  peace.  4.  The  ob- 
taining, in  concert  with  her  allies,  for  the  Christian  population  of  Syria, 
an  establishment  of  a  system  of  administration  which  they  were  eniitled 
to  expect  from  the  engagements  of  the  sultan,  and  from  the  good  faith  of 
this  country.  And,  .3.  A  treaty  of  commerce  and  navigation  with  Russia, 
which  her  majesty  regarded  as  the  foundation  for  increased  intercourse 
between  her  subjects  and  those  of  the  emperor. 

When  the  e.xpeditioii  to  Affghanistan  was  first  undertaken,  it  was  in- 
tended to  open  the  Indus  for  the  transit  of  British  merchandise,  and  ren- 
der it  one  of  the  great  highways  to  Asia.  The  object  was  not  lost  sight  of, 
though  Affghanistan  had  been  abandoned;  and  endeavours  were  made  to 
obtain  from  the  Ameers  of  Sciiide  such  a  treaty  as  would  secure  the  safe 
navigation  of  that  river.  In  December,  Major  Outrain  was  dispatclu^d  to 
Hyderabad  to  conclude  the  best  terms  in  his  power  with  the  native  chiefs. 
Not  being  in  a  condition  immediately  to  refuse  to  give  up  for  the  use  of 
navigation  ci^rtain  strips  of  land  lying  along  the  river,  they  tcmponsetl, 
until  at  length  their  troops  were  collected,  when  on  the  14th  of  February 
they  sent  word  to  Major  Outiam  to  retire  from  their  city.  The  major, 
not  supposiny  they  would  proceed  to  extremities,  delayed.  The  next  day 
the  residence  of  the  British  piditical  agent  was  attacked  ;  it  was  g  ill.intly 
defended  liy  one  huiulred  men  for  several  hours ;  but  at  length,  tiicir  am- 
vnunition  having  been  expended,  the  British  soldiers  ret-red  with  a  small 


« 


i 


758 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


los^  to  the  steamers,  and  proceeded  to  join  Sir  C.  J.  Napier,  then  at  tne 
head  of  about  twenty-seven  hundred  men,  at  a  distance  of  about  twenty 
miles  from  the  capital  of  the  Ameers.  The  latter  hastened,  at  the  head  o( 
twenty-two  thousand  men,  to  attack  the  British  force.  On  the  17th  a  bat- 
tle took  place,  in  which,  after  a  severe  struggle  of  three  hours,  the  Ameers 
were  totally  routed,  although  they  outnumbered  the  British  force  by  seven 
to  one.  The  Ameers  on  the  following  day  surrendered  themselves  pris- 
oners of  war,  and  Hyderabad  was  occupied  by  the  conquerers.  Treas- 
ure and  jewels  were  found  to  an  amount  considerably  exceeding  one  mil- 
lion sterling.  In  consequence  of  this  success,  the  territories  of  Scinde, 
with  the  exception  of  that  portion  belonging  to  Meer  Ali,  the  morad  of 
Khyrpore,  was  then  declared  by  the  governor-general  to  be  a  British 
province,  and  Sir  Charles  J.  Napier  was  appointed  governor. 

The  new  governor,  however,  was  not  to  remain  in  undisturbed  posses- 
sion for  any  length  of  time.  An  army  of  Bcloochees,  twenty  thousand 
strong,  under  the  command  of  Meer  Shore  Mahomed,  had  taken  up  a 
strong  position  on  the  livcr  FuUalie,  near  the  spot  where  the  Ameers  of 
Scinde  were  so  signally  defeated,  and  Sir  C.  J.  Napier,  on  ascertaining 
the  f;ict,  resolved  to  attack  them  forthwith.  On  the  S-lth  of  March  he 
moved  from  Hyderabad  at  the  head  of  five  thousand  men.  The  battle 
lasted  for  three" hours,  when  victory  declared  for  the  British  ;  eleven  guns 
and  nineteen  standards  were  taken,  and  about  one  thousand  of  the  enemy 
were  killed,  and  four  thousand  wounded  ;  the  loss  of  the  British  amount- 
ing to  only  30  killed  and  231  wounded.  By  this  victory  tlie  fate  of  Scinde 
and  Beloochislan  was  sealed,  and  the  whole  territory  finally  annexed  to 
the  Anglo-Indian  empire. 

In  an  age  of  experimental  science  like  the  present,  it  appearw  tilmosi 
invidious  in  ii  work  of  this  kind  to  allude  to  any.  In  truth  lu  limits 
have  compelled  us  to  omit  the  mention  of  many  works  of  iialmnal  impor- 
tance, but  we  trust  to  be  excused  for  such  omissions,  while  we  insert 
the  following  :  In  order  to  save  the  vast  amount  of  manual  laSiur  neces- 
sary to  form  a  sea-wall  on  the  course  of  the  south-e;i«-«'rn  railway,  near 
Dover,  tlio  great  experiment  of  exploding  eighteen  tlu'  ■•<:tnA  five  hundred 
pDunds  of  gunpowder,  under  Round-down  cliff,  was  cvi  the  26th  of  Janu- 
ary attempted  by  the  engineers,  with  perfect  success.  On  the  signal 
beiny  given,  the  miners  communicated,  by  comiectiiig  wires,  the  electric 
spark  to  the  gunpowder  deposited  in  chambers  formed  in  the  cliff;  the 
earlii  trembled  for  half  a  mile  each  way  ;  a  stifled  report,  not  loud  but 
deep,  was  heard,  and  the  cliff,  extending  on  either  hand  to  five  hundred 
feet,  graau.;!!y  subsided  seaward;  in  a  few  seconds,  not  less  then  one 
million  tons  of  chalk  weru  ;l'«*Iodge(l  by  the  shock,  settling  into  the  sea 
below,  frothing  and  boiling  as  it  dispiacuu  the  liquid  element,  till  it  occu- 
pied the  expanse  of  many  iicres,  and  extended  outwurr^  on  its  ocean  bed 
to  a  distance  of  two  or  three  thousand  feet.  This  operatiup.  was  man- 
aged with  such  admirable  skill  and  precision,  that  it  would  appear  jubt  «i 
miiidi  of  the  cliff  was  removed  as  was  necessary  to  make  way  for  the  sea- 
wall, while  an  immense  saving  in  time  and  labour  was  also  effected. 

Now  that  we  have  trespassed  on  the  jjroviiiceof  art,  we  cannot  forbeai 
to  notice  that  wonderful  and  gigantic  undertaking,  the  Thames  tunnel 
For  twenty  years  that  stupendous  labour  had  been  going  on,  when  on  the 
25lh  of  May  it  was  opened  for  foot  passeii^fcrs,  at  one  penny  each.  At 
a  recent  meeting  of  the  proprietors,  a  vote  of  thanks  was  offered  to  the 
engineer  in  the  following  terms:  "That  the  cordial  thanks  and  congrat- 
ulation of  the  assembly  are  hereby  tendiircd  toSirlsamhert  Brunei,  F.  K.S., 
for  (he  distinguished  talent,  cii<;rgy,  and  perseverance  evinced  by  him 
m  the  design,  construction,  and  completion  of  the  Thames  ttiiiiiel,  a 
work  unprecedented  in  the  aimals  of  science  and  ingenuity,  and  exhibitiriij 
I  triumph  of  genius  over  physical  dillicultii.'.-i,  dei/larcd  by  some  of  the 


most  enligl 

was  coinii 

Tlianies,  ai 

granted  by 

the  total  ei 

On  the  2 

the  25tli  till 

tened  Alice 

gave  birth  I 

Calais,  it  hi 

On  the  2t 

of  Cainbridj 

reditary  gra 

pounds  per 

days  after  tl 

in  Carma 

novel  specie 

rendered  mil 

agricultural  i 

of  "  Itebecci 

payment  of 

for  the  abate 

of  the  poorlii 

no  little  shov 

pass  without 

it  usually  ha| 

pleted.  Rebec 

homes.     It  w 

but  we  shouk 

on  a  much  lai 

that  occurred 

town  of  Carii 

the  following] 

rioters  were  J 

with  one  in  f| 

and  from  sevc 

teen  abreast. 

had  pistols. 

ill  VVelsh,  ,,f  I 

Liberty."    0| 

'   'urt  in  front! 

timely  deinoll 

tlie  windows.! 

troop  of  the  J 

the  court  sucf 

dred  •mrl  fifty  I 

and  other  misl 

the  soldiers  vvT 

more  than  sii 

captors. 

Willi  respej 
session  was  J 
reading,  May! 
objects  of  the  I 
tithes  coinmulf 
suffrage  to  alL 
tenure — a  phij 
Ireland  from 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTOR'V. 


75T 


most  enlightened  men  of  the  age  to  be  insurmomitable."  This  great  wori 
was  commenced  in  18.i5,  but  stopped  in  1828  by  an  irruption  of  tin 
Thames,  and  no  further  progress  was  made  until  1835.  Loans  were  thei. 
granted  by  government,  and  the  works  were  uninterruptedly  continued, 
the  total  expense  being  t£446,000. 

On  the  21st  of  April,  his  royal  liighness  the  duke  of  Sussex  died.  On 
the  ii5tii  tiie  queen  was  safely  delivered  of  a  princess,  who  was  ehi  - 
tened  Alice  Maude  Mary.  And  on  the  same  afternoon  that  the  queen 
gave  birth  to  a  princess,  the  king  of  Hanover  arrived  in  London,  from 
Calais,  it  being  his  maji^siy's  first  visit  to  England  sir,L-e  his  accession. 

On  the  aath  of  June  the  princess  Augusta,  eldest  daughter  of  the  duke 
of  Cambridge,  was  married  to  his  royal  highness  Frederic  William,  he- 
reditary grand  duke  of  Mecklenburg-Strelitz.  A  grant  of  three  thousand 
pounds  per  annum  was  settled  on  her  by  tlie  government,  and  in  a  ('  w 
days  after  the  marriage  they  embarked  for  tlie  continent. 

In  Carmarthenshire  and  some  of  the  neighbouring  Welsh  counties,  p. 
novel  species  of  insurrection  liadkept  the  country  in  a  state  of  alarm,  and 
rendered  military  assistance  necessary.  (Jertain  small  farmers,  and  the 
agricultural  population  generally,  united  under  the  the  singular  appellatior 
of  "  Rebecca  and  her  daughters,"  for  the  avowed  object  cf  resisting  the 
payment  of  turnpike  tolls,  wliicli  were  notoriously  exorbitant  there,  anc 
for  the  abatement  of  certain  other  grievances — the  present  administration 
of  the  poor  laws  being  ainontfthe  number— of  which  they  loudly  and  with 
no  little  show  of  justice  complained.  Scarcely  anight  was  sufTered  to 
pass  without  the  removal  of  a  gate  or  the  demolition  of  a  toll-iiouse  j  and 
It  usually  happened  that  as  soon  as  the  work  of  destruction  was  com- 
pleted, Rebecca^  band  quietly  and  stealthily  dispersed  to  their  respective 
homes.  It  will  be  sufficient  to  give  merely  one  instance  of  these  riots ; 
but  we  should  remark  that  the  not  we  here  subjoin  an  account  of,  was 
on  a  much  larger  scale,  and  attended  with  more  serious  results,  than  any 
that  occurred  either  before  or  smee  : — They  were  expected  to  attack  the 
town  of  Carmarthen  on  Sunday  the  18th  of  .lune,  but  did  not  come.  On 
the  following  morning,  however,  at  1'2  o'clock,  several  thousand  of  the 
rioters  were  seen  approaching,  about  nine  hundred  being  on  horseback, 
with  one  in  front  disguised  with  a  woman's  curls,  to  represent  Rebecca, 
and  from  seven  to  eight  thousand  on  foot,  walking  about  fourteen  or  fif- 
teen abreast.  Every  man  was  armed  with  a  bluilgcon,  and  some  of  them 
had  pistols.  At  their  head  were  carried  two  banners,  bearing  inscriptions 
in  Welsh,  ;)f  "  Freedom,  Liberty,  and  Better  Feed;"  and  "  Free  Toll  and 
Liberty."  On  reaching  the  work-house,  they  broke  open  the  gates  of  the 
1  lurl  in  front,  and  having  gained  an  entrance  into  the  house,  they  inniie- 
(imely  demolished  the  furniture,  and  threw  the  beds  and  bedding  out  of 
the  windows.  While  they  were  thus  pursuing  the  work  of  destruction  a 
troop  of  the  4th  light  dragoons  arrived  from  Neath,  and  having  entered 
the  court  succeeded  in  taking  all  those  within  prisoners,  about  two  hun- 
dr'-"^  -'"d  fifty  in  number,  durniLi-  which  time  they  were  pelted  with  stones 
and  other  missiles.  The  riot  act  being  read,  and  a  cry  being  raised  that 
the  soldiers  were  going  to  charge,  tlie  mob  fled  in  every  direction,  leaving 
more  than  sixty  horses,  besides  the  above  prisoners,  in  the  hands  of  the 
captors. 

With  respect  to  the  proceedings  in  parliament,  a  great  portion  of  the 
session  was  occupied  in  opposing  the  "  Irish  arms  bill."  On  the  second 
reading.  May  the  20th,  the  attorney-general  lor  Ireland  declared  that  the 
objectsof  the  present  repeal  agitators  were,  first,  the  total  abolition  of  tlie 
tithes  coinmutation  rent-charge  ;  next,  the  extension  of  the  parliamentary 
BullVage  to  all  sane  male  adults  not  convicted  of  a  crime  ;  next,  fixity  oi 
tenure—a  phrase  me.uiiiig  the  transfer  of  the  whole  landed  property  of 
Ireland  from  the  landlord  to  the  teuan'. ;  and  some  other  extreme  profw- 


I 


Mil 

I 


760 


THR  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


sitions  of  the  samn  class.  The  measures  provided  by  this  bill  had  been 
in  existence  witii  little  Intermission  for  almost  a  century,  and  the  extreme 
avidity  shewn  by  the  Iriah  peasantry  for  the  possession  of  arms  proved 
its  necessity  to  be  most  urgent.  For  about'  a  month,  almost  every  alter- 
nate  evening  was  occupied  with  discussions  in  committee  on  the  said 
bill.  Afterwards  a  motion  was  brought  forward  by  Mr.  O'Urien  for  "  the 
rearess  of  grievances  in  Ireland,"  the  debate  on  which  was  again  and 
again  adjourned,  till  at  length  the  motion  was  negatived.  On  that  occa- 
sion, Sir  Robert  Peel  discussed  the  alledged  grievances  seriatim ;  and  in 
reply  to  an  observation  of  Lord  Howick's,  he  said  thai  the  Roman  catho- 
lics now  enjoyed  equal  civil  rights  with  the  othersubjectsof  the  crown,  and 
that  the  oaths  were  so  altered  that  the  oflTensive  portions  relating  to  Iran- 
substantiation  were  abolished.  "  I  am  asked,"  said  the  right  honourable 
baronet,  "  what  course  I  intend  to  pursue  !  '  Declare  your  course,'  is  the 
demand.  1  am  prepared  to  pursue  that  course  which  I  consider  I  have 
pursued,  namely,  to  administer  the  government  of  Ireland  upon  the  prin- 
ciples of  justice  and  impartiality.  1  am  prepared  to  recognize  the  princi- 
ple established  by  law,  that  there  shall  be  equality  of  civil  privileges.  I 
am  prepared  in  respect  of  the  franchise  to  give  a  substantial  and  not  a 
fictitio\is  right  of  suffrage.  In  respect  to  the  social  condition  of  Ireland 
we  are  prepared  also  to  consider  the  relations  of  landlord  and  tenant  de- 
liberately, and  all  the  important  questions  involved  therein.  With  respect 
to  the  established  church,  we  arc  not  prepared  to  make  one  alteration  in 
the  law  by  which  that  church  and  its  revenues  shall  be  im|)aired.  He 
was  not  ashamed  to  act  with  care  and  moderation  ;  and  if  the  necessity 
should  arise,  he  knew  that  past  forbearance  was  the  strongest  claim  to 
being  entrusted  with  fuller  powers  when  they  thought  proper  to  ask  for 
them."  On  the  iUh  of  August,  the  third  reading  of  the  Irish  arms  bill  was 
carried  by  a  u'.ajority  of  sixty-six.  Parliament  was  prorogued  on  the  24th 
August  liy  the  (jiicen  in  person ;  on  which  occasion  her  majesty  expressed 
herself  highly  gratiHed  with  the  advantageous  position  in  wliicli  the 
country  was  placed  by  the  successful  termination  of  the  war  in  China  and 
India,  and  with  the  assurances  of  perfect  amity  which  she  continued  to 
receive  from  foreign  powers. 

A.  n.  1H14. — The  events  of  this  year  are  so  recent  as  to  require  but 
slight  notice.  The  Irish  state  trials,  rt'sulling  in  the  imprisonment  and 
subs('(|uent  pardon  of  Daniel  O'tJoimell  .md  his  associate  traversers,  are 
familiar  to  all. — The  visit  of  the  emperor  of  Unssia  to  Queen  Vi('toria,  as 
well  as  her  trip  to  Krance,  Helgiuiii,  fie,  and  the  retii.-n  of  Ik  r  majesty's 
visit  by  Louis  Philippe  (after  an  absence  of  (juarter  of  a  century  from  the 
shores  of  Dritain)  may  be  chronicled  as  events  somclhiiig  more  than 
commonplace. — The  birth  of  another  prince,  in  August,  who  was  chris- 
tened Alfred  Kriiest  Allien,  is  also  of  gome  importance. — In  the  same  year 
died,  in  London,  Sir  F.  Hurdett,  aged  7i.,  of  whom  considerable  menliim 
has  been  made  in  this  history — About  the  same  time,  at  Hath,  (lied  Sir 
H.  S.  Fit/.gcrald,  vice-admiral  of  the  red. --At  Mothweil  castle,  Scotland, 
Lord  Douglass,  aged  71. — And  in  or  near  LDiidon,  the  lords  Nay  &  .Seal, 
(tra!"toii,  Keanc,  fiC. 

A.  n.  IHI.'i. — Tiie  year  commenced  auspiciouxly.  The  (jui-en's  o|)eiiing 
address  to  the  Ikiiiscs  of  iiariiament,  declared  her  entire  satisfaction  with 
the  aspect  of  ad'alrs,  both  domestic  and  foreign.  I''armiiig  interests,  man- 
jfactures,  and  traile,  were  iii  a  houikI  and  lloiiri^liing  coiiditiiin ;  and  the 
country  at  large  was  now  reaping  tlu^  wholesome  fruits  of  u  universal 
jieace.  Death,  however,  in  the  (Irst  ihr«!e  mtiiilhs  of  the  year,  cut  down 
lords  Morningtoii,  Aston,  and  VVynibr<l,  the  marquess  of  Westminster, 
and  Kev  Sidney  Snnili  — the  last  named  gentleman  bemg  (listmguJNlied 
as  one  of  the  ileaiest  and  best  of  llritish  writers,  us  well  as  u  |)owerful 
yet  unpretending  advocate  uf  humanity. 


ner, 
can  M 
was  1 

Laris 
The 
leadii 
latiiiui 
gatidii 
con  tin  I 
tradiiii, 
mis:lii 
wiihii 
On 
prince: 
Ear 
India, 
the 
HriiisI 
on  tli< 
with 
army, 
tlmnkii 
eslnldi 
A.  n. 
of  the 
failure 
•ind  (lit 


^-V 


THE  TREA8UKY  OF  IIISTORV. 


761 


A.  D.  1816. — This  will  always  be  regarded  as  an  important  year  in  the 
annals  of  English  history.  First,  it  was  a  witness  of  those  great  changes 
in  the  commercial  policy  of  England,  involved  in  the  repeal  of  the  Corn 
Laws,  and  the  triumph  of  the  friends  of  Free  Trade,  under  the  leadership 
of  Sir  Robert  Peel.  Early  in  the  preceding  December,  the  Cabinet,  at  the 
head  of  which  was  the  above-named  distinguished  statesman,  were  com- 
pelled to  resign  on  the  Corn  Law  question  ;  and  the  power  of  forming  a 
new  Miiiistry  was  entrusted  by  the  Queen  to  Lord  John  Russell.  His 
Lordship  being  unable  to  bring  together  one  of  concordant  materials.  Sir 
Robert  was  after  a  few  days  recalled.  The  session  of  Parliament  was 
opened  on  the  22d  of  January,  the  Queen  in  her  speech  strongly  recom- 
mending, among  other  topics,  a  reduction  of  the  Tariff;  and  on  the  27th, 
in  the  presence  of  a  crowded  house,  Sir  Robert  entered  upon  a  full  state- 
ment of  his  financial  scheme  relating  to  this  subject.  The  first  vote  upon 
the  question  was  taken  on  the  28ih  of  February,  when  the  views  of  the 
Premier  were  sustained  by  a  majority  of  97.  The  bill  was  subseciuently, 
amidst  much  opposition  from  the  landed  interests,  pressed  to  a  second  and 
third  reading,  passed  the  Commons,  and  late  in  June  received  the  sanction 
of  the  House  of  Lords. 

Simultaneously,  however,  with  the  success  of  the  Peel  ministry  in  re- 
gard 10  the  Corn  Laws,  came  their  defeat  on  the  Irish  Coercion  Bill. 
This  took  place  on  the  25th  of  June,  there  appearing  against  the  govern- 
ment, on  a  division,  a  majority  of  73.  Sir  Robert  and  his  colleagues  im- 
mediately resigned  office,  and  a  new  iVlinistry  was  formed  under  Lord  John 
Russell. 

The  second  great  event  we  may  notice,  was  the  settlement  of  the  long- 
alaiidiiig  dispute  with  the  United  States  in  regard  to  the  boundary  of  the 
Oregon  territory.  A  ([uestion  that  had,  at  various  stages  of  its  discussion, 
occiisioned  much  agitation— that  had  long  been  attempted  in  vain  to  be 
adjusted  by  negotiation,  or  by  a  reference  to  some  friendly  power  for  arbi- 
tration— was  linally  decided  in  a  peaceful  and  mutually  satisfactory  man- 
ner, hy  a  treaty  ratified  by  Lord  Paliuerston  and  Mr.  McLane,  the  Ameri- 
can Minister,  on  the  17th  of  July,  at  the  Foreign  Office.  The  intelligence 
was  announced  the  same  day,  in  the  House  of  Lords,  by  the  Marcjuis  of 
Lansilowe.  and  in  the  Commons,  by  the  Minister  of  the  Foreign  Ollice. 
The  treaty  had  iireviously  been  sanctioned  by  the  American  Senate.  Its 
leading  features  were,  a  division  of  the  territory  hy  the  I'Jth  parallel  of 
latitude,  giving,  however,  Vancouver's  Island  to  (rreat  Britain  ;  free  navi- 
gation of  the  Columliia  river  liy  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company,  during  the 
continuance  of  its  Charter:  indemnity  to  said  Conipany  lor  all  forts  and 
trading  stations  sdUth  of  iH'^ ;  and  also,  indemnity  to  British  suhjei-is  who 
miaht  wish  to  almnilon  their  jiroperiy  south  of  that  line,  and  remove 
within  British  jurisdiciion. 

On  the  25th  of  .Alay,  of  this  year,  her  Majesty  was  delivered  of  a 
princess. 

Early  in  the  year,  intelligence  was  received  of  a  sanguinary  battle  in 
India,  with  the  Sikhs,  iiiiiahitinir  the  I'unjauli,  which  continued  through 
the  l:.'tli,  i;<iii,  and  llili  of  the  orevious  December,  and  in  whioh  .'MUM) 
British  and  native  troops  were  Killed  and  wounded,  with  an  estimated  loss, 
on  the  part  of  the  enemy,  of  iid.dtHt.  This  creat  victory  was  received 
with  marked  ejithusia-m  ;  the  thanks  of  Parliament  were  voted  the  Indian 
army,  and  a  form  of  prnver,  composed  by  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury, 
thanking  (Jod  lor  his  favourable  interposition,  was  offered  up  in  all  the 
established  clmrches  of  the  kingdom. 

A.  II.  is|7.— The  prominent  events  of  this  year  relate  to  the  operation 
of  tlie  new  mca'-ures  of  government  upon  the  suhjeci  of  the  tarilf;  the 
failure  of  the  potato  crop  in  Ireland,  and  the  con»ei|uent  iippallinu  famine 
.Hid  distress  which  prevailed  there;  the  coimuercial  revulsion  which  took 


762 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


place  in  England  about  the  middle  of  the  year,  causing  the  failure  of  the 
Bank  of  Liverpool,  and  of  a  large  number  of  the  oldest  and  most  extensive 
mercantile  houses ;  ending,  at  the  close  of  the  year,  with  an  abundant 
harvest,  and  a  restoration  of  public  confidence  and  prosperity. 

Long  before  the  close  of  the  previous  year,  the  voice  of  distress  was 
heard  from  Ireland,  which  eventually  grew  into  a  univerfal  cry  of  anguish 
and  des,-air.  .'it  the  opening  of  Parliament,  on  the  19ih  of  Januiiry,  her 
Majesty  recommended  thai  the  ports  be  immediately  opened  for  the  free 
adtiiissicn  of  foreign  corn  of  every  kind,  and  the  suspension  of  the  naviga- 
tion laws.  Notwithstanding,  however,  the  most  liberal  and  energetic 
measures,  both  on  the  part  of  government  and  of  private  individuals,  the 
famine  continued  to  spread,  and  the  records  of  the  year  present  the  most 
heart-rending  details  of  sutfering,  disease,  and  death,  among  the  Irish  pea- 
santry. Contributions  for  the  relief  of  the  sufferers  were  received  from 
various  <|uarters  ;  and  none  distinguished  themselves  more  for  their  benev- 
olence, than  did  the  United  Slates  of  Atk.erica,  at  that  sad  crisis. 

Her  Majesty,  this  year,  |)aid  a  vii'-.  'o  Hpr  Scutch  subjects,  and  was 
everywhere  received  with  the  most  '.'■.  <  •.  onsiraiions.  The  year  is 
also  remarkable,  as  being  that  which  '•  >'  .■  ■  ihe  death  of 'the  celebrat- 
ed Irish  repealer,  Daniel  O'Connell.  lent  took  place  at  Genua, 
May  loih,  whither  he  was  travelling  for  his  healih.  He  directed,  at  his 
death,  ibat  his  heart  should  be  deposited  at  Rome,  and  his  body  reiuriied 
to  Ireland  for  burial,  which  was  faiiblully  executed. 

Parliameni  was  dissolved  in  person  liy  the  Queen,  on  the  22d  of  July, 
to  re-assemble  un  the  Ihih  of  November,  ■  i  a  largely  increased  majori- 
ty on  the  side  of  ihe  governinent,  as  a  res       of  the  intervening  eleciiuns, 

A.  11. 1S48. — The  history  of  1848,  was  eiii|ihatically  one  of  internal  distur- 
bance throughout  the  kiiigdum.  The  spirit  of  revolution  whieb  burst 
forth  in  France  in  February,  causing  the  abdication  of  Louis  Philli|re,  and 
the  proclamation  of  a  Republic,  and  which  was  communicated  lo  iiuarly 
every  kincdom  of  Europe,  also  displayed  itself  in  ihc  most  serious  out- 
brcaKs  in  Ireland,  and  in  manil'euiniions  of  |)opular  discontent  tbrdUf^liout 
Eiigiuiul  and  Scuihind.  On  ibe  lOth  day  of  April,  took  place  in  Luiulon, 
the  great  Chartist  demonsiration.  An  iiiimeiise  |)rucessioit,  Jjeariiisr  a  peti- 
tion signed,  as  Mr.  Feargus  0'<^onnur  declared  in  his  phu-e  in  ilie  ll(juse 
of  CoiiiMKins,  by  .'),76(),(l(ifl  persons,  rnnrclu'd  ihrou^>li  the  slreets  ul'  the 
iiietr(jpolis,  with  tlaijs  and  banners,  sreaily  to  the  alarm  of  ihe  ciii/ciis, 
who  apprehended  a  scene  of  popular  violence  as  the  result.  The  iilliiir 
jiassed  off  ijuielly,  however,  and  ihe  defeiisive  iirraMiieiiienls  of  ihe  govirii- 
meiii  were  noi  cnlled  into  requisition.  The  petiiion  prayed  I'l  r  aiuuuil 
parliamenis,  universal  sulfrnge,  vole  by  balloi,  ei|uiil  eleciornl  disiricis,  no 
]iroperiy  ipialilicntioii,  and  payment  of  members  of  I'nrlianieiit  :  lor  ilie 
pri'vnliiicr,  in  short,  of  CliHrtisi  principles.  Tliouch  ibis  demoiisirHiioii 
was  allowed  lo  pn^s  wilhoui  inlerruption,  other  ealherinps  of  a  more  vio- 
lent anil  iiisurrcr-iiiinary  eliaracier  aiiracied  the  aiieiiiion  of  govt  riiiiieni, 
and  resulted  in  the  trial  and  irans|iorialioii  of  a  number  of  the  lender)) 
engaged  in  them. 

Meantime  sediiion  reigned  in  Ireland,  the  people  under  their  leaders 
resorting  to  arms  and  tlirealetiing  civil  war,  if  ilieir  wishes  in  regiird  lo  it 
repeal  of  the  Union  were  not  an-eded  lo.  To  meet  the  eiiiergelicy,  l,'ov- 
ernment  ordered  a  Inrfe  iiddiiimal  body  of  iroupK  into  Ireland,  while  the 
IcM-al  ciinstiiliuliilory  force  was  pr()|)oriiiinalely  increased.  The  insurreciion 
was  linally  i|U('lled  by  the  arrest  of  the  proiiiineiil  lenders,  Mitchell, 
O'Mrien,  MciNInnus,  Mea;;lier,  O'Ponohiie.  mid  (cliers,  who  were  tried  anil 
rondemncd  in  denih  :  a  sentence  whii'h  was  subKe(|Uenily  commuted  to 
irnnspoi'iiition  for  life. 

Her  Majesty,  on  the  IHth  of  March,  was  deliviTMl  of  another  princens  ; 
and  111   'he  autumn  repeated  her  visit  to  Ncolland.     Anions  (he  noiuhle 


/' 


«ii(ii 
re?i|. 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


763 


lUllTH 
ll    III   II 

,  miv- 
ilf  lllf 

rri'lioil 

iilu'll, 

ll  ami 

iJlrd    ll' 

liiccii* ; 

iiolltlili.' 


deaths  of  tliis  year,  we  may  mention  that  of  D'Israeli,  the  author  of 
"  ('urii)»ities  of  Literaiure,"  at  the  advanced  age  of  82;  also,  of  Lord 
Ashlmrton,  the  negotiator  of  the  treaty  with  America  bearing  that  name, 
on  the  1  Ith  of  May. 

A.  I'.  1819. — Parliament  was  opened  by  the  Queen  in  person,  early  in 
Fi'lirunry,  and  iliu  general  interests'  of  the  country  at  the  commencement 
of  tliL' year  wore  an  encouraging  uspeci.  In  the  manufacturing  districts, 
liiid  ill  most  departments  of  trade  and  commerce,  increasing  activity  pre- 
Viiik'd.  As  the  summer,  however,  progressed,  that  dreadful  scourge,  the 
(/'hnlern,  which  had  prevailed  in  England  to  some  ixier.t  the  preceding 
year,  broke  forth  with  terrible  violence  in  the  larser  cities  of  the  kingdom, 
enUning  great  public  alarm,  and  m  a  measure  alfecting  unfavourably  the 
industry  and  business  of  all  classes.  Tiie  mortality  attending  the  disease 
WIIK  most  appalling,  in  some  localities  reaching  as  high  as  1,000  deaths  a 
week. 

An  attempt  on  the  life  of  the  Queen  was  made  on  the  19ih  of  April. 
Her  IMnjesty  was  returning  in  company  with  Prince  Albert,  from  a  ride  in 
Hyde  Park,  in  an  open  carriage,  when  a  perMJii  wearing  the  dress  of  a 
liiJiurer,  presented  a  pistol  at  her  person.  Belure  lie  rould  carry  his  con- 
liMiiplated  act  of  violence  into  effect,  the  miscreant  was  seized  by  some  of 
ihc  park-kcejuTs  and  soldiery  near,  and  taken  away  under  arrest.  He 
proved  to  be  an  Irisbman,  by  the  name  of  John  Hamilton,  aged  about  35, 
mid,  apparently,  in  a  rational  state  of  mind. 

Ilcr  Miiiesty  this  year  paid  her  long  contemplated  visit  to  Ireland,  arriv- 
ing nl  Cork  on  the  2d  of  August.  Her  presence  was  everywhere  greeted 
with  enthusiiism  by  her  Irish  subjects.  The  rival  party  visited  Kingstown, 
lliiblin,  and  Belfast,  and  were  received  by  the  auiiori.ies,  nobility,  and 
jioiiiiliire,  with  every  demonstration  of  loyal  resard, 

Inlelligenre  of  the  outbreak  in  Canada,  which  occurred  on  iheS'ithof 
April,  and  involved  the  burning  of  the  Parliament  imildinus  and  other  acts 
ol  popiilnr  violence,  was  received  and  laid  before  Parliament,  on  the  l.'ith 
ci(  May,  At  a  later  period  of  the  year,  public  attention  was  drawn  to  the 
I'lloriMof  a  small  portion  of  her  MajeRly  s  subjects  in  Canada,  in  liivour  of 
Uimexing  ihat  colony  to  the  roiled  Slates.  An  address  was  issued,  ndvo- 
Citlimj  II  separation  from  the  mother  country,  on  terms  of  amity  and  mutual 
nureemeiil.  But  the  friends  of  the  project  proved  too  inconsiderable  in 
liiiiiibrrs  and  influence  to  impress  these  views  very  extensively  upon  the 
jiiibllc  mind. 

I-'rom  India,  came  news  of  a  disastrous  battle  in  |lie  I'linjanb,  in  which 
Ihc  British  forces  suffered  a  loss  of  ^.TiOO  iiumi.  iuuI  maily  H'O  general 
ollli'cifi,  The  aririy  was  commanded  by  Lord  (imi^'h,  wlici  was  at  once 
limprndrd,  and  Sir  Cir.irles  Napier  seal  out  to  supply  his  pliice. 

Willi  coiiiparative  ipiiet  at  lidine,  the  govenioient  were  ciillrd  upon  to 
ri'uiird  with  watchfulness  the  progress  ol  allairs  on  the  Coiiiimni.  The 
iluiiituriHii  war,  and  the  bumbardment  of  Hume  by  the  French,  were 
liinilero  of  too  eM'iii')!.'  and  imp'rianl  a  naiure  in  their  beiirings  lo  be 
ovrrliMiktd  :  and  the  diplomacy  of  the  foreign  ollice  was  celled  into  active 
lixcrci'i' dllrinir  this  period. 

A.  l>.  I*^'<'.  Parliament  was  convened  on  the  Mist  of  .Tanuary,  and  the 
upecrh  Irnm  ilir  Ihriine  delivered  by  proxy.  An  atiempl  was  niiide  iii  the 
early  pan  nf  the  session,  to  restore,  in  a  measure,  the  system  of  protective 
(Julie",  liiit  it  was  destined  to  defeat.  Prominent  among  the  events  which 
»tlfimli/iil  ilie  vear,  was  the  affair  with  C recce,  which  grew  out  nf  the 
refil«iil  of  ihat'coveriiment  to  make  repiiration  for  losses  siisininid  by  cer- 
Iniii  llniisli  siibjecf  residinc  in  that  kingdom.  The  pmperty  of  these 
iiidividiiaU  had  i.i.-n  seized,  and  their  residences  invaded  by  the  populace; 

b nil  ilemaiiils  lor  redress,  the  government  of  (irrece  turned  a  deal  ear, 

Uiiiil   force   was  necessarily  resorted  to,  her  ports  bluckailed,  and  a  bom- 


764 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


I)8fdment  threatened.  The  demandsof  Great  Britain  were  finally  acceded 
tOi  But  in  the  meantime,  France  having  ofTercd  her  mediation  in  the 
(Jontfoversy,  and  Russia  regarding  with  a  jealous  eye  the  doctrine  of  pro- 
toeiion  to  British  subjects  residing  in  foreign  countries,  as  understood  and 
UphchI  l)y  Britain,  a  misunderstanding  arose  with  those  governments, 
wliicl;  for  a  lime  wore  a  somewhat  threatening  aspect.  The  dispute  was, 
by  the  firmness  and  diplomacy  of  the  Foreign  Office,  eventually  brought 
to  n  settlement. 

The  domestic  incidents  of  the  year  were  both  varied  and  interesting. 
Fofetimst  among  them  may  be  mentioned  the  birth  ot  a  Prince  on  the 
asth  ol  April,  to  whom  was  given  the  name  of  "  Arthur  William  Patrick 
Alhe.t." 

On  the  27th  of  June,  a  dastardly  and  unprecedented  assault  was  made 
on  the  yueen.  while  riding  in  an  open  carriage.  A  discharged  officer, 
tininrd  Itober.  Pate,  was  tlie  assailant.  With  a  cane  he  inflicted  a  blow, 
which  cut  thnugh  her  Majesty's  bonnet  and  slightly  wounded  her  lore- 
head,  lie  was  immediately  arrested  by  the  bystanders,  and.  it  being 
proved  that  he  was  subject  to  turns  of  insanity,  was  merely  sentenced  to 
transportation  for  seven  years. 

The  :.'d  ol  July  witnessed  an  event  which  produced  a  profound  sensa- 
tion, not  only  in  Britain,  but  hroughout  the  world.  We  allude  to  the 
death  of  the  distinguished  statesman.  Sir  Robert  Peel.  The  ex-premier 
inid,  on  the  ^Oih  of  June,  been  to  pay  his  respects  to  the  Queen  at  Buck- 
itiehnm  I'niace  ;  on  his  return,  he  was  accidentally  thrown  from  hi?  horse, 
Biid  so  siriously  injured  that  all  medical  aid  proved  unavailing  for  his  re- 
covery. He  exjjired  on  the  night  of  July  2d,  after  passing  through  much 
suH'erinsf.  The  proceedings  in  Parliament  in  view  of  ihe  event,  and  the 
Kencni!  jmblic  demonstrations  of  grief,  attested  to  tl'e  great  popularity  and 
eiiiineni  reputation  oi  the  deceased.  A  public  funeral,  jirofTered  by  the 
governiiit'iil,  was  declined  in  accordance  with  the  previou!^ly  expressed 
Wi?!|ies  of  Sir  Robert,  and  he  was  committed  without  display  or  pump,  to 
(he  fiiiiiily  vault  at  Tamworih.  iSir  Robert  Peel  was  born  on  'lu  5ih  of 
February,  178S,  and  was  therefore  G2  years  of  age  at  the  time  of  his 
dentil. 

No  siHiesinan  of  late  years  has  wielded  the  influence  which  was  pos- 
gefsscd  |py  ilie  subject  of  these  remarks.  For  forty  years  he  was  a  member 
of  llir  House  of  L'oinniuns;  and  whether  acting  in  this  capacity,  or  as  a 
Bubonliiiiuc  member  of  the  Cabinet,  or  as  Premier,  he  always  dis]ilayed 
the  resources  of  a  gil'ied  mind,  and  has  left  a  I.Tsting  impress  upon  the  age. 
(iriKMiiilly  ilie  advocate  of  the  views  of  the  Tory  parly,  his  foresight  and 
pruilciicc  ciialiled  him  to  disfern  how  far  ii  was  Mile  to  go,  and  led  him  to 
the  adnpiioii  of  (lioie  wise  ('(Jiicessions  which  marked  the  history  of  his 
rareer.  Thus,  from  heiiiu  its  opponent  for  eleven  years,  he  became  the 
advoi'aie  of  ihe  Bullion  law  ;  Iruiii  opposing,  he  eveiiiiuilly  gave  his  warm 
RUppori  to  ihe  Catholic  Eiiiaiici|)ation  bill ;  and  from  being  for  a  third  of  a 
century  ii  firm  proteciioiii»i,  his  was  the  very  arm  which  linally  dealt  the 
(leath-idow  to  ihe  Corn  Laws,  and  (jpened  the  ports  of  Britain  to  free  trade. 
In  the  (leiiih  of  .^ir  Itobert,  England  was  deprived  of  her  greatest  siates- 
liinn  ami  wisest  counsellor.  A  monument  to  his  memory  was  ordered  by 
fhr  goveriiiiieiit  to  be  erected  in  Wesiminsier  Abbey. 

On  ilie  2i)ili  of  this  monili.  Baron  Kothscliitd,  who  had  been  returned  to 
llip  ii'iu^e  of  (,'ommuns  from  London,  made  formal  claim  to  his  seat  in 
thai  body,  and  demanded  to  be  sworn  on  the  Old 'I'eMament.  This  was 
the  liffit  iiisiance  in  wliicli  a  Jew  had  ever  been  elected  to  Parliameiii,  and 
the  iiiivelly  of  the  event,  combined  with  the  cxiraordinary  demand  just 
nihiilcil  to,  created  no  little  public  excitement.  The  subject  was  debated, 
ni  grtiii  ienutli.aiid  its  linal  deterininalion  jxisiponed  lo  the  next  session. 

Uiiu  of  those  popular  exhibitions  of  aversion  lu  tyrants  and  their  tools, 


to 

in 

vns 

ind 

Lj. 

111. 

Lis, 


THE  TREASUKY  OF  HISTORY. 

which  occasionally  will  occur  among  honest-hearted  Englishmen,  accus- 
totiied  the  nselves  to  liberty  and  just  rule,  took  place  in  London  in  Septem- 
ber, on  the  occasion  of  the  visit  of  the  Austrian  General,  Haynau,  to  the 
metropolis.  General  Haynau  had,  as  Commander  of  the  Austrian  forces 
in  the  Hun;,'arian  war,  acquired  an  infamous  reputation  for  the  cruilty  of 
his  treatment  towards  his  Hungarian  captives,  and  the  general  severity  of 
his  measures  during  the  Campaign.  Being  in  London,  he  chose  to  visit 
the  extensive  brewery  establishment  of  Messrs,  Barclay  &  Co.,  when,  his 
presence  becoming  known  to  the  workmen,  he  was  assniled,  driven  from 
the  premises,  and,  but  for  the  police,  would  hardly  have  escaped  the  fury 
of  his  pursuers.  The  event  elicited  much  newspaper  comment,  public 
opinion  for  the  most  part  sustaining  the  honest  act  of  indignation  on  the 
part  of  the  populace;  while  the  General  very  shortly  left  the  kinjrdom,  to 
seek  an  atmosphere  more  congenial  to  the  agents  of  tyrannic  cruelty  tmd 
oppression. 

Her  Majesty,  this  year,  paid  a  visit  to  Belgium,  and  also  renewed  her 
visit  to  Scotland. 

In  reviewing  the  Parliamentary  measures  of  the  year,  we  find  nothing 
of  striking  interest  accomplished,  although  a  variety  of  bills  for  social  and 
political  reform,  among  them  one  for  abolishing  the  Viceroyalty  in  Ireland, 
were  introduced  and  discussed.  Parliament  was  prorogued  on  the  loth 
of  August.* 

In  November,  an  event  of  unusual  interest  occurred,  which  agitated  the 
public  mind  in  England  to  a  high  degree — it  being  no  less  than  the  esiab- 
lishment  by  the  Pope  of  Roman  Catholic  jurisdiction  in  England.  This 
matter  met  with  indignant  opposition,  and  Protestantism  was  seriously 
startled  by  its  bearing  and  tendency.  As  it  came  to  be  more  fully  under- 
stood, however,  it  was  seen  that  the  act  involved  no  interference  wiih  the 
temporal  powers  of  the  government,  and  the  excitement  has  since  measur- 
ably subsided,  although  Catholic  influence  continues  to  be  regarded  with 
unusual  watchfulness. 

Among  the  deaths  of  eminent  personages,  ir.,iy  be  chronicled  thai  of  the 
distinguished  poet-laureate,  William  VVordsworih,  which  occurred  on  the 
23d  of  April,  of  this  year.     His  age  was  81. 

A.  D.  1851. — The  opening  of  the  session  of  Parliament  took  place  on  the 
4th  of  February.  Among  the  first  acts,  was  ilie  introduction,  liy  Lord 
John  Russell,  of  a  bill  relating  to  the  Catholic  l^ccleslnstical  question.  It 
imposed  a  penalty  of  .t'lOO  for  the  assumpliiii  by  Catholic  prelates  of 
titles  to  existing  sees  in  any  city  or  place  in  ihc  kingdom,  and  renders  the 
acts  of  such  prelates  under  such  titles  without  efTect. 

On  the  21st  of  the  month,  the  Cabinet  having  sustained  a  defeat  on  the 
question  of  extending  the  elective  franchise  to  the  occupiers  of  tenements 
of  the  value  of  X\i),  in  the  counties  as  well  as  in  boroughs,  resigned 
oflice.  S',  veral  days  wcr.»  spent  in  a  fruitless  endeavor  to  form  a  new  min- 
istry ;  when  Lord  John  Russel  was  recalled,  and  resumed  office  with  a 
cabinet  slightly  re-constructed. 

We  cannot  betier  close  our  summary  of  events  for  the  year,  ab  far  as  we 
have  it  in  our  power  to  extend  it,  than  by  noticing  the  great  event  of  the 
age— the  Industrial  Exliil'ition  in  progress  in  London,— thn  prepnratijns 
for  which  have  occupied  the  public  mind  for  a  year  past. 


766 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


THE  CRYSTAL  PALACE. 

The  origin  of  this  retnariiable  building  is  generally  understood.  The 
idea  was  broached,  early  in  the  yea'  1850,  of  getting  up  an  extensive 
Industrial  Exhibition,  in  which  all  the  nations  of  the  world  should  be  in- 
vited to  participate,  by  contributing  thereto  specimens  of  their  respective 
productions,  both  natural  and  ariificidl.  But  a  difficulty,  and  a  serious 
one  too,  arose  in  regard  to  the  kind  of  an  edifice  adapted  to  such  a  pur- 
pose. A  structure  that  should  be  at  once  light,  yet  substantial,  cheap,  yet 
imposing,  was  what  was  evidently  needed  ;  but  any  building  composed  of 
the  ordinary  naterials,  and  after  the  prevailing  architectural  modes,  would 
not  answer  these  demands,  especially  when  the  required  dimensions  of  the 
place  of  exhibition  were  taken  into  account.  After  much  deKLeraiion, 
and  the  examination  and  rejection  of  a  variety  of  plans  submitted  to  the 
Building  Coinmittev?  by  eminent  architects,  the  difficulty  v  at  lengt  i 
solved  by  Mr.  Joseph  Paxton,  Horticulturist  to  the  Duke  Jevonshire, 
who  conceived  the  idea  of  a  building  to  be  constructed  ol  iron  anti  glass, 
upon  the  model  of  a  small  conservatory  which  he  had  had  occasion  to 
erect  upon  the  ^"f^'inds  entrusted  to  his  charge.  The  plan  of  such  a 
building  was  soon  arranged  by  him,  and  was  no  sooner  submitted  to  the 
judgment  of  the  Committee,  than  it  was  adopted  as  being  precisely  the 
thing  demanded  by  the  emergency.  The  work  whs  immediately  put 
under  contract,  and  in  five  months  from  the  time  of  fixing  upon  a  site  for 
its  ereciion,  the  edifice  was  complete  in  all  its  parts.  The  materials  were 
all  cast  and  fitted  at  Birmingham,  and  had  simply  to  be  put  together  when 
brought  on  to  the  ground.  The  quantity  of  glass  used  is  said  to  amount 
to  1, iiOO, 0(10  square  feet ;  iron,  4,500  tons  ;  besides  24  miles  of  one  descrip- 
tion of  gutter,  and  I.MS  miles  of  sash-bar.  The  accompanying  engravinj^,  a 
faithful  represeniaiion  of  the  building,  executed  by  one  of  the  best  artists 
in  the  country,  will  afford  the  reader  a  just  idea  of  the  appearance  of  the 
Crystal  Palace.  It  is  situated  in  Hyde  Park,  and  thus  derives  additional 
inijiressiveness  from  the  beauty  of  its  locality,  and  the  convenient  extent 
of  the  surrounding  unoccupied  grounds. 

A  few  general  statements  as  to  the  extent  and  arrangement  of  this  won- 
derful structure  may  be  read  with  interest.  Its  length  exceeds  a  third  of 
a  mile,  or  in  exact  figures,  1851  feet;  witii  a  breadih  of  456  feet  on  the 
ground.  There  are  three  series  of  elevations  lo  the  building  ;  the  first  24 
feet  liiuh,  the  second  44,  anil  the  third  04  ;  while  ilirough  the  middle,  as 
will  he  seen  by  referring  to  the  engraving,  there  runs  a  transept  72  feet 
wide,  with  a  secnicircular  roof,  which  attains  in  the  centre  to  the  height 
of  108  feel,  and  encloses  a  row  of  trees  growing  in  iheir  natural  slate. 
Besides  the  ground  floor,  which  covers  a  superficies  of  18  acres,  there  are 
tiers  of  galleries  containing  an  aria  of  217,100  square  feet,  and  hanging- 
space,  for  the  display  of  articles,  to  the  amount  of  500,000  square  feet. 
Such  are  the  dimensions  of  the  Crystal  Palace,  affording  estimaied  room 
for  nine  miles  of  tables;  and  when  to  this  he  added  the  various  contrivan- 
ces for  ventilation,  for  carrying  oflT  rain-water,  and  the  internal  arriuige- 
ments  for  passing  about  the  building,  and  for  subserving  the  general  i)ur- 
poses  of  its  erection,  the  observer  fails  not  to  be  impressed  with  tlie  vast 
magnitude  of  the  undertaking,  and  with  the  forecast  and  skill  evinced  by 
its  projectors. 


mm" 


THE  TREASURY  OF  HISTORY. 


767 


won- 
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;d 


This  splendid  structure  having  been  completed,  the  great  Exhibition 
was  opened  by  the  Queen_  in  person,  on  the  1st  of  May.  The  cere- 
monies, which  took  place  in'  the  presence  of  a  large  assembly  of  persons, 
were  exceedingly  interesting  and  novel.  Everything  having  been  got  in 
readiness  by  the  exhibitors,  and  the  crowd  of  spectators  admitted  within 
the  premises,  at  noon  her  Majesty  arrived  in  state,  and  amidst  the  per- 
formance of  the  national  anthem  of  "God  save  the  Queen,"  assumed  her 
place  on  the  throne  erected  for  the  occasion.  There  were  also  assembled 
the  officers  of  state,  foreign  ambassadors,  and  other  officials.  An  address 
was  read  to  her  Majesty,  by  Prince  Albert,  Chairman  of  the  Commission- 
ers ;  to  which  her  Majesty  responded  in  a  gracious  manner,  felicitating  all 
concerned,  upon  the  successful  result  of  their  efforts,  and  expressing  a 
warm  approval  of  the  objects  aimed  at  in  the  undertaking.  The  Arch- 
bishop of  Canterbury  then  offered  up  a  prayer,  which  was  succeeded  by 
an  anthem.  A  proceission  was  then  formed,  at  the  head  of  which  walked 
the  rojal  party  ;  after  performing  the  circuit  of  the  building,  and  return- 
ing again  to  the  point  of  departure,  her  Majesiy  declared  the  Exhibition 
formally  opened,  an  announcement  which  was  received  by  the  firing  of 
cannon,  and  the  cheers  of  the  multitude  assembled  without. 

As  a  source  of  revenue,  to  defray  the  expenses  of  the  construction  of  the 
Palace  (  €150,000),  and  other  accruing  charges,  the  prices  for  admission 
were  fixed  by  the  Commissioners  of  the  Exhibition  at  three  guineas  for  a 
season  ticket  for  a  gentleman,  and  two  guineas  lor  a  lady  ;  and  none  but 
the  holders  of  season  tickets  to  be  admitted  at  the  opening.  On  the  two 
days  succeeding,  a  charge  of  twenty  shillings ;  on  the  fourth  day,  five 
shillings  ;  to  be  reduced  on  the  22d  day,  to  one  shilling,  and  so  continue, 
except  on  Fridays  and  Saturdays,  when  a  somewhat  larger  fee  should  be 
demanded.  From  the  day  of  the  opening  of  the  Exhibition,  it  has  been 
numerously  visited  by  all  classes  of  the  population,  from  her  Majesty 
down  to  tiie  humblest  subject,  and  by  thousands  from  foreign  countries 
who  have  been  attracted  hither  by  the  novel  and  imposing  spectacle, 

W'iihoui  devoting  a  volume  to  the  subject,  it  would  be  an  idle  undertaking 
to  give  anything  like  a  satisiactory  description  of  the  wondert'ul  display 
to  be  witnessed  within  the  walls  of  the  Crystal  Palace.  The  productions 
of  nearly  every  country  on  the  face  of  the  globe,  some  of  them  of  the 
most  costly  and  magnificent  description,  are  here  collected  and  tastefully 
arranged  to  the  eye  of  the  beholder.  From  the  farihest  East  to  ilie  ex- 
treme West— from  Europe,  Asia,  Africa,  and  Amerinii— have  come  up  the 
samples  of  man's  industry  and  skill,  to  be  placed  side  hy  side  in  honora- 
ble comparison  and  generous  competition,  liven  the  i^lesof  ilie  sea  have 
sqnt  their  humble  oflferings  to  swell  the  grand  collection.  China  is  here 
with  her  beautiful  porcelain— India  with  her  curious  fabrics— Persia  with 
her  shawls  and  carpets— Ceylon  with  her  elephant  tusks  California  with 
her  gold  -and  in  juxtaposition  with  the  products  of  Barbaric  splendor 
stand  ihe  varied,  and  beautiful,  and  useful  contributions  from  every  staie 
of  Europe  and  America— inonun-ents  of  the  power,  the  skill,  the  ingenu- 
ity, and  taste,  which  civilization  and  knowledge  imparts  to  its  possessors. 
With  all  the  rest  are  j  collection  of  the  most  valuable  diamonds,  precious 
stones,  and  jewels,  known  to  exist  in  the  world,— amom:  the  first  named, 
the  great  Koh-i-noor,  or  "Mountain  of  liiiihl,"  a  diLmond  whose  value 
is  variously  esiimaicd  at  from  t;i,500,000,  to  .£.'3,l)iiO,()(iO.  Imagine  the 
effect  which  this  wondrous  exhibition— all  this  dazzling  splendor— must 
produce  on  the  mind  of  the  observer.  And— what  is  a  still  more  prcjfitable 
reflection— consider  tlie  results  which  may  be  legitimately  expected  to 
How  from  the  whole— the  interchange  of  acuie  thought  and  observation, 
the  quickening  impulse  to  mutual  advance  in  the  road  of  national  improve- 
ment and  prosperity ! 


